Recent pieces address work requirements for food stamps, deportation of Haitians, evidence on prescription heroin, and more.
One of the many reasons policymakers often give for restricting abortion access is that the procedure causes depression. A new study finds no evidence of such claims.
Addiction & Substance Abuse
For newborns with opioid withdrawal, forgoing intensive care and rooming with mom may be best
One of the more heartbreaking ripple effects of America’s opioid addiction epidemic is a massive increase in newborns experiencing drug withdrawal. Public health officials have tracked a 400 percent increase in such cases — technically known as neonatal abstinence syndrome — with one impacted baby born every 25 minutes as of 2012.
Health Equity
Worth reading: Life-threatening illness, bargaining chips, and “a president who loathes the civil service”
Recent pieces address different outcomes for those who face potentially fatal conditions, treating women’s lives as bargaining chips, the fate of science — and one specific analysis of tipped workers’ income — under the Trump administration, and more.
Children's Health
Study finds big differences in infant mortality within Texas cities and between its ZIP codes
As a state, Texas’ infant mortality rate is below the national average, at 5.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births. But within the state, some communities experience much higher rates, with stark differences between ZIP codes sitting only a few miles apart.
Articles on the public-health toll from hurricanes, plus pieces on DACA, hookworm, and “President Trump’s War on Science.”
By now, the enormity of America’s opioid abuse and overdose epidemic is common knowledge. With 78 Americans dying every day from an opioid overdose and with enough painkillers prescribed to give just about every U.S. adult their own bottle of pills, there’s hardly a community that’s gone untouched by the deadly problem. And a new study reminds us that we’ll be dealing with the aftermath far into the future.
Affordable Care Act
More than 1 million mothers gain health insurance, thanks to the Affordable Care Act
Just in time for Mother’s Day comes more good news from the Affordable Care Act: the rate of uninsured moms caring for kids younger than 19 has dropped to its lowest rate in nearly 20 years.
About one in every 10 U.S. children is living with asthma — that’s closing in on 7 million kids. And while we have a good handle on what triggers asthma attacks and exacerbates respiratory symptoms, exactly what causes asthma in the first place is still somewhat of a mystery. However, new research points to some possible new culprits that are difficult, if not nearly impossible, to avoid.
Forget pink or blue. It turns out that the best color for baby may be green. In a new study, researchers found that mothers living in neighborhoods with plenty of greenness — grass, trees and other types of lush vegetation — were more likely to carry their pregnancies to full term and deliver babies at healthier weights.