Health
More gay and bisexual men can donate blood under new FDA rules
Empty blood vials sit on a table at Vitalant blood donation center on January 11, 2022 in San Francisco, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that it finalized a new rule that will allow more gay and bisexual men to donate blood. Under the latest guidelines, all potential donors would […]
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U.S. Covid public health emergency ends, leaving behind a battered health system
A sign outside of a hospital advertises COVID-19 testing on November 19, 2021 in New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images The U.S. public health emergency declared in response to Covid-19 comes to an end Thursday more than three years after the pandemic began. The Biden administration’s decision to end the emergency comes as […]
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The human genome scientists use to scout for disease just got a major makeover
Andrew Brookes | Image Source | Getty Images Scientists have been using the same human genome sequence to study genomics for more than 20 years, but on Wednesday it got a major makeover. Researchers published a new, more inclusive collection of reference human genome sequences in a landmark development that greatly expands on that original […]
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Eli Lilly CEO vows not to raise insulin prices again, while Novo Nordisk and Sanofi hedge
Eli Lilly CEO Dave Ricks on Wednesday promised not to raise prices on the company’s existing insulin products again — the only executive to do so before a Senate Health Committee hearing on making the life-saving diabetes drug more affordable. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the committee’s chair, asked Ricks and the CEOs of Novo Nordisk and […]
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FDA advisors recommend sale of birth control pill without a prescription
Opill Oral Contraception Source: Perrigo A panel of experts who advise the Food and Drug Administration unanimously recommended Wednesday that the agency for the first time allow women to obtain a birth control pill without a prescription. The panel had been asked whether the benefits of selling HRA Pharma’s birth control pill Opill outweighed the […]
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Breast cancer screenings should start at age 40 instead of 50, U.S. panel says
Medical personnel use a mammogram to examine a woman’s breast for breast cancer. Hannibal Hanschke | dpa | Picture Alliance | Getty Images Most women should get screened for breast cancer every other year starting at age 40, a decade earlier than previously recommended, according to draft guidelines issued Tuesday by a government-backed panel of […]
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FDA may allow birth control pill without prescription this summer as experts weigh data
Opill Oral Contraception Source: Perrigo The Food and Drug Administration could approve the sale of birth control medication without a prescription for the first time by this summer. A committee of independent experts who advise the FDA is set to meet Tuesday and Wednesday to make a recommendation on whether data submitted by HRA Pharma […]
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Novavax shares rise after company unveils positive vaccine data, plan to cut 25% of workforce
A health worker prepares a dose of the Novavax vaccine as the Dutch Health Service Organization starts with the Novavax vaccination program on March 21, 2022 in The Hague, Netherlands. Patrick Van Katwijk | Getty Images Shares of Novavax rose 5% in premarket trading Tuesday after the company unveiled promising new vaccine data and a […]
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CDC Director Rochelle Walensky will resign in June
Director of the Centers for Disease Control Rochelle Walensky departs after testifying before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on the All-Hazards Preparedness Act at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Thursday, May 4, 2023 in Washington, DC. Kent Nishimura | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky […]
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CDC will have less data to track Covid and new variants after public health emergency ends
People walk by a Covid-19 testing site at Times Square on May 12, 2022 in New York City. Liao Pan | China News Service | Getty Images The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will have less data to track the spread of Covid-19 and new variants in the U.S. after the public health emergency […]
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