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Maryland warns of possible measles exposure at 3 Ocean City locations

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

BALTIMORE — Maryland health officials are warning residents about possible measles exposure after a person from another state who had the disease visited three Ocean City businesses this month.

The Maryland Department of Health said the person visited the Casablanca Oceanside Inn, 2408 Baltimore Ave., from 4 p.m. Sept. 3 through noon Sept. 6;...Read more

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Mayo Clinic Q&A: Prostate cancer: Are you at risk, and should you get screened?

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DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I know prostate cancer is common, but I’m not sure who is most at risk or whether there are symptoms to watch for. When should men consider screening? And if cancer is found, what treatments are available, and what side effects should patients expect?

ANSWER: About 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during ...Read more

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Misinformation, hesitancy could blunt impact of new cancer vaccines

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Nearly five years ago, Chase Johnson was cured of breast cancer — but not of the profound anxiety that it would return.

When Johnson was originally diagnosed in 2021, the resident of Cary, North Carolina, was only 31 — nearly a decade away from the age at which regular mammograms are recommended — and she had no history of breast cancer ...Read more

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Rising healthcare costs have hit Georgia's most conservative district. But its politics are unlikely to change

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Amber Bates of Cohutta, Georgia, is one of thousands of people without health insurance in the 14th Congressional District, home to about 765,000 people in the northwestern corner of the state.

She and her husband have not had health coverage for the past two years, Bates said, because their employment is unsteady and they earn too much to ...Read more

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Dengue fever and other mosquito-borne illnesses surging in Florida

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Mosquito bites can be more than a nuisance this summer — they can make you sick.

Florida has become a hotbed for mosquito-borne dieases, reporting hundreds of cases of dengue fever, chikungunya fever, and even West Nile virus.

The state leads the nation in dengue cases this year with 270 reported. Increasingly, residents aren’t just ...Read more

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HHS plans new research into autism development, treatment

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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to launch a new research initiative related to autism, using AI and other technology to map how the condition develops and identify opportunities for early intervention.

The initiative, called SPECTRA, will analyze available data and then fill in the gaps on “the missing biology needed to...Read more

When is Medicare open enrollment?

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The main Medicare open enrollment period runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7.

During this period, anyone enrolled in original Medicare, Medicare Advantage, or a Part D drug plan can adjust their coverage. Because Medicare offers two main paths — original Medicare (Parts A and B) or Medicare Advantage (Part C) — you should shop around during ...Read more

Environmental Nutrition: Fructose phobia

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Fructose has become one of the most misunderstood nutrients in modern diets. Often blamed for a range of health problems, it’s easy to assume that this type of sugar is inherently harmful. In reality, fructose itself is not the enemy— how and where we consume it makes all the difference.

Fructose is a naturally occurring sugar found in ...Read more

Mayo Clinic Q&A: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: Most of the time, I can tell when my kids are using a tummy ache as an excuse not to do something. But when should I take their “Mommy, my tummy hurts” seriously?

ANSWER: Every child has belly pain at some point, and most of the time, it’s nothing serious. Half of my gastroenterology clinic visits involve abdominal pain ...Read more

The problem with ‘classic’ Lyme disease symptoms

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One day, Wendy noticed a quarter-sized rash at the top of her thigh. By the next day, it had grown to the diameter of a half-dollar. But since the flat, red patch didn’t resemble the bullseye rash Wendy had seen listed among Lyme disease symptoms, it didn’t even occur to her she might have the infection.

Wendy was wrong. She was one of the ...Read more

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'Nearly 100% fatal' disease on the rise across US. What are risks in California?

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A “nearly 100% fatal” disease is the rise across the United States, prompting federal officials to issue a nationwide health alert.

Since July, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has seen a sharp increase in the number of people exposed to rabies.

Meanwhile, officials in several California counties have reported ...Read more

Jose F. Moreno/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Pennsylvania health officials confirm 2 new measles-associated deaths, bringing total to 4 as state outbreak grows

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PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania health officials on Tuesday confirmed two more deaths associated with measles involving a resident of Jefferson County and a resident of Mifflin County.

The state has now reported four measles-related deaths amid a growing outbreak that has sickened nearly 700 people this year. The deaths mark the state’s first ...Read more

Pennsylvania's 2026 outbreak has grown to more than 670 confirmed cases statewide. Sean Rayford/Stringer via Getty Images

Pittsburgh’s kindergartners fall below the measles safety threshold, testing the city’s vaccine legacy

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It takes a lot to knock football out of the headlines in Pittsburgh. But reports of measles cases, exposure alerts and calls for residents to double-check their vaccination status have dominated local news since August 2026.

My office at Allegheny College, where I am an epidemiologist, is within a few steps of a classroom dedicated to...Read more

Healthcare and assistance for the elderly are particular challenges for South Korea's rapidly aging society. Plan Shooting 2/Imazins via Getty Images

How South Korea is tackling its super-aging problem – and what other aging nations can learn from its experience

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In December 2024, the share of South Koreans ages 65 and older surpassed 20% for the first time, making it what demographers like us call a “super-aged society.” By August 2026 that share had risen further, to 22.1%.

That label can sound like a diagnosis, but population aging is not inherently a problem. In part, it reflects ...Read more

The Aedis aegypti mosquito spreads dengue from person to person. Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Dengue-carrying mosquitoes expand their reach into new territories – including Florida

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The Tampa Bay Times reported the death of an elderly woman on Sept. 8, 2026. Her family says local doctors attributed her death to dengue fever, although the Florida Department of Health has not yet confirmed that.

This death was likely part of a larger dengue outbreak in Hillsborough County, where there have been 95 documented cases ...Read more

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Indigenous groups are exempt from Medicaid work rules, but native Hawaiians aren't

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WAIANAE, Hawai‘i — Native Hawaiians will need to comply with new work requirements to qualify for Medicaid after being excluded from exemptions carved out for other Indigenous groups, an omission that clinicians fear will exacerbate the challenges the marginalized population already faces in getting healthcare.

In 43 states and the District...Read more

Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Colorado has 6th-lowest rate of kindergarteners vaccinated against measles

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DENVER — Colorado had one of the lowest measles vaccination rates in the country for kindergarteners during the last school year, but that appears to reflect a large number of kids arriving at school without records, rather than an unusually high opt-out rate.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated about 87.7% of ...Read more

Changes that often accompany later life can raise questions and concerns that people may explore in counseling or therapy.  Space_Cat/iStock via Getty Images

Why so few older Americans get counseling – and how it could help

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People are living longer, reshaping what it means to grow old.

By the late 2060s, an estimated 2.5 billion people worldwide will be age 60 or older – more than the number of people under 18. The population age 80 and older is expected to grow even faster, more than tripling between 2023 and 2060 to about 545 million.

Living ...Read more

Providing drug users with clean syringes is part of Portugal's harm-reduction approach to substance use. Horacio Villalobos/Corbis News via Getty Images

Portugal decriminalized drugs 25 years ago, but the real lesson is what it built around this policy

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Nearly 70,000 Americans died of a drug overdose in 2025. While that is a decline from the nearly 108,000 deaths recorded in 2022, these grim figures distinguish the U.S. from other high-income countries. At the peak of the opioid crisis, the U.S. overdose death rate was 68% higher than Canada’s and nearly five times that of Australia.

...Read more

Varicella zoster virus, also known as human herpesvirus 3, causes chickenpox and shingles. BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Shingles can cause severe chronic pain – new research on how exosomes alter neurons offers pathways to treatment

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Shingles can cause pain that is notoriously difficult to manage and can last for months to years for some people. The pain can be so severe that it causes a significant decline in quality of life and can be accompanied by suicidal thoughts and emotional distress.

If the pain lasts longer than three months, doctors call the condition ...Read more