Judges seem to favor Humana in Medicare Advantage lawsuit

Tara covers the business of health care. Her stories focus on hospitals, doctors, and how their business practices affect patients — especially when private equity gets involved. She also writes about health insurance and ideas for improving our broken health system. You can reach Tara on Signal at tarabannow.70. Federal appeals court judges didn’t take … [Read more…]

7 (totally valid) reasons we’d have our guy take a sperm quality supplement, pre-TTC

4. Because sperm count matters, but sperm health is about more than that If you’ve ever looked at a semen analysis, you’ll know that sperm count tends to get a lot of attention. It’s important, but it’s only one part of the picture. A semen analysis can assess several different characteristics, including sperm concentration, motility, … [Read more…]

Journal Science devotes issue to women’s health. Here’s why

Ovulation. Endometriosis. And especially: menopause. These once taboo words — among others — have become part of our daily vocabulary and conversations, a sign of greater interest in, and knowledge of, women’s health.  Yet even as women’s health has been receiving more attention than perhaps ever before, women remain poorly represented in clinical trials, and … [Read more…]

Painful sex after menopause​? There are a few natural, at-home tricks for that – Here are 5 of the best

Sex is supposed to be enjoyable, and it shouldn’t hurt. Well, unless you’re into that! If things start to feel sore, dry, stingy or just a bit uncomfortable after menopause, you’re certainly not imagining it. Changes in our bodies during this time can make penetration feel different from how it used to. The good news? … [Read more…]

Three lessons from the 2001 anthrax letters

Twenty-five years ago, as the country still reeled from Sept. 11, the first of two batches of anthrax-laden envelopes were mailed from New Jersey to news media and congressional offices. All told, the letters caused 22 cases of anthrax disease, leading to five deaths; prompted considerable fear in the U.S.; and cost billions of dollars … [Read more…]

Flagship, Pentagon, AstraZeneca, GSK: Readout Newsletter

Elaine’s stories explore the boom in new obesity treatments, new drug payment models, the ways companies are affected by FDA changes, and the emerging psychedelics drug sector. She co-writes The Readout newsletter, and co-hosts STAT’s weekly biotech podcast, The Readout Loud. You can reach Elaine on Signal at elaineywchen.70. Want to stay on top of … [Read more…]

How to spend your treatment downtime – The IVF Porto guide

Cost. Wait times. Access to particular treatments or donors. All of these are really valid reasons to travel abroad for fertility treatment. And there are plenty more. Here at TRB, we’re committed to bringing you the 101 on a range of destinations. Recently, Portugal tops our list again and again for its super appealing combination … [Read more…]

In a shift, Jehovah’s Witnesses say they will allow blood-derived products

The Jehovah’s Witnesses have partly eased their long-standing prohibition on the medical use of donated blood, allowing members to receive products derived from blood but maintaining a ban on transfusions of whole blood. The policy, announced Friday, is the second revision this year in what has long been one of the most controversial and distinctive … [Read more…]