VA set to open $92 million multi-specialty outpatient clinic in Monroeville
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic behind Monroeville Mall won’t just provide a nearby medical facility for the eastern suburbs — the region of Western Pennsylvania with the highest concentration of veterans. It also will clear congestion on “Cardiac Hill” in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood, where VA officials soon...
Pollution, weather, climate change all affect start, severity of allergy season
April showers bring May flowers, but those blooms can bring sneezes and sniffles along with itchy, watery eyes. As the region heads into the summer months, tree and grass pollen coupled with other irritants are ushering in suffering for those affected by allergies, according to local experts. Tree and grass...
Allegheny Health Network trims losses as patient volume climbs
Allegheny Health Network shrank its losses during the first three months of the year, citing higher patient numbers and increased membership in its insurance units. The 14-hospital system on Wednesday reported an operating loss of $36.2 million for the first quarter compared to a loss of $105.5 million during the...
Sick workers tied to 40% of restaurant food poisoning outbreaks, CDC says
Food workers who showed up while sick or contagious were linked to about 40% of restaurant food poisoning outbreaks with a known cause between 2017 and 2019, federal health officials said Tuesday. Norovirus and salmonella, germs that can cause severe illness, were the most common cause of 800 outbreaks, which...
Allegheny General Hospital considers new construction, eliminating shared hospital rooms
A long-range development plan for Pittsburgh’s Allegheny General Hospital includes the potential for new buildings in the North Side campus and a goal of making all hospital rooms single occupancy. The proposed master plan, which lays out development goals for the next decade, was presented to the Planning Commission on...
North Huntingdon woman battles 2 autoimmune diseases
After finding the correct combination of diet, exercise and holistic medicine, Cara Zanella found a way to live with the rheumatoid arthritis that affected her life for nearly two decades. She was able to do it without the use of medication, but the North Huntingdon woman with a passion for...
U.S. surgeon general calls for action on social media to ‘protect kids now’
The U.S. surgeon general is warning there is not enough evidence to show that social media is safe for children and teens — and is calling on tech companies, parents and caregivers to take “immediate action to protect kids now.” With young people’s social media use “near universal” but its...
Acrisure donates $7.5M to to UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation for heart treatments
Financial technology company Acrisure on Thursday donated $7.5 million to the UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation to help advance clinical care, research and the patient experience for children and families at the facility’s Heart Institute. The donation is said to be the largest corporate gift received by the foundation. “This is...
U.S. study finds 1 in 10 get long covid after omicron, starts identifying key symptoms
WASHINGTON — About 10% of people appear to suffer long covid after an omicron infection, a lower estimate than earlier in the pandemic, according to a study of nearly 10,000 Americans that aims to help unravel the mysterious condition. Early findings from the National Institutes of Health’s study highlight a...
Covid-19 pill Paxlovid gets full FDA approval
WASHINGTON — Pfizer received full approval on Thursday for its covid-19 pill Paxlovid that’s been the go-to treatment against the coronavirus. More than 11 million prescriptions for Paxlovid have been dispensed since the Food and Drug Administration allowed emergency use in late 2021. The emergency status was based on early...
Abortion debates happening this week in U.S. courts and statehouses
Lawmakers in South Carolina passed an abortion ban while a judge in Montana was weighing restrictions there in the latest developments in the shifting landscape of law since the U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v. Wade and the nationwide right to abortion. Here’s what to know. Back to...
Feeling lonely: An epidemic of isolation has expanded area mental health needs
Editor’s note: This is the first of two stories on loneliness and its impact on mental health. Part 2: The negative impacts of too much screen time. Greensburg resident John Herrmann has a suppertime appointment each Thursday at the city’s Otterbein United Methodist Church. Helping to hand out meals to...
8 tips for parents and teens on social media use
Dr. Vivek Murthy, the U.S. surgeon general, is calling for “immediate action” by tech companies and lawmakers to protect kids’ and adolescents’ mental health on social media. But after years of middling and insufficient action by both social media platforms and policymakers, parents and young people still bear most of...
Car seats and baby formula are regulated. Is social media next?
The U.S. surgeon general is warning there is not enough evidence to show that social media is safe for children and teens — and is calling on tech companies, parents and caregivers to take “immediate action to protect kids now.” With young people’s social media use “near universal” but its...
Jockey suicides bring attention to stress and mental health of the job
BALTIMORE — Eurico Rosa da Silva was in a dark place. On the track, the jockey in his early 30s was winning races and making money. At home, he was fighting suicidal thoughts every day. “I got to the point where I have no more choice but to go for...
RSV vaccine for pregnant women protects their newborns but is it ready for U.S. sale?
WASHINGTON — A first-of-its-kind RSV vaccine for pregnant women guards their newborns against the scary respiratory virus —- and federal health advisers debated Thursday if Pfizer’s shot is ready to roll out. RSV fills hospitals with wheezing babies each fall and winter, and the virus struck earlier than usual and...
Excela-Butler health system sees further financial losses
The merged Butler and Excela health systems reported losses of more than $62 million over the nine-month period ending March 31, according to disclosure reports released this week. The combined health system, which laid off 13 manager-level staff members in March, officially formed from Excela Health and Butler Health System...
Unions contend UPMC’s market dominance suppresses workers’ wages
Two labor organizations filed an antitrust complaint against UPMC with the Department of Justice accusing the health care giant of using its market dominance to tamp down wages and trap workers in low-paying, unsafe conditions. In a 55-page complaint filed Thursday, SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania and the Strategic Organizing Center contend...
Allegheny County ends covid vaccine requirement for employees
Allegheny County government is ending its requirement that current employees and new hires be vaccinated against covid-19. County Executive Rich Fitzgerald announced Thursday the lifting of the mandate. The move comes a week after the federal government ended its covid health emergency. Fitzgerald said it is time for Allegheny County...
New Alzheimer’s drugs raise hopes and questions
The Alzheimer’s Association is stepping up public pressure on the Biden administration, hoping to convince the government to pay for a new class of promising but expensive Alzheimer’s drugs. To date, the advocacy group’s campaign has been intense but low-tech, featuring everything from critical statements in the media to a...
Transgender rights: What to know about bills in the U.S. statehouses
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has highlighted efforts by Republican governors and statehouses across the country to embrace proposals limiting the rights of transgender people, signing new restrictions as he moves closer to a presidential bid. The restrictions are spreading quickly despite criticism from medical groups and advocates who say they’re...
U.S. drug overdose deaths slightly increased in 2022, CDC says
NEW ORLEANS — Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. went up slightly last year after two big leaps during the pandemic. Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the numbers plateaued for most of last year. Experts aren’t sure whether that means the deadliest drug overdose epidemic...
Millennial Money: What’s concierge medicine? Is it worth it?
My primary care doctor recently left her practice and invited me to join her at her new gig — a concierge medicine group. There, for a membership fee, I’d have better and more personal access to her services: same-day appointments and long conversations! Concierge medicine — a model in which...
WHO: Artificial sweeteners have no weight-loss benefit, may raise health risks
The World Health Organization has come out against the use of non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) as a means to control weight or limit noncommunicable sickness. “The recommendation is based on the findings of a systematic review of the available evidence which suggests that use of NSS does not confer any long-term...
Detecting cancer earlier: Doctors celebrate, discuss change in mammogram recommendations
A new recommendation for mammograms could speed up the timeline for breast cancer screening. It also might improve the chance of saving lives, according to local medical experts. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent volunteer panel of medical experts, changed its previous policy last week to advocate for...
