Past COVID infections may help protect against certain colds. Could it lead to better vaccines?

Past COVID infections may help protect against certain colds. Could it lead to better vaccines?

If you’ve been sick with COVID-19, you may have some protection against certain versions of the common cold. A new study suggests previous COVID-19 infections lower the risk of getting colds caused by milder coronavirus cousins, which could provide a key to broader COVID-19 vaccines. “We think there’s going to be a future outbreak of … Read more

Alzheimer’s drug that can slow disease gets backing from FDA advisers

Alzheimer’s drug that can slow disease gets backing from FDA advisers

WASHINGTON — A closely watched Alzheimer’s drug from Eli Lilly won the backing of federal health advisers on Monday, setting the stage for the treatment’s expected approval for people with mild dementia caused by the brain-robbing disease. Food and Drug Administration advisers voted unanimously that the drug’s ability to slow the disease outweighs its risks, … Read more

FDA advisers urge targeting JN.1 strain in recipe for fall’s COVID vaccines

FDA advisers urge targeting JN.1 strain in recipe for fall’s COVID vaccines

WASHINGTON — Government advisers Wednesday said it’s time to update the recipe for the COVID-19 vaccines Americans will receive in the fall — targeting a version of the ever-evolving coronavirus called JN.1. While COVID-19 cases currently are low, more surges are inevitable and manufacturers need time to brew shots for fall. Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax … Read more

Federal judge blocks some rules on abortion pills in North Carolina

Federal judge blocks some rules on abortion pills in North Carolina

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge has permanently blocked some efforts in North Carolina to restrict how abortion pills can be dispensed, saying they are unlawfully in conflict with the authority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. But she allowed other state laws to remain in effect, granting only a partial victory to a … Read more

Panel rejects psychedelic drug MDMA as a PTSD treatment in possible setback for advocates

Panel rejects psychedelic drug MDMA as a PTSD treatment in possible setback for advocates

WASHINGTON — A first-of-a-kind proposal to begin using the mind-altering drug MDMA as a treatment for PTSD was roundly criticized Tuesday — a potentially major setback to psychedelic advocates who hope to win a landmark federal approval and bring the banned drugs into the medical mainstream. The panel of advisers to the Food and Drug … Read more

In cities across the US, Black and Latino neighborhoods have less access to pharmacies

In cities across the US, Black and Latino neighborhoods have less access to pharmacies

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Parts of the north side of Montgomery are defined by what it has lost: restaurants, grocery stores and a convenient pharmacy, the latter of which closed five years ago. People who still live in the historically Black neighborhood of Newtown, like Sharon Harris, are frustrated. She goes to a different location of … Read more

How to find the right balance between telemedicine and in-person care

How to find the right balance between telemedicine and in-person care

Patients can now see an array of doctors without leaving their recliner thanks to telemedicine. But that doesn’t mean trips to the office should end. Finding the right balance between virtual and in-person visits can be a key to getting good care. Here’s what you need to know about which form of care may be … Read more

South Sudan receives its first batch of a new vaccine for malaria from the WHO

South Sudan receives its first batch of a new vaccine for malaria from the WHO

JUBA, South Sudan — South Sudan got its first batch of a new malaria vaccine on Friday from the U.N. health agency, an important step in efforts to battle a disease that is the biggest killer of children in this African country. The more than 645,000 doses of the R21 malaria vaccine received will be … Read more

Being a patient is getting harder in a strained and complex US health care system

Being a patient is getting harder in a strained and complex US health care system

Tamika Davis couldn’t nap on her couch during cancer treatment. She kept worrying one of her toddlers would wander over and pull out the needle delivering chemotherapy. Friends and family watched her kids when they could during her treatment last year for colon cancer. But Davis had gaps with no help because she couldn’t afford … Read more

Scientists are testing mRNA vaccines to protect cows and people against bird flu

Scientists are testing mRNA vaccines to protect cows and people against bird flu

The bird flu outbreak in U.S. dairy cows is prompting development of new, next-generation mRNA vaccines — akin to COVID-19 shots — that are being tested in both animals and people. Next month, the U.S. Agriculture Department is to begin testing a vaccine developed by University of Pennsylvania researchers by giving it to calves. The … Read more