Radio Health Journal
The latest in health, science, technology, and the intersection of medicine and public policy.
Drug overdoses killed more than 100,000 Americans in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, as pressures built and users sometimes had to get their fix from unfamiliar sources. Experts discuss how the pandemic cost lives beyond Covid, and how surgical painkiller drug substitutions are beginning to keep some people from going down the opioid path.
The vaccine for Covid-19 was developed with record speed while still following required safety protocols. A noted investigative reporter discusses the development process he uncovered for his exhaustive book and explains why the hundreds of interviews he did have reassured him that the vaccine is safe.
The White House and many health officials have taken an aggressive approach to communicating the need for Covid-19 vaccines. Most people are prompted to get vaccinated by mandates and words that generate fear, but it’s clear that they backfire with a sizable minority of others. A communications expert discusses how certain words motivate some groups and …
Researchers believe “SynBio” may eventually help address hunger, pollution, and other modern problems. Yet in the wrong hands, synthetic biology could unleash terrible biological weapons. Experts discuss.
Scientists are developing 3D printing technology using human cells to build human organs. The technique could be used to grow organs for transplant, relieving the long waitlist. Experts discuss.
Hospitals are now required to post prices for many procedures on their websites, including cash prices and what insurers pay. The intent of the federal rule is to allow patients to shop around, putting pressure on hospitals to compete on price. However, many hospitals have yet to follow the rule. Experts discuss the rule, its likely outcome, and how patients …
The US birth rate has been declining since the Crash of 2008, but it took an even larger decline during the pandemic to levels unseen since the Great Depression. Today fertility rates are below replacement levels, which could have big impacts on education, employment, and the tax base years down the road.
Bottled water sales have skyrocketed, in part because many people believe it is safer than tap water. Actually, bottled water faces few of the safety regulations that tap water does. The disconnect, according to a new study, comes from society’s pervasive distrust in all governmental institutions. The lead researcher discusses how restoring faith in water …
A study finding that 60 percent of all cases of Covid-19 are spread by people who have no symptoms. Then, children under age two may suffer effects from antibiotics later in childhood. And finally, new recommendations suggesting kids under age two should have no added sugar in their diet.
Medical campaigns account for a third of monies raised on crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe, and many people who’ve fallen through the holes of the safety net have been helped this way. But studies show that fraud is rampant with fake patients and medical providers. Experts discuss.
Chemotherapy has saved millions of lives, but its origins date to the chemical warfare agent mustard gas. An investigative reporter details how doctors turned death and tragedy to the lifesaver we know today.
The disease is completely preventable, but a distinguished reporter and author has still found plenty of it among today’s miners.
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