Health and Science

Poll: Only 15% Of Uninsured Know Enrollment Deadline Is Approaching. And about two-thirds of those uninsured Americans surveyed had not been contacted about signing up for coverage before enrollment ends Jan. 31. Virtually no one knew that the fine for going without health insurance in 2016 has jumped to $695 per adult or 2.5 percent of household income ... whichever is higher. more »

Pregnant women with a history of travel to an area with Zika virus transmission and who report two or more symptoms consistent with Zika virus disease (acute onset of fever, maculopapular rash, arthralgia, or conjunctivitis) during or within 2 weeks of travel, or who have ultrasound findings of fetal microcephaly or intracranial calcifications, should be tested for Zika virus infection in consultation with their state or local health department. Testing is not indicated for women without a travel history to an area with Zika virus transmission. more »

There is little to guarantee that any vitamin, mineral, probiotic, sports supplement, herbal treatment, or other dietary supplement is safe, effective, or even contains what’s on its label. Last year a NY Attorney General's investigation found that several popular store-brand supplements at four major retailers — GNC, Target, Walgreens and Walmart — contained contaminants not listed among the labeled ingredients. Just 21 percent of them actually had the DNA of the plant species they purported to be vending. more »

Since 1990, cancer mortality in the United States has dropped by a dramatic 23 percent, and research shows that prevention efforts like more and better screenings and public education around risk factors like smoking can take credit for much of that progress. V.P. Biden's discussion with cancer experts such as NIH director Francis Collins and Nobel laureate Elizabeth Blackburn, now president of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies touched on the promise of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing to help find new ways to tackle cancer. more »