Health Wire

Biden administration announces $600M to produce COVID tests and will reopen website to order them

September 20, 2023, 12:12pm Health FreeUpdated 21 hours ago

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up… Read story

FDA says it needs more research before deciding to approve nasal spray to treat dangerous allergies

September 20, 2023, 10:46am Business

Federal regulators declined to approve a nasal spray to treat severe allergic reactions late Tuesday, calling for more research on what would have been the first alternative to injections using… Read story

FILE - A nurse prepares a syringe of a COVID-19 vaccine at an inoculation station in Jackson, Miss., July 19, 2022. U.S. health officials are proposing a simplified approach to COVID-19 vaccinations, which would allow most adults and children to get a once-a-year shot to protect against the mutating virus. The new system unveiled Monday, Jan. 23, 2023 would make COVID-19 inoculations more like the annual flu shot. Americans would no longer have to keep track of how many shots they've received or how many months it's been since their last booster. (AP Photo/Rogelio V.

New COVID vaccines may be a ‘few weeks’ from becoming common in Washington, the state Department of Health says

September 20, 2023, 7:20am Health Updated 1 day ago

Formulated to target emerging variants, newly approved COVID-19 vaccines may still be a “couple weeks” from becoming widely available in Spokane and the rest of Washington, according to the state Department of Health. Read story

Today, there are two basic varieties of commercial sunflowers: one that produces the typical black-and-white striped seeds we eat for snacks, and another that bears smaller black seeds used to make oil.

Sunflower seeds offer healthy glow

September 19, 2023, 6:04am Health

This time of year, the sight always takes my breath away: acres and acres of sunflowers in full bloom, smiling at the sun as we drive through rural areas of our state. Read story

A doll and a model of the birthing canal is seen during a prenatal group meeting at The Farm Midwifery Center, Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023, in Summertown, Tenn. The Farm said fewer than 2% of clients end up having C-sections, and a report on deliveries in its first 40 years showed 5% of clients were transported to the hospital -- which midwife Corina Fitch said can happen because of things like water breaking early or exhaustion during labor. Clients usually give birth at The Farm or in their own homes.

Rural hospitals are closing maternity wards. People are seeking options to give birth closer to home

September 18, 2023, 8:10am Health

Alisha Alderson placed everything she needed for the last month of her pregnancy in various suitcases as she prepared to leave the comfort of her home in rural eastern Oregon. The only maternity ward within 40 miles abruptly closed in August, so she would be staying at her brother’s house… Read story

Supply problems and insurance issues make popular weight-loss drugs hard to get

September 18, 2023, 8:01am Business

When she prescribes the popular weight-loss drug Wegovy, Dr. Angela Fitch sends patients on a quest she likens to “The Hunger Games.” Read story

Drug decriminalization stumbled in Oregon. Other states are taking note.

A woman enters the Great Circle drug treatment center in Salem, Ore., on March 8, 2022. Three years ago, Oregonians voted to decriminalize drugs and dedicate hundreds of millions of dollars to treatment services, but the state's first-in-the-nation drug decriminalization has had a rocky start.

September 18, 2023, 7:41am Health Free

Just before Portland’s city council approved a ban on public drug use last week, Mayor Ted Wheeler described what he’d observed on his way to work that afternoon: “The last time I saw somebody consuming what I believe to be fentanyl publicly on our streets was less than five minutes… Read story