Patients with advanced cancer and heart disease are among those who have had to wait for surgeries and other procedures as critically ill, unvaccinated COVID patients strain the medical system.

Simone Gold isn't alone. NPR found other physicians who retained their licenses despite spreading misinformation online and to the media about effective COVID-19 vaccines and unproven treatments.

ECMO, the highest level of mechanical life support, functions as a temporary heart and lungs for some of COVID-19's sickest patients. But the waitlist is too long for many patients who need it.

Using the COVID vaccine "off-label" — whether that's for booster shots or young children — may be tempting to some vaccine providers, but the CDC warns it could get them into trouble.

If all goes to plan, Americans who got Pfizer or Moderna shots can get a third dose eight months after their last jab. Here's why health officials think you'll need one.

Mask mandates and other interventions can help stop a surge, even where vaccination rates are low, say scientists who've reviewed states' data. When the measures start and how long they last matters.

The sponsor of 4-H clubs nationally is tapping its respected roots in rural communities to promote COVID-19 vaccines. But it won't be easy, locals say. Start with trusted local voices — and listen.

When Medicare began in 1965, its backers expected benefits to expand over time, but politics have mostly stymied that. Congressional Democrats are trying again as part of a $3.5 trillion budget plan.

With bankruptcy looming in 2012, Detroit largely dismantled its public health department. Years later, that decision offers a cautionary tale to other U.S. cities as the painful rebuilding continues.

Weeks after the Food and Drug Administration approved the Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm, doctors are struggling to figure out who should get the drug and how to use it safely.

Some patients who have had COVID-19 develop symptoms resembling early Alzheimer's. Researchers are trying to figure out whether these people are more likely to develop the disease itself.

With much of the U.S. already sweltering this summer, even avid runners, hikers and bikers are wilting. We've got 10 strategies from experts on how to enjoy hot weather exercise without keeling over.

The nation's top doctor, Vivek Murthy, says misinformation will keep sowing mistrust and endangering lives unless all Americans do their part to fight it.

To keep emergency services afloat in rural areas, communities will have to go beyond volunteer-based programs to get people to distant hospitals, experts say. Meanwhile, some 911 calls go unanswered.

Seniors, their families and states are eager to keep older Americans in their homes and out of nursing homes, but those efforts are often thwarted by worker shortages and low pay.