As the first patient to receive an experimental treatment that relied on the gene-editing technique CRISPR continues to do well 17 months later, more patients seem to be benefiting, too.
In an Oregon hospital, a disabled woman fought for her life as her friends and advocates pleaded for proper care. Her case raises the question: Are disabled lives equally valued during a pandemic?
Eleven months into the COVID-19 crisis, an unimaginable death toll has been reached. NPR spoke to doctors, nurses and the bereaved about how they face loss every day.
In the U.S., front-line health care workers are likely first in line to get immunized with a COVID-19 vaccine, once the FDA says yes. But what about the rest of us? Here's what we know so far.
The rule would require health officials to review about 2,400 regulations on everything from Medicare benefits to prescription drugs approvals. Those not analyzed within two years would become void.
Anyone with lingering effects of COVID-19 should be extra careful in picking a 2021 health plan, specialists say. You now have a "pre-existing condition" that could increase medical expenses in 2021.
American Airlines reversed a recent policy that banned wheelchairs weighing more than 300 pounds, which includes many power wheelchairs, from some of its regional jets following an NPR report.
A newly approved drug can extend the lives of children with progeria, a rare disorder that causes rapid aging. The drug is the result of one family's effort to help a child with the fatal condition.
The Trump administration has been marked by a scaled-back federal investment and involvement in U.S. health care. Biden's team has plans to change that — even if Republicans retain Senate control.
A new policy from American Airlines, the largest airline in the United States, put a limit on the weight of a wheelchair. Now, many power wheelchairs are too heavy to fly on smaller regional jets.
Most nursing homes are connected by shared staff to seven others. Instead of limiting workers to one facility to curb COVID-19 spread, advocates urge better pay and more PPE for nursing home staff.
Researchers launched a major study of an experimental Alzheimer's drug this summer. They also learned a lot about how to protect participants who must make frequent visits to a medical center.
For years, NPR host Mary Louise Kelly found ways to do her job and manage hearing loss. But now she can no longer rely on reading lips or leaning-in. She describes how she's adapting all over again.
As a deaf person, Rebecca Knill is anti-noise and "neutral" on sound. She explains how technology allows her to hear what she wants to hear, and asks why our mindset about ability hasn't caught up.
In Libby, Mont., an estimated 1 in 10 have an asbestos-related illness, after decades of pollution from a now-shuttered mine. With lungs already scarred, many fear contracting the coronavirus.