Hot flashes that bedevil many women in menopause might actually be a good thing, depending on when they strike, according to new data from a long-running government study.

Mastering a second language can pump up your brain in ways that seem to delay getting Alzheimer's disease later on, scientists said Friday.

Eat more fiber and you just may live longer.

Cook County's plan to drastically shrink services at two public hospitals shifted into higher gear Monday with the announcement that 138 hospital nursing jobs will be eliminated.

Doctors may be missing "silent strokes" in a small but significant number of children with severe anemia, who may be unfairly labeled as slow learners when in fact they have a medical problem, troubling new research suggests.

Strokes are rising dramatically among young and middle-aged Americans while dropping in older people, a sign that the obesity epidemic may be starting to shift the age burden of the disease.

Many breast cancer patients can skip aggressive lymph node surgery without increasing their chances of a recurrence or death if their disease shows limited spread, according to a study that has prompted changes in practice.

Confidential HIV testing and HIV/AIDS awareness education is being offered at various sites throughout the Chicagoland area in conjunction with the 11th annual National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Monday.

A couple on Medicare got a rebate check to help with prescription drug costs. A Chicago man with diabetes got health insurance through a new government program. And a Philadelphia businessman is hoping his company will qualify for a tax credit.

Nearly 3 million lives have been saved by HIV/AIDS treatment but scarce resources are being misspent and stigma is still keeping the most vulnerable from seeking help, according to a new book by researchers commissioned by the U.N.

A new report says that if Illinois improved its childhood vaccination rate to the level of the best-performing state, then 28,000 more young children would be up-to-date on six recommended shots.

You should eat less salt, the government says. A lot less.

Better Existence with HIV, a Chicago-based AIDS service organization, has closed its doors after more than 20 years, citing financial problems.

A new Chicago neighborhood clinic is receiving a $50,000 grant from University of Chicago Medical Center's Urban Health Initiative.

Wal-Mart, the nation's largest grocer, says it will reformulate thousands of products to make them healthier and push its suppliers to do the same, joining first lady Michelle Obama's effort to combat childhood obesity.

A study suggests medical errors, job burnout and depression lead surgeons to contemplate suicide at higher rates than the general public, and they're much less likely to seek help.

The rare transmission of HIV through transplanted organs to four Chicago-area patients made headlines in 2007. A new study says it also caused some U.S. transplant surgeons to limit their use of organs from high-risk donors such as gay men.

There's new hope for an overlooked epidemic: Two powerful drugs are nearing the market that promise to help cure many more people of liver-attacking hepatitis C — even though most who have the simmering infection don't know it yet.

Officials of Chicago's Provident Hospital of Cook County have decided to delay plans to drastically reduce its emergency services and no longer accept ambulance runs.

Provident Hospital of Cook County plans to drastically reduce its emergency services starting Saturday when it will no longer accept ambulance runs.

Schoolchildren would have to hold the fries — and pick up more whole grains, fruits and vegetables — on the lunch line under proposed new federal standards for school lunches.

The first national study on detecting Alzheimer's disease before substantial memory loss occurs is seeking participants.

Close birth spacing may put a second-born child at higher risk for autism, suggests a preliminary study based on more than a half-million California children.

When we dissolve the need for any "if only's", we set ourselves free to take the only step that needs to be taken in any moment—that is the next step. Like that journey of one thousand miles beginning with only one step, the journey of any journey—in any moment—requires only the next step. -Guru Singh

The Illinois chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has created a virtual memorial wall of those lost to suicide.

One in five heart defibrillators may be implanted for questionable reasons without solid evidence that the devices will help, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis.

When salmonella-laced peanut products sickened hundreds during a recent scare, President Barack Obama said consumers should be able to have confidence that their government will keep peanut butter-eating children safe — and that included his daughter Sasha.

A blood test so sensitive that it can spot a single cancer cell lurking among a billion healthy ones is moving one step closer to being available at your doctor's office.

Q: I was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Within two months, I have lowered my blood sugar considerably through dietary changes and training for the marathon. How can I fuel my body properly with carbs and still maintain healthy glucose levels? What about energy drinks?

Health advocates are offering some encouragement to smokers who want to kick the habit in the new year.

The U.S. teen birth rate hit an all-time low in 2009 — a decline that stunned experts say is partly because of the economy.

Thousands more children would get into school-based meal programs and those lunches and dinners would become more nutritious under a bill President Barack Obama signed into law Monday, part of an administration-wide effort to combat childhood obesity.

Q: I just heard about Aretha Franklin’s diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and was devastated. What is the pancreas and why is the cancer so deadly?

Remember the uproar last year when a government task force said most women don't need annual mammograms? It turns out that only half of women over 40 had been getting them that often to start with, even when they have insurance that covers screening.

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) has partnered with the Greater than AIDS movement and the Black AIDS Institute to reengage Black Americans in fighting the AIDS epidemic by making an historic commitment to cover AIDS in Black America in the nation’s Black press.

More children would eat lunches and dinners at school under legislation passed Thursday by the House and sent to the president, part of first lady Michelle Obama's campaign to end childhood hunger and fight childhood obesity.

Health authorities in Illinois are marking Worlds AIDS Day on Wednesday with education and awareness-raising. AIDS remains a pandemic nearly three decades after it was discovered.

A new report on eating disorders cites data showing a sharp increase in children's hospitalizations for such problems.

People with diabetes should mix aerobics with weight training to get the best results in lowering blood sugar, a new study suggests. The combination worked best for weight loss too, compared to aerobics or weight training alone.

Scientists have an exciting breakthrough in the fight against AIDS. A pill already used to treat HIV infection turns out to be a powerful weapon in protecting healthy gay men from catching the virus, a global study found.

Removing cough and cold medicines for very young children from store shelves led to a big decline in emergency room visits for bad reactions to the drugs, government research found.

Q: I was debating with a friend who smokes just under a half pack of cigarettes a day. I argue that any amount of smoking increases her risk for cancer. She always says “I don’t smoke that much.”

Three Chicago hospitals have been awarded a grant to support their research on childhood cancer.

Some people who couldn't get their blood pressure under control despite taking a fistful of pills every day found relief from an experimental treatment that shows promise as a permanent fix for the condition.

Consumer alert: A new Medicare drug plan with the lowest upfront cost in the country may not be for everyone, experts say.

It's open enrollment period for Medicare beneficiaries, a time when people on Medicare can choose the best medical and prescription drug coverage to fit their needs.

Federal health regulators have approved the first drug to eliminate excess fat that develops as a side effect of HIV treatments.

In the United States in 2009, there were approximately 11,000 new cases of cervical cancer and about 4000 cancer-related deaths. This number makes up approximately 1.5 percent of cancer deaths in women.

Make Grandma spill the beans: Uncovering all the diseases that lurk in your family tree can trump costly genetic testing in predicting what illnesses you and your children are likely to face.

Teens who text 120 times a day or more — and there seems to be a lot of them — are more likely to have had sex or used alcohol and drugs than kids who don't send as many messages, according to provocative new research.

President Barack Obama says the political cost of overhauling the health care system turned out to be higher than he had expected. And he admits that he gets discouraged at times when dealing with the economy.

The Chicago area's landing $4 million to help fight obesity.

Omega-3 pills promoted as boosting memory didn't slow mental and physical decline in older patients with Alzheimer's disease, a big disappointment in a multimillion-dollar government-funded study.

The Chicago-based American Dental Association has acknowledged — and says that it deeply regrets — not taking a stronger stand against discriminatory membership practices before the high-water mark of the Civil Rights movement in the mid-1960s.

Chinese factory workers exposed to high levels of the plastics chemical BPA had low sperm counts, according to the first human study to tie it to poor semen quality.

An influential medical group says pediatricians should routinely screen new mothers for depression. Depression isn't just bad for moms: It can also harm their babies.

Can you tell me what will clean out my colon? I mean something that will rip all the old waste out of my system. How can I get my body to have regular movements?

It's National Lead Poisoning Prevention week and health officials are reminding parents to get their kids tested for lead exposure.

As many as 1 in 3 U.S. adults could have diabetes by the year 2050, federal officials announced Friday, in a dramatic revision of earlier projections.

The Illinois Department of Insurance is receiving a $1.45 million federal grant to educate and protect health insurance consumers.

New guidelines out Monday switch up the steps for CPR, telling rescuers to start with hard, fast chest presses before giving mouth-to-mouth.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and there’s no better time than now to be deliberate about your breast health.

New programs are springing up in Chicago to train students to be physician assistants.

Kidney stones should be added to the list of health problems linked with hormone pill use after menopause, according to an analysis of landmark government research that first raised alarms about the products.

Autism is more common in children who had jaundice at birth, a big Danish study found, but researchers cautioned they don't know how the two conditions might be related and that new parents shouldn't be alarmed.

Illinois will get a nearly $46 million slice of federal grants for community health centers.

Q: I’ve changed my diet. Is there a good way to lose weight without exercising?

Hands-only CPR doesn't just eliminate the "yuck factor." A new study shows it can save more lives.

Illinois has received more than 1,800 applications for a new program for uninsured people with medical problems. About one-third have been approved for coverage.

Have you ever worked on your laptop computer with it sitting on your lap, heating up your legs? If so, you might want to rethink that habit.

Students in more than 60 Chicago Public Schools classrooms got a lesson Monday in nutrition from a team of professional chefs.

For the first time in more than a decade, the federal government is funding sex education programs that aren't based solely on abstinence. But they're not just about handing out condoms, either.

American scientists deliberately infected prisoners and patients in a mental hospital in Guatemala with syphilis 60 years ago, a recently unearthed experiment that prompted U.S. officials to apologize Friday and declare outrage over "such reprehensible research."

Do you snore so loudly that it annoys others? Are you constantly falling asleep at work or behind the wheel? Do you wake up frequently during the night? Do you feel you aren’t well rested even though you’ve slept for hours? Or feel short of breath when you wake? If so, you may have a potentially dangerous sleep disorder that affects your breathing, called Sleep Apnea.

Seniors with high drug costs will soon have more options to help them cope with Medicare's prescription coverage gap.

Newly released U.S. Census Bureau figures show the percentage of Illinois children with health insurance grew between 2008 and 2009. But about 5 percent of Illinois children were still uninsured last year.

An appeals court ruled Tuesday that government funding of embryonic stem cell research can continue for now.

Seniors enrolled in popular private health insurance plans through Medicare will pay a little less on average next year, the Obama administration said Tuesday.

That sticky gunk coating Alzheimer's patients' brains gets all the notoriety, but another culprit is gaining renewed attention: Protein tangles that clog brain cells and just might determine how fast patients go downhill.

The University of Illinois at Chicago has received a big federal grant to study what influences smoking habits in young adults.

A new study will investigate whether children who spent at least two months in FEMA trailers after the hurricanes of 2005 have more skin or breathing problems than those who didn't.

Federal health regulators will allow GlaxoSmithKline to continue selling a controversial diabetes pill but will restrict access to the once-blockbuster drug because of heart attack risks.

More than 1 million Illinois residents will be eligible for tax credits to offset the cost of health insurance starting in 2014, according to an estimate released Tuesday by a liberal advocacy group.

The nation's new health care law turns 6 months old Thursday and starts delivering protections and dollars-and-cents benefits that Americans can grasp. But it won't affect all consumers the same way, which may cause confusion.

Obesity puts a drag on the wallet as well as health, especially for women.

Heart disease and cancer are the first and second leading cause of death for African-Americans nationally. Cardiovascular diseases rank as the number one killer of African-Americans claiming the lives of over one-third of the more than 292,000 African-Americans who die each year.

For Marvin Jackson, getting advanced treatment for prostate cancer was a matter of life and death. Jackson (not his real name in order to protect medical privacy) was just 52 years old when the sore shoulder he had been nursing for months turned out to be prostate cancer that had metastasized to his bones.

The issue of parity along ethnic lines when it comes to participation in groundbreaking clinical trials is quite real for me.

Needy Chicagoans with vision problems will get help from the Illinois Eye Institute thanks to more than $300,000 in private grants.

In 1966, a Massachusetts researcher Henry K. Beecher, M.D., published an essay discussing proposed federal rules concerning human experimentation. In this essay, he wrote that even though at times ethical breaches were evident, he doubted that “consent in any fully informed sense” was obtainable.

Health officials say vaccination rates for toddlers remain high, but they are concerned about an overall drop in measles vaccinations.

A Chicago group is getting nearly $6 million in federal money to prevent childhood obesity.

State health officials say ovarian cancer can be difficult to detect, so it's important to be aware of the risk factors.

A Closer Look at Tuskegee, HeLa Cells, and the Black Community “All I knew was that they just kept saying I had the bad blood—they never mentioned syphilis to me, not even once,” said Tuskegee Syphilis Study participant Charles Pollard.

One of history's most glaring violation of medical ethics occurred in Tuskegee, Ala. That was when federal researchers experimented on close to 400 impoverished African-American sharecroppers who suffered from syphilis. The experiments started in 1932 and lasted for 40 years.

The general distrust that African-Americans have of clinical trial research goes back a long way. History tells them that it would be in their best interests to not participate but the reality is that Black participation in clinical research is critical because African-Americans disparately suffer from some of the highest disease rates and respond differently to many treatments.

September is National Cholesterol Education Month.

When it comes to eating fruits and vegetables, Illinois adults are just about average. But that's far from what's recommended to be healthy.

An advocacy group is kicking off a campaign to involve people with mental illness in an effort to transform Illinois' public mental health system.

Illinois schools and groups involved in helping kids create hands-on anti-obesity programs are eligible for new Heroes grants.

Illinois public health officials say more than 1,000 people commit suicide in the state each year.

A Chicago-based alliance of community health centers has won a federal stimulus grant to do research on what makes a difference for patients.

Purdue University has won a $1.5 million grant for a new community-focused effort aimed at reducing heart disease among Indiana's black residents.

September is National Sickle Cell Awareness Month. Sickle cell anemia (SSA) is an inherited disorder where red blood cells have a tendency to form sickles (i.e., crescent or moon-shaped) instead of round, smooth cells.

Early retiree Richard Rouse told federal officials Tuesday he would like to know that his former employers' health plan for retirees is stable and won't be raising his $500 monthly premiums.

The only public hospital on the South Side plans to close its Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology on Oct. 15 due to under utilization.

Doctors and researchers are finding more vitamin D deficiency in adults and elderly. Many questions arise about the importance of this vitamin and signs of deficiency.

Promising medical research is in disarray as scientists await an appeal by the Obama administration of a judge's ruling that undercuts taxpayer-funded research using human embryonic stem cells.

Hundreds of Illinois residents have submitted applications for a new federally funded health insurance program for people with medical problems.

Good news for the sick. A study by the University of Illinois at Chicago says most surveyed hospitals meet national guidelines for preventing a drug-resistant bacterial infection.

Gov. Pat Quinn is scheduled to announce a new federally funded insurance program for people with pre-existing medical problems.

The Illinois Department of Insurance has been awarded a $1 million federal grant to put more muscle into its review of health insurance premium increases.

A new study has found a stunning increase in the rate of hearing loss among American teenagers. The report says nearly one in five teenagers has at least slight hearing loss.

Fido's food may be making kids sick, a government report warns, detailing the first known salmonella outbreak in humans, mostly young children, linked to pet food.

Health care work force training programs in Illinois are set to receive federal grants totaling $5.4 million.

Illinois health officials are reminding the public to practice good hygiene before diving into swimming pools.

So, is it true? Does fried or fatty food cause your face to break out?

Illinois health officials are reminding adults that they too may be due for some shots.

Are Americans becoming more honest about their weight?

Q: Dr. Dave, I have been trying to get pregnant for 2 years now. I saw a doctor who said that I have fibroids and that the fibroids may be the reason I havent conceived. What are fibroids? Is there hope for me?

What you don’t know about the food you eat may be seriously harming you.

Poverty is perhaps the most important factor in whether inner-city heterosexuals are infected with the AIDS virus, according to the first government study of its kind.

Abortion foes have won a round in the first test of how President Barack Obama's health care law will be applied to the politically charged issue.

For the first time, a vaginal gel has proved capable of blocking the AIDS virus: It cut in half a woman's chances of getting HIV from an infected partner in a study in South Africa. Scientists called it a breakthrough in the long quest for a tool to help women whose partners won't use condoms.

For years you’ve gained healthy eating and diet advice from Dr. Ian Smith from VH1’s “Celebrity Fit Club” reality show, in one of his many books on the subject or during the nationwide 50 Million Pound Challenge he initiated.

The overall teen smoking rate has declined in the two decades since 1991. But, over the last seven years, the decline has slowed for all teens except African-American females who are leading the way for smoking cessation, according to a recent report released by the CDC.

President Barack Obama said Tuesday a new strategy for combating HIV and AIDS fulfills America's obligation to stopping the spread of the virus and rooting out the inequities and attitudes on which it thrives.

Federal health scientists have panned a GlaxoSmithKline study that the company used to defend the safety of its embattled diabetes drug Avandia, a once blockbuster-seller that has fallen out of favor because of potential ties to heart attacks.

The University of Illinois at Chicago has selected 11 top high school students to participate in a prestigious summer internship to learn about the immune system and diabetes.

Emergency rooms, the only choice for patients who can't find care elsewhere, may grow even more crowded with longer wait times under the nation's new health law.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is giving parents a new way to figure out when their children's symptoms require medical attention.

An annual obesity report by two public health groups includes more bad news — obesity rates increased in 28 states last year — and also a new survey of parental attitudes about the issue. The survey shows an increasing awareness of obesity and its threat to public health, though that knowledge has yet to translate into results.

The Georgia Department of Community Health is offering pregnant women and new mothers a chance to receive weekly text messages with health tips for pregnancy and raising infants.

Pictured, an X-Ray technician performs a series of X-rays on a patient in the trauma section of the Cook County's Stroger hospital emergency room in Chicago. Fast decisions on life-and-death cases are the bread and butter of hospital emergency rooms. Nowhere do doctors face greater pressures to overtest and overtreat. The fear of missing something weighs heavily on every doctor’s mind. But the stakes are highest in the ER, and that fear often leads to extra blood tests and imaging scans for what may be harmless chest pains, run-of-the-mill head bumps, and non-threatening stomachaches. AP/Charles Rex Arbogast

ATLANTA – Millions of cancer survivors have put off getting medical care because they couldn't afford it, according to a new study.

A University of Illinois at Chicago project to improve communication between doctors and their patients about medical mistakes has won a federal grant to expand.

INDIANAPOLIS – Companies that offer employee health insurance expect another steep jump in medical costs next year, and more will ask workers to share a bigger chunk of the expense, according to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers report.

WASHINGTON - “Why did they cut you?” The shocking question came from a respected spine surgeon tracked down by Keith Swenson, who was still in severe pain after an earlier back operation.

A new report says violent assaults in hospitals are too common and possibly underreported.

ATLANTA - U.S. health officials have for the first time released contraception safety guidelines for more than 1 million women who have had weight-loss surgery or have certain medical conditions.

WASHINGTON - The Food and Drug Administration says it has approved the first diagnostic test for 2009 swine flu under its traditional approval system.

WASHINGTON – Federal health regulators are warning doctors and patients that popular heartburn drugs like Nexium and Prilosec may cause bone fractures when used for more than a year.

Nurses at University of Chicago Medical Center have voted to join a new union and hope to reopen talks with the hospital on staffing issues.

Health, community and social organizations in Chicago vowed recently to implement strategies set forth by the childhood obesity task force put together as a result of First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! national campaign to combat childhood obesity.

ATLANTA – The cost of treating cancer in the United States nearly doubled over the past two decades, but expensive cancer drugs may not be the main reason why, according to a surprising new study.

Sherese Johnson, a 39-year-old wife and mother, prefers to do a lot of walking as a means of exercising to help control her Type 2 diabetes. Walking is among the many activities, including bike riding, swimming and other traditional exercises, that health professionals say are helpful with managing the disease.

New research suggests that having four common bad habits can age you by 12 years.

Moved by a huge tide of troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress, Congress has pressured the Department of Veterans Affairs to settle their disability claims - quickly, humanely, and mostly in the vets' favor.

Christine Bowden (right) of Body Genesis, a chiropractic wellness center, shares information with Ashley Young during the health fair.

Older women at higher risk for breast cancer now have two good drug options for preventing the disease, but they will have to weigh the trade-offs, a major study shows.

ATLANTA - U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the last year's battle against swine flu had many successes, but she also listed problems that need to be fixed.

Chicago is home to several hospitals but only one is dedicated to serving the needs of veterans and that's the Jesse Brown Veteran Affairs Medical Center.

Gov. Pat Quinn is proposing reforms that would raise minimum staffing levels at nursing homes. It's an idea that's quietly being fought by the nursing home industry as talks resume this week in Springfield.

WASHINGTON – Having a bad reaction to penicillin as a child does not guarantee you are still allergic decades later. And if the oncologist says you have to switch chemotherapies because of an allergic reaction, maybe you don't

Exercising a few days at home a few days each week wasn't enough for one third grade student, so she decided to sign up for a weekly after-school fitness class.

ATLANTA - A new government study confirms that U.S. births fell in 2008, probably because of the recession.

A program that helps Illinois Medicare beneficiaries learn about their health care choices is receiving $1.4 million in federal funding.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Health officials are encouraging Illinois residents who are sexually active to talk with a health care professional and get tested for sexually transmitted diseases.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Illinois officials are encouraging residents to practice good-health habits during National Public Health Week this week.

BARCELONA, Spain – For some women, having a breast removed once they have been diagnosed with cancer doesn't always mean they'll live longer, a new study says.

ASHINGTON - Primary care physicians already are in short supply in parts of the United States, and the landmark health overhaul that will bring them millions more newly insured patients in the next few years promises extra strain.

WASHINGTON - Chalk one up for the pharmaceutical lobby.

ATLANTA – Last fall, as swine flu cases mounted and parents desperately sought to protect their kids, the hard-to-get vaccine was handed out in some surprising places: the Royal Caribbean cruise line, the headquarters of drug giant Merck, the Johnson Space Center and a Department of Energy office in Idaho.

PORTLAND, Ore. - Northfield, Ill. based-Kraft Foods Inc. said recently that it will cut the salt in its products that are sold in North America by an average of 10 percent over the next two years to appeal to health-conscious consumers.

The nonprofit UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation is seeking grant applications from Illinois families in need of financial assistance for their children's health needs.

A big new nationwide study on personalizing breast cancer treatment has Illinois connections.

ATLANTA - Key results from a landmark federal study are in, and the results are disappointing for diabetics: Adding drugs to drive blood pressure and blood-fats lower than current targets did not prevent heart problems, and in some cases caused harmful side effects.

A class-action lawsuit agreement is set to require Illinois to help thousands of residents move out of large mental institutions and provide them support services.

WASHINGTON – It took lawmakers a year to shape President Barack Obama's health care bill. If it finally passes Congress, it'll take the better part of a decade to write the user manual for consumers and doctors, employers and insurance companies.

ATLANTA - Many Americans with leaky heart valves soon might be able to get them fixed without open-heart surgery. A study showed that a tiny clip implanted through an artery was safer and nearly as effective as surgery, doctors reported recently.

Ald. Ed Smith, right center, Mayor Richard M. Daley, left center, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and several other elected officials were on hand recently for the PCC Community Wellness Center's ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new state-of-the-art Austin Family Health Center.

WASHINGTON – Germs in the gut may help drive appetite, says new research into the link between obesity and bacteria.

Diet not working? Blame your genes. That's the pitch behind a new test that claims to show whether people will do better on a low-fat or a low-carb weight loss plan.

WASHINGTON – The time has come to change a policy that imposes a lifetime ban on donating blood for any man who has had gay sex since 1977, 18 senators said Thursday.

WASHINGTON - What could be worse for Americans than health care overhaul? No health care overhaul.

WASHINGTON - Two Illinois universities are receiving federal stimulus money to develop regional centers on health information technology.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Illinois health officials will be holding three public hearings on obesity prevention.

Fish oil pills may be able to save some young people with signs of mental illness from descending into schizophrenia, according to a preliminary but first-of-its-kind study conducted in Austria.

WASHINGTON - Many Americans will get broader coverage for mental illness and substance abuse treatment under rules issued Friday by the Obama administration.

While some were moved to tears by the president's soaring rhetoric, others were moved not at all. Where some saw a new clarity, others saw more vagueness. And while some praised him for reaching out to Republicans, there were those who felt he was overreaching in some ways and not reaching far enough in others.

WASHINGTON - The poverty rate among older Americans could be nearly twice as high as the traditional 10 percent level, according to a revision of a half-century-old formula for calculating medical costs and geographic variations in the cost of living.

WASHINGTON – Merck's blockbuster vaccine Gardasil, which is already used to prevent cervical cancer in women, also stops viruses that cause genital warts in men, the Food and Drug Administration said recently.

WASHINGTON – A vaccine from GlaxoSmithKline blocks the virus that causes most cases of cervical cancer, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday.

The American Medical Association has posted a letter on its Web site, urging President Barack Obama and Congress to reach an agreement on health reform.