Since it began in 2004, a global effort led by the United States to combat HIV has dramatically increased the number of people it helps, a new government report shows.

In its report, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the number of people receiving lifesaving HIV treatment through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has increased 300 tim...

U.S. water utilities will be required to remove certain “forever chemicals” from drinking water as the Biden administration sets first-ever limits on perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, better known as known as PFAS.

Nearly all Americans have PFAS in their bloodstream. The toxic chemicals are found in an enormous range of goods from dental floss to waterproof clothing. The c...

The United States is one of the few developed nations without federal paid sick leave protection, owing at least in part to concerns about potential harms to business, according to a new study.

Yet, researchers studying the issue found that access to paid sick leave could have benefits for businesses.

Among them: fewer occupational injuries, less spread of contagious disease, fewer ...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's heavily criticized tobacco program promised changes on Friday, including a five-year strategic plan to better outline priorities.

"As we enter this era of declining use of combustible tobacco and continued innovation in the e-cigarette industry, the societal concerns are not subtle," FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf said in an agency news release...

Changes in U.S. abortion laws have prompted confusion among women about medication abortion and emergency contraception, or the “morning-after” pill.

A new poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) underscores this lack of awareness about what's legal or not from state to state, including whether a full abortion ban is in place or abortions are allowed.

Pollsters surveyed a na...

To fight an urgent opioid overdose crisis, a Canadian province took an unusual step on Tuesday.

British Columbia decriminalized small amounts of several hard drugs.

This includes up to 2.5 grams of cocaine, heroin and fentanyl, the province's Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions said in a statement

Stung by recent food safety scandals -- most notably last year's infant formula shortage, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that it is creating a new unit devoted to food safety.

The newly dubbed Human Foods Program will wield wide-ranging powers.

"We're proposing the creation of a unified, newly envisioned organization, called the Human Foods Program, that el...

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration official who has led the agency's food policy efforts since 2018 announced his resignation on Wednesday.

Frank Yiannas was also among the top officials leading the agency response to last year's infant formula shortage.

"Today, I informed [FDA] Commissioner ...

When it comes to tobacco control, some states do a far better job than others of preventing and reducing smoking.

A new report from the American Lung Association (ALA) notes that California, Maine, Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., are doing the best job of putting proven tobacco control policies in place.

Conversely, those who have the most need to enact policies are Alabama, Mi...

The pandemic brought the utility of testing wastewater to gauge viral spread to the fore.

Now, experts at the independent National Academies of Sciences (NAS) have issued a report outlining a roadmap for the broader surveillance of Americans' wastewater.

The report "reviews the usefulness of comm...

The number of Americans who had trouble paying their medical bills dropped precipitously between 2019 and 2021, and funds from the American Rescue Plan and other federal pandemic relief programs may have been a reason why.

Overall, 10.8% of Americans responding to a federal survey in 2021 said they had had problems covering medical bills that year, down from 14% in 2019, according to rese...

Gas stoves could face new emissions standards or even be banned because of their link to indoor air pollutants and childhood asthma, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

The federal agency will open public comment on gas cooking stoves and their hazards sometime this winter, Bloomberg News reported.

“This is a hidden hazard,” agency commissio...

Medicare Advantage ads that are confusing or misleading could be banned under a new rule that was proposed Wednesday by the Biden administration to protect seniors.

Nearly half of all seniors or people with disabilities who are enrolled in the Medicare program through the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have Medicare Advantage plans.

“CMS released a proposed...

The state of California is suing several companies for their role in manufacturing "forever chemicals."

The lawsuit filed Thursday also claims that the companies, including 3M and DuPont, covered up the harm their products, commonly known as PFAS, were causing to the...

U.S. voters spoke up for abortion rights Tuesday through ballot measures in four states in what was seen as a win for abortion rights supporters.

In Michigan, California and Vermont, voters approved measures that would amend their state constitutions to protect abortion, about four months after the U.S. Supreme Court removed the constitutional right to the procedure, the New York Time...