News

Awareness of the opioid crisis plaguing the country has risen sufficiently that responsible healthcare providers are realizing where there are opportunities to help—while more nefarious characters prey on those who fall victim to addiction. Just this week federal agencies pounced on 53 medical professionals, leveling charges that they were taking part in illegal prescribing and distribution of opioids and other dangerous narcotics in Alabama, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, and West Virginia. All told, they’re alleged to …

The federal government shutdown is having a very real effect on access to healthcare for many Americans. We told you recently that clinics funded by the Indian Health Service are going without funding, leaving some patients who get their primary care at those facilities out in the cold. On the other side of the coin you’ll see federal workers who aren’t getting paid and may have some tough decisions to make about where their dwindling …

A few weeks ago, we warned you about clusters of multiple, vaccine-preventable infection in North Carolina and South Carolina. Add New Jersey and New York to the list of states with communities seeing outbreaks of measles at present. The New Jersey Department of Health has confirmed 33 cases of measles in two counties; all three of the cases in one of those counties occurred in the same household, and nine cases confirmed in the other …

Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) jumped onto the general public’s radar screen in 2018, thanks to the greatest number of cases ever in the U.S. With 10 days left on the calendar for this year, there have been 158 confirmed cases in 36 states. While that’s still a relatively low number, widespread media coverage has made parents acutely aware of the potentially devastating and long-lasting effects, perhaps driving many to visit the local urgent care center when …

As this year’s influenza season really gets going, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released a report with some data that should make you sit up and take notice. In fact, it should spur you to action. In a year when flu killed at least 79,000, less than 40% of adults in the United States received the influenza vaccination. The highest death toll in decades coincided with the lowest immunization rate in 7 …

For weeks now—predating Hurricane Michael—a toxic “red tide” has been plaguing communities in the Florida panhandle. Schools are canceling some outdoor activities, and classrooms are emptying as urgent care centers are filling up all over Brevard County and beyond. Environmentalists and public health officials in the area say they have no reason to think it’s going to abate any time soon. Until it does, they expect to continue seeing scores of dead fish wash ashore …

The yin and yang of urgent care has always been thus: Patients recognize the need and value—as demonstrated by their reliance on locations in their community—while the healthcare establishment looks askance and comes up with reasons why the old-school doctor’s office is just fine. The New York Post, of all things, illustrated that dichotomy by publishing two stories that were unrelated, other than the urgent care connection, in a single edition recently. The story that …

People will continue to get sick, and probably stand a greater chance of being injured, during times of extreme weather like Hurricane Florence. Healthcare organizations in areas expecting to be affected are already getting the word out that they’ll be available to help those who need medical care. UNC Health Care, a North Carolina medical network, is one of them; they’re waving their $49 fee for online urgent care services during the storm period. Free …

Predictions for widespread destruction of property and threats to human life are everywhere as Hurricane Florence takes aim at the southeastern coast of the United States, with North Carolina and South Carolina expected to take the biggest hit. Unfortunately, according to a new survey released by DrFirst, many healthcare organizations say they lack confidence in their own disaster preparedness. And it’s not because they think they’re immune; 68% of respondents from acute, ambulatory, hospice, and …