Support the fact-based journalism you rely on with a donation to Marketplace today. Give Now!

Got a cold or the flu? Think twice about antibiotics

Jul 18, 2018
Why overprescribing antibiotics is increasing fears of "super bugs."
Bottles of antibiotics line a shelf.
Joe Raedle/ Getty Images

Hospital closure leaves soon-to-be mothers in rural Missouri without an OB-GYN

Jul 16, 2018
Another rural hospital has closed, the 85th to shutter in the U.S. since 2010. This latest closing happened in Dunklin County, Missouri, one of the poorest counties in the state. The hospital was home to the only OB-GYN physician in a region that has one of the highest premature birth and infant mortality rates in […]

Generic Viagra floods the market. Here’s how Pfizer is reacting

Jul 13, 2018
Pfizer hopes to run with its “little blue pill” as long as it can. That includes the time-honored strategy of launching its own generic.
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Liver transplant centers begin to loosen rules for people with acute alcoholic hepatitis

Jul 2, 2018
Before considering surgery, U.S. transplant centers have required patients to stop drinking for six months. But more and more physicians are questioning this strict standard.
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Amazon acquires PillPack as it muscles its way into the health care industry

Jun 28, 2018
Hear that thud? That’s the sound of Amazon getting into the retail pharmacy business. Today the online retail giant snatched up PillPack, an online pharmacy that presorts prescription drugs and delivers them to your door. Walgreens, Rite Aid and CVS all saw their stock prices take a dive in early trading on news of the […]

The FDA approves the first drug derived from cannabis

Jun 28, 2018
Will this be the catalyst for big pharmaceutical companies to get into the pot business?
An assistant studies cannabis leaves in the Maripharma Laboratory in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 2002.
Michel Porro/Getty Images

Finding community at a rehabilitation hospital

Jun 22, 2018
Inside a stroke support group at Rancho Los Amigos Rehabilitation Center in Downey, California.

For public good, not for profit.

Mind the gap: Navigating the transition from pediatric to adult health care

Jun 22, 2018
Getting the right health care once you outgrow your pediatrician can be tricky if you have a disability.
[Image description: A wide shot of a doctor’s office in San Francisco. On the left, a patient in a gown sits on an examination bed while the doctor checks her breathing with a stethoscope. The patient has short brown hair and is sitting with her hands clasped in her lap. On the right, there is a set of counters, with various medical equipment laid across the surface.]
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Gawande named to lead health care company for Amazon, JP Morgan Chase and Berkshire Hathaway

Jun 20, 2018
Earlier this year, corporate titans Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett and Jamie Dimon announced they would team up to form a new health care company. Their mission: Improve health and save a few bucks for the 1 million people who work for Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase. Today we learned that Atul Gawande will lead […]

Senate to scrutinize hospitals on low-income patient profits and spending

Jun 19, 2018
This morning, a Senate committee checks in to see how the cuts to the so-called 340b program, which allows hospitals to buy drugs at a discount, are impacting hospitals and patients. Critics say there’s little evidence that hospitals used the savings to help patients. Click the audio player above to hear the full story.