What does food insecurity mean? Food desert? Here's a quick reference.

For Ariella Wilson, a dietitian nutritionist in Chicago, the gut microbiome is an inner universe. Instead of stars and planets, it contains trillions of bacteria, fungi, and microbes that help digest food, fight illness, and regulate mood. chicagohealthonline.com/nutrition-at...

For people in need of food help this month, @chicagohealth.bsky.social put together a list of local mutual aid groups, food pantries, and restaurants offering free/discounted meals: chicagohealthonline.com/its-been-rea...

“We took care of our patients so well. It’s not our fault.”

How the Dietary Guidelines for America come to be and how they stand to impact Americans’ health: chicagohealthonline.com/healthy-plat...

The controversy brewing behind RFK Jr.’s national autism registry and data initiative: chicagohealthonline.com/rfk-jr-autis...

Medicaid covers 83 million people, including +60% of nursing home residents, 20% of assisted living facility residents, and half of long-term care residents. Yet many Medicaid recipients don’t realize they’re enrolled because the program goes by so many nicknames - via @chicagohealth.bsky.social

Want more on Medicaid and other health news? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter: chicagohealthonline.us16.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=...

Many Medicaid recipients don’t realize they’re enrolled because the program goes by different names in different states. chicagohealthonline.com/medicaid-man... by @katiehappens.bsky.social

“I work almost 60 hours a week, and I still can’t afford to put food on the table. The myth that you have to work really hard in order to make a living is just not true.” Healthcare workers gather near Trump Tower to protest the largest Medicaid cuts in history under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

University of Chicago professor shares realities of the “Big Beautiful Bill” healthcare impacts on Medicaid and the ACA: chicagohealthonline.com/medicaid-aca...

NIH funding cuts are putting rare disease research — and lives — at risk. For Milan Afshar, a young Chicagoan living with stiff-person syndrome, life turned upside down after his clinical trial abruptly ended. This isn’t just a budget issue. It’s a human one. Read the full story:

One of the vaccines on that schedule? Polio. www.scientificamerican.com/article/here...

RFK ousted the vaccine advisory committee (ACIP). What are the chances he'll fill it w/ anti-vaxxers who change the immunization schedule, prompting insurers not to cover vaccines? Here's how the vaccine process typically works: chicagohealthonline.com/whos-in-char... cc: @chicagohealth.bsky.social

Read our 2024 award-winning stories and latest recognitions! We’re excited to share the honors that @caregivingmag.bsky.social and @chicagohealth.bsky.social have received this past year for outstanding work. Congratulations to all, and please enjoy! chicagohealthonline.com/awards-fello...

Incredibly timely for older Americans and those who love them or hope to someday be them, with suggested actions for Wed., 3/28.

As infections and low egg supplies persist, avian flu remains an unpredictable health concern: chicagohealthonline.com/bird-flu-fli...

Older Venezuelans in the U.S. struggle with shifting immigration policies: chicagocaregiving.com/ongoing-fear... My latest story for @chicagohealth.bsky.social

In a landmark shift for retail pharmacy, private equity firm Sycamore Partners will purchase Walgreens Boots Alliance for $10 billion later this year, with potential to pay $23.7 billion once all costs are factored in. The deal takes Walgreens private for the first time in nearly a century.

So proud of our latest @chicagohealth.bsky.social. Here's my editor's letter, starting here and continuing in the comments: I’ve been thinking back to those early days of Covid-19, what it was like to be a journalist then. Every day brought something new.

Thanks for the shout-out, @chicagohealth.bsky.social !

MD vs. DO: What's the difference? Quite a bit actually! (Though, in my experience, it depends on the specialty.) An interesting history in our latest issue of @chicagohealth.bsky.social: chicagohealthonline.com/md-do-what-k...

Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience.

Measles update: 607 cases across 21 states as of Friday. 3 confirmed deaths as of this morning. “The best thing you can do is make sure you and your family are protected,” a local infectious disease doctor told @chicagohealth.bsky.social. “Measles is preventable — if people get vaccinated.”

Five years since the beginning of Covid-19, new epidemics such as bird flu are emerging worldwide, and researchers are still finding it difficult to access the data about people’s deaths that they need to develop lifesaving interventions.

We are once again incredibly honored to be a finalist in the Chicago Headline Club's Peter Lisagor Awards. Congratulations to our design team for their work on our gun violence issue.

This is the story of thousands of families, violently uprooted from their homeland, struggling to build new opportunities for their children. As families face ongoing hardships, the support systems they've developed here are tested daily. By @katiehappens.bsky.social, @clavelrangel.bsky.social

Illinois residents may soon have access to free training on how to administer epinephrine to someone experiencing anaphylaxis. This life-threatening allergic reaction causes severe swelling, potentially blocking airways and causing suffocation.

Word of the Week: Vorauseilender Gehorsam German word for ‘preemptive obedience' (thx to @chicagohealth.bsky.social) chicagohealthonline.com/theres-just-...

While HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy argues that skipping public comment streamlines operations, critics warn that doing so limits transparency and shuts out healthcare stakeholders from shaping policy. via @chicagohealth.bsky.social

22 states have filed a lawsuit against the NIH over the Trump administration's new 15% cap. The suit contends that because of the policy, lifesaving research “will grind to a halt.” Chicago researchers weigh in on the freeze, via @chicagohealth.bsky.social: chicagohealthonline.com/theres-just-...

Update: The letter now has 24,300 signatures It cites Kennedy’s 2019 visit to Samoa, where he fueled doubts about the measles vax. Vaccination rates fell (60% to 31%) following the visit. Within four months, a measles outbreak killed 83, hospitalized 1,868. chicagohealthonline.com/physicians-r...

Health inequities, hospitals’ preparation for the Democratic National Convention, ongoing vaccine controversies.... Check out the pieces you’ve missed, or take another look.