Health

Second-trimester abortions increased 13 percent in Texas in the aftermath of 2013’s House Bill 2 despite abortions decreasing by 18 percent generally, a study published Tuesday in Obstetrics & Gynecology shows. Overall, women seeking abortions were forced to wait an average of one week more to get an abortion after…

It might not matter — all the teens are vaping pot now anyway — but a bipartisan group of Texas legislators is pushing a plan to raise the state’s tobacco purchasing age from 18 to 21, making anyone who wants to look cool while slowly killing themselves wait three more…

Monday was a weird time to be celebrating for Planned Parenthood. The venerable reproductive rights advocacy organization and healthcare provider faces attacks from all sides. President Donald Trump wants to strip the organization of millions in federal funding; multiple speakers at last week’s Conservative Political Action Conference accused abortion providers…

Dallas County health officials announced late Friday that an 89-year-old Dallas resident is the sixth person in the county to succumb to the flu this month. Dallas County Health and Human Services doesn’t release any additional information about virus or infection victims. Each of the six Dallas County deaths this…

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton rolled out the state’s next big plan to save Texans from U.S.’ ongoing opioid epidemic Tuesday afternoon: A website and some seriously weird stock photography. “The misuse and abuse of prescription opioids cost lives and devastate Texas families in every region of our state,” Paxton…

Two adults are the first Dallas County residents to die from the flu this season, Dallas County Health and Human Services officials announced Wednesday afternoon. The two victims were 59 and 66 years old, according to the county, which does not provide any additional identifying information about those who succumb…

The headline — “Fort Worth Judge Strikes Down Affordable Care Act” — was easy enough to understand, at least on its face, Friday evening. The potential fallout was harder to break down. Yes, U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, handpicked by the Texas Attorney General’s Office to hear its claims that…

More adult Texans, and a higher percentage of them, are without health insurance than anywhere else in the United States, the Observer reported in September. A new report from the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families shows that kids in the state are no better off. More than 835,000 Texas…

Few things can cause a greater sense of sticker shock in America than getting the bill for a bottle of pills not covered by insurance. A 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association concluded that Americans spend $458 more per capita on prescription drugs compared with…

Those people knocking on Dallas County doors with a badge and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ID aren’t late trick-or-treaters vying for extra candy. They’re health examiners from the CDC gathering data for a national health survey known for developing understanding of national health conditions. The National Health and…

The Texas Legislature’s 2017 “sanctuary cities” bill, which requires local law enforcement and elected officials to cooperate with federal immigration authorities or face loss of state funding or removal from office, is already harming the health of Texas children and their families, according to new research from Human Impact Partners,…

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission announced Friday afternoon that it is ending its contract with an anti-abortion group receiving millions from the state to provide women’s health services as part of multiple programs. The Heidi Group, according to the state, repeatedly failed to serve the number of patients…

After four straight years of Affordable Care Act-inspired gains, Texas’ uninsured rate for adults took a step back in 2017, according to newly released numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau. About 4.8 million Texas adults, 17.3 percent of the population, do not have health insurance, up from 4.5 million and…

It’s hard to figure out if any of this is going to matter. An hour before a hearing that could go a long way toward determining the final fate of the Affordable Care Act, and Justin Nelson, the guy trying to take down the guy trying to take down Obamacare…

A federal lawsuit that could end up harming millions of Texans kicks off in earnest this morning in Fort Worth. A coalition of states, led by Texas and its attorney general, Ken Paxton, will argue in front of a federal judge that the Affordable Care Act, despite being ruled constitutional…

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is about to find out if the Affordable Care Act covers cutting off your nose to spite your face. Last month, as filings in the Paxton-led lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s signature achievement piled up in federal court, the Texas attorney general slipped a new…

A Northwest Dallas resident is the first person to die from West Nile Virus in Dallas County in 2018, Dallas County Health and Human Services said Tuesday. The patient lived in the 75229 ZIP code area north of Love Field Airport. DCHHS did not disclose any additional details in order…

His brain was bouncing. Eyes involuntarily darting. Left arm numb, dangling uselessly. Lincoln Coleman was in trouble. But on Thanksgiving 1993 on that memorable, sleet-covered field at Texas Stadium, he stubbornly persuaded himself not to call for medical attention and leave the Dallas Cowboys’ clash against the Miami Dolphins. He…

Three-quarters of Texans get it, according to the Texas Lyceum’s annual poll. According to the group’s poll, which drills down on health care topics in addition to Texas’ midterm races this year, 76 percent of Texans believe that the benefits of vaccinating children outweigh the risks. That figure doesn’t tell…