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US overdose deaths down, giving experts hope for enduring decline

NEW YORK —  The decline in U.S. drug overdose deaths appears to have continued this year, giving experts hope the nation is seeing sustained improvement in the persistent epidemic. There were about 97,000 overdose deaths in the 12-month period that…

After declaring end to cholera outbreak, Zimbabwe sees new cases

Harare, Zimbabwe —  Zimbabwe has recorded new cases of cholera several months after declaring the end of an outbreak that killed more than 700 people over an 18-month period. On Wednesday, Zimbabwe confirmed a new outbreak of cholera has been…

Birth control, abortion pill requests surge since Trump election

Hours after Donald Trump was elected president for the second time, Dr. Clayton Alfonso had two messages from patients seeking to replace their IUDs. Over the next few days, three women inquired about getting their tubes tied. All of them…

At UN climate talks, nations big and small get chance to bear witness to climate change

BAKU, Azerbaijan —  When more than two dozen world leaders deliver remarks at the United Nations’ annual climate conference on Wednesday, many have detailed their nations’ firsthand experience with the catastrophic weather that has come with climate change. “Over the…

Teen in critical condition with Canada’s first presumptive human case of bird flu

TORONTO, canada —  A teenager is in critical condition in a British Columbia children’s hospital, sick with Canada’s first presumptive human case of avian influenza. “This was a healthy teenager prior to this, so no underlying conditions,” said provincial health…

Biggest name world leaders missing at UN climate talks, others fill the void

BAKU, Azerbaijan —  World leaders are converging Tuesday at the United Nations annual climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan although the big names and powerful countries are noticeably absent, unlike past climate talks which had the star power of a soccer…

Mexico City’s floating gardens in peril

MEXICO CITY —  Cassandra Garduño squinted in the sunlight, her pink boots smudged by dirt as she gazed out over her family’s chinampa — one of the islands first built up by the Aztecs with fertile mud from the bottom…

Canada detects its first presumptive human H5 bird flu case

OTTAWA, Ontario —  Canada has detected its first presumptive case of H5 bird flu in a person, a teenager in the western province of British Columbia, health officials said Saturday. The teenager likely caught the virus from a bird or…

Experts release new guidelines for preventing strokes

Most strokes could be prevented, according to new guidelines aimed at helping people and their doctors do just that. Stroke was the fourth-leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2023, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and…

Climate, health crises must be resolved together, experts say

GENEVA —  Ahead of next week’s U.N. Climate Change Conference, or COP29, in Baku, Azerbaijan, health experts warn that the climate crisis is also a health crisis and say they must be addressed in tandem to save the planet for…