Call for breast milk donations in Haiti goes bust

When lactation consultant Faith Ploude heard that babies in Haiti might need donated breast milk, she made sure to get the word out to her classes at Mercy Hospital in Miami — and her database of more than 1,000 nursing moms.

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Haiti amputees face dire quest for prosthetics

By the time 4-year-old Schneily Similien’s parents got him to a doctor, it was too late to save his left leg.

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Disaster do-gooders can actually hinder help

No question, the two church-goers from New Jersey had the best intentions in the world when they arrived in Port-au-Prince this week to help victims of Haiti’s killer earthquake.

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Next wave of misery? Infection, illness loom

As soon as the shaking stopped, the first wave of misery began.

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Docs seek to stifle patients’ rants on Web sites

Depending on who’s writing the rating, a certain New York plastic surgeon is either “very skilled and esthetically gifted” or “very bad,” with results that left one patient “wondering if doctor knows what a female breast looks like.”

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Drunk walking makes New Year’s a deadly day

Most New Year's party-goers know better than to drive drunk as tipsy celebrations loom. What they likely don't know, traffic experts say, is that walking drunk after tying one on is dangerous, too.

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60 million in U.S. vaccinated against swine flu

About 60 million Americans have received the swine flu vaccine, including a large proportion of children, a government health official said Tuesday.

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Ideal beauty a matter of millimeters, study says

For every woman who has ever obsessed that her chin was too long or that her eyes were set too close together, scientists appear to have a new message: You might be right.

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Air ambulances leave some with sky-high bills

Charlie Taylor was loading a four-wheeler into the back of his pickup truck last spring when the heavy rig jumped a ramp, overturned and landed on Taylor’s chest. 

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Decking the halls? Watch out for danger

Lori Gutierrez had just finished putting up this year's Christmas tree and trimmings when holiday decorating took a sudden turn toward holiday disaster.

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Have you been hurt during holiday decorating? How did the accident happen? Tell us more.

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Patients face bitter choice: Pay up or lose care

ANAHEIM, Calif. - When Bob Goodrich’s longtime doctor started providing premium care only to patients who paid a $1,600 annual fee, the 63-year-old felt he had no choice but to write a check.

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Swine flu booster shots? Good luck with that

In a frantic search for swine flu vaccine, Seattle mother Emily Newman called a dozen clinics and some 50 pharmacies before she finally found shots last month for her 2-year-old twins.

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Va. teen suffers rare illness after swine flu shot

A 14-year-old Virginia boy is weak and struggling to walk after coming down with a reported case of Guillain-Barre syndrome within hours after receiving the H1N1 vaccine for swine flu.

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Suicides raise worries about recession’s real cost

ELKHART, Ind. - Coroner John White is presiding over a sad tally in this northern Indiana county, tracking rising numbers of suicides he believes are linked to the lingering recession.

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No guarantees: 3 tales of insurance disaster

As the mother of a toddler who survives only because of the breathing tubes up his nose, the feeding tube in his gut, and the expertise of doctors in three cities, Courtney Elliott is keenly aware of the high costs of medical care — in every sense of the word.

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Isabella, 4, is a case study in swine flu fears

A 4-year-old Mississippi girl is eating Lucky Charms cereal and singing Hannah Montana songs again, three weeks after a severe swine flu infection landed her in intensive care and jeopardized the healthy preschooler’s life.

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Many swine flu deaths linked to pneumonia

Many people who've died from swine flu also have been infected with pneumonia bacteria, underscoring the need for vaccination against that bug, too, federal health officials said.

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Upside to swine flu? At least they’re over it

For hundreds of thousands of swine flu patients in the U.S. who’ve endured high fevers, body aches and coughs, if there’s any upside to the illness, it’s that they likely can’t get i

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What's the secret to a tasty school lunch?

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College kids’ parents grapple with letting go

Each year, 1.8 million incoming freshmen head off to college. Many, like Alexa Sieracki of Elkhart, Ind., are energized by the new start. But for their parents, it can be a time of loss and sadness.

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C’mon health workers, get your swine flu shots

In a nation where less than half of health care workers get annual flu shots, experts say those who refuse to be immunized against the H1N1 virus could endanger patients and stress an overwhelmed medical system.

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No cash for medical bills? Bartering pays

The recession has revived an old rural tradition by prompting many health care providers to offer patients the option of paying for the non-covered costs of medical and dental care through barter. Msnbc.com's JoNel Aleccia reports. 

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Health reform idea: Put down the doughnut

A growing chorus of medical professionals, researchers and ordinary citizens contend that the touchy topic of individual responsibility has been ignored in the health reform debate.

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Volunteers roll up sleeves for first swine flu shots

A handful of people bared their arms Friday for the first jabs of the experimental swine flu vaccine.  The rest of us may get our shot in a couple months.

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