Two months ago, we pointed out in our story on flu in The Atlantic that the antiviral drug Tamiflu might not be as effective or safe as many patients, doctors, and governments think. The drug has been widely prescribed since the first cases of H1N1 flu surfaced last spring, and the U.S. government has spent more than $1.5 billion stockpiling it since 2005 as part of the nation’s pandemic preparedness plan.

The holiday season brings excitement, nostalgic traditions and a plethora of social activities that tend to revolve around food consumption. For those who battle compulsive eating, the added stress of the holidays and abundance of food can trigger overeating. This often leads to embarrassment, guilt, depression and unwanted pounds. For individuals struggling with various food addictions, especially during the holidays, Overeaters Anonymous (OA) can provide much-needed support and a path to recovery.

On Tuesday, the movement for Medicinal Marijuana received an unexpected endorsement from the American Medical Association.

This marks a substantial policy shift for the AMA, which contains approximately 250,000 member doctors, making it, by far, the largest and most influential association of doctors in the United States.

Call it the arrow of cancer. Like the arrow of time, it was supposed to point in one direction. Cancers grew and worsened.

Chelsea Caudle began signing her text messages this summer with a countdown. At 14 years old, she knew no better way to express what was coming. Day Zero was to be Oct. 7, the day Dad left for Army basic training in Fort Jackson, S.C. He was moving 950 miles from their home in Watertown, 950 miles from Mom.

He was leaving, even though Mom was sick with ovarian cancer. Even though he had been at her side through two long, miserable rounds of chemotherapy. Even though she now faced the likelihood of a third.

In fact, Dad was leaving because Mom was sick.

Would that make a difference in how you hear the debate? What I said it was 40% of all Americans with insurance? Would that make a difference?

You'd never know it listening to the endless blather of the politicians and the media, but 100 million Americans - about 40% of all us us with health insurance - already have some form of "government-run" health plan.
Why isn't this talked about all the time? The Democratic Congressional leadership and President Obama should be citing this fact over and over again...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly 45,000 people die in the United States each year -- one every 12 minutes -- in large part because they lack health insurance and can not get good care, Harvard Medical School researchers found in an analysis released on Thursday.

"We're losing more Americans every day because of inaction ... than drunk driving and homicide combined," Dr. David Himmelstein, a co-author of the study and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard, said in an interview with Reuters.

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Shares of U.S. health insurers climbed on Thursday after analysts saw no "game changers" from President Barack Obama's highly anticipated speech on health reform.

Following the speech, analysts predicted any changes to the system would be moderate, with Obama backing many initiatives put forth earlier this week by a leading Senate committee. The possibility a threatening public health plan would be enacted also now seemed doubtful, analysts said.