Health

Far fewer Americans enrolled in an Affordable Care Act health care plan, new federal data shows, with millions facing higher premiums after tax subsidies under the insurance program expired in DecemberAccording to figures from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), 22.8 million people have signed up for ACA coverage for 2026 since open enrollment started on Nov. 1. That's down 1.4 million from the number of Americans who had enrolled in Obamacare, as the health plans are known, a year ago.Nationally, around 800,000 fewer people have selected plans compared to a similar time last year, marking a 3.5% drop in total enrollment so far. That includes a decrease in both new consumers signing up for ACA plans and existing enrollees re-upping them.Open ACA enrollment in most...

As the window for Americans to enroll in an Affordable Care Act health plan closes in most states today, millions of Americans remain in limbo as Congress weighs whether to extend tax subsidies designed to lower the cost of Obamacare insurance. Congress has been locked in a showdown for months over the fate of the enhanced ACA premium tax credits, which expired on Dec. 31. The fight over the subsidies was central to the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, which dragged on for six weeks. The House approved a measure last week to extend the tax credits for three years after 17 Republicans joined Democrats in forcing a vote on the issue. Yet the extension faces an uphill climb in the Republican-controlled Senate, which previously rejected a separate plan to extend the credits...

Study finds no link between Tylenol use during pregnancy and autism - CBS News ...

The American Academy of Pediatrics released its own recommendations for childhood vaccinations Monday. The list differs significantly from the reduced vaccine schedule released earlier this month by the CDC. Dr. Amanda Kravitz, pediatrician at Weill Cornell in New York City, joins CBS News to discuss.

U.S. life expectancy rose to 79 years in 2024 - the highest mark in American history. It's the result of not only the dissipation of the COVID-19 pandemic, but also waning death rates from all the nation's top killers, including heart disease, cancer and drug overdoses. What's more, preliminary statistics suggest a continued improvement in 2025. "It's pretty much good news all the way around," said Robert Anderson, of the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which released the 2024 data on Thursday. Life expectancy, a fundamental measure of a population's health, is an estimate of the average number of years a baby born in a given year might expect to live, given death rates at that time. For decades, U.S. life expectancy rose at ...

Patients who visit hospital-owned doctors' offices are discovering something that could make them feel sick to their stomach: a surprise "facility fee" unrelated to the medical treatment they receive. The charges — which can range from $25 to thousands of dollars — are typically showing up on patients' medical bills following an annual physical exam, strep throat test or telehealth appointment, according to a report from U.S. PIRG. Facility fees are intended to help hospitals offset their high overhead costs, including overnight care, use of specialized equipment and other expenses that make them costly to run. But when hospitals acquire independent physician clinics that don't face hospital-scale expenses, patients may still be hit with those charges even in outpatient settings. "...

Extended Interview: Mel Robbins - CBS News ...

Hay House We may receive an affiliate commission from anything you buy from this article. Mel Robbins' podcasts, TED Talk and bestselling books, including "The 5 Second Rule," have made her one of the most successful motivational speakers. In her latest bestseller, "The Let Them Theory" (Hay House), she discusses how personal growth is only possible when you stop pouring energy into things you cannot control – which includes changing other people. Read an excerpt below, and don't miss Norah O'Donnell's conversation with Mel Robbins on "CBS Sunday Morning" February 1!"The...

Flex Spending: How to use it and not lose it - CBS News ...

Afghanistan midwives give a better chance at life - CBS News ...