Report: Private Pa. colleges are limiting the nursing staffing crisis
While Pennsylvania still faces a shortage of nurses, the worst predictions made two years ago haven’t materialized. A new report from the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania claims those doomy forecasts were averted largely because of efforts made by its 43 nursing schools. Independent schools in Pennsylvania...
Michigan reports the first 2 U.S. deaths related to a diarrhea-causing parasite
Two people have died in the cyclospora outbreak in Michigan, state health officials announced Monday, the first deaths confirmed in the U.S. related to the microscopic parasite. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said both people had underlying health conditions that may have been impacted by the intestinal...
West Nile virus to be spray-treated in 8 Pittsburgh neighborhoods
Positive West Nile samples continue to pop up across Allegheny County as eight more Pittsburgh neighborhoods tested for the mosquito-borne virus. The Allegheny County Health Department announced Monday that it plans to treat areas for mosquitoes in the city communities of Brighton Heights, Marshall-Shadeland, California-Kirkbride, Manchester, Allegheny Commons, Perry South,...
Why teens take risks: University of Pittsburgh study offers new clues
The teenage years are infamous for at least a bit of rebellion, experimentation and risky behavior, and many people see it as a normal, healthy part of growing up. A recent study out of the University of Pittsburgh may help explain teenage risk-taking, including why some teens “grow out of...
Adults can’t keep up with teens’ latest tech. Experts describe how they can try
There is no place where millions of children — many of them largely unsupervised — gather in greater numbers than the internet. And the dangers that exist online — cyberbullying, exposure to harmful or violent content, and risks to mental health — can be deadly. In February, the FBI penned...
UPMC doctor warns of risks behind growing trend of unregulated peptides
From weight loss and muscle gain to anti-aging, unregulated peptides are becoming one of the fastest-growing wellness trends in America. Fueled by the success of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, demand has surged for hundreds of largely unstudied synthetic peptides promoted online as treatments for everything from sleep disorders...
In a heartbeat: Thinking through mental health treatment
Mental health can take a backseat to physical health in the public consciousness, despite the fact that more than 1 in 5 people live with a mental illness, according to the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Justin Shuster, medical director of the general adult inpatient and psychiatric access clinic at...
AmeriCorps funding cut ends Allegheny County health program after 30 years
Federal funding cuts have ended Allegheny County’s National Health Corps, an AmeriCorps-affiliated program that addressed community health needs by providing health education, care coordination and access to services. On Thursday, the Allegheny County Health Department announced the final cohort from the program’s Pittsburgh site had graduated, bringing the initiative’s more...
IUP’s new medical school attracts hundreds of applicants
Landing a spot in the first class at Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s new College of Osteopathic Medicine is already shaping up to be a tall order. Since admissions opened in May, more than 500 prospective students have completed applications to join the inaugural fall 2027 class, Dean Miko Rose told...
Chris Deluzio, Ro Khanna meet with UPMC Magee nurses amid contract negotiations
Around a half dozen nurses from UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital sought support from U.S. Reps. Ro Khanna and Chris Deluzio at a Thursday afternoon meeting as contract negotiations continue between UPMC and hospital staff. Nurses spoke out about what they say are persistent staff shortages and UPMC’s perceived slow-rolling of contract...
Tanning is getting hot again. Here’s what it really does to your skin
Nichole Sims started using a tanning bed at 15 because she said everyone around her was doing it, especially before events like homecoming dances and prom. Eight years later, she was diagnosed with melanoma — a potentially life-threatening skin cancer. During that time, Sims has seen tanning become even more...
Fetterman says his early response to covid-19 origin theory ‘blinded’ by partisan politics
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman took a reflective tone as Republican colleagues grilled Dr. Anthony Fauci and fellow Democrats defended the embattled virologist during a contentious hearing on Capitol Hill over the covid-19 pandemic response. “I’m not here to, perhaps, attack you, or defend, or anything,” Fetterman, D-Braddock, told Fauci during...
Congo says the death toll in fastest-growing Ebola outbreak has passed 1,500
BUNIA, Congo — The fastest-growing Ebola outbreak has killed more than 1,500 people in eastern Congo, official data released on Thursday showed, marking a 50% increase in around a week that shows the emergency continuing to outpace response efforts. As of Tuesday, 3,442 cases had been recorded, with 1,521 deaths,...
Allegheny County rape crisis centers to rebuild with more than $24M state funding boost
Gabriella Romeo cried when she heard about the $12 million increase in state funding allocated to rape crisis centers in the 2026-27 budget. Romeo, the public policy director for the Pennsylvania Coalition to Advance Respect (PCAR), had spent years advocating for increased funding for the state’s 47 rape crisis centers...
Fauci repeatedly invokes the Fifth Amendment in a contentious Senate committee hearing
WASHINGTON — Dr. Anthony Fauci on Wednesday repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment and declined to answer dozens of questions from senators in a Republican-led committee hearing about his handling of the covid-19 pandemic. The decision, at least for now, shielded Fauci from answering questions that could expose him to accusations...
Pa. advocates call for healthcare cost freeze as insurers seek 17% hike
A group of healthcare advocacy groups is pushing for Pennsylvania regulators to freeze healthcare rates as insurers press for sharp premium increases. Data revealed last week showed insurers are seeking an average increase of 17.1% for those insured in the state under the Affordable Care Act. The group plans to...
As measles cases in Pennsylvania rise, officials scramble to track cases
Pennsylvania tallied more than two dozen new cases of measles in the last week, including several in the Philadelphia region. In Chester County, health officials confirmed 13 cases in the suburban Philadelphia county since April, with seven identified since Monday. The rising counts come as the Centers for Disease Control...
Seniors in McKeesport celebrate Christmas in July with care packages and camaraderie
A year after retiring, Carol Soroka moved to McKeesport to help care for her 94-year-old mother. Since relocating, she’s become a regular at Lifespan’s Mon Valley Senior Community Center, where she said she’s found connection within the community. “The senior center is about camaraderie. A lot of people would be...
In a heartbeat: Put your sleep concerns to rest
The pursuit of consistently good sleep can feel endless, but restlessness about what it takes doesn’t have to be. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in three U.S. adults reported getting inadequate sleep every day, while nearly half reported falling asleep during the day without...
Pittsburgh experts explain why tuberculosis cases are on the rise
A disease once considered a romantic affliction has made a comeback in the U.S. on the heels of the covid-19 pandemic. Since multidrug treatments became widely available in the mid-20th century, tuberculosis has been largely manageable where organized health care is available. After decades of decline in the U.S., however,...
Pa. budget quietly relaxed lead reporting standards for schools. Issues with law go much deeper.
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — In the flurry of last-minute dealmaking to approve this year’s state budget, legislators tucked in eleventh-hour language...
Cyclospora cases in Allegheny County rise amid national outbreak
Cyclospora infections in Allegheny County have risen to more than two dozen as Pennsylvania continues to report cases amid a national surge of the diarrhea-causing parasite. As of 9 p.m. Thursday, county health officials had confirmed 31 cases, including one hospitalization, but investigators have not identified a common source linking...
Outbreak of diarrhea-causing parasite linked to 4 more states
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials on Friday expanded the scope of their investigation into an outbreak of a diarrhea-causing parasite to four additional states, broadening the size of the largest U.S. outbreak of cyclospora. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the outbreak first tied to shredded lettuce served...
Hospital, local officials support WVU Health System takeover of Independence Health
Danielle Yackovich had a simple message for state regulators who will have the final say over the proposed takeover of Independence Health System by West Virginia University Health System. “When we talk about an investment of this magnitude, we need to ask the simple question: What will it mean for...
There are already more U.S. measles cases this year than in all of 2025
The number of measles cases in the U.S. has surpassed the record-breaking tally for all of 2025, with five more months of 2026 still to come. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention logged 2,318 cases of measles as of Thursday, according to an agency update Friday. The nation...
