Articles written by STAT - Benzinga

An update on the 'mystery illness' in DRC

Get your daily dose of health and medicine every weekday with STAT’s free newsletter Morning Rounds. Sign up here. Good morning! I’m not huge on gamification, except in three instances: my Survivor

STAT+: AbbVie steps into the obesity drug race, licensing medicine from Danish firm

The obesity medicine field has gained a new entrant, with AbbVie on Monday announcing it had licensed an experimental weight loss drug from a Danish company that is in a Phase 1 trial. The deal includes a $350

Interrupted access to unique maternal health database rattles researchers

For nearly four decades, researchers have leaned heavily on a unique annual survey to understand the state of infant and maternal health in the United States. Called PRAMS, the dataset includes a richer variety

Opinion: I'm disabled. I'm terrified about what Medicaid cuts could mean for my life

In early January, I received a letter in the mail from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. The letter informed me that I had been approved for Medicaid-funded Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS), a form of

STAT+: How AI can distort clinical decision-making to prioritize profits over patients

More than a decade ago, Ken Mandl was on a call with a pharmaceutical company and the leader of a social network for people with diabetes. The drug maker was hoping to use the platform to encourage its members to get a

HHS review of a vaccine contract sparks worries about preparedness for a potential bird flu pandemic

In the spring of 2009, the first flu pandemic in four decades began. Caused by an H1N1 virus that emerged from pigs, likely in Mexico, it spread quickly around the globe. The world got lucky in 2009. Doubly so. The

Opinion: 'Post-vaccination syndrome': a dubious diagnosis that could do harm

Recently, the notorious conspiracy theory peddler Alex Jones shared an “Infowars” video on X lambasting the “horrific side effects” of Covid vaccines: “Yale scientists link COVID

Meet the research teams facing off in STAT Madness 2025. Voting is now open

Welcome to the 2025 edition of STAT Madness, our bracket-style competition in which you, the readers, choose the most impressive biomedical and health research published last year. Voting begins today. Modeled on

Former director Francis Collins retires from NIH, urging 'respect' for embattled workers

WASHINGTON — Francis Collins, a renowned geneticist and former longtime director of the National Institutes of Health, announced Saturday that he has retired, leaving an agency being upended by budget cuts and

STAT+: Medicare and Medicaid agency faces compromised functions and disruption from Trump's firings

The federal agency that oversees Medicare, Medicaid, and other major health care programs is facing employee firings, flagging morale, confusing messaging, and the specter of additional disruption — compromising

Opinion: We tried to quantify the impact of abrupt PEPFAR cuts. The results startled even us

In May 2023, about a year before the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief was up for congressional renewal, a Heritage Foundation report alleged that PEPFAR funding was being secretly used for abortions by

2025 STAT Madness

2025 bracket Welcome to STAT Madness, a bracket-style contest to find the best innovation in science and medicine. Explore groundbreaking innovations from top institutions and help crown the 2025 STAT Madness champion.

RFK Jr. moves to eliminate public comment in HHS decisions

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted a document Friday proposing to strip public participation from much of the business his department conducts. The move comes during a time of major upheaval

RFK Jr. moves to eliminate public comment on HHS decisions

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted a document Friday proposing to strip public participation from much of the business his department conducts. The move comes during a time of major upheaval

STAT+: Ginkgo further scales back Boston real estate

This story originally appeared in STAT’s sister publication, The Boston Globe. There’s plenty of empty lab space around Greater Boston these days and a lot of competition for life-science tenants. Now

Ginkgo further scales back Boston real estate

This story originally appeared in STAT’s sister publication, The Boston Globe. There’s plenty of empty lab space around Greater Boston these days and a lot of competition for life-science tenants. Now

STAT+: Pharmalittle: We're reading about Pfizer and GSK DEI changes, pharma navigating tariffs, and more

And so, another working week will soon draw to a close. Not a moment too soon, yes? This is, you may recall, our treasured signal to daydream about weekend plans. Our agenda is, once again, rather modest. We plan to

Turbulence at the FDA & bluebird Bio's sale

Today, we talk about BIO chief John Crowley’s views on rare disease innovation, and the “aggressive” slashing of personnel at federal health agencies. Also, Pfizer changes its DEI approach

NIH cancels summer internship program

Get your daily dose of health and medicine every weekday with STAT’s free newsletter Morning Rounds. Sign up here. It’s almost March! Which means voting for our annual STAT Madness competition

Opinion: STAT+: Why AI like Grok isn't ready for the radiology big leagues

Recently, a bunch of people at my local basketball club watched me swagger onto a court and sink a 35-footer. Nothing but net. I soaked in the adulation and gave the requisite high-fives. What I did not do — at