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FRIDAY, April 29, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Land parasites that pose a risk to human and wildlife health can hitch rides on the millions of pounds of microplastics that float between oceans, a new study shows."It's easy for people to dismiss plastic problems as something that doesn't matter for them, like, 'I'm not a turtle in the ocean; I won't choke on this thing,'" said corresponding author Karen Shapiro. She is an infectious disease expert and associate professor in the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California, Davis. "But once you start talking about disease and health, there's more power to implement change," she said in a university news release. "Microplastics can actually move germs around, and these germs end up in our water and our food."Microplastics —...

FRIDAY, April 29, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- If you're thinking about donating a kidney, new research could alleviate your concerns."The results of this study are extremely reassuring for individuals who are considering being living kidney donors. We found that this lifesaving surgery, when performed at experienced transplant centers, is extremely safe," said study co-author Dr. Timucin Taner, chair of transplant surgery at Mayo Clinic's Center for Transplantation and Clinical Regeneration in Rochester, Minn.The study included more than 3,000 living kidney donors who underwent laparoscopic surgery to remove the donated organ from 2000 to 2019. They were followed for up to 120 days after surgery.All of the kidney removal procedures were performed at the transplantation center.Overall,...

THURSDAY, April 28, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Coverage for eligible, necessary care is denied each year to tens of thousands of seniors with private Medicare Advantage plans, U.S. federal investigators say.In a report released Thursday, the team from the inspector general's office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said Medicare needs to improve oversight of these plans and strengthen enforcement against those private insurance companies with a pattern of improper denials of coverage.About 28 million older people have Medicare Advantage plans, which offer privatized versions of Medicare that are often cheaper and provide a greater range of benefits than the traditional government program.But the HHS findings challenge claims by the industry's main trade group that...

THURSDAY, April 28, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday released proposed rules — first announced a year ago — to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars."The proposed rules would help prevent children from becoming the next generation of smokers and help adult smokers quit," U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in an FDA news release. FDA Commissioner Robert Califf discussed the proposed bans Thursday while appearing before a congressional subcommittee, the Washington Post reported.Califf told the panel that the proposed bans would "reduce the mortality risk of current smokers of menthol cigarettes or flavored cigars by substantially decreasing their consumption and increasing the likelihood of cessation," the Post...