Opinion: When heat threatens, use the wet bulb globe temperature to keep workers safe
A 30-year-old farm worker in North Carolina died last September on a day that was…
Category: First Opinion
Opinion: Caring for young caregivers, a hidden population
The intersection of the mental health crisis among young Americans and the growing burden of…
Opinion: H5N1 communication has been strictly for the birds. Didn’t the federal government learn anything from Covid?
When it comes to federal agencies communicating to the public about H5N1 bird flu, it…
Opinion: Making the promise of monoclonal antibody therapies available to all
As the U.S. grapples with the lasting effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is important…
Opinion: It shouldn’t be easy to buy synthetic DNA fragments to recreate the 1918 flu virus
It should be hard — exceedingly hard — to obtain the synthetic DNA needed to…
Opinion: Listen: Why rehabilitation engineers need to listen to patients and their families
In 2020, James Sulzer’s personal and professional lives suddenly intersected after his then 4-year-old daughter…
Opinion: Treating chronic pain requires much more than medications
There’s a lot of buzz surrounding the new non-addictive pain pill that is up for…
Opinion: As livestock move around the country, so does H5N1. The U.S. needs real-time tracking of livestock movements
The presence of H5N1 avian influenza virus, better known as bird flu, among dairy cows…
Opinion: Measles is coming back. My sister Marcie isn’t
At the end of February 1960, my healthy, precocious sister Marcie was halfway through the…
Opinion: The world is relying on the United States to get value-based drug pricing right
The changing landscape of drug pricing policy in the U.S. has implications for the global…
Opinion: Digital devices can help clinicians prescribe physical activity
Physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for death. With most adolescents and one-quarter…
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Opinion: Readers respond to funding academic medical centers, the ‘residency research arms race,’ and more
STAT now publishes selected Letters to the Editor received in response to First Opinion essays…
Opinion: Virtual first is flaming out. A virtual-second model can refresh telehealth
Telehealth needs a major refresh. Just this week, retail juggernaut Walmart announced it is shuttering…
Opinion: An AI-based second opinion service could improve clinical decision-making today
Millions of Americans rely on the internet to answer questions about their own health. The…
Opinion: People like me with bipolar disorder must help shape research and clinical care
Doctors have observed and treated bipolar disorder for thousands of years. Known throughout history by…
Opinion: Why isn’t there agreement on when women need to start getting mammograms?
If, after reading the latest recommendation on breast cancer screening by the United States Preventive…
Opinion: The U.S. needs a reliable supply of baby formula. A new bill in Congress can help
Families in America should never have to scrounge for baby formula. The United States needs…
Opinion: Instead of adding quality metrics, harness fewer high-quality ones to improve outcomes and reduce provider burden
Ensuring excellent quality and outcomes is the essential goal of medical care. To achieve it,…
Opinion: From sewage to safety: Hospital wastewater surveillance as a beacon for defense against H5N1 bird flu
Pandemics start slowly — a few cases here, a few there — until suddenly people…
Opinion: Listen: How a new death penalty method undermines physician authority
Joel Zivot is a practicing clinician and associate professor of anesthesiology and surgery. He is…
Opinion: Unnecessary insurance claim denials compromise patient care and provider bottom lines
Health care providers are in an acute financial situation. Record-high wages required to attract and…
Opinion: Colorectal cancer is increasing among young people. It’s time to boost research on it
I am not writing here to talk about my husband, Chadwick Boseman, who died far…
Opinion: Creating the next wave of antibody therapies requires innovative collaboration
Next-generation broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) have the potential to transform the fight against global health…
Opinion: Protect the health of pregnant people and their children by including them in research
Imagine having to make this decision: Your health care provider recommends that you take a…
Opinion: The medical loss ratio has become a barrier to preventive care
Health care regulations in the United States were not designed to keep Americans healthy. The…
Opinion: Medical students lose in the research arms race for residency slots
“Going to medical Spanish class really isn’t worth my time. I’d rather use the time…
Opinion: Unseen battles: The harsh realities of veterans’ access to health care
I remember the day I left the military after six years of active-duty service. The…
Opinion: Déjà WTO: The WHO’s pandemic agreement shouldn’t water down intellectual property obligations
As countries resume final negotiations on Monday for a landmark pandemic agreement intended to help…
Opinion: STAT readers respond to First Opinion essays on site-neutral payments, free medical school tuition, and more
“Former HHS secretaries: Congress should adopt site-neutral payments for health care,” by Alex Azar and…
Opinion: True peer-to-peer conversations will improve prior authorization
It’s another busy day in my spine surgery clinic when my phone rings. Patients are…
Opinion: Solving academic medical centers’ existential crisis
Hospitals and health care systems across the United States have long been expected to provide…
Opinion: Shortages of generic drugs can’t be blamed solely on group purchasing organizations
The Hatch-Waxman Act of 1984, which gave rise to the modern generic drug market, was…
Opinion: The grim reality of relocating to get access to gender-affirming care
In my work as a pediatric psychologist, I’ve been seeing a surge in the number…
Opinion: Balancing hope and reality: The promise and peril of blood-based colorectal cancer screening
As a gastroenterologist and cancer researcher, my mission is to help my patients live longer,…
Opinion: EMTALA, a vital health law you’ve never heard of, is in danger
Anyone who has gone to a hospital’s emergency room expecting to receive medical care —…
Opinion: Bashing accelerated approval isn’t supported by the data
The Food and Drug Administration’s accelerated approval program aims to speed “approval of drugs that…
Opinion: Lessons to psychiatrists-in-training from the CIA’s mind-control projects
My chief resident gave me a strange look when I arrived for another day of…
Opinion: STAT+: Use evidence to support early coverage of gene therapy after accelerated approval
Gene editing and therapy to replace missing or defective genes is one of the most…
Opinion: An FDA pathway can accelerate innovation for Duchenne muscular dystrophy
In human biology, the protein dystrophin is a shining example of Joni Mitchell’s classic line,…
Opinion: Free med school tuition won’t solve the shortage of primary care physicians
Last month, nearly 40,000 medical students were accepted into residency programs on “Match Day.” Surrounded…
Opinion: Public health during Sudan’s civil war: nurturing resilience amid conflict
On a Friday morning one year ago this week, my colleagues in Sudan’s Ministry of…
Opinion: Readers respond to essays on hospital taxes, ADHD in girls and women, and more
STAT publishes selected Letters to the Editor received in response to First Opinion essays to…
Opinion: Moving the conversation about obesity beyond the scale
Every so often, the conversations that people in health care have become so pervasive that…
Opinion: STAT+: How AI can help satisfy FDA’s drug, device diversity requirements
The Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act of 2022 (FDORA), which was passed as part…
Opinion: Former HHS secretaries: Congress should adopt site-neutral payments for health care
As two former secretaries of Health and Human Services, we are all too familiar with…
Opinion: Medicaid should cover donor breast milk for vulnerable infants
Each day, more than 1,000 babies are born prematurely in America. Born before 37 weeks…
Opinion: Viral hepatitis is a silent killer. It can’t be eliminated if it isn’t tracked
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, viral hepatitis killed more people in the United States than all…
Opinion: Kids can’t wait any longer for social media safety
When my son Conall took his life at age 17, it was devastating to me…
Opinion: Practicing medicine at a predominantly Black institution gave me the gift I didn’t realize I needed
“You have a big voice, Dr. Grubbs,” the clinic manager said. I flinched. The last…
Opinion: Autism doesn’t discriminate. Autism research shouldn’t either
The face of autism was once predominantly white. No longer. The Centers for Disease Control…