UCare is a nonprofit HMO health insurer with its headquarters office in Minneapolis. The health plan provided this photo in March 2022.

UCare saw $82.1M operating loss last year as patients returned for care

Red ink occurred after unusually profitable 2022 for HMOs in Medicaid and other public health insurance programs.

Biden administration indefinitely postpones rule that would have banned menthol-flavored cigarettes

3:25pm
President Joe Biden's administration is indefinitely delaying a plan to ban menthol cigarettes, a decision that is certain to infuriate anti-smoking advocates but could avoid a political backlash from Black voters in November.

Long flu season winds down in US

1:59pm
The U.S. flu season appears to be over. It was long, but it wasn't unusually severe.
Nation
21 minutes ago

Paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with ketamine before his death avoids prison

A former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a powerful sedative avoided prison and was sentenced to probation Friday in the Black man's killing that helped fuel the 2020 racial injustice protests.
Nation
28 minutes ago

Takeaways from AP's investigation into fatal police encounters involving injections of sedatives

The practice of giving sedatives to people detained by police spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on questionable science and backed by police-aligned experts, an investigation led by The Associated Press has found.
Nation
59 minutes ago

Kansas won't have legal medical pot or expand Medicaid for at least another year

Kansas will remain among the handful of states that haven't legalized the medical use of marijuana or expanded their Medicaid programs for at least another year.
World
5:06pm
FILE - Britain's King Charles III waves as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, March

Britain's King Charles III will resume public duties next week after cancer treatment, palace says

King Charles III is back.
Nation
4:59pm

Police in Washington city issue alarm after 3 babies overdosed on fentanyl in less than a week

Officials are sounding alarms after a baby died and two others apparently also overdosed in the past week in separate instances in which fentanyl was left unsecured inside residences, authorities said.
Business
3:43pm

Mississippi legislative leaders swap proposals on possible Medicaid expansion

Mississippi Senate leaders on Friday said for the first time that they are willing to expand Medicaid to the full level allowed under a federal law signed 14 years ago by then-President Barack Obama.
Nation
3:26pm

Former Virginia hospital medical director acquitted of sexually abusing ex-patients

The former medical director of a Virginia hospital that treats vulnerable children and young adults was acquitted Friday of sexually abusing two teenage patients during physical exams.
Nation
2:09pm

Dozens of deaths reveal risks of injecting sedatives into people restrained by police

Demetrio Jackson was desperate for medical help when the paramedics arrived.
Nation
1:35pm

A ban in Kansas on gender-affirming care also would bar advocacy for kids' social transitions

A proposed ban in Kansas on gender-affirming care for minors also would bar state employees from promoting it — or even children's social transitioning.
Sports
10:33am

What to know about Bell's palsy, the facial paralysis affecting Joel Embiid

Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell's palsy, a condition that can strike out of the blue and cause muscles on one side of a person's face to become weak or paralyzed, distorting expression.
Nation
8:47am

USDA tells producers to reduce salmonella in certain frozen chicken products

Poultry producers will be required to bring salmonella bacteria in certain chicken products to very low levels to help prevent food poisoning under a final rule issued Friday by U.S. agriculture officials.
Business
8:01am

What to know about Zyn, the tiny nicotine pouch that's sparked a big health debate

A tiny Philip Morris product called Zyn has been making big headlines, sparking debate about whether new nicotine-based alternatives intended for adults may be catching on with underage teens and adolescents.
World
April 26

South Korean police raid office of incoming head of doctors' group over protracted strikes

South Korean police said Friday they searched the office of the hard-line incoming leader of an association of doctors and confiscated his mobile phone as he faces accusations that he incited the protracted walkouts by thousands of medical interns and residents.
Sports
April 25

76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid says he's suffering from Bell's palsy

Philadelphia 76ers All-Star center Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell's palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
Nation
April 25

Tennessee lawmakers OK bill penalizing adults who help minors receive gender-affirming care

Tennessee's GOP-controlled Statehouse on Thursday gave their final approval to legislation penalizing adults who help minors receive gender-affirming care without parental consent, clearing the way for the first-in-the-nation proposal to be sent to Gov. Bill Lee's desk for his signature.
Nation
April 25

17 states challenge federal rules entitling workers to accommodations for abortion

Republican attorneys general from 17 states filed a lawsuit Thursday challenging new federal rules entitling workers to time off and other accommodations for abortions, calling the rules an illegal interpretation of a 2022 federal law.
World
April 25

Mexico's chief detective apologizes for saying his country is the 'champion' of fentanyl production

The head of Mexico's detective service apologized Thursday for saying his country is ''the champion'' of fentany l and meth production.
Business
April 25

Selling weight-loss and muscle-building supplements to minors in New York is now illegal

It's now illegal to sell weight-loss and muscle-building supplements to minors in New York, under a first-in-the-nation law that went into effect this week.
Health
April 25
A model of a billboard from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, shown in 2018.

Sexually transmitted diseases in Minnesota are down, but HIV and newborn syphilis cases are up

Rises in HIV cases among Hispanic Minnesotans, and syphilis cases among women, suggest an emerging front in fight against sexually transmitted diseases.
Business
April 25

Minneapolis smokers to pay some of the highest cigarette prices in US with a $15 per-pack minimum

Smokers in Minneapolis will pay some of the highest cigarette prices in the country after the City Council voted unanimously Thursday to impose a minimum retail price of $15 per pack to promote public health.

Health news

Latest news and features coverage of health care in Minnesota and elsewhere.