Martha Bebinger

At many U.S. hospitals, children and teens are stuck in the emergency department for days or weeks because psychiatric beds are full. Massachussets has a simple, yet promising solution.

The sedative xylazine is starting to permeate illegal opioids and cocaine. It does not respond to naloxone, an overdose reversal medication, and may be to blame for grisly injuries and infections.

People who were addicted to OxyContin or lost loved ones who were addicted to the drug expect very little in compensation from the multibillion-dollar Purdue Pharma bankruptcy settlement.

Vermont and Massachusetts lead the nation, with more than 70% of adults having had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Southern states such as Tennessee lag far behind.

From heat-related illness to mosquito-borne infections, physicians are seeing the effects of a warming planet in the exam room. There's a growing push to teach doctors-in-training how to respond.

The state now requires women and girls under 18 to obtain permission from their parents or a judge. But in a recent poll, most Massachusetts voters favored letting minors decide on their own.

The amount of meth seized in the U.S. more than doubled from 2017 to 2018. That translates to lots more meth, along with cocaine and other stimulants, on the streets — and likely more deaths.

Overdose deaths involving fentanyl are rising — up 113 percent on average each year from 2013 to 2016. Dealers are adding cheap fentanyl to the illicit drug supply, and some users get it accidentally.

An overdose is a wake-up call for many people with addiction. So why aren't patients being offered medications that could keep them from looking for the next dangerous hit of drugs?

Most transgender Americans say they are discriminated against, but not everyone agrees on where it's coming from according to a new NPR poll.