Health

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina announced Thursday it would continue to offer Affordable Care Act health insurance plans in all 100 North Carolina counties.

The announcement comes after months of internal debate at the state’s largest insurer. In May, BCBSNC announced heavy financial losses it incurred from individuals who buy these “Obamacare” plans.

Across North Carolina, health systems will again face penalties because too many patients returned to hospitals shortly after being discharged.

In fact, hospitals will pay higher penalties in 2017 than any year in history.

Football season is right around the corner. But according to an NC State study, you might want to reconsider your tailgating plans.

A team of NC State professors, led by Kyle Bunds, Jonathan Casper and Chris Frey measured air quality at football games, before, during and after the game. They found several sources of potentially harmful pollution.

An organization in Durham is running what is believed to be the only sober living center for LGBT people in the South. 

LaVare's House, which was established by the LaVare Leith Foundation in 2014, has nine beds for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people who are recovering from drug and alcohol addiction.

Researchers say practicing safe sex is now even more important, as the Zika virus continues to spread.

Thirty-three people in North Carolina have been infected with Zika as of August 12 after traveling to high-risk areas, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

Researchers at the UNC School of Medicine may be one step closer to treating life-threatening peanut allergies in children.

As part of a study to test the effectiveness of oral immunotherapy, researchers fed preschoolers allergic to peanuts increasing doses of peanut protein for two years. Eighty percent of participants reported no reaction to peanuts by the end of the test period.

Scientists investigating the Zika virus are asking people who have been exposed to mosquito-borne illnesses while visiting tropical regions to donate blood for research.

Travelers to parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, India, and Central and South America may be eligible to participate.

An unvaccinated Wake County teen has survived a case of the measles. He contracted the potentially lethal disease after traveling in Europe, according to health officials.

North Carolina lawmakers recently approved changes to a traffic law intended to protect bike commuters.

House Bill 959 will soon require cyclists to add taillights or wear reflector vests at night. It also increases penalties for aggressive drivers.

UNC Health Care announced plans to add a new surgical tower on the Chapel Hill campus.

The addition will replace aging operating rooms that are a tight fit for modern surgical teams, according to Chief Operating Officer Brian Goldstein.

Wake County is encouraging its 1,600 public pools to shock treat their water to kill a diarrhea-causing parasite.

Twenty cases of cryptosporidiosis have been reported to the county health department. The diarrhea disease is caused by a parasite that can spread if contaminated water gets in a person's mouth. Other symptoms can include stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting and fever and can last one to two weeks.

Check out this interactive map to explore where your county stands on infant mortality rate.

North Carolina’s infant mortality rate is one of the worst in the country—only eight states have worse rates.

North Carolina has more trouble putting food on the table than most other states, according to a nonprofit anti-hunger organization.

A report from the Food Research and Action Center shows 17 percent of North Carolinians face food insecurity, making the state the 13th worst in the country.

Spending on high-price specialty drugs has risen dramatically in the past thirteen years, according to new research from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Researchers at UNC-Chapel Hill are helping local fishermen identify which fish are most likely to be contaminated by chemical pollutants, and where it’s safer to eat what they catch.

The new website, Eat Fish, Choose Wisely, maps out waterways and fish species with lower levels of contamination, along with some that should be avoided entirely.

Novant Health opened a comprehensive pelvic health clinic in Winston-Salem this week. It's one of only a few in the state that offers a wide range of treatment and conducts research on organ prolapse and incontinence. 

Vidant Health has opened a 24-hour urgent care clinic in Belhaven. It offers minor emergency and pre-natal care, a full lab, X-rays and a general family practice.

Health and education indicators are improving among North Carolina children despite spotty economic recovery, according to an annual report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

The 2016 Kids Count Data Book ranks North Carolina 34th in the country for overall wellbeing, which is up one spot from the year before.

The Centers for Disease Control is investigating a series of Salmonella outbreaks across 35 states that sickened more than 300 people since January, including 26 in North Carolina. Health officials say backyard poultry may be to blame. They’re warning chicken owners to wash their hands and avoid snuggling or kissing their birds.