Health & Wellness News

Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton have teamed up with Lehigh Valley Health Network to make the Lehigh Valley a Blue Zone. The initiative was launched this week and will take the next few years to earn the certification.

Lehigh Valley Health Network opens an employee child care center in Bethlehem, across from LVHN Muhlenberg. The River Crossing YMCA will run the program.

A physician response vehicle is now on the roads of the Lehigh Valley to help save lives on the scene of an emergency. The SUV and the team that operates it assist paramedics with critical cases outside the hospital setting.

COVID cases are on the rise right now. A St. Luke’s doctor talks about what patients need to know about the latest strains and how to stop the spread.

Sweltering heat is hitting the Lehigh Valley and causing an uptick in emergency room visits. An ER doctor is sharing how his team helps lower the body temperature of patients suffering from heat-related illness.

Miller-Keystone Blood Center is now Lehigh Valley Health Network's secondary blood supplier. The blood bank is redistributing it supply and taking on more hospitals in need of the life-saving products.

Digital navigators are individuals trained to help inform, educate, lead others to success.

The plans reward full work weeks and filling in at moments of urgent need at the 911 Center, Jail, and Cedarbrook Senior Home.

Join Megan Frank at 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. every Friday for Insights with LehighValleyNews.com on WLVR. This week, she's joined by politics reporter Tom Shortell and health reporter Brittany Sweeney.

A Pennsylvania think tank brings together medical providers and researchers to look at where the state's health care system can be improved. The panel, held by the Commonwealth Foundation, said cost, access, and attention to care are the most important issues to those who live in PA.

The FDA recently approved a new medication for those suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. A Lehigh Valley doctor said it could be an option for his local patients suffering from mild cases.

A Lehigh Valley representative introduced two gender affirming care bills recently. One would protect those in the LGBTQ community, the other would protect their medical providers.

Next month, anyone applying to be a permanent U.S resident, known as green card holders, will have to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

School districts across Pennsylvania are preparing to enforce a masking order handed down by Secretary of Health Dr. Alison Beam.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey is rallying votes in Washington for the Better Care Better Jobs Act.

Last week, Pennsylvania’s opioid disaster declaration expired and the General Assembly refused to renew it.

Joe Martellucci, the administrator of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Services for Lehigh County, said the opioid epidemic is far from over, despite the end of the state’s opioid emergency declaration.

Pennsylvania officials on Tuesday announced a mask mandate for students and teachers in schools Pre-K to 12 and for licensed childcare providers.

Masks will be required in all Pennsylvania public and private schools, as well as child care facilities, Gov. Tom Wolf was set to announce Tuesday, reversing course amid a statewide COVID-19 resurgence that is filling hospital beds just as students return to class.

Some medical professionals are hoping they see an uptick in vaccinations now that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has FDA approval.

The Allentown Police Department is hoping to expand a program that could reduce some interactions with law enforcement and help connect people with social services.

Pennsylvania saw another spike in COVID-19 numbers Monday with more than 9,000 new cases reported over the weekend.

It’s the first day of classes for Catholic school students in the Diocese of Allentown, and they’ll be wearing masks.

A local infectious disease specialist says with COVID-19 case counts rising in the area, everyone should be putting on a mask.