Health & Wellness News

Northampton County Council tabled a measure Thursday night that would declare the county a “sanctuary” for abortion access.

Changes to breast cancer screening recommendations are out from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. A Lehigh Valley Health Network physician is calling for more frequent screenings than those in the updated recommendations.

Reporters Ryan Gaylor and Brittany Sweeney talk about a Bethlehem school resource officer arraigned on multiple sex crimes and a merger between LVHN and Jefferson University Hospital.

Northampton Community College hosted the Lehigh Valley’s annual Safety & Health Expo. The Lehigh Valley Safety Committee welcomes people from around the area to the free event.

A new behavioral health hospital is being built in Hanover Township, Northampton County. Ground was broken Wednesday for Lehigh Valley Health Network’s new facility on the LVHN-Muhlenberg campus.

The merger is expected to be finalized later in the summer. Once fully approved, the two health care behemoths will form a partnership resulting in a regional provider overseeing 30 hospitals and more than 700 outpatient care sites.

The Allentown branch of the Greater Valley YMCA is back open following a fire last June. The reopening Monday brought back regulars for workouts — and the public can try it out for free through the end of May.

Easton Public Market will celebrate its eighth anniversary on Friday, May 17, with a special party featuring vendors, the band A Few Good Men, and a fundraiser benefiting Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital.

Good Shepherd Rehabilitation is hosting a stroke risk screening event. About every 40 seconds someone has a stroke in the United States, but the health condition is preventable.

The powerful animal tranquilizer is showing up in supplies of illicit drugs and is contributing to a growing number of overdose deaths, including in the Lehigh Valley.

A Lehigh Valley based group is working to connect first responders with mental health and other resources. Those who protect and serve are often faced with traumatic situations, now there's help to process feelings formed on the job.

The safety of a skin care procedure that draws patients’ blood and uses it in the healing process is coming into question. A Lehigh Valley nurse explains how to stay safe while receiving a vampire facial.

The $2.75 million payment to the federal government resolves allegations that a pharmacy technician stole controlled substances on about 40 occasions and the health network failed to institute proper controls.

Despite not being approved for human consumption, veterinary tranquilizers are infiltrating the illicit drug supply in Pennsylvania. Harm reduction specialists and health care professionals say these overdoses can't be approached solely with naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug.

A generous donation from a Lehigh Valley native and others funds free swim lessons for children and adults in the River Crossing YMCA's Safety Around Water, or SAW, swim education program.

The bill would limit the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of firefighting foam containing PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, beginning in 2026.

Xylazine, an animal-grade tranquilizer that's not approved for human use, has taken Pennsylvania's illicit drug supply by storm. Known on the streets as "tranq," it accounted for almost 1 in 4 overdose deaths in Pennsylvania by 2023. Last year in Lehigh County, it was a contributing cause of death in 20 of the 112 deadly overdoses, or 17.9 percent of cases.

The funding comes from the commonwealth’s Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure program, a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Known as "tranq" on the streets, an animal tranquilizer named xylazine infiltrated drug supplies throughout Pennsylvania since 2019. Its presence in the Lehigh Valley has grown, with deadly consequences.

A regionwide wastewater plan and a hazard mitigation plan both advanced with staff review approvals by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission on Thursday night.

With the Lehigh Valley under an extreme heat warning through Wednesday, area doctors are urging residents to keep hydrated and stay cool.

The U.S. Senate could vote on the proposed One Big Beautiful Bill Act this week. If passed, millions of Americans would lose access to Medicaid and SNAP benefits in order to fund border security and tax cuts to wealthy Americans.

The anti-violence program is funded through a $1.28 million grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The program will continue next school year.

The Neighborhood Center and Andre Reed Foundation are partnering to kick off the season with an event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at 344 N. 7th St.