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Shots - Health News
3:01 am
Tue November 12, 2013

WHO Rates Typhoon's Medical Challenges "Monumental"

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Credit Erik de Castro / Reuters /Landov
A woman comforts a pregnant relative suffering labor pains at a makeshift birthing clinic in typhoon-battered city of Tacloban, Philippines on Nov. 11.
Credit Dennis M. Sabangan / EPA /LANDOV
A German medical team prepares to board a military helicopter in the devastated city of Tacloban, Philippines, on Nov. 11.
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Images of the swath of devastation wrought by Typhoon Haiyan in the central Philippines are reminiscent of the tsunami's aftermath in Banda Aceh, Indonesia nearly a decade ago.

And indeed, the World Health Organization grades the great typhoon of 2013 as a Category 3 disaster – its most severe category.

"The scale [of the typhoon's damage] is huge," Dr. Richard Brennan of the World Health Organization tells Shots. "It's monumental. This is one of the biggest emergencies we've dealt with in some time."

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Parallels
2:58 am
Tue November 12, 2013

Will Colombia's Gamble On Medical Tourism Pay Off?

Credit Luis Robayo / AFP/Getty Images
A billboard announces discounts on cosmetic treatments in a street of Cali, Valle del Cauca department, Colombia. In recent years the country has been building facilities specifically designed for medical tourists.
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By Andrew Fishman

International medical tourism is big business worldwide. Countries like India and Thailand lead the way as top destinations for people looking for high quality care at a fraction of the cost back home.

Lately, countries closer to the U.S. are also trying to break into the market — such as Colombia — which until recently was better known for drug trafficking than nose jobs.

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Around the Nation
2:54 am
Tue November 12, 2013

Philippine Ex-Pats In Calif. Contribute To Typhoon Relief

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Many Filipinos living in the United States are frantically trying to get in touch with loved ones in some of the areas hardest hit by the typhoon. California, with about a million Filipino immigrants, is the center for a large fundraising effort.

Los Angeles is home to one of the largest concentrations of Filipino immigrants in the U.S. Many across this city are glued to the local Asian TV stations' nightly news broadcasts. Some are turning their worry and stress into action, pounding the pavement to raise money for typhoon victims.

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Shots - Health News
6:17 pm
Mon November 11, 2013

First Estimate On Insurance Sign-Ups Is Pretty Darned Small

Credit Joe Raedle / Getty Images
Mario Ricart , an insurance agent with Sunshine Life and Health Advisors, talks with Naylie Villa about buying insurance under the Affordable Care Act on Nov. 5 in Miami.
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Originally published on Tue November 12, 2013 8:53 am

The Obama administration later this week will issue much anticipated enrollment numbers for the first month of the Affordable Care Act.

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Shots - Health News
6:00 pm
Mon November 11, 2013

Aid Groups Struggle To Reach Survivors Of Typhoon Haiyan

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Credit Ted Aljibe / AFP/Getty Images
Military personnel from the U.S. and the Philippines unload relief goods at the Tacloban airport, Nov. 11, 2013. Some reports estimate that 10,000 people may have died in the city of Tacloban.
Credit Ted Aljibe / AFP/Getty Images
Survivors of Typhoon Haiyan line up to board a U.S. military C-130 plane headed for Manila. The plane arrived in Tacloban, Philippines, with relief supplies on Nov. 11.
Credit Ted Aljibe / AFP/Getty Images
Typhoon Haiyan devastated the city of Tacloban in the Philippine province of Leyte.
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Originally published on Tue November 12, 2013 8:08 am

Aid agencies are scrambling to try to get water and food to people in the Philippines who've been left homeless or injured by Typhoon Haiyan.

But reaching some of the areas ravaged by the intense storm is proving difficult. Even when aid can make it onto the islands, it's still not clear what supplies are needed the most.

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