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As people age, the main valve controlling the flow of blood out of the heart can narrow, causing heart failure, and sometimes death. In the past the only way to repair the damage was risky open-heart surgery. But an ingenious medical device now allows the heart to be repaired using a catheter that introduces a replacement valve through a main artery in the leg—another miracle of modern medicine. (Scott Gottlieb, 4/11)

Four years ago, Dave deBronkart spoke at a medical conference, with his face displayed on a giant screen. Afterward, a doctor told him that a spot on his face looked like basal cell carcinoma. She was right. That cancer was unlikely to spread, but it needed to be treated, and deBronkart’s health insurance policy had a $10,000 deductible. Any treatment, then, would come out of his pocket. How would he find the right treatment at the right price? (Tina Rosenberg, 4/12)

Data from past clinical trials can be used to draw new conclusions about diseases and treatments long after a trial is over. But researchers rarely take advantage of this valuable resource even though access to a full data set, rather than published results alone, can help further research on how certain groups of people respond to a treatment or how people with an illness fare over time. In some cases, revisiting clinical trial data can also reveal problems with the initial analysis. (4/12)

Some healthy men and women should take aspirin every day to ward off heart attack, stroke, and colorectal cancer. That’s the final recommendation from the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) after more than a year of study and lively public comment. The recommendations were published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (Patrick Skerrett, 4/11)

Miami-Dade County, in many respects, is a great place to live, but a new report reveals that for the poor and sick, it continues to be a harsh place where they can barely survive. On Wednesday, the Florida Community Health Action Information Network, will unveil its latest findings — and they are discouraging for our most vulnerable residents. Not surprisingly, they confirm the findings of similar recent reports. (4/11)

Some state-level efforts to reduce healthcare costs without sacrificing quality are working and should be replicated by others states, especially because local government is more poised to make changes than the federal government, according to a report released Monday. The Center for American Progress (PDF) studied successful state initiatives like bundled payments, all-payer claims databases and cost-growth goals. The authors say states are in the best position to try these methods because reform is more politically feasible and programs can be tailored to a state's specific demographics. (Shannon Muchmore, 4/11)

During my years of working in public life, I have witnessed countless ways in which unplanned pregnancy disrupts people’s lives. So one of the best ideas I’ve seen for how to help everyone reach the next rung on the ladder is providing access to effective contraception. Enabling women to become pregnant only when they want to is a shortcut to prosperity. According to new data, there are 6.1 million pregnancies a year in the United States. Of these, nearly half (2.8 million) are unplanned. In Delaware, that proportion is even higher, at 57 percent — partly because, like others, we haven’t focused on the issue until now, and partly because of poor access to good contraception. (Jack A. Markell, 4/12)

The national debate on immigration is ugly, anti-immigrant and full of facile soundbites and unworkable ideas. Many Republicans in Illinois do not agree with this rhetoric. I do not believe Mexican immigrants are rapists or criminals. My wife, Susan Crown, and I supported former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's presidential campaign. Like him, we believe many immigrants come to the United States out of an "act of love," and I would add that they come here to work hard. (William Kunkler, 4/11)

What Senate President Andy Biggs is doing with KidsCare is just plain wrong, and his explanation for doing it is hopelessly illogical. He’s blocking restoration of a program that would allow tens of thousands of kids to go to the doctor at no cost to the state. (4/11)

A ew days ago, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced new plans for the old Cook County Hospital building built in 1914. I worked there for three decades and knew people who worked there as far back as the 1930s. I took the news with mixed emotions: Any plan to revitalize the beautiful facade is better than how it sits now amid garbage, weeds and graffiti. But something bothered me. There are plans for a hotel, shops and apartments — but no provision for the thousands of ghosts living there. Many of those ghosts of the past I knew personally, others I learned about from my predecessors. (Cory Franklin, 4/11)

As warmer weather brings mosquitoes north to the USA, the guiding principle for political and public health leaders ought to be preparation without panic — a balance that has been difficult to achieve during similar challenges in the past. (4/11)