Fred Mogul

Prescriptions for painkillers are increasing dramatically in New York City, according to the Health Department. More than 2 million prescriptions for drugs like Oxycontin and Vicodin were filled by city residents in 2010, up 22 percent from 2008.

The Food and Drug Administration is considering a petition that could benefit Hispanic women by allowing the addition of folic acid, or folate, to the corn flour — a staple in many Latino foods — to help reduce birth defects.

The Barclays Center in Brooklyn next week will begin recruiting people to take tickets, operate security and sell food, when the arena opens this fall.

The bedbug tide may be turning. After years of large increases in bedbug-related complaints and violations by the city agency in charge of rental housing, some numbers are declining or leveling off.

The state health department has wasted millions of dollars in taxpayer money, because it hasn't been keeping close enough tabs on Medicaid spending, according to State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to turn trash into energy — at least a little bit. The city collects more than three million tons of waste a year from residences and institutions, and the administration has proposed a pilot project to convert some of that into electricity.

Active or Passive? That’s one of the main questions facing the architects of New York’s health insurance exchange.

With an executive order, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday he's creating an online marketplace for insurance, after months of wrangling with Senate Republicans. New York insurance plans are pleased the state is moving forward with a health insurance exchange, according to one trade group.

For many elderly and disabled Americans, staying out of nursing homes and other institutions is crucial to preserving some quality of life. For taxpayers, it’s often cheaper, too. But...

If you think you’re overweight, it’s possible you’re being too soft on yourself: You may actually be obese.

Immigrant advocates criticized the U.S. Census Bureau Monday for rebuffing a city petition to adjust the 2010 population count.

New York State is banning a group of substances sold legally as incense, but often smoked for their marijuana-like effect.

The advisory panel charged with examining possible links between World Trade Center dust and cancer has recommended the federal government cover some cancers and not others.

The anticipated closure of Peninsula Hospital has many in the Rockaways concerned about both their jobs and their community.

Six months after declaring bankruptcy, Peninsula Hospital in the Rockaways is on the verge of closing permanently. The hospital has not made a formal announcement, but a newly appointed bankruptcy trustee said in court filings that Peninsula could no longer stay open.

State legislators want doctors to be able to prescribe drugs for Medicaid patients with less oversight from the private plans that oversee prescription drug coverage.

The city Wednesday released information about 321 NYPD officers and civilian workers who reportedly developed cancer since working at Ground Zero in the days and months after September 11. The records are not public, but are going to Mt. Sinai Hospital, which has led much of the 9/11-related health research.

The head of the greater New York City affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure is leaving the nation’s preeminent breast-cancer charity, following months of turmoil.

A state senator from Queens is hoping to spur an exodus from his district and all of New York City...of raccoons.

The city has proposed eliminating its Office of Minority Health.