High court upholds Obama health law by 5-4 vote

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld virtually all of President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul, including the hotly debated core requirement that nearly every American have health insurance. The 5-4 decision meant the huge overhaul, still taking effect, could proceed and pick up momentum over the next several years, affecting the way that countless Americans receive and pay for their personal medical care.

Americans react to historic health care decision

CHICAGO (AP) _ The mother of two disabled teens called Thursday's Supreme Court ruling on the health care law wonderful because it bars insurance companies from setting lifetime limits for medical expenses _ a big help to her family. But a retiree on Medicare called it a "sad day" and worries that the law's new rules coming in 2015 will interfere with treatments doctors can provide.

Where states stand on implementing health care law

Here is a look at where each of the 50 states stand on implementing President Barack Obama's federal health care overhaul, which the Supreme Court ruled Thursday can go forward with its aim of covering more than 30 million uninsured Americans. ___

FDA clears first new weight-loss pill in 13 years

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Food and Drug Administration has approved Arena Pharmaceutical's anti-obesity pill Belviq, the first new prescription drug for long-term weight loss to enter the U.S. market in over a decade. Despite only achieving modest weight loss in clinical studies, the drug appeared safe enough to win the FDA's endorsement, amid calls from doctors for new weight-loss treatments.

Colleges move toward absolute bans on smoking

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ As a political science major at Ohio State University, Ida Seitter says, she lit up many a cigarette to help her through the stress of exam season. Right or wrong, they were her security blanket as she toiled through college. Seitter, now 26, was old enough by then to make her own decisions, she says. She opposes efforts by policymakers in Ohio, New York, California and other states to impose bans on tobacco use not just in buildings at public colleges, but also anywhere on the campus _ even in the open air.

Athletes' deaths in workouts prompt new guidelines

CHICAGO (AP) _ The most dangerous time for amateur athletes may not be during the heat of the game or even in rigorous practices. A total of 21 college football players have collapsed and died during conditioning workouts since 2000 _ many on the first few days, when even the fittest players are often pushed too hard. There's little regulation of these sessions, and coaches "just run willy-nilly" trying to make men out of boys, said athletic trainer Douglas Casa. "A lot of them are not focused on health and safety issues."

Health care countdown: Who wins, loses _ pays?

WASHINGTON (AP) _ It seems as if the entire nation is holding its breath for the Supreme Court's health care ruling _ the presidential candidates, governors of virtually every state, insurers with billions at stake, companies large and small and countless millions of Americans concerned about their own medical care and how they'll pay for it. Still, Thursday's expected ruling almost certainly will not be the last word on the nation's tangled efforts to address health care woes. The problems of high medical costs, widespread waste and tens of millions of people without insurance will require Congress and the president to keep looking for answers, whether or not President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act passes the test of constitutionality.

CDC trying out free AIDS tests at drugstores

ATLANTA (AP) _ Getting an AIDS test at the drugstore could become as common as a flu shot or blood pressure check, if a new pilot program takes off. The $1.2 million program will offer the free rapid HIV tests at pharmacies and in-store clinics in 24 cities and rural communities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday.

Mexico doctors remove child's 33-pound tumor

MEXICO CITY (AP) _ Mexican doctors say they have removed a 33-pound (15-kilogram) tumor from the body of a 2-year-old child who weighed only 26 pounds (12 kilograms). Dr. Gustavo Hernandez says the child from the northern state of Durango was born with a lump that eventually covered the right side of his body from his armpit to his hip.

Know your BMI: Docs urged to screen for obesity

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Chances are you know your blood pressure. What about your BMI? Body mass index signals if you're overweight, obese or just right considering your height. Some doctors have begun calling it a vital sign, as crucial to monitor as blood pressure.