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It's far from unanimous, but many believe Newton's law of inertia will kick in even if the fedreal statute that launched changes in the nation's health care system is found unconstitutional.

Babies are born too soon at a higher rate in the United States than in 125 other countries. The first worldwide rankings of preterm births show the problem isn't limited to the developing world.

In Michigan, areas with more cardiac catheterization labs — places where patients are diagnosed for heart problems — tended to have more interventions than those with fewer labs.

Nonprofit hospitals pay no federal, state, or local taxes. In return, they are expected to offer a community benefit, including free and discounted care for low-income patients. But a study by the Congressional Budget Office found that, on average, not-for-profits are providing only slightly more uncompensated care than for-profit hospitals.

Under some state laws, a patient's positive test for alcohol can mean that insurers won't pay hospitals and doctors for care after an accident. To sidestep the potential problem, hospitals often don't screen patients for alcohol use.

The state is one of just a few that is expanding Medicaid ahead of a major expansion called for in 2014 by the federal health law. Though the state estimates that 50,000 people meet the income bar, Colorado will only be able to offer coverage to 10,000 people.

A change in guidelines for psychiatric diagnoses would add problem gambling as an addictive disorder. The designation would clear a path to add other behavioral problems — such as sex or Internet addiction — in the future.

Enrollment in health savings accounts grew 18 percent last year as employers continued to steer workers into high-deductible medical plans.

The government has identified hundreds of hospitals where Medicare patients are incurring especially high or low bills. Hospitals around McAllen, it turns out, aren't as terrible as they were made out to be, according to Medicare's calculations of how much it spent for the average patient from three days before admission to a month after discharge.

Some companies are adding drug dispensaries to their on-site health clinics. Others are offering concierge services that deliver drugs right to workers' desks. The companies hope to improve workers' compliance with doctors' orders by making it easier to get prescriptions filled.