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Insurers often don't cover condoms, contraceptive sponges and spermicides unless people get a prescription for them. And that requires thinking ahead.

As details of Noor Jehan's neglect came to light, the revelations sparked a national conversation about the neglect and abuse of animals in Pakistan — and of vulnerable humans as well.

Physicians who pack on the pounds discuss weight loss less frequently with obese patients than doctors who have normal weights, a study finds. Overweight and obese physicians expressed greater confidence in prescribing weight-loss drugs than other doctors.

For the system to work, however, age won't be as important as how healthy or unhealthy all the new enrollees are. And insurers won't really know that until next year, when claims start rolling in. Sick people are more motivated to sign up early, researchers say.

Over the next few months people across the U.S. will have to make decisions about health coverage. The questions about how that it will all work keep coming in, with people seeking details about available plans and the size of the penalties if they don't comply.

Research suggests that patients in Canada do better when hospitals spend more on specialized tests and treatments. But the same may not be true in the U.S., where hospitals are already better equipped.

As biotech investments and medical device development falters, hospitals are turning to other avenues to help cut costs: streamlining billing systems and investing in simpler medical products.

Before a colonoscopy, ask the doctor about his or her detection rate for polyps. And find out how long, on average, the doctor takes to withdraw the scope from the patient. About 10 minutes is the optimal duration, a recent analysis says.

Last year, a little more than half of employers offered health benefits for domestic partner according to a nationally representative sample of about 3,000 employers surveyed by benefit consultant Mercer. That's up from a little less than one-third in 2010.

Insurers and employers are looking to stem the rising costs of expensive specialty drugs. One approach is to vary the copayment depending on the health value they calculate the drugs provide.