Do you find medication instructions confusing? We talk with a Northwestern professor on a quest to make prescription labels clearer and more consistent so patients will get the most out of their medication.

We check the pulse on the first day of the health insurance exchange open enrollment.

The Illinois health insurance marketplace has officially been named “Get Covered Illinois.” Starting on October 1, Illinois residents will be able to shop around for health care plans. Gov. Pat Quinn has released a few preliminary estimates of plan rates, saying plans in Illinois could be more than 25 percent lower than initial federal estimates. Our panel breaks down some of the numbers. View a timeline on the Affordable Care Act and future health care deadlines.

The Environmental Protection Agency sampled a small number of Chicago homes and found higher levels of lead where water pipes were disturbed by street work and plumbing repairs. We have analysis. Read the EPA study.

Catching the flu may be the last thing on your mind as summer unwinds, but flu season is right around the corner. This year, there will be more vaccine options to help prevent against the influenza virus than in years past, including a vaccine that prevents against four strains instead of the traditional three strains of the virus. Read symptoms and tips to avoid the flu.

With two weeks to go before the October launch of the online health insurance marketplace, confusion abounds over the realities of ObamaCare. Julie Hamos, director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, and Cristal Thomas, Deputy Governor for Public Policy, explain the new health care law and the state's insurance marketplace exchange.

One in 20 U.S. children are severely obese, and the numbers are rising while treatment remains limited. What does this newly defined class risk mean? A panel of medical experts joins us to discuss.

According to new data released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in four cardiovascular deaths – that is, 200,000 of 800,000 – are completely preventable. What more can be done to save these lives? We gather some leading experts for a frank assessment of heart disease in America. View graphs of data on heart disease.

Lyme disease is on the rise across the nation and state. We talk with a panel of experts about its prevalence in the Chicago area, and how you can prevent infections. Read a fact sheet about symptoms and prevention.

We revisit a story about two families and the medical director at a burgeoning new clinic for kids questioning their gender at Lurie Children's Hospital. Read an article and watch a web extra video.

In Expecting Better, University of Chicago economics professor Emily Oster argues that much of the conventional wisdom about pregnancy isn’t supported by data. She joins us to pinpoint the most egregious myths. Read an excerpt.

End-of-life decisions are deeply difficult to make. That’s why Dr. Mary Mulcahy and Chicago journalist Randi Belisomo are trying to get more people to have these conversations preemptively. They join us to discuss Life Matters Media, their new initiative to get people to talk more openly about death. Read an article and watch a video essay.

Less than a week after medical marijuana became legal in Illinois, the first clinic opens in Chicago. But it's still going to be a while before patients get their prescriptions filled.  Eddie Arruza has the details.

Could patients complaining of early signs of dementia be right -- even if tests say they're perfectly normal? We have some of the latest Alzheimer's research, including "subjective cognitive decline," when people sense that their memory is failing, even when no one else can notice a difference. Read an article.

The Obama administration has delayed a portion of the Affordable Care Act, which will extend the deadline for employer mandated health care to 2015. Bruce Japsen, a health care reporter for Forbes, joins us to break down the employer mandate and explain the implication of the extension. Read a Q&A.

A food additive that has been used for decades is stirring up controversy. We talk with a Chicago researcher who is in the midst of clinical trials to uncover its potential hazards. Read an article about carrageenan.