Patti Neighmond
Award-winning journalist Patti Neighmond is NPR's health policy correspondent. Her reports air regularly on NPR newsmagazines All Things Considered, Morning Edition, and Weekend Edition.
Based in Los Angeles, Neighmond has covered health care policy since April 1987. She joined NPR's staff in 1981, covering local New York City news as well as the United Nations. In 1984, she became a producer for NPR's science unit and specialized in science and environmental issues.
Neighmond has earned a broad array of awards for her reporting. In 1993, she received the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award for coverage of health reform. That same year, she received the Robert F. Kennedy Award for a story on a young quadriplegic who convinced Georgia officials that she could live at home less expensively and more happily than in a nursing home. In 1990, Neighmond won the World Hunger Award for a story about healthcare and low-income children. She received two awards in 1989: a George Polk Award for her powerful ten-part series on AIDS patient Archie Harrison, who was taking the anti-viral drug AZT; and a Major Armstrong Award for her series on the Canadian health care system. The Population Institute, based in Washington, DC, has presented its radio documentary award to Neighmond twice: in 1988 for "Family Planning in India" and in 1984 for her coverage of overpopulation in Mexico. Her 1987 report "AIDS and Doctors" won the National Press Club Award for Consumer Journalism, and her two-part series on the aquaculture industry earned the 1986 American Association for the Advancement of Science Award.
Neighmond began her career in journalism in 1978, at the Pacifica Foundation's DC bureau, where she covered Capitol Hill and the White House. She began freelance reporting for NPR from New York City in 1980. Neighmond earned her bachelor's degree in English and drama from the University of Maryland, and now lives in Los Angeles.
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So far, only 15 cases of coronavirus disease have been identified in the U.S. But if large numbers of people were to suddenly get infected, would hospitals be prepared to cope?
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With drug costs on the rise — and insurers refusing to cover some prescriptions — even patients with insurance can find themselves facing high out-of-pocket costs or going without.
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A woman had become barely verbal, an effect of dementia. Her daughter, an opera singer, decided to try singing Christmas songs with her, and they reconnected.
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If you own a rescue dog, you're probably curious about your pup's heritage. DNA kits may offer insights, but experts warn to be a little skeptical about results.
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Many women get their hair dyed or straightened regularly with products that contain thousands of chemicals. Researchers are teasing out whether our hair habits could be raising our breast cancer risk.
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U.S. adults put on about a pound a year on average. But people who had a regular nut-snacking habit put on less weight and had a lower risk of becoming obese over time, a new study finds.
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The jury's been out on whether low blood levels of vitamin D increase the risk of colorectal cancer. Researchers say a new review involving more than 12,000 people strongly suggests the answer is yes.
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Noting a sharp rise in colorectal cancer among younger people, the American Cancer Society now suggests that healthy adults get their first screening five years earlier — at age 45.
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Scientists have long been fascinated with whether dramatically restricting the amount of food we eat can help us live longer. New research suggests it might, but the question is, is it worth it?
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For the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics has weighed in on what teens and young adults (and their doctors and parents) need to know about safely getting piercings and tattoos.