Midwives warn further cuts will put women’s safety at risk

Maternity units, already under-staffed and over-stretched, expect further job losses, Royal College of Midwives survey finds

Gay men who use a condom should not face delays giving blood

Peter Tatchell: Although the new donor policy is a big improvement on the existing lifetime exclusion, a 12-month ban is still excessive

McDonald’s calorie counts count for nothing

The fast food chain will display dietary information as part of a wider drive to inform consumers about the foods they eat. But isn't this just for show, asks Mark King

Abortion services aren’t about selling soap powder or shoes

Susie Orbach: Nadine Dorries's amendment to the health and social care bill is an attempt to situate women's sexuality in the marketplace

NHS plans will mean putting wealthy first, says doctors’ leader

Hospitals will be forced to treat wealthy foreigners to raise cash, rather than treat poor patients, says BMA's Hamish Meldrum

Britain’s life expectancy can be raised with a bit of Japanese-style nannying

Stephen Dunn: Compared with Japan, we are in the midst of a public health crisis. It will take more than a nudge to get us out of it

HIV and Aids epidemic ‘has not gone away’

HIV awareness has fallen under the radar despite diagnoses at double 1990s rate, peers warn

Incapacity benefit was a lifeline after my accident – would I be so lucky now?

Tim Rushby-Smith: The cuts get personal: Welfare helped me rebuild my future after a spinal cord injury

North/South health – an expert view finds right, and wrong, in both political camps

Guest blogger David Buck, Senior Fellow in Public Health at the King's Fund, pitches in on the debate started by Northerner political columnist, Ed Jacobs

How do we tackle the North/South divide on health funding?

The Northerner blog's Friday columnist Ed Jacobs looks at serious inequalities in our small country, and rival views about how to iron them out