Federal officials are promoting a new system of tracking the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu. The plan is going into effect in part because officials expect bird flu will arrive in the U.S. this year.

The secretaries of Agriculture, Interior and Health and Human Services today released a plan to detect the avian flu if it arrives in the U.S. Interior Secretary Gale Norton says officials expect the flu to reach North America "at some point, possibly this year

Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. announces Monday that Japan has granted it a patent for an experimental drug to treat a rare form of anemia.

The U.S. has already granted the company a patent for the drug, named, "eculizumab

ediatricians should speak out in support of needle exchange programs to reduce the spread of HIV among injection drug users, the American Academy of Pediatrics says in a toughened policy statement.

Doctors should also discuss HIV risk with their teenage patients "with a nonjudgmental approach" and offer confidential help if local laws allow, the group says in the statement that appears Monday in the journal Pediatrics

A joint advisory committee for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted to recommend over-the-counter sales of the prescription weight-loss drug 'Xenical.'

The FDA still needs to give its final approval before GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare can sell the nonprescription version of orlistat, reports The Associated Press

McDonald's is now entering its fourth year of a turnaround effort, where it aims to get better as opposed to bigger by rebuilding and renovating restaurants, and adding new menu choices.

Ralph Alvarez, President of McDonald's North America says, "You will see a greater variety of freshly prepared foods, with a specific focus on the chicken category and breakfast