2012's health news dominated by politics, personalities

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Politics, personalities and public health threats dominated medical news in 2012, with research advances taking a backseat. Below, a look at some of the year's biggest medical stories.

Health insurance

Sorry, docs. The Supreme Court gets the prize for making the biggest medical news of the year, with its June decision to uphold most of the Affordable Care Act, which also got a boost from President Obama's re-election. The law will provide health coverage for 30 million uninsured Americans. The law allows children up to age 26 to remain on their parents' policies.

The biggest changes are still to come.

By January 2014, millions of Americans will have to obtain insurance or pay penalties; insurers will be banned from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions; states will have to decide whether to expand Medicaid and create new insurance exchanges where people can shop for affordable coverage; and many small businesses will have to cover workers with the help of tax credits or pay penalties.

Public health

Infectious disease outbreaks sickened hundreds of Americans in 2012.

Contaminated steroid injections caused illness in nearly 600 people, including 368 who developed meningitis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Thirty-nine people have died.

Investigators traced the outbreak to drugs supplied by the New England Compounding Center, which quickly shut down production.

The outbreak called attention to the growing trend of compounding pharmacies that act like manufacturers, shipping thousands of doses at once, instead of filling prescriptions individually, as they traditionally have.

West Nile Virus

With 5,387cases and 243 deaths, 2012 was the second-worst year ever for West Nile Virus, the CDC says. Texas was particularly hard hit with 1,739 of the cases and 76of the deaths. Although much of country was parched with drought, scientists say the mosquito population may have been larger because fewer died during last year's relatively warm winter.

Personalities

Two of the country's leading cancer charities lost their larger-than-life leaders in 2012.

Susan G. Komen for the Cure sparked an emotional backlash after it temporarily cut funding to Planned Parenthood in January, after a congressman launched an investigation of the group's use of federal funds. Komen restored the group's funding after a massive public outcry, organized partly through social media. But the damage was done. Participation in the group's signature races dropped dramatically in cities around the country. In August, Nancy Brinker -- the group's founder, who named the charity in honor of her late sister -- stepped down as CEO. Brinker said she would take on a new role as chair of the executive committee.

Cyclist Lance Armstrong also resigned from Livestrong, the charity that he founded in 1997 after surviving cancer. Armstrong first resigned his position as chairman in October, after he was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and was banned from the sport for life by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. A few weeks later, Armstrong also gave up his position on the board of directors, to spare the foundation from the doping controversy.

The foundation reported that controversy did not hurt its fundraising, however. Many cancer survivors pledged to continue supporting the organization, if not Armstrong himself.

Researchers explored using stem cells to treat heart disease, and the Food and Drug Administration approved seven new drugs for cancer.

But the most fascinating science story of the year involved picking up a cup of coffee.

In May, researchers reported a milestone in efforts to develop brain implants that allow paralyzed patients to control robotic prostheses with their thoughts.

Two fully paralyzed patients used their brain signal to control a robotic arm, which allowed them to hold a ball or grasp a cup of coffee.

The research is still in relatively early stages. And brain implants are now contemplated for only the most severely paralyzed, where patients are "locked-in" to their brain, without movement or speech.

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