Face masks will be mandatory in hospitals and healthcare centers in Spain starting Wednesday due to a surge in respiratory illnesses, the Health Ministry said.

The new leftist minority coalition government is imposing the measure despite opposition from most of Spain's 17 autonomous regions.

France's National Assembly unanimously approved a bill to ban single-use, disposable electronic cigarettes, in an attempt to protect young people drawn to their flavors and mitigate the environmental impacts of the disposable products known as "puffs."

Lawmakers adopted the bill in a late-night vote on Monday by 104 in favor, zero against.

France will ban smoking on all beaches, in public parks, forests and some other public areas as part of a national anti-tobacco plan presented by the health minister on Tuesday.

Tobacco products cause 75,000 avoidable deaths a year in France, Minister of Health and Prevention Aurélien Rousseau said on BFM television. The government will introduce legislation at the start of next year to enlarge the scope of places where fines can be levied for smoking, he said.

A lack of clean water in the Gaza Strip is raising major concerns for human health.

"Gaza is running out of water, and Gaza is running out of life," said Philippe Lazzarini, chief of the U.N. agency for Palestinians.

Jill Biden is urging women to consult their doctors about getting mammograms or other cancer screenings, saying in a new public service announcement for Breast Cancer Awareness Month that early detection saves lives.

"October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and I'm asking you to put your health first," the first lady says in the 30-second spot recorded amid flower blooms in the White House Rose Garden.

Two scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for discoveries that enabled the development of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 and could be used in the future to create other shots.

Katalin Karikó, a professor at Sagan's University in Hungary and an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and Drew Weissman, of the University of Pennsylvania, were awarded the prize for "their groundbreaking findings, which have fundamentally changed our understanding of how mRNA interacts with our immune system," the panel that awarded the prize said.

Many millions of Chinese tourists are expected to travel within their country, splurging on hotels, tours, attractions and meals in a boost to the economy during the 8-day autumn holiday period that began Friday.

This year's holiday began with the Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday and also includes the Oct. 1 National Day. The public holidays end on Oct. 6.

Trying to lessen climate change's sweeping impact, experts are hoping that attempts to improve the sputtering global public health system and sometimes-stalled efforts to curb global warming through collaboration can combine — and create a better system for handling the problem along the way.

Leaders of both the World Health Organization and the upcoming climate negotiations said that for the first time, they are going to devote a day during December climate talks to public health issues. By concentrating on how climate change is causing death and disease, they hope, nations may act more on the root cause: carbon pollution.

The U.N. on Monday warned that disease outbreaks could bring "a second devastating crisis" to Libya a week after a massive flash flood devastated the coastal city of Derna, sweeping thousands to their deaths.

Local officials, aid agencies and the World Health Organization "are concerned about the risk of disease outbreak, particularly from contaminated water and the lack of sanitation", the United Nations said.

Psilocybin tea, wind chimes and a tie-dye mattress await those coming to an office suite in Eugene to trip on magic mushrooms. For roughly six hours, adults over 21 can experience what many users describe as vivid geometric shapes, a loss of identity and a oneness with the universe.

Epic Healing Eugene — Oregon's first licensed psilocybin service center — opened in June, marking the state's unprecedented step in offering the mind-bending drug to the public. The center now has a waitlist of more than 3,000 names, including people with depression, PTSD or end-of-life dread.