Stat: Advisory Group Gives Green Light To Pfizer's Covid Vaccine For Adolescents
An expert panel on Wednesday recommended that Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine be offered to adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15, opening the door to vaccinating this age group in coming weeks — and before the start of the next school year. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 14 to 0 in support of the recommendation, making the Pfizer vaccine the first to be offered to children under the age of 16. (Branswell, 5/12)

The New York Times: C.D.C. Advisers Endorse Pfizer Vaccine For Children Ages 12 To 15 
Vaccinations of adolescents have already begun in a few states, like Maine. Others plan to offer the vaccine as early as Thursday. There are nearly 17 million 12- to 15-year-olds in the United States, accounting for 5.3 percent of the population. Nearly all states now have a supply of vaccine doses that could be quickly redirected to adolescents. The dose used to immunize adults is also safe and effective for these adolescents, clinical trials have shown. (Mandavilli, 5/12)

Politico: CDC Panel Endorses Use Of Pfizer Covid-19 Vaccine In Young Teens 
The advisory committee’s recommendation, which CDC Director Rochelle Walensky officially adopted Wednesday night, clears the way for roughly 17 million young teens to be vaccinated nationwide starting this week. It's a significant step towards sending children back to school and delivering on President Joe Biden’s promise of broad vaccination by this summer. "We're ready," Biden said at the White House shortly after the vote. "This new population is going to find the vaccine rollout fast and efficient." (Owermohle and Foley, 5/12)

The Washington Post: Biden Hails Coronavirus Vaccine For 12- To 15-Year-Olds As ‘One More Giant Step’ In Fight Against The Pandemic 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday endorsed the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine in children as young as 12, paving the way for millions of adolescents to get the shots and making it easier for state and local officials to reopen schools and summer camps. The decision was hailed by President Biden “as one more giant step in our fight against the pandemic,” and he called on parents to get their children inoculated. “The bottom line is this: A vaccine for kids between the ages of 12 and 15 … [is] safe, effective, easy, fast and free,” he said. “So my hope is that parents will take advantage of the vaccine and get their kids vaccinated.” (Sun and Nirappil, 5/12)

The Boston Globe: COVID-19 Vaccine Now Available At CVS For Kids Age 12-15 Nationwide
CVS Health announced Wednesday that COVID-19 vaccines appointments for young teenagers ages 12 to 15 years old are now available for scheduling at more than 5,600 pharmacy locations nationwide. The news follows the Food and Drug Administration approving the two-shot vaccine for Emergency Use Authorization for this age group Monday. Starting Thursday, 23 CVS retail pharmacy locations in Rhode Island and 154 in Massachusetts will begin administering the Pfizer vaccine to this newly eligible population. Parents or legal guardian consent is required and children must be accompanied by an adult. (Gagosz, 5/12)

AP: EXPLAINER: How COVID-19 Vaccines Will Work For Kids In US
Parental consent will be needed, but exactly how it’s obtained could vary. For vaccinations at school-based clinics, for example, parents might be able to give consent by signing a form, said Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention and president of Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. Walgreens said a parent or guardian will need to be present and sign a consent form, but noted guidelines on parental consent vary by jurisdiction. (Choi, 5/12)

In related news —

Houston Chronicle: Houston Teens Line Up As CDC Approves COVID Shots For 12-15 Year Olds
Five teens on Wednesday joined more than 20 million Texans who have received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, less than two hours after federal health officials officially recommended the distribution of the vaccine to 12- to 15-year-olds nationwide. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for emergency use in 12- to 15-year olds on Monday, in a move that experts expect to boost flagging vaccination rates across the country. Under the new guidelines, 17 million adolescents, or more than 5 percent of the U.S. population, are now eligible for the vaccine. (Wu and Garcia, 5/12)

Detroit Free Press: Michigan 'Ready To Go' As COVID-19 Vaccine Cleared For Kids 12-15
“We are ready to go," said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer at a Wednesday morning news conference, acknowledging that state health care providers "will begin administering vaccines to Michiganders 12-15 so that they can be safe from COVID-19 as well" as soon as it won authorization. Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, the state's chief medical executive and chief deputy director for health, called the expansion "an important milestone for our children." (Jordan Shamus and Hall, 5/12)

The Oregonian: Oregon Expected To Start COVID-19 Vaccinations Of Youth Age 12 To 15 Thursday: Here’s How To Get A Shot ASAP 
COVID-19 vaccinations are expected to begin Thursday in Oregon for youth age 12 to 15, according to top state health officials. Oregon Health Authority Director Patrick Allen said he anticipates “all the final approvals will be in place” by the end of the day Wednesday and vaccinations can begin Thursday. (Green, 5/12)

NBC News: Pediatricians Primed To Lead Covid Vaccination Efforts As Kids Become Eligible
Now that both the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have green-lighted Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use in kids ages 12 to 15, pediatricians will soon find themselves on the front lines of the country's vaccination efforts, playing an essential role in communicating to parents the safety and importance of getting their kids the shot. That's a tall order for pediatricians who say they're facing skyrocketing vaccine hesitancy among families. (Edwards, 5/13)

CNN: Risk Of Dying From Covid-19 40 Times The Risk Of Rare Blood Clot After Receiving J&J Vaccine
The risk of dying from Covid-19 is 40 times the risk of developing a rare blood clotting condition after getting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, a CNN analysis shows. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday it has received reports of 28 people who have developed a rare blood clotting syndrome out of 8.7 million given J&J's Janssen coronavirus vaccine. Three of them have died from the condition, known as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS). (McPhillips and Fox, 5/12)

Bloomberg: J&J Vaccine Leads To 28 Cases Of Blood Clots After 8.7 Million Doses
The 28 cases were identified out of 8.7 million doses of J&J’s vaccine administered in the U.S., the CDC said in a presentation posted online Wednesday ahead of a meeting of the agency’s immunization advisory committee. The panel will review the new data on the condition, called thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome. ... All 28 confirmed cases occurred before the pause began on April 13, according to the new presentation. The median age of patients was 40 and their ages ranged from 18 to 59. Of the 28 cases, 22 occurred in women and six occurred in men. (LaVito and Griffin, 5/12)

Also —

The Wall Street Journal: Blood Expert Says He Found Why Some Covid-19 Vaccines Trigger Rare Clots 
In Germany, one researcher thinks he has found what is triggering the clots. Andreas Greinacher, a blood expert, and his team at the University of Greifswald believe so-called viral vector vaccines—which use modified harmless cold viruses, known as adenoviruses, to convey genetic material into vaccine recipients to fight the coronavirus—could cause an autoimmune response that leads to blood clots. According to Prof. Greinacher, that reaction could be tied to stray proteins and a preservative he has found in the AstraZeneca vaccine. (Pancevski, 5/13)

In related news about 'mixing' vaccines —

CNN: Mixing Covid-19 Vaccines Tied To More Side Effects, Early UK Data Suggests 
People who got mixed doses of coronavirus vaccines -- receiving a different vaccine type as a second dose than the first dose -- appear to be more likely to experience mild side effects such as fever, chills, fatigue or headache, researchers in the UK reported Wednesday. But the side effects following mix-and-match vaccinations were short-lived and there were no other safety concerns, the researchers reported in the Lancet medical journal. (Howard, 5/12)

Politico: A Shot At A Million: Ohio Offers Vaccinated A Chance To Win Big Bucks, College Scholarships 
Ohio will give away $1 million each to five vaccinated adults within the coming weeks as an incentive for residents to get the shot, Gov. Mike DeWine announced on Wednesday. The first drawing will occur on May 26, with subsequent drawings occurring each Wednesday for a total of five weeks. To win, participants must be 18 or older, an Ohio resident and vaccinated with at least one Covid vaccine dose before the lottery takes place. The five winners will receive $1 million from existing federal coronavirus relief funds, DeWine said. (Carrasco, 5/12)

In other updates on the vaccine rollout —

WUSF Public Media: Florida Matters: As Vaccinations Lag, Education And Incentives Ramp Up 
More than 7 million Floridians are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. That’s about 33% of the population. The Biden administration has set a national goal that 70% of adults receive at least one dose by the Fourth of July. For some folks, getting a shot is as easy as walking into the nearest Publix or CVS. But vaccination rates are lower in communities of color, where hesitancy and misinformation persist. (Prevost and George, 5/12)

AP: Nurses, Nonprofits, Others Take Vaccine To Homebound People
For months, Victoria McAllister searched online to make a vaccination appointment. Unlike other people who can hop into a car, though, she has ruptured discs that could slice her spinal cord if she hits a pothole or her wheelchair bumps floor molding. So McAllister, 64, was over the moon when the county health department in Hayward, California, where she lives, called offering to inoculate her against COVID-19 at home. Two paramedics with Hayward Fire came last month, jabbed her arm with the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine and stuck around to make sure she was alright. (Har, 5/13)

Los Angeles Times: Latino, Black Californians Less Likely To Get COVID Vaccine
Only about one-third of Latino and Black Californians have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while majorities of white and Asian American Pacific Islander Californians have, according to a Times analysis. The Times analysis found that 33% of Latino residents and 34% of Black residents of the state have received at least one dose of vaccine. By contrast, 50% of white residents, 46% of Native American residents and 60% of Asian American Pacific Islander residents have received a dose. (Greene and Lin II, 5/12)

The Baltimore Sun: Federal Court Rules Maryland Must Provide Baltimore Jail COVID Vaccination Data After ACLU Filing 
A federal judge on Monday ordered the state of Maryland to provide status reports and updates detailing current COVID-19 outbreaks and vaccination distribution data for incarcerated individuals at the Baltimore Central Booking and Intake Center, according to court filings. U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander said the state will be directed to “file a status report” and respond to a motion filed by the American Civil Liberties Union by May 21. The data in the status report must include “how many people incarcerated in the jail as of May 20, 2021, have been offered the vaccine, and how many have actually been vaccinated,” the court filing read. (Jackson, 5/11)

Also —

Reuters: Delaying Second COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Can Help Reduce Deaths - Study
Giving a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine but delaying a second dose among people younger than 65 could lead to fewer people dying of the disease, but only if certain conditions are met, a predictive modelling study showed. ... For example, Pfizer (PFE.N) has said there is no clinical evidence to support Britain’s decision to extend the gap between doses of its vaccine to 12 weeks, but data from the rollout in England shows protection against death of around 80% from one dose, with a 70% decline in infections. (5/13)

Stat: Vaccines Seem To Work Well Against Covid Variants. It's Also Complicated
The question about how Covid-19 vaccines stand up to coronavirus variants often gets distilled to: Do they work? The simplest answer is yes. People who’ve received one of the highly powerful vaccines don’t need to be too worried about the variants for now, experts say. But the complete answer is more complicated. (Joseph, 5/13)

AP: Covid Deaths In U.S. Hit Lowest Level In 10 Months
Covid-19 deaths in the U.S. have tumbled to an average of around 600 per day — the lowest level in 10 months — with the number of lives lost dropping to single digits in well over half the states and hitting zero on some days. Confirmed infections, meanwhile, have fallen to about 38,000 day on average, their lowest mark since mid-September. While that is still cause for concern, they have plummeted 85 percent from a peak of more than a quarter-million cases per day in early January. (5/12 )

The New York Times: Many U.S. States With Bad Recent Outbreaks Show Case And Hospitalization Drops 
Many of the states that have suffered the worst recent coronavirus outbreaks have seen notable declines both in new cases and in hospitalizations over the last two weeks, according to a New York Times database. For example, in Michigan, which has had one of the country’s steepest drops, the average number of daily cases sank 44 percent and hospitalizations tumbled 33 percent over that time period, as of Tuesday. (5/13)

In related news about the spread of the coronavirus —

The New York Times: Yankees’ Covid Case Count Rises To Seven 
The Yankees’ coronavirus outbreak increased to seven confirmed cases on Wednesday. Three of the team’s coaches and four of its support staff members — all seven people are fully vaccinated, and thus considered breakthrough cases — have tested positive and are in quarantine. All but one of them are asymptomatic, Manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 1-0, on Wednesday in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Wagner, 5/12)

Bangor Daily News: High COVID-19 Vaccination Rates Aren’t Tamping Down Hospitalizations In Maine
Younger, unvaccinated Mainers are being hospitalized with COVID-19 in greater numbers as widespread vaccinations have yet to put a dent in statewide hospitalizations, the state’s top health official said Wednesday. The number of patients hospitalized with the virus was mostly flat over the past week, sitting at 122 as of Wednesday, but the seven-day average is still up nearly 70 percent compared to a month ago, when the number of people hospitalized on a given day dropped as low as 68. Deaths have yet to show a similar increase, likely reflecting lower infection rates among older Mainers most likely to be vaccinated. (Piper, 5/13)

WUSF Public Media: Florida Ranks High For COVID Hospital Admissions, Especially Among Young Adults
The number of people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 is going down in Florida, but new admissions are still higher than in most parts of the country, especially for younger and middle-aged adults. An analysis of federal data conducted by Jason Salemi, associate professor of epidemiology at the University of South Florida, found Florida ranks fifth in the nation for confirmed COVID-19 hospital admissions for the week predating May 8. (Colombini, 5/12)

Los Angeles Times: As California COVID-19 Cases Drop, Who Is Still Dying?
Despite a statewide mood of optimism as more people get vaccinated and case rates improve, an average of 57 Californians a day are still succumbing to COVID-19. An average of about 12 of those daily deaths are in Los Angeles County, according to data from the past seven days. On the one hand, that’s a huge cause for celebration. During the worst days of the pandemic, California was seeing an average of nearly 600 people per day dying. But the sharp drop in deaths also raises a question: Who is still dying and why? And for families losing loved ones today, the usual pain of loss is compounded by its arrival at a time when the death rate is plummeting. (Smith and Karlamangla, 5/12)

Also —

CIDRAP: Study: 80% Of Hospital COVID-19 Patients Have Neurologic Complications 
Eight of 10 hospitalized COVID-19 patients developed neurologic complications and were six times more likely than their peers to die, according to early results from a global study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. Many of the conditions were mild to moderate, but half of the patients had altered brain function or structure, and almost one in five were in a coma. (Van Beusekom, 5/12)

CIDRAP: Blood Analysis Shows Cats Contact COVID-19 At Higher Rates Than Dogs
COVID-19 seroprevalence—or the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in blood—is higher in cats than in dogs and higher in general in pets living with people who have the disease, according to a study yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases. Italian scientists analyzed 198 serum samples, 130 from dogs and 68 from cats, collected during March through June of 2020, as well as 100 serum samples, 65 from dogs and from 35 cats, collected in different regions of Italy before 2019 to use as prepandemic controls. (5/12)

NPR: South Carolina Bans 'Vaccine Passports,' Mask Mandates
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster issued a coronavirus mandate Tuesday preventing schools and local governments from creating mask mandates. His order also bans the use of so-called vaccine passports in the state. Under the 15-page executive order, parents — not public school officials or school districts — will decide whether students wear masks in class. (Diaz, 5/12)

The Post and Courier: Gov. McMaster Order Ending SC Mask Mandates Created 'Chaos,' Schools Chief Says
An order from Gov. Henry McMaster putting an end to mask mandates statewide prompted emergency meetings as schools and local governments worked to understand how the ruling affected them. The announcement also earned a sharp rebuke from the state’s chief of public schools. (Wildeman and Stanford, 5/12)

The Hill: Ohio To Lift Most COVID-19 Restrictions June 2 
Ohio is set to lift most of its coronavirus restrictions in less than a month, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine announced the new guidelines Wednesday, saying that the mask mandate and remaining coronavirus health orders will be lifted on June 2. Social distancing and capacity restrictions will no longer be required, although schools and businesses will have the ability to put their own rules into place. (Polus, 5/12)

The Baltimore Sun: Coronavirus Restrictions Are Being Eased In Maryland This Weekend. Here’s What You Need To Know
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan held a news conference Wednesday announcing loosened coronavirus restrictions. The Republican governor even said it might be feasible to ditch masks across the state soon if Marylanders continue to get vaccinated. “There is simply no excuse for putting off your vaccination any longer,” Hogan said. (Oxenden, 5/13)

Los Angeles Times: Newsom Says California's Mask Mandate Will End June 15
Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that California could significantly ease its mask mandates in the coming weeks as COVID-19 cases continue to decline and vaccinations increase. State health officials have not offered guidance, but Newsom said it could come soon. (Smith, 5/12)

ABC News: New Hawaii Vaccine Pass Allows Vaccinated Residents To Travel Between Islands 
Starting this week, fully vaccinated Hawaii residents can skip COVID-19 testing and quarantine requirements when flying between the islands. According to the new rules, which Gov. David Ige announced last month, Hawaii residents who were vaccinated in the state are exempt from testing and quarantine on the 15th day after their final vaccine shot. (Schumaker, 5/12)

In related news —

ABC News: Schools Ditch Student Mask Requirements In Growing Numbers 
Even as a number of U.S. schools remain closed to minimize infections, districts in states from Alabama to Wyoming decided to ditch student mask mandates. Many more are likely to do the same before the next school year starts, despite the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's guidance that schools “should prioritize universal and correct use of masks and physical distancing.” Some public health experts are alarmed. (Amy and Whitehurst, 5/13)

CNN: These Long-Awaited Milestones Could Soon Return As More Young Americans Get Vaccinated, CDC Director Says 
Americans could soon see milestones like a full return to in-person classrooms now that Covid-19 vaccinations are open to young teens, the director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. "I think we should be five days a week everybody present in school in the fall," CDC director Rochelle Walensky told CNN's Chris Cuomo. "I think we will be in a place in this pandemic that we will be able to do that. I think we should all be leaning in." (Holcombe, 5/13)

Axios: 57% Believe Proof Of Vaccines Should Be Required For Sporting Events 
57% of U.S. adults believe proof of COVID-19 vaccination should be required to attend a sporting event, per the latest Axios-Ipsos survey. Coincidentally, 58% of American adults have received at least one shot, which President Biden hopes to increase to 70% by July 4. The fully vaccinated NIAID director Anthony Fauci told CNN he "would not hesitate to go to an outdoor baseball game. My risk would be extremely low, particularly if I wear a mask." (Tracy, 5/12)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Considering Extending Provider Relief Fund Deadline, Secretary Tells Congress
HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra on Wednesday said the agency is considering extending the deadline that providers have to spend relief funds by but did not provide a timeline of when more aid might be delivered. Provider Relief Funds must be spent by June 30 or returned to the federal government but the American Hospital Association (AHA) and some lawmakers have called on HHS to extend that deadline through at least the end of the year. (Hellmann, 5/12)

Modern Healthcare: Hospitals In Non-Expansion States Sue HHS For DSH Payments
Hospitals in states that did not expand Medicaid are suing HHS, arguing that they unfairly receive lower Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments because the agency does not consider some patients eligible for Medicaid in non-expansion states. In their complaint, 32 hospitals that include Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Regional One Health, and Houston Methodist Hospital, allege HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra is discriminating against states that did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. (Gellman, 5/12)

In other Biden administration news —

The New York Times: White House To Investigate Brain Injuries Within C.I.A. 
Mysterious episodes that caused brain injuries in spies, diplomats, soldiers and other U.S. personnel overseas starting five years ago now number more than 130 people, far more than previously known, according to current and former officials. The number of cases within the C.I.A., the State Department, the Defense Department and elsewhere spurred broad concern in the Biden administration. The initial publicly confirmed cases were concentrated in China and Cuba and numbered about 60, not including a group of injured C.I.A. officers whose total is not public. (Barnes, Wong and Schmitt, 5/12)

Stat: Most Americans Believe Biden Is Correct To Support A Vaccine IP Waiver
Nearly two in three Americans believe the Biden administration is correct to support a waiver of intellectual property rights in order to widen access to Covid-19 vaccines to low and middle-income countries, according to a new survey from STAT and The Harris Poll. The majority of those surveyed — 63% — think that such a move would help address the pandemic more quickly. However, the survey, which polled 2,062 people between May 7 and 9, found a notable divide along party lines, with a sizeable majority of Democrats supporting a waiver, compared to a far smaller share of Republicans who agreed. (Silverman, 5/13)

NPR: CDC And FDA Trusted By Only Half Of Americans
"I don't trust them — I don't," says Sandra Wallace. She's 60 and owns a construction company in Arizona. To her, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's guidance has been inconsistent. "It's all over the board," she says. "They say one thing one minute and then turn around and say another the next minute." Wallace was one of the respondents in a poll published Thursday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The survey of 1,305 people was conducted from mid-February to mid-March of this year. The foundation funds coverage of health and health care on NPR. (Simmons-Duffin, 5/13)

Roll Call: Democrats Unveil Bill To Expand Immigrant Health Care Access
A group of Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday are introducing legislation that would make health care coverage more accessible to immigrants, citing the ongoing pandemic and its impact on immigrant frontline workers. The bill would lift a current five-year waiting period legal immigrants must undergo before enrolling in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. It also would expand access to various types of health coverage for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children and protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The measure also would remove restrictions to prevent undocumented immigrants from purchasing health insurance on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. (Simon, 5/12)

The Hill: Almost 20 Advocacy Groups Team Up To Pressure Congress To Pass Health Care Bill For Immigrants
Nearly 20 advocacy, immigration rights and health care groups are teaming up to pressure Congress to pass a health care bill reintroduced Wednesday that would extend access to immigrants. The organizations, including the National Immigration Law Center, the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, rallied behind the HEAL for Immigrant Families Act that would grant lawful immigrants eligibility to health care programs. (Coleman, 5/12)

In other news from Capitol Hill —

Politico: Republicans Draw ‘Red Line’ For Biden In Oval Office Showdown
Republican leaders told President Joe Biden on Wednesday that they will draw a hard line on raising taxes to pay for infrastructure, demonstrating the substantial challenges ahead for a potential bipartisan deal on Biden’s infrastructure and jobs plan. Democrats and Republicans left the meeting saying they would try to zero in on areas of agreement they could reach on a bipartisan bill. In reality, they sound like they are starting from scratch. GOP leaders told reporters that they still had to reach an agreement with Democrats over what exactly meets the definition of infrastructure. (Everett, Ferris and Barrón-López, 5/12)

Roll Call: Delayed COVID-19 Worker Protections Attract Crush Of Lobbyists 
A swarm of the most powerful lobbyists in Washington is circling as the White House reviews long-anticipated rules to protect workers from COVID-19 — with meatpacking, hospital and retail industries working to delay the regulations while unions push for more urgency. The businesses have been winning so far on the timing. The rules are meant to respond to the clusters of infections in crowded workplaces that drive up infections and deaths but arrive more than a year after outbreaks began. (Kopp, 5/12)

Roll Call: Medicare Cost Crunch Raises Questions In Telehealth Debate 
Telehealth advocates are struggling to allay lawmakers’ fears about increased Medicare costs as they seek to capitalize on momentum from the pandemic’s shutdown on in-person care. Expanding telemedicine is a rare unifying force among industry giants that want to broaden digital health for the entitlement program’s 61 million enrollees. But telehealth advocates are battling twin fears about potentially higher spending and fraud — two concerns they call unfounded. (Clason, 5/12)

The Hill: More Than 75 Asian, LGBTQ Groups Oppose Anti-Asian Crime Bill
More than 75 Asian and LGBTQ groups are opposing an anti-Asian crime bill that recently passed through the Senate. In a statement posted to the blog “Reappropriate,” the groups said they opposed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act because it “relies on anti-Black, law enforcement responses to the recent rise in anti-Asian bias incidents across the US.” (Williams, 5/12)

Modern Healthcare: Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente Invest $100 Million In Hospital-At-Home Model
Mayo Clinic and Kaiser Permanente invested $100 million in Medically Home as they map out a national blueprint for complex in-home care, the organizations announced Thursday. The hospital-at-home model can treat routine infections to chronic diseases, including emergency care, cancer, acute COVID-19 cases, infusions, lab and imaging tests, rehabilitation, behavioral health and transfusions. Nurses, physician assistants and community paramedics will deliver in-person care with the help of a 24/7 command center staffed by clinicians and an integrated care team. (Kacik, 5/13)

Georgia Health News: Rapidly Growing Piedmont Seeks Deal With Augusta System
Piedmont Healthcare, fresh off a deal to buy four hospitals from HCA, is looking to continue its expansion into new areas of Georgia. The Atlanta-based system announced Wednesday that it has signed a letter of intent with University Health Care System in Augusta, exploring the possibility of adding it to the Piedmont family. University includes three hospital campuses, three nursing homes and nine urgent care facilities. Its main asset is University Hospital, with more than 500 beds. (Miller, 5/12)

Stat: Ginkgo Plans A $17.5 Billion Merger With SPAC That Took DraftKings Public
Ginkgo Bioworks, one of the hottest biotech startups in Massachusetts, said Tuesday that it plans to go public through a merger with a so-called blank check company backed by Harry Sloan and Jeff Sagansky, the veteran media industry executives who helped take the Boston sports-betting company DraftKings public last year. The deal values Ginkgo at $15 billion, making the merger one of the biggest of its kind. (Saltzman and Gardizy, 5/12)

San Francisco Chronicle: Hyatt Hotel Heir Donates $60 Million For UCSF Psychiatric Hospital
Hyatt Hotel heir John Pritzker was 19 when his older sister took her own life in 1972. The family didn’t discuss or even mention her mental illness for years. And that is the motivation behind the planned Nancy Friend Pritzker Psychiatry Building in San Francisco’s Dogpatch neighborhood. The Lisa and John Pritzker Family Fund has donated $60 million toward construction of a five-story structure a block from UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. (Whiting, 5/12)

Modern Healthcare: Aetna Launches Virtual Group Therapy Series For Women
Aetna has launched a virtual group therapy program for women, as part of its work to increase behavioral health access to populations disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Throughout the month of May, the insurer will host six free, virtual group therapy sessions for women-identifying enrollees, under a program named Here 4 U. These sessions will be led by an experienced mental health professional and are aimed at creating a space for beneficiaries to anonymously share how COVID-19 has impacted them. (Tepper, 5/12)

In related news —

Oklahoman: Tax Exemption Will Boost Training For Oklahoma Medical Professionals
A new state law that creates a sales tax exemption for the University Hospitals Authority and Trust will grant OU Health funding to train more medical professionals. The law recently approved by the Oklahoma Legislature and Gov. Kevin Stitt restores a sales tax exemption that will allow the health system to train 160 additional nursing graduates and nurse practitioners annually and 70 additional medical residents within three years. State lawmakers and University of Oklahoma officials said Senate Bill 79 will help address Oklahoma's nurse and physician shortage and improve medical care across the state. (Forman, 5/12)

Stat: How Cityblock Is Tapping Into Tech To Better Care For Medicaid Patients
Health tech startup Cityblock Health, with its mission of delivering stepped-up primary care to Medicaid patients, is finding its footing in the very cracks that the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed. It’s leveraging its signature technology to help this highly marginalized population. (Chakradhar, 5/12)

Stat: There’s A Gold Rush In Health Tech. Here’s How Smart Money Stays Ahead
Investors are pouring into the health tech sector, with venture funding roughly doubling in 2020. That’s good for individual companies, but when valuations begin to depart from reality, it takes discerning investors to pick winners in the space. “It wasn’t always such a clear return profile, and there was a lot of skepticism,” Deena Shakir, a partner at Lux Capital, said Wednesday at the STAT Health Tech Summit. “But now everyone’s jumping on the train.” (Garde, 5/12)

Stat: The Many Benefits Of Expanding State All-Payer Claims Databases 
Appointments to the newly created State All Payer Claims Databases Advisory Committee in March were an encouraging sign, because these databases offer policymakers, researchers, and other stakeholders ready access to comprehensive, easy-to-analyze, longitudinal information on the use of health care services and their costs. Including information from self-insured employers would make them even more valuable tools. (Freedman, 5/13)

KHN: You’ve Added Your Kids To Your Health Plan. What About Mom? 
When Laura Chavez’s 74-year-old mom needed eye surgery last month, Chavez paid cash for the procedure. The cost? $15,000 — and that was for just one eye. She couldn’t afford both. Her mom, Esperanza Chavez, doesn’t qualify for Medicare because of her immigration status. And she can’t find a private health insurance plan under $1,000 a month. (Young, 5/13)

Axios: Moderna Is Americans' Third-Favorite Company This Year 
America's affections have shifted away from the companies that helped us manage pandemic life and toward the vaccine manufacturers that are helping to end it. Moderna and Pfizer shot up the ranks this year in the Axios/Harris 100, our annual survey of corporate reputations. Moderna is Americans' third-favorite company this year, and Pfizer came in at seventh — up from No. 61 a year ago. (Baker, 5/13)

In other pharmaceutical and biotech news —

Stat: Sanofi Accused Of Destroying Company E-Mails Tied To Zantac Recalls
As litigation proceeds over the Zantac heartburn pill and a possible carcinogen, a court filing contends that Sanofi (SNY) destroyed countless employee emails tied to the 2019 recall of the widely used medicine. The “widespread destruction” has delayed the proceedings and could make it more difficult for consumers to prove Sanofi and other manufacturers knew their medicines could produce high levels of NDMA over time, according to a document filed by lawyers who represent more than 70,000 people who filed claims in federal court. (Silverman, 5/12)

Stat: A Clinical Trial Coordinator Is Indicted For Falsifying Data In A Glaxo Study
A former study coordinator at a company hired to run a clinical trial of a GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) asthma medication has been indicted for falsifying data, the fourth individual to run afoul of authorities in connection with the research. The employee, Jessica Palacio, 34, worked at Unlimited Medical Research, which is based in Miami and was one of several companies tapped to help with a study designed to assess the safety and effectiveness of Advair Diskus for children between 4 and 11 years old, according to court documents. Glaxo had hired Parexel, a clinical research organization, to coordinate the trial. (Silverman, 5/12)

Stat: Fibrogen’s Data Scandal Came With Questions. It's Time For Answers
Fibrogen is reeling from the worst case of data manipulation in years, but six weeks after the scandal broke, the drug maker still hasn’t explained why or how it happened, or identify the people responsible. On a conference call Monday, Fibrogen CEO Enrique Conterno reiterated his “confidence” in the drug maker’s experimental anemia treatment, a pill called roxadustat. But how can anyone — investors, physicians, regulators – trust a company that spent nearly two years touting cardiovascular safety data that turns out to have been falsified? (Feuerstein, 5/13)

Stat: Amazon Pharmacy Exec Outlines Company’s Strategy For Prescription Drugs
Amazon’s objectives for its nascent pharmacy business are straightforward: “better selection, better convenience, and better prices,” according to TJ Parker, the vice president of pharmacy at the company. “It really is the Amazon playbook,” he said during a Wednesday panel at STAT’s Health Tech Summit. (Sheridan, 5/12)

NPR: Neural Interface Lets Man Type On Computer By Imagining Handwriting
An experimental device that turns thoughts into text has allowed a man who was left paralyzed by an accident to construct sentences swiftly on a computer screen. The man was able to type with 95% accuracy just by imagining he was handwriting letters on a sheet of paper, a team reported Wednesday in the journal Nature. "What we found, surprisingly, is that [he] can type at about 90 characters per minute," says Krishna Shenoy of Stanford University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. (Hamilton, 5/12)

Stat: Measuring Blood Sugar In Real Time Is A Game Changer For Patients
Kylene Redmond and Deb Foerster both are converts to their continuous glucose monitors, quarter-size devices that measure their blood sugar in real time so they can adjust their diet, their activity, and the medications they take to manage their diabetes. The automated sensors give both women feedback they can use to better control their disease and manage their daily lives, they said Wednesday at the STAT Health Tech Summit, making the devices a bellwether for other wearables beyond diabetes that are gaining traction in both consumer and clinical markets. (Cooney, 5/12)

Stat: Can New Tools Better Predict Success For A Novel Scoliosis Surgery? 
Mia Schloegel was 11 when they found the curve in her spine. She was at her yearly pediatrician’s visit when her uncle — also her doctor — had her lean over, in a standard childhood check for scoliosis. “He noticed I had kind of a hump on one side and not the other,” said Schloegel, a sign of the rib cage rotation that often occurs when the spine is curved side-to-side. At her uncle’s urging, she and her mother went to get an X-ray at a Kansas City hospital that same day. (Palmer, 5/13)

The Washington Post: Some Consumer-Friendly Air Purifiers Destroy The Coronavirus, And They Have FDA Certification To Prove It
Scribner’s Catskill Lodge in Hunter, N.Y., was one in a nationwide sea of hotel establishments to temporarily close last year when the pandemic wiped out tourism and travel. Between mid-March and June, the hotel’s managers did what many other closed hospitality establishments did — focused on a reopening strategy involving deep cleanings, temperature checks and other coronavirus-related safety precautions. As shutdown restrictions eased, the hotel reopened in time for summer travelers, but rooms were held vacant for 48 hours between guests. Each room has built-in cooling systems, and staff would turn the fans on full blast, hoping to send stray respiratory droplets out the window before the next vacationer was set to arrive. (Brown, 5/11)

In updates on the opioid trial in West Virginia —

Charleston Gazette-Mail: Judge OKs Use Of Opioid Data In Court Ahead Of Testimony From Drug Company Exec
A federal judge in Charleston agreed to conditionally admit opioid pill data analysis into evidence Wednesday, opening the door wide for Huntington and Cabell County attorneys to present their case alleging drug distributors caused the opioid crisis. The ruling was made after an energetic and long effort by distributors’ attorneys to block the analysis ahead of testimony from Chris Zimmerman, a senior vice president for AmerisourceBergen Drug Co. When Zimmerman took the stand, he quibbled with Cabell County attorney Paul Farrell Jr. over the word “duty,” stating that he did not believe his company had a duty to report or stop suspicious orders of opioids. It was more of an agreement, he said. (Hessler, 5/12)

Axios: The Average "Cost Of Dying" In The U.S. Shot Up 14.3% In 2020 
If anything is certain in life, it's death and taxes. And in some states, the former is a heck of a lot more expensive, according to data released by Self Financial. Using 2020 figures from the National Funeral Directors Association and the CDC, the group looked at the average 'cost of dying' across the U.S. based on the price of end-of-life care, funerals and cremations. (Reed, 5/12)

In other public health news —

The Washington Post: Are ‘Covid Nails’ A Sign You Had The Virus? Experts Weigh In.
news reports and social media posts have documented visible changes in the nails of some covid-19 survivors, most commonly in the form of horizontal grooves. Dubbed “COVID nails” by a U.K.-based epidemiologist who tweeted about the markings earlier this month, the anecdotal reports have prompted assertions that it could be a way to tell whether you’ve had the virus. Other experts, however, caution against relying on your nails as proof that you may have been infected. “Whether it comes to nail changes or skin rashes or hair loss, these are not necessarily things that covid does because it’s covid,” said Jeffrey Weinberg, an associate clinical professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai in New York. Those symptoms, Weinberg said, “could happen with anything that perturbs the body.” (Chiu, 5/12)

The Washington Post: JetBlue Passenger Faces $10,500 Fine After Coughing And Blowing His Nose Into A Blanket
The Federal Aviation Administration announced this week that it had proposed a civil penalty of $10,500 against a JetBlue passenger whose disruptive behavior on a flight included coughing and blowing his nose into a blanket. “The FAA alleges the passenger repeatedly ignored, and was abusive to, flight attendants who instructed him to wear a face mask,” the agency said in a news release. “The passenger’s disruptive behavior diverted flight crew members from their duties.” (Sampson, 5/12)

KHN: Another Pandemic ‘To Do’ On The List For Schools: Contact Tracing
Chris Hodges, the principal of Gaylord High School in Otsego County, Michigan, never thought he’d be a contact tracer. “I definitely thought, you know, ‘Why — why am I doing this?’” he said with a laugh. “That’s not what I went to school for.” In what has become a regular part of his school day, Hodges fields reports on his charges such as hearing from the Health Department of Northwest Michigan that a student had tested positive for the novel coronavirus and was in school for three days when she might have been contagious. (Dahlberg, 5/13)

Also —

Philadelphia Inquirer: Fewer New Prescriptions For Addiction Treatment Drug Were Written During The Pandemic, As Overdose Deaths Have Spiked
Even as overdose deaths rose nationwide last year, new prescriptions for buprenorphine -- widely considered the gold standard for opioid addiction treatment -- were lower than usual, a Princeton University study has found. The study, published recently in JAMA Network Open, projected what prescribing levels for buprenorphine and opioid painkillers would have been in 2020 had the COVID-19 pandemic not taken place, based on prescribing data from previous years. (Whelan, 5/12)

AP: Report On Campus Doctor Raises Flags About Iconic Coach
A report about the stunning lack of action at the University of Michigan while a rogue doctor was sexually assaulting hundreds of young men has cast an unflattering light at one of the school's giants, the late football coach Bo Schembechler, whose bronze statue stands on campus. Schembechler, who led the team from 1969-89, was vividly told by at least four people that Robert Anderson had molested them during routine physicals or other exams, according to the report commissioned by the university. Yet, the report says, he took no direct steps and even told one man to "toughen up." (White and Householder, 5/12)

KHN: Behind The Byline: The Quest To Bring Spanish Language To KHN 
About 37 million people in the United States speak Spanish at home and consume information in Spanish, according to one estimate. Knowing this, and building on decades of experience as a health journalist, ethnic media editor Paula Andalo developed a strategy to bring KHN’s coverage to Spanish speakers. She has forged partnerships with Spanish-language news outlets across the United States and in Latin American countries. (Andalo, 5/13)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Disabled Voters Say GOP Bills Will Make It Harder To Vote In Wisconsin
Wisconsinites with disabilities lashed out Wednesday at Republican lawmakers for passing bills that they said would make it harder for them to vote. “This is a form of bullying and it’s absolutely unacceptable,” said Melanie Ramey of Madison, who faces challenges with voting because she is visually impaired by macular degeneration. “They should be ashamed of themselves for trying to have bills and trying to pass legislation that seeks to disenfranchise some of Wisconsin’s most vulnerable citizens.” (Marley, 5/12)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio's Plan To Distribute Anti-OD Drug Triggers Questions, Claims Of Racial Bias
Ohio is launching a targeted deployment of naloxone, sending 60,000 doses of the antidote for an opioid overdose to 23 counties. The idea is to get ahead of a usual summertime rise in overdoses. Yet one of its partners in distributing the naloxone questions the equity of the plan, calling it racially biased. Harm Reduction Ohio says the state’s plan excludes some areas that have high overdose death rates for Black Ohioans, including parts of Cincinnati and Columbus. It also charges the plan gives an insufficient amount of the drug to rural areas. The heart of the problem: The two sides use different ways to measure the impact of overdoses. (DeMio, 5/12)

North Carolina Health News: House Bill Aims To End Shackling Of Pregnant Prisoners 
Fifteen minutes outside Durham, an abandoned hospital stretches across a bed of verdant land. The concrete-potted plants lining the entrance have begun to crumble, with erosion and wear visible on the walls of the red brick building. Long before a global pandemic descended upon the state and its correctional centers, even before Barack Obama was elected as the nation’s first Black president, North Carolina planned to create a home out of the abandoned facility, where incarcerated women could live with their infants and toddlers. (Critchfield, 5/13)

Mississippi Clarion-Ledger: 'Not A Political Issue, A Human Issue': Miss. Health Advocates Want Medicaid Expansion On The Ballot
After a decade of the state Legislature averting Medicaid expansion through the Affordable Care Act, in a state notorious for poor health care, Mississippi advocates say it's time for voters to decide. They want Medicaid expansion, estimated to cover over 200,000 Mississippians, on the 2022 ballot. A coalition of Mississippi medical experts, patients, small business owners and nonprofits initiated a statewide campaign — Yes On 76 — Tuesday morning at the Mississippi Hospital Association's offices in Madison. (Haselhorst, 5/12)

AP: Legionella Bacteria No Longer At West Virginia Hospital
Recent tests show bacteria that causes the severe form of pneumonia known as Legionnaires’ disease is no longer found at a West Virginia-run hospital two weeks after it was detected, hospital officials said. Mildred Mitchell-Bateman Hospital in Huntington replaced all of its faucets, a hot water heater and installed a recirculation pump, according to a statement Wednesday by the Department of Health and Human Resources. (5/12)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Lawsuit Ties Woman’s Death To Real Water
Attorneys have linked a Nevada woman’s death to an outbreak of liver illness that health officials tied to a local bottled water company, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday. The latest complaint filed against Las Vegas-based Real Water points to a “series of outbreaks” throughout the last six years. An avid Real Water drinker for years, 69-year-old Kathleen Ryerson died from aspirated pneumonia and liver failure on Nov. 11, her sister, Judy Ryerson, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal in March. (Ferrara, 5/12)

Fox News: Pfizer Seeks UK Approval For COVID-19 Vaccine In Teens
Pfizer has asked U.K. regulators to authorize its COVID-19 vaccine for teens ages 12 to 15 following the FDA’s decision to do so earlier this week. A spokesperson told Fox News that the company submitted data to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for review. It was not clear when the MHRA would issue a decision, or how quickly shots would be made available to teens if authorized. "We cannot speculate on the timing of the MHRA’s decision," a Pfizer spokesperson said. (Hein, 5/12)

Fox News: UK Mask Wearing, Social Distancing To Be Relaxed On June 21
Following a sharp fall in new coronavirus infections, it is expected the wearing masks in shops and offices as well as social distancing will be relaxed starting on June 21. First, the UK will attempt some lockdown easing on Monday, May 17 that will include dining and drinking indoors and reopening movie theaters. In addition, going mask-less will get its first test at secondary schools and colleges where students will no longer be required to wear face coverings in classrooms or communal areas. (Miles, 5/12)

CIDRAP: Postpartum Depression Associated With COVID-19 Lockdown
Twice as many mothers with babies 6 months or younger reported postpartum depression during the first UK COVID-19–related lockdown, according to a Frontiers in Psychology study yesterday. University College London (UCL) researchers surveyed 162 London mothers in May and June 2020 (about 1.5 to 3 months into the lockdown). (5/12)

CIDRAP: UK COVID-19 Contact Tracing App May Have Reduced Cases 2%
The United Kingdom's National Health Services app for COVID-19 contact tracing may have reduced England's and Wale's cases from 0.8% to 2.3%, or by almost 300,000 to 600,000 patients, according to a study in Nature today. The app was launched Sep 24, 2020, and through the end of December, 16.5 million people regularly used it, or about 28% of the total population. Besides monitoring proximal exposures, the app also automatically updated any COVID-19 diagnosis test results and sent them to applicable contacts, provided a platform for venues to conduct contact tracing, and gave localized COVID-19 quarantine, symptom, and testing information. (5/12)

Also —

Reuters: Over A Quarter Of EU Adults Would Refuse COVID-19 Shot, Survey Says 
More than a quarter of adults in the European Union would be unlikely to take the COVID-19 vaccine when it was offered to them, a survey published on Thursday showed. (Strauss, 5/13)

Yahoo Finance: British Airways Trials ‘Game-Changer’ 25-Second Coronavirus Test
British Airways will be the world’s first airline to trial a coronavirus test which produces results within 25 seconds. The carrier described the test as a “game-changer”. It will invite flight and cabin crew to take a Pelican Covid-19 antigen test from medical tech company Canary Global. (Lancefield, 5/13)

NPR: COVID-19 Was 'A Preventable Disaster,' WHO-Ordered Report Says
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed dangerous failings on the national and international scale, according to an independent review ordered by the World Health Organization. The review found a range of problems, from a slow initial reaction to the coronavirus to "weak links at every point in the chain of preparedness and response." The coronavirus found a world vulnerable to the worst effects of a pandemic despite warnings from experts and a string of recent global health threats, from SARS and Ebola to Zika, the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response said. COVID-19 was "a preventable disaster," the panel said as it released its report. (Chappell, 5/12)

Stat: International Panel Calls For Overhaul Of Pandemic Preparedness Efforts
The Covid-19 crisis should serve as a “Chernobyl moment” for global pandemic preparedness, triggering a series of actions to speed the end of this pandemic and to ensure it’s the last of its kind the world ever faces, according to a report from an international panel of experts. The report by the panel, which was established at the behest of member states of the World Health Organization, calls on wealthy countries with Covid vaccine to share their supplies in large volumes and quickly, with 1 billion doses donated by September and another 1 billion by the end of the year. The report calls for swift negotiations to lift intellectual property protections for Covid vaccines — and an automatic waiver if the negotiations fail to deliver within three months. (Branswell, 5/12)

And the covid surge in India shows no signs of abating —

Reuters: More Than 4,000 Indians Die Of COVID-19 For Second Straight Day
India recorded more than 4,000 COVID-19 deaths for a second straight day on Thursday, while infections stayed below 400,000 for a fourth day, though the virus has become rampant in rural areas where cases can go unreported due to a lack of testing. Experts remain unsure when numbers will peak and concern is growing about the transmissibility of the variant that is driving infections in India and spreading worldwide. (5/13)

CBS News: Volunteers Risk Lives To Collect Bodies Of COVID-19 Victims In India 
An ambulance of volunteers is dispatched, but it's too late for the living. The volunteers are risking their lives to collect the bodies of those who died at home and whose families couldn't afford to cremate them. COVID-19 has killed a record 4,200 people in India in just 24 hours, according to a government tally. But experts say the daily toll could be closer to 25,000. When people die at home, they almost never get counted in the official death toll in India. (Livesay, 5/12)

In other global developments —

Bloomberg: Norway Covid Vaccination To Permanently Remove AstraZeneca Shots From Program
Norway will remove the AstraZeneca Plc shots from its Covid-19 inoculation program due to the risk of rare blood clots, in a move the country said will have little effect on the national vaccination timeline. “The government has decided that the AstraZeneca vaccine will not be used in Norway, not even voluntarily,” Prime Minister Erna Solberg said at a news conference on Wednesday. (Treloar, 5/12)

Bloomberg: Slovakia To Use Russia's Sputnik V Covid Vaccine After Resolving Dispute
Slovakia is set to become the European Union’s second member to use the Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine after ironing out a disagreement with Russia over negative reports by the country’s drug regulator. The eastern EU nation’s medicine agency angered Russia last month by saying it wasn’t able to asses the vaccine’s risks and benefits because it lacked data from the producer. The regulator also alleged that the doses it received had different properties than the ones described in an article in The Lancet medical journal earlier this year. (Laca, 5/12)

CNBC: Seychelles Most Vaccinated Nation On Earth But Covid-19 Has Surged
The Seychelles is causing concern for world health experts after a rise of Covid-19 cases among fully vaccinated individuals. The World Health Organization said Tuesday that it would review coronavirus data from the Seychelles, an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, after the health ministry said more than a third of people who tested positive for Covid-19 in the week to May 8 had been fully vaccinated. (Ellyatt, 5/13)

CBS News: USA Track & Field Team Reportedly Cancels Pre-Olympic Training In Japan Over COVID Concerns 
Japanese media reported on Wednesday that the USA Track & Field team had canceled its pre-Olympic training camp in Japan. The apparent move, which the U.S. Olympic team didn't immediately confirm, came as Japan extended its third official state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic. ... Britain's Paralympic wheelchair basketball team and the Russian fencing team have also cancelled plans to hold training camps in Chiba. (Craft, 5/12)

Science Daily: A Comprehensive Map Of The SARS-CoV-2 Genome
Researchers have generated what they describe as the most complete gene annotation of the SARS-CoV-2 genome. In their study, they confirmed several protein-coding genes and found that a few others that had been suggested as genes do not code for any proteins. (5/11)

Science Daily: How To Predict Severe Influenza In Hospitalized Patients 
Researchers have identified predictors of both severe disease and recovery in hospitalized influenza patients, finding that the immune system works in concert to fight influenza. (5/11)

Science Daily: New Material To Treat Wounds Can Protect Against Resistant Bacteria
Researchers have developed a new material that prevents infections in wounds - a specially designed hydrogel, that works against all types of bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant ones. The new material offers great hope for combating a growing global problem. (5/11)

CIDRAP: CARB-X to fund development of rapid test for chlamydia, gonorrhea
CARB-X announced today that it is awarding Australian diagnostics company SpeeDx up to $1.8 million to develop a rapid molecular diagnostic test for chlamydia and gonorrhea infections. The money will aid development of SpeeDx's InSignia technology, which is able to detect whether an active infection is associated with Chlamydia trachomatis or Neisseria gonorrhoeae within 60 minutes. The technology will also be able to perform antibiotic susceptibility testing to identify the most appropriate antibiotic for gonorrhea infections. (5/11)

Science Daily: Bacteria Do Not Colonize The Gut Before Birth: It Happens During And After Birth 
Researchers examined prenatal stool (meconium) samples collected from 20 babies during breech Cesarean delivery. By including only breech caesarean deliveries in healthy pregnant women they were able to avoid the transmission of bacteria that occurs naturally during a vaginal birth. (5/10)

New England Journal of Medicine: Healthy Weight Loss Maintenance With Exercise, Liraglutide, Or Both Combined 
In a randomized, head-to-head, placebo-controlled trial, we enrolled adults with obesity (body-mass index [the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters], 32 to 43) who did not have diabetes. After an 8-week low-calorie diet, participants were randomly assigned for 1 year to one of four strategies: a moderate-to-vigorous–intensity exercise program plus placebo (exercise group); treatment with liraglutide (3.0 mg per day) plus usual activity (liraglutide group); exercise program plus liraglutide therapy (combination group); or placebo plus usual activity (placebo group). End points with prespecified hypotheses were the change in body weight (primary end point) and the change in body-fat percentage (secondary end point) from randomization to the end of the treatment period in the intention-to-treat population. Prespecified metabolic health-related end points and safety were also assessed. (Lundgren, et al, 5/6)

Science Daily: Boosting Body Heat Production: A New Approach For Treating Obesity 
Targeting a heat production 'brake' on fat tissues may be a safer way to treat obesity than current medication. (5/11)

USA Today: Doctors Can Help People Overcome Hesitancy To The Shot.
I had “the discussion” again on Friday, the one where a vaccine-hesitant patient explained to me why he wasn’t ready to get a shot. He was, he said, still thinking about it. He was close to 60 years old, overweight, with high blood pressure. I cut through some of the main myths about the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) quickly – they will not alter your genetics or get inside the cell, they will be out of your system in two days, they have been given safely to well over 100 million people in the United States alone. I could see that I was making progress. He asked me about fertility, though it didn’t seem to apply to him, but that furthered my concern that he might be following social media as so many of my patients are. (Dr. Marc Siegel, 5/12)

The Atlantic: Kids Don't Need Masks Outside 
As parents gradually reap the rewards of vaccination—including unmasking outdoors, socializing unmasked indoors with other vaccinated people, and abandoning anxiety about getting seriously ill—they’re wondering if they need to keep up pandemic precautions for their children’s sake. I am a primary-care doctor, and the parents I talk with are deeply concerned about their communities; they also want to see their kids reengage in life. They want to liberate themselves from the intensity of pandemic child care and worry. I can empathize: I’m a mother of three. (Lucy McBride, 5/12)

The New York Times: How India Can Survive The Virus 
As of Tuesday, India had over 23 million reported cases of Covid-19 and more than 254,000 deaths. The real numbers may be much higher, as the country reported an average of more than 380,000 new cases per day in the past week. As a virologist, I have closely followed the outbreak and vaccine development over the past year. I also chair the Scientific Advisory Group for the Indian SARS-CoV2 Consortium on Genomics, set up by the Indian government in January as a grouping of national laboratories that use genetic sequencing to track the emergence and circulation of viral variants. My observations are that more infectious variants have been spreading, and to mitigate future waves, India should vaccinate with far more than the two million daily doses now. (Shahid Jameel, 5/13)

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat: Waiving Patents Won’t Solve India’s COVID-19 Tragedy
As America beats back COVID-19 with vaccines, the catastrophe in India reminds us that much of the world’s population has yet to receive a shot. Coping with a virulent second wave of the virus, desperate Indians plead for oxygen tanks for their loved ones. Mass cremations of victims barely cope with more than 300,000 new cases daily, but less than 4% of nearly 1.4 billion people have gotten their first jab. (Trudy Rubin, 5/12)

New England Journal of Medicine: Vaccination And Variants In The U.S. And South Africa 
The continuing spread of SARS-CoV-2 remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. What physicians need to know about transmission, diagnosis, and treatment of Covid-19 is the subject of ongoing updates from infectious disease experts at the Journal. In this audio interview conducted on May 11, 2021, the editors are joined by Glenda Gray, head of the South African Medical Research Council, to discuss new research on vaccine protection against SARS-CoV-2 variants and the current state of the pandemic in Africa. (Eric J. Rubin, M.D., Ph.D., Lindsey R. Baden, M.D., Glenda E. Gray, M.B., B.Ch., and Stephen Morrissey, Ph.D., 5/13)

NPR: COVID Treatment In Ethiopia Shouldn't Be Just For The Privileged 
In February, I decided to leave my town of Flint, Mich., and travel to my home country of Ethiopia to work on a potential mental health research partnership for a few months — and visit my family, whom I hadn't seen since before the start of the pandemic. Cases seemed very stable both in Michigan and in Addis Ababa. Considering I take public health measures seriously and do not have much job-related exposure, I figured I would have a safe trip. So, imagine my surprise when I found out that, just a few weeks after I arrived in Addis, I started experiencing COVID symptoms. Days later, my diabetic father — who I was staying with — started showing symptoms, too. (Maji Hailemariam, 5/12)

San Diego Union-Tribune: We Must Act Now To Prevent More Students From Becoming Depressed 
I do not pretend to know if America’s turtle’s pace at reopening schools with in-person learning is causing an increase in student suicides and tragic deaths, but it is a question that demands an answer. When a parent of one of my former middle school students told me there have been six teenagers die in a 5-mile radius in Carlsbad since June, the issue demanded I pay attention. Losing a child, especially a teen to suicide, is a heartbreak club no one wants to join. Thirty-four years ago on a May sky-blue day, I paid my membership dues to this club when my 18-year-old baby brother, Bart, committed suicide on his birthday. The beginning of the end for my 7-year younger brother was his out-of-control drug use after being diagnosed with manic depression. (Suzy Ryan, 5/12)

The New York Times: The Anti-Abortion Movement Can’t Use This Myth Anymore 
Last month, the Food and Drug Administration announced that people seeking abortion pills during the Covid-19 pandemic will no longer have to visit a doctor’s office to get a prescription. Under the Trump administration, patients were required to receive the first of the medication’s two doses in person, a mandate upheld by the Supreme Court in January. The new policy instead allows for telemedicine consultations and pills sent by mail. The decision is a practical one for the Covid era: It reduces unnecessary face time in doctor’s offices, which cuts down the potential for exposure. It could also be a huge blow to the anti-abortion movement. Groups like the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists have been pushing the Biden administration to make the F.D.A.’s decision permanent. Last week, in a legal filing, the agency announced it was reviewing their restrictions on the medication. (Jessica Valenti, 5/13)

San Diego Union-Tribune: I'm A Hospice Nurse. Working Through The Pandemic Was Difficult But Rewarding
Of the countless difficult scenarios I encountered as a hospice admissions nurse during the COVID-19 pandemic, one in particular stands out. I was asked to travel to a health-care facility to evaluate a patient for our program. When I arrived, it was clear to me he had just hours left to live. He had been sick for some time; however, due to pandemic-related visitation restrictions for health-care facilities, he and his spouse of over 30 years had not seen each other in more than a month. My team and I worked to expedite the start of hospice care, which allowed for visitation rights. His spouse remained by his side until his passing. (Jean Menjivar, 5/12)

Stat: Let's Banish The Term 'Patient' From The Health Care Lexicon 
Almost every industry has changed the term for the people they serve. We are now passengers, guests, members, customers, and more. The big exception? Health care. To those in the field, whether it’s clinicians or researchers or pharmaceutical marketers, we are all “patients” — even when we feel fine and aren’t in a hospital or doctor’s office. It’s time to stop categorizing people this way, which puts them in submissive and dehumanizing roles. (Summer Knight, 5/13)