KHN: Supreme Court Declines To Overturn ACA — Again 
The Supreme Court on Thursday turned back its third chance to upend the Affordable Care Act, rejecting a lawsuit filed by a group of Republican state attorneys general claiming that a change made by Congress in 2017 had rendered the entire law unconstitutional. By a vote of 7-2, however, the justices did not even reach the merits of the case, ruling instead that the suing states and the individual plaintiffs, two self-employed Texans, lacked “standing” to bring the case to court. (Rovner, 6/17)

Roll Call: Supreme Court Tosses Out Major Obamacare Challenge 
The 7-2 decision, written by Justice Stephen G. Breyer, means the court did not address legal questions about whether the law, known as the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, is invalid because it no longer has a penalty for most Americans who don’t get health coverage. “We proceed no further than standing,” Breyer wrote, because the challengers did not demonstrate that additional costs they would incur are “fairly traceable” to the “allegedly unlawful conduct” of which they complain. “They have failed to show that they have standing to attack as unconstitutional the Act’s minimum essential coverage provision,” Breyer wrote. (Ruger, 6/17)

The New York Times: Obamacare Survives Latest Supreme Court Challenge 
The margin of victory was wider than in the earlier cases, with six members of the court joining Justice Stephen G. Breyer’s modest and technical majority opinion, one that said only that the 18 Republican-led states and two individuals who brought the case had not suffered the sort of direct injury that gave them standing to sue. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., who had cast the decisive vote to save the law in 2012, was in the majority. So was Justice Clarence Thomas, who had dissented in the earlier decisions. ... Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Brett M. Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett also joined Justice Breyer’s majority opinion. At Justice Barrett’s confirmation hearings last year, Democrats portrayed her as a grave threat to the health care law. (Liptak, 6/17)

The Wall Street Journal: Supreme Court Leaves Affordable Care Act Intact 
Texas and other Republican-leaning states, backed by the Trump administration, had sought to strike down the law on technical arguments after Congress reduced to zero the tax penalty for failing to carry health insurance. Thursday’s decision, written by Justice Stephen Breyer, concluded that none of the plaintiffs suffered any injury from zeroing out the penalty and thus lacked legal standing to bring the lawsuit at all. It was the third time the court has preserved the 2010 healthcare law. “We do not reach these questions of the Act’s validity,” Justice Breyer wrote. “Texas and the other plaintiffs in this suit lack the standing necessary to raise them.” (Kendall, Bravin and Armour, 6/17)

CNBC: Obamacare Survives After Supreme Court Rejects Latest Republican Challenge
President Joe Biden, who served as Obama’s vice president when the law was signed, praised Thursday’s ruling as a “major victory” for millions of Americans who were at risk of losing their health care in the midst of the Covid pandemic if the law was overturned. “After more than a decade of attacks on the Affordable Care Act through the Congress and the courts, today’s decision – the third major challenge to the law that the U.S. Supreme Court has rejected – it is time move forward and keep building on this landmark law,” Biden said in a statement. “Today’s decision affirms that the Affordable Care Act is stronger than ever, delivers for the American people, and gets us closer to fulfilling our moral obligation to ensure that, here in America, health care is a right and not a privilege,” he said. (Higgins and Breuninger, 6/17)

The Hill: Five Takeaways On The Supreme Court's Obamacare Decision 
In what has become something of a Washington tradition, the Supreme Court again upheld the Affordable Care Act on Thursday, in the third major case from Republican challengers to reach the high court. The margin this time was larger, 7-2, as the High Court appears less and less interested in revisiting the health care law through the judiciary. Democrats hailed the ruling as a boost to their signature law, and Republicans were left to figure out a path forward on health care amid another defeat. (Sullivan, 6/17)

Reactions to the ruling —

Politico: ‘Alito Was Just Pissed’: Trump’s Supreme Court Breaks Down Along Surprising Lines
The key fault line in the Supreme Court that Donald Trump built is not the ideological clash between right and left — it’s the increasingly acrimonious conflict within the court’s now-dominant conservative wing. Those rifts burst wide open on Thursday with two of the highest-profile decisions of the court’s current term. In both the big cases — involving Obamacare and a Catholic group refusing to vet same-sex couples as foster parents in Philadelphia — conservative justices unleashed sharp attacks that seemed aimed at their fellow GOP appointees for failing to grapple with the core issues the cases presented. (Gerstein, 6/17)

The Hill: 'It's Still A BFD': Democrats Applaud Ruling Upholding ObamaCare
Members of the Biden administration and Democratic lawmakers took to social media Thursday to praise the Supreme Court’s decision upholding ObamaCare against the latest Republican challenge. White House chief of staff Ron Klain tweeted, “It's still a BFD,” apparently referring to the abbreviation for “big f---ing deal,” a remark that then-Vice President Biden was recorded uttering to then-President Obama at the 2010 signing ceremony for the Affordable Care Act (ACA). (Castronuovo, 6/17)

Roll Call: Industry Cheers Supreme Court Ruling On Health Care Law 
Democratic lawmakers and much of the health care industry cheered the Supreme Court’s ruling Thursday to uphold the 2010 health care law. Democrats had campaigned against the legal challenge during the past two campaign cycles, arguing that their party would protect health insurance coverage. The decision comes as Democratic leaders are determining which health care provisions they may include in a fiscal 2022 budget resolution. (McIntire, 6/17)

Politico: Obamacare Now Appears Safe. The Battle Over Its Future Continues. 
For once, Democrats and Republicans are offering the same message on Obamacare: The landmark health care law is here to stay. But so are the partisan battles over the law’s future, even after the final shreds of the GOP’s decade-long effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act appeared to be demolished by the Supreme Court’s 7-2 decision Thursday affirming the law for the third time. (Luthi, 6/17)

The New York Times: Obamacare Is Here To Stay. Brace For New Health Care Battles
The waning repeal effort has given Democrats their first chance in a decade to press forward on a new campaign: moving the country toward a system of universal health coverage. It seems the end of a period when Democrats played constant defense, fighting back against legislative and legal challenges. Their recent expansion of health insurance subsidies had widespread support in the party. The stimulus package that Democrats passed in January spent $34 billion to make coverage more affordable for nearly all Americans who purchase their own health plans. That change, however, was temporary and is currently set to expire at the end of 2022. (Sanger-Katz and Kliff, 6/17)

The Atlantic: The Next Major Challenge To The Affordable Care Act
The Supreme Court’s rejection of the latest effort to dismantle the Affordable Care Act does not mark the end of lawsuits over the law’s constitutionality. The next big case has already been filed, and it involves a clash between an obscure constitutional provision and the law’s guarantee of zero-dollar coverage for preventive services. The stakes will be lower this time around—the whole law isn’t threatened. But they’re significant nonetheless. If the plaintiffs win, insurers could force their customers to pay out of pocket for contraception, breastfeeding equipment and support, and drugs to prevent HIV infection. They could even start charging people for COVID-19 vaccines, including any boosters. This time, the law’s opponents stand a good chance of succeeding. (Bagley, 6/17)

NBC News: What Now? Congress Eyes New Era Of Health Policy After Obamacare Survives
Lawmakers in Congress wrestled with what the new era of federal health care policy would look like after the Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the latest existential challenge to Obamacare. Democrats said the next step was to build on the sprawling 2010 law, which touched on nearly all aspects of the health care system, by pushing policies to lower costs. (Kapur, 6/17)

AP: GOP Needs New Health Care Target; 'Obamacare' Survives Again
Along with the public’s gradual but decisive acceptance of the statute, the court rulings and legislative defeats underscore that the law, passed in 2010 despite overwhelming GOP opposition, is probably safe. And it spotlights a remarkable progression of the measure from a political liability that cost Democrats House control just months after enactment to a widely accepted bedrock of the medical system, delivering care to what the government says is more than 30 million people. “The Affordable Care Act remains the law of the land,” President Joe Biden said, using the statute’s more formal name, after the court ruled that Texas and other GOP-led states had no right to bring their lawsuit to federal court. (Fram, 6/18)

Axios: Supreme Court’s ACA Ruling Saves Republicans From Themselves 
The Supreme Court saved the health care system from imploding Thursday by dismissing a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act. But it also saved the GOP itself from another round of intraparty chaos. Most GOP lawmakers privately admit (and some will even say publicly) they don't want to deal with health care again. The issue generally isn't a good one for them with voters — as they learned the hard way after they failed to repeal the ACA in 2017. (Treene, Owens and Mucha, 6/17)

The Washington Post: As High Court Upholds Obamacare, Both Sides Rush To Recalibrate 
The decision by a conservative Supreme Court to uphold the Affordable Care Act could usher in an end of a bitter, 11-year drive to get rid of the law, as both parties immediately began scrambling to recalibrate their strategies with a sense that the political reality of health care was immutably altered. Some Republicans conceded Thursday that, after a decade of repeal votes, political campaigns and legal challenges, their quest to nullify the entire law probably is dead. Confronted with a 7-2 ruling that marked the third time the high court has preserved the law, some GOP members of Congress suggested that they would, instead, start plotting legislatively to trim back parts of it. (Goldstein, Viser and DeBonis, 6/17)

Also —

The Wall Street Journal: Why Is ACA Still Controversial 11 Years After Healthcare Law Known As Obamacare Was Passed? 
Republicans have argued that the law’s government-backed coverage expansion is too costly. Indeed, some Republican-led states, including Texas and Florida, have declined to expand their Medicaid programs under the ACA. They have also opposed some of the ACA’s prescriptive rules, saying that consumers should have more freedom to choose the types of plans they want, even if those are limited or don’t cover certain things. Some also objected to provisions of the law that deal with reproductive issues, including a mandate that employer plans generally cover contraception. (Mathews, 6/17)

The Wall Street Journal: The Affordable Care Act: A Brief History 
Since its passage in 2010, the Affordable Care Act has grown to provide health coverage to more than 31 million people when its Medicaid expansion is included, and survived three challenges before the Supreme Court. Here’s a look at notable changes the law has seen over the years. (Armour, 6/17)

Modern Healthcare: Supreme Court ACA Ruling Could Hasten Biosimilar Development
The Supreme Court voting to uphold the Affordable Care Act on Thursday was greeted with applause from payers and providers—and the biosimilar drug development industry. While opponents of the ACA large criticized the law's expansion of insurance and mandates around coverage, undoing the law would have unraveled the federal framework for reviewing and approving biosimilars, and litigation guidelines that backbone the industry, said Meghan Rose Smith, executive director of the Biosimilars Forum, a trade group that applauded the Supreme Court's decision. In the U.S., biosimilars offer a lower-cost alternative to some 30 name-brand biologics on the market today. (Tepper, 6/17)

The Washington Post: Supreme Court Unanimously Rules For Catholic Group In Philadelphia Foster-Care Dispute
The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that Philadelphia was wrong to end a Catholic group’s contract to provide foster-care services because the organization refused to work with same-sex couples. It was the latest victory for religious organizations at the increasingly conservative court, and the second time it has ruled against governments trying to enforce an anti-discrimination law protecting LGBTQ rights against those claiming religious liberty. (Barnes, 6/17)

The Wall Street Journal: Supreme Court Exempts Catholic Foster-Care Agency From Nondiscrimination Law 
The court’s decision, by Chief Justice John Roberts, was a narrow one, stopping short of fundamentally extending the accommodations for religious exercise that Catholic Social Services—and several conservative justices in concurring opinions—argued the Constitution required. The city of Philadelphia contracts with private agencies to screen foster parents for children in need. While a broad nondiscrimination policy is written into its contracts, Chief Justice Roberts observed that the agreements also authorize the city’s human-services department to grant exceptions. (Bravin, 6/17)

Some of the reaction to the court's decision —

NBC News: Court's Foster Care Ruling Has Experts, Advocates Split On Potential LGBTQ Impact
Legal experts and advocates are split on what a decision Thursday by the Supreme Court on the rights of religious groups means for LGBTQ rights in the near term. The court ruled unanimously in favor of Catholic Social Services, a religious adoption agency that wanted an exemption from Philadelphia's nondiscrimination law, which would have required the agency to allow LGBTQ couples to adopt. (Yurcaba, 6/17)

Fox News: Unanimous Supreme Court Decision Favoring Religious Freedom Sparks Backlash From Left 
A segment of Democrats have been pushing for President Biden to have the ability to expand the roster of the Supreme Court and pack it with liberal justices, but Thursday's 9-0 ruling in favor of a religious foster care agency that would not work with LGBT couples is leaving some on the left disappointed with the entire court. (Blitzer, 6/17)

USA Today: LGBTQ Rights: Supreme Court Foster Care Ruling Raises New Questions
After a series of landmark victories at the Supreme Court in recent years, LGBTQ advocates were dealt a blow this week when the justices sided with a Catholic group that declined to consider same-sex couples as foster parents. While the outcome of the Philadelphia foster care dispute was not a surprise, the unanimous decision opened a debate about its impact in other areas of the law where the First Amendment's protection of religion comes into conflict with policies that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. (Fritze, 6/18)

CNN: Roberts, Kavanaugh And Barrett Have Seized The Supreme Court For Now
Chief Justice John Roberts, along with Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh, demonstrated their collective power at America's highest court on Thursday. They fueled the Supreme Court's limited opinions on Obamacare and religious liberty, in action that marks a twist for the conservative-dominated bench and adds to the suspense of the next two weeks as the court finishes its annual term. (Biskupic, 6/18)

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. To Invest More Than $3 Billion In Covid-19 Antiviral Development
The Biden administration will invest more than $3 billion on developing and manufacturing antiviral pills to treat coronavirus, the Department of Health and Human Services said Thursday. “New antivirals that prevent serious Covid-19 illness and death, especially oral drugs that could be taken at home early in the course of disease, would be powerful tools for battling the pandemic and saving lives,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden and the nation’s top infectious-disease expert. (Siddiqui, 6/17)

AP: US To Spend $3.2B On Treatments For COVID-19, Other Viruses
The new program will invest in “accelerating things that are already in progress” for COVID-19 but also would work to come up with treatments for other viruses, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert. He announced the investment Thursday at a White House briefing. “There are few treatments that exist for many of the viruses that have pandemic potential,” he said, including Ebola, dengue, West Nile and Middle East respiratory syndrome. But he added, “vaccines clearly remain the centerpiece of our arsenal. (Miller and Perrone, 6/17)

The New York Times: A Pill To Treat Covid-19? The U.S. Is Betting On It. 
The U.S. government spent more than $18 billion last year funding drugmakers to make a Covid vaccine, an effort that led to at least five highly effective shots in record time. Now it’s pouring more than $3 billion on a neglected area of research: developing pills to fight the virus early in the course of infection, potentially saving many lives in the years to come. The new program, announced on Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services, will speed up the clinical trials of a few promising drug candidates. If all goes well, some of those first pills could be ready by the end of the year. The Antiviral Program for Pandemics will also support research on entirely new drugs — not just for the coronavirus, but for viruses that could cause future pandemics. (Zimmer, 6/17)

In other covid pharmaceutical development news —

Bloomberg: CureVac’s Flop Shows Pfizer, Moderna Made MRNA Look Too Easy
The rapid development and remarkable efficacy of Covid-19 shots from Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. created sky-high expectations for the novel technology they employ. CureVac NV’s vaccine disappointment shows that not every messenger-RNA project will live up to hopes. The German biotech firm made some crucial choices that set its candidate apart. Although the trial results it published earlier this week aren’t directly comparable, and the proliferation of viral variants has complicated studies since the other shots were tested last year, experts say key differences between the vaccines probably played a major role in CureVac’s weak results. (Loh and Kresge, 6/18)

CNBC: Covid: Pfizer CEO Sees A Return To 'Normal' Globally By The End Of 2022
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told CNBC on Wednesday he expects life could return to normal for developed countries by the end of this year and the rest of the world by the end of 2022. By the end of next year, there should be enough Covid-19 vaccine doses for most world leaders to successfully inoculate their populations against the virus, Bourla said during an interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin at the CNBC Evolve Global Summit. (Lovelace Jr., 6/16)

The Wall Street Journal: Costly Brain-Cancer Drug No Longer Covered By Medicare 
The seller of the brain-cancer drug Gleostine has pulled out of a federal discount program for Medicare patients, leaving some struggling to pay for a therapy that can cost as much as $1,000 per capsule. NextSource Biotechnology LLC’s decision to leave the program, rendering its drug ineligible for the Medicare Part D drug benefit, comes after the Miami company raised the drug’s price exponentially since acquiring rights in 2013. Gleostine, which treats a tumor known as glioblastoma and other brain cancers, is off-patent but has no generic alternative. (Loftus, 6/17)

CBS News: Expensive Brain-Cancer Drug No Longer An Option Under Medicare
"There are lots of people right now who are not getting the drug," and some will likely die as a result, Henry S. Friedman, a neuro-oncologist and professor of neurosurgery at Duke University School of Medicine, told CBS MoneyWatch. "There are patients who can't afford the drug, and other drugs may not be as effective. "The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, or CMS, confirmed NextSource had withdrawn from the Medicaid drug rebate program, meaning states cannot receive federal funding reimbursement for Gleostine. However, states can still pay for the drug with their own funds, with each state's Medicaid program making those coverage decisions. (Gibson, 6/17)

Stat: Prescription Drug Ads May Have Increased Medicare Spending
The large sums of money spent on advertising prescription drugs directly to consumers may have contributed to increased use by Medicare beneficiaries and driven up spending by the federal health care program, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office. The analysis found Medicare Parts B and D, as well as beneficiaries, spent $560 billion on medicines from 2016 through 2018. More than half of that spending — $324 billion — went to purchasing drugs that were advertised directly to consumers. Of the 553 advertised drugs, the GAO found that Medicare Parts B and D purchased 104 and 463 drugs, respectively. (Silverman, 6/17)

In other news about Medicare —

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Advantage Members Actively Managed Their Care Less In 2020
Fewer Medicare Advantage plan members actively managed their care in 2020, and they had less communication with their health plans, a new report finds. Data analytics firm J.D. Power wrote in its 2021 U.S. Medicare Advantage Study that the country's nine largest plans are still struggling when it comes to member communication and engagement. The seventh annual study found just 55% of MA members actively managed their care in the past year, a decline of nine percentage points from 2019. The two most common ways plan members actively manage their care is by checking whether a treatment or service is covered and asking their doctor or pharmacist for a generic drug instead of a brand-name one, J.D. Power wrote. (Bannow, 6/17)

The New York Times: Lifelong Exercise Adds Up To Big Health Care Savings 
Becoming more physically active today might help us avoid thousands of dollars in health care costs later, according to a new study of exercise and Medicare claims. It finds that people who start to exercise before or during middle age typically save anywhere from $824 to $1,874 annually on health care costs after retirement, and the earlier they start their workouts, the greater those savings can be. The study involved mostly well-educated white men and women and has other limitations, but the findings highlight how significantly exercise might benefit people’s bank accounts, as well as their bodies. (Reynolds, 6/16)

Houston Public Media: Congressional Democrats Try To Go Around Conservative State Leaders To Expand Medicaid In Texas, Elsewhere
Congressional Democrats have finally found a way to expand Medicaid in the dozen states that haven't yet done so. They will attempt to go around conservative state government leaders who have rejected the prospect for a decade, and instead work with local leaders. Representatives from 12 states announced outside the U.S. Capital that the Cover Outstanding Vulnerable Expansion-eligible Residents (COVER) Now Act would give dollars directly to local governments and hospitals that want to help expand Medicaid. (Flahive, 6/17)

KHN: Pandemic Swells Medicaid Enrollment To 80 Million People, A ‘High-Water Mark’ 
The pandemic-caused recession and a federal requirement that states keep Medicaid beneficiaries enrolled until the national emergency ends swelled the pool of people in the program by more than 9 million over the past year, according to a report released Thursday. The latest figures show Medicaid enrollment grew from 71.3 million in February 2020, when the pandemic was beginning in the U.S., to 80.5 million in January, according to a KFF analysis of federal data. (KHN is an editorially independent program of KFF.) (Galewitz, 6/17)

From Missouri —

AP: Missouri Risks Medicaid Funding Over Contraceptive Fight
Missouri is at risk of losing $4.5 billion in tax revenue and federal funding for Medicaid because of a fight between lawmakers over contraceptives. At issue is a state tax on hospitals, doctors and other health care providers that is used to draw down billions of dollars in federal funding for the government health insurance program, which covers children, low-income adults and people with disabilities. The Republican-led Legislature adjourned last month without reauthorizing the tax after fighting over whether to include a ban on Medicaid coverage for “any drug or device approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration that may cause the destruction of or prevent the implantation of, an unborn child.” Federal law requires Medicaid programs cover family planning. (Ballentine, 6/17)

KSHB: In-Depth: Courts Now Must Resolve Missouri’s Medicaid Expansion Fight
The courts will decide the fate of Medicaid expansion in Missouri, which voters passed last summer. It is slated to expand July 1. The GOP-dominated state legislature chose not to provide funding for it during the recently concluded session — a decision Rep. Patty Lewis, a Democrat from Kansas City, called “a destruction of the will of the electorate.” (Palmer, 6/17)

Missouri Independent: Missouri Hospitals Sue To Block Changes In Medicaid Payments
After obtaining some relief from lawmakers for revenue cuts likely from a change in the way Medicaid pays for outpatient services, Missouri hospitals are asking the courts for relief from a coming change in payments for inpatient care. The Missouri Hospital Association on Friday filed a lawsuit in Cole County alleging the Department of Social Services is not following state law in making the changes. Instead of establishing the new payment method by a rule, the association alleges that the department is improperly pushing the change through by altering its contracts with managed care providers. (Keller, 6/17)

In other state Medicaid news —

Georgia Health News: As Insurer Repays Millions To 2 States, Georgia May Be Next 
The corporate parent of a large Georgia insurer has agreed to pay a total of more than $140 million to two states over a billing dispute involving Medicaid pharmacy benefits. Ohio will receive $88 million and Mississippi $55 million from St. Louis-based Centene, which is the parent company of Peach State Health Plan, an insurer in the Georgia Medicaid program. Georgia may seek similar compensation. (Miller and Grapevine, 6/17)

The Oklahoman: Oklahoma Medicaid Expansion Gives Health Coverage To Thousands
More than 113,000 Oklahomans will have health coverage starting next month through Medicaid expansion. Of those, 17,591 are people who had never applied before, according to the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. The rest — 95,829 — are people whose recent applications were reprocessed or those who were transitioned into SoonerCare from more limited benefit programs. (Branham, 6/18)

Dayton Daily News: State Rejects Protest To New Ohio Medicaid System
An insurance company that has challenged the DeWine administration’s overhaul of the Ohio Medicaid program lost its appeal. Paramount, an insurance affiliate of Toledo-based ProMedica, was the only contractor part of the current system that was not picked to be part of the new system. Paramount filed a protest of that decision. (Schroeder, 6/18)

NBC News: Over 300 Cases Of Heart Issue After Covid Vaccination Reported In Young People, CDC Says
More than 300 cases of heart inflammation after Covid-19 vaccinations have been reported in young people, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Thursday. "The case are rare," she said. "Over 20 million adolescents and young adults [have been] vaccinated in the United States." (Edwards, 6/17)

CNN: Myocarditis: Heart Inflammation Condition Looked Like Heart Attack In Kids, Pediatrician Says 
The teenaged boys all looked like they were having heart attacks. They complained of chest pain and general discomfort, and tests looked at first as if they were suffering an acute myocardial infarction, or heart attack. But they weren't. Instead, the seven youths ages 14 to 19 were suffering from a very rare type of heart inflammation. It's one that public health officials are beginning to link to Covid-19 vaccines. (Fox, 6/17)

NPR: Pfizer Vaccine In Teens And Heart Inflammation: What You Need To Know 
Long before the pandemic, thousands of cases of myocarditis were diagnosed in the U.S. and around the world each year, often triggered by the body's immune response to infections. SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can trigger it, and so can cold viruses, and staph and strep and HIV. Other causes include toxins and allergies. Symptoms include chest pain and shortness of breath. It's often mild enough to go unnoticed, but a full-blown case in adults can cause arrhythmias and heart failure that require careful treatment with multiple medications, and several months of strict rest. In a case study of seven teenagers who got myocarditis following vaccination published last week in the journal Pediatrics, all seven got better after routine treatment with anti-inflammatory drugs. (Silberner, 6/17)

In other vaccine research —

CNN: Sperm Count Not Harmed By Covid-19 Vaccine, Study Says 
If you are a man who has hesitated to get the Covid-19 vaccine due to concerns spread on social media that the vaccine may harm fertility, take heart. Sperm count and quality did not drop in healthy young men after receiving a first or second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, according to a new study published Thursday in JAMA. (LaMotte, 6/17)

The Hill: White House Officials Won't Say If US Will Meet July Vaccine Goal 
White House officials won't say whether they believe the U.S. will meet President Biden's goal of getting 70 percent of adults partially vaccinated against COVID-19 by July 4. But even if that goal is not met, administration officials insist it won't negatively impact the country's overall recovery. (Weixel, 6/17)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Vice President Harris Visits Georgia To Urge COVID-19 Vaccinations
Vice President Kamala Harris is visiting Atlanta Friday, part of a White House campaign to urge more Americans to get the COVID-19 vaccine as inoculation rates continue to decline across Georgia. After touching down at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Harris plans to visit the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Sweet Auburn for a tour of a pop-up vaccination site at around noon. She’ll then head to Clark Atlanta University to deliver remarks at a vaccination mobilization event, slated for 1:40 p.m. (Hallerman and Hart, 6/18)

CNN: The US Must Vaccinate Most Of The Country Against Covid-19 By Winter To Avoid More Variants, Expert Says 
With the odds stacked against the US reaching the target of 70% of adults at least partially vaccinated by July 4 -- a goal set by President Joe Biden -- a vaccine expert said time is running out to get ahead of the potential spread of Covid-19 variants. "Vaccines are our only way out of this," Dr. Paul Offit told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "Unless we vaccinate a significant percentage of the population before winter hits, you're going to see more spread and the creation of more variants, which will only make this task more difficult." (Holcombe, 6/18)

Stateline: Lowest Rates, Highest Hurdles: Southern States Tackle Vaccine Gap
At the beginning of the pandemic, LaShonda McKinney knew access to transportation would be a barrier for some people in the rural Mississippi Delta who needed a COVID-19 test. McKinney, a Bolivar County native, offered people free rides through the county’s council on aging, where she serves as executive director. Once COVID-19 vaccinations became available, the agency offered free rides to vaccination sites, but as vaccine supply exceeded demand in Mississippi and vaccine hesitancy persisted, the calls for rides dropped. “I don’t think transportation is the issue,” McKinney told Stateline. “I think it's more of the fear of the unknown than them having access to transportation.” (Wright, 6/17)

Roll Call: Immigrants Crucial To Vaccinating US, But Gaps Remain 
When Cynthia Garcia took her father to get his COVID-19 vaccination, he was turned away. A 59-year-old diabetic, Cynthia’s dad qualified for a vaccine early in the rollout. But because he is an undocumented immigrant and couldn’t show identification when the pharmacy asked, he didn’t get his shot. (Simon, 6/17)

Also —

Los Angeles Times: California Administers 40 Millionth Dose Of COVID-19 Vaccine
In a week of milestones, California has hit another major turning point in the fight against the pandemic: More than 40 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have now been administered across the state. State officials announced the latest total, 40,098,803 doses, Thursday afternoon, two days after the economy was fully reopened. Officials and health experts have said California’s high vaccination rates have reduced the risk of outbreaks with the wide reopening, noting that new cases and deaths continue to plummet. (Smith, 6/17)

CNBC: Dr. Fauci: What Herd Immunity Against Covid Would Look Like
Since the start of the pandemic, many people have anticipated “herd immunity” against Covid as an elusive finish line. The catch is, no one even knows for certain what the threshold of herd immunity for Covid-19 is, Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House chief medical advisor, told YouTube’s Dr. Mike Varshavski during an interview published June 6. So how will we know if and when we’re there? “When you get that level of protection that turns out to be the threshold of herd immunity, you’ll know it, because you’ll see the infections almost disappear,” Fauci told Varshavski. (Stieg, 6/17)

The Washington Post: CDC Lowers Warning For Cruises, Recommends Only Fully Vaccinated Travel 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has relaxed its warning for cruise travel for the first time since several outbreaks on ships brought the industry to a halt last year. But it also recommended that only fully vaccinated people embark when cruises resume from U.S. ports this summer. “Since the virus spreads more easily between people in close quarters aboard ships, the chance of getting covid-19 on cruise ships is high,” the agency said. It recommended that all passengers get tested a few days before and after their trip, while urging unvaccinated travelers to self-isolate for seven days after disembarkation. (Miller and Hassan, 6/18)

In more news on the vaccine rollout —

AP: Nevada To Offer $5M In Cash Prizes To Boost Vaccine Effort
A new kind of jackpot is coming to Nevada, the governor said Thursday, but only for state residents who have gotten at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. Gov. Steve Sisolak on Thursday announced a broad effort to encourage reluctant or forgetful residents to get shots, adding his state to a growing list offering unconventional incentives to revive flatlining vaccination programs amid waning demand. (Ritter and Metz, 6/17)

The Advocate: $1M Jackpot, Scholarships: COVID Vaccine Lottery Announced In Louisiana. Here's How To Qualify
Louisiana residents who get a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of July will be eligible to enter to win a $1 million jackpot, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Thursday. It's one of 14 cash prizes and scholarship awards totaling $2.3 million that Louisiana will dole out in weekly drawings beginning next month as part of a campaign to juice the state's dismal vaccination rate. But any Louisiana resident who has received at least one dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot is eligible for the lottery. (Paterson, 6/17)

The Washington Post: Starting Saturday, D.C. Residents Can Get Gift Cards When They Get Vaccinated
In her latest push to get D.C. residents vaccinated against the coronavirus, Mayor Muriel E. Bowser has announced a new incentive: $51 Visa gift cards. Starting Saturday, District residents 12 and older who receive their first vaccine dose at the R.I.S.E Demonstration Center, Anacostia High School or Ron Brown College Preparatory High School will receive a $51 gift card after getting their shot, Bowser (D) said in a statement. The promotion — a nod to the District’s quest to become the 51st state — will last through July 17. (Brice-Saddler, 6/17)

AP: Sign-Ups Growing For Kentucky Prizes Tied To COVID Shots
The number of Kentuckians vying for lucrative prizes tied to getting the COVID-19 vaccine continues to grow, Gov. Andy Beshear said. More than 414,000 Kentucky adults have entered drawings for $1 million prizes, the governor said Thursday. Another 23,000 youngsters are entered for college scholarships, he said. (6/18)

Also —

USA Today: Michigan To Lift Restrictions Next Week
Michigan will lift all indoor capacity restrictions and mask requirements next week, 10 days sooner than planned amid vaccinations and plummeting COVID-19 infections, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Thursday. “Today is a day that we have all been looking forward to, as we can safely get back to normal day-to-day activities and put this pandemic behind us,” Whitmer said in a news release. Just months ago, the state was considered the worst COVID-19 hot spot in the nation. At mid-April, it was at a record-high for childhood hospitalizations — an alarming virus situation that researchers blamed on the U.K. variant when it first turned up in the state. (Aspegren, 6/18)

Los Angeles Times: California Loosens COVID Mask Rules For Vaccinated Workers
California’s circuitous journey to relaxing coronavirus-related workplace safety rules finally reached its destination Thursday, when the state moved to end physical distancing requirements for all workers and allow most fully vaccinated employees in many workplaces to stop wearing masks. The 5-1 decision from the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board followed more than two hours of public comment, during which a number of business groups urged board members to go even further and eliminate any additional pandemic-related restrictions on workplaces, while labor representatives said it’s still too early to pull back on the protective measures that have long guided the state’s COVID-19 response. (Money, 6/17)

KHN: The Hard Realities Of A ‘No Jab, No Job’ Mandate For Health Care Workers
Christopher Richmond keeps a running tab on how many workers at the ManorCare skilled nursing facility he manages in western Pennsylvania have rolled up their sleeves for a covid-19 vaccine. Although residents were eager for the shots this year, he’s counted only about 3 in 4 workers vaccinated at any one time. The excuses, among its staff of roughly 100, had a familiar ring: Because covid vaccines were authorized only for emergency use, some staffers worried about safety. Convenience mattered. In winter, shots were administered at work through a federal rollout. By spring, though, workers had to sign up online through a state program — a time-sucking task. (Spolar, 6/18)

CNBC: New Covid Study Hints At Long-Term Loss Of Brain Tissue, Dr. Scott Gottlieb Warns
Dr. Scott Gottlieb warned Thursday about the potential for long-term brain loss associated with Covid, citing a new study from the United Kingdom. “In short, the study suggests that there could be some long-term loss of brain tissue from Covid, and that would have some long-term consequences,” the former FDA chief and CNBC contributor said.  “You could compensate for that over time, so the symptoms of that may go away, but you’re never going to regain the tissue if, in fact, it’s being destroyed as a result of the virus,” said Gottlieb, who serves on the board of Covid vaccine-maker Pfizer. (DeCiccio, 6/17)

Bloomberg: Double-Lung Transplants Rise After Covid ‘Honeycombs’ Organs
John Micklus’s battle with Covid-19 began last Christmas and ended five weeks later with lungs so damaged that doctors said there was nothing they could do to save him. “The doctor’s recommendation was to get my affairs in order,” Micklus said. The 62-year-old called his wife from his hospital bed in southern Maryland. She, in turn, desperately called several physicians, and eventually learned of one last option: A double-lung transplant. (Gale, 6/17)

In other covid research —

Axios: Top Physician's Group Wants Long-COVID Research 
The nation's top physician's group on Wednesday called for policies to better diagnose and treat long-haul COVID-19 and endorsed guidelines for guiding any future vaccine mandates and credentials. The American Medical Association's House of Delegates, which represent the nation's doctors, called for tools to improve the assessment, diagnosis, and awareness of post-viral syndromes. (Reed, 6/17)

KHN: More Than 100 Missouri Schools Have Bought ‘Often Unproven’ Air-Cleaning Technology 
When the coronavirus pandemic hit, Scott Dulle scoured the internet for ways to safely get kids back into St. Thomas More School, a private pre-K-8 school in Kansas City, Missouri, where he works as the director of building and grounds. When Dulle found air-purifying ionization technology that marketing materials said would inactivate over 99% of the virus that causes covid-19 in minutes, he had to have it. Parishioners who support the parochial school, some of whom were out of work, raised roughly $22,000 to buy the devices.  (Weber and Fentem, 6/18)

Crain's New York Business: Mount Sinai Unveils Inequity Index That Links Socioeconomic Needs To Covid Mortality
Mount Sinai researchers have created a neighborhood-level Covid-19 equity index to explore the relationship between socioeconomic disadvantages and infection and mortality rates during the pandemic, the health system announced Thursday. The index was part of a study published this month in Nature Communications. It measured factors including employment, commuting patterns, population density, food access, socioeconomic status and access to health care. Mount Sinai used census data, subway ridership information and health data from the city and state between March and May to build the index. (Sim, 6/17)

The Boston Globe: ‘Unprecedented’ Blood Shortage Forces Hospitals To Delay Or Reschedule Surgeries
Hospitals in Massachusetts and around the country are confronting a severe shortage of the donated blood needed for transfusions, prompting some to delay or reschedule surgeries. A surge in demand has collided with a slowdown in blood collection — both trends exacerbated by the pandemic and expected to last for weeks or months. “We haven’t seen anything like this in about 30 or 40 years at least,” said Dr. Vishesh Chhibber, director of transfusion medicine at UMass Memorial Health, where several surgeries scheduled for June 7 had to be postponed for lack of blood. (Freyer and Caldera, 6/17)

In other health care industry news —

San Francisco Chronicle: 400 Sutter Health Jobs Cut In Northern California Amid 'Growing Fiscal Gap,' Sutter Says
Sutter Health, which serves millions of people at 23 Northern California hospitals, cut about 400 positions throughout its network earlier this month, officials confirmed Thursday. The news comes two months after Kaiser Permanente eliminated about 200 jobs across its Northern California region. The job cuts affect non-clinical positions and are not focused on any specific facility, said Emma Dugas, a Sutter spokeswoman. (Mishanec, 6/17)

The Washington Post: He Promised 6 Million N95 Masks And Couldn’t Deliver. Now He’s Going To Prison 
Last April, as veterans hospitals struggled to find masks to protect their workers and patients from the coronavirus, a veteran reached out with promises to help. “Unlike most vendors we are commitment [sic] to providing support during this time and are offering a COVID-19 discount to agencies who need large quantities of these items shipped,” Robert Stewart Jr. wrote to a contracting officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs. “I am glad I can help . . . support our men/women in uniform and vets.” In fact, Stewart, 35, had no masks and no ability to get them. On Wednesday, he was sentenced in federal court in Virginia to 21 months in prison for using fraudulently obtained covid-19 relief loans in part on fruitless efforts to deliver. (Weiner, 6/17)

inewsource: San Diego Doctor Faces Negligence Charge Over Diabetes Treatment
A San Diego doctor who was a key figure in a 2018 inewsource investigation into a diabetes treatment some called a scam is facing charges before the state medical board that could result in probation or the loss of his license and ability to practice medicine. The accusation was filed in May against Dr. James Novak and involves two diabetes patients treated at his medical office with the controversial four-hour IV insulin procedure. The treatment was being offered through a Trina Health clinic Novak previously told inewsource he established in August 2016 as part of his Pacific Beach family practice. (Plummer, 6/17)

Stat: Clinicians Open Their Notes To Patients In Grand Experiment In Medical Care
When Glenda Thomas of Framingham, Mass., checked her doctors’ notes online after a recent infusion, she saw something that stuck in her mind. A nurse had written, “She denies recent illness.” To Thomas, it was disconcerting. The notes seemed to imply that she didn’t recognize her own condition, a rare neuromuscular disorder. On the contrary, she understands it well. (Preston, 6/18)

Stat: Gender Bias In Patents May Mean Less Biomedical Innovation For Women
Research has long shown that fewer patents are awarded to women than to men. Now a new study suggests that bias is fueling disparities in biomedical innovation as well. The study, published Thursday in Science, found that female inventors are more likely to come up with biomedical ideas and products that focus on the needs of women whereas male inventors are more inclined to focus on products for men. That, the authors concluded, suggests society may be missing out on medications, devices, and technology that could benefit women’s health. (Lloreda, 6/17)

In corporate news —

Detroit Free Press: Beaumont-Spectrum Merger Like A Marriage, Experts Say. It Might Work
The big business of a hospital merger is not unlike a marriage, said Erik Gordon, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. It can be harmonious and without acrimony for the patients and staff of the health systems that come together. But it also can end badly, with a reduction in services, job losses, hospitals or offices closing, and higher prices because of less competition. In the case of the proposed union between Southfield-based Beaumont Health and Grand Rapids-based Spectrum Health, it's about as good a match as anyone could have wished for, Gordon said. (Jordan Shamus, 6/18)

Axios: Spectrum, Beaumont Hospital Systems Sign Merger Deal 
Spectrum Health and Beaumont Health have signed a merger agreement that would combine a health insurance company and 22 hospitals into one tax-exempt system with almost $13 billion in annual revenue. This deal would form the largest hospital system in Michigan, raising new concerns about what would happen to hospital and physician prices if the merger is ultimately approved. (Herman, 6/17)

Modern Healthcare: Ochsner Health Plans To Merge With Rush Health Systems
Fresh off a merger that grew it to a system of 35 acute-care hospitals, Ochsner Health announced Thursday it plans to get even bigger by combining with a seven-hospital system in Mississippi. Rush Health Systems, based in Meridian, Miss., plans to become part of Ochsner, headquarted in New Orleans, La. The two not-for-profit systems described the deal—which they underscored is a merger and not an acquisition—as an expansion of a partnership that's been in place since 2019. They expect the deal to close in mid-2022, at which point Rush will be known as Ochsner Rush Health. (Bannow, 6/17)

Stat: ‘A Lego Kit For Health Care’: Jonathan Bush Launches New Startup Zus
Jonathan Bush is back for another act. On Thursday, the founder and former chief executive officer of medical IT giant athenahealth launched a new startup called Zus. The company, which debuted with $34 million in a funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Rock Health and other venture firms, wants to become the common layer digital health companies use to build their tools, view health records, and ultimately treat patients. Zus launches at a pivotal moment for digital health after the recent passage of the federal information blocking rule, which gives patients unprecedented access to health data via apps. (Brodwin, 6/17)

Stat: Poll: Many Americans Concerned About FDA Process For Alzheimer's Drug
Two-thirds of Americans who are familiar with the details of the newly approved Alzheimer’s treatment believe the medication will be effective, but have concerns about the regulatory process used to endorse the drug and are divided over whether the drug, which will cost $56,000, is fairly priced, according to a new survey from STAT and The Harris Poll. The responses underscore that the Food and Drug Administration approval this month of the drug, called Aduhelm, has proven divisive among a wide array of experts and the poll shows the same is true for the U.S. public. Among those who had only heard about the approval, slightly more than half agree the drug will be effective, but were concerned about the FDA process. (Silverman, 6/18)

The Washington Post: Furor Rages Over FDA Approval Of Controversial Alzheimer’s Drug
Marc Archambault smiled broadly Wednesday as he walked to the microphones at Butler Hospital in Providence, R.I. The silver-haired real estate agent was about to become the first person outside of a clinical trial to be treated with a new Alzheimer’s drug in almost two decades. “Obviously, I am very happy to have this,” said Archambault, 70, who is in an early stage of the disease. “It’s amazing.” The celebratory air at the news conference masked a growing furor over the Food and Drug Administration’s highly contentious approval of the drug, called Aduhelm, last week. (McGinley, 6/17)

In other pharmaceutical news —

Fox News: Novartis Experimental Prostate Cancer Drug Gets FDA Breakthrough Designation
Novartis announced on Wednesday that the FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy designation to an experimental therapy that targets advanced castration-resistant prostate cancer. The agency said the decision was based on positive data from a Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating LuPSMA-617. Breakthrough Therapy designation is granted to medicines being evaluated for serious conditions where early clinical evidence indicates the potential for substantial improvement over available therapy. (Hein, 6/17)

Stat: Scientists Unshelve A Decades-Old Antibiotic To Fight Ovarian Cancer 
Ovarian cancer, which kills about 15,000 Americans every year, has historically been one of the thornier cancers to treat. Only in the last few years has a new class of potent drugs, called PARP inhibitors, started to change that. But even with these promising new treatments, too often, tenacious tumors come roaring back. So there’s a need for yet newer drugs that can overcome any resistance the cancer evolves. (Molteni, 6/17)

Stat: Athira Pharma CEO Placed On Leave Amid Claims Of Altered Images 
The chief executive of Athira Pharma, a biotech developing treatments for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, has been placed on temporary leave as her former university investigates claims she published several papers containing altered images while she was a graduate student. The Seattle-based company did not disclose the reasons for the investigation of Leen Kawas, but STAT has learned that it involves allegations of altered images in four separate papers on which Kawas is the lead author. (Goldhill, 6/17)

The Washington Post: Record-Setting Heat Blasts The West: ‘Your Skin Is Almost Sizzling’ 
Millions of blasting air conditioners strained electric grids, prompting Texas and California utilities to threaten shut-offs. The National Weather Service in Las Vegas tweeted all-caps appeals for residents to stay hydrated and stay inside: “Long duration heat waves are DEADLY.” Doctors from Palm Springs to Phoenix warned about pavement so scorching it can give people third-degree burns. Fueled by climate change, the first major heat wave of the summer has seized the western United States, toppling records and threatening lives. The event is unprecedented in its timing, intensity and scope, said Washington State University climate scientist Deepti Singh; never have such severe conditions been recorded over such a large area so early in the summer. (Kaplan, 6/17)

In other news about environmental health —

AP: Foam Containing 'Forever Chemicals' Used Against Plant Fire
A company hired to help extinguish a fire that gutted a northern Illinois chemical plant this week used foam containing toxic compounds that have tainted surface waters and groundwater across the U.S., officials said Thursday. The private contractor sprayed the foam for about three hours Tuesday at the Chemtool Inc. factory near Rockton, despite concerns raised by government regulators the previous day, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency told The Associated Press. (Flesher, 6/18)

NBC News: A Hacker Tried To Poison A Calif. Water Supply. It Was As Easy As Entering A Password.
On Jan. 15, a hacker tried to poison a water treatment plant that served parts of the San Francisco Bay Area. It didn't seem hard. The hacker had the username and password for a former employee's TeamViewer account, a popular program that lets users remotely control their computers, according to a private report compiled by the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center in February and seen by NBC News. (Collier, 6/17)

NBC News: 'All The Water's Bad': In McDowell County, You Have To Get Creative To Find Safe Drinking Water
Every week, Burlyn Cooper parks on the edge of a winding two-lane road, unloads a dozen plastic jugs from the trunk of his car, and uses a hose to fill them with the spring water that drips from a mountain's exposed rock face. For Cooper and many of his neighbors, the mountain's runoff is their most reliable, and trusted, source of drinking water. "I've got so used to it, I wouldn't know how to act, to turn the faucet on and have good water," he said. "I can't imagine it." (Rappleye and Kaplan, 6/17)

In other public health news —

Politico: Child Tax Credit Checks Could Come As A Surprise To Some 
The Biden administration is preparing to send money to millions of Americans — including to some who may not want it. Its plan to have people claim a portion of their child tax credit each month, starting in July, is primarily designed to provide a steady stream of cash to low-income Americans. But the administration intends to automatically enroll everyone who takes the credit — some 50 million families, earning up to $400,000 — in the monthly payment program unless they opt out. (Faler, 6/17)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Poverty And Trauma Affect Kids Physically, Too, Including When Molars Emerge, Penn Study Shows
Poverty and trauma take more than mental tolls on children. Childhood adversity affects kids’ physical development too, and new research suggests it leaves its mark in an unexpected place: teeth. In a study published this month, University of Pennsylvania scientists found that kids who are exposed to significant stressors often see their first molars emerge earlier than less-stressed youngsters. Molar growth could be accelerated by months in some Black or Hispanic kids or those from lower income families. While the reasons are still unclear, the study confirms years of research showing that adversity and inequity affect the body — and it starts early. (Nathan, 6/18)

The Washington Post: How To Take Better Care Of Your Teeth After Skipping Dental Checkups During Covid 
Beyond its psychological toll, the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on our bodies: Many people have put on pounds, picked at their skin, broken their toes — and, according to dentists, damaged their teeth. As more Americans return to dental offices, practitioners say they’re seeing a significant rise in tooth-grinding and jaw-clenching likely brought on by pandemic-related stress and anxiety. They’re also seeing an increase in cavities and gum disease that may be due to a combination of lapsed appointments, pandemic eating and drinking habits, and less-than-stellar brushing and flossing. (Chiu, 6/17)

Fox News: Intermittent Fasting 'No Magic Bullet' For Weight Loss, Researchers Say
While a preferred method of many dieters, intermittent fasting may not be the most effective way to lose weight. A study published in Science Translational Medicine is challenging the long-held belief that fasting provides better results than traditional calorie restriction diets based on a three-week-long experiment. The study, which was conducted by a team of physiologists at the University of Bath’s Centre for Nutrition, Exercise & Metabolism (CNEM), split 36 lean, healthy adults into three groups. Group 1 fasted on alternate days with their fast day followed by a day of eating 50% more than usual. Group 2 reduced calories across all meals every day by 25%. Group 3 fasted on alternate days like Group 1, but followed their fast day with one day eating 100% more than usual. (Hein, 6/17)

In updates on the opioid trial in West Virginia —

Charleston Gazette-Mail: Health Economist Puts Harm Of Prescription Opioids In Cabell, Huntington At More Than $3 Billion
The estimated price tag on the harm caused by prescription opioids in the Cabell County-Huntington community is more than $3 billion, according to a Harvard University health economist who testified Thursday in the federal trial against the prescription drug wholesalers accused of fueling the opioid epidemic. Thomas McGuire, professor of health economics at Harvard Medical School, presented an economic valuation of roughly $3.3 billion attributed to the harm caused by prescription opioids in the Cabell-Huntington community. Approximately $2.8 billion of that total is attributed to lives lost, while the remainder is tied to excess health care costs in Cabell County. (Serre, 6/17)

Albuquerque Journal: Aid-In-Dying Law Takes Effect In New Mexico
For advocates of legislation allowing terminally ill New Mexicans to end their own lives with the help of prescribed medication, Friday has been a long time coming. But, for critics, it marks the first step down a path they’d long tried to block. A new aid-in-dying law, which drew emotional debate at the Roundhouse in recent years before finally winning approval this year, is one of nearly 70 new laws set to take effect Friday. (Boyd, 6/17)

Houston Chronicle: New Law Requires Wellness Checks During Crises For The Medically Fragile Who Depend On Power
Caroline Cheevers still recalls the panic. With Winter Storm Uri killing power across Houston, there seemed no help for her daughter, Hailey, a medically fragile 10-year-old who requires electricity to power the ventilator that keeps her alive. Hotels were full or had no power. First responders were overwhelmed. And even though she’d signed up for a state registry meant to help first responders plan for how to care for medically fragile Texans during disasters, she and her husband were on their own, scrambling to take care of Hailey and their three other disabled children. (Barned-Smith, 6/17)

North Carolina Health News: NC’s Adult Day Care Centers Push State For Funding 
A retiree at 75, Melvin P. often rises in the morning to find the adult daughter he lives with has already left for work. Jamaica-born Winston-Salem resident Melvin understands why he’s left alone by his daughter’s need to meet her needs as well as his. But the situation makes him appreciate his arrival at Williams Adult Day Center and the hours he gets to spend at the facility not far from Wake Forest Baptist Health. (Goldsmith, 6/18)

Salt Lake Tribune: ‘Important And Disturbing:’ Utah Leaders Surprised By SEC Investigation Of Coronavirus Tests
In the early, anxious days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a handful of politically connected Utah companies mounted a high-profile effort to thwart the spread of the virus. They initially planned to volunteer their business acumen to secure coronavirus tests and promote and perform testing, but soon shifted to a more lucrative approach: Claiming an initial $5 million in no-bid state contracts for Nomi Health. Other Utah companies won subcontracts with Nomi. The TestUtah initiative, lauded by state leaders, served as a springboard to win contracts in other states. Public health officials felt usurped almost immediately in Utah, emails show, and within weeks, Nomi’s decisions were under scrutiny. There were questions about both the accuracy of the tests it chose, from Utah company Co-Diagnostics, and the expertise of the community hospital Nomi selected to process them. After just four months, health officials regained influence and forced Nomi to stop using both. (Becker, 6/17)

Axios: Washington's Latest Surprise Medical Bill Debate 
Washington's latest health care brawl is over wonky questions about how last year's law banning surprise medical bills will now actually be implemented by the Biden administration. Billions of dollars are at stake — either for providers or for patients and employers. (Owens, 6/18)

Bangor Daily News: 1st Summer Season Of Cannabis Sales Expected To Buoy Maine's Tourism Recovery
Maine’s summer tourism season has a new attraction this year with the first year of legal recreational marijuana sales expected to bring more people to the state, following trends in Colorado and California. A major marijuana retailer in Maine told a HospitalityMaine seminar Thursday that he expects Maine to see a tourism boost, with some visitors coming strictly on a marijuana vacation. “We’re seeing a huge increase in interest about coming to Maine to try cannabis after we legalized it,” said Charlie Langston, managing director of Wellness Connection, which has a cultivation facility, extraction laboratory and two adult-use storefronts and two medical ones in Maine. “We get calls all the time from people planning vacations, wondering about how they can get cannabis when they’re here.” (Valigra, 6/18)

CNBC: Covid Outbreak Forces Lockdown At U.S. Embassy In Kabul
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul on Thursday was placed on lockdown as Covid cases surge in Afghanistan, pushing the nation’s fragile health care system to its limits. At the embassy, 114 employees have tested positive for the coronavirus and are currently in isolation, one person has died and several people have been medically evacuated. (Macias, 6/17)

Politico: G7 Host Cornwall Sees Coronavirus Cases Spike After Sunny Weekend 
Coronavirus cases in the southern English region of Cornwall, which hosted last week’s G7 meeting, increased tenfold in the week leading up to the summit. In the week ending on June 11, the day the G7 kicked off, Cornwall recorded 59.8 cases per 100,000 inhabitants and 342 actual cases, compared with 5.6 cases per 100,000 and 32 actual cases the previous week, the i reported. There were also localized outbreaks in towns that hosted the summit, notably St. Ives, which saw a rate of 517.5 cases per 100,000, ranking among the highest in the U.K. (Adami, 6/17)

In more covid news from the U.K. and E.U. —

AP: UK Records Over 10,000 Virus Cases For First Time Since Feb
The U.K.’s latest surge in coronavirus infections gathered pace Thursday with new confirmed cases rising above 10,000 for the first time in nearly four months as a result of the spread of the more contagious delta variant. Government figures showed another 11,007 cases were reported. That’s the highest daily number since Feb. 19, when 12,027 cases were recorded, and cements talk that the country with Europe’s highest virus-related death toll is in the midst of a third wave of the pandemic. (Pylas, 6/17)

CIDRAP: Youth, Delta Variant Behind UK COVID Surge
Two new studies look at the Delta variant (B1617) behind the UK COVID-19 surge, with the first noting that young people are helping drive the exponential growth of COVID-19 cases in England. The second study describes reduced COVID-19 vaccine and antibody efficacy against the more transmissible variant. ... Young people are behind the surge, with a 5-fold higher rate of COVID-19 test positivity among children 5 to 12 years (0.35% prevalence) and adults 18 to 24 (0.36% prevalence) than in those 65 or older. (Van Beusekom, 6/17)

CNBC: Whitty: 5 Years Before Vaccine Can Hold Line Against Covid Variants
England’s top medical officer has warned that the coming winter will continue to be difficult for the country’s health system despite the country’s successful coronavirus vaccination program. A further easing of lockdown restrictions in England was delayed this week due to a surge in cases of the delta variant first discovered in India. In a speech to the NHS Confederation Thursday, Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said the current wave of Covid infections due to the delta variant would likely be followed by another surge in the winter. (Clinch, 6/18)

Fox News: EU Regulator Will Weigh COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates With Below 50% Efficacy
A top official with Europe’s regulatory agency on Thursday said it would weigh COVID-19 vaccines for approval despite the efficacy potentially falling below a 50% threshold. The comments from Marco Cavaleri, head of Biological Health Threats and Vaccines Strategy at the European Medicines Agency follow news that German biotech CureVac’s  COVID-19 mRNA vaccine candidate revealed a disappointing 47% efficacy against COVID-19 disease of any severity, and failed to meet statistical success criteria in a late-stage trial. However, Dr. Franz-Werner Haas, CEO of CureVac, said "the overall vaccine efficacy may change" as the company proceeds toward a final analysis. (Rivas, 6/17)

Reuters: Health Experts Warn Of Olympic COVID-19 Threat, Prefer No Spectators 
Japan’s top medical experts warned on Friday that holding the Olympics during the COVID-19 pandemic could increase infections, and said banning all spectators was the least risky option, setting up a possible collision with organisers. The report, led by top health adviser Shigeru Omi, was released after Tokyo 2020's organising committee chief told the Sankei newspaper she wanted to allow up to 10,000 spectators at stadiums for the global sport extravaganza, which kicks off on July 23. (Murakami, Swift and Sieg, 6/18)

Several countries begin vaccine "dose-mixing" —

AP: Canada: Pfizer, Moderna Preferred 2nd Dose After AstraZeneca
Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization said Thursday people who got the AstraZeneca vaccine as their first dose should get Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for their second shot. On June 1, committee had said AstraZeneca recipients “could" get Pfizer or Moderna for their second shot if they wanted, but Thursday went further to say an mRNA vaccine was the ”preferred" choice. (6/17)

Reuters: S.Korea To Mix-And-Match COVID-19 Vaccine Doses For 760,000 People
Some 760,000 South Koreans who have received a first dose of AstraZeneca Plc's COVID-19 vaccine will be offered Pfizer Inc's vaccine as a second shot due to shipment delays by global vaccine sharing scheme COVAX, the government said. Several countries, including Canada and Spain, have already approved such dose-mixing mainly due to concerns about rare and potentially fatal blood clots linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine. (Cha, 6/18)

In other global vaccine news —

AP: India Switches Policy But Still Short Of Vaccines
Starting Monday, every Indian adult can get a COVID-19 vaccine dose for free that was purchased by the federal government. The policy reversal, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, ends a complex system of buying vaccines that worsened inequities in administering the shots. India is a key supplier of vaccines around the world, and its missteps have left millions of people waiting unprotected. Only about 3.5% of Indians are fully vaccinated and while the policy change is likely to address inequality, questions remain. Moreover poor planning means vaccine shortages will continue. (Ghosal, 6/18)

Bloomberg: AstraZeneca Vaccine Faces More Supply Hurdles, Now From Thailand
AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing partner in Southeast Asia has missed a delivery target in Thailand and shipments to other countries in the region have been delayed, the latest setback for a shot that was meant to be the backbone of the global inoculation effort. Thailand was slated to receive and administer 6 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses in June but health authorities this week said they would be distributing only about 3.5 million of those shots this month. Pledging to still give out 6 million doses as planned, officials appear to be making up the shortfall with millions of shots from China’s Sinovac Biotech Ltd. (6/18)

CNN: China's About To Administer Its Billionth Coronavirus Shot. Yes, You Read That Right 
Within days, China will reach a staggering 1 billion doses in its Covid-19 vaccination drive -- a scale and speed unrivaled by any other country in the world. As of Wednesday, China had administered more than 945 million doses -- three times the number delivered in the United States, and almost 40% of the 2.5 billion shots given globally. (Gan and He, 6/18)

AP: Israel To Send 1M Coronavirus Vaccine Doses To Palestinians
Israel says it will transfer around 1 million doses of soon-to-expire coronavirus vaccine doses to the Palestinian Authority. Under the agreement announced Friday, the PA will transfer doses to Israel once it receives them from a U.N.-backed program to supply vaccines to needy countries. (6/18)

In other global developments —

The Wall Street Journal: China Considers Lifting All Childbirth Restrictions By 2025
Chinese officials are drawing up plans to further loosen birth restrictions and transition toward policies that explicitly encourage childbirth, according to people familiar with the matter, reflecting increased urgency in Beijing as economic growth slows and China’s population mix skews older. Policy makers are discussing the possibility of fully doing away with birth restrictions by 2025, the end of the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s current five-year economic plan, according to one of the people. (Zhai, 6/18)

The New York Times: Covid-Sniffing Dogs Are Accurate, But Wide Use Faces Hurdles
Dog noses are great Covid-19 detectors, according to numerous laboratory studies, and Covid sniffing dogs have already started working in airports in other countries and at a few events in the United States, like a Miami Heat basketball game. But some experts in public health and in training scent dogs say that more information and planning are needed to be certain they are accurate in real life situations. (Gorman, 6/12)

The Washington Post: Seeking Clues To Mysteries Of Coronavirus By Studying A Person’s Ability To Taste Bitterness 
When the coronavirus began its furious march around the globe, leaving illness, death and suffering in its path, medical researchers urgently set out to understand the disease, known as covid-19. Efforts to explain where it came from, how it affects people in such different ways and what can be done about it have produced more than 475,000 publications supported by about 26,000 organizations in 198 countries, according to the Dimensions covid-19 database. The scientific research that resulted in all those publications often begins with an observation. In the early days of the pandemic, Henry P. Barham, a 38-year-old ear, nose and throat doctor and researcher at Baton Rouge General, was operating three to four days a week, performing tracheotomies, and the removal of skull-based tumors, and some days did 30 nasal endoscopies — procedures that increased risk of exposure to covid-19 through aerosolization, the broadcasting of viral particles. (Bartlett, 6/12)

The Washington Post: Inside Pfizer’s Race To Produce The World’s Biggest Supply Of Covid Vaccine
The first attempt to produce industrial-scale quantities of the experimental vaccine that has played a central role in arresting the coronavirus pandemic in the United States was a total failure. Operators at a Pfizer plant outside Kalamazoo hoped the trial run could provide quick validation of the company’s gamble on a newfangled mRNA technology. It also was an early test of Pfizer’s strategy of refusing government aid to develop and rapidly ramp up commercial scale production of its vaccine. (Rowland, 6/16)

The New York Times: What The C.E.O. Of Pfizer And Other Covid-19 Fighters Learned From Their Parents
Various people working to stop the pandemic reflected on the life skills their parents taught them: determination, teamwork, resilience and more. (Weiner, 6/11)

The Washington Post: The Pandemic Books Are Here. We Read Them.
As the first big wave of coronavirus books arrives, it's shedding new light on the outbreak — and raising questions when those stories conflict. The pandemic literary moment is hard to miss, with reporters, pundits and politicians afflicted by book contracts. (Diamond, 6/15)

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The Atlantic: The IVF Cases That Broke U.S. Birthright Citizenship
Ethan and Aiden Dvash-Banks are twin brothers—born just four minutes apart on the same September day in the same hospital room in Ontario, Canada. But shortly after their birth in 2016, the U.S. State Department decided that the two boys were very different in the eyes of American law: Aiden was a U.S. citizen but Ethan, the brother with whom he’d shared a womb, was not. The reasoning, as it were, came down to how the boys had been conceived, via technology that a half-century-old immigration law could have in no way anticipated. The boys’ fathers, Andrew and Elad Dvash-Banks, used eggs from an anonymous donor, a gestational surrogate, and their own sperm. Aiden was genetically related to Andrew and Ethan to Elad, but each considered himself a father, in equal measure, to both boys. American officials didn’t see it that way, though: What mattered to them was that Andrew is an American citizen, which allowed him to pass his citizenship to his genetic son. But Elad is Israeli, so his genetic son was denied U.S. citizenship. (Zhang, 6/10)3

ABC News: Woman Carries Baby For Her Twin Sister Who Had Hysterectomy Due To Pregnancy-Related Cancer 
When Sarah Sharp was diagnosed in 2018 with a rare gynecological cancer and told unexpectedly that she may need an emergency hysterectomy, her twin sister, Cathey Stoner, was there for her. "Cathey rushed to the emergency room to be by my side," Sharp, now 33, told "Good Morning America." "And that was the first time she said to me, 'If you need to have a hysterectomy, I'll have your babies.'" (Kindelan, 6/16)

The Washington Post: Makenzie Madsen Died Awaiting A Heart Transplant. Her Sisters Sell Lemonade To Help Kids Like Her. 
Before her last birthday, Makenzie Madsen’s family members pooled their money to get her a $200 snow-cone maker — an apt gift for a girl who had made the icy treats by hand and hawked them to her neighbors for four straight summers. Makenzie never got to use it. Diagnosed with two heart defects at 14 months old, Makenzie received her first heart transplant a few months later. She had been waiting for a kidney and another heart for nearly a year when her organs began to shut down last July, said her mom, Monica Madsen. Makenzie, 14, had to be taken off the waiting list for donations, and she died the night she came home from the hospital. (Iati, 6/14)

NBC News: This Is Your Brain, In Glorious Color
A map of a fragment of a human brain reveals for the first time its astonishing intricacy, while providing new evidence of both the brain's physical structure and one of the ways it's thought to function. The map is the culmination of years of work by scientists to trace the vast network of cells and connections within the sample, which was taken roughly a decade ago from the brain of a patient undergoing surgery to prevent serious epileptic seizures. (Metcalfe, 6/15)

The Atlantic: Just Seeing Another Sick Bird Can Jump-Start A Bird’s Immune System
The agents of immunity are so risk-averse that even the dread of facing off with a pathogen can sometimes prompt them to gird their little loins. Ashley Love, a biologist at the University of Connecticut, has seen this happen in birds. A few years ago, she stationed healthy canaries within eyeshot of sick ones, infected with a bacterium that left the birds sluggish and visibly unwell. The healthy canaries weren’t close enough to catch the infection themselves. But the mere sight of their symptomatic peers revved up their immune systems all the same, Love and her colleagues report today in Biology Letters. Love, who did the research as a graduate student at Oklahoma State University, had an inkling that the experiment would work before she did it. In 2010, the psychologist Mark Schaller, at the University of British Columbia, and his colleagues described a similar reaction in humans looking through photos of people who were sneezing or covered in rashes. The study subjects’ immune cells then reacted aggressively when exposed to bits of bacteria, a hint that the pictures had somehow whipped the body into fighting form, Schaller told me. (Wu, 6/8)

NBC News: McDonald's French Fries, Carrots, Onions: All Of The Foods That Come From Bill Gates Farmland
They own the soil where the potatoes in McDonald’s french fries grow, the carrots from the world’s largest producer and the onions that Americans sauté every night for dinner. But they’re far better known for their work in tech and in trying to save the climate. Bill and Melinda Gates, who recently announced they’re getting divorced and are dividing their assets, are deeply invested in American agriculture. The billionaire couple, in less than a decade, have accumulated more than 269,000 acres of farmland across 18 states, more than the entire acreage of New York City. The farmland was purchased through a constellation of companies that all link back to the couple’s investment group, Cascade Investments, based in Kirkland, Washington. (Glaser, 6/8)

Stat: FDA Inaction Is Holding Back 3D Bioprinting Of Transplantable Organs 
Right now, more than 100,000 Americans are waiting for organ transplants. Due to a lack of available kidneys, livers, hearts, and lungs, at least 17 of them die each day. Using 3D bioprinting to create new organs — and personalize them for recipients — could prevent these tragic deaths. Yet inaction at the Food and Drug Administration is impeding the rollout of this technology. (Dan Troy, 6/18)

Newsweek: Why Ableist Language Needs To Change 
As an amputee since the age of four, I am particularly attuned to how commonplace it is to hear ableist language describing everything from economies (a "crippling" shift in the markets), to emotional and mental states ("hobbled" by grief), none of which have much to do with the realities of losing a limb. Words—and how we use them—matter. (Emily Rapp Black, 6/17)

Scientific American: Hidden Black Scientists Proved The Polio Vaccine Worked 
In the summers of the early 1950s, multitudes of American children were stuck in their home. Parents didn’t permit them to play together because, when the weather got warm, society entered a nightmare called polio. Children would eagerly begin their school breaks with a bicycle, scooter or kite and end them in crutches, braces or an iron lung. The disease poliomyelitis, or polio, had been in the medical textbooks for decades. In the summers of the early 20th century, however, this illness grew into an epidemic. The virus behind the disease could infect anyone, but in the U.S., it caused the worst damage among children under five years old, and polio was consequently called infantile paralysis. (Ainissa Ramirez, 6/17)

Stat: Controversial Decision Won't Stop Me From Serving On FDA Advisory Panels
Last week’s controversial decision by the FDA to give aducanumab, Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug, accelerated approval turned the spotlight on the role of FDA advisory committees. News reports highlighted how the committee that advised the FDA on this drug, of which I was a member, voted against approving it. Since the decision, three members of the committee have resigned from it, one of whom recently called for “a new organization to review drug approvals.” (Madhav Thambisetty, 6/17)

CNN: On The ACA, Obama Will Have The Last Laugh  
Once again, the Supreme Court has dismissed a challenge to the Affordable Care Act. The conservative-leaning court ruled Thursday that 18 Republican states (and several individuals) did not have the legal standing to overturn the law. With only Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissenting, supporters of President Barack Obama's health care policy celebrated another victory. (Julian Zelier, 6/17)

Los Angeles Times: The Supreme Court Saves Obamacare Again 
In rejecting yet another in a seemingly endless series of Republican attacks on the Affordable Care Act, a divided Supreme Court did more than just preserve a crucial protection for millions of Americans with preexisting health conditions that make them vulnerable to gouging or exclusion by insurers. It also preserved the notions that people have to be injured in order to sue and that Congress, not the courts, write the laws in this country. Writing for a 7-2 majority Thursday, Justice Stephen G. Breyer held that the two individuals and 18 Republican-controlled states behind the lawsuit hadn’t shown that a change Congress made in the Affordable Care Act in 2017 was responsible for the financial harm they claimed to have suffered. The court ordered the case dismissed. (6/17)

The Atlantic: The Next Major Challenge To The Affordable Care Act
The Supreme Court’s rejection of the latest effort to dismantle the Affordable Care Act does not mark the end of lawsuits over the law’s constitutionality. The next big case has already been filed, and it involves a clash between an obscure constitutional provision and the law’s guarantee of zero-dollar coverage for preventive services. (Nicholas Bagley, 6/18)

CNN: It's Not Only Politics That's Driving The Low Vaccination Rate In The South 
More than half of the adults in the United States have been at least partially vaccinated against Covid-19, a remarkable accomplishment. As it has matured, the US vaccine program has revealed geographic and demographic groups that show either high or low acceptance of the vaccine, leading to a small avalanche of speculation regarding the divergent trends. (Kent Sepkowitz, 6/17)

Bloomberg: Delta Variant Of Covid-19 Demands A Strong Push On Vaccines 
The rise of the dangerous delta variant of the coronavirus gives new urgency to the effort to get people vaccinated. Delta has been spreading phenomenally fast. It’s already the dominant strain in India, the U.K. and Singapore, and it has a foothold in more than 80 countries. While it accounts for only about 10% of U.S. cases of Covid-19 so far, that share is expected to balloon. There’s evidence, too, that the variant may cause more severe disease. Data from the U.K. suggest people who contract this strain are twice as likely to be hospitalized as those who caught a previous form of the coronavirus. (6/18)

USA Today: Dr. Fauci On COVID-19 Origins, Lab Leaks, And A Call With Scientists
In the early days of the growing coronavirus outbreak that would soon become a pandemic, an elite group of international scientists gathered on a conference call to discuss a shocking possibility: The virus looked like it might have been engineered in a laboratory. “I remember it very well,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert at the National Institutes of Health, said in an interview with me on Wednesday. “We decided on the call the situation really needed to be looked into carefully.” (Alison Young, 6/17)

The Baltimore Sun: UMMS And Johns Hopkins Health Leaders: Here’s Why We’re Requiring Vaccination For Staff 
Hospitals and other health care settings are filled with some of the most vulnerable people in society, by nature. Some years ago, as part of an effort to keep patients safer, it became the norm for hospitals and other health care settings to require flu and other common vaccinations for all employees. Some were initially skeptical of this policy, but it’s now widely accepted. Today, most would agree with both the science and the common sense behind hospital vaccination polices: Inexpensive, easy-to-administer and proven vaccines for influenza, measles, tuberculosis and other infectious diseases are the best and easiest way to keep our patients safe. A year and a half into this pandemic, with hundreds of millions of people now vaccinated worldwide and many dozens of clinical trials completed, science and common sense are once again in agreement. It’s clear that COVID vaccination should be required for health care workers. (Kevin W. Sowers and Mohan Suntha, 6/18)