First Edition: April 6, 2022

KHN: Why Black And Hispanic Seniors Are Left With A Less Powerful Flu Vaccine
At Whitman-Walker Health, Dr. David Fessler and his staff administer high-dose influenza vaccine to all HIV-positive and senior patients. Although the vaccine is roughly three times as expensive as standard flu vaccine, it seems to do a better job at protecting those with weakened immune systems — a major focus of the nonprofit’s Washington, D.C., clinics. At the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, meanwhile, Dr. Melissa Martinez runs a drive-thru clinic providing 10,000 influenza vaccines each year for a community made up largely of Black and Hispanic residents. It’s open to all comers, and they all get the standard vaccine. (Allen, 4/6)

KHN: $11M For North Carolina Work-Based Rehab Raises Concerns 
An addiction treatment facility, highly regarded by North Carolina lawmakers, sits in a residential neighborhood here and operates like a village in itself. Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers, better known as TROSA, hosts roughly 400 people a day on a campus with rows of housing units, cafeterias, a full gym, and a barbershop. The program, which began in 1994, is uniquely designed: Treatment, housing, and meals are free to participants. And TROSA doesn’t bill insurance. Instead, residents work for about two years in TROSA’s many businesses, including a moving company, thrift store, and lawn care service. Program leaders say the work helps residents overcome addiction and train for future jobs. Of those who graduate, 96% of individuals remain sober and 91% are employed a year later, the program’s latest report claims. (Pattani and Knopf, 4/6)

KHN: Doctors Trying To Prescribe Abortion Pills Across State Lines Stymied By Legislation 
Soon after Dr. Mai Fleming finished her medical residency in the San Francisco Bay Area, she got to work on her Texas medical license. The family medicine doctor had no intention of moving there but invested nine months to master Texas medical law, submit to background checks, get fingerprinted, and pay hundreds of dollars in licensing fees. It’s a process she has since completed for more than a dozen other states — most recently New Mexico, in February. (Bluth, 4/6)

KHN: The End Of The Covid Emergency Could Mean A Huge Loss Of Health Insurance
If there has been a silver lining to this terrible covid-19 pandemic, it is that the rate of Americans without health insurance dropped to a near-historic low, in response to various federal initiatives connected to the government-declared public health emergency. Now, as the pandemic’s acute phase seemingly draws to an end, millions of low-income and middle-income Americans are at risk of losing health insurance. The United States might see one of the steepest increases in the country’s uninsured rate in years. (Rosenthal, 4/6)

Stat: Biden Administration Ramps Up Long Covid Research Efforts
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced plans to ramp up research into long Covid, following scathing criticism from patients and experts. The White House’s plan includes efforts to improve sluggish enrollment in a major study run by the National Institutes of Health and to create a new research task force to coordinate research into long Covid across federal agencies. Crucial questions about long Covid remain, including exactly how it will be defined, how prevalent it is among people who are infected with Covid-19, and who is most at risk. (Cohrs, 4/5)

The Washington Post: Officials Unveil ‘Long Covid’ Research, Action Plan 
The government will expand a nationwide network of long covid clinics being run through the Department of Veterans Affairs, with officials saying they are already providing new insights on how to care for long covid patients. Federal officials will also launch a new initiative, dubbed the “Health+ project,” to solicit feedback from people living with long covid and use it to shape practices at clinics nationwide. (Diamond and Sellers, 4/5)

AP: Obama's Back — For A Day — In White House Health Bill Push 
With hugs, laughs and good-natured ribbing, Barack Obama on Tuesday returned to the White House for the first time in more than five years to savor the 12th anniversary of his signature health care law and give a boost to President Joe Biden’s efforts to expand it. The Affordable Care Act has survived repeated repeal attempts by Republicans. (Miller, Alonso-Zaldivar and Superville, 4/5)

Roll Call: Obama And Biden Reunite To Tout Signature Health Care Law
Former President Barack Obama returned to the White House on Tuesday for the first time since Jan. 20, 2017, to celebrate how his former vice president, now President Joe Biden, has been able to expand benefits under their signature health care law. Since Biden was inaugurated, Democrats have enjoyed a rare moment where the 2010 health care law is not a political football. The law was hotly contested throughout Obama’s presidency and Republicans spent much of then-President Donald Trump’s administration trying to roll back its protections as insurers left the markets and chaos reigned. (Cohen and Lesniewski, 4/5)

Politico: EPA Moves To Ban Asbestos After Decades Of Failures 
EPA on Tuesday proposed banning nearly all remaining uses of asbestos, a material known to cause lung cancer when inhaled and that still lingers in millions of U.S. homes and schools. The proposal is a landmark moment in the decadeslong effort to end the use of asbestos, a naturally occurring fiber whose heat-resistant features made it a popular choice in products like insulation, drywall, pipe coatings, roofing shingles and vehicle brakes. (Guillen, 4/5)

The Hill: EPA Proposes Ban On Common Type Of Asbestos
Chrysotile asbestos, the most commonly used type of asbestos, is found in car brakes and linings, gaskets and other products. In 1989, the agency tried to ban asbestos, but that was largely overturned in a 1991 court decision. The agency said in a statement that its new decision would “rectify” that ruling. The rule also stands in contrast with a Trump-era rule on asbestos that sought to require federal approval for any manufacture or import of certain products that use asbestos. (Frazin, 4/5)

Oklahoman: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt To Decide On Bill To Make Abortion A Felony
As abortion rights groups rallied at the Oklahoma state Capitol on Tuesday, Republican House lawmakers gave final passage to legislation that would make performing an abortion a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison or fines of up to $100,000. The GOP-backed bill that passed the Senate last year now goes to Gov. Kevin Stitt, who has vowed to sign all anti-abortion bills that come to his desk. Planned Parenthood Great Plains Interim President and CEO Emily Wales said Senate Bill 612 is "clearly unconstitutional." (Forman, 4/5)

Roll Call: Odds Dimming For Quick Passage Of $10B Virus Aid Package 
The week is still young. But prospects for getting a bipartisan supplemental aid package for pandemic response efforts to President Joe Biden's desk before a two-week recess seem increasingly remote. Without a deal on amendments Republicans want to offer, the Senate on Tuesday rejected a procedural motion needed to begin debate on the bill, which would provide $10 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services to buy more therapeutics, vaccines and testing supplies and prepare for future virus variants. (McPherson, Simon and Weiss, 4/5)

The Hill: White House Official: It’s In ‘National Interest’ To Vaccinate World Against COVID-19
White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients on Tuesday said it’s in the U.S.’s “national interest” to vaccinate the world against COVID-19 to protect against potential new variants, days after senators dropped global funding from a coronavirus spending deal. “It is a real disappointment that there’s no global funding in this bill. This virus knows no borders, and it’s in our national interest to vaccinate the world and protect against possible new variants,” Zients said during a White House COVID-19 briefing. (Schnell, 4/5)

Bloomberg: U.S. Owes Pfizer $5 Billion For Covid Pills, Half Of Proposed Aid Package
The Biden administration is on the hook to pay Pfizer Inc. nearly $5 billion for pills it’s already ordered to treat Covid-19, meaning as much as half of a scaled-back pandemic funding bill the Senate is debating is already spoken for, according to officials familiar with the matter. Senators announced a deal Monday to provide $10 billion in new Covid funding, far less than the White House has requested. The true purchasing power of the package will be even less because of commitments the government’s already made, the officials said. (Wingrove, 4/5)

NBC News: Covid Boosters: FDA Advisers To Meet To Discuss What Shots We'll Need Next
Fewer than half of eligible adults have received that first booster shot, and some health experts question whether getting additional doses of the vaccines every few months to protect against mild illness is a practical public health strategy. The all-day meeting Wednesday of the agency’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will try to answer these questions, or at least develop a framework for a long-term booster strategy, according to briefing documents released by the FDA before the meeting. (Lovelace Jr., 4/5)

NBC News: CDC Director Explains Who Needs 2nd Covid Vaccine Booster
The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided more clarity on who should — or perhaps should not — consider getting a second Covid-19 booster vaccine, saying that a recent infection may in fact act as a "natural boost" in immunity. People who have had the two-dose mRNA vaccine series plus one booster don't need a second booster if they recently were infected with the omicron variant of the coronavirus, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told NBC News. (Edwards, 4/5)

The New York Times: The C.D.C. Director Says She ‘Really Would Encourage’ Second Boosters For Older People And Many With Chronic Conditions
Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday that her agency “really would encourage people who are over 50 who have underlying medical conditions and those over the age of 65” to get a second booster shot. Her remarks at a White House briefing were her clearest statement to date on who should get what for most people amounts to a fourth shot against the coronavirus. (LaFraniere, 4/6)

Stat: STAT-Harris Poll: Most Americans Would Get A Covid-19 Booster Shot If Recommended 
As a Food and Drug Administration panel meets Wednesday to sort out the ongoing use of booster shots for Covid-19, a new survey by STAT and The Harris Poll finds six in 10 Americans have already decided they will get another booster if it’s recommended for them. Just under one-quarter of U.S. adults indicated they will only receive a second booster shot if a new variant arises or there is a surge in Covid-19 cases in their area, and 18% have no plans to get a booster at all, according to the survey, which polled 2,028 U.S. adults between March 25 and 27. (Silverman, 4/6)

The New York Times: Israeli Study Says Second Booster Protects Against Omicron Infection But Wanes Fast 
A second booster shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine provides additional short-term protection against Omicron infections and severe illness among older adults, according to a large new study from Israel. But the booster’s effectiveness against infection in particular wanes after just four weeks and almost disappears after eight weeks. Protection against severe illness did not ebb in the six weeks after the extra dose, but the follow-up period was too short to determine whether a second booster provided better long-term protection against severe disease than a single booster. (Anthes, 4/6)

CIDRAP: BA.2 Now Behind 72% Of All US COVID-19 Cases 
The subvariant of the Omicron strain—BA.2—now accounts for 72.2% of all COVID-19 cases in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "There is no evidence BA.2 results in more severe illness, and it is no more likely to evade immune protection," said Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH, during a White House press briefing. "But the subvariant is more transmissible." (Soucheray, 4/5)

The Boston Globe: Levels Of Coronavirus In Eastern Mass. Waste Water Still Rising
The levels of coronavirus detected in Eastern Massachusetts waste water continued to climb in recent days, as concerns persist that the arrival of the Omicron subvariant BA.2 could cause an increase in COVID-19 cases. The levels fell precipitously from heights reached early this year as the Omicron wave peaked, then bottomed out around the beginning of March. They have been rising gradually since, although they are still a small fraction of their peak, according to data from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. (Finucane and Huddle, 4/5)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Coronavirus Cases Rising, But Is It Another Wave?
Coronavirus cases have begun to rise in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco counties, likely a result of the highly contagious Omicron subvariant BA.2, decreased use of masks and waning immunity. The increases are modest, and it’s unclear whether this is a brief hiccup, the beginning of a larger wave of cases or something in between. “I think that it’s possible we might see a modest uptick in the next few weeks due to the fact that we are reducing some of the restrictions, such as indoor mask use,” UCLA epidemiologist Dr. Robert Kim-Farley said. “But I do not anticipate that we would see a major surge at this stage, just because so many people are immune, due to natural infection or vaccination.” (Lin II, 4/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: San Francisco Has Highest COVID Rate As California’s Decline In Cases Stalls
San Francisco now has the highest coronavirus infection rate of any county in California, followed closely by several other Bay Area counties where COVID-19 downward trends have stalled as the highly transmissible BA.2 subvariant extends its dominance. The Bay Area overall is reporting about 700 new cases a day across its nine counties, still reflecting its steep drop since the winter surge that saw a peak of more than 18,000 new daily cases. But the number remains much higher than the 200 reported during last year’s summer lull before the delta variant of the virus took hold. (Vaziri, 4/5)

AP: Judge Grants Class-Action Status To COVID-Sickened Prisoners 
A federal judge has certified a class-action lawsuit in Oregon over state leaders’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic inside its prisons. A group of adults in custody who contracted COVID-19 first sued the state in April 2020, alleging culpability by Gov. Kate Brown, Corrections Department Director Colette Peters and Health Authority Director Patrick Allen, among other state officials. The lawsuit acknowledges Corrections has taken some measures but argues they have not been enough. (4/5)

AP: US Pulls GSK's COVID Drug As Omicron Sibling Dominates Cases 
GlaxoSmithKline’s IV drug for COVID-19 should no longer be used because it is likely ineffective against the omicron subvariant that now accounts for most U.S. cases, federal health regulators said Tuesday. The Food and Drug Administration announced that the company’s antibody drug sotrovimab is no longer authorized to treat patients in any U.S. state or territory. The decision was expected, because the FDA had repeatedly restricted the drug’s use in the Northeast and other regions as the BA.2 version of omicron became dominant. (Perrone, 4/5)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Sped Up Adoption Of New Clinical Guidelines
A survey of 52 US hospitals—mostly academic medical centers—shows the COVID-19 pandemic drastically sped up the rate at which clinicians adopted new clinical treatment guidelines, shortening the duration from years to months. The study was published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (4/5)

Modern Healthcare: HHS Requests Info On Cybersecurity Practices At Health Organizations
The Health and Human Services Department wants input on how healthcare organizations implement security practices for health information privacy as it considers future rules and guidance. A 30-question information request issued Tuesday also solicits feedback on how HHS should define "harm" that results from health privacy violations and how it should decide what types of incidents should result financial compensation to individuals whose information was compromised. HHS has to consider an organization's use of cybersecurity best practices for a year prior to a privacy failure when levying fines for Health Information Portability and Accountability Act violations, as required by a 2021 law. (Goldman, 4/5)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Not As 'Recession-Proof' As Expected, Analysts Say
Healthcare companies are at higher risk of defaulting on their loans than many other industries, according to a new report. The healthcare industry had the highest likelihood to default over the next year at a 4.4% median, first-quarter S&P Global Market Intelligence data comparing U.S. sectors show. That probability was up from 3.3% as of the end of last year, according to S&P's analysis, which is based on the volatility of share prices for public companies and country- and industry-related risks. (Kacik, 4/5)

Axios: Medicare Blockbusters List Prices Have More Than Doubled Since Launch
Two blood thinners that Medicare spent a collective $46 billion on between 2015 and 2020 have more than doubled their list prices since entering the market, according to a new analysis by Patients for Affordable Drugs. List prices don't reflect the rebates negotiated between drug manufacturers and payers, but they are often used to determine Medicare Part D cost sharing — meaning as prices go up, patients pay more out of pocket. (Owens, 4/6)

San Francisco Chronicle: Hospitals Can Be Held Responsible For Sexual Abuse By Employees, Appeals Court Rules
In a victory for abused hospital patients, a state appeals court ruled Tuesday that a hospital can be held responsible for sexual abuse by an employee, and that damage awards for pain and suffering by surviving victims who are 65 and older are not subject to California's $250,000 limit in medical malpractice cases. The Second District Court of Appeal in Ventura upheld a jury’s damage award of $6.75 million to two elderly patients at a psychiatric hospital in Ventura in a suit against the hospital and a mental health worker. The court said the worker was hired despite a history of sexual misconduct, and had sex with both women when he was left alone with them in their rooms. The hospital, the court said, allowed male mental health workers to be alone with female patients for 20 minutes a day, with the door open. (Egelko, 4/5)

The Boston Globe: New Lyme Diagnostic Could Pinpoint Disease Earlier 
The first signs of spring are propelling people to the outdoors. But as locals flee concerns of COVID-19, another disease lurks in the shadows: Lyme. With the tick-borne illness making its annual resurgence in the region, researchers from Tufts University School of Medicine say they have discovered a new way to identify the disease, looking at an antibody generated in response to the infection, that can help people receive more effective treatment. (Bartlett, 4/3)

Press Association: Scientists Discover Microplastics In Live Human Lungs For First Time
Scientists have discovered microplastics in live human lungs for the first time. Researchers from the University of Hull and Hull York Medical School also found microplastics in the deepest section of the lung, which was previously thought to be impossible due to how narrow the airways are. Microplastics have previously been found in human cadaver autopsy samples, but this is the first study to show them in lungs from live people. (Dickinson, 4/6)

The Washington Post: Over A Quarter Of 12-To-19-Year-Olds Have Prediabetes, Research Shows
U.S. residents on the cusp of developing Type 2 diabetes include about 28 percent of youths ages 12 to 19, according to research published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. They have a condition known as prediabetes, which means that the level of sugar (glucose) in their blood is higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed as having full-fledged diabetes. The researchers found that the percentage of youths with prediabetes has more than doubled in recent years, going from just under 12 percent in 1999 to 28 percent by 2018. (Searing, 4/5)

AP: Walgreens Goes To Trial In Florida Lawsuit On Opioids 
Most of the defendants in Florida’s lawsuit over the opioid epidemic have settled for more than $870 million, according to the state attorney general. One remains: Walgreens Co. is not giving up. A jury has been seated in Pasco County, Florida, just north of Tampa, to hear the state’s case against Walgreens, a huge drug store chain with more than 9,000 outlets on streetcorners throughout the country. Opening statements are set for early next week. The Deerfield, Illinois-based company says it will not settle. (Anderson, 4/5)

AP: US Drug Czar Testifies In WVa Lawsuit Against Opioid Makers 
The new White House drug czar has testified that the opioid epidemic got so bad in drug-ravaged West Virginia that the state was having trouble finding foster parents to care for children. Dr. Rahul Gupta was one of the first witnesses whose video deposition was played at a bench trial Tuesday in which several pharmaceutical manufacturers are accused in a lawsuit of contributing to the crisis. (Raby, 4/5)

Port Clinton News Herald: Ohio Could Soon Increase Penalties For Drug Dealing Near Treatment Sites
Ohio lawmakers are set to vote Wednesday afternoon on a bill that would toughen penalties for those who deal drugs near a site offering substance addiction treatment or to addicts undergoing treatment. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Huron, is similar to current Ohio law where felony levels are increased for drug trafficking near schools or juveniles. In many cases, a fourth-degree felony would become a third-degree one. The goal is to fight the ongoing opioid crisis and other addictions by targeting the supplier, especially those who prey on recovering addicts, Gavarone has said. (Wu, 4/6)

The Washington Post: D.C. Council Votes Down Bill Targeting Marijuana 'Gifting' Shops 
The D.C. Council on Tuesday voted against imposing harsh penalties meant to put marijuana “gifting” shops out of business, with opponents of the bill saying they wanted more hearings on the issue. “Gifting” businesses have proliferated, with storefronts selling a product like a T-shirt or pencil that comes with a gift of marijuana — a practice that grew up in the District after recreational marijuana use and possession were legalized in 2014, while legal sales remain prohibited in the city by Congress. (Weil, 4/5)

AP: Minnesota Insulin Safety Net Funds $6M In Supplies In 2021
More than 1,100 Minnesota residents used the state’s insulin safety net program to secure over $6 million worth of the lifesaving drug last year, the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy and the MNsure health insurance exchange said Tuesday. Eligible residents in immediate need of assistance — those who have less than a seven-day supply of insulin and will likely face significant health consequences without it — can use the emergency program to get a 30-day supply right away at their pharmacy and pay no more than a $35 copay. (4/5)

NPR: Oregon Braces For Neighboring Idaho's Abortion Ban
In the wake of Idaho's recent ban on nearly all abortions, Oregon is investing millions in its abortion infrastructure as it prepares to receive an influx of patients seeking the procedure. Barring legal intervention, the Idaho law will take effect April 22 and allows family members of what the law called a "pre-born child" to sue abortion providers for carrying out the procedure after six weeks. Many women are unaware they are pregnant at this early stage. (Riddle, 4/6)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Senate Votes To Fund Pregnancy Groups That Oppose Abortion
Iowa would spend $1 million on nonprofits that counsel pregnant women not to get abortions, under a bill passed Tuesday by the Iowa Senate. Senators voted 32-16 to pass the proposal, Senate File 2381. Every Republican voted in favor. They were joined by two Democrats, Sens. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, and Kevin Kinney, D-Oxford. Every other Democrat voted no. The bill would create a "More Options for Maternal Support" program under the Iowa Department of Human Services, which would receive $1 million to contract with nonprofits that counsel pregnant women to choose adoption or other alternatives to abortion. (Gruber-Miller, 4/5)

The Washington Post: Medical Waste Company Denies Giving Fetuses To Antiabortion Activists 
Antiabortion activists said Tuesday they obtained five fetuses from a medical waste disposal driver who was outside a Washington abortion clinic, an assertion the waste disposal company denies. Plainclothes officers removed the fetuses from a Southeast apartment where one of the activists was staying. D.C. police are still working to determine how the fetuses were obtained and whether any laws were broken. (Boorstein, Hermann and Lang, 4/5)

San Diego Union-Tribune: Surgeon General Discusses Mental Health With Southern California High School Students
Dr. Vivek H. Murthy’s mission as surgeon general is to tell the American people about pressing health issues, but Monday afternoon at a YMCA in the San Diego neighborhood of Mountain View, he came to listen. About 25 students from Lincoln High School and Gompers Preparatory Academy met with Murthy at the Jackie Robinson YMCA, where they shared issues about their own mental health and told him how their lives had been affected by the pandemic. (Warth, 4/5)

AP: Governor Highlights $50M Investment In Behavioral Health 
Idaho Gov. Brad Little and other state officials on Tuesday highlighted one of the state’s largest-ever investments in behavioral health care. The Republican governor in a ceremonial event that included Idaho Supreme Court justices and lawmakers marked the $50 million approved by the Legislature in a series of appropriations bills this year that Little has already signed into law. (Ridler, 4/5)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Legislature Passes Bill To Criminalize Elder Abuse
Iowa would strengthen penalties for abusing Iowans 60 or older and create a new criminal charge of financial exploitation under a bill now headed to Gov. Kim Reynolds' desk. The legislation, a top priority of the AARP and other agencies that represent older Iowans, would increase criminal penalties for assaults and thefts against Iowans 60 or older. It would also create a new criminal charge for "financial exploitation of an older individual" and would additionally create new criminal penalties for "elder abuse," a charge that includes emotional abuse, neglect, isolation and sexual exploitation of older Iowans. (Richardson and Gruber-Miller, 4/5)

AP: Arkansas Health Secretary Resigning For Job With The CDC
Arkansas Health Secretary Dr. Jose Romero, who has led the state’s response to COVID-19 for most of the coronavirus pandemic, announced Tuesday he is resigning to take a job with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Romero said his resignation as the state’s top health official will take effect May 6, and a spokeswoman said he’ll become director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Gov. Asa Hutchinson did not say who would replace Romero as the head of the state health department. (DeMillo, 4/5)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Women's Health Care In US Is Worse Than In Other High-Income Countries
The U.S. health-care system “consistently fails” to meet the basic needs of reproductive-age women, which may partly explain why women are more than three times as likely to die during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth in the United States compared with other high-income countries, according to new research from the Commonwealth Fund. The United States has among the highest maternal mortality rates of high-income countries — a well-documented trend that is even worse among people of color and has accelerated during the pandemic. But a new report by the Commonwealth Fund found that U.S. women of reproductive age also fare worse when it comes to their general health and ability to access care. (Gantz, 4/5)

The Washington Post: CDC Lowers Travel Warnings For Covid In Canada, Jamaica 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is no longer warning Americans to avoid travel to Canada because of the coronavirus. ... Other popular tourist destinations that the CDC lowered from Level 4 to Level 3 risks Monday include Antigua, Argentina, Belize, St. Lucia and Panama. (Sampson, 4/5)

Politico: ‘We See The Storm Coming’: U.S. Struggles To Contain A Deepening Global Food Crisis 
As Russian forces refocus the brunt of their military assault on Ukraine’s food-producing southeast, U.S. officials and lawmakers are struggling to help ward off a deepening crisis both inside Ukraine and for fragile economies around the world already reeling from climate disasters and Covid-19. Russia’s military is pushing further into Ukraine’s wheat fields, which could jeopardize millions of tons of grain set to be harvested in July — threatening sustained shortages in countries across Africa and the Middle East that rely on Ukraine as a major source of their grain and sunflower oil to feed millions of people. The crisis has also contributed to sky-rocketing grain prices, which has made it harder for humanitarian organizations like the United Nations’ World Food Program, to respond; the agency says it needs an additional $16 billion to feed a record 137 million people for the rest of the year. (Lee, 4/5)