CNN: CDC Launches Forecasting Center To Be Like A 'National Weather Service For Infectious Diseases' 
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched its Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics on Tuesday. The center aims to be like the “National Weather Service for infectious diseases,” helping to guide decision-making at all levels. Data-driven weather forecasts help leaders know when to deploy resources to respond to hurricanes and individuals decide whether they need to bring an umbrella with them when they go out. Similarly, the CDC’s new disease forecasting center aims to guide decisions about broad public health needs like developing vaccines or deploying antivirals, and helping individuals decide whether it’s safe for them to go to the movie theater, Dylan George, epidemiologist and director of operations for the new center, said during a call with reporters. (McPhillips, 4/19)

NBC News: CDC Launches Forecasting Center To Warn About Disease Threats
"How do we actually know that we need to start using and developing vaccines? How do we know that we need to deploy different antivirals? How do we know that we need to change our personal behavior when going out to dinner or to a movie? This kind of information that we’re trying to develop in the forecast would be very much similar to that," Dr. Dylan George, the CFA’s director for operations, said in a press call. During the first omicron wave, George added, the CFA gave government leaders "several weeks of advanced notice of the timing of the surge." That influenced policies on boosters, travel restrictions, and Covid testing in schools. (Bendix, 4/19)

AP: CDC Launches New Forecasting Center For Infectious Diseases 
The center is housed at CDC. Its initial $200 million in funding came from the 2021 coronavirus relief package. The center has awarded $21 million to academic institutions to develop modeling and forecasting methods. (Johnson, 4/19)

NPR: Moderna Says Its New 'Bivalent' Vaccine Shows Promise
The pharmaceutical company Moderna announced Tuesday that a new version of the company's COVID-19 vaccine appears to provide stronger, longer-lasting protection against variants of the virus than the original vaccine. Preliminary results from a study testing a vaccine that targets both the original strain of the virus and the beta variant — a so-called "bivalent" vaccine — appears to produce high levels of antibodies for months that can neutralize the virus. "We believe that these results validate our bivalent strategy," said Stéphane Bancel, Moderna's chief executive officer, in a news release. (Stein, 4/19)

The New York Times: Moderna Says Trial Suggests Redesigned Vaccines Protect Against Variants
But the company said it was also testing another version of the vaccine that it expected would do even better, with results expected in late May or early June. The company’s findings, published in a paper without being evaluated by outside scientists, offer hope that the nation will have a better vaccine by the fall, when the coronavirus is considered likely to re-emerge in force. (LaFraniere, 4/19)

NBC News: Moderna Says Redesigned Covid Booster Provides Better Protection
The redesigned shot was tested in a clinical trial of 300 people at 50 micrograms — the same dosage currently given in the existing booster shot. (The first two doses of the Moderna vaccine, called the primary series, are 100 micrograms each.) The shot was also well tolerated, the company said, producing side effects in trial participants similar to those seen in its existing product. Moderna did not say whether they would be submitting the beta-variant bivalent vaccine results to the Food and Drug Administration. The modified booster is currently not available. (Lovelace Jr., 4/19)

Also —

Stat: Moderna Data Yield Hope For Better Covid Boosters, But Highlight Complexity Of Figuring Out How To Give Them
New data from Moderna offer hope that booster shots against Covid-19 could become at least somewhat more effective than they already are. But the data also point to how difficult it could be to determine exactly which Covid shots to give as annual boosters. On Tuesday Moderna released data testing a booster shot that is bivalent, meaning it contains equal amounts of vaccine from two different strains of the virus. This booster, currently known by the code number mRNA-1273.211, contains equal mRNA amounts of ancestral SARS-CoV-2 and spike proteins from the Beta variant of SARS-CoV-2, which originally emerged in South Africa. It does not contain vaccine targeted specifically against the Delta or Omicron variants that caused the most recent waves of Covid-19. (Herper, 4/19)

AP: Feds Will Appeal Mask Ruling Only If Mandate Still Needed 
The Justice Department said Tuesday it will not appeal a federal district judge’s ruling that ended the nation’s federal mask mandate on public transit unless the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes the requirement is still necessary. In a statement released a day after a Florida judge ended the sweeping mandate, which required face coverings on planes and trains and in transit hubs, Justice Department spokesman Anthony Coley said officials believe that the federal mask order was “a valid exercise of the authority Congress has given CDC to protect the public health.” He said it was “an important authority the Department will continue to work to preserve.” (Hollingsworth and Crawford, 4/19)

The New York Times: Biden Administration May Appeal Mask Mandate Ruling 
The Federal District Court judge in Tampa who struck down the mandate — Kathryn Kimball Mizelle — put forward a sharply constrained interpretation of the C.D.C.’s legal authority under the Public Health Service Act of 1944. If her view prevailed, the agency’s hands would be tied in future public health crises. But a ruling by a district court judge is not a binding precedent. Appealing the matter would carry the risk that the court that oversees her — the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta — could issue a ruling that constrains the agency’s future conduct at least in its region, the Southeastern United States. A majority of the judges on that circuit are also Trump appointees. (Stolberg and Savage, 4/19)

And controversy surrounds the judge who struck down the mandate —

NPR: Judge Who Tossed The Mask Mandate Misunderstood 'Sanitation,' Legal Experts Say
When U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle tossed out the federal government's transportation mask mandate on Monday, she relied in part on her interpretation of the term "sanitation." The 10-letter word can be found in the Public Health Service Act, a sprawling 1944 law that gave the federal government certain powers to respond to public health emergencies. The Biden administration relied on a piece of the Public Health Service Act to defend its COVID-19 mask mandate on airplanes and other forms of mass transit. (Hernandez and Simmons-Duffin, 4/19)

CNN: Who Is Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, The Federal Judge Who Blocked Biden's Travel Mask Mandate?
A little-known federal judge appointed by former President Donald Trump found herself in the national spotlight on Monday after striking down the Biden administration’s public transportation mask mandate. US District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle has been serving as a federal judge in Florida for more than a year. Notably, the Senate vote confirming her to the lifetime appointment came in mid-November 2020, after the presidential election. She had been given a “not qualified” rating by the American Bar Association, based on her limited amount of experience post-law school. (Stracqualursi, 4/19)

Tampa Bay Times: 5 Things To Know About Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, Tampa Judge Who Struck Down Travel Mask Mandate
The judge’s decision quickly became political fodder, with commentators left and right alternatively dishing criticism and praise. Social media critics were quick to resurrect the controversy over Mizelle’s 2020 judicial nomination. She was just 33 when appointed as a judge in the Middle District of Florida, which includes the Tampa Bay area. She had eight years of prior experience as a lawyer — judicial nominees typically have more — raising questions about her qualifications for the lifetime appointment. (Sullivan, 4/19)

The Biden administration is struggling to meet its pandemic goals —

AP: Moving Beyond Masks: Biden Toils To Put Pandemic Behind Him
President Joe Biden’s administration has been working for months to prepare people to rethink their personal risk calculations as the nation gets used to the idea of living with an endemic COVID-19. But that measured approach disappeared abruptly when a federal judge on Monday threw out the federal requirement to mask up when using mass transit. The ruling added to the urgency of the messaging challenge as the administration tries to move past the virus in the lead-up to midterm elections. (Miller, 4/19)

The Hill: Biden On Whether People Should Mask On Planes: ‘That’s Up To Them’
President Biden on Tuesday said whether to wear a mask on an airplane should be an individual choice after a federal judge blocked a requirement for passengers on public transportation to be masked. “Should people continue to wear masks on planes?” a reporter asked Biden during a trip to New Hampshire to promote infrastructure projects. "That’s up to them,” the president responded. (Samuels, 4/19)

The Hill: Mask Mandate’s Sudden End Sparks Confusion, Mixed Messages
Biden wore a mask on Air Force One when he traveled to New Hampshire, a striking difference from the videos and images circulating of travelers taking their masks off in airports and on flights. The White House cited CDC guidance.  ... White House press secretary Jen Psaki pushed back on the notion that it is a confusing time for travelers. “I would dispute the notion that people are confused, we are here to alleviate their confusion. The CDC continues to advise and recommend masks on airplanes,” she said on Air Force One on Tuesday. “We’re abiding by the CDC recommendations, the president is, and we would advise all Americans to do that.” (Gangitano, 4/19)

The New York Times: Concerns Rise As Passenger Masks Fall 
Public health experts reacted with dismay to a federal judge’s ruling on Monday that struck down a mask requirement for plane, bus and train passengers, expressing concern that the case would set a precedent that erodes the authority of public health agencies and hampers their ability to respond to health emergencies. ... “If this ruling stands, it could put the American public at great risk,” said Dr. Richard Besser, president and chief executive of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and a former acting director of the C.D.C. He added that his concerns were less to do with the immediate consequences for mask mandates than with “the implications for future crises, of the ability to put in place simple public health measures to keep people safe.” (Rabin, 4/19)

For immunocompromised people and parents of small kids, the announcement hit hard  —

Axios: America's New Mask Divide
America has a new divide. Many joyfully embraced Tuesday as the first full day of new mask freedom. But plenty are sticking with a practice that's now 2+ years old. ... Many parents fear for their kids who are too young for vaccines. "Here we are, trapped in the sky with our 8-month-old unmasked baby," tweeted Brooke Tansley of Nashville, who was on a plane when the rules changed mid-flight. (4/19)

The New York Times: Americans Watch Sweeping Mask Rules Vanish, With Joy And Fear 
In interviews, older Americans, people with compromised immune systems, parents with young children and low-income workers who rely on public transportation worried that they would now be at even greater risk with every bus ride or plane trip. “It’s isolating,” said Catherine Muskin, a lawyer in Ithaca, N.Y., and a mother of a 3-year-old and 20-month-old. She said the end of airline mask mandates had killed any hopes she and her husband had of flying to Florida for a vacation. “We still have our protocols and we still have our rules. But now we’re the exception.” (Healy and Smith, 4/19)

Modern Healthcare: Mask Mandate Ruling Was 'Irresponsibly Abrupt,' Hospital Exec Says
Most health systems and physician groups are not adjusting their mask mandates after a federal judge struck down the law for airlines and public transportation. ... Trinity Health's chief clinical officer, Dr. Daniel Roth, said it jeopardizes the immunocompromised and those who can't be vaccinated. "Trinity Health has followed guidelines from the CDC to ensure the safety of our colleagues, clinicians and patients. Yesterday's court decision removing the requirement for face coverings on public transportation was irresponsibly abrupt and increases risk," he said in an emailed statement. Northwell Health will not change its masking rules in clinical settings, said Dr. David Battinelli, physician-in-chief of the New York City health system. "As a clinical facility, we're not public transportation. We're not the airlines. To me, there's almost no connection." (Kacik, Christ and Abrams, 4/19)

NBC News: Immunocompromised During Covid: How People Can Lower Their Risk Of Illness
As more and more Americans doff their masks, immunocompromised individuals may be concerned about their risk levels among largely unmasked crowds. ... But experts say that while immunocompromised individuals do remain at a greater risk of Covid, the landscape looks much different than it did even a year ago, with a number of tools available to provide the extra protection they need. Now, options including additional vaccine doses and boosters, preventative monoclonal antibodies injections and antiviral drugs may help some immunocompromised people take steps toward resuming a more normal life. (Lovelace Jr. and Syal, 4/20)

Most airlines seem to be relieved —

The New York Times: For Airlines, The Mask Mandate Couldn’t End Soon Enough
For flight attendants, pilots and others in the business, the mask mandate had become a source of frustration even as they acknowledged that it protected them during their extensive exposure to strangers. Flight crews had to enforce proper face coverings — a dangerous job in polarizing times. Some passengers refused to comply and became belligerent; in extreme cases, they even punched, kicked and bloodied flight attendants. “They don’t like being policemen on airplanes,” said David Neeleman, the founder of JetBlue Airways and now chief executive of a new company, Breeze Airways. “It’s not something that they signed up for, and I think it creates more agitation with customers.” (Chokshi and Murphy, 4/19)

The Washington Post: Delta Air Lines Initially Called Covid-19 An ‘Ordinary Seasonal Virus’ As Mask Mandate Was Lifted 
After backlash on social media, Delta Air Lines has walked back a comment falsely claiming that the coronavirus, which continues to account for more than 35,000 new cases per day, has become “an ordinary seasonal virus.” The airline made the comment Monday in an announcement stating that it will no longer require masks — a move several U.S. airlines have made after a federal judge struck down mask mandates in public transportation settings. (Bever, 4/19)

The Washington Post: Keep Wearing Your Mask On Planes, Health Experts Say 
The federal requirement to mask up on planes and other forms of transportation was tossed Monday by a federal judge in Florida. But health experts say those who want to protect themselves from the coronavirus as cases rise again should continue to cover their faces — with the best possible mask. “You can quote me on this: I’m going to continue to wear an N95 mask,” said David Freedman, professor emeritus of infectious diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “No question. You have no idea who’s on a plane.” He added: “I think everyone should.” (Sampson, 4/19)

USA Today: Are HEPA Filters On Airplanes Enough?
Weeks before a federal judge’s ruling led U.S. airlines to drop mask mandates, airline executives argued masks no longer should be required – in part because air filtration systems on planes create “hospital-grade cabin air.” Now that masks are optional on every major U.S. airline, experts said the filters that remove 99% of particles, including viruses, will help keep transmission on flights low but won't eliminate the risk of spreading COVID-19 that masks helped mitigate. (Kenning and Rodriguez, 4/20)

The New York Times: Does My Mask Protect Me Against Covid-19 If Others Don't Wear One? 
On most planes, the cabin air is frequently pumped through high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters that are pretty good at reducing virus transmission. But that doesn’t completely eliminate your risk. In a modeling study published in December 2021, researchers found that passengers sitting in the same row or one row away from someone who had Covid-19 still had a high risk of being infected through direct respiratory droplets. Wearing a mask reduced the risk of infection by 54 percent. (Parker-Pope and Sheikh, 4/19)

The Wall Street Journal: Should You Wear A Mask Anyway As Federal Mandates Are Dropped For Airports, Airlines? 
Although much of the U.S. no longer requires people to wear masks in indoor public settings, there are still scenarios where wearing a mask could be beneficial, public health and infectious disease experts say. Factors that help determine whether you should consider masking include local Covid-19 levels, where you are going and your underlying health conditions. (Abbott, 4/19)

CNN: Is Wearing A Mask While Traveling Still Helpful If You're The Only One?
Face masks offer the most protection against the spread of virus-carrying particles in the air when everyone wears them. But research also suggests that masks can protect the wearer alone, by acting as a barrier between particles and their nose and mouth. (Howard, 4/19)

AP: EXPLAINER: What Happens In The Post-Mask World Of Travel? 
Air filtration on planes is generally excellent, but boarding and exiting a plane can put people close together in spaces with poor ventilation, said Dr. Babak Javid, a physician-scientist at the University of California, San Francisco. The risk on other forms of transportation varies. Dr. David Dowdy, an infectious-disease epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said planes can carry the virus from place to place, but that we should be focusing more on big indoor events such as concerts and sporting events — even large weddings — where people get together and talk, shout and sing. (Koenig, 4/19)

AP: Disney World: Face Masks Optional For All Areas Of Resort
Walt Disney World has lifted the last of its mask requirements, meaning face coverings will be optional for visitors at all locations on the central Florida Disney property. The rule change was posted Tuesday on Disney’s website. Masks are still recommended, though not required, for guests who are not fully vaccinated in indoor locations and enclosed transportation. (4/19)

And in school mask updates —

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: MPS Reinstates Mask Requirement After Two Days Of Optional Policy
Milwaukee Public Schools announced Tuesday night that masks would again be required beginning Wednesday, after just one school-day of a mask-optional policy in the district. MPS Superintendent Keith Posley had announced in March that masks would no longer be required for staff and students beginning Monday. Students had the day off Monday but had a day of mask-optional school Tuesday. In a message to families Tuesday night, the district noted the mask requirement would be back in place Wednesday due to COVID spread in the city. (Linnane, 4/19)

AP: Hawaii Students Must Wear Masks As Same Rule For Travel Ends
Hawaii public school students must continue wearing masks in classrooms despite state officials lifting the same rules for airports and public transportation following Monday’s federal judge decision to remove mask requirements on U.S. flights. Masks are no longer required in Hawaii airports, on city buses or in handicapped vans, but all public students will be required to wear masks through the end of the school year, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Tuesday. (4/19)

Stateline: Parents Say Mask-Optional Policies Leave Out High-Risk Students
After South Carolina banned schools last spring from mandating masks, Amanda McDougald Scott removed her immunocompromised 5-year-old son from the Greenville County School District and enrolled him in a private eschool. But McDougald Scott felt strongly that public schools should be able to require masks to protect children with disabilities. So she joined eight other parents and two advocacy organizations in August in suing GOP Gov. Henry McMaster, state officials and seven other school districts over a state budget provision that prevented school districts from using state funds to impose mask mandates. After a legal battle, a federal appeals court in January allowed the provision to stand, in a victory for the state officials. (Wright, 4/19)

NBC News: New Omicron BA.2 Subvariant Is Gaining A Foothold In The U.S., CDC Finds
Another omicron subvariant is gaining traction in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday. The subvariant, called BA.2.12.1, is an offshoot of the BA.2 version of omicron. While BA.2 remains the dominant variant in the U.S., BA.2.12.1 now accounts for roughly 1 in 5 new cases nationwide. The majority of cases in the U.S. — around 75 percent — are still caused by BA.2., which has been the country's dominant variant since late March. But BA.2.12.1, along with another version of omicron, called BA.2.12, is said to be responsible for the recent spike in Covid cases seen in upstate New York, the State Department of Health said last week. (Lovelace Jr., 4/19)

Stat: Omicron Coronavirus Variant Splinters Into Fast-Spreading Lineages
Scientists around the world are discovering and tracking newer forms of the Omicron coronavirus variant, showing how even when a strain becomes globally dominant, it continues to evolve and can splinter into different lineages. Case in point: Updated data released Tuesday showed that a burgeoning form of Omicron, called BA.2.12.1 —  itself a sublineage of the BA.2 branch of Omicron — now accounts for nearly one in five infections in the United States. It’s eating into the prevalence of the ancestral BA.2, highlighting the emergent virus’s transmission advantage over its parent. BA.2 now accounts for about 74% of cases, while the remaining 6% or so are from the BA.1 branch of Omicron, the first form of the variant that took over globally and whose prevalence has been falling as BA.2 became dominant. (Joseph, 4/19)

CNN: New Versions Of Omicron Variant Make Gains Against BA.2
Arguably the most successful version of the Omicron coronavirus variant to date has been BA.2 – but it hasn’t been resting on its laurels. BA.2 has been picking up mutations, sometimes shifting into sleeker and, incredibly, even faster versions of itself. Global variant trackers have found 21 viral offspring associated with BA.2. Most of these look like underachievers, with mutations of little consequence. But two of these offshoots – BA.2.12.1 and BA.2.12 – have been fueling a rise in Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations in central New York state. And one of them, BA.2.12.1, is outpacing BA.2 in other regions, too. (Goodman, 4/19)

The Boston Globe: CDC Estimates New Omicron Version Accounts For 20 Percent Of New England COVID-19 Cases
A new version of the Omicron coronavirus variant now accounts for 20 percent of COVID-19 cases in New England, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated Tuesday. But experts say it’s too soon to tell what the impact will be. The new subvariant, BA.2.12.1, was in the news after it was spotted along with another new subvariant in New York and blamed last week by officials there for pushing up cases in the central part of the state. The original Omicron variant BA.1 caused a terrifying surge that peaked early this year in the United States. Cases have plummeted since then, though they recently turned up again as the more contagious BA.2 subvariant has arrived. (Finucane, 4/19)

In news about omicron's effect on children —

Axios: CDC: 87% Of Children Hospitalized During U.S. Omicron Surge Unvaccinated
Most children from 5 to 11 years old hospitalized with COVID-19 during the U.S. surge driven by the Omicron variant were unvaccinated, per a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study published Tuesday. The study of children hospitalized in the U.S. from Dec. 19 to Feb. 28 found the hospitalization rate was 2.1 times higher for those unvaccinated than their vaccinated peers. (Falconer, 4/19)

The Washington Post: Getting Covid-19 Over 50 Increases The Risk Of Getting Shingles 
People 50 and older who have had a mild case of covid-19 are 15 percent more likely to develop shingles (herpes zoster) within six month than are those who have not been infected by the coronavirus, according to research published in the journal Open Forum Infectious Diseases. The risk, however, was found to be even greater for older people who were hospitalized because of a more severe covid case, making them 21 percent more likely to develop shingles than those who did not have covid. (Searing, 4/19)

And more on the spread of covid —

Columbus Dispatch: COVID Rising In Ohio: What You Need To Know About The State Of The Pandemic
Ohioans have enjoyed something of a COVID-19 lull for the last few months, but cases are already on the rise again throughout the state. Cases reported to the Ohio Department of Health have increased nearly 55% in the last three weeks from 3,103 the week of March 31 to 4,808 last week. While that's far lower than the 32,487 reported at the height of the winter surge Jan. 3, it's still something people "need to watch," said Dr. Joe Gastaldo, medical director of infectious diseases at OhioHealth. (Filby, 4/19)

St. Louis Public Radio: St. Louis, St. Louis County Release Long-Term Coronavirus Plan 
Health officials in St. Louis and St. Louis County have concluded that the coronavirus will continue to pose a threat to people in the region. To cope with the persistent health risk, they have released “Living With COVID-19," a plan for people, businesses and government agencies. The plan encourages many now-familiar strategies. It calls for public health departments to provide equitable vaccine distribution and testing, monitor outbreaks and collect and analyze case and hospitalization data. It also encourages businesses to offer sick leave for employees when they test positive and for individuals to stay up to date with recommended vaccine doses and to get tested as soon as symptoms occur. (Fentem, 4/19)

CIDRAP: Drugs For Chronic Conditions Tied To Lower Risk Of COVID-19, Poor Outcomes
Use of the common maintenance drugs angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs), warfarin, statins, direct-factor Xa inhibitors, and P2Y12 inhibitors was tied to lower risk of COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, and death, a large US National Institutes of Health (NIH) study suggests. (4/19)

Stat: 6 Covid Mysteries Experts Hope To Unravel 
For a formidable adversary with plenty of secrets up its sleeve, the coronavirus presented one bright bull’s-eye for the world’s response. Scientists, in record time, developed vaccines based on the virus’s spike protein that in turn have saved millions of lives. Yet more than two years after SARS-CoV-2 appeared, as documented deaths in the U.S. near 1 million and estimated global deaths reach as high as 18 million, there are still many mysteries about the virus and the pandemic it caused. They range from the technical — what role do autoantibodies play in long Covid? Can a pan-coronavirus vaccine actually be developed? — to the philosophical, such as how can we rebuild trust in our institutions and each other? Debate still festers, too, over the virus’s origins, despite recent studies adding evidence that it spilled over from wildlife. (4/19)

AP: Lawsuit: Hospital Director Fired After Virus Patient Concern 
A former director at a West Virginia hospital has filed a lawsuit alleging that he was fired after he raised concerns about the safety of patients who were on ventilators and receiving other respiratory care services during a surge of COVID-19 cases. Mark Mustard was fired as director of cardiopulmonary and therapy services at Princeton Community Hospital in September 2021. His departure from the West Virginia University Medicine affiliate came amid the surging delta COVID-9 variant “at a time when respiratory care was crucial to the community,” according to a lawsuit filed last week in Mercer County Circuit Court. (Willingham, 4/19)

In news about long covid —

CIDRAP: Global Data Reveal Half May Have Long COVID 4 Months On 
Worldwide, 49% of COVID-19 survivors reported persistent symptoms 4 months after diagnosis, estimates a meta-analysis of 31 studies published late last week in The Journal of Infectious Diseases. University of Michigan researchers, who conducted a systematic review on Jul 5, 2021, also found the prevalence of long COVID at 1 month at 37%, while it was 25% at 2 months and 32% at 3 months. Fifty studies were identified in the review, and 41 were included in a quantitative synthesis, and 31 reporting overall prevalence were meta-analyzed. (Van Beusekom, 4/18)

The Washington Post: Woman’s Medical Odyssey Shows How The System Fails Long-Haul Patients
Two years, three bouts of covid and 11 doctors later, no one seems to know why Lindsay Polega is still so ill. She’s only 28 years old and was the picture of health before her infections. Polega, who graduated from law school last year, is now suffering from chest pain, hypertensive spikes, hand numbness and numerous other symptoms. (Cha, 4/18)

AP: Ohio Judge Again Blocks Abortion Law That Threatened Clinics 
A judge has blocked early enforcement of an Ohio abortion law signed in December that included additional licensing requirements challenged by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood as unnecessarily onerous. Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Alison Hatheway’s ruling Friday blocked restrictions imposed on two southwest Ohio clinics by the Ohio Department of Health. (4/19)

Cleveland.com: For Second Time, Ohio Judge Halts Law Aimed At Shuttering Last Dayton, Cincinnati Abortion Clinics
Friday’s order marked Hatheway’s second block on the law. On March 2, she issued a temporary restraining order against its enforcement. Temporary restraining orders generally only last for a couple of weeks, but in this case, Hatheway set it until Friday. The state had agreed to the extra time, so it could work on its defense, said Jessie Hill, an attorney working with the ACLU of Ohio to fight the law. Then on Friday, she granted the preliminary injunction through June 21, Hill said. Between now and June 21, the clinics will work to try to comply with the law, Hill said. (Hancock, 4/15)

In abortion news from Texas —

The Texas Tribune: Former State Sen. Wendy Davis Challenges Texas Abortion Law In Court
Former Texas State Sen. Wendy Davis, best known for her 13-hour filibuster of a 2013 abortion bill, has filed a federal lawsuit challenging Texas’ recent abortion law. The suit claims the law is “blatantly unconstitutional” and written to “make a mockery of the federal courts.” The law, which went into effect in September and empowers private citizens to bring civil lawsuits against anyone who “aids or abets” in an abortion after fetal cardiac activity is detected, has led abortion clinics to stop providing the procedure after about six weeks of pregnancy. (Klibanoff, 4/19)

Dallas Morning News: Former State Sen. Wendy Davis Files Federal Suit Challenging Texas Abortion Law As Unconstitutional
“We are asking the courts today to stop the unconstitutional harassment of abortion funds by confirming SB 8 cannot be used to silence donors with bogus threats,” Davis said in a statement. SB 8 has survived every legal challenge since it was enacted, and has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. Most recently, the Texas Supreme Court sent the case back to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals after certifying a question on state law, whether or not the law allowed state licensing officials to reprimand providers who violate the law. The state’s high court decided that officials could not revoke licenses because they had no enforcement power under the law, which is enforced through private citizens. The ruling effectively threw out abortion providers’ challenge to the law. (Hollers, 4/19)

KHN: Abortion Clinic On Texas-Mexico Border Faces Unique Legal And Cultural Challenges 
Veronica Hernandez, manager of Whole Woman’s Health of McAllen, has long worried about the patients she sees walk in through the front door. Now, though, her concern is focused on those she doesn’t see. A Texas law that went into effect in September outlaws abortions after cardiac activity is detected in an embryo, usually at six weeks of pregnancy, and is considered the nation’s most restrictive abortion law. The law, which the Supreme Court has so far refused to block, makes no exception for victims of rape or incest and does not call on public officials to enforce it. Instead, it allows private citizens and groups to sue anyone who has provided an abortion or aided someone seeking an abortion in Texas. If the private citizens win the case, they are entitled to damages of at least $10,000. (DeGuzman, 4/20)

In abortion updates from Utah and Connecticut —

Salt Lake Tribune: Proposal To Change Utah GOP Platform On Abortion Eliminates Language On Exceptions For Rape, Incest And Preserving Life Of The Mother
Amid the campaigning and politicking at the Utah Republican State Convention on Saturday, delegates will also consider a change to the party platform that takes a much harder line on abortion. Currently, the “Right to Life” plank reads, “We strongly oppose abortion, except to preserve the life of the mother or in cases of rape or incest.” The proposed change would replace the exceptions with the phrase “and encourage adoption.” Weber County Republican Delegate Bob McEntee believes the proposed change helps reframe the party’s position to focus on other available options than terminating a pregnancy. “I want people to understand that there’s a long line of people that want to adopt a baby. However hard it might be if they get through that pregnancy and give that child up for adoption, I think that would be a better solution,” McEntee said. (Schott, 4/19)

AP: Connecticut House Passes Bill To Protect Abortion Providers
Connecticut lawmakers advanced legislation Tuesday evening that abortion rights advocates say is needed to protect in-state medical providers from legal action, as well as patients who travel to Connecticut to terminate a pregnancy and those who help them. It comes amid new abortion restrictions being enacted in a growing number of conservative states. The bill cleared the House of Representatives by a bipartisan vote of 87-60. It now awaits action in the Senate. (Haigh, 4/19)

In related news from California —

AP: California Bill Aims To Stop Pregnancy Loss Prosecutions
Adora Perez spent four years in prison for the death of her stillborn child after prosecutors in California’s Central Valley charged her with murder for using drugs during her pregnancy. Tuesday, California lawmakers advanced a bill that would let people like Perez sue prosecutors for charging them with those crimes — crimes that the state’s Attorney General has said do not exist under state law. (Beam, 4/20)

NBC New York: Cancer Cluster Probe at NJ HS Underway After 100+ Diagnosed With Brain Tumors
There are growing concerns over a medical mystery at a New Jersey high school following dozens of diagnoses of brain tumors dating back decades. Every inch of Colonia High School -- from buildings to fields -- is being tested for radiation to determine if there is a link between the school and the number of cancer cases diagnosed amongst former students and staff. Al Lupiano, a graduate of the high school, believes there's a link between the school and brain tumors diagnosed in 108 people over a period of three decades, ending in the early 2000s. (Thompson, 4/18)

Fox News: New Jersey Township Investigating Mysterious 'Time Cohort' Cancer Cluster That May Be Linked To High School
The Township of Woodbridge is investigating a medical mystery of more than 100 cases of brain tumors linked to alumni and staff at Colonia High School in Woodbridge, N.J. that is concerning for a "cancer cluster," according to multiple reports. "A cancer cluster is defined as a greater-than-expected number of cancer cases that occurs within a group of people in a geographic area over a period of time," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Sudhakar, 4/19)

In news about the opioid crisis —

Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Gov. Tate Reeves Signs Laws Targeting Fentanyl Dealers Rising Deaths
Like the rest of the country, Mississippi has seen an alarming increase in the number of fentanyl-related overdose deaths during the pandemic. It's a growing public health crisis that has pushed lawmakers in the state to pass legislation imposing stronger penalties on drug distributors linked to drug overdose deaths. On Tuesday, April 19, Gov. Tate Reeves signed HB 607– better known as Parker's Law. The measure specifically targets the sale of fentanyl and imposed a minimum of 20 years to life in prison on drug dealers connected to overdose deaths resulting from the transaction. (Clark, 4/20)

ABC News: Americans Suffer Deadly Fentanyl Overdoses In Record Numbers 
In the first 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, a record number of Americans died from drug overdoses. Although months of data is still incomplete, statistics show that most of the deaths involve the potent drug fentanyl. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. In the new series “Poisoned,” which explores the devastation caused by fentanyl, ABC News Live examines how many parents are learning the deadly reality of the drug only after their children have suffered a fatal overdose. (Tienabeso, Delawala, Luna and Yamada, 4/19)

The Hill: Alabama Reaches $276M Settlement In Opioid Cases 
Alabama reached a $276 million settlement agreement with Johnson & Johnson, McKesson and Endo Pharmaceutical for their role in the opioid epidemic, the state’s attorney general announced on Tuesday. Under the agreement, Johnson & Johnson will pay $70.3 million to the state this year, while McKesson will pay out $141 million over nine years. Endo will pay $25 million this year. A settlement agreement does not mean an admission of guilt. (Dress, 4/19)

In other public health news —

San Francisco Chronicle: Study: Black Students In Racially Segregated Schools More Likely To Have Alcohol And Behavioral Problems
Black students who attend racially segregated schools are more likely to drink alcohol and have other behavioral problems than their peers, according to a new UCSF study. The findings offer some of the first evidence that the de facto segregation in schools, largely tied to neighborhood demographics, which is common across the Bay Area, leads to significant health and other issues for Black students, and especially Black girls. (Tucker, 4/19)

Billings Gazette: In Need Of A Kidney, Worden Woman Seeks Donor On Busy Streets
Drivers barreling down Grand Avenue in Billings may have noticed a lime green sign emblazoned with an unusual request. Propped up against the hatchback of a Honda Odyssey, block letters spell out “need kidney donor. Please help” followed by a name and phone number. From inside the van, Jean “Chris” Coats, 67, sat surrounded by binders filled with kidney transplant information and homeschooling workbooks. On Monday, she taught her grandson, who has special needs, from inside her van while she waited for someone to respond to her plea. Coats has a genetic disorder, called polycystic kidney disease (PKD) that has caused clusters of cysts to develop in her kidneys. All her life she has tried to carefully manage her diet and lifestyle, making major life decisions with PKD in mind. (Schabacker, 4/19)

AP: 'You Inhaled It': Man Inhales Drill Bit During Dental Visit 
A routine trip to the dentist was anything but normal — after an Illinois man inhaled the dentist's drill bit and had to go to the hospital to get it removed last month. Tom Jozsi, 60, told WISN-TV that he was at the dentist getting his tooth filled when he was told he swallowed a tool. ... Dr. Abdul Alraiyes, at Aurora Medical Center-Kenosha in Wisconsin, said the bit was so deep that normal scopes couldn’t reach it. Jozsi said he was told that if it couldn't be taken out, part of his lung would have to be removed. Alraiyes and his medical team decided to try a newer device to remove the object — one that's designed for early detection of cancer. (4/19)

KFOR: Mysterious Illness Causing Liver Damage In Alabama Kids
Since November 2021, the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH), in collaboration with pediatric healthcare providers including hospitals that treat children and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has been investigating an increase in hepatitis in young children. ... According to Dr. Wes Stubblefield with the Alabama Department of Public Health, The children tested positive for adenovirus, a common virus that causes cold-like symptoms. Each of the Alabama children is younger than 6-years-old but each had similar symptoms. (Valdez, 4/19)

AP: Puzzling Outbreak Of Liver Disease In Kids Spreads To EU, US 
Health officials say they have detected more cases of a mysterious liver disease in children that was first identified in Britain, with new infections spreading to Europe and the U.S. ... U.S. officials have spotted nine cases in Alabama in children aged 1 to 6. (Cheng, 4/19)

In news from California —

San Francisco Chronicle: California Cities And Counties Can Sue Oil Companies In State Court, Federal Appeals Court Rules
Local governments in California can proceed in state court with lawsuits against major oil companies for contributing to climate change by selling fossil fuel products and allegedly deceiving the public about their harmful effects, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. The suits, filed in 2017, seek substantial damages from more than 30 companies that profit from products contributing to rises in temperatures and sea levels, which the cities and counties say are forcing them to spend more on sea walls and other protections. The plaintiffs are San Mateo, Marin and Santa Cruz counties and the cities of Richmond, Santa Cruz and Imperial Beach (San Diego County). (Egelko, 4/19)

Los Angeles Times: Opposition Mounts Against Newsom's Plan For Court-Ordered Treatment Of Homeless People
Six weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled a far-reaching effort to push more people into court-ordered treatment for severe mental illness and addiction, homeless advocates are calling it legally misguided and immoral as the proposal’s first public hearing at the state Capitol has been delayed. More than three dozen organizations and individuals, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Disability Rights California and the Western Center on Law and Poverty, signed an April 12 opposition letter raising serious concerns with Assembly Bill 2830, one of two nearly identical measures moving through the Legislature to implement Newsom’s Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment Court. The groups often have significant sway among liberal legislative Democrats, the kind of influence that could hinder Newsom’s hopes for a new law to be in place by July 1. (Wiley, 4/19)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. County Mental Health Head Resigning Due To 'Health Scare'
Dr. Jonathan Sherin, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, is resigning effective July 1 because of his health, he said in a letter to staffers. Sherin, who started his post at the nation’s largest county mental health system in 2016, called it “by far the most difficult decision of my career.” “I have encouraged you to always take care of yourselves and your loved ones,” he said in his letter to staff. “Following a serious health scare of my own recently and weeks of subsequent soul searching, I am taking my own advice and stepping down ... so that I can focus properly on my own wellbeing and the wellbeing of my family.” (Cosgrove, 4/19)

In other health news from across the U.S. —

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Sisolak Pledges $20M To Open Psychiatric ERs
Gov. Steve Sisolak and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on Tuesday pledged millions of federal dollars to help fund psychiatric emergency rooms in Nevada and a three-digit suicide lifeline. The funding was announced during the governor’s summit for Nevada health care providers, which his office said drew more than 700 participants. During the summit’s keynote address, the governor pledged $20 million in pandemic American Rescue Plan Act funds to open so-called crisis stabilization centers across the state that will function essentially as psychiatric ERs. (Hynes, 4/19)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Denise Johnson Becoming Pa. Acting Health Secretary After Keara Klinepeter Departs
Acting Pennsylvania Health Secretary Keara Klinepeter will step down Friday and be replaced by Physician General Denise Johnson, Gov. Tom Wolf announced. Johnson, an obstetrician who became physician general in March 2021, will be the fourth person to head the Pennsylvania Department of Health since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Klinepeter is leaving the position ahead of the birth of her first child, due in June, said a Department of Health spokesperson. (McDaniel, 4/19)

Anchorage Daily News: Dunleavy Names State Attorney As Alaska’s Top Alcohol And Marijuana Regulator
Gov. Mike Dunleavy has named Joan Wilson to be the head of the Alaska Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office. For the past four years, Wilson has been AMCO’s attorney, advising both the agency and the state’s alcohol and marijuana boards on a variety of legal issues. Wilson will replace the current director, Glen Klinkhart, who is leaving the agency for a position with the Alaska Department of Revenue. She will be AMCO’s third director since 2019 and its fifth since Alaska legalized recreational marijuana consumption in 2014. (The latter figure includes an interim director who served for six months.) (Brooks, 4/19)

Houston Chronicle: Texas State Troopers Begin Mandatory Weight Loss Program
Hundreds of Texas state troopers will need to shrink their waistlines by December or face discipline from the Department of Public Safety, according to DPS documents obtained by the Dallas Morning News. The department wants its 4,000 officers to maintain "command presence" by keeping waistlines below 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women. Those who exceed the threshold are required to start recording and sharing their weight loss with the department. (Zong, 4/19)

Fox News: COVID-19 Scared Patients Out Of Hospitals, Bringing On Health Neglect And Extreme Backlogs
Doctors across the country are now seeing more patients who chose to avoid hospitals during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. They say this is causing a backlog of patients, many of whom are showing more serious health issues due to the lack of care during that period. Among them is Nalinthip Fetters, who recently found out she had a hole in her heart. She was supposed to get regular checkups but she, like many others, had steered clear of the hospital. "The pandemic happened and I just stopped. I didn’t want to deal with it because it was, like, COVID was going around," Fetters said. "I was so scared." (Addison, 4/19)

In other news —

San Francisco Chronicle: Sutter Hospital Chain Locking Out Nurses Who Staged One-Day Strike
Sutter Health has locked out thousands of nurses across Northern California who staged a one-day strike at 18 facilities this week, and said it will bar them from returning to work until Saturday morning. The action came a day after 8,000 Sutter health care workers walked off the job Monday amid stalled contract negotiations, prompting Sutter to postpone some patient procedures and hire temporary replacement workers. The hospital chain said Tuesday that it had guaranteed five days of work for the replacement workers “amid the uncertainty of a widespread work stoppage.” (Asimov, 4/19)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Industry Hit With Growing Number Of Retirement Plan Suits
Health insurance and hospital employees are filing more lawsuits against their employers over alleged failures to effectively manage their retirement accounts. Workers have filed 25 complaints against their employers this year, with at least 11 targeting the healthcare industry, including companies like Centene Corp., DaVita Inc. and Boston Children's Hospital, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The total has already exceeded the nine retirement benefits cases workers filed against healthcare companies in 2021, and is poised to beat 2020's record of 33 cases filed against healthcare industry employers, said Chantel Sheaks, the chamber's vice president of retirement policy. "It's not if, it's when," she said. (Tepper, 4/19)

Modern Healthcare: Primary Care Investment Could Improve Outcomes, Lower Costs 
Investing in primary care as a preventative measure is associated with improved medical care quality, fewer hospital visits and lower spending overall, a study has found. If all California providers spent as much on primary care as the highest investing health systems, they could avoid 25,000 acute hospital stays and 89,000 emergency department visits while saving $2.4 billion in healthcare spending a year, according to a study funded by the California Health Care Foundation, Covered California and the Milbank Memorial Fund. (Devereaux, 4/19)

Modern Healthcare: 5 Ways COVID-19 Shows Up In CMS' Proposed Hospital Pay Rule
After more than two years of living with the COVID-19 pandemic and with cases on the rise again, the virus continues to dictate hospital payment proposals for fiscal 2023. Here's a look at how at how four ideas in the proposed Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System rule were shaped by the pandemic, and one that hospital trade groups think ought to be: 1. CMS proposed returning to its typical practice of using the most recent available data to set hospital rates. CMS used 2019 data for 2022 rates when 2020 data was significantly impacted by the virus, believing that cases would decrease in 2022 to the point where pre-COVID-19 data would be more useful for rate-setting. But COVID-19 still hasn't gone away, and CMS said using 2021 claims and 2020 cost data with some modifications seems appropriate since Medicare patients will likely continue to be hospitalized with COVID-19 in 2023. (Goldman, 4/19)

Modern Healthcare: Kaiser Permanente, Cigna Ink Network, Pharmacy Services Agreement
Kaiser Permanente has negotiated its first partnership to use a rival insurer's commercial network, beginning in August. Under the five-year agreement announced Tuesday, Kaiser's more than 9 million members seeking emergency care while traveling outside the eight states served by the Oakland, California-based system can visit providers contracted with Cigna. Kaiser members will be responsible for the standard cost-sharing associated with their plan rather than paying out-of-network benefits. When Kaiser patients visit Cigna providers, their bills will be routed through Cigna's Evernorth healthcare services division, a spokesperson said. The deal is intended to lower patient costs, streamline administrative services and increase healthcare access. (Tepper, 4/19)

Des Moines Register: Des Moines-Based MercyOne Hospital To Be Taken Over By Trinity Health
Nonprofit Catholic health care organization Trinity Health plans to acquire all facilities and assets of Iowa-based MercyOne Health System, a move expected to be completed in summer 2022. During a conference call announcing the move Tuesday, Mike Slubowski, president and CEO of Trinity Health, said Iowa will now become the second largest regional health system in his company's portfolio. The Livonia, Michigan-based health care provider operates in 25 states and generates a "little over $20 billion in revenues." (Lane, 4/19)

Also —

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Atlanta Doctor Builds ‘Star Wars’ X-Wing Starfighter To Inspire Kids, Raise Money For Ukraine
In 2016, Atlanta doctor Akaki Lekiachvili had a vision to encourage kids to get into the sciences: build a “Star Wars” X-wing starfighter. But not just a small model. Those are available at Hobby Lobby and in Lego form. Lekiachvili, who works at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, decided to create something that was much closer to life size. In fact, he would have loved to have built one to scale but it wouldn’t fit in his garage. So he opted instead for two-thirds actual size. The recently completed X-wing starfighter is still an impressive 26 feet long and 23 feet wide with four microcomputers controlling various functions including a cockpit with cameras, sounds of lasers blasting and the voices of R2D2 and Obi-Wan Kenobi. (Ho, 4/19)

Bloomberg: Alzheimer’s Trials Exclude Black Patients At ‘Astonishing’ Rate
Black people are about twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease as White people, but for years the pharmaceutical industry has mostly left them out of trials intended to prove new drugs are safe and effective. Brian Van Buren, a 71-year-old retired flight attendant, knows what that feels like. He’s been living with Alzheimer’s since 2015. Over the years he has tried to join numerous trials, but he says he’s been turned down every time. In some cases he’s been told his other health issues—he suffers from diabetes, hypertension, and sleep apnea—rule him out. At other times, he says, he was turned away for not having a nearby partner or caregiver. (Langreth and Campbell, 4/19)

In other research and biotech developments —

The Boston Globe: In Nation's Biotech Hub, Layoffs, Closures, And Mergers Are Expected
Based on the unrelenting demand for more lab space in the Boston area, a boom in the region’s massive biotech cluster continues unabated. But the stock market paints a different picture of an industry that is a linchpin of the Massachusetts economy. For more than a year, U.S. biotech stocks have been down overall, some by up to 80% or 90%. Pressure from investors has been especially intense for small- and medium-size companies that don’t yet have products on the market and are burning through cash in a race to commercialize their discoveries. Some, including local firms, have resorted to layoffs as they run low on funding, and industry leaders say more job cuts are likely, along with mergers and bankruptcies. (Cross, 4/19)

Stat: What Counts As A Breakthrough? 8 Insights On The FDA’s Approach To Medical Devices 
The word breakthrough carries a kind of weight: It’s a dramatic step forward, a critical advance in science or technology. But in the context of the Food and Drug Administration’s breakthrough devices program, the definition is far fuzzier. The agency doesn’t release the names of breakthrough-designated devices before they’ve reached the market, nor does it spell out why products earn the status. But STAT has gleaned new insights into how the agency determines what makes the cut as part of an investigation built on hundreds of public documents and interviews with dozens of companies, regulatory experts, and researchers. (Palmer and Aguilar, 4/20)

Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Students Got A Chance To Try Robotic Surgery — Here’s How They Surprised The Pros
As sales representatives watched students at Lone Peak High School experiment with robotic surgical devices, they were astounded by how naturally the kids handled the high-tech machinery. The da Vinci XI robotic-assisted surgical systems, which are used for surgeries in American Fork Hospital, include a training game that keeps track of a user’s score. The sales representatives consistently score in the mid-90s on the game, but several Lone Peak students scored a 99 out of 100 the first time they touched the equipment. “Honestly, I think the amount of video games these kids play probably helps,” said anatomy teacher Matt Paskett. “I think they grasp how cool it is that when the doctors are in the chest cavity or abdominal cavity of a patient, they can twist and move these instruments with such precision.” (Sanders, 4/19)

KHN: Heartbeat-Tracking Technology Raises Patients’ And Doctors’ Worries
If someone’s heart skips a beat, tech companies want to let them know about it. Gadget firms — starting with Apple and now Fitbit, which is owned by Google — are selling wearable devices that check heartbeat rhythms and alert users when something is out of sync. ... Still, although the gadgets are a technical achievement, some cardiologists say the information the devices produce isn’t always useful. Notifications from the devices aren’t definitive diagnoses. (Tahir, 4/20)

CIDRAP: RDSP Maps Medicine Supply To US To Predict, Prevent Shortages (Part 2 Of 2) 
The Resilient Drug Supply Project (RDSP) has built the world's largest database on pharmaceutical manufacturing, procurement, and distribution. Composed of more than 60 public and proprietary datasets, it can monitor the drug supply chain from start to finish and predict likely shortages of essential drugs affecting the United States. Begun in 2018, this far-reaching project is one focus of the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), publisher of CIDRAP News. (Van Beusekom, 4/18)

In vaccine news —

CIDRAP: Survey Data Link Suspicion Of Vaccines With Low Antibiotic Knowledge
Data from the Wellcome Monitor survey of UK citizens reveal that negative views of vaccination are tied to having poor knowledge about the role of antibiotics for treating infections, according to a study today in Vaccine. ... The key antibiotic question involved choosing which of a list of conditions (viral infections, fungal infections, bacterial infections, cold, flu, or allergic reactions) could be effectively treated with antibiotics. (4/15)

CIDRAP: Israeli Study Shows Mild Side Effects In Recipients Of Pfizer Booster Dose
A study based on the first recipients of a third (booster) Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine dose in Israel had only mild side effects, with only 11% of recipients reporting their side effects were worse than those experienced after the first or second doses. The findings were published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (4/19)

In other pharmaceutical news —

New England Journal of Medicine: Continuation Of Bisphosphonate Therapy For Osteoporosis Beyond 5 Years 
A 71-year-old postmenopausal woman presents to you, her primary care physician, for follow-up. She received a diagnosis of osteoporosis at the age of 66 after dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for routine screening showed a T score of −2.7 at the femoral neck. She has not had any fractures and does not have a history of falling. Although she has a 20 pack-year history of smoking, she quit smoking nearly 10 years ago and is otherwise healthy. She takes an over-the-counter calcium–vitamin D supplement, abstains from alcohol intake, and walks around her neighborhood for an hour daily. (Chang, M.D., et al, 4/14)

CIDRAP: Analysis Shows Benefit Of 7-Day Antibiotics For Bloodstream Infections
Both short and conventional durations of antibiotic therapy provide comparable clinical outcomes when assessed using desirability-of-outcome ranking (DOOR) to consider benefits and risks of treatment options for gram-negative bloodstream infections (GNB), US, Israeli, and Italian researchers reported late last week in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. Although a 7-day antibiotics course has been demonstrated to be non-inferior to a conventional, 14-day course in terms of mortality and infectious complications for GNB, the researchers sought to explore whether the shorter treatment yields a better overall clinical outcome. (4/15)

Stat: Private Equity Giant Carlyle To Acquire Biotech VC Firm Abingworth
The Carlyle Group will acquire Abingworth, one of biotech’s oldest venture capital groups, it announced Monday. The financial terms of the deal, which will close later this year, were not disclosed. Abingworth, which just raised about $1 billion last year for two new funds, was ranked 12th in STAT’s 2020 ranking of 17 biotech venture investors; the firm was not included in the 2021 rankings. (Sheridan, 4/11)

Coloradopolitics: Misguided Bill Raises Tab For Prescription Drugs 
Gov. Jared Polis kicked off this year’s session with a laudable promise: “saving Coloradans money and keeping our state affordable is my top priority this session.” Health insurers support the sentiment, but key features of this year’s legislative agenda undermine the Polis pledge. (Amanda Massey, 4/19)

Daily Trojan: I Reckon: We Shouldn’t Have To Clean Up After The Sacklers 
If you’ve seen Hulu’s “Dopesick” — or the nonfiction book that inspired the miniseries about the origin and subsequent unraveling of the opioid crisis — you might remember that Virginia served as the central focus of the plotlines. Virginia was not randomly chosen as the setting for “Dopesick,” nor was it just one of many random states affected by the Sackler family’s lies and deceit. The Sacklers embodied a presence just as big as the coal mining companies did in the region and exploited low-income Black and Indigenous communities and communities of color that make up a significant portion of the population in the Appalachians and the southern U.S. The family owns Purdue Pharma, the group responsible for creating Oxycontin, one of the most commonly abused prescription drugs in the country, according to the Addiction Center. (Quynh Anh Nguyen, 4/19)

West Central Tribune: Spread The Word: Insulin Help Is Available In Our State 
After aging off his parent’s health insurance, 26-year-old Alec Smith decided to use the money he’d need to spend for his own coverage to pay for the insulin keeping him alive. But it proved too expensive, and he left the pharmacy without his prescription. Back at his apartment, he tried to ration what he had. Four day later, he was found dead by his girlfriend. He was three days from his next paycheck. (4/15)

Bloomberg: A Covid Breath Test Will Make It Easier To Screen Crowds 
Texas-based InspectIR Systems’ breath test for Covid-19 — the first such test to get emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration — will probably have limited use at first. But it is nevertheless an important step toward expanding the toolkit available to prevent outbreaks of Covid and any future viruses at big sports and entertainment events and other places where hundreds of people gather. (Lisa Jarvis, 4/19)

New England Journal of Medicine: From Resentment To Reconnection — Reflections On Caring For The Unvaccinated
As cautious, fully vaccinated, but immunocompromised people die of Covid, a physician finds herself resenting the patients filling up the hospital after declining vaccination. Then an encounter with one very ill and frightened patient changes her perspective. (Amanda C. Garfinkel, M.D., 4/14)

Also —

Bloomberg: The Airline Mask Mandate Never Stood A Chance 
So much for the travel mask mandate. After a federal judge in Florida on Monday struck down the rule promulgated last year by the Centers for Disease Control, the Biden administration and the airlines have raced to distance themselves from the much-criticized regulation. The opinion by Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle is worth a look, not least because of its implications for future pandemic policy. (Stephen L. Carter, 4/19)

The Baltimore Sun: Masks Are No Longer Mandatory On Public Transit, But They Can Still Help Reduce COVID’s Spread. Choose Wisely. 
Americans could scarcely be blamed for feeling confused about whether or not to wear a mask right now. A week ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended into May a nationwide mask mandate for travel on airplanes, trains, buses and other forms of public transportation. Then on Monday, a federal judge in Florida struck it down. Meanwhile, some local governments and private employers are reasserting mask mandates in response to rising COVID-19 transmission rates because of virus variants. (4/19)

The Star Tribune: Newfound 'Freedom' Will Only Spread COVID 
A question for those celebrating the end of the air travel mask mandate: Why stop there? There's a still a tyrannical smoking ban on board. And airport security also continues to require outrageous compromises on individual liberty. Shouldn't it be up to travelers to choose what items they carry on? And that removing-your-shoes routine, not to mention business travelers having to pull laptops out of cases, is so inconvenient. (4/19)

The Boston Globe: Why I’ll Continue To Wear A Mask While Traveling
Just to recap: Decisions about the health of travelers in the United States are falling into the hands of anti-vaxxers who filed suit against wearing masks on planes and in airports. I’m not entirely sure what those views have to do with the efficacy of masks, or what makes these individuals experts on the subject. Even Judge Mizelle chimed in on the value of masks, stating “wearing a mask cleans nothing” and “at most, it traps virus droplets.”Instead of doffing my mask because a judge in Florida sided with some folks who don’t believe in vaccines and think Bill Gates is tracking my vaccination record under my skin (have at it, Bill; CVS is tracking it, too), I’ll listen to professionals with experience in the arena of infectious disease. (Christopher Muther, 4/19)

The Washington Post: Yes, This Is The Right Moment To Lift Mask Mandates 
It is telling, isn’t it, that the Biden administration did not immediately commit to filing an emergency appeal after a federal judge in Florida overturned the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s mask mandate for travel settings? Instead, the administration has said it is “in the process of deciding” whether it will try to stop the order from U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle from going into effect. (Megan McArdle, 4/19)

The New York Times: Enough About Climate Change. Air Pollution Is Killing Us Now. 
In the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, doctors noticed a surprising silver lining: Americans were having fewer heart attacks. One likely reason, according to an analysis published last month by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, is that people were inhaling less air pollution. (Binyamin Appelbaum, 4/20)

Los Angeles Times: Big Pharma Won't Be Happy About Marijuana Cutting Into Its Profits
Before I start talking about pot and why the federal prohibition should end, here are some numbers for you to consider. Seventy-two U.S. senators accepted donations from the pharmaceutical industry ahead of the 2020 election. That number was 302 for the House. Combined, that’s more than two-thirds of Congress. If that makes you sick to your stomach, you might want to sit down for this: More than 2,400 state legislators around the country cashed checks from drug lobbyists, including 82% of state lawmakers in California, which has a deep blue legislature. That’s on par with 84% of lawmakers in Louisiana, a state redder than Mississippi, in case you are tempted to see this as a partisan problem. (LZ Granderson, 4/20)

Kansas City Star: KS Seniors With Chronic Illness Need Biden’s Medicare Plan 
On a fixed budget, it’s impossible for me to pay the $3,000 monthly out-of-pocket cost for my multiple sclerosis medicine. Some months, I’m lucky enough to have financial assistance from health care nonprofits. But when I don’t, I’m forced to go without it. It’s a choice that almost cost me my eyesight — and it’s a choice I shouldn’t have to make. (Sharon Hendrix, 4/20)

Houston Chronicle: Heroes In Our Schools Are Saving Texas’ Mentally Ill Kids. They Need Help.
Today, somewhere in Texas, a deeply depressed young adult may wait on hold for hours to speak with a crisis hot line volunteer. A sixth-grader in suburban Houston could find herself overcome with anxiety due to family turmoil. Without a doubt, there’s a caring parent or family member, responding to a mental breakdown, who will be forced to navigate a bureaucratic maze and understaffed facilities to find some semblance of care for a loved one. Some of us know all too well the sorry state of mental health care in Texas but for those who needed some education, the Chronicle’s ongoing “In Crisis” series has certainly provided. (4/20)

Columbus Dispatch: Rural, Underserved Communities Will Be Helped By Expanding Bone Marrow Program
For nearly four decades, Congress has partnered with National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match as it serves as the single point of access for blood cancer and blood disease patients who need a bone marrow transplant to find adult volunteer donors. As the home of the Nation’s Registry, our efforts have been remarkably successful, and now Congress can take another positive step forward to ensure we continue to extend our reach to historically underserved populations. (Dr. Jeffery Auletta, 4/19)

Nature: The Future Of Cancer Research 
Cancer care has advanced at an impressive pace in recent years. New insights into tumor immunology and biology, combined with advances in artificial intelligence, nano tools, genetic engineering and sequencing — to name but a few — promise ever-more-powerful capabilities in the prevention, diagnosis and personalized treatment of cancer. How do we harness and build on these advances? How do we make them work in different global settings? In this issue, we present a Focus dedicated to the future of cancer research, in which we take stock of progress and explore ways to deliver research and care that is innovative, sustainable and patient focused. (4/19)