First Edition: May 4, 2022

KHN: Even When IVF Is Covered By Insurance, High Bills And Hassles Abound
After years of trying to have a baby without success, Brenna Kaminski and her husband, Joshua Pritt, decided to try in vitro fertilization. Only 15 states require insurance to cover fertility treatments, and Florida, where Kaminski and Pritt live, isn’t one of them. Still, the couple’s insurance, from Pritt’s job at an energy company, did — putting them among the fortunate minority of Americans whose insurance plan covers the pricey fertility procedure. Kaminski and Pritt gamed out what their share of the cost would be for one round of IVF: $2,700, the out-of-pocket maximum under their policy. (Galewitz, 5/4)

KHN: What’s Next If ‘Roe V. Wade’ Falls? More Than Half Of States Expected To Ban Or Restrict Abortion
If the Supreme Court’s conservative majority affirms the leaked decision overturning abortion rights in the U.S., the effects would be sweeping for 40 million women in more than two dozen states where Republican-led legislatures have been eagerly awaiting the repudiation of the right to terminate a pregnancy. Long before the Supreme Court heard challenges to Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, seminal decisions that affirmed a federally protected right to abortion, conservative lawmakers in 14 states had crafted so-called trigger laws that would automatically go into effect in the event a nationwide right to abortion were struck down, according to a KFF analysis. The Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights, has identified an additional dozen states likely to restrict or ban abortion without Roe. (Varney, 5/3)

KHN: Historic ‘Breach’ Puts Abortion Rights Supporters And Opponents On Alert For Upcoming Earthquake
For an eventuality that’s been forecast and fought over for decades, no one truly has any idea what would happen if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. It was fairly clear when the court heard arguments in December over whether Mississippi could ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy that at least five justices supported upholding Mississippi’s law. It also seemed likely that they favored going significantly further to chip away at the right to abortion that women have been guaranteed since Roe was decided in 1973. (Rovner, 5/3)

KHN: On The Steps Of The Supreme Court, Tears And Glee, Bitterness And Smiles
On Tuesday morning, emotions were raw on the sidewalks and street separating the U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court building — a microcosm of the reactions rippling across the country after Politico published a news bombshell Monday night. The story detailed a leak of a majority draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito that suggested the high court was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, the court case that guarantees the constitutional right to abortion. (Knight, 5/3)

The New York Times: Supreme Court Confirms Leak But Says Text Is Not Final
The Supreme Court on Tuesday confirmed that a leaked draft ruling to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade decision was authentic but not final, even as the disclosure triggered political upheaval with potentially broad electoral and legal consequences. While protesters gathered outside the court, chanting loudly enough for members of Congress to hear at the Capitol across the street, Democrats led by President Biden vowed to make abortion rights a defining issue of the fall midterm elections. Republicans accused liberals of orchestrating the leak to intimidate the court while Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. ordered an investigation. (Baker, 5/3)

AP: Biden Blasts 'Radical' Roe Draft, Warns Other Rights At Risk
President Joe Biden on Tuesday blasted a “radical” Supreme Court draft opinion that would throw out the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights ruling t hat has stood for a half century. The court cautioned no final decision had been made, but Biden warned that other privacy rights including same-sex marriage and birth control are at risk if the justices follow through. Chief Justice John Roberts said he had ordered an investigation into what he called the “egregious breach of trust” in leaking the draft document, which was dated to February. Opinions often change in ways big and small in the drafting process, and a final ruling has not been expected until the end of the court’s term in late June or early July. (Miller and Gresko, 5/3)

Reuters: In Supreme Court Shadow, Biden Urges Voters To Protect Abortion Rights
U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday appealed to voters to protect abortion rights by backing candidates who support them in November's elections after a leaked Supreme Court draft showed it could soon overturn its 1973 decision legalizing abortion. Biden said his administration would respond once the Supreme Court formally rules but stopped short of calling for more radical changes - including a push to have the Senate change its rules to allow a simple majority to pass a law guaranteeing access to abortions. (Holland, Mason and Shalal, 5/4)

Bloomberg: Kamala Harris Gets Spotlight With Rebuttal To Court Over Abortion Draft 
Vice President Kamala Harris, in a fiery speech Tuesday night, accused Republicans of attacking women’s rights and called for Americans who support “self-determination” to stand with Democrats, following news that the Supreme Court is poised to strike down Roe v. Wade. In her address, which was just over nine minutes long, Harris argued that a court decision to end the national right to abortion would open the door to the justices stripping away other rights, including same-sex marriage. She drew sharp contrasts with Republicans, who she said sought to limit the freedom of women and other Americans. (Wingrove and Kinery, 5/3)

Reuters: VP Harris Calls Supreme Court Threat To Roe V. Wade 'Assault On Freedom'
Vice President Kamala Harris said on Tuesday that the potential Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade represents an attack on women and lashed out at Republicans for "weaponizing" the issue, offering a first glimpse of how the White House might use the battle for abortion rights to energize voters in the upcoming midterm elections. "If the court overturns Roe v. Wade, it will be a direct assault on freedom," Harris, a Democrat, told attendees at a gala hosted by Emily's List, an organization which works to get abortion-rights Democrats elected to office. (Renshaw, 5/4)

The Hill: Obamas Issue Strong Statement On Leaked Roe V. Wade Opinion
Former President Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama issued a strong statement criticizing the draft Supreme Court opinion knocking down the Roe v. Wade decision, saying it would limit U.S. freedoms just like other past actions by the court. “Today, millions of Americans woke up fearing that their essential freedoms under the Constitution were at risk,” the couple said in the joint statement on Tuesday. (Oshin, 5/3)

The Washington Post: Speculation On Same-Sex Marriage Surrounds SCOTUS Abortion Draft
A leaked draft opinion suggesting that the Supreme Court will eradicate the national right to abortion has set off a wave of conjecture that the justices could also roll back the right to same-sex marriage, erasing decades of activism by the LGBTQ community. The speculation was prompted by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr.’s narrow interpretation of what constitutes a fundamental right and his repeated references to the idea that any right not mentioned in the Constitution must be “deeply rooted in this Nation’s history and tradition” to be recognized. (Iati, 5/4)

The New York Times: Oklahoma Bans Abortions After About Six Weeks Of Pregnancy
Gov. Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma on Tuesday signed a bill prohibiting abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, the latest attempt by Republican lawmakers in the state to find legal avenues to ban abortions that will withstand judicial challenges. The law, the Oklahoma Heartbeat Act, was modeled on the one that came into force in Texas last year, with both banning abortions after fetal cardiac activity is detected, and requiring enforcement from civilians rather than government officials. (Fuller, 5/3)

ABC News: Oklahoma Governor Signs 6-Week Abortion Ban Into Law
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed an abortion bill Tuesday that is modeled after a controversial Texas law. The bill, formally known as S.B. 1503, creates the "Oklahoma Heartbeat Act," which bans abortions after cardiac activity or a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which typically occurs around six weeks -- before a woman often knows she is pregnant. There are exceptions when the mother's life is danger but not for rape or incest. (Kekatos, 5/3)

The Washington Post: Majority Of Americans Say Supreme Court Should Uphold Roe, Post-ABC Poll Finds
A majority of Americans say the Supreme Court should uphold Roe v. Wade, the landmark ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion, a Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted last week finds. With the Supreme Court poised to overturn the right to abortion, the survey finds that 54 percent of Americans think the 1973 Roe decision should be upheld while 28 percent believe it should be overturned — a roughly 2-to-1 margin. (Guskin and Clement, 5/3)

Dallas Morning News: Here Are The Key Differences Between Mississippi’s Abortion Law And Texas’ Senate Bill 8
What are the key differences between the laws passed by Mississippi and Texas? Gestational age ... Mississippi’s “Gestational Age Act” bans abortion after 15 weeks except in cases of medical emergency and in cases of severe fetal abnormality. Texas’ Senate Bill 8, bans abortion after six weeks except in cases where there is medical emergency. Neither ban has provisions for incest or rape. Enforcement and penalties ... Mississippi’s law allows medical licensing officials to take away licenses of those who violate. The law says those who violate commit “an act of unprofessional conduct and his or her license to practice medicine in the State of Mississippi shall be suspended or revoked pursuant to action by the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure.” (Hollers, 5/3)

NBC News: Abortion Clinic At Center Of Mississippi Case May Move To N.M. If Roe Is Overturned
Shannon Brewer, the director of Mississippi’s only abortion clinic, said she is prepared to move to New Mexico if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. Brewer, the director of the Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the clinic at the center of the case currently before the Supreme Court, emphasized in an interview on Tuesday — her first remarks since a leaked draft opinion was revealed — that the facility will continue operating as usual in the wake of the draft suggesting its days could be numbered. (Harris, 5/3)

The Washington Post: Democrats Push To Ensure Women Get Free Birth Control Promised By ACA
Senate Democrats launched a new push Tuesday to ensure that women can obtain the free birth control required by the Affordable Care Act, framing the policy as imperative if the Supreme Court should move to strike down abortion rights, as is widely expected after a draft ruling leaked Monday night. Sens. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who chair the health and finance panels respectively, said they were opening an investigation into complaints that health insurers are denying patients’ requests for birth control and forcing them to pay out of pocket. (Diamond, 5/3)

The Hill: UN Calls Reproductive Rights ‘Foundation’ Of Equality For Women And Girls
The United Nations (U.N.) secretary-general believes that women’s rights are “fundamental” to pursuing gender equality, according to a spokesman who was speaking about the U.N. chief’s response to the possible overturning of Roe v. Wade. When asked for a response to the news from the high court, Farhan Haq, a spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, refused to “speculate what will happen” in regard to the overturning of the landmark Supreme Court case. He did, however, say that the U.N. chief believes that sexual and reproductive health and rights are “foundational” to women’s equality and empowerment. (Beals, 5/3)

NBC News: Biggest Health Risks Of Overturning Roe V. Wade Abortion Decision
Research suggests the bans and restrictions would have manifold effects on maternal health. For one, if more pregnant people can't get the abortions they seek, they'd shoulder the risk of the U.S.'s relatively high — and rising — rate of death from pregnancy-related causes, which is particularly elevated among people of color. "There are going to be women that will die from pregnancy because of this decision, period," said Dr. Amy Addante, an OBGYN in Illinois and a fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health. In addition, pregnant people would face the risk of prosecution for seeking to end pregnancies in states where abortion is banned, and research has shown that unwanted pregnancies have many harmful long-term consequences for mothers, including a higher chance of financial hardship and a severe toll on mental health. (Bendix and Varinsky, 5/4)

AP: With Abortion In Jeopardy, Minority Women Have Most To Lose
When it comes to the effect on minority women, the numbers are unambiguous. In Mississippi, people of color comprise 44% of the population but 81% of women receiving abortions, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, which tracks health statistics. In Texas, they’re 59% of the population and 74% of those receiving abortions. The numbers in Alabama are 35% and 69%. In Louisiana, minorities represent 42% of the population, according to the state Health Department, and about 72% of those receiving abortions. “Abortion restrictions are racist,” said Cathy Torres, an organizing manager with Frontera Fund, a Texas organization that helps women pay for abortions. “They directly impact people of color, Black, brown, Indigenous people ... people who are trying to make ends meet.” (Wagster Pettus and Willingham, 5/4)

Modern Healthcare: Supreme Court Abortion Draft Creates Tangle Of Issues For Big Hospital Systems
If Roe v. Wade is overturned, health systems, hospitals, physician groups and clinics that work across state lines would have to navigate a confusing patchwork of state laws that pose an array of legal and ethical dilemmas. Multistate organizations may wind down some obstetrics services as a result, limiting access and reducing the already relatively low quality of maternal care. "It is going to create significant confusion among providers, especially those who work in multiple jurisdictions," said Mark Silberman, chair of the white collar, government investigations and regulatory practice compliance group at the law firm Benesch. (Goldman and Kacik, 5/3)

AP: As US Poised To Restrict Abortion, Other Nations Ease Access
As women in the United States find themselves on the verge of possibly losing the constitutional right to abortion, courts in many other parts of the world have been moving in the opposite direction. That includes in a number of traditionally conservative societies — such as recently in Colombia, where the Constitutional Court in February legalized the procedure until the 24th week of pregnancy, part of a broader trend seen in parts of heavily Catholic Latin America. It’s not yet clear what impact there will be outside the United States from the leaked draft opinion suggesting the U.S. Supreme Court could overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. (Suárez and Sherman, 5/4)

Reuters: Canada Leaders Affirm Right To Choose After Leak Of Draft U.S. Ruling Overturning Abortion Rights
Canada's Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister affirmed on Tuesday their support of women's right to choose after a leaked draft ruling suggests the U.S. Supreme Court is prepared to strike down a landmark decision legalizing abortion. The Bloc Quebecois, a federal political party, also moved a motion in Canada's Parliament Tuesday to recognize a woman's "free choice in the matter of abortion." (Mehler Paperny, 5/3)

New York Times: In Europe, Possible Roe Reversal Elicits Concern And Criticism
On Tuesday, news that the US Supreme Court might overturn Roe v. Wade triggered criticism and concern across Europe, a continent that in recent decades has consistently moved toward freer access to abortion. A referendum in San Marino last year overwhelmingly supported the legalization of abortion. In Northern Ireland, it was legalized in 2019, and in Ireland in 2018. In recent months, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom have all taken steps to ease access to the procedure. Poland is the only country in Europe that has tightened abortion laws since 1994, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights. (Bubola, 5/3)

The Boston Globe: Assembly Leaders Vow To Defend R.I. Law Protecting Abortion Rights

AP: Washington Governor Promises To Defend Abortion Rights

AP: LA Abortion Rights Protest Turns Violent
A Los Angeles protest over the leaked U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion that would throw out Roe v. Wade briefly turned into a skirmish with police, who say one officer was injured. A citywide police tactical alert was declared after a Tuesday night confrontation near downtown’s Pershing Square. Authorities say about 250 people had been marching peacefully for abortion rights before the clash. LAPD Chief Michel Moore says some demonstrators threw rocks and bottles at officers. One officer was struck with a baton. There was no immediate word of any arrests and the crowd mostly dispersed after a large police presence was called in. (5/4)

Los Angeles Times: BA.4, BA.5 Coronavirus Variants Reinfecting Omicron Survivors
“It really came out of the blue over the weekend. We were already settling down with BA.2.12.1, and then BA.4 and BA.5?” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases expert at UC San Francisco. “It just seems like the latest chapter of a never-ending saga.” The rapid growth of BA.4 and BA.5 in South Africa has implications for a potential future surge in California and the U.S. Until now, scientists had been reassured that people who survived the first Omicron variant over the winter, BA.1, were unlikely to be reinfected by the even more infectious subvariant BA.2, which is now dominant nationwide. (Lin II and Money, 5/3)

The Hill: Puerto Rico COVID Cases Surge After Restrictions Dropped
COVID-19 cases in Puerto Rico are climbing and have been since mid-March, around the time the island dropped its pandemic-related restrictions. Puerto Rico has had 26,273 new cases in the last week, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. While cases are still far from highs seen during the surge of the highly contagious omicron variant in January, numbers steeply increased last month after hovering around 200 new cases per day for much of March. (Beals, 5/3)

The Washington Post: CDC Reiterates Importance Of Masks On Airplanes, Public Transportation
Federal health officials on Tuesday repeated their recommendation that masks be worn on airplanes, buses and in other public transportation settings where large numbers of people congregate. Despite a federal judge’s order last month striking down the federal transportation mask mandate, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said masks continue to be an important tool for stopping the spread of the coronavirus. (Aratani, 5/3)

AP: Even As COVID Cases Rise, Mask Mandates Stay Shelved
An increase in COVID-19 infections around the U.S. has sent more cities into new high-risk categories that are supposed to trigger indoor mask wearing, but much of the country is stopping short of bringing back restrictions amid deep pandemic fatigue. For weeks, much of upstate New York has been in the high-alert orange zone, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention designation that reflects serious community spread. The CDC urges people to mask up in indoor public places, including schools, regardless of vaccination status. But few, if any, local jurisdictions in the region brought back a mask requirement despite rising case counts. (Caina Calvan and LeBlanc, 5/3)

Reuters: COVID Worsens Asthma In Children
Asthma in children may worsen after an infection with the coronavirus, doctors warn. They studied nearly 62,000 U.S. children with asthma who had PCR tests for the virus in the first year of the pandemic, including more than 7,700 who tested positive. Infected children had significantly more asthma visits, hospitalizations, emergency inhaler use, and steroid treatments during the six months after their illness compared to children who tested negative and to their own prior history, researchers reported in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice. Children who tested negative for the virus "had improved asthma control for the next six months, meaning fewer emergency department visits and hospitalizations for asthma, and less asthma treatment," said Dr. Christine Chou of Children's Health of Orange County, in California. (Lapid, 5/4)

AP: Pfizer Hopes To Submit Little-Kid Vaccine Data By Early June
Pfizer now hopes to tell U.S. regulators how well its COVID-19 vaccine works in the littlest kids by late May or early June. Pfizer is testing three extra-small doses of its vaccine in children under 5 after two shots didn’t prove quite strong enough. Initial results had been expected last month but the company laid out the latest timeline Tuesday during its discussion of quarterly financial results. Currently in the U.S., only children ages 5 or older can be vaccinated, using Pfizer’s vaccine -- leaving 18 million younger tots unprotected. (5/4)

Bloomberg: Pfizer Says Patients Who Relapse After Covid Pill Can Repeat Treatment
Pfizer Inc. executives said patients who suffer a relapse in Covid-19 symptoms after taking a full course of Paxlovid should take more of the treatment, though current U.S. guidelines limit use to five consecutive days. “Paxlovid does what it has to do: it reduces the viral load,” Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said in an interview. “Then your body is supposed to do the job.” But for unknown reasons, the CEO said, some patients aren’t able to clear the virus with the first course of treatment. In cases where virus levels do rebound, Bourla said, “then you give a second course, like you do with antibiotics, and that’s it.” (Griffin, Muller and Langreth, 5/3)

Reuters: Main Negotiators Reach 'Outcome' On COVID Vaccine IP Waiver, WTO Says
The four main parties to negotiations on an intellectual property waiver for COVID-19 vaccines have prepared an "outcome document" for approval by the broader membership, the WTO said on Tuesday, with its chief hoping for a final deal by June. WTO director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who has made vaccine equity her top priority since taking office in 2021, has been working for months to broker a compromise between the United States, the European Union, India and South Africa to break an 18-month-long impasse. (Farge, 5/3)

The New York Times: Handful Of Covid Cases Emerge After White House Correspondents’ Dinner
A handful of coronavirus cases have emerged among people who attended the White House Correspondents’ Dinner over the weekend, the president of the correspondents’ association said on Tuesday. Steven Portnoy of CBS News Radio, who leads the White House Correspondents’ Association, said the cases he knew of so far numbered in the “single digits.” Among those who tested positive after the gala — an annual event that skipped two years because of the pandemic — was Steve Herman, a chief national correspondent for Voice of America. Jonathan Karl, ABC News’s chief Washington correspondent, also tested positive, according to a person familiar with the matter. (Patil, 5/3)

The Hill: Sinema Defends Filibuster In Statement Criticizing Decision To Overturn Roe V Wade
Centrist Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) released a statement Tuesday pledging her support for abortion rights but gave no indication that she would change her opposition to reforming the Senate’s filibuster rule to pass legislation codifying Roe v. Wade.  Sinema, along with fellow centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), voted against an effort by Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and other Democratic colleagues in January to weaken the Senate’s filibuster rule to allow voting rights legislation to pass. (Bolton, 5/3)

Politico: Collins, Manchin And Other Lawmakers React To The Supreme Court Draft Opinion
Here’s a roundup of notable responses from members of Congress. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) “If this leaked draft opinion is the final decision and this reporting is accurate, it would be completely inconsistent with what Justice [Neal] Gorsuch and Justice [Brett] Kavanaugh said in their hearings and in our meetings in my office,” Collins said in a statement. “Obviously, we won’t know each Justice’s decision and reasoning until the Supreme Court officially announces its opinion in this case.” Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) “The filibuster is the only protection we have in democracy,” Manchin said. “I’m not going to comment on a leak from the Supreme Court.” (Ward and Forgey, 5/3)

AP: Early Transgender Identity Tends To Endure, Study Suggests
Children who begin identifying as transgender at a young age tend to retain that identity at least for several years, a study published Wednesday suggests. The research involved 317 youngsters who were 3 to 12 years old when they were recruited to the study. Five years later, at the study’s end, 94% were living as transgender and almost two-thirds were using either puberty-blocking medication or sex hormones to medically transition. Most children in the study were from white, high-income families who supported their transitions. On average, the kids began identifying as transgender at around age 6. (Tanner, 5/4)

Houston Chronicle: Texas Children’s Chief's Exit Triggers Fear From Trans Community
Some parents of transgender children are expressing fear and disappointment after the sudden resignation of Texas Children’s Hospital’s chief pediatrician, who has been a vocal advocate for continuing care for transgender patients being targeted by a recent statewide order. Dr. Catherine Gordon, who served as the hospital’s chief pediatrician for seven months, has been aligned with the broader medical community in supporting care that helps children transition from their assigned sex at birth to their affirmed gender. (Gill, 5/3)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: GHSA To Vote On Transgender Athletes’ Ability To Play High School Sports
The Georgia High School Association will vote Wednesday on a proposal to define an athlete’s gender based on birth certificate and ban transgender athletes from choosing sports consistent with their gender identity. If passed by the GHSA’s 75-member executive committee, the proposal would replace bylaw 1.47 (b), which allows each GHSA member school to make its own rule determining gender for sports. “We’re approaching this as a competitive-balance issue,” said GHSA executive director Robin Hines, who submitted the proposal. “We don’t want to discriminate against anybody, but that includes biological girls. There are competitive imbalances generally between biological females and biological males.” (Holcomb, 5/3)

CBS News: Mystery Liver Disease Kills Three More Children After "Unexpected Significant Increase" In Cases Reported
Three children in Indonesia have died from a mysterious liver disease, the country's health ministry said, raising to at least four the global death toll of a fatal ailment puzzling doctors from the U.S. to Asia. This severe strain of acute hepatitis has been identified in nearly 170 children across 11 countries in recent weeks — raising concerns from the World Health Organization (WHO) of the disease's "unknown origin." The symptoms afflicting the children include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain — before their livers showed signs of inflammation. At least one death was previously reported by WHO. (5/3)

The New York Times: What Scientists Know About The Unusual Hepatitis Cases In Children
At least 16 countries and 10 U.S. states have either identified or are investigating reports of unusual hepatitis cases in otherwise healthy children. The cases remain extremely rare, with about 200 children affected worldwide, according to a report issued last week by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. But even these small clusters are unusual. In Britain, where most of the cases have been reported, two pediatric liver units have already had at least as many admissions for acute, unexplained hepatitis in 2022 as they typically have in an entire year, according to a briefing from the U.K. Health Security Agency. (Anthes, 5/3)

Stat: Disease Detectives See Clues In Viral Hepatitis Cases In Kids
When medical professionals think they’re seeing something new, or an unusual spike in cases of something known, disease detectives — epidemiologists — are generally tasked with solving the mysteries of the case. Some of these seeming events turn out to be nothing more than coincidence. Some, however, are very real and teach us more about what a known disease agent can do or introduce us to a new bug that poses a hitherto unrecognized threat. ­­Increasingly, it appears that the mounting reports of unusual pediatric hepatitis cases will turn out to be the latter type of event. At least 18 countries have reported nearly 200 cases of pediatric hepatitis of unknown etiology or origin. Roughly 10% of the children have required liver transplants and a handful or so have reportedly died. The question is no longer “Is this real?” but “What is triggering severe liver inflammation in previously healthy little kids?” (Branswell, 5/4)

Press Association: Measles Outbreak: Vaccinations Fall As Disease Spreads
There is an "epidemic" of measles, global health leaders have warned, as cases of the potentially deadly disease appear to be on the rise. The World Health Organisation (WHO) urged parents to get their children vaccinated against the highly infectious disease. It raised concerns that a dip in vaccination uptake during the Covid-19 pandemic could be behind a rise in cases compared to what would usually be expected in the first two months of the year. (Pickover, 5/3)

The Hill: California Pushes Ahead With Kids’ Online Safety Proposals As Washington Stalls 
A California state panel advanced a proposal that would hold tech companies responsible for features that can be addictive and harmful, a measure that, if passed, could put California at the forefront of the fight for kids’ online safety as Washington stalls. All but one member of the California Assembly Judiciary Committee voted to advance the bill, A.B. 2408, with Republican Assemblymember Kevin Kiley, who is running for Congress, abstaining. (Klar, 5/3)

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Job Openings, Quits Reach March Records In Tight Labor Market
Job openings and the number of times workers quit reached the highest levels on record in March, as a shortage of available workers continued to pressure the U.S. labor market. The Labor Department on Tuesday reported a seasonally adjusted 11.5 million job openings in March, an increase from 11.3 million the prior month. The number of times workers quit their jobs rose to 4.5 million in the same month, slightly higher than the previous record in November of last year. Meanwhile, hiring cooled slightly from the month before to 6.7 million hires in March. (Mena, 5/3)

The Washington Post: Fewer People With Mental Health, Substance Use Disorders Are Smoking
Depression and substance use disorders stereotypically come with a side of smoking. New data, however, suggests the number of people with mental health and substance use disorders who smoke is falling quickly. A study in JAMA finds “significant declines” in cigarette smoking among people with depression, substance use disorder or both between 2006 and 2019. (Blakemore, 5/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Alzheimer’s Patients Now Less Likely To Receive Biogen’s Aduhelm Treatment
People with Alzheimer’s disease will be less likely to receive Biogen Inc.’s Aduhelm treatment because of the company’s decision to slash commercial support for the drug in the face of restricted reimbursement by the U.S. Medicare program and other insurers. The Cambridge, Mass., company said Tuesday that it is eliminating its “commercial infrastructure” for Aduhelm. It will maintain minimal resources to provide the drug for patients currently on the treatment at no cost. (Loftus, 5/3)

CIDRAP: Severe COVID-19 May Cause 10-Point IQ Drop, 20-Year Brain Aging
Cognitive impairment from severe COVID-19 is equivalent to losing 10 IQ points or 20 years of aging, and any recovery is slow at best, suggests a small study published late last week in eClinicalMedicine. A team led by Imperial College London and University of Cambridge researchers tested 46 COVID-19 patients admitted to a single hospital 6 to 10 months earlier, from Mar 10 to Jul 31, 2020, and matched controls. Sixteen of the COVID-19 patients (34.8%) had required mechanical ventilation. Participants underwent computerized cognitive assessment at an average follow-up of 6 months after their initial infection. The researchers transformed scores from patients and controls into standard deviations (SDs) from expected scores for participants' age and demographic characteristics and calculated global accuracy and response time composites. (5/3)

Reuters: Booster After Infection Not As Beneficial Vs Omicron
Among people who were previously infected with the coronavirus, a third dose of an mRNA vaccine from Pfizer (PFE.N)/BioNTech (22UAy.DE) or Moderna (MRNA.O) may not boost their protection against the Omicron variant of the virus, according to new data. Researchers studied nearly 130,000 people tested for COVID in Connecticut from November 2021 through January 2022, including 10,676 with Omicron infections. Roughly 6% to 8% had been infected with previous versions of the coronavirus, according to a report posted on medRxiv ahead of peer review. Two doses of an mRNA vaccine did help protect against Omicron among people with prior infections, but "we did not detect an additional benefit of receiving a third booster dose among this population," said Margaret Lind of Yale University. (Lapid, 5/4)

CIDRAP: Mayo Study Finds COVID Vaccine Materials Written At Too-High Reading Level
COVID-19 vaccine informational material is written at more than a 10th-grade reading level and thus is far too difficult to understand for the average American, researchers from the Mayo Clinic concluded in a study published today in Vaccine. At least 25% of the US population currently has very low-level reading skills and is unable to comprehend a bus schedule or medication and cleaning-product labels, the authors said. (5/3)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Tied To Adverse Maternal Outcomes, Preterm Birth
A surveillance study of more than 6,000 women who gave birth in Canada during the pandemic suggests that those infected with COVID-19 were at higher risk for hospitalization and intensive care unit (ICU) admission than those of nonpregnant women of childbearing age. University of British Columbia researchers led the observational study, which also found that infected pregnant women may have been at significantly increased risk for preterm birth compared with their uninfected peers. (Van Beusekom, 5/3)

Axios: Purchases Of Food With Added Sugar Drop With Increased Tax Credits
The temporary expansion of the Child Tax Credit during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 coincided with greater food security and may also have reduced children's consumption of sugary foods and beverages, according to a study in Health Affairs. The observational study, led by the University of South Carolina, used surveys from nearly 600 households, as well as one taken three months later, to see how the monthly tax credits were being used. Among participating parents, about half said they used the additional money for food and beverage purposes and more than 60% of those who were "very" food insecure used the money for food. (Reed, 5/3)

Reuters: Bayer Wins U.S. Priority Review Of Drug Against Metastatic Prostate Cancer
Bayer's (BAYGn.DE) Nubeqa drug won priority review status from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as the German drugmaker seeks to widen the use of the prostate cancer drug from an early disease stage to metastatic cases. The priority status was granted as the U.S. regulatory body accepted Bayer's supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for the use of Nubeqa, jointly developed with Finnish drugmaker Orion (ORNBV.HE), against metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer, Bayer said in a statement on Tuesday. (5/4)

Bloomberg: Aspen May Close Covid Vaccine Line in Weeks as Talks Drag
Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd. needs clear commitments within weeks from African governments for orders of its Covid-19 vaccine or will recommit that production line to more in-demand anesthetics. The continent’s biggest drugmaker has been let down by the lack of interest in the shots -- a locally made version of Johnson & Johnson’s dose, according to head of strategic trade, Stavros Nicolaou. (Kew, 5/3)

Modern Healthcare: How To Bring Language Interpreters Into Telehealth Visits
Telehealth has improved care access for many patients, making it easier to reach a doctor at home or on the go—but it's posing new challenges for others. More than 5 million U.S. households, or 4%, speak limited English, according to the most recent U.S. Census estimates. Patients who don't speak English or who have limited English skills can run into challenges when seeking care via telehealth, despite federal protections. (Kim Cohen, 5/3)

The New York Times: Biogen C.E.O. To Step Down Following Launch Of Alzheimer’s Drug, Aduhelm
Biogen said on Tuesday that it would replace its chief executive and effectively give up on marketing a high-profile Alzheimer’s drug that has been a commercial failure since its controversial approval nearly a year ago. Michel Vounatsos, who has led the drug maker for over five years and presided over the approval and launch of the drug, known as Aduhelm, will remain in his role until a successor is appointed, Biogen said. Biogen said it planned to “substantially eliminate” its spending on the drug after Medicare officially decided last month to sharply limit its coverage of Aduhelm. (Robbins, 5/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Pfizer Sales Soar On Covid-19 Vaccine Sales
Pfizer Inc. expects demand for its Covid-19 antiviral drug to increase as governments return to replenish their supplies and seek to thwart surges as the pandemic virus continues to evolve. The treatment, a pill called Paxlovid, brought in $1.5 billion in sales during Pfizer’s first quarter, while its vaccine totaled $13.2 billion, reflecting the need for tools to combat the virus despite a slowdown in cases and a growing sense of life trying to return to normal. (Hopkins and Seal, 5/3)

The Wall Street Journal: Welltower Made All-Cash Offer For Healthcare Realty Trust
Welltower Inc., the big healthcare-focused real-estate investment trust, made a nearly $5 billion all-cash bid for Healthcare Realty Trust Inc. shortly after the smaller REIT agreed to merge with a rival earlier this year, according to people familiar with the matter. Welltower remains interested after its bid was rejected and plans to say as much to Healthcare Realty this week, the people said. (Lombardo, 5/3)