First Edition: May 9, 2022

KHN: Journalists Recap News On Reproductive Health, From The Abortion Debate To C-Sections 
Chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner discussed the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion on abortion on KCRW’s “Press Play With Madeleine Brand” on May 3. ... Interim Southern Bureau editor Andy Miller explored why cesarean section rates are so high in the South and what some states are doing to bring them down on WUGA’s “Georgia Health Report” on April 22. (5/7)

Reuters: U.S. Senate To Vote Wednesday On Abortion Rights Bill, Schumer Says
The U.S. Senate will vote on legislation to codify abortion rights into law on Wednesday in reaction to the leaked draft decision indicating the Supreme Court is poised to overturn its landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Sunday. "Every American will see how every senator stands," Schumer said during a news conference with state leaders in New York. Republicans "can't duck it anymore. Republicans have tried to duck it." (5/8)

The Wall Street Journal: Congress Set To Clash On Abortion Following Draft Opinion On Roe V. Wade 
The vote has no chance of succeeding in the 50-50 Senate. But Democrats think disagreement with Republicans on the issue could help them at the polls. “If we are not successful, then we go to the ballot box,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” “We march straight to the ballot box, and the women of this country and the men who stand with them will vote like they’ve never voted before.” (Hughes, 5/8)

The New York Times: Senate Democrats Warn Of G.O.P. Effort To Restrict Abortion Nationwide 
Democrats rang alarm bells on Sunday about the likelihood that Republicans would try to restrict abortion nationwide, two days after an interview was published in which Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority leader, said a ban was “possible” if his party gained control in Washington. On the Sunday talk shows and in other public statements, Democratic senators said Republicans would not stop at letting the states decide the issue, but would most likely push for federal restrictions. That made it paramount, they said, that the Democratic Party maintain control of the Senate as it tries to codify abortion rights into federal law. (Broadwater, 5/8)

The Hill: Graham Says Roe V. Wade Created ‘Constitutional Right That Didn’t Exist’ 
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C) on Sunday said the 1973 Supreme Court precedent Roe v. Wade “created a constitutional right that didn’t exist” when justices ruled Americans have a right to privacy and legalized abortion in the U.S. Graham told “Fox News Sunday” anchor Bret Baier the ruling has divided the public since its inception. (Dress, 5/8)

The Hill: Klobuchar Says Alito Is ‘Taking Us Back To The 1850s’ 
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) on Sunday said Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is “taking us back to the 1850s” in his draft majority opinion that shows the bench poised to overturn Roe v. Wade. “This is 50 years of rights in a leaked opinion where Justice Alito is literally not just taking us back to the 1950s, he’s taking us back to 1850s. He actually cites the fact that abortion was criminalized back when the 14th Amendment was adopted,” Klobuchar told anchor Martha Raddatz on ABC’s “This Week.” (Schnell, 5/8)

The Hill: 58 Percent Of Americans Want Federal Law Making Abortion Legal: Poll 
The majority of Americans want a federal law making abortion legal, according to a new poll that follows the leak of a draft opinion from the Supreme Court potentially overturning Roe vs. Wade. The poll from CBS News and YouGov showed 58 percent of U.S. adults favored making abortion legal, while 42 percent opposed it. (Beals, 5/8)

AP: Abortion Rights Protesters Rally In Cities Around US 
Abortion rights protesters rallied in cities around the United States on Saturday, vowing to fight to ensure that abortion remains a legal option for women nationwide. Hundreds gathered in Chicago, Atlanta, Houston and other cities days after a draft U.S. Supreme Court opinion was leaked to the public suggesting the court is poised to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion nationwide. The draft opinion, which comes amid nearly 50 years of federal abortion protections, could change before the ruling is finalized in coming weeks. (5/7)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Residents Protest Supreme Court’s Leaked Draft Decision To Overturn Roe V. Wade
Dozens of Bay Area residents gathered at San Francisco’s Embarcadero Plaza on Saturday to defend abortion rights, the latest in a series of protests around the region and country following a leaked draft decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that would overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 law that legalized abortion nationwide. The roughly hourlong event, organized by the Socialist Alternative, drew a smaller crowd than those that marched the streets Tuesday, immediately following news of the leaked draft. Many attendees came on Saturday to show support for the cause because they weren’t able to attend rallies earlier in the week, or demonstrated on Tuesday and wanted to show their continued support. (Ho, 5/7)

Bloomberg: Abortion-Rights Protest Targets Homes Of Kavanaugh, Roberts
About 100 protesters took the battle over abortion rights to the homes of two conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices Saturday night, five days after a leaked draft opinion suggested the court is poised to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling. Bearing signs and chanting slogans, the group marched from Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s house in Chevy Chase, Maryland, to Chief Justice John Roberts’ residence about a half mile away. The protesters then returned to Kavanaugh’s before police ordered them to disperse. It wasn’t clear whether either justice’s family was home. (Stohr, 5/8)

The Washington Post: Outside Kavanaugh’s Home, A Neighbor Rallies For Abortion Rights
Lacie Wooten-Holway walked through Chevy Chase on Wednesday night, pausing to stick fliers on her fence, a tree and utility boxes. She was advertising an abortion rights protest here, in her neighborhood, in front of the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. A passing couple paused, reading her sign: “HONK 4 REPRO Rights and Bodily Autonomy.” “Good!” the woman said. “That I don’t agree with,” the man interjected. “I think you vote, and you expand the court. You don’t go to a guy’s house.” She had heard the argument before and responded: “I organize peaceful candlelit vigils in front of his house. … We’re about to get doomsday, so I’m not going to be civil to that man at all.” (Silverman, 5/7)

The Hill: Abortion Rights Activists Plan Protests Outside Of Supreme Court Justices’ Homes 
Abortion rights activists are planning to protest outside of the homes of the conservative justices on the Supreme Court after a leaked draft of a majority opinion overturning Roe v. Wade was published earlier this week. Ruth Sent Us, a progressive activist organization, posted on their website that they will be protesting outside the homes of the six conservative justices on May 11. “At the homes of the six extremist justices, three in Virginia and three in Maryland. If you’d like to join or lead a peaceful protest, let us know,” the site reads.  (Lonas, 5/7)

The New York Times: Anti-Abortion Group In Wisconsin Is Hit By Arson, Authorities Say 
In a statement to The New York Times, Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, which works with Wisconsin Family Action, attributed the attack to left-wing extremists who aim to intimidate abortion opponents, and he vowed that they would not succeed. “We are grateful for the unwavering leadership of Wisconsin Family Action and the dozens of family policy councils around the country that are committed to the sanctity of all human life,” he added. The north side of Madison, where Wisconsin Family Action calls home, is not a sleepy neighborhood. Directly off a busy street, International Lane, the group’s long brown office building is tucked next to the Dane County Regional Airport, among other nondescript corporate offices. All of the businesses were empty on Sunday morning, though a steady stream of cars passed by. (Ploeg and Lathers, 5/8)

NPR: After Roe V. Wade Leak, Abortion Rights Groups See A Surge In Donations
Abortion-rights groups across the country experienced a tidal wave of financial support this week after a leaked Supreme Court draft decision to tentatively overturn Roe v. Wade was made public. Elliott Kozuch, a senior communications strategist with NARAL Pro-Choice America, said donations to the group skyrocketed 1,400% the day after Politico first reported that the Supreme Court may overturn the landmark case, which would leave the fate of abortion rights in the hands of individual states. About half of the supporters were first-time donors, Kozuch told NPR. (Jones, 5/6)

Politico: Telemedicine Abortion Providers See A Surge In Interest 
Online providers and groups are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of people requesting abortion pills or seeking information on consultations for the drugs since the draft opinion ending Roe v. Wade was first reported on Monday. ... People are increasingly seeking “advance provision” abortion pills — getting them now in case they need them later — because they fear that access could be rolled back if Roe is ultimately overturned. (Leonard, 5/8)

USA Today: Jane Roe Daughter Slams Supreme Court Leaked Abortion Opinion
The daughter of the woman who became the face of the 1973 Roe v. Wade case that granted Americans a constitutional right to abortion said overturning the decision was dangerous and her mother would be furious with the Supreme Court for doing so. "I think mom would be turning in her grave because she was always pro-woman," Melissa Mills told USA TODAY in an exclusive interview. Mills said she was in shock when she got a text message Monday night and learned a leaked draft opinion indicated the Supreme Court is poised to overturn the landmark decision. (Ruiz-Goiriena, 5/6)

The Washington Post: How The Future Of Roe Is Testing Roberts’s Clout On Supreme Court
The explosive leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade not only focused the nation on the magnitude of the change facing abortion rights, it also signaled the rise of a rightward-moving bench that is testing the power of fellow conservative Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. As the country awaits a final decision, the intense deliberations inside a court closed to the public and shaken by revelations of its private negotiations appears to be not between the court’s right and left, but among the six conservative justices, including Roberts, in the court’s supermajority. (Barnes, Leonnig and Marimow, 5/7)

The Hill: Roe V. Wade Draft Fuels Democratic Calls To Add Justices To Supreme Court 
Proposals to reform the Supreme Court are getting new attention from Democrats following a leaked draft opinion by Justice Samuel Alito that would overturn Roe v. Wade, one of the most consequential civil rights decisions of the past 50 years.  Democrats say the opinion, if supported by five conservative justices, opens the door to reversals of other landmark court decisions on same-sex marriage or the right to use contraception. (Bolton, 5/8)

The Hill: NPR Reporter Says ‘Leading Theory’ On SCOTUS Leak Is Conservative Clerk
A clerk for a conservative justice is the “leading theory” amid intense speculation about who released a draft opinion authored by Justice Samuel Alito showing the court is set to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg of NPR. Totenberg said on ABC’s “This Week” that the prevailing theory is that a conservative clerk released the decision in an attempt to lock in the five justices who voted to support overturning Roe as Chief Justice John Roberts reportedly attempts to pull his colleagues toward a more moderate position. (Dress, 5/8)

The Washington Post: Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves Won't Rule Out Banning Contraception 
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) on Sunday refused to rule out the possibility that his state would ban certain forms of contraception, sidestepping questions about what would happen next if Roe v. Wade is overturned. On CNN’s “State of the Union,” Reeves confirmed that, if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, a trigger law passed in Mississippi in 2007 would go into effect that essentially outlaws abortions in the state, although it makes exceptions for rape and for the life of the mother. (Wang and Foster-Frau, 5/8)

NPR: A Michigan Law From 1931 Would Make Abortion A Felony If Roe Falls
When Stephanie Mejia Arciñiega drove her friend to the Planned Parenthood in Ann Arbor, Mich., they were surrounded by anti-abortion protestors as soon as they tried to pull in to the clinic. "They come up to your car super fast," Mejia Arciñiega said. "You don't want to run their feet over, so we had to stop and be like, 'OK, no thank you.' But then they started throwing a bunch of papers and resources at us. We tried to go inside, but we couldn't." The clinic, which offers abortion care as well as birth control, cancer screenings, and STD treatment, has long been the target of anti-abortion protestors. Protestors' efforts to limit abortions in the state may soon get a huge boost, if the Supreme Court strikes down Roe v. Wade. (Wells, 5/7)

The Hill: Michigan AG Warns Of State-Sanctioned Investigations Into Abortion If Roe V. Wade Overturned
Michigan’s Democratic attorney general warned on Sunday that Republican-led states would start investigating and prosecuting abortion providers and abortion patients if Roe v. Wade is overturned by the Supreme Court. Attorney General Dana Nessel told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that while she would “refuse to enforce laws that would endanger” women’s health, she believes more conservative leaders in offices across the country will criminalize abortion care, which could include the prosecution of doctors as well as women who take abortion pills. (Dress, 5/8)

Bloomberg: Roe V. Wade: U.S. Military Risks A Drop In Female Troops Under Abortion Rollback
U.S. troops could see their access to abortion severely curtailed if the Supreme Court overturns its landmark ruling on reproductive rights, potentially hurting military recruitment and the retention of women. As employees of the federal government, doctors on military bases are already banned from performing abortions so female troops -- and the female spouses of troops -- must seek out the procedure on their own. That would become much more difficult if the Supreme Court overturns the precedent set in its Roe v. Wade ruling almost five decades ago, as a leaked draft ruling indicates it’s likely to do. (Tiron, 5/6)

The New York Times: Midterms’ Biggest Abortion Battleground: Pennsylvania 
Jan Downey, who calls herself “a Catholic Republican,” is so unhappy about the Supreme Court’s likely reversal of abortion rights that she is leaning toward voting for a Democrat for Pennsylvania governor this year. “Absolutely,” she said. “On that issue alone.” Linda Ward, also a Republican, said the state’s current law allowing abortion up to 24 weeks was “reasonable.” But Ms. Ward said she would vote for a Republican for governor, even though all the leading candidates vowed to sign legislation sharply restricting abortion. She is disgusted with inflation, mask mandates and “woke philosophy,” she said. (Gabriel, 5/8)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Wave This Fall Could Infect 100 Million, Administration Warns
The Biden administration is warning the United States could see 100 million coronavirus infections and a potentially significant wave of deaths this fall and winter, driven by new omicron subvariants that have shown a remarkable ability to escape immunity. The projection, made Friday by a senior administration official during a background briefing as the nation approaches a covid death toll of 1 million, is part of a broader push to boost the nation’s readiness and persuade lawmakers to appropriate billions of dollars to purchase a new tranche of vaccines, tests and therapeutics. (Abutaleb and Achenbach, 5/6)

Politico: White House Warns Of Covid Surges In The Winter 
Covid cases surged during the last two winters and are likely to again this year — unless the country can prepare and act, White House Covid-19 response coordinator Ashish Jha said Sunday morning. “If we don’t get ahead of this thing, we’ll have a lot of waning immunity, this virus continues to evolve and we may see a pretty sizable wave of infections, hospitalizations and deaths this fall and winter,” Jha said on ABC’s “This Week.” (Farrow, 5/8)

Axios: Misinformation Spurring U.S. Life Expectancy "Erosion," FDA Chief Says
U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner Robert Califf told CNN on Saturday evening "almost no one" in the U.S. should be dying from COVID-19, but misinformation was impacting the death toll. Nearly 998,000 people have died of COVID in the U.S. since the pandemic began as of Sunday night, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The coronavirus was the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2021 for the second consecutive year, behind heart disease and cancer. (Falconer, 5/7)

AP: Nearly 1 Million COVID-19 Deaths: A Look At The US Numbers 
Doug Lambrecht was among the first of the nearly 1 million Americans to die from COVID-19. His demographic profile — an older white male with chronic health problems — mirrors the faces of many who would be lost over the next two years. The 71-year-old retired physician was recovering from a fall at a nursing home near Seattle when the new coronavirus swept through in early 2020. He died March 1, an early victim in a devastating outbreak that gave a first glimpse of the price older Americans would pay. The pandemic has generated gigabytes of data that make clear which U.S. groups have been hit the hardest. More than 700,000 people 65 and older died. Men died at higher rates than women. (Johnson and Forster, 5/6)

The Washington Post: After 1 Million Deaths, Covid Leaves Millions More Forever Changed
One million dead: The U.S. death toll from the covid-19 pandemic will hit that unfathomable number this week, and yet there is a far larger number that reflects the true impact this virus has had on Americans over the past two years. That number is 9 million — the number of Americans who have lost spouses, parents, grandparents, siblings and children to covid. Sociologists at Penn State and the University of Southern California came up with a “bereavement multiplier,” a way to calculate how many close relatives each covid death leaves behind and bereft. The answer, on average, is nine — not including extended family or close friends, longtime co-workers or next-door neighbors, many of whom, the study said, are deeply affected, too. (Fisher, Johnson, Spolar and Aspinwall, 5/7)

The Washington Post: People Who Never Get The Coronavirus Could Teach Us More About Coronavirus 
Scientists around the world are investigating how a dwindling number of people have managed to dodge the coronavirus for more than two years, even after the highly transmissible omicron variant drove a record-shattering surge in cases this winter. (Shepherd and Heim, 5/8)

The New York Times: Gov. Kathy Hochul Tests Positive For Covid 
Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York announced on Sunday that she had tested positive for the coronavirus — the worst sort of Mother’s Day surprise for the state’s first mom governor. Aides said that Ms. Hochul was asymptomatic, and that the virus had been detected as part of the governor’s testing routine in Albany. (Ashford, 5/8)

Modern Healthcare: FDA's Limitations On J&J Vaccine Haven't Disrupted Providers
The Food and Drug Administration's decision to limit the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine won't have a significant impact on health systems. The FDA scaled back the emergency use authorization of the vaccine developed by J&J and its Janssen Pharmaceuicals subsidiary because it caused a rare blood clotting disorder in 60 patients out of 18.7 million doses administered. The vaccine should only be used for adults who would otherwise go unvaccinated or who cannot have the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, the agency said. (Kacik, 5/6)

AP: Tribes Credited With Elevating Vaccinations In Rural Arizona
Mary Francis had no qualms about being a poster child for COVID-19 vaccinations on the Navajo Nation, once a virus hot spot. The Navajo woman’s face and words grace a digital flyer asking people on the Native American reservation to get vaccinated “to protect the shidine’e (my people).” “I was happy to put the information out there and just building that awareness and in having folks feel comfortable enough, or curious enough, to read the material,” said Francis, who lives in Page, near the Utah border, and manages care packages and vaccine drives for a Navajo and Hopi relief fund. (Tang, 5/7)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: COVID-19 State Of Emergency Coming To An End In Nevada
Nevada’s COVID-19 pandemic state of emergency will soon be no more. Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Friday that he plans to end the state of emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 20, more than two years after he issued the emergency declaration. The governor declared the emergency on March 12 in response to the pandemic when the state had detected just 11 total positive cases of COVID-19. That order granted the governor the authority to take extraordinary measures to combat the virus, from closing businesses to easing licensing requirements for some health care workers. (Lochhead, 5/6)

NBC News: More People Now Incorrectly Blame Asian Americans For Covid Than At Height Of Pandemic
More Americans are now blaming Asian Americans for Covid-19 than at the height of the pandemic in 2021, according to a report released Wednesday by Asian American advocacy groups. More than 20 percent of respondents said this year that people of Asian descent are at least partly responsible for Covid-19, compared to 11 percent who said last year that the community was to blame. The study, released by Leading Asian Americans United for Change (LAAUNCH.org) and The Asian American Foundation (TAAF), also showed higher levels of distrust of Asian Americans. (Bellamy-Walker, 5/5)

The New York Times: C.D.C. Is Investigating 109 Cases Of Hepatitis In Children, Including 5 Deaths 
The deaths of five children and what may be an unusual group of more than 100 hepatitis cases in young children in the United States are under investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the agency said on Friday. The C.D.C. said it was examining cases involving 109 children in 25 states and territories who had or have what the agency is calling “hepatitis of unknown cause.” (Kolata, 5/6)

Detroit Free Press: 2 Michigan Kids With Severe Hepatitis Part Of CDC Investigation
Two Michigan children had suspected cases of a rare, severe form of hepatitis that's now believed to have sickened at least 109 kids in the U.S. and may be linked to adenovirus infection. Both Michigan children were younger than 5. One was from Oakland County and the other from the city of Detroit, said Lynn Sutfin, a spokesperson for the state health department. One child was sickened in October, Sutfin said; she couldn't provide details about the timing of the second suspected Michigan case. (Jordan Shamus, 5/6)

AP: Alabama Outlaws Gender-Affirming Medicines For Trans Kids 
It’s now a crime in Alabama to administer or prescribe gender-affirming puberty blockers and hormones to transgender people under age 19, as a new law took effect Sunday without intervention from the courts. Alabama is the first state to enact such a ban on these treatments for transgender youth. A similar measure in Arkansas to halt the treatments was blocked by a federal judge before it took effect. A federal judge has not yet ruled on a preliminary injunction request to block Alabama from enforcing the law while a court challenge goes forward. (Chandler, 5/8)

The New York Times: Hundreds Of Suicidal Teens Sleep In Emergency Rooms. Every Night
Nationally, the number of residential treatment facilities for people under the age of 18 fell to 592 in 2020 from 848 in 2012, a 30 percent decline, according to the most recent federal government survey. The decline is partly a result of well-intentioned policy changes that did not foresee a surge in mental-health cases. Social-distancing rules and labor shortages during the pandemic have eliminated additional treatment centers and beds, experts say. Absent that option, emergency rooms have taken up the slack. A recent study of 88 pediatric hospitals around the country found that 87 of them regularly board children and adolescents overnight in the E.R. On average, any given hospital saw four boarders per day, with an average stay of 48 hours. “There is a pediatric pandemic of mental health boarding,” said Dr. JoAnna K. Leyenaar, a pediatrician at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and the study’s lead author. (Richtel, 5/8)

Detroit Free Press: Detroit Police Share Mental Health Resources With Teens
Detroit neighborhood Police Officer Dan Robinson says he noticed a concerning trend among kids and teens in his patrol area over the last couple of years: an increase in reports of depression, anxiety and even suicidal thoughts. "Due to COVID, we've seen more (mental health problems) with the kids," Robinson said. "So we wanted to figure out what we could do to get resources to them." (Wethington, 5/7)

Bay City News Service: S.F. Launches Program To Connect Mentally Ill With Available Services
San Francisco officials announced Friday the launch of the Office of Coordinated Care, as part of the city’s expansion of behavioral mental health resources. The new office will assign case managers to people who are disconnected from behavioral health services, or who are making transitions in care from one setting to another, according to a news release Friday from the office of Mayor London Breed. The aim is to help people remain in care and avoid falling back into a cycle of crisis, officials said, adding that previously little follow-up services existed. Breed worked in partnership with Supervisor Hillary Ronen and then-Supervisor Matt Haney to craft the Mental Health SF legislation that created the new office. (5/7)

Fox News: Family Of Former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst Raises Awareness Of High-Functioning Depression After Tragic Death
She competed as a Division 1 athlete, fought for social justice, earned two Emmy nominations for her work as an "Extra" correspondent, and made history as the oldest woman to ever win the Miss USA pageant. So why did Cheslie Kryst commit suicide at age 30? Former 2019 Miss USA Cheslie Kryst took her own life Jan. 30, 2022, but her mother, April Simpkins, opened up about Kryst’s secret struggle with high-functioning depression this past Wednesday on "Red Table Talk" during her first interview since the tragedy, according to a USA Today report. "Depression is not always marked by people laying in bed," Simpkins said. (Sudhakar, 5/8)

AP: For Parkland Survivor, A Long Road To Recovery From Trauma 
More than a year after she witnessed a gunman kill three fellow students and injure five others in her Parkland classroom, Eden Hebron came home from lunch to find a strange white car parked in her driveway. Since the shooting, surprise visitors were rare. Eden had struggled to cope in the aftermath, and her family tried to protect her. Now, nearly 20 months after the Valentine’s Day massacre where 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, a therapist had arrived to send Eden to a mental health facility on the other side of the country. (Licon, 5/7)

The New York Times: Officials Warn Of Fake Adderall Pills After Two College Students Die
The police said two Ohio State University students died in apparent drug overdoses this week as health officials warned that fake Adderall pills could contain fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid. The police received a 911 call at 10:46 p.m. on Wednesday from a woman who reported that her roommate and her roommate’s friends had overdosed at an off-campus apartment, said Officer Doran Carrier of the Columbus Division of Police. Three university students were taken to hospitals, he said. (Sundaram, 5/7)

USA Today: Baby Formula Shortage Worsens; CVS, Target, Walgreens Limit Sales
The ongoing infant formula shortage isn't over yet – and appears to be getting worse. Nearly 40% of popular baby formula brands were sold out at retailers across the U.S. during the week starting April 24, according to an analysis by Datasembly, which assessed supplies at more than 11,000 stores. That's up from an already-high out-of-stock percentage of 31% two weeks ago, Datasembly said. Major retailers including CVS, Target and Walgreens are limiting the amount of formula shoppers can purchase. (Snider, 5/7)

The New York Times: A Nationwide Baby Formula Shortage Is Getting Worse 
The manufacturer of Ashley Hernandez’s preferred baby formula for her two girls said it was out of stock on its website. Listings on eBay showed it would cost her up to $120 for a single can. So when she found a seller online offering 10 cans for $40 each, she expressed her desperation. “I have two children,” Ms. Hernandez, 35, of Dallas, began her message. “I cannot find it. I can purchase this today. I can pay cash.” Parents across the country are struggling to keep up with a nationwide shortage of baby formula — a problem worsened by a recent recall by Abbott Nutrition, a manufacturer of baby food. (Medina, 5/8)

AP: District Cancels School After Elevated Lead Levels Found
The Mount Blue Regional School District canceled school on Friday after test results showed elevated levels of lead in nearly half of the drinking fountains and faucets. The tests at the eight schools were completed at the end of March following Maine’s new law that requires fixtures in the state’s schools used for drinking water and food preparation to be tested. (5/7)

The New York Times: Man, 25, Is The Fourth Inmate To Die At Rikers This Year 
A 25-year-old homeless man is believed to have committed suicide at the Rikers Island jail complex in New York City on Saturday evening, according to people familiar with the case. The man, Dashawn Carter, was found hanging from a window in his cell at the Anna M. Kross Center just two days after being transferred back to Rikers from a state psychiatric hospital, according to a person with knowledge of the circumstances surrounding his death. (Hu and Ransom, 5/8)

The Washington Post: Super Short Workouts Can Be Surprisingly Effective
It sounds like one of those outrageous infomercial claims — get fitter and healthier from as little as one minute of exercise. But In this case, the assertion isn’t too good to be true. There’s now a strong body of research showing that even workouts of 10 minutes or less can produce real and meaningful results, says Jenna Gillen, an exercise physiologist at the University of Toronto. Gillen’s work has shown that even a one-minute bout of exercise, done right, can improve your fitness and health. Of course there’s a caveat: to get results from such short workouts, you have to be willing to push yourself hard, Gillen says. Numerous studies have shown that intense interval training protocols can get results from relatively short workouts. Gillen and her colleagues at McMaster University wanted to know just how short that workout can be. (Aschwanden, 5/7)

Modern Healthcare: Cerebral Is Under Federal Investigation
Cerebral, the digital mental health ‘unicorn’, said on Saturday it was under investigation by the federal government for “possible violations of the Controlled Substances Act."  The company said it received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York on May 4. In a statement to Digital Health Business & Technology, Cerebral said at this time no regulatory, or law enforcement authority has accused Cerebral of violating any law. Cerebral said it will cooperate with the investigation. (Perna, 5/7)

Modern Healthcare: Kaiser Permanente Posts $961 Million Net Loss In Q1
Kaiser Permanente recorded a $961 million net loss in the first quarter as COVID-19 cases and labor expenses surged, the Oakland, California-based integrated health system announced Friday. A 9.5% year-over-year increase in operating expenses coupled with investment losses diluted Kaiser's balance sheet. It reported $24.2 billion in operating revenues, which didn't keep pace with its $24.3 billion in operating expenses. Kaiser had a $2 billion net income on $23.2 billion of operating revenue in the first quarter of 2021. (Kacik, 5/6)

WMFE: DeSantis Wants To Know How Much Florida Hospitals Spend On People In The Country Illegally
The DeSantis administration is asking Florida hospitals to determine how much money they spend on health care for patients living in the country illegally. Hospitals have until May 23 to submit a record of any such funds to the state Agency for Health Care Administration. AHCA Secretary Simone Marstiller sent a letter to the Florida Hospital Association, which represents the state’s hospitals, with a reminder that all partners must participate. (Prieur, 5/8)

Carolina Public Press: Program Brings Sexual Assault Nurse Training To HBCU 
By the end of summer, a handful of nursing students at Fayetteville State University will have started taking courses on how to care for sexual assault survivors. It’s a small start but one Sheila Cannon has worked toward for more than two years. The funding comes from the state legislature, which allocated $125,000 for a pilot training program in Cumberland County late last year. Cannon said she expects to train 10 students starting this summer, but she hopes the program can grow from meager beginnings into a program that continues to train sexual assault nurse examiners, or SANE nurses, year after year. (Martin, 5/7)

Stat: A Panel Meant To Make NIH More Efficient Hasn’t Met For 7 Years
An oversight board tasked with making the National Institutes of Health more efficient and more effective mysteriously stopped meeting seven years ago, according to a STAT review of agency records — and its members don’t know why. The group, which Congress created in 2006, was intended to serve as a sounding board for the NIH director, providing periodic feedback and recommendations aimed at improving the government’s largest science agency. But it hasn’t met since the summer of 2015, and several prominent researchers whom the NIH website still lists as board members appear confused as to whether the group still exists. (Facher, 5/9)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare Hiring Rose In April, Jobs Report Shows
Healthcare hiring accelerated in April even as ongoing staff shortages continue to challenge the industry, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data published Friday. Employers in the sector added an estimated 34,300 jobs last month, up from 23,300 in March, preliminary data show. The healthcare industry contributed to 428,000 hires made across the economy in April. Physician offices, home health providers and hospitals saw the largest gains among healthcare employers. (Devereaux, 5/6)

The Wall Street Journal: Hospitals Look To Raise Treatment Costs As Nurses’ Salaries Increase 
Some hospitals grappling with rising nurse salaries are seeking to raise prices by up to 15%, touching off contract fights with health insurers and businesses and threatening higher premiums. HCA Healthcare Inc. and Universal Health Services Inc. are among the hospitals asking health plans to pay them more for care to offset mounting nurse costs. (Evans, 5/8)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Nurse Burnout? Hospitals Offer Job Flexibility Pay Hikes
The numbers tell a bleak story for the industry. A third of nurses in the United States plan to leave their jobs by the end of the year, according to a survey conducted by staffing firm Incredible Health. Another 20% plan to leave the industry altogether, a separate survey made by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. found. The reasons are largely due to the incessant burnout, stress, and fatigue that nurses have experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. But other factors include financial considerations and a perceived lack of flexibility in the industry as well as too few advancement opportunities. (Sutherland, 5/9)

Stateline: Doctors Trained Abroad Want To See You Now
It took 11 years for Vladislav Zimin to complete his training in Russia to become an interventional cardiologist, a specialist who places stents in clogged arteries. After that, he practiced for five years, ultimately becoming head of his Moscow hospital’s cardiology and radiology department. Then he emigrated to the United States in 2015 at age 32, and had to practically start all over again. He spent seven years studying English and preparing for the rigorous U.S. Medical Licensing Examination needed to qualify for an American residency, which he’ll begin in July in Brooklyn. For him to get back to performing invasive heart procedures, he’ll have to repeat three years in residency, three years in a general cardiology fellowship and one year in a fellowship for interventionist cardiology. (Ollove, 5/6)

CNN: Rare Case Of Monkeypox Reported In England, UKHSA Says
A rare case of monkeypox has been diagnosed in a patient in England, the UK Health Security Agency said in a statement Saturday. Monkeypox is a rare viral infection which does not spread easily between people, the agency said, qualifying the overall risk to the general public as "very low." "The infection can be spread when someone is in close contact with an infected person; however, there is a very low risk of transmission to the general population," the statement read. (Goillandeau, 5/8)