NBC News: Biden Administration Withdraws Vaccine-Or-Test Mandate For Large Employers
The Biden administration is withdrawing its Covid vaccination-or-test requirement for large employers, citing the Supreme Court's recent decision to block the rule. The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, said Tuesday that the withdrawal of the emergency mandate would be effective Wednesday. The Supreme Court this month blocked the mandate, which required larger businesses to ensure that workers are vaccinated against Covid-19 or wear masks and get tested weekly. The court's conservative majority said the administration had gone too far in imposing such a sweeping requirement on the country's businesses. (Finn, 1/25)

Modern Healthcare: OSHA Withdraws COVID Vaccine Mandate For Employers
OSHA's emergency temporary standard had sought to require employers with at least 100 employees to develop, implement and enforce vaccination policies, with exceptions for those that instead required employees to either get vaccinated or undergo regular testing for COVID-19 and wear face coverings at work. OSHA wrote in a filing Tuesday that emergency temporary standards, like the one being withdrawn, also serve as proposed rules. The agency noted the vaccination policy still exists as a proposed rule, which received "robust participation" from more than 100,000 commenters that will be available for public review. (Bannow, 1/25)

The Hill: Biden Administration Withdraws Its Vaccine-Or-Test Mandate For Businesses 
Given the Supreme Court's decision, the Biden administration filed a motion on Tuesday to have the existing lawsuits that were filed against the employer vaccine mandate dismissed. Twenty-seven Republican-led states and a coalition of businesses had brought those legal challenges against the mandate. “The federal government respectfully moves to dismiss the petitions challenging the Vaccination and Testing emergency temporary standard (Vaccination and Testing ETS) issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to address the grave danger of COVID-19 in the workplace,” the Biden administration said in a motion. (Vakil, 1/25)

In related news —

Bloomberg: Covid-19: Few Employers To Drop Vaccine Mandate After Supreme Court Ruling
More than one-third of U.S. employers still plan to implement a vaccine mandate despite the Supreme Court’s rejection of a federal rule that would have required workers to get shots or periodic tests. Thirty-five percent of companies polled by Gartner Inc. last week said the court’s Jan. 13 ruling won’t derail their plans to require vaccinations, compared with just 4% that said they’re now dropping their mandate. A further 29% haven’t made a decision yet, while 12% said they’re now less likely to impose a requirement. (Boyle, 1/25)

WUSF Public Media: Florida Has Ended Its Appeal To Biden's COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement For Health Care Workers 
After a U.S. Supreme Court ruling this month that backed the Biden administration, Florida has dropped its appeal in a legal fight against federal COVID-19 vaccination requirements for health care workers. Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office filed a motion Friday to dismiss an appeal that was filed at the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. That appeal came after a Pensacola-based district judge in November refused to block the vaccination requirements for workers at hospitals, nursing homes and other health care providers. The motion cited a Jan. 13 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that upheld the vaccination requirements in cases from other parts of the country. (Saunders, 1/25)

AP: Judge Temporarily Restores New York's Mask Mandate
An appeals judge restored New York’s mask mandate Tuesday, a day after a judge in a lower court ruled that Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration lacked the constitutional authority to order people to wear face coverings during the COVID-19 pandemic. After hearing brief arguments, Appellate Division Justice Robert Miller granted the state’s request to keep the masking rule in place while the governor’s administration pursues an appeal. He offered no opinion on the mandate’s legality. (Thompson, 1/25)

The New York Times: New York Restaurant Won’t Face City Scrutiny for Admitting Sarah Palin
New York City will not investigate Elio’s, an Upper East Side restaurant, for allowing Sarah Palin to dine indoors on Saturday night without asking for proof that she had been vaccinated. City rules require that restaurants demand such proof before admitting guests indoors. Ms. Palin is unvaccinated, and on Monday, she tested positive for Covid. But a spokesman for the city said Tuesday that the many agencies that enforce the vaccination rules issue violations only for incidents that have been observed by a city inspector. Ms. Palin’s visit to Elio’s was disclosed in a tweet by a fellow diner. (Krishna, 1/25)

And more news on covid mandates —

Los Angeles Times: Super Bowl Guests To Get KN95 Masks At SoFi Stadium
Face masks will be given to spectators watching the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, officials announced Tuesday, to ensure COVID-19 protocols are met at the event, which is a little more than two weeks away. The masks — KN95 varieties — will be handed out as part of health and safety plans ahead of the Feb. 13 game. L.A. County’s health officer order requires that patrons, customers and guests wear masks at “outdoor mega events,” now defined as those hosting 5,000 or more people, regardless of whether they’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19. (Lin II, Money and Alpert Reyes, 1/25)

The Washington Post: D.C. Students Walk Out To Protest ‘Not Safe’ School Covid Protocols
Dozens of students from Benjamin Banneker Academic High School walked out Tuesday afternoon in a push for more coronavirus testing and virtual options in D.C. Public Schools. Students in smaller numbers from eight other schools staged similar protests. ... Brianna Stallings, a lead organizer in the demonstration, said her school wasn’t being transparent about how many people at Banneker have contracted covid-19. (Asbury, 1/25)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Officials Begin To Plot When To Ease Mask Mandates And Other COVID Restrictions As Cases Slow
Two weeks after the omicron surge appears to have crested in the Bay Area, coronavirus hospitalizations also are leveling off, and health officials said Tuesday that they are starting to plan for what pandemic life might look like on the other side of the winter wave. Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations remain very high across the region, with nearly 15,000 new cases reported each day on average and 2,014 people hospitalized with COVID in the Bay Area as of Monday — just shy of last winter’s peak patient loads. Health officials said they anticipate at least three more weeks of high case rates and tremendous pressure on hospitals as the omicron surge wanes. (Allday, 1/25)

Stateline: COVID Conflicts Smolder In States
Omicron has proven the most transmissible of any COVID-19 variant so far, straining hospital systems in every corner of the country. But it hasn’t changed the dynamics surrounding the politics of the pandemic in the states. As the crisis grinds toward its third lethal year, states have shown little letup in their approaches to the emergency. The states that embraced restrictions to protect public health are poised to continue to do so in the coming year. Those intent on ensuring the pandemic does not impinge on what they regard as individual autonomy will continue to do so in 2022. “We’re not really seeing states change course [in response to omicron] in terms of their policies and approaches in dealing with COVID overall,” said Jennifer Tolbert, director of state health reform at the Kaiser Family Foundation. (Ollove, 1/25)

USA Today: Only 40% Of US. Population Has Gotten Boosters
The evidence about the protection from severe disease provided by booster shots is compelling, as outlined by the recent CDC study that showed they're 90% effective at preventing hospitalizations from omicron infections. And yet that data hasn't convinced even a majority of Americans to get boosted. Only 40% of the U.S. population has received the extra dose, considerably lower than the less-than-impressive 63% who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Even though President Joe Biden and health care experts continue to harp on the importance of booster doses as protection from the initial vaccinations wanes, the average number of boosters administered per day in the U.S. has dropped from a peak of 1 million in early December to about 490,000 as of last week. (Ortiz, Fernando and Tebor, 1/25)

AP: COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Drive Is Faltering In The US
The COVID-19 booster drive in the U.S. is losing steam, worrying health experts who have pleaded with Americans to get an extra shot to shore up their protection against the highly contagious omicron variant. Just 40% of fully vaccinated Americans have received a booster dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the average number of booster shots dispensed per day in the U.S. has plummeted from a peak of 1 million in early December to about 490,000 as of last week. (Anderson, 1/26)

Austin American-Statesman: Do I Really Need To Get A COVID-19 Booster? CDC Real-World Study Supports Effectiveness
The new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides real-world U.S. numbers about the effectiveness of boosters for both the delta and omicron variants of COVID-19. The study analyzed cases from 383 emergency departments and urgent care clinics and 259 hospitals across 10 states from Aug. 26 to Jan. 5. It looked only at people 18 and older. The study found that mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna have waning effectiveness 180 days after the second dose. The effectiveness went from 94% during the delta variant spread to 82% amid omicron's spread for keeping people out of the emergency room and urgent care and from 94% to 90% for people keeping people from being hospitalized. (Villalpando, 1/25)

In other news on the vaccine rollout —

Georgia Health News: More Than 80% Of Staffers In Nursing Homes Vaccinated As Mandate Deadline Looms 
Georgia’s Covid vaccination rate among nursing home employees is just above the national average of 81 percent, according to federal data. Those vaccination figures have become more important after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Jan. 13 upholding a federal mandate requiring health care workers at facilities that receive Medicaid or Medicare funding to be fully vaccinated. If all staffers — excluding those with approved religious or medical exemptions — are not fully vaccinated, a facility will lose the revenue from the two programs, a Kaiser Health News report noted. (Berger and Miller, 1/25)

AP: Wisconsin Assembly OKs Vaccine Passport Ban, Immunity Waiver 
Republicans who control the Wisconsin Assembly approved a pair of bills Tuesday that would require employers to count a prior coronavirus infection as an alternative to vaccination and testing and prohibit government agencies from issuing vaccine passports. Both measures face a likely veto from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. The governor last year vetoed a GOP bill that would have barred public health officials from requiring people get vaccinated. (Richmond, 1/25)

The Washington Post: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Apologizes For Saying The Unvaccinated Have Less Freedom Than Anne Frank Did
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. apologized Tuesday for invoking Anne Frank to imply Jews had more freedoms during the Holocaust than unvaccinated Americans do today — remarks that drew a public backlash and criticism from Kennedy’s wife. ... On Tuesday, after intense criticism, he tweeted that to “the extent my remarks caused hurt, I am truly and deeply sorry.” “I apologize for my reference to Anne Frank, especially to families that suffered the Holocaust horrors,” wrote Kennedy, the son of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.) and nephew of President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy’s wife, actress Cheryl Hines, also distanced herself from his remarks. “My husband’s opinions are not a reflection of my own,” she tweeted. “While we love each other, we differ on many current issues.” (Jeong, 1/25)

CNBC: Covid Vaccine Skepticism Fueling Wider Anti-Vax Sentiment, Doctors Say
Skepticism toward Covid-19 vaccines could be fueling a “worrisome” rise in broader anti-vax sentiment, doctors have said. Professor Liam Smeeth, a physician and director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, told CNBC he was concerned that vaccine hesitancy around Covid was “creeping into” sentiment toward other vaccines. “I’m concerned it’s making people think: ‘oh, well, maybe the measles vaccine isn’t great either, and maybe these other vaccines aren’t great,’” Smeeth said in a phone call. “And we don’t have to see much of a drop in measles vaccine coverage in the U.K. to get measles outbreaks.” (Taylor, 1/26)

Axios: New Coronavirus Treatments Are In Short Supply, But That's Not Their Only Problem
Antiviral COVID treatments are hailed as a pandemic game-changer, but they're currently in very short supply — and that's only one of several barriers to access for high-risk patients. Even when supply ramps up, it will still be tricky to connect some of the most vulnerable patients to the pills without changes to the process. Recently approved antivirals reduce the risk of hospitalization and death by up to 89%. But patients have a relatively short window of time to begin the treatment regimen once they're diagnosed, meaning that access to timely testing, a provider who can write a prescription, and the pills themselves are all critical. (Owens, 1/26)

NPR: Evusheld, COVID Drug For The Immunocompromised, Is In Short Supply
Dr. Vivian Cheung takes steroids to manage a rare genetic disease. The drugs suppress her immune system, which puts her at high risk of getting very sick from COVID-19. It also means that her body didn't really make antibodies in response to two shots she got of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Cheung is a pediatrician and research scientist. Before the coronavirus pandemic, she flew weekly from her clinic at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland to her lab at the University of Michigan. Now she hasn't been to her lab in two years. "Except for work, I don't go out at all," she says. "I haven't been inside of a grocery store for over a year." (Huang, 1/25)

CBS Los Angeles: Highly Touted COVID-19 Antiviral Treatments In Short Supply
New drugs to treat COVID-19 symptoms have been touted as much needed weapons to help control the pandemic, but some doctors and medical centers are wondering why they haven’t yet received them. “I have better luck asking my patients to go out there and find Cryptonite than finding these medications at this point,” said. Dr. Thomas Yadegar, a pulmonary critical care physician in Tarzana. (1/25)

WBUR: Got COVID? Here's What To Know About Drug Treatments, And Who Is Getting Them
Several treatments are available that promise to help keep patients out of the hospital, but they are in short supply. We talked to doctors about the COVID treatment options, who is getting them and when supply will improve. (Emanuel, 1/26)

More on the Florida governor's demand for access to antibody treatments —

AP: DeSantis Blasts FDA For Halting Drugs Ineffective On Omicron
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed Tuesday for coronavirus patients to continue receiving antibody treatments deemed ineffective against the omicron variant, vowing to fight White House health regulators in his latest feud with President Joe Biden. The Republican governor’s comments came a day after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration pulled its emergency authorization for the antibody drugs from Regeneron and Eli Lilly. (Izaguirre and Perrone, 1/25)

Bloomberg: Florida Gov Ron DeSantis Touts Covid Monoclonal Antibody Treatments FDA Stopped
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he would consider suing the federal government to allow use of two monoclonal antibody therapies for Covid-19, after the Food and Drug Administration halted their use and said they don’t work against the omicron variant. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said DeSantis’s position was “crazy” when the government was still supplying the potentially life-saving treatment -- just not the specific brands found to be ineffective. (Levin and Wingrove, 1/25)

The Hill: White House Dismisses DeSantis Calls To Reverse Decision On Antibody Therapies That Don't Work 
White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Tuesday dismissed criticism from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and other Republicans who are demanding the Biden administration continue to allow states to use a COVID-19 treatment that doesn't work against the omicron variant. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday said it is limiting the use of two monoclonal antibody therapies from Eli Lilly and Regeneron because they are ineffective at treating the omicron variant. As a result, Florida health officials closed the state's antibody treatment centers. (Weixel, 1/25)

Also —

Des Moines Register: Iowa Republicans Seek Expanded Access To Experimental COVID Treatments
Iowans on ventilators could receive experimental medical treatments — including off-label uses for drugs like ivermectin — under a proposal Republicans advanced Tuesday. Republican supporters said they want the law change after hearing stories of some Iowa patients who were on ventilators for COVID-19 and were unable to try medications not authorized to treat the virus. (Richardson, 1/26)

Politico: Republicans See Political Gold In Democrats' Race-Sensitive Covid Drug Guidance
Republicans are accusing the Biden administration of racism — against white people. The administration’s recommendation that race and ethnicity be considered when deciding who gets the limited supply of new Covid drugs is the latest political talking points with which Republicans are hammering Democrats, looking to energize their base ahead of the midterm elections. (Ollstein and Messerly, 1/25)

The New York Times: New Research Hints At 4 Factors That May Increase Chances Of Long Covid
It is one of many mysteries about long Covid: Who is more prone to developing it? Are some people more likely than others to experience physical, neurological or cognitive symptoms than can emerge, or linger for, months after their coronavirus infections have cleared? Now, a team of researchers who followed more than 200 patients for two to three months after their Covid diagnoses report that they have identified biological factors that might help predict if a person will develop long Covid. (Belluck, 1/25)

NBC News: Who Will Get Long Covid? Study May Offer Clues
A blood test may someday help determine a person's risk for long Covid, new research suggests. The study, published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications, found that people who go on to develop long Covid have lower levels of certain antibodies in their blood soon after they are infected with the coronavirus. (Edwards, 1/25)

USA Today: Is Long COVID A Syndrome Or A Series Of Coronavirus Complications?
Long COVID largely remains a mystery, experts say, but a few clues are starting to emerge. With symptoms ranging from breathlessness to blood clots to lack of smell, what has been called long COVID might actually be a constellation of problems not one overarching condition. Calling it one thing is like saying someone has "cancer," rather than specifying "pancreatic cancer" or "skin cancer," said Dr. Nir Goldstein, a pulmonologist and director for The Center for Post-COVID Care and Recovery at National Jewish Health in Denver. (Weintraub, 1/25)

Bloomberg: Scientists Identify Factors That Appear Linked To Long Covid
People who have circulating fragments of the coronavirus, specific antibodies directed against their own tissues or organs -- known as auto-antibodies -- and a resurgence of the Epstein-Barr virus appear more at risk, researchers said in an article in the scientific journal Cell. Scientists are racing to better understand and predict long Covid, in which patients still confront a wide range of health problems months after recovery. The team of more than 50 researchers found some markers that could be identified early and appeared to correlate with lasting symptoms, regardless of whether the initial infection was severe. (Fourcade, 1/26)

Also —

The Washington Post: CDC Is Asked To Release Race And Gender Data On Long Covid
A pair of Democratic House members asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a letter Tuesday to release data on the number of Americans who suffer lingering symptoms of coronavirus infection, including breakdowns along race, gender and age. The National Institutes of Health and the CDC have launched detailed studies of long-term covid, often shortened to “long covid,” but those examinations are expected to take years. In the meantime, policymakers lack good information about how many people in the United States and worldwide suffer from long-term, debilitating effects of the disease. (Rowland, 1/25)

In related news about side effects —

CIDRAP: 75% Of COVID ICU Survivors Have Physical Symptoms 1 Year On 
One year after 246 COVID-19 survivors were treated in 1 of 11 intensive care units (ICUs) in the Netherlands, nearly 75% reported lingering physical symptoms, more than 26% said they had mental symptoms, and upwards of 16% still had cognitive symptoms, according to a study yesterday in JAMA. (Van Beusekom, 1/25)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Heart Function Returns To Normal Within 3 Months For Children With COVID Inflammatory Syndrome, CHOP Study Finds
Some good news for young COVID-19 patients who develop dangerous inflammation in multiple organs: After three months, their heart function generally has returned to normal, according to a new study from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. That’s not to say this condition, called multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C), isn’t serious. Children have died from it, and while most survive, the symptoms can linger for months. Some type of heart injury is usually part of the mix. (Avril, 1/25)

Reuters: COVID Is Less Severe With Omicron Than Delta, U.S. Study Suggests
The Omicron variant appears to result in less severe COVID-19 than seen during previous periods of high coronavirus transmission including the Delta wave, with shorter hospital stays, less need for intensive care and fewer deaths, according to a new U.S. study. However, the fast-spreading Omicron variant has led to record numbers of infections and hospitalizations, straining the U.S. healthcare system. (Maddipatla and Leo, 1/25)

The Washington Post: CDC Study Finds Shorter Hospital Stays During Omicron Wave, Even As Infections And Death Toll Mount 
Federal health officials reported Tuesday that the omicron variant caused less severe illness in hospitalized patients than earlier virus lineages, even though its explosive transmissibility has caused far more infections and led to more than 2,200 deaths a day on average, one of the highest tolls since early last year. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that people hospitalized with the omicron variant had shorter stays and less frequent admission to intensive care compared with those hospitalized with other coronavirus variants. (Sun, 1/25)

And more news about "stealth omicron" —

AP: EXPLAINER: What's Known About 'Stealth' Version Of Omicron?
Since mid-November, more than three dozen countries have uploaded nearly 15,000 genetic sequences of BA.2 to GISAID, a global platform for sharing coronavirus data. As of Tuesday morning, 96 of those sequenced cases came from the U.S. “Thus far, we haven’t seen it start to gain ground” in the U.S., said Dr. Wesley Long, a pathologist at Houston Methodist in Texas, which has identified three cases of BA.2. (Ungar, 1/25)

USA Today: Omicron Has A New Variant Cousin, BA.2. But Don't Panic, Experts Say
Yes, a new variant of omicron is spreading on at least four continents. But, no, it shouldn't be a cause for panic, Massachusetts scientists said Tuesday. Unlike two years ago when everyone was first learning about COVID-19, there are now many tools to combat the disease, and, like its cousin, omicron BA.2 is expected to remain relatively mild. "I don't think it's going to cause the degree of chaos and disruption, morbidity and mortality that BA.1 did," said Dr. Jacob Lemieux, an infectious disease specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. "I'm cautiously optimistic that we're going to continue to move to a better place and, hopefully, one where each new variant on the horizon isn't news." (Weintraub, 1/25)

CNBC: The Next Covid Variant Will Be More Contagious Than Omicron, WHO Says
The next Covid-19 variant that will rise to world attention will be more contagious than omicron, but the real question scientists need to answer is whether or not it will be more deadly, World Health Organization officials said Tuesday. Roughly 21 million Covid cases were reported to the WHO over the last week, setting a new global record for weekly cases from the rapidly spreading omicron variant, Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead, said during a livestreamed Q&A across the group’s social media channels. While omicron appears to be less virulent than previous strains of the virus, the sheer volume of cases is crushing hospital systems worldwide. (Kopecki, 1/25)

In related news about an omicron vaccine —

Fox News: Fauci Says Omicron Vaccine Would Be 'Prudent,' Doesn't Think COVID-19 Will Be Eradicated
White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that a vaccine specifically targeting the omicron variant of the coronavirus would be "prudent." Fauci said it "makes sense to think in terms of at least having ready an omicron specific boost." "We may not need it ... but I think it’s prudent to at least prepare for the possibility that this may be a persistent variant that we may have to face – even if it’s at a very low level," Fauci told MSNBC. (Musto, 1/25)

Detroit Free Press: Deaths Outpaced Births In Michigan For The 1st Time In 2020
For the first time in Michigan's recorded history, deaths outpaced births in 2020 — a situation worsened by the wave of deaths from COVID-19, said Kurt Metzger, a demographer who founded Data Driven Detroit and studies Michigan population trends. In the first year of the pandemic, 104,149 babies were born in Michigan but 117,087 people died in the state, Metzger said — an overall population loss of 12,938. "Looking at those numbers, I just said, 'Whoa! Here we are,' " said Metzger, who used data from the state health department to make the analysis. "It's the first time we've ever seen more deaths than births, which is kind of frightening." (Jordan Shamus, 1/26)

Cases and deaths rise in some places ...

The Wall Street Journal: Covid-19 Deaths In The U.S. Top 2,100 A Day, Highest In Nearly A Year
Covid-19 deaths in the U.S. have reached the highest level since early last year, eclipsing daily averages from the recent Delta-fueled surge, after the newer Omicron variant spread wildly through the country and caused record-shattering case counts. The seven-day average for newly reported Covid-19 deaths reached 2,191 a day by Monday, up about 1,000 from daily death counts two months ago, before Omicron was first detected, data from Johns Hopkins University show. (Kamp, 1/25)

The Washington Post: Maryland Covid-19 Deaths Hit New Monthly Record As Omicron Begins To Retreat
Covid-19 deaths are mounting in Maryland even as new infections decline. With nearly a week left in January, the state on Tuesday already had logged 1,475 covid-related fatalities, more than double the number recorded in December, and higher than any other month since the pandemic began. (Tan and Portnoy, 1/25)

Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Reports 6,600 New COVID-19 Cases Tuesday, Near-Record Hospitalizations
Utah reported 6,600 new coronavirus cases Tuesday — the lowest weekday count in weeks, but still much higher than previous surges. The rate of positive cases also remains extremely high, suggesting that the reported decline in cases may be in part because of the state’s efforts to ration tests. For more than a week, state officials have urged Utahns not to get tested for COVID-19 unless they have health risks or are likely to expose vulnerable people, and a statewide testing shortage has made it difficult to ascertain true infection levels as the highly-contagious omicron variant sweeps across Utah. (Alberty, 1/25)

Indianapolis Star: Indiana Schools Report More Than 100,000 COVID-19 Cases This Year
Another week, another record of COVID-19 cases reported in Indiana's K-12 schools. Schools reported 16,337 cases among students — up slightly from last week's figure that shattered the previous record for cases reported in a single week. They also reported more than 1,000 cases in both teachers and staff members for just the second time. There were 1,219 cases reported among teachers and 1,603 in other staff members. Some of the cases reported Monday dated back several weeks, but more than 13,000 of the student cases were attributed to last week. It's another example of just how contagious omicron, the latest COVID-19 variant, has been. (Herron, 1/25)

... and begin to wane in other places —

AP: California Appears To Pass Peak Of Omicron Variant Wave
California showed signs it turned the corner on the omicron wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with infection rates falling and hospitalizations well short of the overwhelming deluge officials feared a few weeks ago. Over 15,000 people are hospitalized with coronavirus, a huge figure but well short of last January’s peak of about 22,000 and half of what officials had feared. Positivity rates are down 15% from earlier this month and the state’s projection model shows the number of hospitalizations falling by half, to less than 7,700, in another month. (Thompson, 1/26)

Cincinnati Enquirer: COVID-19 Surge: Early Signs That Omicron Is Waning In Cincinnati
A few indicators hold hopeful signs for the Cincinnati region in its battle against the latest wave of COVID-19 but a peak hasn't yet been reached and a fight still remains, one expert warned. Beginning last Saturday, hospitalizations dipped below 1,000 to 957 before dropping again to 948 on Sunday and then increasing back to 950 on Monday. But a net gain of 45 new hospitalizations shot the total back upward to 995 on Tuesday, a signal that even as cases slow, there's still a battle ahead for beleaguered healthcare workers. (Sutherland, 1/25)

Anchorage Daily News: At-Home COVID-19 Tests That Freeze In Transit Are Likely Still Usable — Just Make Sure They’re Thawed Out
The federal government has launched a website that allows every household in the U.S. to order four at-home COVID-19 tests to be shipped to their home free of charge. As those tests start arriving on Alaskans’ doorsteps this week, health officials responded to concerns that the tests could freeze and become unusable if they were left in mailboxes in freezing temperatures for too long. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in updated guidance posted over the weekend that the tests should work even after spending time in the cold. However, “test performance may be impacted if the test is used while it is still cold,” the FDA said. (Berman, 1/25)

In other testing news —

CBS News: Elton John Postpones Several Texas Shows After Testing Positive For COVID-19 
Sir Elton John is rescheduling his Dallas shows after testing positive for COVID-19, the star wrote on Instagram Tuesday. He had just started back on his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" tour last week. ... The music icon added that he's fully vaccinated and boosted and expects to be able to perform at his scheduled show in Arkansas this weekend. (Reardon, 1/25)

AP: Virginia Sen. Warner Announces Positive COVID-19 Test 
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia has tested positive for a breakthrough case of COVID-19 and is working from home, his office said Tuesday. Rachel S. Cohen, Warner’s communications director, said the 67-year-old Demcorat was glad he had been vaccinated and received booster shots. Her statement said all of his symptoms are “extremely mild.” (1/26)

In other news about the pandemic —

Noticias Telemundo: Pregnant Latinas Face Higher COVID Threat 
Pregnant Hispanic women in the U.S. are 2.4 times more likely to get COVID-19 than other women, according to a study from Sutter Health. The nonprofit health care network is urging medical professionals to encourage more vaccinations for Latinas. Pregnant people with COVID-19 face higher risks of maternal death and of premature births and stillbirths, research shows. (Franco, 1/25)

AP: Pennsylvania Fast-Tracks $225M In Pandemic Aid To Hospitals 
Pennsylvania’s state Senate fast-tracked legislation Tuesday to spend $225 million to help hospitals struggling to keep staff on board as the omicron variant of the coronavirus has packed hospitals with unvaccinated patients. The bill has backing from Gov. Tom Wolf and House leaders, and was expected to receive a final House vote Wednesday. The money is from federal pandemic relief signed by President Joe Biden last March. (1/26)

CBS News: Photojournalist-Turned-Nurse Captures COVID Patients' Intimate Moments 
CBS News and David Begnaud, lead national correspondent for "CBS Mornings," have extensively covered COVID-19 across the country since the pandemic began. Invariably, everywhere they went, a nurse or doctor has told Begnaud, "If only the public could see what we've seen." Photographer Alan Hawes has tried to document the impact of COVID-19 with his photos. When he goes to work at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, he brings with him a special ability as he cares for the sickest of the sick COVID patients: he takes pictures of what many will never see. (1/25)

AP: Health Official Bows Out Of Mardi Gras Parade; Cites Threats
New Orleans’ health director says she won’t take part in one of the earliest parades of the Mardi Gras season, citing threats over the city’s resumption of COVID-19 restrictions to combat the highly contagious omicron variant. The Krewe du Vieux says it still considers Dr. Jennifer Avegno its queen and will include her float in its parade, one of the first in the Carnival season leading up to Fat Tuesday, news outlets reported. The parade, known for wild satire, will be held Feb. 12 under the theme “Vaxxed and Confused.” (1/25)

Stat: Key Senators Propose An Overhaul Of How The U.S. Prepares For Pandemics
A powerful, bipartisan duo of senators wants to empower Congress to ensure the government’s response to the next pandemic is far smoother than it was on Covid-19. One of the most significant policies in the plan, released in a draft on Tuesday, would create a 9/11-style bipartisan commission to formally investigate the United States’ pandemic response — a proposal that has failed to gain traction until now. Another would require Senate confirmation for the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The sweeping measure, which was in the works for nearly a year, is the product of negotiations between Senate health committee chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and ranking member Richard Burr (R-N.C.). (Cohrs, 1/25)

The Hill: HHS Secretary Under Fire For Being 'Invisible' Leader During Pandemic 
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra is under fire for what critics say is a lack of leadership as the Biden administration wrestles with the direction of its COVID-19 response. ... Public health messaging during a pandemic is complicated enough, but experts say the Biden administration as a whole needs to be better at making clear that the situation is evolving constantly. “Of all the HHS secretaries we’ve had, at least in the last multiple administrations, we’ve never had one that was a ghost when it came to a public health crisis. That’s what we have now: an invisible HHS secretary. Just when we need that person the most,” said Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute. (Weixel, 1/26)

Confidence in the Biden administration sinks further —

The Washington Post: Americans Losing Confidence In Biden’s Handling Of Pandemic, Poll Shows
Americans are less confident in President Biden’s handling of the pandemic than they were nearly a year ago, according to results from a new Pew Research Center poll. In a national survey conducted Jan. 10-17, 44 percent of Americans said they are very or somewhat confident in the president’s ability to handle the public health impact of the pandemic, a drop of 21 percentage points since March 2021. The public was nearly evenly split on whether they thought the worst of the pandemic was over, with 49 percent responding in the affirmative and 50 percent saying that “the worst is still to come.” (Cheng and Suliman, 1/26)

In related news about nurses —

Modern Healthcare: Members Of Congress Call For Investigation Into Nurse Staffing Agencies' Pricing
Nearly 200 members of Congress have asked the White House to open an investigation into whether nurse-staffing agencies are illegally profiting off of the pandemic. Reps. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) led their colleagues in a letter to COVID-19 coordinator Jeffrey Zients Monday that urges the White House to direct federal agencies to scrutinize staffing agencies for potential "anticompetitive activity" and violations of consumer protection laws. (Hellmann, 1/25)

In other news from the Health and Human Services Department —

Modern Healthcare: HHS Releases $2B In Relief Grants As AHA Pleads For More Help
The Health and Human Services Department will make roughly $2 billion more in Provider Relief Funding payments this week, the government announced Tuesday. But that's not enough for the American Hospital Association, which is urging President Joe Biden's administration to distribute another $6 billion and Congress to authorize $25 billion more. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, there is no money left over, however. The $6 billion remaining in the account is already set aside for purposes such as reconsiderations of previous grants and reimbursements to providers that treated uninsured patients, an agency spokesperson wrote in an email. The PRF dollars come from the $178 billion CARES Act that President Donald Trump enacted in 2020. (Goldman, 1/25)

Modern Healthcare: AHIP: HHS Gets Surprise Billing For Air Ambulances Right
AHIP wants a judge to side with the federal government in an ongoing lawsuit over a regulation that would limit patient costs for out-of-network air ambulance transportation. In an amicus brief submitted Tuesday, the insurance lobby said the government's rule is appropriate, and in the best interest of consumers and insurers. The process set up by the federal government "reduces the likelihood and costs of resolving disputes, furthers predictability and efficiency, and helps remedy a uniquely dysfunctional market dynamic that foisted supracompetitive air ambulance charges on patients for far too long," AHIP wrote in its brief. (Goldman, 1/25)

NBC News: Birth Trends Like ‘Lotus Births’ And Placenta Consumption Come With Risks, Report Says 
As interest grows in alternative birthing choices such as water births, consumption of placentas and deferring newborn vaccinations, doctors should counsel expectant parents on the risks such decisions could pose to babies, a new report said. The clinical report was published online in Pediatrics, the peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and examined seven emerging birth trends. (Chuck, 1/25)

KHN: After Miscarriages, Workers Have Few Guarantees For Time Off Or Job-Based Help 
For three years, Rachel Makkar said, she thrived in her job as a broker and asset manager at J&B Building Co. in Colorado. She excelled at her work — she said her performance reviews noted that — and she thought it was “the best place I’ve ever worked.” That changed in August. After trying for “a really long time” to conceive a second child, she suffered an early miscarriage at home one weekend. She couldn’t go to work that Monday. “I was really traumatized,” she said. “That entire first week was like a heightened level of emotion that I hadn’t really been through before.” She also had a doctor’s appointment to ensure she wasn’t experiencing an ectopic pregnancy, which would have required immediate surgery. (Covert, 1/26)

ProPublica and The Seattle Times: Toxic PCBs Festered At This Public School For Eight Years As Students And Teachers Grew Sicker 
For Michelle Leahy, it started with headaches, inflamed rashes on her arms and legs, and blisters in her mouth. Some students and staff at Sky Valley Education Center, an alternative public school in Monroe, also had strange symptoms: cognitive problems, skin cysts, girls as young as 6 suddenly hitting puberty. Leahy, like others, eventually became too sick to return to campus. She developed uterine cancer as her other symptoms escalated. (Ramadan, 1/23)

The Washington Post: A Texas Teen Raised $30,500 At A Livestock Show. She Donated It To The Hospital That Treated Her Cancer
After the cancer surgeries and treatments, Maddie Barber, 17, had some partial paralysis on her right side.It prevented Maddie, who lives near San Antonio, from playing favorite school sports like volleyball. So her father encouraged her to join Future Farmers of America (officially called the National FFA Organization) and raise pigs with her brother on the family’s nine-acre farm. ... The family has had an overwhelming sense of gratitude since 2018, when Maddie was declared free from the brain cancer, medulloblastoma, that had consumed their lives since she was diagnosed at age 12. This month, Maddie figured out a way she could say thank you to doctors and nurses at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital who not only treated her cancer but were also supportive of the entire family. (Free, 1/25)

Houston Chronicle: Texas Cut Medicaid Staffing During The Pandemic. Millions Are Now At Risk Of Being Dropped From The Program
More than 1 million Texans were added to Medicaid coverage during the pandemic, many of them children, thanks to emergency federal funding that deters states from dropping recipients during the health crisis. But those gains could soon be erased, according to patient advocates, who worry that state health officials are not prepared for the influx of new and returning Medicaid applications that could pour in as early as this spring, when the Biden administration is scheduled to lift the emergency declaration. (Blackman, 1/25)

In California news —

Los Angeles Times: COVID-19 Sick Pay In California Would Return Under New Deal
Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers reached an agreement Tuesday to again require employers to provide workers with up to two weeks of supplemental paid sick leave to recover from COVID-19 or care for a family member with the virus. The legislation, which lawmakers would likely fast-track to the governor in the coming weeks, would apply to all businesses with 26 or more employees. A similar law from 2021 that provided 80 hours of supplemental paid sick leave expired Sept. 30. (Luna and Gutierrez, 1/25)

Los Angeles Times: No Ifs, Ands Or Butts: California Bill Would Ban Single-Use Smoking Products Like Cigarette Filters
California could see fewer cigarette butts and vape pods on the streets under a measure introduced Tuesday. Assembly Bill 1690 would ban single-use cigarette filters, e-cigarettes and vape products in the state with the aim of benefiting the environment and public health. “For more than half a century, tobacco filters have caused a public and environmental health crisis that found renewed vigor in recent years as the tobacco industry began to sell electronic vape products,” Assemblymember Luz Rivas (D-North Hollywood), who introduced the bill, said in a news release Tuesday. (Martinez, 1/25)

KHN: What The Federal ‘No Surprises Act’ Means In California 
Betty Chow, a Los Angeles resident, had a cervical disc replaced in August 2020 at a surgery center that was part of her Anthem Blue Cross PPO network. Thirteen months later, she was blindsided by a bill for nearly $2,000 from the anesthesiologist who was on her surgical team but was not contracted with her PPO, or preferred provider organization. (Wolfson, 1/26)

In abortion and pregnancy news —

The Texas Tribune: Planned Parenthood Drops Appeal In Lubbock Abortion Case
When the idea of banning abortion in Lubbock first came up, the city council declined to take it up, arguing the proposal conflicted with state law and federal court precedent. Residents passed the ordinance through a ballot initiative anyway in May 2021, empowering private citizens, rather than public officials, to bring lawsuits against anyone who assists someone getting an abortion, like by driving them to a clinic — which the ordinance refers to as “aiding or abetting. ”The ordinance was immediately challenged in court. But now, eight months later, Planned Parenthood has dropped that legal challenge, saying “it is clear we cannot depend on the courts to protect our constitutional rights.” (Klibanoff, 1/25)

Bloomberg: Boycott Pepsi Calls Grow Over Donation To Texas Republicans, Abortion Bill
PepsiCo Inc. is facing another potential boycott over politics, this time for a $15,000 contribution to the Texas Republican Party. Abortion-rights advocates are sounding the alarm that the donation, dated Aug. 5 according to state ethics commission records, came almost three months after Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill banning most abortions in the state. Pepsi says it made the donation in 2020 but that the state party didn’t cash its check until the following year. (Ceron, 1/25)

AP: New Mexico Lawmakers Propose $1 Million For 'Baby Boxes' 
Two lawmakers are proposing funding “baby boxes” in each of New Mexico’s 33 counties in an effort to increase options for parents who want to abandon their babies under the state’s existing safe haven law. A bill to fund the initiative introduced by Sens. David Gallegos, a Republican, and Leo Jaramillo, a Democrat, would allocate around $30,000 for each of the boxes, which would be equipped with heat regulation and silent alarms. (1/25)

In other news from across the U.S. —

AP: Nationwide Blood Shortage Puts Idaho Hospitals In Dire Need 
A national blood shortage caused by a surge in omicron cases has hit Idaho hard, with some hospitals nearly running out of the critical medical resource before they are resupplied, state health officials said Tuesday. Much of the southern half of the state entered crisis standards of care on Monday, partly because of staff shortages and partly because the inventory of blood products used in transfusions, surgeries and other treatments is running dangerously low. The designation allows hospitals to ration care as needed when they don’t have enough resources for all patients. (Boone, 1/26)

AP: Georgia Lawmakers Aim To Tackle Spike In Suicides, Overdoses 
Facing a surge in overdose deaths and rural suicides, Georgia lawmakers want to bolster the state’s dismal mental health care system by pressuring private insurers to improve coverage and increasing state funding for treatment and crisis services. Members of the state Legislature are scheduled to unveil a policy package for mental health and substance abuse on Wednesday. Efforts to ensure private insurers provide the same level of benefits for depression, anxiety and other mental disorders as they do for medical conditions are expected to be a central part of the legislation. (Thanawala, 1/26)

Philadelphia Inquirer: CHOP Is Opening A $289 Million Facility In King Of Prussia As Other Hospitals Struggle
While general hospitals are financially stretched thin by the COVID-19 pandemic, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is opening a new $289 million, 52-bed hospital less than 20 miles northwest of its urban flagship, in the heart of King of Prussia’s shopping district. The facility, which has a pediatric emergency department and 16-bed intensive care unit, is intended to ease pressure on CHOP’s crowded West Philadelphia hospital and attract new patient families from farther west, who may not have been able or willing to travel into Philadelphia for care. Opening Wednesday, it shares a campus with one of CHOP’s busiest specialty care centers, on South Goddard Road. (Gantz, 1/25)

Salt Lake Tribune: Returning LDS Missionaries In Quarantine After Bringing COVID To A Pacific Nation Despite Following Health Precautions
Earlier this month, a plane, chartered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and carrying mostly former missionaries, inadvertently brought the first cluster of COVID-19 cases to Kiribati, an island nation between Hawaii and Australia. Shortly after the pandemic began in 2020, Kiribati had closed its borders — even to its own citizens living abroad, including full-time Latter-day Saint missionaries, who typically serve between 18 months and two years. Some of those on the flight had been away for more than 3½ years, church spokesperson Sam Penrod told the Deseret News. (Fletcher Stack, 1/25)

And more covid news from around the world —

Bloomberg: Covid Cases In U.K. Start To Slow Down, Study Shows
About two-thirds of the participants in a large U.K. Covid-19 study who tested positive this month reported a previous infection with the virus, researchers found. Another 7.5% said they suspected they’d had an earlier case, according to the React-1 study led by Imperial College London. Researchers looked at infections among some 100,000 volunteers from Jan. 5 to Jan. 20. (Anghel, 1/26)

The Boston Globe: Australians Can Be Fined $1,000 For Not Reporting A Positive Rapid Test. In Massachusetts, Reporting A Test Isn’t Even Possible
If a person in Sydney tests positive for COVID using an at-home rapid test but fails to report it to authorities, they could be slapped with a $1,000 fine. Halfway around the world in Massachusetts, however, even someone eager to report a positive at-home test has no means of alerting health authorities. In the past few months, at-home rapid tests have ballooned in popularity as quick screening tools to slow the spread of the virus. Federal and state officials have slowly begun distributing the tests at little or no cost to residents. And the general public — aware of Omicron’s sharp rise, but uninterested in further lockdowns — gobbled them up, stalking pharmacies before dawn and scouring online inventory. (Krueger, 1/25)

Stat: Hong Kong May Become A Living Laboratory In Search For Covid-19 Answers
In the two months since it first hit the world’s Covid-19 radar, scientists have generated an astonishing amount of information on the Omicron variant. Still, key questions remain about Omicron, as well as about a new subvariant, known as BA.2. Among them: How much more transmissible is BA.2 than its wildly transmissible parent? Answering questions like these can be challenging, sometimes almost impossible, in many locations because such a large proportion of people has been vaccinated, previously infected, or both. That can make it hard to tease out whether certain outcomes are attributable to changes in the virus versus the result of built-up human immunity. But it turns out there is a place where clear answers to key questions may be within reach — if that place is really, really unlucky. That place is Hong Kong. (Branswell, 1/26)

In other global developments —

AP: Thailand First In Asia To Move To Decriminalize Marijuana 
Thailand on Tuesday became the first country in Asia to approve the de facto decriminalization of marijuana, though authorities have left a grey area around its recreational use. Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced that the Narcotics Control Board had approved the dropping cannabis from the ministry’s list of controlled drugs. (Ekvitthayavechnukul, 1/26)

AP: WHO Chief Makes Case For 2nd Term As Ethiopia Criticizes Him
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus laid out more plans Tuesday to fight the virus as he pitched his case for a new five-year term and faced criticism from his own country — Ethiopia — over his comments about the embattled Tigray region. edros, who like many Ethiopians goes by his first name, is running unopposed for a second term as WHO director-general. That makes his presentation to the U.N. health agency’s executive board a bit of a formality, since he is all but certain to win re-election when the WHO Assembly takes place in May. (Keaten, 1/25)

Bloomberg: WHO’s Tedros Nominated For Second Term As Covid Keeps Spreading
The World Health Organization’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus moved closer to serving a second term after securing the group’s nomination. The WHO’s executive board’s nomination on Tuesday paves the way for his official reappointment in May. A director-general can be reappointed once, meaning Tedros is eligible for an additional term of five years. Tedros was the only candidate to be proposed. (Gretler, 1/25)

Modern Healthcare: Mass General Brigham Must Reduce Spending, Commission Orders
Mass General Brigham's excessive spending jeopardizes the entire state's healthcare system, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission warned Tuesday. The largest health system in the state has spent $293 million in excess of Massachusetts' cost growth benchmark from 2014 to 2019, which was the highest trajectory among Massachusetts providers, HPC's analysis of Center for Health Information data shows. Prices and its payer mix were the main drivers of Mass General Brigham's spending growth, not utilization. (Kacik, 1/25)

Axios: Massachusetts Health Cost Regulator Reprimands Mass General Brigham 
Mass General Brigham must submit a plan to lower rising costs that stem from the hospital system's expensive care, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission said today. This commission is viewed as a potential template for other states to regulate rising hospital and physician spending. This is the first time the agency has taken action on a hospital system to temper costs. Mass General Brigham — the dominant, tax-exempt academic hospital organization in Massachusetts with $16 billion of annual revenue — has the highest prices in the state. (Herman, 1/25)

In other corporate news —

Health News Florida: Bayada Home Health Care Laying Off 908 Florida Employees 
Bayada Home Health Care will lay off 908 Florida employees, most of whom are in the Tampa Bay area. In a letter to the Florida Department of Economic opportunity, the company announced on Monday that it is closing four offices in the Tampa Bay area, which will result in it laying off 682 employees, effective April 1. The company will lay off 150 employees in its Brandon office, 306 in its Brooksville office, 144 in its New Port Richey office, 79 in its Clearwater office and three who work remotely in Tampa. (Ochoa, 1/25)

Modern Healthcare: Uber Health Names First Chief Medical Officer
Uber's healthcare arm has hired its first chief medical officer, the ride-sharing company announced Tuesday. Dr. Michael Cantor, a geriatrician with more than 20 years of leadership experience in healthcare, previously was chief medical officer at senior-care technology company Intuition Robotics, health insurer Bright Health and home health benefit management company CareCentrix, according to a news release. Cantor has designed clinical programs for older adults and vulnerable populations, according to Uber. At Uber Health, he'll work on applying the company's technology to address gaps in care, integrate it into clinical workflows and bring care to patients at home. (Kim Cohen, 1/25)

And more on the health care industry —

Fox News: Louisiana-Based Ambulance Company Hopes To Offer Solution To EMS Labor Crisis: 'Could Mean Life Or Death'
The national shortage of emergency medical technicians (EMT) and paramedics is crippling ambulance services across the United States, leading to longer wait times for 911 calls – but one major ambulance company hopes to offer a solution to this labor crisis. Acadian Ambulance, one of the nation's largest ambulance services, is no longer waiting for new EMTs to come to it from technical schools. Instead, the company has created its own fast-track course that will get new EMTs on an ambulance in less than two months. "No one has ever seen this," said Justin Cox, the operations manager with Acadian Ambulance. "The amount of people leaving EMS in general is something that is unprecedented." (Castor, 1/25) 

Axios: The Gig Economy Is Trying To Solve Health Care's Burnout Crisis 
Amid a nationwide nursing shortage and burnout crisis, tech companies say they could be part of the solution by allowing nurses to essentially join the gig economy. Demand is accelerating for tools that help hospitals more efficiently fill shifts, while also offering an exhausted workforce more flexibility. "We're trying to keep these people in the industry," Will Patterson, CEO of CareRev, a health care staffing platform, told Axios. (Reed, 1/25)

North Carolina Health News: Patients Missed Treatment, So Hospital Offered Rides 
During radiation treatment for cancer, a massive machine shoots beams of energy directly at the tumor site in a patient’s body. The goal is to destroy the genetic material of the cancer cells, those genes sending garbled signals telling cells to reproduce uncontrollably. All this needs to get done while doing as little damage as possible to healthy neighboring cells. A feat of scientific innovation, radiation treatment can be brutal on a person’s body — causing hair loss, fatigue, nausea, pain and more. It can also wreak havoc on a patient’s schedule. (Donnelly-DeRoven, 1/26)

Stat: FDA Scolds Lilly For Misleading Instagram Post About Diabetes Drug
Eli Lilly (LLY) was rebuked by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for running a misleading Instagram post that omitted risk information about its best-selling Trulicity diabetes medicine, marking the second time in as many months the regulator scolded the company for failing to follow advertising rules. In the latest transgression, the FDA noted the Instagram post made an incorrect claim that the drug could lower blood sugar levels and displayed key information about risks and appropriate use in small, fast-moving type on the screen. Yet the benefits of the diabetes drug were prominently featured in “colorful, compelling, and attention-grabbing fast-paced visuals.” (Silverman, 1/25)

In other pharmaceutical news —

Stat: Sierra Oncology Drug Improves Anemia And Other Myelofibrosis Symptoms
Sierra Oncology said Tuesday that its experimental treatment for the blood cancer myelofibrosis achieved all the efficacy goals of a Phase 3 clinical trial, including an improvement in anemia that currently approved drugs don’t address. Based on the positive study results, Sierra intends to file a U.S. marketing application for its drug, called momelotinib, during the second quarter. If approved, the drug will enter a myelofibrosis treatment market that is dominated by Jakafi, the Incyte/Novartis drug with sales exceeding $2 billion annually. (Feuerstein, 1/25)

Laboratory Equipment: New Drug Delivery System Offers Hope For Treating Genetic Diseases
A team of researchers led by Harvard and Broad Institute scientists has developed a new drug delivery system using engineered DNA-free virus-like particles (eVLPs) to package and deliver therapeutic levels of gene-editing proteins to animal models of disease. The team utilized eVLPs to edit a gene in mice that is associated with high cholesterol levels and to partially restore vision in mice with a point mutation that causes genetic blindness. Because eVLPs enable safer in vivo delivery of gene-editing agents than some methods used in the clinic, with comparable or higher efficiencies, this new platform is a promising technology for the delivery of therapeutic macromolecules in living animals with minimized risk of off-target editing or DNA integration. (1/24)

The Bakersfield Californian: TScan Therapeutics Announces FDA Clearance Of Investigational New Drug Application For TSC-100 
TScan Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of T-cell receptor (TCR) engineered T cell therapies (TCR-T) for the treatment of patients with cancer, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared its investigational new drug (IND) application to evaluate TSC-100 for the treatment of patients with hematologic malignancies who are undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). The target of TSC-100 is the minor histocompatibility antigen HA-1, which is a lineage-specific antigen found on blood cells. The Company will now submit the clinical protocol to Institutional Review Boards (IRB) for the initial study sites and expects to begin dosing patients in the first half of 2022. (1/24)

Also —

AJMC: Despite New Launches, No Price Drops Seen Among Brand-Name NSCLC Drugs
Between 2015 and 2020, prices of brand-name medications for treatment of metastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) increased without evidence of price competition, according to research published today in JAMA Network Open. The findings raise concern about the affordability of promising oncology drugs and suggest the need for drug pricing reform, authors wrote. Previous studies have shown that the introduction of new anticancer agents in the US market did not lower prices among same-class brand-name oncology drugs, contrary to what one might expect in a capitalist system. Oncology drug prices also function as a determinant of health disparities. (Melillo, 1/25)

The Boston Globe: Massachusetts Biopharma Firms Raised A Record $13.7 Billion In Venture Capital Last Year
Massachusetts drug makers continued to bring in huge amounts of venture capital last year, setting a record for money raised, according to the industry trade group. Local biopharma firms attracted $13.7 billion in 2021, up 70 percent from a year prior, the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council said in a report Wednesday. The group said “the power of biopharma companies to change the course of human health through vaccines and therapeutics” is continuing to attract money.“ Biotech companies are launching every day across Massachusetts and investors want to be involved from the start,” said MassBio chief executive Joe Broncore in a statement. “Not only for potentially good returns, but also for the chance of playing a role in the creation of a breakthrough medicine.” (Gardizy, 1/26)

FiercePharma: AstraZeneca Taps E! Host Nina Parker For Asthma Campaign As It Hopes New Drug Tezspire Can 'Break The Cycle’
AstraZeneca and Amgen got an early Christmas present from the FDA when the agency approved Tezspire on Dec. 17, and they swiftly launched an unbranded awareness and education campaign called “Break the Cycle.” The face of the campaign is E! host Nina Parker, who has asthma and talks about the “misinformation and stigma” around the condition. The idea behind breaking the cycle is to help patients understand that there's a way to break out of their uncontrolled asthma and not have to reshape their day or use so-called rescue inhalers. (Adams, 1/25)

Detroit Free Press: Medicare Wisely Declines To Pay For Alzheimer's Drug 
Last week the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) limited coverage of Aduhelm, Biogen’s Alzheimer’s drug, to administration only within clinical trials. This brilliant strategic move mitigates the damage caused by the FDA’s failure to protect the public from an ineffective drug. Canada declined to approve Aduhelm, as has the European Union. In the U.S., many prominent payers have already denied coverage for Aduhelm, including all Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans. The Department of Veterans Affairs has declined to put Aduhelm on its formulary. Kaiser Permanente, one of the largest health maintenance organization in the U.S., covers Aduhelm only with special approval. (Dave Stanke and Adriane Fugh-Berman, 1/19)

The Wall Street Journal: The Alzheimer’s Death Panel 
President Biden says he wants to increase healthcare access. But this is hard to square with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ unprecedented proposal this month to restrict Medicare payment for a class of novel Alzheimer’s treatments. The CMS recommendation follows the controversy over Food and Drug Administration approval last summer of Biogen’s Alzheimer’s treatment Aduhelm. The monoclonal antibody clears amyloid plaque in the brain, a hallmark of the disease. It is the first treatment shown in clinical trials to slow Alzheimer’s progression. (1/23)

Also —

Tulsa World: Lawmakers Can Support Women During The Pandemic By Listening To Their Health Care Priorities
Move over, Jack. Women in America are the Jill of all trades; caregivers in households and leaders in the workforce. Yet, women were significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the road to recovery has been all but easy. When schools transitioned to virtual learning last year, many women had to put their careers on hold to educate their children at home and put even more focus on caring for their family’s wellbeing during a once-in-a-century pandemic. That has had significant impacts on the economy considering female entrepreneurs are the backbone of countless industries. (Candace Waterman, 1/24)

The New York Times: Searching For Pfizer’s Paxlovid Pills When Mom Got Covid 
Just after 1 p.m. on Tuesday last week, my phone buzzed with a text message from my mother: “Well, came down with cold, aches, cough etc over wknd.” She had taken an at-home coronavirus test. It was positive. Having spent the past year writing about Covid-19 vaccines and treatments for The New York Times, I knew a lot about the options available to people like my mother. Yet I was about to go on a seven-hour odyssey that would show me there was a lot I didn’t grasp. (Rebecca Robbins, 1/19)

Newsweek: How Build Back Better Could Be Even Better
West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin recently announced he won't support the current version of the Build Back Better Act. When they heard the news, my fellow Democrats' reactions ranged from disappointment to rage at the thought of the most important legislation in decades not making it to President Joe Biden's desk. But they needn't fret. Senator Manchin is still talking with his colleagues, who are already adjusting the legislation to win his support. (Joe Crowley, 1/19)

Bloomberg: Why Are Doctors Still Scrambling For Covid-19 Drugs? 
When everyone was scrambling for a Covid-19 vaccines last year, public health officials liked to say that the best kind of shot was the one you could get. Today, doctors are scrounging for a limited supply of Covid-19 treatments, and unfortunately, that same maxim doesn’t apply. Not all treatments are effective in treating omicron patients, and the ones that do work are in very short supply. (Lisa Jarvis, 1/25)

USA Today: CDC Needs To Improve Its COVID Messaging. Here's How It Can Do Better
Americans don't trust their public health experts, a serious problem in the best of times but downright dangerous amid a pandemic. Just 44% of Americans trust in the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, while only 40% trust Dr. Anthony Fauci (the nation's point man on all things COVID) according to an NBC News survey conducted this month. Trust in politicians is even lower. It's perfectly understandable why Americans feel this way. At all levels, our public health agencies have been using contradicting claims and supposition masquerading as fact. And it's not hard to diagnose the root of the problem. To quote the Captain's speech in "Cool Hand Luke," "what we've got here is failure to communicate."  (James Davis, 1/26)

The Washington Post: Schools Should Normalize Pauses For Coronavirus Safety
As physician-parents of elementary and middle school students, we know that in-person school has undisputed benefits. Last year, our children struggled when schools were shuttered. We, too, were challenged in juggling patient care and work demands with our kids at home and appreciate that virtual education or hybrid teaching does not work well for many families and teachers. As physicians, however, we are deeply concerned that the hard-line stance of opening in-person schooling “on-time” at any cost despite a coronavirus surge is shortsighted and dangerous, risking long-lasting harm to our most vulnerable students, teachers and their families. (Ashwin Dharmadhikari, Nirali Shah and Prabha Viswanathan, 1/25)

The New York Times: China's Zero-Covid Policy Is A Pandemic Waiting To Happen 
As some 3,000 athletes, their retinues and the media converge on Beijing, the Chinese government has gone to extraordinary lengths to prevent the 24th version of the Winter Olympics, which open Feb. 4, from becoming a Covid superspreading event. Though athletes and coaches will be required to be vaccinated, they will face severe restrictions. Those who receive a medical exemption from vaccination are being required to quarantine for 21 days after entering the country. Even the vaccinated will have to present two negative tests. Participants must submit to daily Covid tests and will be confined to an Olympic bubble to prevent spread to the local population. (Ezekiel J. Emanuel and Michael T. Osterholm, 1/25)

Bloomberg: What Does ‘Endemic’ Covid Mean? The Experts Don't Agree 
Predicting how Covid-19 will behave next remains notoriously hard. Predicting how humans will react is much easier, since history can be a guide. One of the most prescient articles written about the pandemic’s future was Gina Kolata’s May 2020 New York Times article “How Pandemics End,” with historians of medicine describing society’s reactions to Ebola, bubonic plague and the 1918 flu pandemic. There’s a biological end to a pandemic, when cases and death rates fall, and a social end, when people get tired of being afraid, accept a certain amount of risk, and resume social and commercial life. The social end sometimes comes first. (Faye Flam, 1/25)

Chicago Tribune: Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Let Chicago School Students Hit The Snooze Button. Their Health Depends On It
While Chicago schools have resumed in-class instruction, they’ve lost one undeniable benefit: a later wake time since commuting was no longer necessary during virtual schooling. Remote classes should have been a wake-up call that the current school start time may be too early to optimize students’ health. Over six years ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concluded that school start times were too early. According to researchers, 42 states reported that 75% to 100% of the public schools in their districts started school at a time that the health authority says is too early to start the day: namely 8:30 a.m. or earlier. (Wendy Heller, 1/25)

Los Angeles Times: Should Kids Need Parental Consent For Vaccines?
Should children as young as 12 be allowed to get vaccinated without their parents’ knowledge or consent? I was taken aback when I read that state Sen. Scott Wiener has proposed a bill that would essentially strip parents of the right to make such an important decision about their children’s medical care. I mean, what gives the state the right to undermine one of our most sacred bonds? Plenty, as it turns out. (Robin Abcarian, 1/26)

USA Today: We Are Failing Kids When It Comes To Mental Health, COVID And Trauma
We all know how magical a child’s imagination can be – the wonderful worlds they create in their minds. But there’s a flip side to the joyful creativity that can turn a big cardboard box into a spaceship. A child’s mind exposed to real-world fear, without the ability to properly process it, can go down dark passages leading to nothing less than existential dread. (Goldie Hawn, 1/26)

Stat: How Black Hair Racism Affects Mental Health Care 
As a Black woman with long, poofy hair, I was delighted to see Oregon join California and 11 other states that have passed laws against hair discrimination. In those states, workplaces and educational institutions can no longer legally discriminate against Black people for their hairstyles and hair texture. A little-discussed aspect of hair discrimination is how it can affect medical care, something I began to seriously contemplate during the first year of my psychiatry residency. (Amanda Joy Calhoun, 1/26)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Now Is The Time To Act On Health Disparities
Our region is home to some of our nation’s leading health care systems, but do we have better health as a result? In a recent report produced by the Health Policy Institute of Ohio, Ohio ranks 47th out of 50 states for health value, with Indiana slightly ahead at 43 and Kentucky trailing at 50. This means that we live less healthy lives and spend more on health care than people in most other states. The causes are not a mystery: high rates of adverse childhood experiences, systemic inequities and discrimination and limited investment in public health top the list. (Jill Miller and Kate Schroder, 1/25)

The Tennessean: Tennessee Must Reform Certificate-Of-Need Rules For Better Health Care
Despite reforming our Certificate-of-Need (CON) laws twice in the last decade, these unnecessary regulatory burdens in Tennessee continue to raise the cost of our healthcare and reduce its access and quality. The Volunteer State maintains onerous CON laws on healthcare specialties which few other states regulate. Piecemeal reforms to this outmoded regulatory system are not sufficient when our healthcare is at stake; it is time for our legislators to do some serious spring cleaning in the 2022 legislative session. (Macy Scheck and Daniel J. Smith, 1/25)