NBC News: Biden Administration Announces New Abortion Initiatives On Roe Anniversary
President Joe Biden will convene key members of his Cabinet on Monday to discuss abortion rights on the 51st anniversary of the Roe v. Wade ruling, according to a White House official. The president will “hear directly from physicians on the frontlines of the fallout” since the landmark decision was reversed and detail new actions his administration is taking to strengthen access to contraception and medication abortion, as well as ensuring patients can receive emergency medical care. The meeting will mark the fourth time his task force on reproductive health care access has come together since the fall of Roe roughly a year and a half ago.  (Alba, 1/22)

CNN: Biden Campaign Puts Abortion Rights Front And Center As It Plans To Tie Trump To Abortion Bans 
The Biden campaign will hit the airwaves in battleground states with its first abortion-focused ad of the year, featuring stark, emotional testimony from a woman personally affected by a state abortion ban who lays the blame directly on former President Donald Trump. It comes as the campaign is launching a full-court press this week to put abortion rights front and center in the 2024 race, including with events headlined by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The push marks the campaign’s first organized effort to emphasize the issue, seeking to further galvanize voters around reproductive rights in the first presidential election after the Supreme Court ended the federal constitutional right to an abortion. (Saenz, 1/22)

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Roe V. Wade Anniversary Highlights Unprecedented 2024 Election Year 
“This is the biggest election in terms of abortion that I’ve lived through and any of us have lived through to date,” said Mary Ziegler, a professor of law at UC Davis and a leading abortion historian. One major change since the 1970s is that abortion is now a partisan issue. “That was not true in 1973. It was hard to be a single-issue voter,” said Ms. Ziegler. “In 1976, neither candidate had a very clear position on abortion.” (Webster, 1/22)

Politico: Abortion In NY On Roe Anniversary 
Today marks 51 years since Roe v. Wade, now overturned, was decided. And the anniversary is one of many opportunities that Democrats are seizing to remind voters which party seeks to keep curtailing abortion access. “It’s crystal clear to me that the GOP is fully committed to a nationwide abortion ban,” Rep. Pat Ryan told Playbook. “They’re continuing to even more aggressively pursue that, literally choosing a speaker of the House that authored the bill for a nationwide abortion ban. And that would certainly affect New York.” (Ngo, Reisman and Coltin, 1/22)

Axios: Roe V. Wade Anniversary Reheats Abortion Wars
Roe v. Wade may be history but Monday's anniversary of the 1973 decision is providing a potent rallying point for both sides in the abortion wars. Amid a showdown over funding the government, House Republican leaders brought up a pair of symbolic bills they said would protect pregnant women's rights but that Democrats contend would further erode abortion access. (Knight, 1/19)

Also —

AP: US Government Rejects Complaint That Woman Was Improperly Denied An Emergency Abortion In Oklahoma
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says an Oklahoma hospital did not violate federal law when doctors told a woman with a nonviable pregnancy to wait in the parking lot until her condition worsened enough to qualify for an abortion under the state’s strict ban. Jaci Statton, 26, was among several women last year who challenged abortion restrictions that went into effect in Republican-led states after the Supreme Court revoked the nationwide right to abortion in 2022. Rather than join a lawsuit, Statton filed a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA. (Kruesi, 1/19)

The 19th: How Doctors Are Impacted As Abortion Rights Return To The Supreme Court
Less than two years ago, the Supreme Court eliminated the federal right to an abortion, a decision that the court’s conservative majority suggested would remove them from further litigation of abortion rights.  ”The Court’s decision properly leaves the question of abortion for the people and their elected representatives in the democratic process,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in a concurring opinion. But this term, the court is now set to hear two cases that could further undercut access to the procedure. (Luthra, 1/19)

The 19th: March For Life 2024: Abortion Rally In D.C. Had No Mention Of National Bans
At this year’s March For Life, the country’s largest annual anti-abortion rally, little was said about federal bans on the procedure, yet another sign of the growing political quagmire abortion opponents now face. (Luthra, 1/19)

The New York Times: Abortion Opponents March In Washington, With Obstacles Ahead 
Last year, anti-abortion activists descended on the National Mall in triumph for the annual March for Life, eager to enter a new era for their ambitions to end abortion following the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling that established federal abortion rights. But this year, the first presidential election year in post-Roe America, the movement finds itself marching once more in Washington not in triumph, exactly, but grasping to advance their cause after a series of political defeats, fewer powerful allies, and setbacks in the court of public opinion. (Dias, 1/19)

Roll Call: Johnson Touts Personal Story In Speech At Anti-Abortion March 
On a snowy Washington, D.C., day, one day after Congress passed a stopgap spending bill and fled town, a sizable and motivated crowd assembled for the annual March for Life on the National Mall to listen to the new speaker of the House praise their efforts to end abortion. In his first address to the nation’s largest annual anti-abortion rally as speaker Friday, Mike Johnson, R-La., shared the impetus for his interest in anti-abortion issues. (Raman, 1/19)

Nebraska Examiner: On Roe Anniversary, Abortion Opponents Look To White House To Fast-Track National Ban 
Falling snow and flight delays thinned this year’s anti-abortion March for Life in Washington, D.C., on Friday but did not deter the most impatient activists in the movement, those unsatisfied until the entire U.S. map is red with abortion bans. “I’m not OK with abortion states and non-abortion states. I want an abortion-free America,” said Right to Life of East Texas director Mark Lee Dickson, standing outside the White House the day before, at a sparsely attended protest organized by the Christian Defense Coalition, where activists held signs picturing aborted fetuses. (Resnick, 1/22)

San Francisco Chronicle: ‘Pro-Life Is The Future’: Thousands In S.F. Rally Against Abortion
Civic Center Plaza was a sea of umbrellas Saturday afternoon as thousands of people took to San Francisco’s streets to peacefully protest abortion and seize on the movement’s gains since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the right to the procedure. The 20th annual Walk for Life West Coast began with a rally at Civic Center and continued with a march down Market Street to the Embarcadero, prompting street closures and bus reroutes. (Echeverria, 1/20)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Republican Lawmakers Introduce 14-Week Abortion Ban
Republican lawmakers are proposing a new bill to ban abortion after 14 weeks of pregnancy except in situations where the mother's life or health would be endangered without the procedure − a measure that would reduce the timeframe for legal abortions by six weeks, prompting a promise to veto by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. The bill, introduced Friday, requires voters to approve the policy before it could take effect and is being fast-tracked through the Legislature, with a public hearing scheduled for Monday — the same day Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to visit Waukesha County to promote the Biden administration's focus on preserving abortion access ahead of the 2024 presidential election. (Beck, 1/19)

In related news —

NPR: Why Is Harris Going To Wisconsin To Talk About Abortion
Vice President Harris is kicking off a tour on Monday ... to draw attention to new restrictions on abortion, an issue that Democrats hope will fire up voters for the presidential election in November. ... "She is going to connect the dots for people," a White House official told NPR, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the tour. "She is going to make a clear connection between Roe being overturned, these extreme bans being put into effect by extremists across the country, and what harm those bans have caused for women." (Shivaram, 1/22)

The New York Times: Harris Begins A Reproductive Rights Tour On 51st Anniversary Of Roe 
Wisconsin is crucial to Mr. Biden’s re-election prospects — he won there by about 20,600 votes in 2020 — and recent polling suggests a close race in 2024. It was also a target of former President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to spread falsehoods about illegal voting in 2020. But Democrats hope that a series of victories for abortion rights advocates in Wisconsin could signal a wider trend ahead of the general election. In April, Wisconsin voters elected a liberal candidate to the state’s Supreme Court by an 11-point margin. In September, Planned Parenthood began providing abortions again after a judge ruled that an 1849 state restriction against them — which had been invalidated by Roe until it fell — was not enforceable. (Rogers, 1/22)

Abortion news from Colorado and Minnesota —

NBC News: Colorado Abortion Rights Groups Launch 2024 Ballot Measure Effort
A coalition of reproductive rights groups in Colorado officially kicked off an effort Monday to place an amendment on the November ballot that would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. Coloradans for Protecting Reproductive Freedom is beginning its signature-collection efforts with events throughout the state — timing its campaign launch with the 51st anniversary of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which, until it was overturned in 2022, had legalized abortion rights throughout the U.S. (Edelman, 1/22)

Minnesota Public Radio: Abortion Opponents Try To Regroup After Losing Ground In Minnesota
Abortion opponents who have long turned out in big numbers for an annual demonstration at Minnesota’s Capitol find themselves gathering amid cross currents this year, given laws that limit access in many states while protections are stronger than ever here. (Ferguson, 1/22)

Stat: FDA Sets Aggressive Timeline For Overhauling Inspection Procedures
Food and Drug Administration officials hope to finish this year a massive overhaul of the way the agency inspects facilities that make drugs, medical devices, and food products, they said Friday. (Wilkerson, 1/22)

Reuters: Exclusive: US FDA Finds New Manufacturing Lapses At Eli Lilly Plant 
U.S. inspectors recently uncovered new manufacturing problems at an Eli Lilly plant that has been under scrutiny by federal investigators, according to government records obtained by Reuters. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspection in July at Lilly's Branchburg, New Jersey, plant detected eight separate deficiencies. They included problems in tracking manufacturing process and quality controls, as well as lapses in its calibration of equipment and failure to properly maintain facilities and equipment, the inspection report shows. (Taylor and Fick, 1/19)

CIDRAP: Oversight Report Urges FDA To Finalize Food Traceability Rule 
A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) urges the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to finalize its plan to implement new rules to help identify sources of foodborne illness outbreaks. The FDA's final rule on food traceability, introduced in November 2022, established a list of certain foods for which enhanced recordkeeping is required, including additional traceability records to track certain points in the item's supply chain—known as critical tracking events. Products that contain dairy, eggs, nuts, prepared food, produce, and seafood are covered by the rule's recordkeeping requirements if that ingredient remains in the form in which it appears on the list, according to the FDA. Examples include fresh lettuce used in a bagged salad mix and a sandwich containing a tomato. (Dall, 1/19)

Stat: FDA Scolds Novartis Over A Misleading TV Ad For A Breast Cancer Treatment
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration scolded Novartis for making false and misleading statements about a best-selling breast cancer treatment in a television ad in 2022. In a Nov. 18 letter, the agency admonished the company for touting the benefits of its Kisqali medicine by referencing data that did not support the messages in the ad. (Silverman, 1/19)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Number Of Georgians Dropped From Medicaid Nears 500,000
Georgia has dropped at least 488,000 from Medicaid, the government health insurance for the poor, as part of a federally mandated project to ensure those covered by the program qualify to remain on it. Georgia began the process of redetermination with 2.8 million Medicaid recipients, which account for a quarter of the state’s population. (Hart, 1/22)

WMFE: Latest Medicaid Numbers Show More Florida Kids Are Losing Health Insurance 
New Medicaid numbers reveal Florida seems to have a growing number of children without health insurance. The state's December update shows that over 911,000 Floridians were disenrolled from Medicaid since the Department of Children & Families began its redetermination process in April. Of that total, about 420,000 were children. (Pedersen, 1/19)

On Medicare and drug pricing —

The Hill: House Panel Advances Debt Commission Without Shields For Medicare, Social Security
The House Budget Committee did not take measures to protect systems like Medicare and Social Security on Thursday, despite advancing legislation to create a bipartisan fiscal commission designed to find a solution to the government’s budget. The committee approved the bill 22-12, with three Democrats joining Republicans in passing the measure. (Irwin, 1/19)

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Physician Payment Policy Overhaul Demanded 
Physicians confronted a Medicare reimbursement cut this year, but the American Medical Association and other organizations are also looking ahead to a bigger fight: completely overhauling how the program pays doctors. Under the Merit-based Incentive Payment System, or MIPS, that exists today, physicians complain not only about inadequate compensation but also about red tape and standards some say fail to accurately capture quality. (Bennett, 1/22)

Stat: Patent Law 'March-In' Rights And High Drug Prices — A Closer Look
In the fall of 2020, Robert Sachs was prescribed a medication to treat prostate cancer that had metastasized into some of his bones. He welcomed the treatment, but was surprised by the $740 monthly copay cost, even after coverage from Medicare and supplemental insurance. (Silverman, 1/22)

KFF Health News: Watch: Older Americans Say They Feel Stuck In Medicare Advantage Plans 
As enrollment in private Medicare Advantage plans grows, so do concerns about how well the coverage works, including from people who say they are stuck in the private plans as their health declines. KFF Health News’ Sarah Jane Tribble explains. (Tribble, 1/22)

In related news about nursing homes —

The Mercury News: Data Shows Nursing Home Closure Often Linked To Care Issues
While staffing and reimbursement issues have certainly contributed to closures in some cases, especially for smaller, rural facilities, experts say the debate often omits some important facts and nuance: specifically, that many facilities that close are poor quality, have high staff turnover and are located in areas where multiple other homes and alternatives exist, making it difficult to fill empty beds. Others turn into assisted living facilities, which are more loosely regulated. A handful were kicked off of the Medicare program for low quality. (Hellmann, 1/19)

CBS News: Risk Of Wildfire Smoke In Long-Term Care Facilities Is Worse Than You'd Think 
Every year, wildfires across the western U.S. and Canada send plumes of smoke into the sky. When that smoke blows into southwestern Idaho's Treasure Valley, it blankets Boise-area residents in dirty air. They include seniors living in long-term care facilities, many of whom are considered an at-risk population for smoke exposure because of respiratory or cardiac diseases. "An astonishing amount of smoke gets inside these facilities," said Luke Montrose, an environmental toxicologist and researcher at Colorado State University. Data from monitors Montrose installed in four Idaho long-term care facilities in 2020 showed that large amounts of smoke pollution recorded outside during wildfire season seeped into the facilities. One building let in 50% of the particulate matter outside; another, 100%. In some cases, Montrose said, "it was no better to be inside than to be outside during those smoke events." (Mohr, 1/22)

Modern Healthcare: Sickle Cell Gene Therapy To Be Covered By Blue Cross Insurers
Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers have become the first carriers to cover multimillion-dollar new gene therapies for sickle cell disease, and other insurers and Medicaid agencies are moving to follow suit. Blue Cross' Synergie Medication Collective has inked risk-sharing agreements with drugmaker BlueBird Bio to offer its $3.1 million Lyfgenia gene therapy treatment for sickle cell disease to some self-insured employers, as well as competitor Vertex Pharmaceuticals' $2.2 million Casgevy treatment. (Tepper, 1/19)

More pharmaceutical industry developments —

ABC News: Cancer Vaccine With Minimal Side Effects Nearing Phase 3 Clinical Trials
Dr. Thomas Wagner, founder of the biotech company Orbis Health Solutions and cancer researcher, has made it his life's mission to find a way to treat cancer without the dreaded side effects that, for some, can become worse than the cancer itself or may even lead to an earlier death. ... Wagner's TLPO cancer vaccine has been tested in hundreds of patients with advanced forms of melanoma in Phase 2 clinical trials. The most recent data presented at an academic conference showed nearly 95% of people given only the vaccine were still alive three years after starting treatment and 64% were still disease-free. (Cobern, 1/20)

Modern Healthcare: Ozempic Is Huge. Here’s Who’s Jumping Into Telehealth To Sell It
The rising popularity of glucagon-like peptide agonists has led to a gold rush of companies offering telehealth weight-loss services. GLP-1s, a class of medications that can help with weight loss and diabetes, have become big business in a short period of time. Drugmaker Novo Nordisk, which manufactures injectable GLP-1 agonist medications Ozempic and Wegovy, booked more than $12 billion in revenue in 2023's first nine months from those two drugs alone. (Perna, 1/19)

Fox News: Ozempic And Wegovy Overdose Calls Have Spiked, Experts Say — What To Know About Dangerous Doses
As the popularity of semaglutide weight-loss medications continues to grow, so does the rate of potentially dangerous overdoses, experts are warning. Reported overdoses of semaglutide products such as Ozempic and Wegovy more than doubled between 2022 and 2023, according to America’s Poison Centers in Virginia. "U.S. Poison Centers have documented 3,316 exposures to products containing semaglutide through Dec. 31, 2023, more than two times the number of cases reported in 2022," Dr. Kait Brown, clinical managing director of America’s Poison Centers, told Fox News Digital via email. (Rudy, 1/21)

Becker's Hospital Review: Theranos Founder Elizabeth Holmes Gets 90-Year Ban From HHS
HHS has banned Elizabeth Holmes, incarcerated founder of blood-testing company Theranos, from participating in any federal healthcare program for the next 90 years. According to a Jan. 19 news release from HHS' Office of Inspector General, Ms. Holmes will be unable to bill Medicare, Medicaid or any other federal program. Ms. Holmes is currently serving an 11-year prison sentence after being convicted of defrauding investors in Theranos. The company claimed to be able to screen for hundreds of conditions with a single drop of blood. (Wilson, 1/19)

Medical Xpress: Who Is Most Efficient In Health Care? Study Finds, Surprisingly, It's The VA
Private-sector hospitals, clinics, and insurers are bloated, bureaucratic nightmares compared to efficiently run Veterans Health Administration facilities that put care over profits, a new study reveals. The study, by researchers at Hunter College of the City University of New York, Harvard Medical School, the Veterans Health Administration, and the University of Washington, points fingers at profit-driven private facilities and insurers, where a whopping 30% of staff are stuck in the tangled web of paperwork, while the VHA shines with a lean 22.5% administrative staff. That means nearly 900,000 fewer paper pushers would be needed if private hospitals, clinics, and insurers took a page from the VHA's playbook. The research is published in the journal JAMA Network Open. (1/19)

More health care industry news —

Becker's Hospital Review: ED Boarding At Crisis Levels, Mass General Says
Boston-based Massachusetts General Hospital is requesting permission from the state to add more than 90 inpatient beds amid what it says is an "unprecedented capacity crisis." The hospital's emergency department has experienced critical levels of overcrowding nearly every day for the past six months, Massachusetts General said in a Jan. 19 news release. The hospital boards between 50 to 80 ED patients every night who are waiting for a hospital bed to open. On Jan. 11, Massachusetts General had 103 patients boarding in the ED, representing one of the most crowded days in the hospital's more than 200-year history. (Bean, 1/19)

The New York Times: New York Is Planning to Shutter a Major Brooklyn Teaching Hospital
The state is planning to drastically shrink or even close University Hospital at Downstate in Brooklyn, the only state-run medical hospital in New York City. A number of concerns — too few patients, annual operating deficits of about $100 million and a deteriorating hospital building — have led to the proposal, which hospital administrators shared with doctors this week. It is unclear how the plan will affect access to medical care for residents of central Brooklyn and beyond. The hospital, in East Flatbush, is directly across the street from another public hospital, the city-run Kings County Hospital, so the change would not mean a swath of the city suddenly lost access to a nearby hospital. (Goldstein, 1/20)

The Boston Globe: Steward Health Care News: Potential Closures, Layoffs In Future
Steward Health Care, a for-profit health system that serves thousands of patients in Eastern Massachusetts, is in such grave financial distress that it may be unable to continue operating some facilities, according to public records and people with knowledge of the situation. The fast-moving crisis has left regulators racing to prevent the massive layoffs and erosion of care that could come if hospital services were to suddenly cease. (Bartlett, 1/19)

Stat: General Catalyst, Summa Health Deal Will Turn On Physician Buy-In
It makes sense in theory for hospitals and startups to strike deals. Not only would doctors get first dibs on new health care technologies, their organizations would see windfalls if those startups hit it big. In practice, it often doesn’t work out that way. (Bannow, 1/22)

Bloomberg: American Healthcare REIT Said To Seek $700 Million In IPO
American Healthcare REIT Inc. is seeking to raise about $700 million in an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the situation. The Irvine, California-based senior housing and assisted living property owner could start gauging investor interest in the listing as soon as next week, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. The company is a non-traded REIT, which is required to make regular filings and only infrequently trades over the counter. (Or, 1/19)

The New York Times: Medical Helicopter Crash Kills 3 Crew Members In Oklahoma
Three crew members died in a medical helicopter crash in Oklahoma on Saturday after transporting a patient, according to the company that runs the service. The company, Air Evac Lifeteam, said on social media that the crew members lost contact with the company’s control center around 11:23 p.m. local time while they were returning to their base in Weatherford, Okla., about 70 miles west of Oklahoma City. (Carballo, 1/21)

Also —

WUSF: In 'Maya' Case, Judge Lowers Jury Award But Dismisses All Children's Retrial Request 
A judge ruled this week that Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg will not get a retrial in a case that accused the health care provider of holding a young girl against her will. But the judge did decrease the $261 million awarded to the girl and her family by a jury by $47.5 million. (Bowman, 1/19)

Stat: Dana-Farber Researchers Moving To Retract Paper In Investigation
Scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, one of the nation’s leading cancer research and treatment centers, are “moving to” retract one paper and correct others amid an expanding investigation of data manipulation, officials told STAT. The investigation includes scores of papers authored by four top scientists and institute leaders, including CEO Laurie Glimcher and COO William Hahn. (Wosen and Chen, 1/19)

KFF Health News: What The Health Care Sector Was Selling At The J.P. Morgan Confab 
Every year, thousands of bankers, venture capitalists, private equity investors, and other moneybags flock to San Francisco’s Union Square to pursue deals. Scores of security guards keep the homeless, the snoops, and the patent-stealers at bay, while the dealmakers pack into the cramped Westin St. Francis hotel and its surrounds to meet with cash-hungry executives from biotech and other health care companies. After a few years of pandemic slack, the 2024 J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference regained its full vigor, drawing 8,304 attendees in early January to talk science, medicine, and, especially, money. (Castle Work and Allen, 1/22)

The New York Times: Berish Strauch, Path Breaker In Reconstructive Surgery, Dies At 90 
Berish Strauch, a plastic surgeon whose pioneering procedures and devices to reattach or replace vital body parts included one of the first toe-to-thumb transplants, a device to reverse vasectomies and, perhaps most notably, the first inflatable prosthetic penis, died on Dec. 24 in Greenwich, Conn. He was 90. Beginning in the late 1960s, Dr. Strauch was at the forefront of a revolution in plastic surgery, in particular microsurgery, in which doctors use microscopes and precision instruments to sew together minuscule blood vessels, nerves and ligaments, some thinner than a human hair, said Dr. June K. Wu, an associate professor of surgery at Columbia University who completed her residency under Dr. Strauch. (Risen, 1/21)

CIDRAP: US Respiratory Illness Levels Still High But Showing Some Signs Of Reprieve 
Illnesses from three main respiratory viruses remain high across the nation, but, for a second week, some indicators that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tracks, such as hospitalizations and SARS-CoV-2 wastewater levels, showed declines. In its latest updates for COVID-19, flu, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the CDC said rapid increases seen in the weeks leading up to the winter holidays have slowed, with decreases noted for COVID-19 and continuing declines in RSV activity in some regions. Overall, flu activity shows stable or declining trends, but the CDC said it is closely watching for a second spike that sometimes occurs after the winter holidays. (Schnirring, 1/19)

NBC News: California Deviates From CDC Guidelines On Covid Isolation: What Do Experts Think, And Will More States Follow?
In California, a person who tests positive for Covid and has no symptoms does not need to isolate, according to new state health guidelines. People who test positive and have mild symptoms, meanwhile, can end isolation once their symptoms improve and they’ve been fever-free for 24 hours without medication — even if that point arrives in less than five days. ... The state's guidance differs from that of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which continues to advise people with Covid to stay home for at least five days, regardless of whether they have symptoms. (Bendix, 1/19)

Stat: Why Demand For Covid Vaccines Lags Behind Uptake Of Flu Vaccines
America is over the Covid vaccine. Frantic lineups for scarce doses when Covid vaccines first became available have long since given way to widespread indifference. Each new round of boosters has drawn fewer bared arms than the round before it. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that, as of Jan. 6, a mere 21.5% of Americans aged 18 and older and 11% of children have been vaccinated with the latest Covid vaccine. (Branswell, 1/22)

WLRN 91.3 FM: In South Florida, Latinos Fight A Low COVID Booster Rate — And Misinformation
This winter the U.S. is seeing a new spike in COVID-19 cases, and so doctors are urging people to get new vaccine booster shots for the dangerous respiratory virus — which has killed almost 1.2 million Americans since the pandemic started four years ago. (Padgett, 1/19)

Reuters: WHO Chief Worried About Missing Deadline For Pandemic Accord 
The head of the World Health Organization on Monday voiced concern that countries may miss a May deadline to finish negotiations and adopt a legally binding pandemic treaty. "I must say I'm concerned that member states may not meet that commitment," said Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in an address to the global health agency's Executive Board. "In my view, a failure to deliver the pandemic agreement and the IHR (International Health Regulations) amendments will be a missed opportunity for which future generations may not forgive us," he said. (1/22)

On norovirus tracking and superbugs —

CIDRAP: Wastewater Tracking Useful For Norovirus Activity
Wastewater monitoring of norovirus can be a useful monitoring system and can provide an earlier signal than other surveillance methods, researchers from the University of Michigan reported yesterday in PLOS Water. ... Current surveillance relies on syndromic surveillance, such as school and emergency department data on gastrointestinal illnesses, which sometimes isn't specific to norovirus and isn't easily available to the public. (Schnirring, 1/19)

CNN: Superbug Crisis Threatens To Kill 10 Million Per Year By 2050. Scientists May Have A Solution 
Cynthia Horton’s earaches are the stuff of nightmares. “I can wake up from my sleep in horrible pain, like I’m having a root canal with no anesthesia,” she said. “When I sit up, my ear is often weeping with infection, even oozing blood.” Already weakened by a lifelong battle with lupus, Horton’s immune system was devastated by rounds of radiation and chemotherapy after a 2003 surgery for a cancerous tumor in her ear. (LaMotte, 1/21)

Becker's Hospital Review: CDC Urges More Blood Testing For PFAS Chemicals
The CDC on Jan. 18 issued updated guidance for clinicians regarding exposure to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, urging them to consider a patient's individual history and possible exposure to the chemicals and to order blood tests as needed to detect both recent and past exposures. These chemicals, also called PFAS, are found in drinking water and used in everything from non-stick cooking pans, to shampoo and dental floss. But exposure to high concentrations can cause chronic health conditions like high cholesterol, kidney and testicular cancer, pregnancy-induced hypertension, decreased vaccine response and more. (Hollowell, 1/19)

AP: Defense Department To Again Target 'Forever Chemicals' Contamination Near Michigan Military Base 
The U.S. Department of Defense plans to install two more groundwater treatment systems at a former Michigan military base to control contamination from so-called forever chemicals, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin’s office announced Friday. Environmentalists say the systems will help prevent PFAS from spreading into the Clarks Marsh area and the Au Sable River near the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda on the shores of Lake Huron. The base closed in 1993 as part of a base realignment. (Richmond, 1/19)

Los Angeles Times: California Winds Spread More And More Microplastics
Wind picks up microplastics from human-sewage-based fertilizers at higher concentrations than previously known, and may be an “underappreciated” source of airborne plastic bits, flakes and threads. ... It means people are potentially inhaling these particles, which measure between 1 and 5,000 micrometers, or 5 millimeters, in size. Most of these particles are likely to be coated with harmful chemicals such as plastic additives, heavy metals, pesticides and other chemicals that have been poured down the drain or have trickled off streets into storm drains. (Rust, 1/19)

In other health and wellness news —

NBC News: HPV-Related Cervical Cancer Rising In Some Women, New Research Finds
After decades of good news in the fight against cervical cancer — marked by decades of steady declines in cases and deaths — a new report suggests that some women are being left behind. Thanks to early detection and treatment, rates of cervical cancer have plummeted by more than half over the past 50 years. Rates are falling fastest among women in their early 20s, the first generation to benefit from HPV vaccines, which were approved in 2006. HPV, the human papillomavirus, causes six types of cancer, including cervical cancer. (Szabo, 1/20)

The Washington Post: AI Could Flag Patients’ Dangerous Alcohol Use Before Surgery
Alcohol can cause risky surgical complications for patients who drink in the days leading up to a procedure, but signs of dangerous alcohol use aren’t always obvious on a patient’s chart. Artificial intelligence could help bring such problems to light, a new analysis suggests. The study, published in the journal Alcohol: Clinical & Experimental Research, used a natural language processing model to assess the medical records of 53,811 patients who underwent surgery between 2012 and 2019. (Blakemore, 1/20)

The New York Times: The Heart Surgery That Isn’t As Safe For Older Women 
Coronary artery bypass grafting, the most common cardiac procedure in the United States, was studied mostly in men. Women are paying the price. (Span, 1/20)

Fox News: Alzheimer’s Patients Divided Into 5 Subgroups, Potentially Enabling ‘Personalized Medicine,’ Study Finds 
Researchers have identified a total of five subgroups among Alzheimer’s patients, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Aging on Jan. 9. Different groups may require different treatment options, as noted in a press release from Alzheimer Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam UMC and Maastricht University. (Rudy, 1/20)

ABC News: How Power Outages Can Affect Physical And Mental Health
"While is an inconvenience for some, it's a life-threatening issue for others and we need to protect those whose lives it threatens," said Dr. Joan Casey, an assistant professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at the University of Washington School of Public Health. Power outages are particularly dangerous for those who use medical devices that require electricity such as CPAP machines, electric wheelchairs, electric heart pumps and oxygen concentrators. (Kekatos, 1/22)

CIDRAP: As Salmonella Outbreak Cases Double, Feds Identify Link To Second Charcuterie Brand 
Federal health officials yesterday issued new warnings about the risk of Salmonella illnesses in an ongoing outbreak, with a second brand now linked to some of the infections. (Schnirring, 1/19)

The New York Times: At Least 72 Deaths In U.S. Are Connected To Severe Winter Weather
At least 72 people across the United States have died from weather-related causes after more than a week of frigid winter storms and brutally cold temperatures, according to reports from state officials, police departments, medical examiners and news outlets. The number is likely to grow as the authorities scramble to assess the death toll from the bitter chill, frozen roads and high winds, especially in parts of the country unused to extended bouts of a deep freeze. (Fortin and Edmonds, 1/21)

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

AP: Ohio To Become The 2nd State To Restrict Gender-Affirming Care For Adults
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced proposals this month that transgender advocates say could block access to gender-affirming care provided by independent clinics and general practitioners, leaving thousands of adults scrambling for treatment and facing health risks. Ashton Colby, 31, fears the clinic where he gets the testosterone he has taken since age 19 would no longer offer it. The transgender Columbus man believes he could eventually be treated by another provider that would meet the new requirements. But even a few months’ wait could leave Colby experiencing a menstrual cycle for the first time in many years. (Mulvihill, 1/20)

The Washington Post: Kentucky Youth Prison Denied Teens Showers, Toilets And Clothing, Lawsuit Says
Willow Neal was 17-years-old and seven months pregnant when she was sent to an isolation cell in the Adair Youth Development Center in Columbia, Ky., in November 2022, a new lawsuit alleges. She rarely left. Neal was only let out of her cell five times to take a walk, and received just 12 showers during her month-long detention, isolation that went against the advice of her medical providers, according to the lawsuit. In the cell next to Neal’s, 17-year-old Jamiahia Kennedy resorted to washing her body with her bra after being denied showers, according to the lawsuit. For two months, Kennedy was allegedly moved to a soiled padded cell without a bed or a working toilet. (Wu, 1/21)

KFF Health News: Rising Suicide Rate Among Hispanics Worries Community Leaders
A group from teens to seniors gathered in an office inside a grocery store, where Spanish-language food signs cater to the large Hispanic population in this northwestern Georgia city dominated by the carpet industry. The conversation, moderated by community leader America Gruner, focused on mental health and suicide. The Tuesday night meetings draw about a dozen people, who sit on makeshift furniture and tell their often emotional stories. Gruner formed the support group in 2019 after three Latinos ages 17 to 22 died by suicide here over a two-week period. (Miller and Castle Work, 1/22)

CBS News: New Legislation In Harrisburg Could Allow K-12 Students Up To Three Mental Health Days
Students in Pennsylvania may soon be allowed to take "mental health days." The Pennsylvania House of Representatives Education Committee voted on Thursday to send the bill that would provide students in Pennsylvania with those days to the cull chamber. Introduced by Rep. Napoleon Nelson of Montgomery County in eastern Pennsylvania, he said in a memo to the House, that challenges, specifically those exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, make this legislation necessary. (Damp, 1/20)

KFF Health News: Montana’s Effort To Expand Religious Exemptions To Vaccines Prompts Political Standoff 
Montana lawmakers are in a standoff with the state’s health department over a package of sweeping changes to child care licensing rules that includes a disputed provision to allow religious exemptions to routine vaccinations for children and workers. Both Republican and Democratic legislators on the Children, Families, Health, and Human Services Interim Committee voted Jan. 18 to renew their informal objection to the proposed child care licensing rules, which the committee has blocked since November. The vote prevents the state’s Department of Public Health and Human Services from adopting the rules until at least March, when committee members say they will debate a formal objection that could delay the rules’ adoption until spring 2025. (Volz, 1/19)

On drugs and substance abuse —

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Long-Acting Injection Clinics Expand Across St. Louis Area For Those With Chronic Mental Illness
Maurice Bostic was in a vicious cycle of using alcohol to deal with pain, which only led to more pain — struggles with relationships, money and drugs. When his 6-year-old granddaughter was accidentally shot seven years ago in her home, Bostic drank even more. “If I had kept her with me, it wouldn’t have happened,” said Bostic, 55. “I drank so much that I was going to kill myself.” Bostic finished a 90-day inpatient treatment program, but addiction continued to haunt him. What finally worked was a monthly injection of Vivitrol, a medication that blocks the euphoric effects of alcohol and opioids. (Munz, 1/20)

WFSU: Attorney General Ashley Moody Is Warning Floridians About 'Fake Xanax' 
Attorney General Ashley Moody is warning Floridians about a rise in deaths from a dangerous designer drug often referred to as “fake Xanax.” “There’s been a rapid and drastic increase in toxology cases involving bromazolam. It’s a potent benzodiazepine,” Moody said in a video alert. “It’s imperative that Floridians understand how dangerous this street drug really is, especially when mixed with illicit fentanyl, which is the No. 1 killer of Americans age 18 to 45.” (Jordan, 1/19)

KFF Health News: Federal Lawmakers Take First Steps Toward Oversight Of $50 Billion In Opioid Settlements 
Some members of Congress are demanding federal oversight of billions of dollars in opioid settlements, which state and local governments began spending over the past two years — with some using it to plug budget holes rather than fight the addiction crisis. This month, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) and Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) introduced legislation that would write into law approved uses for the funds so they reach people most affected by the crisis. (Pattani, 1/22)

KFF Health News: Journalist Talks Distribution Of Opioid Funds — And The Companies Angling For A Piece 
KFF Health News senior correspondent Aneri Pattani discussed how business interests are positioning themselves and their wares to get a piece of the opioid settlement funds on “Marketplace” on Jan. 15. Pattani also discussed how state and local governments across the country are using settlement money on Illinois Public Media’s “The 21st Show” on Jan. 11. (1/20)

Bloomberg: Contradictory Diet Advice Is Making Healthy Eating Even Harder
Mainstream experts are still warning us against meat, cheese, sugar, and the ill-defined group known as ultra-processed foods. Now there are people saying to avoid tomatoes, peppers and eggplant and even one theory that we’re poisoning ourselves with spinach. (F.D. Flam, 1/21)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: On Roe V Wade Anniversary, I'm Trying To Protect Abortion In Pa.
Restrictive abortion laws do not decrease abortion rates. They just make them less safe. My mom saw this firsthand. Early in her Philadelphia nursing career, two of her emergency room patients needlessly died after illegal abortions. Her stories about these patients and others stayed with me, especially when I followed in her footsteps and began working as a nurse practitioner. (Tarik Khan, 1/22)

The Atlantic: The Pain Of Losing My Hair During Chemotherapy 
One month after I completed chemotherapy for Stage 3 breast cancer, and two weeks after I underwent a double mastectomy, I sat in bed, my surgical wounds itchy, my morale at an all-time low. “I would pay $1,000 if I could have any real amount of hair right now,” I told my husband. (Miranda Featherstone, 1/20)

Modern Healthcare: Why Patient Trust In Healthcare Is Down—How To Improve It
Trust lies at the heart of healthcare. That’s because the level of trust between a patient and their care team affects an individual’s willingness to seek care and adhere to treatments. (Drs. Maria Ansari and Ramin Davidoff, 1/19)

The New York Times: Pain Management Tests The Limits Of Drug Addiction Recovery
There’s a common belief that people with past addictions should never take any potentially addictive substances for medical reasons — period. As a result, some languish in extreme pain because they believe that drug exposure will cause them to lose control and immediately return to active addiction. But the truth is, “While euphoria associated with drugs may be a trigger, the stress of profound pain also puts someone at risk of relapse,” said Dr. Sarah Wakeman, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. (Maia Szalavitz, 1/22)

Newsweek: Communities Must Address Racial Disparities In Emergency Medical Services
The recent conviction of two paramedics in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain has sent shockwaves through the emergency medical services (EMS) community. EMS clinicians and advocates fear that the jury's decision signals a trend toward criminalizing medical errors and worry about the impact it will have on the profession. The case also raised another issue, one that research consistently validates yet often gets ignored—racial bias in EMS care. (Michael S. Gerber and Jamie Kennel, 1/19)

Miami Herald: SB 376 Sets Staff Levels For Patients, Nurses In Hospitals 
When you go to a healthcare facility, like a hospital or ambulatory surgical center, you want to get the best care possible. Much of the care you would receive would most likely come from a nurse or multiple nurses. Nurses are on the front line of delivering and assuring quality care, as they are typically the person that you would interact with most during your time there. (Ileana Garcia, 1/19)

The Star Tribune: Minnesota's Out Of Time On Nursing Home Staff Crisis
The diverse stories and backgrounds of the residents I've cared for have enriched my life. However, my passion for the job can be overshadowed by the harsh realities of the nursing home industry, particularly the persistently low wages that contribute to an alarming rate of turnover among caregivers like me. (Therese Mondembe, 1/21)