Reuters: Biden Administration Urges US Supreme Court To Reverse Abortion Pill Curbs
A 2023 judicial decision that would curb access to the abortion pill threatens to disrupt the authority of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and harm the American healthcare system, President Joe Biden's administration told the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, urging the justices to reverse the ruling. The Justice Department filed a written brief outlining its main arguments to preserve broad access to the pill, called mifepristone, in its appeal of an August decision by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that barred telemedicine prescriptions and shipments by mail of the drug. (Chung, 1/23)

Axios: DOJ Tells SCOTUS Curbing Abortion Pill Access "Threatens Profound Harms"
The Biden administration told the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday that a lower court's decision to curtail the widely used abortion pill mifepristone would have "disruptive consequences" for women and the FDA if it's allowed to stand. (Falconer, 1/24)

Roll Call: Biden Kicks Off Reelection Push With Singular Goal: Restore Roe 
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ first campaign rally of 2024 sought to build voter enthusiasm and boost turnout on a singular issue: abortion rights, which the campaign sees as the golden ticket to reelection. Flanked by their respective spouses, Biden and Harris on Tuesday kicked off a full-court press strategy elevating abortion rights, highlighting it as a crucial issue this election cycle. (Raman, 1/23)

AP: Biden, Harris Paint Trump As Freedom's Enemy At Virginia Abortion Rally 
President Joe Biden on Tuesday condemned abortion bans that have increasingly endangered the health of pregnant women, forcing them to grow sicker before they can receive medical care, and he laid the blame on Donald Trump, his likely Republican challenger in this year’s election. “He’s betting we won’t hold him responsible,” Biden said to a crowd of hundreds of cheering supporters. “He’s betting you’re going to stop caring.” “But guess what?” he added. “I’m betting he’s wrong. I’m betting you won’t forget.” (Long and Megerian, 1/23)

More abortion news from the campaign trail —

The Washington Post: Haley’s Calls For ‘Consensus’ On Abortion Draw Mixed Interpretations 
After Nikki Haley recently fielded questions from reporters at a seafood restaurant here, she stopped to greet a diner who wanted to talk about the Republican candidate’s call for “consensus” on abortion at the federal level. “There is no consensus on that; that’s the problem,” the woman told Haley. “No, but that’s why we’ve got to quit demonizing that issue,” Haley then said, identifying areas she said are suitable for compromise such as access to contraception, banning late-term abortions, and ensuring that women who have abortions do not face jail time or the death penalty. (Wells, 1/23)

KFF Health News: With Trump Front Of Mind, New Hampshire Voters Cite Abortion And Obamacare As Concerns 
Health care issues are important to Lana Leggett-Kealey, who works as a genetic genealogist. But on Tuesday, as she walked out of her polling place at a local high school and into a frigid New England morning, she said she had something bigger on her mind when she cast her vote. “I want to make sure we have someone competent in the White House,” she said. She wrote in President Joe Biden’s name on her ballot in New Hampshire’s Democratic primary. (Galewitz, 1/24)

AP: North Dakota Judge Won't Block Part Of Abortion Law Doctors Say Puts Them At Risk Of Prosecution 
A North Dakota judge ruled Tuesday that he won’t block a part of a state law that doctors say puts them at risk of prosecution if they perform an abortion to save a patient’s life or health. State District Judge Bruce Romanick said the request for a preliminary injunction “is not appropriate and the Plaintiffs have presented no authority for the Court to grant the specific relief requested.” The lawsuit will continue to play out in court, with a jury trial set for August. (Dura, 1/23)

Abortion updates from Tennessee and Florida —

The Hill: Tennessee Bill Targets Adults Who Take Minors Out Of State For Abortion 
The Tennessee legislature introduced a bill on Monday that targets adults who take minors out of the state to have an abortion. The bill says that an adult who “recruits, harbors, or transports a pregnant unemancipated minor within this state for the purpose of” aiding them in getting access to actions that constitute “criminal abortion” under Tennessee law “commits the offense of abortion trafficking of a minor,” despite where the action occurs. (Suter, 1/23)

WUSF: Abortion Rates Are Down In Florida, But Not For Out-Of-State Residents
Fewer Floridians had abortions in 2023 than in the previous two years, but the number of out-of-state patients coming for the procedure continues to grow. The Agency for Health Care Administration reports 7,130 out-of-state residents had abortions in Florida last year, up from 6,708 in 2022 and 4,873 in 2021. It marks a 46% increase over the past two years. (Colombini, 1/23)

Health News Florida: Protesters Ask Florida Lawmaker To Withdraw His Bill Banning Nearly All Abortions
A group of abortion-rights supporters gathered Monday outside the Doral office of Republican state Rep. David Borrero, of Sweetwater. They came to protest against a bill (HB 1519) Borrero filed this legislative session that would ban nearly all abortions — with the only exception being if the mother’s life is at risk. (Zaragovia, 1/23)

Tampa Bay Times: More Than 200 Republicans Have Donated To Get Abortion On Florida Ballots
A campaign to let Floridians vote on abortion rights protections raised more than $17 million in 2023, largely funded by women, a Times analysis of new data shows. And while donors are overwhelmingly Democratic, money has also come from more than 200 Republicans in the state. Nearly 1 million Floridians have signed petitions to put the amendment on November’s ballot, passing the necessary threshold earlier this month. Florida’s Supreme Court still must approve the initiative. Attorney General Ashley Moody has asked the body to reject it, arguing its language could mislead voters. (Nyayieka, 1/24)

In related reproductive health news —

North Carolina Health News: NC Loses Eight Babies To Congenital Syphilis
Last year, congenital syphilis led to six stillbirths in North Carolina and two neonatal deaths, according to preliminary data. Syphilis, a bacterial infection transmitted by sexual contact, is typically seen more often in men. In recent years, however, it has been on the rise in women — and therefore, babies. (Fernandez, 1/24)

Axios: U.S. Maternal Health: State Shares Of Rural Hospitals Without Maternity Care
More than half (55%) of the nation's rural hospitals don't offer maternity care, as challenging economics and labor shortages force more rural facilities to stop providing labor and delivery services. Hospitals have been increasingly scaling back or cutting maternity services for financial reasons — while demand for obstetrics care rises as more states ban abortion. (Millman, 1/23)

Modern Healthcare: Medicaid Waivers Allow States To Spend Billions On Social Needs
State Medicaid programs are bargaining with the federal government to cover some of the costs of non-medical care for high-risk patients in a bid to narrow health disparities and reduce long-term spending. Earlier this month, New York became the most recent state to receive a Section 1115 Demonstration waiver from the Biden administration. Such waivers grant Medicaid agencies certain flexibilities under federal law and expanded funding opportunities to test programs that could reduce negative health outcomes for enrollees and lower costs. (Hartnett, 1/23)

Axios: Red States Revive Push For Employment Requirements In Medicaid
Republican-controlled states are making a fresh push to tie employment to Medicaid eligibility ahead of a presidential election that could usher in a new administration receptive to the idea. Rules requiring some low-income adults to work, attend school or volunteer as a condition of coverage could force more people off the Medicaid rolls at a time when millions have been dropped from the program following the expiration of pandemic-era coverage protections. (Goldman, 1/24)

In Medicare news —

Bloomberg: Medicare Advantage: Elevance Says One Phone Call Cost It $190 Million
A single bungled phone call cost one of the largest US health insurance companies $190 million, the company is arguing in a lawsuit that highlights how dependent health insurers have become on US government programs. The US Medicare program uses a five-star rating system intended to steer older Americans into plans that do a better job improving their health. Now Elevance Health Inc. is arguing that regulators used flawed methods to determine crucial ratings that send billions of public dollars each year to insurers operating private Medicare Advantage health plans for seniors. (Tozzi, 1/23)

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Advantage Marketing Scrutinized In Sen. Wyden’s Letter
An ongoing Senate investigation into Medicare Advantage marketing is now targeting online insurance brokerages. Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) sent letters to eHealth, GoHealth, SelectQuote, Agent Pipeline and TRANZACT on Tuesday requesting information on how they identify potential customers, advertise and direct older adults to choose specific Medicare Advantage plans. (Tepper, 1/23)

Modern Healthcare: How CMS’ Prior Authorization Rule Will Affect Insurers
Health insurance companies will have to invest in technology and update their administrative processes to comply with new prior authorization requirements. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services last week finalized a rule requiring government-sponsored health plans to respond to non-urgent preapproval requests within seven days and to urgent requests within 72 hours. Insurers also will have to provide a reason for why they denied care requests and publicly disclose data on their decisions. (Tepper, 1/23)

KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest 'KFF Health News Minute' 
This week on the KFF Health News Minute: Workers in smoky casinos say they shouldn’t have to gamble with their health on the job, and some Medicare Advantage enrollees feel trapped in their plans as they get older and sicker. (1/23)

CBS News: COVID Variant JN.1 Is Not More Severe, Early CDC Data Suggests
Early data from hospitals suggests the latest COVID variant, known as JN.1, is not leading to more severe disease, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official said Monday, as the agency has tracked the strain's steep rise to an estimated 85.7% of COVID-19 cases nationwide. The agency is still waiting for more weeks of data to lay out its more detailed assessment of JN.1's impact this season, the CDC official, Dr. Eduardo Azziz-Baumgartner, said at a webinar with testing laboratories hosted by the agency this week. (Tin, 1/23) 

Stateline: Wastewater Tests Show COVID Infections Surging, But Pandemic Fatigue Limits Precautions
Although it’s spotty and inconsistent in many places, wastewater testing is pointing to a new wave of COVID-19 infections, with as many as one-third of Americans expected to contract the disease by late February. With pandemic fatigue also in full force, and deaths and hospitalizations well down from peaks in 2021 because of high vaccination and immunity rates, many people are inclined to shrug off the new wave, fueled by the JN.1 variant. But COVID-19 continues to take thousands of lives a month. (Hendersen, 1/23)

On the covid vaccine —

CIDRAP: WHO Grants Emergency Listing For Corbevax COVID Vaccine
The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved another COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use listing (EUL): Corbevax, a recombinant protein–based vaccine developed by scientists at Texas Children's Hospital and Baylor College of Medicine. During the EUL process, WHO advisory groups evaluated the vaccine to ensure that it meets the WHO's standards for protection and safety, with a goal of speeding the availability of products to people who need them. Corbevax is the 14th COVID vaccine to receive the WHO EUL. (Schnirring, 1/23)

Time: How COVID-19 Vaccines And Infections Are Tweaking Our Immunity 
Your immune system may be getting smarter every time you encounter COVID-19, a new study suggests. After getting vaccinated and infected, the immune system generates broader defenses against the virus, including against new variants. (Park, 1/22)

CIDRAP: No Neurodevelopmental Issues Found In Babies Of COVID-Vaccinated Moms
In first results from a study that tracked neurodevelopmental differences in babies born to mothers who were vaccinated against COVID-19, researchers found no differences at the 12- and 18-month marks compared to babies born to unvaccinated moms. The team, from the University of California, San Francisco, published its findings yesterday in JAMA Pediatrics. Against the backdrop of vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women and even in some of their healthcare providers, the researchers said their goal was to address unanswered questions about the longer-term impacts of COVID vaccination on developmental outcomes. Schnirring, 1/23)

Houston Chronicle: With COVID Vaccine In Republican Crosshairs, Public Health Officials Worry About Vulnerable Texans
Starting next month, private employers in Texas will be barred from requiring COVID-19 shots. A new budget rule stymies the promotion of the vaccine. And as part of a pending lawsuit, the Texas attorney general is trying to reap millions from one of the companies behind the vaccine, accusing it of misrepresenting the shot’s efficacy. Since the deadliest days of the pandemic, Texas and other conservative states have become hubs for anti-vaccine policies, worrying public health officials. (Gill, 1/23)

Also —

Medical Xpress: Strong Links Found Between Long COVID And Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
People suffering from long COVID or myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) could benefit from a coordinated treatment strategy, a new University of Otago study has found. The pilot study, published in Scientific Reports, has confirmed what researchers have suspected for some time: the two conditions are closely related. (1/23)

Fox News: WHO Pandemic Treaty 'Equity Theater,' Pence Advocacy Group Says, Urges US Withdraw From 'Unsalvageable Body'
The non-profit advocacy group founded by former Vice President Mike Pence published a letter Tuesday blasting the proposed World Health Organization (WHO) pandemic treaty, questioning the United States' continued membership in the international body. Pence's non-profit, Advancing American Freedom (AAF), is urging the U.S. government to withdraw from the WHO, citing the "equity theater" of the guidelines and its implications for free speech contained in its "pandemic treaty." (Nerozzi, 1/23)

Stat: FDA Endorses New Sterilization Method For Medical Devices
The chemical used to sterilize half of all medical devices in the United States is also known to cause cancer. After years of deliberating on alternatives, the Food and Drug Administration this month deemed a safer gas, vaporized hydrogen peroxide, a legitimate way to decontaminate devices. It’s a small step in pushing the medical device industry away from the carcinogenic chemical, called ethylene oxide. (Lawrence, 1/24)

In other cancer news —

NBC News: FDA Says Cancer Treatment CAR-T Therapy May Increase Risk Of Cancer
The Food and Drug Administration this week told several drugmakers to add a boxed warning — the agency’s strongest safety label — to the prescribing information for a type of cancer treatment called CAR-T therapy, saying the treatment itself may increase a person’s risk of cancer. Carly Kempler, a spokesperson for the FDA, said that, despite the warning, "the overall benefits of these products continue to outweigh their potential risks." (Lovelace Jr., 1/24)

CNBC: Johnson & Johnson To Settle Talc Baby Powder Probe
Johnson & Johnson has reached a tentative settlement to resolve an investigation by more than 40 states into claims the company misled patients about the safety of its talc baby powder and other talc-based products, the company said in a statement to CNBC on Tuesday. Notably, the settlement does not resolve the tens of thousands of consumer lawsuits, some of which are slated to go to trial this year, alleging that those talc-based products caused cancer. (Constantino, 1/23)

More pharmaceutical news —

Reuters: Martin Shkreli's Lifetime Drug Industry Ban Upheld 
Martin Shkreli, known for once hiking the price of a life-saving drug more than 4,000%, cannot return to the pharmaceutical industry after a federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld his lifetime ban. A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said a lower court judge acted properly in imposing the ban and ordering Shkreli to repay $64.6 million because of his antitrust violations. Shkreli, 40, became notorious and gained the sobriquet "Pharma Bro" when, as chief executive of Turing Pharmaceuticals in 2015, he raised the price of the newly-acquired antiparasitic drug Daraprim overnight to $750 per tablet from $17.50. (Stempel, 1/23)

Bloomberg: Walgreens Said To Explore $4 Billion-Plus Sale Of Shields Health
Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., the troubled drug-store chain in turnaround mode, is exploring options including a sale of Shields Health Solutions, the specialty pharmacy business it acquired a majority of three years ago, according to people familiar with the matter. The business could be valued at more than $4 billion in a sale, said the people, who asked to not be identified because the details aren’t public. (Davis, Gould, and Nair, 1/23)

Axios: Many Patients Keep Weight Off After Stopping Anti-Obesity Meds: Study
Most patients on a new class of anti-obesity medications kept at least some of the weight off up to a year after they stopped taking the medication, according to new data from Epic Research. This appears to contradict previous studies that have indicated patients on drugs known as GLP-1 agonists need to stay on them to keep the weight off. (Reed, 1/24)

The Wall Street Journal: Obesity Drugs Lead To Muscle Loss—Pharma Companies Want To Fix That 
Weight-loss medications such as Wegovy and Zepbound are quickly growing in popularity, and for good reason: They are remarkably effective and might help lower other health risks, too. There is a catch, though. A good portion of that weight reduction can come in the form of muscle-mass loss. While losing muscle, and not just fat, is to be expected when you deprive yourself of calories, some experts worry that it could lead to an increased risk of injury, especially for older people. Another concern is that losing muscle could slow down patients’ metabolism, leading to weight regain. And whether people gain a proportionate amount of muscle upon weight regain isn’t totally clear.  (Wainer, 1/22)

The New York Times: Gene Therapy Allows An 11-Year-Old Boy To Hear For The First Time 
Aissam Dam, an 11-year-old boy, grew up in a world of profound silence. He was born deaf and had never heard anything. While living in a poor community in Morocco, he expressed himself with a sign language he invented and had no schooling. Last year, after moving to Spain, his family took him to a hearing specialist, who made a surprising suggestion: Aissam might be eligible for a clinical trial using gene therapy. On Oct. 4, Aissam was treated at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, becoming the first person to get gene therapy in the United States for congenital deafness. The goal was to provide him with hearing, but the researchers had no idea if the treatment would work or, if it did, how much he would hear. The treatment was a success, introducing a child who had known nothing of sound to a new world. (Kolata, 1/23)

In other health and wellness news —

NPR: Racism Linked To Health Risks, Brain Changes In Minorities
Scientists know that Black people are at a greater risk for health problems like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease than white people. A growing body of research shows that racism in health care and in daily life contributes to these long-standing health disparities for Black communities. Now, some researchers are asking whether part of the explanation involves how racism, across individual interactions and systems, may physically alter the brain. (Hamilton, Carlson, and Ramirez, 1/24)

USA Today: Energy Drinks Linked To Insomnia And Sleep Problems, New Study Shows
Downing energy drinks could make it harder for you to fall asleep – and make it more likely your sleep will be disturbed. A new study of university students in Norway found a disturbing side effect of drinking energy drinks to stay alert during the day and evening. Those who drank energy drinks daily slept about a half hour less each night, compared to those who didn't drink energy drinks or had them only occasionally, the researchers report in the current issue of the BMJ Open medical journal. (Snider, 1/23)

CNN: The Science Behind Sleeping More In Winter
Does the colder season have you dragging during the day, feeling like the amount of sleep you usually get in other parts of the year doesn’t seem to be enough now? “If you feel like sleeping more in the winter, you’re not alone,” said Dr. Raj Dasgupta, an associate professor of clinical medicine at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California, citing research that found at least a third of American adults reported they sleep more in the winter. (Rogers, 1/22)

CNN: Addressing Isolation May Reduce Risk For Obesity-Related Mortality, Study Shows
Treating loneliness and social isolation may put people classified as obese at a lower risk for health complications, according to a new study. Loneliness is rampant throughout the world, but the finding is important because people with obesity experience it markedly more, the report said. (Holcombe, 1/23)

CNN: ‘Male Menopause’: Understanding The Hormonal Shift In Men
Just like women, men undergo significant hormonal changes as they age, especially in their testosterone levels. Understanding “male menopause” is key to maintaining health and vitality in the coming years. (Brahmbhatt, 1/23)

KFF Health News: Preparing To Hang Up The Car Keys As We Age 
Lewis Morgenstern has made up his mind. When he turns 65 in four years, he’s going to sign an advance directive for driving. The directive will say that when his children want him to stop getting behind the wheel, Morgenstern will follow their advice. “I recognize that I might not be able to make the best decision about driving at a certain point, and I want to make it clear I trust my children to take over that responsibility,” said Morgenstern, a professor of neurology, neurosurgery, and emergency medicine at the University of Michigan. (Graham, 1/24)

KFF Health News: 988-Hotline Counselors Air Concerns: More Training Needed To Juggle A Mix Of Calls 
In the year and a half since its launch, 988 — the country’s easy-to-remember, three-digit suicide and crisis hotline — has received about 8.1 million calls, texts, and chats. While much attention has been focused on who is reaching out and whether the shortened number has accomplished its goal of making services more accessible to people in emotional distress, curiosity is growing about the people taking those calls. An estimated 10,000 to 11,000 counselors work at more than 200 call centers nationwide, fielding calls from people experiencing anxiety, depression, or suicidal thoughts. (DeGuzman, 1/24)

Modern Healthcare: Instacart, DispatchHealth Partner On Food-As-Medicine Program
A new partnership between Instacart and DispatchHealth could help the grocery technology company move deeper into healthcare. The companies announced a collaboration Tuesday that will allow DispatchHealth’s in-home healthcare providers to prescribe food interventions using Instacart’s platform. DispatchHealth emergency medical technicians, nurses and nurse practitioners will be able to distribute food stipends to patients for use to order nutritious food delivered to their doors. (Eastabrook, 1/23)

In other health industry news —

The Baltimore Sun: With Tight Purse Strings In Annapolis, Health Care Advocates Push For Improved Access To Care, Lower Drug Prices 
In what is shaping up to be a financially difficult year for the Maryland General Assembly, community health and hospital advocates hope state lawmakers consider bills that would improve access to care for low-income Marylanders, help reduce high-cost drug prices and reform prior authorization practices. (Roberts, 1/23)

Reuters: Medical Scrubs Company Careismatic Files For Bankruptcy 
Medical apparel company Careismatic Brands filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late on Monday, with an agreement to turn over control to its lenders and eliminate $833 million in debt. ... Careismatic, owned by private equity firm Partners Group, overextended itself to meet a spike in demand for medical apparel during the COVID-19 pandemic, taking on new debt in order to boost sales to brick-and-mortar retail partners, according to court filings. (Knauth, 1/23)

Boston Globe: Steward Health Care’s Financial Issues May Hurt Health Care Access
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, 1/23)

Stat: Dog Aging Project Founders On What Lies Ahead After Losing Funding
The Dog Aging Project, which researchers say could yield promising leads for human longevity research, is at a critical crossroads after the National Institute on Aging declined to renew their grant funding. (Balthazar, 1/24)

Modern Healthcare: Generative AI In Healthcare Needs Government Regulation: WHO
The World Health Organization says providers have a role to play in developing guardrails for artificial intelligence in healthcare. WHO outlined its concerns in a report published last Thursday that focused on the ethics and governance of AI in healthcare. As the hype, promise and usage of AI has grown in healthcare, health system leaders, developers and congressional stakeholders have sought more concrete guardrails on its usage, particularly for clinical purposes. (Turner, 1/23)

GovInfo Security: Judge Again Says Meta Pixel Privacy Case Dismissal Unlikely
A federal judge on Wednesday said he is inclined to let proceed a putative class action lawsuit against Meta over its gathering of data from medical center patient portals through a web activity tracking tool. In an amended complaint, plaintiffs allege that the social media giant violated their privacy by harvesting individually identifiable health information from medical websites that had embedded the Meta pixel tracking tool. (McGee, 1/17)

Also —

CIDRAP: Primary Care Physicians' Electronic Workload Grew During Pandemic 
A new study shows primary care providers' (PCPs') electronic workload was already growing when the pandemic hit, and continued to increase 3 years later. The study, published yesterday in the Annals of Family Medicine, suggests PCPs may be at risk from burnout considering the high after-hours demand to complete electronic health records (EHR) and answer patient email messages after clinic hours. (Soucheray, 1/23)

AP: Oregon Lawmakers Backpedal On Pioneering Drug Decriminalization Law
Democratic lawmakers in Oregon on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping new bill that would undo a key part of the state’s first-in-the-nation drug decriminalization law, a recognition that public opinion has soured on the measure amid rampant public drug use during the fentanyl crisis. The bill would recriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs as a low-level misdemeanor, enabling police to confiscate them and crack down on their use on sidewalks and in parks, its authors said. It also aims to make it easier to prosecute dealers, to access addiction treatment medication, and to obtain and keep housing without facing discrimination for using that medication. (Rush, 1/23)

St. Louis Public Radio: Southwest To Stock Overdose Reversal Drug On Flights 
Southwest Airlines will now carry the opioid overdose-reversal drug naloxone on flights. Ballwin resident John Gaal and other advocates have been lobbying the airline to carry naloxone, which is also called Narcan, to protect passengers from opioid overdoses since Gaal witnessed an apparent overdose on a Southwest flight in October 2022. (Fentem, 1/24)

More health news from across the U.S. —

CBS News: NJ Law Expands Health Insurance Coverage For LGBTQIA+ Individuals For Infertility Treatments
A new law in New Jersey will expand health insurance coverage for infertility services to now include LGBTQ+ individuals.Infertility treatments are very expensive and insurance coverage is spotty and eligibility can be tricky, for example, if you're a single parent or a gay couple. However, that's not the case anymore in New Jersey. Dr. Serena Chen, a reproductive specialist of CCRM Fertility, helped to get a new law passed in New Jersey that expands insurance coverage for infertility treatments. (Stahl and Kuhn, 1/23)

The Salt Lake Tribune: Utah May Ban Polygraph Tests For Sexual Abuse Victims
Utah could soon ban government officials from asking alleged sexual assault victims to undergo a polygraph test — joining a growing list of states that bar the practice. Rep. Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, said she has introduced legislation banning polygraph tests in hopes that it will remove a barrier that could prevent someone from reporting they were sexually abused. Experts says that polygraph tests are known to be specifically unreliable with victims of sexual abuse, and other states have banned them for that reason. (Miller, 1/23)

CBS News: What's Causing Measles Outbreaks? Experts Point To Vaccination Decline, Waning Herd Immunity
Measles was officially declared eradicated in the U.S. more than 20 years ago, but new outbreaks of the disease are popping up — and experts say declining vaccination rates are jeopardizing herd immunity and increasing the risk. ... According to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Health, during the 2021-2022 school year, 94.3% of kindergarteners in Philadelphia County were fully vaccinated with the MMR vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella. Last school year, that dropped to 92.8% — below the 95% needed for herd immunity. (Stock, Winick, and Moniuszko, 1/23)

Key Biscayne Independent: Miami-Dade County Hopes An Autism Decal For Cars Could Save Lives
A new program in Miami-Dade aims to save lives by alerting police that an occupant within a home or a vehicle has autism spectrum disorder. The University of Miami-Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism estimates as many as 50,000 individuals on the autism spectrum live in the county. The decal program evolved out of an agreement between the county and the center to provide training for police and firefighters to better understand and communicate with autistic individuals. (Pacenti, 1/22)

Reuters: US Republican Subpoenas Health Secretary For Migrant Children Records 
A top Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday issued a subpoena that orders President Joe Biden's health secretary to provide records related to the handling of unaccompanied migrant children with suspected criminal ties. House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan sent the subpoena to Xavier Becerra, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the committee said in a press release. (Hesson, 1/23)

KFF Health News: In Los Angeles, Occupational Therapists Tapped To Help Homeless Stay Housed 
Carla Brown waits on an air mattress, eager for her occupational therapist to arrive at her apartment next to the Hollywood Freeway, mere blocks from where she once camped on the sidewalk. She moved into the one-bedroom apartment on the second floor of PATH Villas Hollywood, a county-run apartment complex, in July, shortly after her 60th birthday. Inside the open-concept unit, the walls stand bare except for three Christian art prints hung near the front door. (Castle Work, 1/24)

ScienceDaily: Protein Discovery Could Help Solve Prostate Cancer Drug Resistance 
Researchers have identified a receptor protein known as CHRM1 as a key player in prostate cancer cells' resistance to docetaxel, a commonly used chemotherapy drug to treat advanced cancer that has spread beyond the prostate. (Washington State University, 1/22)

ScienceDaily: New Reagent Improves The Process Of Making Sulfur-Containing Compounds That May Be Used In Medicines
Researchers describe their development of a new reagent that allows a more efficient approach to make sulfoximines, sulfonimidoyl fluorides and sulfonimidamides that may be used in medicines. (H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Centr and Research Institute, 1/22)

Reuters: US FDA Approves Vertex/CRISPR Gene Therapy For An Inherited Blood Disorder 
The U.S. health regulator has approved Vertex Pharmaceuticals and CRISPR Therapeutics' gene therapy to treat a rare blood disorder requiring regular blood transfusions, in patients 12 years and older, Vertex said on Tuesday. The decision earns the therapy, branded as Casgevy, the second U.S. approval after it was greenlighted in December for sickle cell disease, another inherited blood disorder. (Sunny, 1/16)

ScienceDaily: HIV: Early Treatment, One Key To Remission 
People living with HIV need to take antiretroviral treatment for life to prevent the virus from multiplying in their body. But some people, known as 'post-treatment controllers,' have been able to discontinue their treatment while maintaining an undetectable viral load for several years. Starting treatment early could promote long-term control of the virus if treatment is discontinued. (Institut Pasteur, 1/23)

Modern Healthcare: How Walgreens’ John Driscoll Plans To Make VillageMD Profitable
The retail pharmacy giant has invested billions of dollars into healthcare services such as primary care provider VillageMD, specialty pharmacy Shields Health Solutions and home care company CareCentrix. But promised returns, particularly from VillageMD, have proved elusive. The healthcare segment reported a $436 million operating loss in the first quarter of Walgreens' fiscal 2024, flat with a year ago. Under heavy scrutiny from analysts and investors, Walgreens executives know the healthcare services division needs to deliver—and soon. (Hudson, 1/22)

Reuters: Red Cross Must Face Trimmed Lawsuit From Verax Test-Maker
The American Red Cross must face part of a lawsuit claiming it attempted to thwart competition in the market for anti-contamination treatments related to blood clotting, a U.S. judge has ruled. Massachusetts-based Verax Biomedical Inc, which makes a blood-testing product, can move ahead with claims that the Red Cross violated a state unfair-competition law and intentionally harmed its contracts with hospitals, U.S. District Judge Patti Saris said on Friday. (Scarcella, 1/22)

Stat: TikTok, Instagram Influencers Need More Rules For Drug Ads 
In June, the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning letter about advertisements for the drug Recorlev for Cushing’s syndrome — its first in more than a year about webpages that make “false or misleading claims” about prescription drugs. More recently, in December the agency published guidance about TV and radio advertisements. (Sneha Dave, Sydney Reed and Steven Woolshin, 1/22)

Stat: Printout Prescription Drug Information Shouldn’t Go Digital 
Getting a new prescription can be overwhelming: medication schedules, foods to eat or avoid, interactions between different drugs. Having all of these details in accessible, printed documents keeps patients informed and mitigates the risk of medication errors. (John Whyte, 1/22)

The Tennessean: Pharmacy Benefit Companies: Congress Should Serve American Consumers
A recent report from the U.S. Office the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) found that, “More than 5 million Medicare beneficiaries struggle to afford prescription medications.” (Chris Yard, 1/20)

Scientific American: Lower Drug Costs Are Just A Federal License Away. But They Require Biden Administration Leadership
In December the White House announced a new draft guidance that allows federal agencies to grant nonvoluntary licenses to patents on inventions funded with taxpayer dollars. These are called “march-in” rights, and they allow the government to force licensing, when necessary, to remedy an abuse or nonuse of such patented inventions. The draft guidance fundamentally changes policy on federally funded inventions, including drugs and other products that rely on inventions that are sold at high prices by pharma and biotech companies. (James Love, 1/23)

The Washington Post: As Covid Surges, The U.S. Is Still Unprepared For Pandemics 
Millions of Americans have the boxes of tissues, missed work days and hospital visits to prove it: Respiratory illnesses, including influenza, covid-19 and RSV, have surged this winter. Meanwhile, health experts warned once again last week that the world needs to prepare for a hypothetical “Disease X” perhaps far deadlier than covid-19. Yet, for all covid’s lessons, health officials, governments and the public have more to do, fighting the diseases circulating now and making the next pandemic less severe. (1/23)

Bloomberg: Republican States Are Finding Benefits In Medicaid Expansion 
Ten years after the US Supreme Court ruled that states’ participation in the ACA marketplace must be voluntary, 40 states and Washington, DC, have agreed to expand Medicaid. The decision allows them to extend the government-subsidized health insurance plan to working families and individuals who make too much to qualify for traditional Medicaid and don’t have employer-provided health insurance. (Mary Ellen Klas, 1/24)

Dallas Morning News: We Are In An Adult ADHD Crisis. Should We Blame The ‘Busy Brain’?
Researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London found that nearly 70% of young adults with ADHD did not meet the criteria for the disorder at any of the childhood assessments. Adults with this “late-onset” ADHD had high levels of symptoms, impairment and other mental health disorders. The researchers suggested that “adult ADHD is more complex than a straightforward continuation of the childhood disorder,” according to a published study in JAMA Psychiatry in 2017. (Romie Mushtaq, 1/24)

The Washington Post: How Tens Of Thousands Of Black U.S. Doctors Simply Vanished 
I believe our mother practiced what is now known as structurally competent and culturally responsive care, in which the entire complex nature of a patient’s background and the social context in which they live, work, love and pray is considered during evaluation. And people loved her for it. She wasn’t just taking care of patients. She was tending to her neighbors. (Uche Blackstock, 1/22)

Stat: Future Doctors Need A Strong Humanities Education 
If you want an argument in favor of teaching the humanities, I suggest you ask a medical educator. Across the U.S., the age-old debate about the value of a liberal arts education has seemingly devolved into mortal combat, leaving the humanities in dire straits on college campuses. (Holly J. Humphrey, 1/24)

The Tennessean: Mental Health Support: Care For Children's Social And Emotional Needs
Children across the country deal with all kinds of sensitive issues every day including fear, the complexities of youth and adolescent anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, gender identity and sexual orientation, and substance misuse. (Rodger Dinwiddie, 1/22)

Stat: The Inclusion Problem At The Heart Of Rehabilitation Research 
In the spring of 2020, my almost 4-year-old daughter Livie sustained a severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) when a tree branch fell on her head in our backyard, devastating our whole family. Returning home after five months in the hospital, the real journey began: How do we best care for and support our daughter, who cannot do any daily activities on her own, cannot walk or talk, and has become cognitively impaired? (James Sulzer, 1/24)

Columbus Dispatch: Why Are Sneaky Big Hospitals Gobbling Up Tiny Doctors' Offices And Changing Their Logos?
Between prescription drug costs, rising premiums, and more, it’s clear the United States is in the midst of a health care affordability crisis. Increasingly limited health care competition is leading to higher health care costs for patients, consumers, and taxpayers. (Ean Bett, 1/24)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Gov. Shapiro Should Increase Caregiver Funding So We Can Earn A Living Wage
I have committed more than 20 years of my life to helping Philadelphians with disabilities and seniors remain in their own homes. As a home health aide, I visit vulnerable and medically fragile individuals’ homes and provide them with the caregiving services they need to live independently. (Cathy Creevey, 1/24)