First Edition: Monday, Dec. 9, 2024

KFF Health News: Resources Are Expanding For Older Adults On Their Own
Jeff Kromrey, 69, will sit down with his daughter the next time she visits and show her how to access his online accounts if he has an unexpected health crisis. Gayle Williams-Brett, 69, plans to tackle a project she’s been putting off for months: organizing all her financial information. Michael Davis, 71, is going to draft a living will and ask a close friend to be his health care surrogate and executor of his estate. These seniors have been inspired to take these and other actions by an innovative course for such “solo agers”: Aging Alone Together, offered by Dorot, a social services agency in New York City. (Graham, 12/9)

KFF Health News: California Official Comes Out Of Retirement To Lead Troubled Mental Health Commission
Veteran California public servant Will Lightbourne has stepped in as interim executive director of the state’s mental health commission after its previous executive director resigned following conflict of interest allegations. Lightbourne served as head of the state’s Department of Social Services for seven years before retiring in 2018 and had already returned to service once, as interim head of the Department of Health Care Services at the height of the covid-19 pandemic. (Castle Work, 12/9)

KFF Health News: Journalists Dig Into Vaccine Debate And America's Obesity Rates
KFF Health News senior correspondent Arthur Allen discussed the fragility of our vaccine infrastructure on The Atlantic’s “Radio Atlantic” on Dec. 5. (12/7)

Modern Healthcare: Gallup: 19% Of Americans Are Satisfied With Healthcare Costs
The vast majority of people in the U.S. are dissatisfied with the cost of healthcare, according to researchers. Meanwhile, the percentage of those who would rate the quality of U.S. healthcare as excellent or good has hit its lowest point in more than two decades. Research and polling firm Gallup's annual Health and Healthcare poll, released Friday, found that 11% of Americans said healthcare quality was excellent and 33% said it was good. Additionally, nearly 80% of respondents said they were dissatisfied with the cost of healthcare. (DeSilva, 12/6)

The Wall Street Journal: Medicare Patients Who Leave Private Insurers For Government Coverage Are Costlier Than Most, Study Finds
Patients who leave Medicare plans run by private insurance companies in favor of traditional Medicare end up costing the government much more than typical patients, according to a new analysis by health-policy nonprofit KFF, raising the prospect that the private insurers are denying coverage to patients with costly illnesses. Overall, the patients fleeing private insurance plans cost 27% more in 2022 than traditional Medicare beneficiaries. (Weaver, 12/6)

The Washington Post: Democrats Propose Deal To GOP Extending Affordable Care Act Subsidies By A Year
Congressional Democrats have privately proposed a deal to Republicans that would extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies by one year, with lawmakers worried by new estimates that 2.2 million people will otherwise lose health coverage, according to five people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the proposal. The move accompanied a broader package of health-care proposals submitted to Republicans on Thursday night ahead of year-end spending negotiations. (Diamond and Roubein, 12/6)

Reuters: Health Insurer Shares Fall After UnitedHealth Exec Murder
Shares of health insurance companies including UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N), continued to fall on Friday, two days after Brian Thompson, the CEO of the company's health insurance unit, was fatally shot outside a Manhattan hotel by a gunman lying in wait. The shooter is still at large and his motive for the attack has not been determined, police officials say. (Roy, 12/6)

AP: FBI Offers $50,000 Reward For UnitedHealthcare CEO's Killer
The gunman who killed the CEO of the largest U.S. health insurer likely left New York City on a bus soon after the brazen ambush that has shaken corporate America, police officials said. But he left something behind: a backpack that was discovered in Central Park. Nearly four days after the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, police still did not know the gunman’s name or whereabouts or have a motive for the killing. (Balsamo and Sisak, 12/7)

The Hill: NYC Mayor: 'Net Is Tightening' On UnitedHealthcare CEO Suspect
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the “net is tightening” on the UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting suspect as the manhunt for the executive’s assassin entered its fourth day. “The net is tightening,” Adams told reporters on Saturday, according to WNBC’s video. “We’re going to bring this person to justice. I don’t want to do anything that’s going to impede on that investigation.” (Timotija, 12/7)

The New York Times: Trump Suggests RFK Jr. Will Examine Debunked Link Between Vaccines And Autism
President-elect Donald J. Trump, who has promoted the debunked theory that vaccines cause autism for more than a decade, suggested on Sunday that he would have his choice for health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., look into the issue. “I think somebody has to find out,” Mr. Trump said on NBC’s “Meet The Press,” after his interviewer, Kristen Welker, brought up autism in the context of a conversation about Mr. Kennedy’s skepticism of vaccines. (Gay Stolberg, 12/8)

Stat: Trump: He Shares Some Of RFK Jr.'s Concerns About Kids' Vaccines
President-elect Donald Trump suggested in a television interview on Sunday that he shares some of the concerns voiced by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his choice to be secretary of health and human services, about the safety of some common childhood vaccines. (Herper, 12/8)

The New York Times: Elon Musk’s And Vivek Ramaswamy’s DOGE Is Being Guided By A Health Entrepreneur
The government-efficiency panel started by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy is being steered by a health care entrepreneur and former top health official in Mr. Trump’s first White House. That official, Brad Smith, has been leading the nascent Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE. He has been effectively running it during the Trump transition effort, according to four people with knowledge of his role who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the role has not been announced. (Schleifer and Weiland, 12/6)

The Hill: Donald Trump: 'I Don't Think' Access To Abortion Pills Is Going To Change
President-elect Trump in a new interview signaled he would not move to restrict access to abortion pills upon taking office, even as he acknowledged “things change.” “I’ll probably stay with exactly what I’ve been saying for the last two years. And the answer is no,” Trump told Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press” when asked if he would restrict the availability of abortion pills. ... Trump added. “Things do change. But I don’t think it’s going to change at all.” (Samuels, 12/8)

NPR: How Trans Activists Are Preparing For 2nd Trump Administration
Restricting access to gender-affirming care for minors and barring trans women from women's sports teams covered by Title IX are just some of the policies that Trump's campaign has said will be under consideration once he is in office. Local advocates, trans people and their families, as well as national LGBTQ organizations are preparing for these potential Trump administration actions. (Diaz, 12/7)

Politico: Defense Bill Could Hit Last-Minute Snag Over Transgender Provision
The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee said Saturday he’s still undecided on how he’ll vote on a Pentagon policy bill he helped negotiate after Republicans insisted on language aimed at medical treatments for transgender children. The comments from Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) could signal some Democrats will have difficulty supporting the must-pass bill when it hits the House floor in the coming days and complicate its passage as a year-end deadline to get it to President Joe Biden’s desk nears. (O’Brien, 12/7)

Reuters: FDA Must Disclose More COVID-19 Vaccine Records, US Judge Rules
A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to publicly disclose more information underpinning its authorization of COVID-19 vaccines, after failing to persuade the court to end the public records lawsuit. In a ruling, on Friday, U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman in Fort Worth, Texas, ordered the agency to produce its “emergency use authorization” file to a group of scientists who wanted to see licensing information that the FDA relied on to approve the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine. (Scarcella, 12/6)

The Washington Post: USDA Mandates Testing Of The Nation’s Milk Supply For Bird Flu
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday ordered testing of the nation’s milk supply for bird flu starting Dec. 16, a step public health experts have clamored for following the detection of the H5N1 virus in U.S. dairy herds for the first time this spring. The mandatory testing system is designed to identify which states and specific herds have been affected by the H5N1 virus. So far, the virus has spread to 720 herds in 15 states. (Johnson and Malhi, 12/6)

CNN: US Government To Begin Expanded Testing Of Milk Supply To Better Track The Spread Of Bird Flu
The US Department of Agriculture will begin testing raw milk from dairy silos around the nation in an effort to better track the H5N1 bird flu that has been spreading in dairy cattle since March. The agency announced the expanded testing of the milk supply in a new federal order issued on Friday. (Goodman, 12/6)

CIDRAP: US Flu Activity Picks Up A Little More Pace
Though US flu activity is still low, markers such as test positivity and emergency department (ED) visits show more rises, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today in its latest weekly update. In its monitoring of outpatient visits for flulike illness, Louisiana and the District of Columbia are at the high and very high level, respectively, with Georgia and Arizona at the lower tier of the high level. Most detections are influenza A, and subtyping last week at public health labs shows nearly 62% of influenza A viruses were H3N2 and 36% were 2009 H1N1. Nationally, outpatient visits are highest in the youngest children, followed by patients ages 5 to 24 years old. (Schnirring, 12/6)

The Washington Post: Chikungunya Costs Reached Nearly $50 Billion Over A Decade, Report Says
The mosquito-borne disease chikungunya has a higher global burden than previously estimated, an international team of researchers reports in BMJ Global Health. The analysis concludes that between 2011 and 2020, there were 18.7 million chikungunya cases in 110 countries, costing the world nearly $50 billion over the decade. (Blakemore, 12/7)

The New York Times: Top-Gun Navy Pilots Fly At The Extremes. Their Brains May Suffer
To produce the best of the best, the Navy’s elite TOPGUN flying school puts fighter pilots through a crucible of intense, aerial dogfighting maneuvers under crushing G forces. But behind the high-speed Hollywood heroics that the school is famous for, the Navy has grown concerned that the extreme flying may also be producing something else: brain injuries. This fall, the Navy quietly began a confidential project, code-named Project Odin’s Eye, to try to find out. (Philipps, 12/8)

The Washington Post: Could Ozempic Treat Addiction?
In 2018, Matt Christensen kicked heroin by replacing drugs with drinking. When he stopped drinking in 2022, he turned to food. He put on 95 pounds. His doctor recommended he try Wegovy, part of a class of drugs known as GLP-1 receptor agonists, to help him lose weight. Eventually he switched to a different drug called Zepbound, which targets both GLP-1 and GIP agonists. The drugs worked. ... His cravings for food had diminished but so had his cravings for drugs and alcohol. (O’Neill, 12/7)

The Washington Post: Cervical Cancer Deaths Drop Among Younger Women; Study Credits HPV Vaccine 
Cervical cancer deaths among women younger than 25 have plummeted in recent years, the likely result of vaccinating adolescents against human papillomavirus, or HPV, high-risk strains of which cause the cancer, researchers said. “This is a huge public-health success story,” said Ashish Deshmukh, co-leader of the cancer prevention and control research program at the Medical University of South Carolina’s (MUSC) Hollings Cancer Center, and senior author of research recently published in JAMA Network. “Vaccination is the only explanation for this startling and substantial decline.” (Cimons, 12/5)

Axios: Cancer Treatments Jump Among Young Adults
Cancer treatment rates jumped among adults younger than age 50 between 2020 and 2023, according to a FAIR Health analysis shared first with Axios. The report reflects a puzzling rise in the rates of certain cancers, such as colorectal cancer, among younger patients. (Reed, 12/9)

Stat: Why AML Patients Struggle To Get Bone Marrow Transplants
Bone marrow transplants can be lifesaving for patients with acute myeloid leukemia, but new research reveals how socioeconomic factors create barriers to treatment and higher death rates for people living in disadvantaged communities. (Wosen, 12/8)

CIDRAP: Review Finds Audit And Feedback Improves Antibiotic Prescribing In Primary Care
A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) found that audit and feedback (A&F) interventions improved antibiotic prescribing across four outcome metrics in primary care settings, an international team of researchers reported yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases. The reviewers identified 56 RCTs that directly compared antimicrobial stewardship interventions with A&F versus those without A&F and used random-effects meta-analysis to evaluate the evidence across four outcomes. (Dall, 12/6)

CIDRAP: Antibiotic De-Escalation In Sepsis Patients Is Uncommon, US Study Finds
An analysis of patients with suspected sepsis at US hospitals found that antibiotic de-escalation was infrequent and varied widely across hospitals but was associated with reduced risk of adverse outcomes, researchers reported today in Clinical Infectious Diseases. (Dall, 12/6)

CIDRAP: New Data Highlight The Financial Burden Of Long COVID
In a new study in Health Services Research, US researchers from the University of Georgia report that the cost of long COVID is making it harder for people to pay their bills, buy groceries, and pay for utilities. And those in the lower-income brackets are hardest hit by the chronic condition. Related findings, meanwhile, show that the two-dose booster vaccine appears to cut the risk of long COVID by more than a third over and above the protection provided by the first three vaccine doses. (Soucheray, 12/6)

CIDRAP: Psilocybin Can Lift Depression In Clinicians Who Worked On COVID-19 Frontlines, Trial Finds
A small double-blind randomized clinical trial of US frontline healthcare workers with COVID-19 pandemic–related depression finds that the psychedelic drug psilocybin can relieve feelings of despair and burnout. For the study, published yesterday in JAMA Network Open, a University of Washington (UW)-led research team randomly assigned 30 physicians, advanced-practice practitioners, and nurses to receive either 25 milligrams (mg) of psilocybin or 100 mg of niacin placebo from February to December 2022. (Van Beusekom, 12/6)

Reuters: BioAge Scraps Mid-Stage Trial Of Experimental Obesity Drug, Shares Fall
BioAge Labs (BIOA.O), said on Friday it is discontinuing the mid-stage trial of its experimental obesity drug after high levels of certain liver enzymes were observed in some patients, sending its shares down nearly 73% to $5.40 in after-market trading. The drug developer was studying the experimental drug, azelaprag, as a monotherapy and in combination with Eli Lilly's (LLY.N), opens new tab tirzepatide. Azelaprag mimics the activity of the exerkine apelin, a peptide released in response to exercise due to muscle contraction. (12/6)

Reuters: Lilly Invests $3 Billion To Expand Wisconsin Plant As Obesity Drug Demand Soars
Eli Lilly (LLY.N), said on Thursday it will invest $3 billion to expand the manufacturing plant it bought in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin earlier this year, as it scrambles to meet soaring demand for its weight-loss and diabetes drugs. The new investment in the factory, which it acquired from Nexus Pharmaceuticals, will help boost production of Lilly's powerful weight-loss drug Zepbound as well as its diabetes treatments and other medicines, the company said. (Wingrove, 12/6)

Modern Healthcare: Pacs Group, CareTrust REIT Close Deal On Tennessee Nursing Homes
Skilled nursing home operator Pacs Group has closed on a deal to acquire the operations of 11 Tennessee nursing homes. The company said in a news release the deal with CareTrust REIT was completed Dec. 1, with the acquisition of another Tennessee facility's operations expected to close in the first quarter of 2025, subject to applicable closing conditions. Pacs Group did not disclose the names of the 12 facilities or the financial terms of the deal which will expand its operations by approximately 1,300 beds. (Eastabrook, 12/6)

CBS News: Allina Nurses' Frustration Grows As Workplace Violence Continues
Attacks at Allina Health's Abbott Northwestern Hospital have led to more than $83,000 in fines over the past year. "I've been personally assaulted myself, and in that, you never know that it's going to happen," said Anna Rabb, who is a part of the nurses union that's calling for more protection for healthcare workers on the job. "It's terrifying, and you don't want to come back to work." (McLister, 12/7)

CBS News: New Colorado Medicaid Program Covers Children And Pregnant Women, No Matter Immigration Status
Starting January 1, 2025, a new law will help children and expecting moms get health coverage - no matter their immigration status. The program called "Cover All Coloradans" makes state Medicaid available for prenatal and postpartum care and covers physical, dental, vision and mental health care for children. Organizations serving immigrants are working to enroll families now, and to battle fears some may have about divulging information to the government. (Alejo, 12/6)

AP: People With Lived Experience Not Getting Say On Most Opioid Settlement Funds
People with substance use disorder across the country are not getting a formal say in how most of the approximately $50 billion in opioid lawsuit settlement money is being used to stem the crisis, a new analysis found. Some advocates say that is one factor in why portions of the money are going to efforts they don’t consider to be proven ways to save lives from overdose, including equipment to scan jail inmates for contraband, drug-sniffing police dogs and systems to neutralize unneeded prescription medications. (Mulvihill, 12/9)

AP: Settlement Offers Nearly $9M To Louisiana Nursing Home Residents Kept In Warehouse During Hurricane
Some of the elderly residents of seven Louisiana nursing homes who were sent in 2021 to ride out Hurricane Ida in a crowded, ill-equipped warehouse are being offered shares of a nearly $9 million settlement after they sued. Retired state judge William “Rusty” Knight told The Times-Picayune of New Orleans that all the 427 former residents who filed legal claims are being sent letters outlining the proposed settlement. Knight said amounts differ based on patients’ individual circumstances. (12/7)

The New York Times: Acadia Healthcare’s Methadone Clinics Face Fraud Complaints
Every day at dawn, tens of thousands of people begin lining up at Acadia Healthcare’s addiction clinics to get a cup of methadone. The daily dose staves off opioid withdrawal and keeps many from turning to dangerous street drugs like fentanyl. The for-profit chain of 165 methadone clinics — the country’s largest — has generated more than $1.3 billion in revenue since 2022. It is “a business that we continue to feel great about,” Acadia’s chief executive told investors this year. That business has been built in part on deception, a New York Times investigation found. (Thomas and Silver-Greenberg, 12/7)

AP: What To Know About Abortion Access In Missouri
Planned Parenthood wanted to resume offering abortions in several Missouri clinics on Friday, immediately after a newly passed constitutional amendment rolling back the state’s near-total ban took effect, but they remain on hold as a complicated court battle drags on. The issue is that the amendment does not specifically override any state laws. And even before the end of Roe v. Wade enabled Missouri’s Republican-led legislature to approve a near-total ban, the state’s numerous restrictions left it with just one abortion clinic, in St. Louis. (Hollongsworth and Ballentine, 12/6)