Oklahoma Hospital Loses Part Of Roof In Storm, Evacuates Some Patients

AP: Storms With Heavy Rain And Damaging Winds Tear Roof Off Oklahoma Hospital
Storms carrying heavy rain and damaging winds ripped part of the roof off a hospital in eastern Oklahoma on Tuesday afternoon, forcing some patients to be evacuated, according to county officials. The Northeastern Health System hospital in Sallisaw had to evacuate around nine patients after a small section of its roof was peeled off, leaving part of the facility soaked, said Brad Taylor, Sequoyah County’s Emergency Management director. No injuries had been reported, he said. (9/24)

More health news from across the U.S. —

Becker's Hospital Review: 2,600 Temple Health Workers Set To Strike
Members of the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals are set to begin a five-day strike Oct. 6 at Temple University Hospital Main Campus and Temple Women and Families Hospital in Philadelphia, with bone marrow transplant nurses and techs at Jeanes Hospital in Philadelphia also striking. The union represents 2,600 nurses, techs and professionals across two local chapters: the Temple University Hospital Nurses Association and the Temple University Hospital Allied Health Professionals, according to a union news release. As of 2024, Temple Health had more than 12,000 total faculty members and employees, according to its website. (Gooch, 9/24)

FiercePharma: Fujifilm Biotechnologies Christens $3.2B Antibody Plant In N.C.
The opening of the Holly Springs, N.C., site, which will focus on antibody-based drugs, marks the debut of one of the largest cell culture biomanufacturing sites in the U.S., Fujifilm Biotechnologies said in a Sept. 24 press release. (Kansteiner, 9/24)

EdSource: After Federal Cuts, California Schools Could Lose Hundreds Of Mental Health Clinicians 
After Jane Huang graduated from Eureka High School in 2018, she knew she wanted to go to college in a different town.  She had struggled with severe depression, and when she could not keep up with her classes, teachers called her “lazy.” She dreaded going to school, where she felt isolated from friends and family and outcast as one of the few Chinese American students in Eureka, a rural and low-income seaport town in Northern California. As an undergraduate student at Cal State East Bay, majoring in psychology, Huang returned to Eureka High School as a student mental health worker in a role funded by the federal government’s school-based mental health grants in 2022.  (Sanganeria, 9/24)

Investigate Midwest: These Rural Communities Feed The World. They’re Also Going Hungry.  
Over the last four decades, America’s agricultural output has nearly doubled, as the production of livestock and crops has not only fed the nation but also fueled growing food demand in Asia and South America.  But in the rural communities that have made the U.S. a global food power, residents are increasingly finding it difficult to access enough food for themselves. While the national food insecurity rate has dropped slightly over the last decade, farming-dependent counties have seen an 11.7% increase. (Felder, 9/24)

Vaccine updates from Illinois, Florida, Colorado, and the Pentagon —

Chicago Tribune: Illinois Issues Its Own COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Illinois has released its own recommendations on COVID-19 vaccines — urging all adults and many children to get the shots, in a break with the federal government’s guidance. (Schencker, 9/24)

Tampa Bay Times: Florida Touts Doctor Freedom But Pushes Them To Take Unvaccinated Kids
In Florida, you can’t turn away a patient on the basis of their race, color, sex, religion or national origin. But a doctor can turn someone away if they’re unvaccinated. And in the Tampa Bay area, several pediatricians do. (Ellenboogen, 9/24)

Colorado Sun: New Colorado Group Aims To Help With Vaccine Access And Education
With major, rapid changes upending longstanding federal immunization policies, it’s seldom been more confusing to get vaccinated. But a new group in Colorado is hoping to clear the confusion and ensure access to vaccines for those who want them. The group is called Colorado Chooses Vaccines, and it’s a coalition of at least a dozen major medical and community organizations in the state. Those organizations run the gamut from hospitals — Children’s Hospital Colorado, Denver Health and the Colorado Hospital Association are all on board — to professional associations — including the Colorado Medical Society and the Colorado chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics — to nonprofits such as the Colorado Children’s Campaign and academic institutions such as the Colorado School of Public Health. (Ingold, 9/25)

AP: Pentagon Adds Exemptions To Flu Shot Requirement
The Pentagon has stepped back from the policy that requires all troops to get the flu shot every year by introducing exemptions for reservists and proclaiming that the shot is only necessary in some circumstances for all service members, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press. The memo, written by Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg on May 29 and sent to all the military services, says reserve troops now will need to be on active duty for 30 days or more before being required to get an annual flu shot. It also says the military will no longer be paying for reservists or National Guard members to get the vaccine on their own time. (Toropin, 9/25)