As Vaccinations Dip, Experts Warn That Few ERs Can Fully Care For Sick Kids
Only about 17% of hospitals met standards for high pediatric readiness in a 2024 national study of almost 5,000 emergency departments, Axios reported. In related news, the United States is on the cusp of losing its measles elimination status.
Axios:
Medical Groups Sound Alarm On Emergency Care For Kids
Outbreaks linked to declining vaccination rates are threatening to overwhelm hospital emergency departments — most of which aren't fully prepared to treat sick kids. More than 35 million children are taken to emergency rooms each year, but most go to local hospitals that see fewer than 10 children a day. (Goldman, 1/20)
Stat:
Is ‘Shared Decision-Making’ Being Hijacked By U.S. Health Officials To Sow Doubt About Vaccines?
Listen to the Trump administration’s rhetoric about vaccines and you’ll hear a refrain. In September, what replaced the government recommendation that everyone over 6 months get an annual Covid shot? “Shared clinical decision-making.” What’s at the heart of timing kids’ immunizations, according to National Institutes of Health director Jay Bhattacharya? “Shared decision-making.” (Boodman, 1/20)
In related news about measles —
The New York Times:
Has The U.S. Lost Measles Elimination Status?
An international panel of experts must determine whether this resurgence will cost the United States its elimination status, a designation given to countries that have not had continuous spread of measles for more than a year. It’s a public health victory that the country achieved in 2000 after a nearly 40-year campaign to promote the vaccine and has maintained every year since. (Rosenbluth and Mandavilli, 1/19)
NBC News:
South Carolina Measles Outbreak Doubles Within A Week: ‘Staring Over The Edge’
The South Carolina measles outbreak is growing at an astounding speed. “Over the last seven to nine days, we’ve had upwards of over 200 new cases. That’s doubled just in the last week,” Dr. Johnathon Elkes, an emergency medicine physician at Prisma Health in Greenville, South Carolina, said during a media briefing Friday. “We feel like we’re really kind of staring over the edge, knowing that this is about to get a lot worse.” On Friday, the state’s health department said that 124 measles cases had been diagnosed since Tuesday, bringing the state’s total since the outbreak began last fall to 558. (Edwards, 1/16)
NBC News:
First Case Of Measles Reported On Clemson University's Campus
The fast-moving South Carolina measles outbreak has spread to Clemson University. The state’s Department of Public Health has told Clemson officials that an “individual affiliated with the University” has come down with a confirmed case of the contagious disease, Clemson said in a statement. (Edwards and Siemaszko, 1/19)
KFF Health News:
KFF Health News’ ‘On Air’: Physician-Journalist Shines Light On Measles Upsurge And New GLP-1 Study
KFF Health News editor-at-large for public health Céline Gounder discussed an increase in measles cases in the U.S. on CBS News’ CBS Mornings on Jan. 15. Gounder also discussed a new study on GLP-1 weight loss drugs on CBS News’ CBS News 24/7 and CBS Mornings on Jan. 8. (1/17)
On influenza —
CIDRAP:
US Flu Activity Declining But Remains High
Seasonal flu activity in the United States remains high nationally but appears to be declining, according to an update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The latest FluView report from the CDC shows several flu markers on the decline for the week ending January 10. (Dall, 1/16)
CIDRAP:
Current Flu Vaccine Provides Moderate Protection Against Severe Disease, Interim Analyses Suggest
Two new analyses, one from France and one from China, suggest that seasonal influenza vaccination provided moderate protection during the early months of the 2025–26 flu season, despite the rapid spread of influenza A(H3N2) subclade K viruses, which differ from the strains anticipated during vaccine development for the current flu season. (Bergeson, 1/16)
CNN:
A 4-Year-Old Died Of Flu Complications. Her Mother Has A Message For Other Parents
Ellie Rudd will be buried in a light blue and white Princess Elsa costume, made for her as a last gift from her aunt. “Frozen” was one of her favorite movies. The rambunctious 4-year-old – who loved mud and getting dressed up and having dance parties with her brother and sisters – died January 6, after the flu and a co-infection with an adenovirus turned into pneumonia and sepsis. (Goodman, 1/16)
On the common cold —
The Wall Street Journal:
The Secret Weapon To Fight A Cold Is Inside Your Nose, New Study Finds
A new study helps explain why you get sick from a common cold virus. The secret, it turns out, lies inside your nose. Winter brings a surge of respiratory illnesses, including rhinoviruses, the most frequent cause of the common cold. How your nasal-passage cells respond to the rhinovirus helps determine whether you get sick and how bad you feel, according to a new study published Monday in the journal Cell Press Blue. (Woodward, 1/19)
