Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Facebook Kills Its Facial Recognition System Over Safety Concerns
The Hill: Facebook To Shut Down Facial Recognition System
Facebook is shutting down its facial recognition system, and will delete more than a billion people’s individual facial recognition templates, the company said Tuesday. Meta, the new name of Facebook’s parent company, said the decision was made due to “growing concerns” about the use of facial recognition technology as a whole. (Klar, 11/2)
The Wall Street Journal: Facebook To Shut Down Facial Recognition In Photos, Videos
Facebook said it is shutting down its facial-recognition system in the coming weeks, scrapping a feature that has developed into a key tool for sharing photos on social media but has raised concerns among privacy advocates and regulators. The move continues a dramatic reshaping of the tech giant in recent weeks, which includes pausing the development of an Instagram for children product and a rebranding of the entire company to Meta Platforms Inc. to focus on a future beyond social media. (Prang, 11/2)
In other public health news —
NPR: Dole Recalls Bags Of Garden Salad Due To Possible Listeria Risk
Dole Fresh Vegetables is recalling bags of garden salad that were sold in 10 states due to a sample that tested positive for listeria monocytogenes, an organism that can cause serious and possible deadly infections, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The company recalled four different salad varities: the 24-ounce Dole Garden Salad, 24-ounce Marketside Classic Salad, 12-ounce Kroger Brand Garden Salad and the 12-ounce Salad Classics Garden Salad. FDA officials have reported no illnesses associated with the recalled salads, which were sold across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia. (Franklin, 11/2)
North Carolina Health News: New Trial Tackles Childhood Hearing Loss In Rural Areas
There’s a tried and true process for evaluating a child’s hearing: an audiologist sets them up in a soundproof booth, sits on the other side, and then, using a collection of expensive and immovable equipment, tests their ears. If the child shows signs of hearing loss, the audiologist refers them to an otolaryngologist — an ear, nose and throat doctor — for follow-up. The only issue? Audiologists and ear doctors simply don’t exist in some rural areas. (Donnelly-DeRoven, 11/3)
Georgia Health News: Small Towns, Cops And Mental Health Patients
Every couple of weeks, police in Americus, a small city in southwest Georgia, respond to trouble at the home of the same young man. The man goes through psychotic episodes, sometimes violent ones. He’s on the autism spectrum and has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. The man got a lucky break after his latest incident, a physical attack on his father. The responding police officer was an old family friend, who engaged the man in conversation, managed to find a common interest – Marvel comics – and calmed him down. “It was one of those moments when I knew my training worked,” says Officer Harry Brooks. “And it felt good. It felt right.” (Ridderbusch, 11/2)
Axios: Sick Days Disappear In The Remote Working World
Before the pandemic, if you woke up with a runny nose or a tickle in your throat, it was a simple enough decision to stay home and avoid infecting your co-workers. Now, as more Americans work from home, sick days are disappearing. Working through sickness and fatigue makes it harder for people to recover quickly and completely, prolonging the harm to their health and productivity. It also leads to an epidemic of "presenteeism" — showing up for work when you're not feeling up to it, and not doing your best job. (Pandey, 11/3)
