Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Federal Judge Dismisses Claim Autism And ADHD Are Linked To Tylenol
The Wall Street Journal: Court Rejects Claims Linking Tylenol To Autism, ADHD
A federal judge dealt a likely fatal blow to hundreds of lawsuits against manufacturers of Tylenol and generic acetaminophen, ruling the plaintiffs don’t have admissible evidence to support claims that using the pain reliever during pregnancy raises a child’s risks of autism or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. In a ruling late Monday, U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan said the more than 400 consolidated lawsuits were centered on scientific claims that were fundamentally unreliable. (Mulvaney, 12/19)
Bloomberg: New Drugs To Stop Menopause May Have Longevity Breakthroughs
When David Pepin dissected the mouse on a dark fall afternoon in 2013, he couldn’t believe what he saw. As he pushed the kidneys aside to get to the ovaries, he noticed something strange. “They looked like neonatal ovaries,” Pepin recalls. They were the size he’d expect to see in a newborn female, not an adult. “They were miniature.” Pepin, then a postdoc at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, had seen enough mouse ovaries to know that something unusual had happened. (Brown, 12/20)
KFF Health News: A New Test Could Save Arthritis Patients Time, Money, And Pain. But Will It Be Used?
Erinn Maury knew Remicade wasn’t the right drug for Patti Schulte, a rheumatoid arthritis patient the physician saw at her Millersville, Maryland, practice. Schulte’s swollen, painful joints hadn’t responded to Enbrel or Humira, two drugs in the same class. But the insurer insisted, so Schulte went on Remicade. It didn’t work either. What’s more, Schulte suffered a severe allergic reaction to the infusion therapy, requiring a heavy dose of prednisone, a steroid with grave side effects if used at high doses for too long. (Allen, 12/20)
In news about the opioid crisis —
Bloomberg: Bankrupt Rite Aid Agrees To Mediation With Opioid Victims, Creditor Panel
Bankrupt pharmacy chain Rite Aid Corp. agreed to begin court-supervised mediation with lower ranking creditors, including groups that blame the company for contributing to America’s opioid addiction crisis. The company, backed by senior lenders, will negotiate with unsecured creditors about how to end the retailer’s insolvency case and on a potential loan package to fund the company’s exit from bankruptcy, Rite Aid attorney Aparna Yenamandra said in court Tuesday. The company will try reach a deal before the end of January, Yenamandra said. (Church and Pollard, 12/19)
Reuters: US FDA Approves First Test To Identify Opioid Use Addiction Risk
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Tuesday it has approved the first test to assess if there is a risk of opioid use addiction in certain individuals. The test, AvertD, is developed by privately held SOLVD Health. The FDA granted the approval to AutoGenomics, a unit that SOLVD acquired in 2019. ... It is a prescription-use only genetic laboratory test for patients 18 years and older for those who have not previously used oral opioid painkillers. (12/20)
The Wall Street Journal: One State Wanted To Understand Youth Opioid Use. So It Tested High-School Wastewater
To get a better handle on its youth drug use, New Mexico health officials are looking in school sewers. Using a technique that became popular nationally to spot Covid-19 outbreaks, New Mexico appears to be the first state to test wastewater at public high schools for a range of opioids and stimulants. Initial data released since last week from more than three dozen high schools mostly in and around Albuquerque included what school leaders and state officials called a surprise: cocaine use in nearly 82% of the campus communities. (Randazzo, 12/19)
How one country is tackling cocaine —
Reuters: Swiss Capital Bern Considers Legal Cocaine Project
Switzerland's capital is examining a pilot scheme to allow the sale of cocaine for recreational use - a radical approach to the war on drugs that is not thought to have been tried elsewhere. Parliament in Bern has supported the idea, which still needs to overcome opposition from the city government and will also require a change in national law. (Revill, 12/20)
