First Edition: April 19, 2019

Kaiser Health News: Liver Illness Strikes Latino Children Like A ‘Silent Tsunami’
Saira Diaz uses her fingers to count the establishments selling fast food and sweets near the South Los Angeles home she shares with her parents and 13-year-old son. “There’s one, two, three, four, five fast-food restaurants,” she says. “And a little mom and pop store that sells snacks and sodas and candy.” In that low-income, predominantly Latino neighborhood, it’s pretty hard for a kid to avoid sugar. Last year, doctors at St. John’s Well Child and Family Center, a nonprofit community clinic seven blocks away, became alarmed by the rising weight of Diaz’s son, Adrian Mejia. They persuaded him to join an intervention study run by the University of Southern California and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) that weans participants off sugar in an effort to reduce the rate of obesity and diabetes among children. (Waters, 4/19)

The Associated Press: US Awards $350M In Research Funds To Fight Opioid Epidemic
U.S. health officials are giving $350 million to researchers in four states hit hardest by the deadly opioid epidemic. The study announced Thursday aims to cut overdose deaths by 40% over three years in local communities grappling with misuse of the addictive drugs. Researchers will study evidence-based techniques for fighting addiction and overdose, such as medication-based treatments like methadone and criminal justice reforms. (Perrone, 4/18)

Reuters: U.S. Launches Four-State Study To Find Ways To Reduce Opioid Overdose Deaths
The National Institutes of Health will award grants to research sites in Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio, NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins said at a news conference to unveil the plan. They will go to the University of Kentucky, Boston Medical Center, Columbia University and Ohio State University. Prescription opioid pain treatments and drugs like heroin and the more potent fentanyl were responsible for 47,600 U.S. deaths in 2017, according to government figures, with only a small decline last year, according to provisional data. (Mishra and Mathias, 4/18)

The Washington Post: HHS Launches Program To Cut Opioid Overdoses By 40 Percent In Three Years
The $353 million effort will test the idea that the best approaches to combat the drug crisis are well known but poorly implemented and coordinated. It will employ a comprehensive strategy in each community that encourages the involvement of doctors, treatment providers, law enforcement, courts, churches and even housing providers — an approach that has worked in a few places. Critics have long complained, for example, that even the small portion of substance abusers who are able to find treatment often are abandoned when they seek jobs, housing or continued counseling and social support. Those problems are among the many factors that lead to repeated relapses. (Bernstein, 4/18)

The Wall Street Journal: Trump Administration To Launch New Opioid-Addiction Initiative
An NIH spokeswoman said the ambitious 40% goal was based on experiences from adding evidence-based steps into communities. The federal government estimates the number of U.S. deaths by opioid overdose reached 47,000 cases in 2017, and the new initiative is part of a broad, concerted effort to combat the scourge. The Food and Drug Administration recently announced new dosage forms, limited-quantity packaging and new research requirements on companies that make painkillers. (Burton, 4/18)

The New York Times: Kentucky’s Senator McConnell Supports Bill To Raise Minimum Age To Buy Tobacco To 21
Senator Mitch McConnell, long one of the tobacco industry’s loyal allies, said on Thursday that he would sponsor legislation to raise the minimum age to 21 for the purchase of tobacco and e-cigarettes. Mr. McConnell, the Republican Senate majority leader whose home state, Kentucky, is the nation’s second-largest tobacco producer, said he was motivated by the increasing rate of vaping among teenagers and young adults. Public health agencies have cracked down on e-cigarette companies and distributors in an effort to curb access to the products. (Kaplan, 4/18)

The Wall Street Journal: Congress To Consider Raising Tobacco-Buying Age To 21
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell plans to introduce legislation raising the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 from 18, a move that public-health advocates and tobacco companies hope would curb the use of e-cigarettes among youths. More than a dozen states have passed or enacted laws raising the minimum age to 21 and others are considering doing so. Sen. McConnell’s announcement Thursday follows the introduction earlier this month of similar bills in the House. (Maloney, 4/18)

The Hill: McConnell Introducing Bill To Raise Age To Buy Tobacco To 21 
“For some time, I’ve been hearing from the parents who are seeing an unprecedented spike in vaping among their teenage children. In addition, we all know people who started smoking at a young age and who struggled to quit as adults. Unfortunately it’s reaching epidemic levels around the country," McConnell said in a statement. He added that his bill would have exemptions for individuals who serve in the military. (Carney, 4/18)

The Washington Post: Measles Outbreak: Washington State Senate Passes Bill To Eliminate Exemption For MMR Vaccine
The Washington state Senate narrowly passed a measure late Wednesday that would make it harder for parents to opt out of vaccinating their children against measles in response to the state’s worst outbreak in more than two decades. The bill, which would eliminate personal or philosophical exemptions from the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, is a victory for public health advocates who had not expected it to make it to the floor. The measure passed 25 to 22 in the Democratic-controlled chamber, after being brought to the floor just minutes before the legislative deadline. No Republicans voted in favor, and two Democrats voted against. (Sun and Bernstein, 4/18)

The Washington Post: Parents Of 3 NYC Children Face $1,000 Penalty For Violating Measles Order
New York City health officials issued summonses to parents of three children Thursday for failing to have their children vaccinated against measles, a violation of the city’s emergency order mandating immunizations to control a surging outbreak. The adults face civil penalties of $1,000 if an officer upholds the summons at a hearing. Health officials identified three children who were exposed to the severe respiratory virus but were not yet vaccinated by April 12, in violation of the order. (Sun, 4/18)

The Wall Street Journal: New York City Issues Summonses To Parents Of Three Unvaccinated Children
The city last week issued a vaccine mandate that applies to certain ZIP Codes in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, where the outbreak began last fall in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community. Since that order was issued on April 9, disease detectives for the city have been tracking people who have come in contact with people known to have measles. In that investigation, the city identified three children who were exposed to measles, but remained unvaccinated as of April 12. The city didn’t say if the three children developed measles. The parents for those three children were issued the summons, which carries a $1,000 fine. (West, 4/18)

Reuters: Judge Rejects Challenge Of New York City's Mandatory Measles Vaccination Order
A Brooklyn judge on Thursday denied a petition seeking to lift New York City's recently-imposed mandatory measles vaccination order, dismissing a court challenge brought by an anonymous group of parents who argued the order was unconstitutional. The judge sided with municipal health authorities who issued the order last week, calling it a rare but necessary step to contain the worst measles outbreak to hit the city since 1991. (4/18)

CNN: Measles: This Baby Caught It Because Of Anti-Vaxers
Fainy Sukenik believes in vaccines, and her four children are up to date on all their shots. That's why she's furious that her baby got measles. Too young to be vaccinated, 8-month-old Shira Goldschmidt developed complications from the virus and had to be hospitalized. Infectious disease experts say the cause is clear: anti-vaxers. (Cohen, 4/18)

CNN: 20 Years On, Columbine Survivors Tell Parkland Students: 'We're Sorry We Couldn't Stop It.'
Columbine and Parkland. Two high school massacres, two communities changed forever. Two fateful days, two decades apart. Tragic bookends in American history. In all, 30 lives lost: 13 in Colorado in 1999, 17 in Florida in 2018.Hundreds more survived the gunfire. Most escaped the bullets. Still, they carry invisible scars. Any loud sound can shatter their day: Sirens sounding, fire alarms ringing, a car backfiring. Time has done little to heal the triggers. (Drash, 4/17)

The Associated Press: Columbine Community Moves Ahead, Awaits Details On Teen
A Colorado community changed forever by the attack that killed 13 people at Columbine High School moved ahead Thursday with ceremonies marking the anniversary of the tragedy while awaiting more details on what led a Florida teenager “infatuated” with the shooting to buy a shotgun and kill herself in the snowy foothills nearby. Many questions remained unanswered about 18-year-old Sol Pais, but a friend disputed the contention by authorities that she posed a threat. (Foody and Kennedy, 4/18)

The New York Times: This Genetic Mutation Makes People Feel Full — All The Time
The study subjects had been thin all their lives, and not because they had unusual metabolisms. They just did not care much about food. They never ate enormous amounts, never obsessed on the next meal. Now, a group of researchers in Britain may have found the reason. The people carry a genetic alteration that mutes appetite. It also greatly reduces their chances of getting diabetes or heart disease. (Kolata, 4/18)

The Associated Press: Study: Genetic Test Predicts Middle-Aged Obesity Risk
Can a genetic test identify newborns at risk of becoming severely obese by middle age? Researchers say they have come up with one, and that it might allow interventions in childhood to avoid that fate. The test examines more than 2 million spots in a person's genetic code, seeking variants that individually nudge a person's obesity risk up by a tiny amount. The researchers drew on previously published data about those variants to create a risk score. (Ritter, 4/18)

The Wall Street Journal: Risk Scores Assess Ties Between Genes And Obesity, Disease
A polygenic risk score is a mathematical formula that sums up the cumulative effect of many different gene variants that are believed to play a role in the risk of a disease or condition. “Obesity risk from genes can now be distilled into a single number for each person,” said Sekar Kathiresan, senior author of the study and a geneticist and cardiologist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and at Massachusetts General Hospital. “It’s like measuring somebody’s cholesterol.” (McKay, 4/18)

Stat: Genetic Test Offers Clues — And Only Clues — To A Person’s Risk Of Obesity
The researchers started with a list of 2.1 million common genetic variants and used computer algorithms to derive several possible scores that each gauged obesity risk a little bit differently. They picked the best score by seeing how they fared with data from the U.K. Biobank, a government-backed effort in the United Kingdom to gather genetic information. And when they tested out the winner? The genetic variation was striking. “What this really means is 10% of the population has inherited a genetic factor that makes them 20-30 pounds heavier,” Kathiresan said. (Robbins, 4/18)

CNN: Does Sugar Make Kids Hyper? That's Largely A Myth
Does sugar make kids hyper? Maybe. "If you look at the peer-reviewed evidence, we cannot say sugar absolutely makes kids hyper; however, you can't discount that sugar may have a slight effect" on behavior, said Kristi L. King, senior pediatric dietitian at Texas Children's Hospital and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. (Drayer, 4/18)

The New York Times: Can Botox And Cosmetic Surgery Chill Our Relationships With Others?
Let’s say you’re walking down the street and coming toward you is someone pushing a baby in a stroller. The baby looks right at you and bursts into a big, gummy grin. What do you do? If you’re like most people, you reflexively smile back and your insides just melt. The baby might react by smiling even more broadly and maybe kicking its feet with delight, which will only deepen your smile and add to the warm feeling spreading in your chest. (Murphy, 4/18)

The Associated Press: Wash. Poised To Become 1st State With Long-Term Care Benefit
Washington is poised to become the first state to establish an employee-paid program creating an insurance benefit to help offset the costs of long-term care, a step advocates say will help an aging population that is likely not prepared for the increasing costs needed for daily assistance. The measure creates a benefit for those who pay into the program, with a lifetime maximum of $36,500 per person, indexed to inflation, paid for by an employee payroll premium. (4/18)

The Associated Press: North Carolina Gov. Cooper Vetoes 'Born-Alive' Legislation
North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed a measure Thursday written by Republicans and backed by social conservatives that addresses a doctor's responsibilities if a later-term abortion results in an infant born alive. Cooper announced his decision two days after the General Assembly sent him a measure telling health care practitioners to grant those newborns the same protections as other patients. Those who don't could face a felony and active prison time, along with fines and potential civil damages. (4/18)

The Associated Press: Legislation Overhauls Maryland Medical Network's Board
Maryland's governor signed fast-tracked legislation Thursday to overhaul a major medical network's board of directors following revelations of numerous questionable financial arrangements involving board members, including Baltimore's mayor. Mayor Catherine Pugh, who joined the volunteer board in 2001, has become the public face of the University of Maryland Medical System's "self-dealing" scandal. (4/18)

The Associated Press: Cancer-Causing Chemical Taints Water After California Blaze
The drinking water in Paradise, California, where 85 people died last year in the nation’s worst wildfire in a century, is contaminated with the cancer-causing chemical benzene, officials said. Officials said they believe the contamination happened after the November firestorm created a toxic combination of gases in burning homes that got sucked into the water pipes as residents and firefighters drew water heavily, the Sacramento Bee newspaper reported Thursday. (4/18)

Los Angeles Times: Newsom Plans To Take On Big Pharma Over Prescription Drugs. L.A. County Wants In 
In a tentative deal announced Wednesday, the Newsom administration and Los Angeles County said they would sit at the same bargaining table when negotiating prescription drug prices with manufacturers. Newsom said the partnership will hopefully spur other local governments to join the coalition, adding that governors in Rhode Island, Colorado and Illinois have expressed interest in a similar model or joining California’s collective. (Gutierrez, 4/17)