First Edition: Aug. 4, 2023

KFF Health News: Teens With Addiction Are Often Left To Detox Without Medication 
When Denver Health wanted to open an inpatient opioid detox unit specifically for teens, doctors there searched high and low for a model to copy. They didn’t find one. Teens who land in emergency rooms with an opioid overdose generally receive naloxone to reverse the effects of dangerous drugs in their system and are sent home with a list of places they can go for follow-up care. But too often, those teens never seek additional help. They are left to suffer through the agony of withdrawal with no medications to ease their cravings. As a result, many, seeking relief, go back to opioids, often with tragic consequences. (Hawryluk, 8/4)

KFF Health News: As Water Reuse Expands, Proponents Battle The ‘Yuck’ Factor
When Janet Cruz lost an April election for a Tampa City Council seat, she became a political casualty of an increasingly high-stakes debate over recycled water. During her time in the Florida Legislature, Cruz had supported a new law allowing the use of treated wastewater in local water systems. But many Tampa residents were staunchly opposed to a plan by their water utility to do just that, and Cruz was forced to backtrack, with her spokesperson asserting she had never favored the type of complete water reuse known as “toilet to tap.” She lost anyway, and the water plan has been canceled. (Robbins, 8/4)

KFF Health News: Survey: Americans Want Weight Loss Drugs Despite High Cost 
Many Americans really want to lose weight — and a new poll shows nearly half of adults would be interested in taking a prescription drug to help them do so. At the same time, enthusiasm dims sharply if the treatment comes as an injection, if it is not covered by insurance, or if the weight is likely to return after discontinuing treatment, a new nationwide KFF poll found. (Appleby, 8/4)

KFF Health News: KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Congress Is Out. The Presidential Campaign Is In
Congress has left for its annual August recess, but lawmakers have a long to-do list waiting when they return — and only a handful of legislative days to fund the government before the Oct. 1 start of the new fiscal year. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidates who are not named Donald J. Trump are preparing for their first televised debate and making interesting promises about health care. (8/3)

USA Today: CDC Panel Recommends RSV Shot For Infants, Certain Toddlers
A federal advisory committee voted unanimously Thursday to recommend a new drug to prevent severe respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, in babies and certain toddlers ahead of the cold season starting in the fall. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices said babies under 8 months old who are entering their first RSV season can get the new monoclonal antibody from Sanofi and AstraZeneca, called Beyfortus. Panel members said the new drug can also be given to those between 8 and 19 months of age who are at increased risk of severe disease if they're entering their second season of RSV. (Rodriguez, 8/3)

The New York Times: Medical Group Backs Youth Gender Treatments, But Calls For Research Review 
The American Academy of Pediatrics backed gender-related treatments for children on Thursday, reaffirming its position from 2018 on a medical approach that has since been banned in 19 states. But the influential group of doctors also took an extra step of commissioning a systematic review of medical research on the treatments, following similar efforts in Europe that found uncertain evidence for their effectiveness in adolescents. (Ghorayshi, 8/3)

Stat: ProMED, An Early Warning System On Disease Outbreaks, Appears Near Collapse
The early warning disease network that alerted the world to the original SARS outbreak and the start of the Covid-19 pandemic appears to be in peril. A number of the senior moderators of ProMED-mail, a program operated by the International Society for Infectious Diseases, posted a letter of protest early Thursday, challenging a recently revealed plan to charge for subscriptions to the service. The group of 21 moderators, who announced they were suspending work for ProMED, expressed a lack of confidence in the ISID’s administrative operations, suggesting ProMED needs to find a new home. (Branswell, 8/3)

The Boston Globe: Dr. Ashish Jha: Public Health 'Cannot Become Partisan' Issue
Five years ago, the majority of America could not properly define public health, said Dr. Ashish Jha, who recently left the Biden administration as the nation’s last White House COVID-19 czar. After a global pandemic, he said the science-based field that is designed to protect people’s health has, in some circles, “become a dirty word.” On the latest episode of the Rhode Island Report podcast, Jha reflected on his time working in the White House, the persisting challenges in America’s public health system, what’s next for COVID-19, and the dangers he saw firsthand when misinformation spreads. (Gagosz, 8/3)

Axios: COVID Uptick Hints At Our Future With The Virus
A recent uptick in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations is hinting at how the virus will keep raising a predictable seasonal threat. But experts warn the U.S. is lacking critical tools to help manage future waves. Infection levels are still relatively low, and immunity from prior infections and vaccinations means the virus is unlikely to reach the same high levels seen during past fall and winter waves. (Moreno, 8/4)

The Washington Post: Loss Of Smell And Taste Is No Longer A Common Covid Symptom
When the pandemic began, losing your sense of smell was considered a key indicator of covid-19, and the condition affected about half of those who tested positive for the coronavirus. However, a new study reveals that the chance of smell loss from the latest omicron variants has dropped dramatically since the early days of the pandemic. “So now, three people out of 100 getting covid presumably may lose their sense of smell, which is far, far less than it was before,” said study leader Evan Reiter, the medical director of Virginia Commonwealth University Health’s Smell and Taste Disorders Center. (Yarber, 8/3)

CIDRAP: Bivalent COVID Booster Protects Against Poor Outcomes Better Than 1-Strain 4th Dose
A fourth dose of the bivalent (two-strain) COVID-19 vaccine is substantially more effective against medical treatment and hospitalization than a fourth monovalent (single-strain) dose among both previously infected and never-infected people who had received three monovalent doses, concludes an observational study published yesterday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. (Van Beusekom, 8/3)

The New York Times: Outdoor Dining In NYC Will Be Made Permanent, With Caveats 
Some restaurant owners have expressed outrage about having to remove and store outdoor dining structures from Nov. 30 until March 31, which will take away a dining option for patrons, especially those who are immunocompromised or otherwise Covid-conscious. Smaller restaurants in particular could find it too expensive or cumbersome to participate. (Fitzsimmons, 8/3)

CIDRAP: Report Highlights Hospital Sinks As Source Of Highly Resistant Pathogen
A case report published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report highlights the role of the hospital water environment in the transmission of highly resistant, difficult-to-treat pathogens. The report by researchers with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Idaho Division of Public Health (IDPH), and Utah Public Health Laboratory (UPHL) describes the identification and investigation of carbapenemase-producing, carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (CP-CRPA) in two patients who stayed in the same room in an intensive care unit (ICU) in Idaho 4 months apart. (Dall, 8/3)

Politico: Henry Cuellar, Democrats' Last Anti-Abortion Lawmaker, Gets Leadership Endorsements 
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) announced endorsements on Thursday for his 2024 reelection from the entire House Democratic leadership team, a sharp reversal from last year’s midterms, when he was all but abandoned by his party’s top brass. (Ferris, 8/3)

AP: A Federal Appeals Court Just Made Medication Abortions Harder To Get In Guam
People seeking medication abortions on the U.S. Territory of Guam must first have an in-person consultation with a doctor, a federal appeals court says, even though the nearest physician willing to prescribe the medication is 3,800 miles (6,100 kilometers) — an 8-hour flight — away. The ruling handed down Tuesday by a unanimous three-judge panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals could make it even more difficult for pregnant people to access abortions on the remote island where 85% of residents are Catholic and about 1 in 5 live below the poverty line. The last doctor to provide abortions in Guam retired in 2018, leaving people seeking the procedure without local options. (Boone and Komenda, 8/3)

Billings Gazette: Suspended Bans And Expanding Access Are Helping Wyoming Women Get Abortions
The Wyoming Department of Health’s 2022 report didn’t capture all abortions in the state. The number of women who received abortions in Wyoming doubled last year to 200, according to the Department of Health’s official 2022 Induced Termination of Pregnancy Report — but even that total appears to fall well short of the actual count. (Hannon Casper, 8/3)

Axios: Many Policies Targeting Alcohol Use During Pregnancy Don't Work: Study
Policies intended to discourage or criminalize drinking while pregnant have no effect on infant health, or in some cases can actually be harmful, a new JAMA Network Open study finds. The study is the latest research supporting evidence that criminalizing alcohol and drug use during pregnancy is leading to worse outcomes among newborns, experts say. (Dreher, 8/3)

Stat: White House Drug Shortage Group Privately Met With Industry
A new White House task force on drug shortages held a rare in-person meeting last Friday with representatives from hospitals, drugmakers, pharmacies, and others in the drug supply chain to brainstorm policies for stemming shortages of cancer drugs. (Wilkerson, 8/3)

CIDRAP: BARDA Orders More Jynneos Mpox Vaccine 
Bavarian Nordic has received a US government contract for $120 million to manufacture more of its Jynneos smallpox/mpox vaccine, the company said in a news release today. The order comes from the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response at the Department of Health and Human Services. It primarily covers the manufacturing of new vaccine. (Wappes, 8/3)

Stat: Medicare Slashes Safety Net Hospital Payments By Nearly $1 Billion
The federal government will pay hospitals that treat poor and uninsured patients almost $1 billion less next year, a cut that’s more than eight times larger than the one proposed in April. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services originally said it would cut payments meant to help safety net hospitals by $115 million in 2024. In the final rule released this week, however, that cut grew to $957 million. The pool of money is known as Medicare’s disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments and uncompensated care payments. (Bannow and Herman, 8/4)

The Boston Globe: State To Give Hospitals $180 Million In Latest COVID Relief
The state’s most vulnerable hospitals are about to get an infusion of cash, thanks to a supplemental budget bill that Gov. Maura Healey signed this week. Legislators said the hospital funding, a total of $180 million, will be essential to institutions grappling with deep financial losses lingering from the pandemic, but specific rules will mean the money is targeted to hospitals that serve high portions of low-income patients and those with proven financial difficulty. (Bartlett, 8/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: Ransomware Shuts Down Facilities At Connecticut Health System
A cyberattack at Manchester-based Eastern Connecticut Health Network is causing closures and emergency room diversions, NBC Connecticut reported Aug. 3. According to the health system's website, the attack prompted the closure of all primary care locations and specialty care locations. The disruption was also felt at all Prospect Medical Facilities, ECHN's parent company, according to its website. (Schwartz, 8/3)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Ransomware Hits Crozer Health And Its Owner Prospect Medical Holdings
Computer systems at Delaware County’s Crozer Health were offline Thursday after a ransomware attack on the health system’s owner, Prospect Medical Holdings Inc., the company said. (Brubaker, 8/3)

Modern Healthcare: Cigna 2Q Earnings Report Shows Net Income Decline
Cigna intends to raise premiums to compensate for greater-than-expected, $160 million in risk-adjustment charges for its health insurance exchange business this year, the insurer disclosed Thursday. (Tepper, 8/3)

Stat: Vertex Faces Renewed Calls To Widen Access To Its Cystic Fibrosis Medicines In Poor Countries
Several Latino advocacy groups and more than 100 clinicians from dozens of countries are lending their voices to an expanding campaign to pressure Vertex Pharmaceuticals to widen access to its cystic fibrosis medications. (Silverman, 8/3)

Stat: Alnylam Reports Growth In Sales Of Rare Disease Treatments
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals said Thursday that sales of its treatments for rare diseases grew 43% in the second quarter compared to the year-ago period, as the biotech prepares for a key meeting with the Food and Drug Administration in September. (Trang and Feuerstein, 8/3)

AP: Former First-Round NBA Draft Pick Is Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison In $4M Health Care Fraud 
A federal judge sentenced a former first-round NBA draft pick to 10 years in prison Thursday, saying he used his people skills to entice others to aid his $5 million health care fraud after he “frittered away” substantial earnings from his professional career. Terrence Williams, 36, of Seattle, was also ordered to forfeit more than $650,000 and to pay $2.5 million in restitution for ripping off the NBA’s Health and Welfare Benefit Plan between 2017 and 2021 with the help of a dentist in California and doctors in California and Washington state. Profits were generated by claims for fictitious medical and dental expenses. (Neumeister, 8/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: Medicaid Extends Telehealth Coverage In New York
The New York State Department of Health has extended telehealth coverage under Medicaid through Dec. 31, 2024. The increased demand for telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in expanded coverage of these services. Prior to the COVID-19 public health emergency, only 25 types of Medicaid providers were eligible for telehealth services reimbursements. The expansion enabled all Medicaid providers within Medicaid facilities to be authorized for reimbursements. (Talaga, 8/3)

Los Angeles Times: Flea-Borne Typhus Led To L.A. County Deaths Amid Rise In Cases
Flea-borne typhus was tied to three deaths in Los Angeles County last year amid a rise in reported cases of the illness, according to a report released Thursday. The deaths marked the first time in almost three decades that anyone was reported to have died of illness associated with flea-borne typhus in L.A. County, public health researchers found. The report tallied 171 cases of flea-borne typhus reported in L.A. County in 2022 — a significant increase from the 31 cases reported in 2010. (Alpert Reyes, 8/3)

The Mercury News: Person Tests Positive For West Nile Virus In Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County public health officials announced on Thursday the county’s first human case of West Nile virus for the season, confirmed in a person who was reported to be resting at home after a hospitalization. (Turner, 8/3)

CBS News: Case Of West Nile Virus Confirmed In Another County On Colorado's Rain Soaked Front Range As Culex Mosquito Populations Surge
Another human case of the West Nile virus has shown up as Colorado's rain soaked Front Range plays host to a banner year for mosquitoes. This time the West Nile case is in Boulder County. "The resident, in their 40s, was believed to be infected while in Lafayette and has not been hospitalized," said Boulder County Health in a statement. (Gionet, 8/3)

Los Angeles Times: 'Heat Dome' To Return To Broil Southern California This Weekend
After a brief reprieve, a persistent “heat dome” that has broiled the Southwest since early July will return to Southern California this weekend, bringing another round of sweltering temperatures. Highs are expected to peak Sunday in most of Los Angeles County, reaching triple digits in the valleys and deserts, and into the 90s downtown and the upper 80s along the coast. (Toohey, 8/3)

Stat: With Heat Waves Through August, Officials Warn Of Health Risks
An already record-setting summer heat wave will continue through August and will put more than 51 million Americans at risk of health impacts, according to new data from federal health officials. Most of those vulnerable people live in 26 states and are expected to have at least five extreme heat days this month. Among the highest-risk counties, roughly 45% have high levels of uninsured adults and children and 18% have high senior populations, according to a relatively new monthly report drafted by the Health and Human Services Department’s two-year-old climate change office. (Owermohle, 8/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: Nearly 90% Of Teens And Young Adults Have Mental Health Challenges
Nearly 9 out of 10 U.S. teens and young adults say they experience mental health challenges regularly, according to a national survey released Thursday by the Harris Poll and health insurer Blue Shield of California. Eighty-seven percent of people ages 14 to 25 say they have mental health challenges on a regular basis, the survey found. It was conducted May 31 to June 13 and included responses from 1,368 people, including 318 in California. (Ho, 8/3)

Stat: Study Links Childhood Stress With Decline In Older Age
Stressful experiences during childhood could have more far-reaching effects than previously thought, contributing to issues with daily tasks like getting dressed or preparing meals in older age, according to a new national analysis. (Castillo, 8/3)

USA Today: Moms For Liberty, Bucking DeSantis, Says No School Mental Health Care
In a social media post last week, Moms for Liberty wrote, “Health care has no place in public schools,” as a response to President Joe Biden announcing his new strategy to improve mental health care by adding more providers and expanding access. “Mental health care is health care Mr. President. That’s why it has NO place in public schools. #ParentalRights,” Moms for Liberty also posted. In Florida, mental health care has been a top bipartisan priority since 2018, when a shooter killed 17 children at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. (Goñi-Lessan, 8/3)

USA Today: Florida Effectively Bans AP Psychology Over Gender, Sexuality Unit
Florida superintendents were advised Thursday by the state to nix their Advanced Placement Psychology classes unless they exclude any topics related to gender or sexuality, according to The College Board, which oversees the AP program. ... "We are sad to have learned that today the Florida Department of Education has effectively banned AP Psychology in the state by instructing Florida superintendents that teaching foundational content on sexual orientation and gender identity is illegal under state law," the College Board said. "The state has said districts are free to teach AP Psychology only if it excludes any mention of these essential topics." (Goñi-Lessan, 8/3)

WLRN: Are Phones Causing More Kids To Be Nearsighted? Here's What A Miami Optometrist Sees
Increased exposure to screens, like smartphones and tablets, is causing myopia, or nearsightedness, to become more common among children at younger ages. "Myopia occurs when your eye actually grows too long," said Vicky Fischer, a pediatric optometrist in Miami. "Children are supposed to be born with a very short eye, because children are short, their eyes should be short, and then they should grow to a normal size when they're adults." Fischer sees patients as young as 6 months old with vision issues. (Zaragovia, 8/3)

NPR: Petting Other People's (Friendly) Dogs Can Boost Your Health
"Absolutely. I think it is safe to say that animals are beneficial to our mental and physical health," says Nancy Gee, a professor of psychiatry and director of the Center for Human-Animal Interaction at Virginia Commonwealth University. Gee says evidence is accumulating that levels of the stress hormone cortisol drop in people after just 5 to 20 minutes spent interacting with dogs — even if it's not their pet. "Also, we see increases in oxytocin, that feel-good kind of bonding hormone," she says. (Godoy, 8/3)