First Edition: Feb. 8, 2024
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
KFF Health News:
Cities Know The Way Police Respond To Mental Crisis Calls Needs To Change. But How?
Philadelphia police officers Kenneth Harper and Jennifer Torres were in their patrol car sitting at a red light when a call came in over the 911 radio dispatch. “This job says ‘female complaint in reference to dispute with daughter, suffers from bipolar, infant on location,'” Harper read off the computer near the front seat. (Leonard, Wolffe and Popperl, 2/8)
KFF Health News:
FDA's Plan To Ban Hair Relaxer Chemical Called Too Little, Too Late
In April, a dozen years after a federal agency classified formaldehyde a human carcinogen, the Food and Drug Administration is tentatively scheduled to unveil a proposal to consider banning the chemical in hair-straightening products. The move comes at a time of rising alarm among researchers over the health effects of hair straighteners, products widely used by and heavily marketed to Black women. But advocates and scientists say the proposed regulation would do far too little, in addition to being far too late. (Cohen, 2/8)
AP:
DEA Reverses Decision Stripping Drug Distributor Of Licenses For Fueling Opioid Crisis
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is allowing one of the nation’s largest wholesale drug distributors to stay in business, reversing an earlier order stripping the company of its licenses for its failure to properly monitor the shipment of tens of millions of addictive painkillers blamed for fueling the opioid crisis. As part of the settlement announced Wednesday, Morris & Dickson Co. agreed to admit wrongdoing, comply with heightened reporting requirements and surrender one of its two certificates of registration with the DEA. The Shreveport, La.-based company, which has around 600 employees and generates about $4 billion a year in revenue, also agreed to forfeit $19 million. (Goodman and Mustian, 2/7)
Axios:
House Approves Ban On Disputed Measure For Valuing Treatments
A divided House of Representatives on Wednesday endorsed banning quality-adjusted life years from being used as a metric for determining a drug's value in federal health programs. QALYs are viewed as a key tool in comparative effectiveness studies, but have been held up as discriminatory against people with disabilities — and are unevenly applied across federal programs. (Knight, 2/8)
The Hill:
Hundreds Of Families Urge Schumer To Pass Children’s Safety Bill
Hundreds of parent advocates urged Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to pass the Kids Online Safety Act in a letter and full-page Wall Street Journal ad published Thursday. The call to action builds on pressure from parents at last week’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with the CEOs of Meta, TikTok, Discord, Snap and X, the company formerly known as Twitter. “We have paid the ultimate price for Congress’s failure to regulate social media. Our children have died from social media harms,” the parents wrote in the letter. (Klar, 2/8)
The Hill:
White House Announces Partnership With NFL, NBA To Promote Health And Wellness For Kids
The White House announced it is partnering with the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA) and 12 other major sports leagues and players associations to promote physical activity, nutrition and healthy lifestyles. As part of the partnership, the NFL will build on its Play 60 initiative, which encourages children to get physically active for at least 60 minutes a day and has them learn about nutrition, second gentleman Doug Emhoff announced. (Gangitano, 2/8)
CIDRAP:
COVID-19 Behind Thousands Of Excess US Deaths, Analysis Shows
A new study from researchers at Boston University School of Public Health and the University of Pennsylvania shows that a substantial proportion of excess mortality numbers counted as deaths from natural causes during the COVID-19 pandemic were actually attributable to the novel coronavirus. (Soucheray, 2/7)
The New York Times:
New Report Raises Concerns About Long Covid In Kids
A large analysis published Wednesday in the journal Pediatrics underscores the toll long Covid can take on children, in some cases leading to neurological, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and behavioral symptoms in the months after an acute infection. “Long Covid in the U.S., in adults and in kids, is a serious problem,” said Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, chief of research and development at the V.A. St. Louis Health Care System and a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University in St. Louis, who studies the condition but was not involved in the new report. He said that the paper, which drew on numerous studies of long Covid in children, is “important” and illustrates that the condition can affect multiple organ systems. (Smith and Blum, 2/7)
Stat:
Long Covid Study Tests Exercise As Treatment Option
Fatigue leads the list of persistent problems experienced by people with long Covid — which is why patients have pushed back against treatment approaches that endorse escalating levels of exercise for a condition that researchers are still trying to understand. They fear post-exertional malaise, the debilitating price to be paid for pushing their bodies too hard. (Cooney, 2/7)
Stat:
Vaccine Advisory Panel ACIP Left Half Staffed By HHS
A critical government advisory committee charged with charting U.S. vaccination policy appears to be atrophying, jeopardizing timely decision-making on how vaccines should be used in this country. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which has in recent years been a 15-person panel, has eight vacancies — one of which dates back more than a year. The other seven seats have been vacant since July. There is no chairperson. (Branswell, 2/8)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Senate Republicans Block Rape And Incest Exceptions For Missouri Abortion Ban
Despite recent blow-ups among Republicans in the Missouri Senate, the majority party remained unified Wednesday to block a Democratic effort to legalize abortion in cases of rape or incest. After Republicans opened debate on a plan to ban Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, Democrats responded with amendments aimed at loosening Missouri’s near-total abortion ban. Missouri since June 2022 has only allowed abortions in medical emergencies. (Suntrup, 2/7)
KHOL/ Jackson Hole Community Radio:
Abortion Access Returns To Jackson — For Now
Jackson will once again be home to one of the state’s only abortion providers. On Tuesday, Feb. 6, Dr. Katie Noyes confirmed she’s offering pregnancy-ending medications at St. John’s Family Medicine starting this month. (Merzbach, 2/7)
The Washington Post:
Democrat Pritzker Ramps Up Abortion Rights Investments Amid 2028 Chatter
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker is tapping his personal wealth to try to enshrine abortion access in battleground states, making an election-year push to support ballot measures and expanding his national footprint in the Democratic Party, within which he is regarded as a potential 2028 presidential candidate. Think Big America, a nonprofit founded and solely funded by Pritzker, is the largest backer of an effort to put abortion to a direct vote in Nevada, where the group has donated $1 million and added an on-the-ground adviser. Pritzker’s organization is also supporting a ballot measure push in Arizona and evaluating other states where it could get involved, including Florida and Montana, a top Senate battleground, according to a spokeswoman. (Knowles, 2/7)
St. Louis Public Radio:
Illinois Abortion Clinics Want State Protections From Protestors
Citing an increase in harassment and intimidation from anti-abortion protesters, abortion providers in Illinois on Tuesday implored state legislators to pass laws to protect clinics and their workers. Abortion providers said such incidents have increased in the state since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022 overturned Roe v. Wade, which protected access to abortion nationwide. (Fentem, 2/6)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
‘Thousands’ Attend Launch Events To Gather Signatures To Put Abortion On Missouri’s Ballot
Megan Shebosky-Aken drove three hours from her home in Malden, Missouri, in the state’s Bootheel to attend a signature-gathering event in St. Louis that kicked off an effort to put the question of whether to legalize abortion on a statewide ballot. “That’s how much it means to me to get my reproductive rights back,” said Shebosky-Aken, 33, who wanted to be the first among Dunklin County residents to sign the petition. (Munz, 2/7)
Stateline:
Tuberculosis Cases Rise, But Public Health Agencies Say They Lack The Resources To Keep Up
Even as the number of U.S. tuberculosis cases rises, public health experts say, awareness is lagging. And state and local health departments lack the resources to keep up with prevention and control efforts. ... A course of treatment for one tuberculosis case can cost around $20,000 in the U.S., and a drug-resistant tuberculosis case can cost at least $182,000. ... “People think tuberculosis is gone. … It’s here and growing,” said emergency medicine physician Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, which represents public health professionals. (Hassanein, 2/7)
San Francisco Chronicle:
CDC Reviews Cruise Ship In S.F. After Passengers, Crew Get Sick
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reviewing protocols on a luxury cruise ship stopped in San Francisco after more than 100 passengers and crew reported gastrointestinal illnesses. ... The CDC said 128 of the 1824 passengers onboard and 25 of 967 crew reported feeling ill during the cruise. The main symptoms were diarrhea and vomiting but the cause was not yet known, the CDC said. The health agency keeps track of illness outbreaks on cruise ships through its Vessel Sanitation Program and most of the gastrointestinal illnesses it tracks turn out to be caused by the norovirus. (Parker, 2/7)
The Boston Globe:
Brockton Hospital Fire Update: Reopening Planned For Late Spring
On the first anniversary of a devastating 10-alarm fire that closed its facility, Brockton Hospital said Wednesday 2/7 it is planning to reopen in the spring, according to a statement from Signature Healthcare. Construction on the hospital has entered its “final phases” and any renovations are expected to be completed by late spring, according to Robert Haffey, the President and CEO of the hospital’s operator, Signature Healthcare. (Hempel-Edgers, 2/7)
NBC News:
Hospitals Strained By Atlanta Medical Center Closing, Doctors Say
“Overcrowded is probably par for the course,” said Dr. Nataisia Terry, the medical director of the emergency department, adding that the volume of ER patients grew by 20% over the last budget year. Nearby, Grady Memorial Hospital is so packed that ambulance traffic is sometimes routed to facilities miles away. Both Emory and Grady are often listed as “severely” or “dangerously” overcrowded on a statewide hub used to monitor capacity. (Harris and McCorvey, 2/7)
Modern Healthcare:
Children’s Health, UT Southwestern To Build $5B Pediatric Campus
Children's Health and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center plan to break ground this year on a $5 billion pediatric campus in Dallas, the health systems said Wednesday. The 2-million square-foot children's hospital will include two 12-story towers and an 8-story tower, with 552 inpatient beds, 114 emergency department rooms, 96 neonatal intensive care beds and 96 exam rooms. The development, to be completed by 2031, will replace the existing Children's Medical Center Dallas. (DeSilva 2/7)
Stat:
Medicare Advantage Plans Can’t Deny Care With AI, CMS Warns
In recent months, the federal government has repeatedly told Medicare Advantage insurers that they cannot use artificial intelligence or algorithms to deny medical services the government routinely covers. But in finalizing a rule to that effect, it also stepped into a thicket of questions from insurers about a technology that is especially difficult to pin down: What is AI? Can it be used at all to make decisions about the coverage of older patients? If so, how? (Ross and Herman, 2/7)
Axios:
Health Insurers Balk At Proposed Medicare Advantage Rates
CVS Health and Centene executives say newly proposed Medicare Advantage rates for 2025 aren't "sufficient" and hinted they could cut benefits if the federal government finalizes the rates as is. More than half of Medicare enrollees are in private Medicare Advantage plans. The specter of potential cuts to seniors' health care benefits in an election year could put pressure on the Biden administration. (Reed, 2/8)
Axios:
How A Company Cut Health Spending By Nearly Half
In an era of rising health costs, it almost sounds too good to be true: A midsized Montana-based company managed to nearly halve its per-person health spending in just five years, without dropping benefits. Pacific Steel & Recycling's success in wrestling down its health spending provides a case study of how employers can cut costs, but CEO Jeff Millhollin said the effort also demonstrates why it's harder than needed for most companies and workers. (Reed, 2/8)
Modern Healthcare:
Apple Vision Pro Attracts Cedars Sinai, Boston Children's
Apple Vision Pro is generating plenty of buzz and at least three health systems are buying into the spatial computing technology. The company’s virtual reality headset, which went on sale Friday, has been met with skepticism from industry analysts who question whether consumers will pay the device’s hefty price tag of $3,499. ... But for Cedars-Sinai, Boston Children’s Hospital, Sharp Healthcare and other health systems, the latest VR and augmented reality device is worth the price. The health systems are testing applications on Apple Vision Pro aimed at training and educating clinicians, providing virtual therapy and more. (Perna, 2/7)
Stat:
Industry Veterans Launch New Biotech VC With $310M
Three biotech VC veterans, including one of the co-founders of radiopharma success story RayzeBio, are launching a new investment fund called Scion Life Sciences. Scion was started by former Apple Tree Partners colleagues Sam Hall and Aaron Kantoff, along with Tadd Wessel, managing partner of the health care private equity firm Petrichor. They raised $310 million for its first fund, blowing past their original $250 million target. (DeAngelis, 2/7)
CIDRAP:
New Report Highlights Weak FDA Oversight Of Foreign Firms Making Medications For US Market
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to struggle in overseeing more than 4,800 foreign drug manufacturers supplying medications for the US market, although it has taken action to improve its drug-safety oversight, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) told the House of Representatives' Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations yesterday. "We have identified long-standing weaknesses in FDA's ability to oversee this manufacturing, an issue highlighted in our High-Risk Series since 2009," Mary Denigen-Macauley, PhD, director of GAO's healthcare team, testified. As of 2022, 58% of makers of drugs bound for the US market were located overseas, the GAO noted. (Van Beusekom, 2/7)
Reuters:
US FDA Finds Control Lapses At Catalent Plant Being Sold To Novo
U.S. drug regulators in November found quality control lapses at the Bloomington, Indiana factory of contract drug manufacturer Catalent, including discovery of a "pest" on the manufacturing line, according to an inspection report. Novo Holdings, the parent company of Novo Nordisk, on Monday announced it was buying Catalent in a $16.5 billion deal that included its Bloomington plant, which it plans to sell to Novo Nordisk to help it produce its popular weight-loss drug Wegovy. (Wingrove, 2/7)
ABC News:
Weight Loss Drugs Linked To Lower Likelihood Of Depression And Anxiety Diagnoses: Study
Most weight loss drugs were linked to a lower likelihood of depression and anxiety diagnoses, according to research published by Epic Research. The researchers looked at over three million diabetic patients and nearly one million non-diabetic patients taking GLP-1 medications ... in the study that was published Tuesday. ... Diabetic patients taking Semaglutide were 45% less likely to be diagnosed with depression and 44% less likely to be diagnosed with anxiety, according to the study. (Hoffman and Benadjaoud, 2/8)
Stat:
Vyjuvek, A Gene Therapy For Skin Wounds, Restored Vision In One Boy
In the clinical trial, the gene therapy seemed to be helping the boy’s skin wounds heal. But, his doctors wondered, could it also help his eyes? The boy, Antonio Vento Carvajal, had a genetic condition called epidermolysis bullosa, or EB, which causes the skin to be so fragile that even the slightest friction can cause blisters or tears. Antonio, like some patients, also had eye issues as a result of the disease. (Joseph, 2/7)
Reuters:
Eli Lilly To Offer Low-Cost Insulin, Donate To Clinics In Minnesota Settlement
Eli Lilly agreed to provide low-cost insulin to patients and donate free insulin to clinics, to settle a lawsuit by Minnesota that accused the three largest insulin makers of deceptively raising the price of the diabetes treatment. The settlement filed on Wednesday in a New Jersey federal court calls for Lilly to offer patients in Minnesota who pay out-of-pocket the ability to pay no more than $35 a month for its insulin products. (Stempel and Pierson, 2/7)
Reuters:
Cigarette Giant BAT Makes Move On US Heated Tobacco Market
British American Tobacco submitted an application to make certain health claims about its Glo Hyper Pro device in the United States in December, its first clear move to bring the alternative smoking product to the key market. BAT had applied to market the product in the U.S. in 2021. But since then it has been unclear whether it planned to market the product in the United States. (2/8)
Axios:
Ohio Abandons Plans To Restrict Trans Care For Adults
Ohio has scrapped plans to restrict gender-affirming health care for adults following backlash over a proposal issued last month. Ohio's proposed limits would have been the toughest restrictions on transition-related care for adults in the country, transgender rights advocates said. (Goldman, 2/7)
The Boston Globe:
Pregnancy Care Bill Progresses In Massachusetts Legislature
“As we tackle the high cost of health care in Massachusetts, we must bear in mind that all costs are not shared equally. This legislation has the potential to strengthen access and reduce barriers to maternal and reproductive health care for expecting mothers,” Senator Paul Feeney, cochair of the Joint Committee on Financial Services, said in a statement. “In the wealthiest country on the planet, you shouldn’t go broke in the Commonwealth if you get sick, and you certainly shouldn’t have to be independently wealthy to grow your family.” (Johnston, 2/7)
Kansas City Star:
Missouri Bill Would Allow Pregnant Women To Finalize Divorces
Missouri prohibits pregnant women from finalizing a divorce, but the restriction is coming under renewed scrutiny after the state in 2022 imposed a near-total abortion ban. A state law prevents judges from finalizing a divorce if a woman is pregnant, since a custody agreement must first be in place. And a custody agreement cannot be completed until the child is born. The law contains no exceptions for survivors of domestic violence. (Bayless and Sago, 2/8)
The Texas Tribune:
Ten Texas Counties Have Soot Levels Exceeding New EPA Standard
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday finalized a long-anticipated rule aimed at reducing the level of air pollution known as particulate matter — microscopic particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs and harm people’s health. Reducing air pollution has been a prime focus of the Biden administration’s environmental agenda. The new rule tightens the amount of particulate matter, often referred to as soot, permitted in the air from 12 to 9 micrograms per cubic meter annually. (Martinez, 2/7)
Stat:
Cause Of Some Allergies Is Traced To Rare Group Of 'Memory' Cells
Maria Curotto de Lafaille’s lab was trying to make human plasma cells in a dish. These weren’t just run-of-the-mill cells, though. The team was vying for something specific: plasma cells that churn out immunoglobulin E (IgE), the antibody that drives allergic reactions. (Cueto, 2/7)
CBS News:
Daily Cinnamon Supplement Could Help Lower Blood Sugar, Study Says
Cinnamon has been used for thousands of years, not only in cooking but also for medicinal purposes. The spice may have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Now a new study has found it may have antidiabetic effects. Researchers at UCLA ... found that when the participants took the cinnamon, they had significantly lower 24-hour glucose concentrations, lower peaks in blood sugar, and lower triglyceride levels, suggesting that people with obesity-related prediabetes could achieve better glucose control with cinnamon supplements. (Marshall, 2/7)
Stat:
Could Testosterone Be A Useful Treatment For Menopause?
The world may be getting over the idea that men are from Mars and women from Venus, but public perception still holds that testosterone is the male hormone, and estrogen, the female. That can make the following fact a little puzzling: There is more testosterone than estrogen in a premenopausal woman’s body. (Merelli, 2/8)
AP:
Ecuador's High Court Decriminalizes Euthanasia, Following A Lawsuit By A Terminally Ill Patient
Ecuador’s high court on Wednesday decriminalized euthanasia and ordered lawmakers and health officials to draft rules and regulations for the procedure. The decision of Ecuador’s Constitutional Court came in response to a lawsuit from a terminally ill woman diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS, who had argued that she should be allowed to have death with dignity. (Solano and Cano, 2/7)