First Edition: July 8, 2024

KFF Health News: Planned Parenthood To Blitz GOP Seats, Betting Abortion Fears Can Sway Voters
Planned Parenthood is preparing a seven-figure campaign blitz to oust GOP incumbents from California congressional seats, part of a larger national effort by the reproductive rights group to prevent a Republican majority from passing abortion restrictions, including a national ban. Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California is targeting eight districts where voters largely backed Republicans in 2022 even as they endorsed a constitutional amendment enshrining access to abortion and contraceptives. (Castle Work, 7/8)

KFF Health News: Abortion And The 2024 Election: A Video Primer
More than a dozen states are weighing abortion-related ballot measures to be decided this fall, most of which would protect abortion rights if passed. KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner and Rachana Pradhan explain what’s at stake in the 2024 election, both at the national and state levels. (Rovner and Pradhan, 7/8)

KFF Health News: Listen: How The End Of ‘Roe’ Is Reshaping The Medical Workforce
It’s been two years since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, triggering a parade of restrictions and bans in conservative-led states. But the impact of those restrictions has bled into the world of medical education, forcing some new doctors to factor state abortion laws into their decisions about where to begin their careers. (Rovner, 7/8)

The Wall Street Journal: Insurers Pocketed $50 Billion From Medicare For Diseases No Doctor Treated
Private insurers involved in the government’s Medicare Advantage program made hundreds of thousands of questionable diagnoses that triggered extra taxpayer-funded payments from 2018 to 2021, including outright wrong ones, a Wall Street Journal analysis of billions of Medicare records found. The questionable diagnoses included some for potentially deadly illnesses, such as AIDS, for which patients received no subsequent care, and for conditions people couldn’t possibly have, the analysis showed. Often, neither the patients nor their doctors had any idea. (Weaver, McGinty, Mathews and Maremont, 7/8)

The Wall Street Journal: How The Journal Analyzed Medicare Advantage Data 
The Wall Street Journal set out to examine the system under which Medicare Advantage insurers can collect extra federal money for patients with certain conditions. The Journal reviewed Medicare data under a research agreement with the federal government. The data doesn’t include patients’ names, but covers details of doctor visits, hospital stays, prescriptions and other care. (Weaver and McGinty, 7/7)

The Washington Post: Former Social Security Watchdog Gail Ennis Abused Authority, Report Finds
The Social Security Administration’s recently departed inspector general abused her authority and undermined the integrity of her office while under investigation for misconduct, a report from a committee of federal watchdogs found. Gail Ennis, who left her post last week, repeatedly refused to steer clear of an inquiry into her leadership of an anti-fraud program that issued extraordinary fines on disabled and elderly people accused of disability benefit fraud, investigators found. The report said she obstructed the probe by refusing to be interviewed, ordering subordinates and witnesses to limit access to information, and at times seeking to mislead investigators. (Rein, 7/5)

Reuters: Kansas' Top Court Rejects Ban On Common Abortion Procedure 
Kansas' highest court on Friday permanently barred the state from enforcing a law banning the most common second-trimester abortion procedure, saying the ban violated the right to abortion under the state constitution that the court had recognized in 2019. The 5-1 ruling from the Kansas Supreme Court, with one of the seven justices not participating, leaves in place a lower court order blocking the law, which banned a procedure known as dilation and extraction with a narrow exception for medical emergencies. (Pierson, 7/5)

Politico: Anti-Abortion Groups Look To The Left For Latest Strategy
The left has spent two years galvanizing voters against state abortion bans by handing a microphone to the women affected by them. Conservatives are now adopting that playbook in an effort to turn public opinion in their favor. Anti-abortion groups’ new campaign features women speaking directly to the camera — sharing stories of eschewing abortion after being raped, receiving a diagnosis of a fetal anomaly or finding out they were too far along to legally terminate their pregnancy. They aim to match the first-person ads that Democrats and abortion-rights groups have used in key races, like the successful abortion-rights ballot measure in Ohio and Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s reelection in Kentucky. (Messerly and Ollstein, 7/8)

The Hill: Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff Tests Positive For COVID-19
Second gentleman Doug Emhoff tested positive for COVD-19, the vice president’s office announced Sunday. His office said Emhoff had experienced mild symptoms before being tested Saturday, and is now asymptomatic. He is fully vaccinated, the office said. Vice President Harris was also tested for COVD-19 and tested negative, her office said. (Robertson, 7/7)

CBS News: Florida Sees COVID-19 Surge In Emergency Rooms, Near Last Winter's Peaks
Rates of COVID-19 have surged in Florida emergency rooms over recent weeks, according to new figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and are now near peaks not seen since the worst days of this past winter's wave of the virus. The weekly average of emergency room patients with COVID-19 has reached 2.64% in Florida, according to CDC data updated Friday, and now rank among the highest of any state during this summer's COVID-19 wave. (tin, 7/5)

USA Today: COVID-19 Variant KP.3 Remains Dominant In US, Rises To 36.9% Of Cases: See Latest CDC Data
The KP.3 COVID-19 variant is continuing to lead as the dominant variant, the newest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows. For a two-week period starting on June 23 and ending on July 6, the CDC’s Nowcast data tracker showed the projections of the COVID-19 variants. The KP.3 variant accounted for 36.9% of positive infections followed by KP.2 at 24.4%. (Forbes, 7/6)

NPR: Nursing Homes Falling Further Behind On Vaccinating Patients For COVID 
It seems that no one is taking COVID-19 seriously anymore, said Mollee Loveland, a nursing home aide who lives outside of Pittsburgh. Loveland has seen patients and coworkers at the nursing home die from the virus. Now she has a new worry: bringing COVID home and unwittingly infecting her infant daughter, Maya, born in May. (Boden, 7/3)

The New York Times: This May Be the Most Overlooked Covid Symptom
In January 2020, a man who would become known as the first documented Covid-19 patient in the United States arrived at an urgent care clinic. Two of his symptoms, a cough and a fever, were among those that would become known as the telltale symptoms of Covid. But the patient had also experienced two days of nausea and vomiting. (Blum, 7/5)

CIDRAP: Study Shows Abnormal Immune-Cell Activity With Long COVID
People who have long COVID symptoms—those that linger well after the initial SARS-CoV-2 infection—can display signs of abnormal immune-cell activation in many of their organs and tissues, as well as leftover SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the gut, for more than 2 years after infection, according to a small study this week in Science Translational Medicine. University of California, San Francisco researchers analyzed data on 24 people after their initial COVID-19 illness who underwent whole-body positron emission tomography (PET) imaging at time points ranging from 27 to 910 days (about 2 and a half years) after their acute COVID-19 cases. Eighteen of the patients had long COVID. (Wappes, 7/5)

CIDRAP: Kids Vaccinated Against COVID May Have Lower Rates Of Asthma Symptoms 
COVID-19 vaccination may help protect children aged 5 and older against symptomatic asthma, according to a Nemours Children's Health–led research team. Average state-level rates of parent-reported asthma symptoms decreased from 7.77% in 2018 to 2019 to 6.93% in 2020 to 2021. (Van Beusekom, 7/5)

The New York Times: The Youngest Pandemic Children Are Now in School, and Struggling
The pandemic’s babies, toddlers and preschoolers are now school-age, and the impact on them is becoming increasingly clear: Many are showing signs of being academically and developmentally behind. Interviews with more than two dozen teachers, pediatricians and early childhood experts depicted a generation less likely to have age-appropriate skills — to be able to hold a pencil, communicate their needs, identify shapes and letters, manage their emotions or solve problems with peers. (Miller and Mervosh, 7/1)

USA Today: Bird Flu Hits Colorado In Fourth Case In 2024, CDC Says
The case of a Colorado dairy worker is the state's first this year. Health officials identified the first U.S. case of avian influenza in 2022, in an incarcerated person who was exposed to infected chickens at a Colorado poultry farm. The first case in the 2024 outbreak was identified in Texas, and two cases in Michigan followed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Cuevas, 7/3)

Stat: Live H5N1 Virus Grown From Raw Milk Samples As Delaware Moves To Legalize Its Sale
Last week, following an unusually udder pun-laden discussion, lawmakers in Delaware voted to become the latest state to legalize the sale of raw milk. Not part of the discussion was the fact that an ongoing outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in U.S. dairy cattle has scientists increasingly concerned that the virus could be transmitted to humans through raw milk. (Molteni, 7/8)

CIDRAP: Health Officials Probe Measles Cases In Seattle, Ohio
In a statement, officials said the patient was at sites in Bellevue, Seattle, and Woodinville while infectious and that anyone who was at the locations when the person was there from June 27 to July 2 may have been exposed to the virus. In Ohio, the Butler County General Health District yesterday announced the confirmation of a measles case in a child younger than 1 year old who is a resident of the county. Officials said the child contracted measles during international travel, returning to the United States at a Chicago airport and returning to Ohio by car. (Schnirring, 7/5)

The Washington Post: Five People Who Survived Measles Recount The Disease’s Horrors 
These days, most Americans don’t think about measles because vaccination had largely eliminated the scourge from the United States in 2000. Many doctors cannot even diagnose measles because they have not seen it in practice. But measles outbreaks are back. There have been more cases this year than in each of the past two years. The measles virus is one of the most contagious on Earth; it can live for up to two hours in the air after an infected person coughs or sneezes. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are not protected will become infected if they breathe the contaminated air or touch a surface that has been infected. Measles is especially deadly for babies and young children who are not vaccinated. (Sun, 7/7)

CNN: Plague Is Among The Deadliest Bacterial Infections In Human History. Cases Still Happen Today
Plague, one of the deadliest bacterial infections in human history, caused an estimated 50 million deaths in Europe during the Middle Ages when it was known as the Black Death. While extremely rare, the disease is still around today, with a man in New Mexico dying of plague in March after being hospitalized for the disease and a person in Oregon being diagnosed with bubonic plague in February after likely being infected by their pet cat. (Scutti and Hunt, 7/5)

The New York Times: Malaria Vaccine Rollout To Africa Is A Cautionary Tale 
After years of delay, millions of malaria vaccines are being supplied to children in Africa. Tens of thousands died waiting. (Nolen, 7/5)

Modern Healthcare: Gene Therapies Test ACA Risk-Adjustment Program
Health insurance companies are concerned multimillion-dollar new gene therapies could break the $9.2 billion health insurance exchange risk-adjustment program. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services tinkered with the risk-adjustment system in an effort to better account for high costs, but insurers view the modifications as inadequate in the face of costly new treatments and caution that companies may respond by downgrading benefits and provider networks. (Tepper, 7/5)

Axios: Health Care Industry Pushes Back Against Cybersecurity Proposal
A proposed rule that would require the nation's most critical industries to more quickly report cyberattacks is raising the ire of the health care industry, which claims the new directives could actually hinder its response in a crisis. Why it matters: Cyberattacks have sent shockwaves across the health care industry, but regulators and providers don't agree on how to get a handle on the problem. (Reed, 7/8)

North Carolina Health News: DHHS Audit Finds Millions In Questionable Payments
Weeks before one of North Carolina’s state-supported behavioral health management agencies merged with another one in eastern North Carolina, there was a flurry of questionable financial activity that led to more than $4 million in payments to two top executives and back pay to the law firm that counseled the organization, according to allegations made in an internal audit conducted by the state Department of Health and Human Services. (Hoban, 7/8)

Houston Chronicle: Houston's Shrinking Homeless Population Is Dying From Overdoses
The reports have unearthed an unsettling fact: While homelessness in Harris County has gone down dramatically, the number of deaths has risen. In 2011, about 50 people died in homelessness — roughly in line with the two years before and after. Since then, the homeless population has fallen by over two-thirds. But the number of people dying in homelessness has surged. In 2022, nearly 250 people died without a home. (Schuetz, 7/5)

AP: New Parents In Baltimore Could Get $1,000 If Voters Approve 'Baby Bonus' Initiative 
A group of Baltimore teachers is asking voters to approve a program that would give $1,000 to new parents in the hopes of reducing childhood poverty starting from birth. The “baby bonus” will appear on the ballot for city residents in November. (Skene, 7/8)

The Boston Globe: Clock Is Ticking On Mass. Wheelchair Repair Reform Bill
Many people with disabilities are familiar with the helplessness and frustration of waiting weeks or months for simple but necessary repairs to their wheelchairs. They’re experiencing similar feelings now, as legislation that addresses those lengthy delays appears stalled in the final weeks of the Massachusetts Legislature’s current session. In order to reach the governor’s desk, the bill needs the committee’s approval, as well as that of the House, before the legislative session ends on July 31. (Laughlin, 7/5)

NBC News: 2 California Sisters In ICU With Botulism Amid Outbreak Traced To Home-Canned Nopales
A family party near Fresno, California, resulted in 10 people being treated for botulism, a rare but serious illness caused by bacteria that affects the nervous system, public officials said Friday. The culprit in the outbreak? Home-canned nopales, or cactus pads. Two sisters are currently recovering in intensive care, a spokesperson for the Fresno County Department of Public Health told NBC News. (Baek, 7/5)

NBC News: Mosquito Season Is Here — More Than A Third Of States Have Detected West Nile Virus
Nine cases of West Nile virus have been confirmed so far this year, as disease experts say the virus appears to be circulating more than usual for this time of summer. As of June 25, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had confirmed human cases in at least seven states: Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi and Tennessee. At least 18 states have detected the virus this year in humans, mosquitoes, birds or other animals. (Bendix and Barakett, 7/5)

AP: Persistent Heat Wave In US Shatters New Records, Causes Deaths In The West
A long-running heat wave that has already shattered previous records across the U.S. persisted on Sunday, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that caused the death of a motorcyclist in Death Valley and held the East in its hot and humid grip. An excessive heat warning — the National Weather Service’s highest alert — was in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10% of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest tied or broke previous heat records. (Beck and Weber, 7/7)

San Francisco Chronicle: Dozens Treated For Heat-Related Illnesses At Bay Area Hospitals
Dozens of people were treated for heat-related illnesses this week at Bay Area hospitals, including several who needed hospitalization, as the region endured a record-breaking heat wave. At least 28 people sought care at hospitals in Contra Costa, Santa Clara and San Francisco counties, according to figures shared by the counties Friday. (Ho, 7/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: Motorcyclist In California’s Death Valley Dies From Extreme Heat
A motorcycle rider died of heat exposure at Death Valley National Park on Saturday as the region broke a daily temperature record, officials said. The temperature reached 128 degrees in the park, surpassing the previous daily record of 127 degrees, set in 2007, officials said, citing preliminary data. Death Valley often is considered the hottest place in the country. (Hernandez, 7/7)

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Bright Light At Night Could Raise Your Diabetes Risk, Study Says
Being exposed to light during a certain time of day can increase a person’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. According to the science, it all comes down to how you sleep. Published in the Lancet Regional Health — Europe earlier this month, a study helmed by Flinders University researchers in Australia discovered sleep disruption can play a significant role in diabetes development. (Boyce, 7/5)

The New York Times: Your Brain Holds Secrets. Scientists Want To Find Them. 
Many Americans plan to donate their organs for transplants or their bodies for medical science. Few realize that there’s a growing need for their brains, too. (Span, 7/6)

NPR: Restoring Circulation After Death Preserves Organs For Transplant
"We’re doing an NRP recovery," says Sellers, referring to normothermic regional perfusion, a new kind of organ retrieval procedure Sellers calls "revolutionary." ... NRP is generating excitement as an important innovation that produces more, high-quality livers, kidneys, and hearts that could help alleviate the chronic shortage of organs. More than 100,000 people are on waiting lists for organs, most for kidneys, and 17 are estimated to die every day because the number of available organs hasn’t been able to keep pace with the demand. (Stein, 7/8)