First Edition: Oct. 18, 2021

KHN: What Will It Take To Boost Vaccinations? The Scene From Kentucky’s Back Roads 
In the end it was the delta variant that drove Rose Mitchell, 89, down the winding mountain road to the Full Gospel Church of Jesus Christ to get the shot. Her pastor, Billy Joe Lewis, had told his congregation that, No, ma’am, a covid vaccine would not leave the “mark of the beast” nor rewrite their genetic codes. Mitchell, who has known the deaths of eight of her 13 children over the years, was done taking chances with the virus stealing up the hollers along Cutshin Creek. “That stuff’s getting so bad, I was afraid to not take it,” she said, sitting in her daughter’s car in the church parking lot. “I said, ‘Well, if all the rest of them are going to take it, I’ll take it too.’” (Varney, 10/18)

KHN: Watch: Going Beyond The Script Of ‘Dopesick’ And America’s Real-Life Opioid Crisis 
KHN and policy colleagues at our parent organization KFF teamed up with Hulu for a discussion of America’s opioid crisis, following the Oct. 13 premiere of the online streaming service’s new series “Dopesick.” The discussion explored how the series’ writers worked with journalist Beth Macy, author of the book “Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company That Addicted America,” and showrunner Danny Strong to create and fact-check scripts and develop characters. It quickly moved on to a deeper discussion of how the fictionalized version of the opioid epidemic portrayed in the Hulu series dovetailed with the broader reality KFF’s journalists and analysts have been documenting in their work for the past few years. (10/18)

KHN: ‘An Arm And A Leg’: Hello? We Spend 12 Million Hours A Week On The Phone With Insurers 
After Stanford professor Jeffrey Pfeffer got back surgery years ago, he kept a file folder labeled “Blue Shield Troubles.” When Pfeffer got an offer to collaborate with the polling company Gallup, he suggested a study on how much time Americans spend on the phone with their health insurers. Gallup agreed. Their finding: We spend about 12 million hours a week calling our health insurance. (Weissmann, 10/18)

KHN: Journalists Tell How Covid Complicates Organ Transplants And The Health Of Rural America 
KHN senior correspondent JoNel Aleccia discussed organ transplants and the covid-19 vaccine on NBC’s “NBC Now” on Oct. 8. ... KHN Midwest correspondent Lauren Weber discussed covid deaths in rural America on Iowa Public Radio’s “River to River” on Oct. 7. (10/16)

NPR: Vaccinated Foreign Travelers Can Enter The U.S. Starting Nov. 8
Foreign tourists who have been shut out of the United States since the early days of the pandemic will be allowed to visit starting on Nov. 8, as long as they can show that they are fully vaccinated, the White House said. The White House had previously announced it would lift the travel ban but had not given a date for doing so until now. Cities that count on foreign tourists for revenue — as well as families who have been separated by the bans — have been urging the government to allow people to travel. (Naylor, 10/15)

The Washington Post: Fully Vaccinated Travelers Can Come To The U.S. Even If Their Doses Are Mixed, Authorities Say
International travelers who are fully vaccinated with mixed doses of approved coronavirus vaccines will be allowed into the United States after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance Friday. The White House said U.S. travel restrictions will be lifted Nov. 8 for fully vaccinated international travelers, a policy that will in part require foreign travelers to show proof of vaccination before boarding a flight. According to a Friday update to CDC guidance, individuals will be considered fully vaccinated if they receive vaccines fully- or emergency- approved by the Food and Drug Administration or by the World Health Organization — including combinations of such shots. (Firozi, 10/17)

Stat: FDA Advisory Panel Votes 19-0 To Endorse Booster Dose Of J&J Vaccine 
A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted Friday that booster shots should be made available to people who have received the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine. Unlike the authorizations for boosters for the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, no restrictions were put on the J&J booster. The panel effectively said that the J&J vaccine, like the other vaccines, requires two doses to be effective. (Herper and Branswell, 10/15)

New York Post: Johnson And Johnson Vaccine Recipients Urged To Get Booster Shot ASAP
Experts are urging those who received the Johnson and Johnson vaccine to get the booster shot as soon as possible after a new study showed a drop in its effectiveness during the Delta variant surge. ... “J&J is a very good vaccine. I also believe it’s probably a two-shot vaccine,” Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, told CNN. “It’s really urgent that people get that second shot pretty quickly.” (Reilly, 10/16)

USA Today: Fauci Says Johnson & Johnson One-Shot Vaccine Should Have Been Two All Along
The single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine that last week won approval from FDA advisers for a booster shot probably should have been a two-shot vaccine from the start, the nation's top infectious disease physician said Sunday. "What the advisers to the FDA felt is that, given the data that they saw, very likely this should have been a two-dose vaccine to begin with," Dr. Anthony Fauci told ABC's "This Week." The Food and Drug Administration vaccine advisory panel unanimously approved booster shots for the vaccine Friday for all J&J recipients 18 years and older – as early as two months after the first dose. (Bacon and Santucci, 10/17)

The Hill: Fauci Says FDA Data Shows J&J Vaccine Should Have Been Two Shots 
President Biden's chief medical adviser, Anthony Fauci, said on Sunday that the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine likely should have been a two-dose shot instead of a single inoculation. ABC's Martha Raddatz asked Fauci on "This Week" if the millions of Americans who received the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine should be concerned after a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee voted unanimously to recommend adults receive a booster shot of the vaccine. (Vakil, 10/17)

Politico: Fauci Tamps Down Concern About Covid-19 Booster Review Process 
President Joe Biden’s top medical adviser sought to dismiss concerns Sunday over whether the White House’s vocal embrace of Covid-19 boosters had any influence over the regulatory process. “I don’t think there’s any a political issue there; I think it’s just public health data and evidence,” Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on “Fox News Sunday.” (Niedzwiadek, 10/17)

CNN: 'It's Going To Be Within Our Capability' To Prevent Another Coronavirus Surge, Fauci Says 
The optimistic turn in Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths could end in another spike in infections, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Sunday. But the US could still prevent that spike with higher vaccination rates. "If we don't do very well in that regard, there's always the danger that there will be enough circulating virus that you can have a stalling of the diminishing of the number of cases, and when that happens, as we've seen in the past with other waves that we've been through, there's the danger of resurgence," said Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, on Fox News Sunday. (Holcombe, 10/18)

NPR: The CDC Emphasizes Vaccinations As Key To Safe Holiday Gatherings
Following confusion earlier this month on how the country should safely celebrate the holidays, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released its updated guidance around gatherings and traveling amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In the new guidance issued Friday, the CDC says the best way to safely celebrate the holiday season is by being vaccinated (if eligible) against the coronavirus. "Protect those not yet eligible for vaccination such as young children by getting yourself and other eligible people around them vaccinated," the CDC said on its website. (Franklin, 10/15)

AP: Fauci Dismayed By Texas' Move To Ban Mandates
Dr. Anthony Fauci is saying Sunday that it is “really unfortunate” that Gov. Greg Abbott has moved to ban vaccine mandates in the state of Texas. The nation’s leading infectious disease doctor, speaking on Fox News Sunday, said that the Republican governor’s decision to block businesses from requiring inoculations would damage public health since vaccines are the “most effective means” to stop the spread of COVID-19. (10/17)

Politico: These Republicans Torpedoed Vaccine Edicts — Then Slipped In The Polls
Republican governors crusading against vaccine mandates are facing significantly lower approval ratings on their handling of the coronavirus pandemic than their counterparts. But they’re not worried. From Florida to Texas to South Dakota, GOP governors have been on the front lines of the war against vaccine mandates, barring immunization requirements in their states and threatening to fight President Joe Biden’s federal vaccine mandate in court. Just last week, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott flat-out banned vaccine requirements, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis followed up by vowing to sue the Biden administration. (Kashinsky, 10/17)

AP: States Can Reserve COVID-19 Shots For Younger Kids Next Week
U.S. health officials are setting the stage for a national COVID-19 vaccination campaign for younger children, inviting state officials to order doses before the shots are authorized. Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine is currently being given to people as young as 12 in the U.S. In the next three weeks, federal officials plan to discuss making smaller-dose versions available to the nation’s 28 million children between the ages of 5 and 11. (Stobbe, 10/15)

NPR: Federal Government Pledges $100 Million To Address Health Care Worker Shortages
As health care workers face increased pandemic burnout, some states — particularly in underserved areas — have had challenges retaining existing staff and recruiting new clinicians. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is now committing $100 million through the American Rescue Plan to help solve the problem. "Our health care workers have worked tirelessly to save lives throughout this pandemic and now it's our turn to invest in them," Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. (Shivaram, 10/15)

CIDRAP: Understaffed, Underfunded, Under Siege: US Public Health Amid COVID-19 
A study yesterday in PLOS One details how the COVID-19 pandemic pummeled an already underfunded and understaffed US public health system, straining workers, upending services, and putting patients at risk. Led by a University of Tennessee at Knoxville researcher, the study involved a survey of 298 public health experts working for government agencies or academic public health departments from Aug 23 to Oct 5, 2020. Respondents included epidemiologists and workers who conduct disease surveillance, contact tracing, testing, and vaccination programs. (Van Beusekom, 10/15)

Anchorage Daily News: Enduring Hostility In A Medical Profession With A Fast-Food Pace, Alaska’s Pharmacies Struggle To Keep Workers
Pharmacy workers, especially technicians, are usually the first people customers deal with. Now, in the state’s charged atmosphere surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, some report angry pushback on vaccines and pressure to provide unproven treatments like ivermectin, state officials say. Pharmacists who for years have asked anyone picking up a prescription if they want a flu shot don’t dare bring up a COVID-19 vaccination. “I’ve talked to few pharmacists recently who are considering getting out of the profession or leaving Alaska due to the hostility they’re seeing at their job on a daily basis,” said Dr. Coleman Cutchins, the state pharmacist. (Hollander, 10/17)

Crain's New York Business: NYC Healthcare Orgs Retained 97% Of Employees After Vaccine Mandate
The COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare workers has largely resulted in few resignations or dismissals at hospitals in the metropolitan area, according to data manually compiled by Crain’s. NYC Health + Hospitals and Northwell Health reported the highest rates of noncompliance with the state mandate, which enacted a Sept. 27 deadline for healthcare workers to get at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, a Crain’s data analysis showed. The city’s public hospital system has about 2,500 unvaccinated workers among its 43,000-person staff, while Northwell terminated 1,400 of its 76,000 employees, spokespeople for the systems said. The systems declined to share breakdowns by individual hospital. (Kaufman, 10/15)

AP: Data: Nearly Two-Thirds Of New Yorkers Are Fully Vaccinated
Nearly two-thirds of New York residents are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to the latest federal statistics. About 12.7 million of New York’s 20 million residents are fully vaccinated, according to data released Saturday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s the seventh highest percentage of any state — below Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine, Massachusetts and New Jersey. (Villeneuve, 10/16)

AP: Pritzker Delays Vaccine Deadline For Some State Workers
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has pushed back a deadline for state employees of veterans’ homes, prisons and other congregate facilities to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as his office negotiates with labor unions representing some workers. Pritzker, who in August set an Oct. 4 deadline for state workers covered by his requirement to get the vaccine, on Friday said employees have until Nov. 30 to be fully vaccinated, the Chicago Tribune reported. The workers are employed by the departments of Corrections, Veterans Affairs, Human Services and Juvenile Justice. (10/16)

The Washington Post: Fauci Urges Police Officers To Get Vaccinated As Unions Protest 
Anthony S. Fauci, the United States’ top infectious-disease expert, is urging police officers to get vaccinated against the coronavirus — saying the resistance “doesn’t make any sense” as “more police officers die of covid than they do in other causes of death.” Police departments are facing an infection crisis as departments around the country seeking to mandate vaccines clash with police unions and officers who oppose the requirements. (Pietsch, Timsit and Beachum, 10/18)

CNN: Chicago Police Department Restricts Time Off For Officers After Vaccine Mandate Deadline, CNN Affiliate Reports
A day after Chicago police officers were required to disclose their Covid-19 vaccine status or risking losing pay, the city's police department issued a memo informing officers elective time off is restricted, according to a copy of the memo obtained by CNN affiliate WLS. "Until further notice, the use of elective time by sworn CPD members is restricted. Furthermore, the use of elective time will require prior approval from the Deputy chief or above within the requesting member's chain of command," the memo obtained by WLS reads. (Allen, 10/18)

AP: Cities, Police Unions Clash As Vaccine Mandates Take Effect
Police departments around the U.S. that are requiring officers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are running up against pockets of resistance that some fear could leave law enforcement shorthanded and undermine public safety. Police unions and officers are pushing back by filing lawsuits to block the mandates. In Chicago, the head of the police union called on members to defy the city’s Friday deadline for reporting their COVID-19 vaccination status. (Calvan and Seewer, 10/15)

AP: Judge Limits Unpaid Leave For Unvaccinated Workers At US Lab
A federal judge has limited the ability for now for the nonprofit running Oak Ridge National Laboratory to place employees on unpaid leave who receive exemptions to a COVID-19 vaccine requirement. U.S. District Judge Charles Atchley in Knoxville issued the temporary restraining order Friday barring UT-Battelle from placing employees on indefinite unpaid leave or firing them after they receive a religious or medical accommodation to the vaccine. (Mattise, 10/18)

The Washington Post: Deadlines Arrive For School Staff To Be Vaccinated In Washington Region 
Teachers and other school staff in Arlington, Va., have reached a deadline to be vaccinated — among the first school systems in the Washington region to begin enforcing a coronavirus vaccination mandate as the pandemic persists. In coming weeks, other school systems in Virginia, D.C. and Maryland will cross the same public health threshold, which could mean days out of work, disciplinary action or in the worst case firings for those who do not meet their district’s vaccination requirements. (St. George, Natanson and Stein, 10/17)

The Washington Post: District To Hire More Pandemic Staff To Help School Administrators
The District plans to spend nearly $40 million to hire additional contact tracers, substitute teachers and workers who would handle coronavirus logistics in schools, marking an attempt to address staffing shortages that have hampered the reopening of campuses. (Stein, 10/16)

San Francisco Chronicle: Confusion Cited As Boosters Lag Among Bay Area's Older Adults
Health officials said they’re eager for all three boosters to be authorized because it will streamline their public outreach and make it easier to talk about who should get the shots. “It complicates things a little bit when not all the vaccines have been authorized,” said Dr. Martin Fenstersheib, the vaccine officer for Santa Clara County. “We had to say, ‘Everybody 65 and older, come and get a booster — but only if you’re Pfizer.’ And people say, ‘What’s going on here?’ Hopefully we can alleviate that confusion and make it across-the-board available, no matter what vaccine you got.” (Allday, 10/16)

Philadelphia Inquirer: To Encourage COVID-19 Booster Shots, Philly Officials Set Up Shop At Senior Centers
There’s no trouble convincing people of the need for COVID-19 vaccines at the South Philadelphia Older Adult Center. “The people who don’t want it are ridiculous,” said Concetta Buonadonna, 94, as she waited for a workout class at the center to begin. What remains challenging, though, is getting seniors information on where to get doses. Health officials said they’re eager for all three boosters to be authorized because it will streamline their public outreach and make it easier to talk about who should get the shots. Approval of Pfizer booster shots for people age 65 and older in late September began another round of frustration for older people who can be less adept at online searches to find doses and make appointments. So the Philadelphia Department of Public Health is staffing senior centers like the one in South Philadelphia to help people find their shots. (Laughlin, 10/16)

Oklahoman: Oklahomans Will See The COVID-19 Death Toll Jump Next Week. Here’s Why
The Oklahoma Health Department’s death toll for COVID-19 in Oklahoma will jump by about 1,000 next week as part of a data reconciliation process. The update will bring the Health Department’s toll, which stood at 9,402 as of its last update, closer to the one reported by the Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics. The discrepancy in numbers is not believed to be indicative of an inaccuracy in either figure. The CDC numbers are the most timely count of Oklahoma lives lost to COVID, according to state officials. The state's health department numbers lag slightly as each case goes through an investigative process before a death is ruled a result of COVID-19. (Branham, 10/16)

AP: Physician Assistant’s License Suspended Over COVID Actions
The Washington Medical Commission has suspended the license of a pediatric health care provider in southwestern Washington. The suspension came this week after an investigation into more than a dozen complaints against physician assistant Scott C. Miller, who runs Miller Family Pediatrics in Washougal, The Columbian reported. The complaints say he interfered with the care of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, engaged in a threatening public campaign against hospitals and doctors, and also prescribed medications without seeing patients. (10/16)

Modern Healthcare: BCBS Sues COVID Testing Lab Again
Another Blue Cross and Blue Shield insurer sued GS Labs over its COVID-19 tests on Thursday, alleging the national testing facility forced commercially insured customers to take unnecessary, expensive tests to fleece Premera Blue Cross out of $26 million. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington at Seattle, represents the second complaint against Omaha, Nebraska-based testing company. In July, BCBS Kansas City accused GS Labs of attempting to profit from the public health crisis by upcharging the not-for-profit insurer $9.2 million for COVID-19 tests. GS Labs responded by counter-suing BCBS Kansas City, accusing the insurer of "legal bullying" by filing a surprise lawsuit intended to stiff the company out of paying for some 34,600 member claims. The case is pending. (Tepper, 10/15)

The Washington Post: Antibody Tests Can’t Give Answers You Want About Covid-19 Immunity
Talk of the need for coronavirus booster shots has prompted many Americans to seek antibody tests.In most cases, however, getting an antibody test to determine immunity is a fool’s errand, infectious-disease doctors agree. The tests for antibodies, also known as serology tests, do not provide the answers that most people are seeking. ... The tests might indicate the presence or even the level of coronavirus-fighting antibodies in the bloodstream, but scientists don’t yet know what number of antibodies provide protection from covid-19. (Ollove, 10/17)

Modern Healthcare: Walmart Makes Headway Into Self-Insured Space With Transcarent Partnership
Walmart is making its first foray into the self-insured employer market through a new partnership with healthcare startup Transcarent, the retailer announced Friday. Employers that contract with Transcarent will share any cost savings that result from workers using Walmart expanding suite of healthcare services, which includes in-person clinics, discounted prescription drugs, virtual care, vision care and specialty medications. In addition to shared savings, Walmart stands to benefit from additional customers in its stores.Transcarent currently has 100 self-insured employer clients and serves more than 1 million employees. Among the company's offerings are expert second opinions, medication reviews, and referrals to surgery sites and centers of excellence. (Gillespie, 10/15)

The Advocate: First Hospital System In Louisiana Creates Medicare Advantage Plan
New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System is the first hospital system in Louisiana to create its own health insurance arm selling Medicare Advantage policies. Ochsner's Medicare Advantage plans include prescription drug coverage, fitness, dental, hearing and vision. Ochsner's premiums and copays begin at $0. The Medicare Advantage plan is integrated into the health system, according to the hospital network. Before rolling out statewide, Ochsner wants to sell plans in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge region, which includes the following parishes: Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany and West Baton Rouge. (Mosbrucker, 10/17)

Modern Healthcare: East Orange General Hospital's New Owners Aim To Bolster Mental Health
East Orange General Hospital in New Jersey is changing ownership, the for-profit company announced Friday. Paige Dworak, who will be the first female owner-CEO of a New Jersey hospital, will continue to lead operations and assume a 20% ownership stake. EOH Acquisition Group, the new owners, aim to stabilize the struggling hospital, which has reported operating losses the last two years. "We are so excited about the future of this historic hospital and its impact on the community," Dworak, who has led the 201-bed hospital since 2017, said in a news release. "The change in ownership will help accelerate the transformation of this vital community asset, ensuring the hospital continues to deliver the quality care the patients and the community have come to rely on for over a century." (Kacik, 10/15)

Stat: Security Flaws In Third-Party Apps Leave Millions Of Patient Records At Risk
In the last year, cyberattacks on hospitals have surged, putting a spotlight on the need to protect patients’ health data. But hackers don’t need to attack providers directly to get that valuable info. A new cybersecurity report shows it is remarkably easy for bad actors to steal it through third-party apps and data aggregators that tap into providers’ electronic health record systems. (Palmer, 10/18)

Stat: Five Ways The FDA Could Build Transparency Into AI Devices
Artificial intelligence tools in health care should be safe and effective. They should be fair to people of different races, genders, and geographies. And they should be monitored to ensure they are improving outcomes in the real world. Most participants agreed on those goals in a Food and Drug Administration workshop on the regulation of artificial intelligence late last week.  But how to accomplish them remained a source of considerable debate. (Ross, 10/18)

Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville Sexual Assault Nurses Fight Effort To Change Review Process
Police, prosecutors and nurses who conduct sexual assault exams for the city are fighting a proposal that would require a doctor to review a portion of the procedures, arguing it adds an unnecessary step that could ultimately harm victims. The proposed change to the sexual assault nurse examiners' contract — which is up for renewal by the Louisville Metro Council — would require a physician review of 3% of exams each year —even though all exams already are peer-reviewed by nurses. A Louisville Metro Council committee is scheduled to discuss the contract and amendment Tuesday. (Mencarini, 10/18)

The New York Times: A Racial Disparity In Schizophrenia Diagnoses In Nursing Homes
The share of American nursing home residents who are recorded as having schizophrenia has soared over the past decade. As The New York Times reported last month, the change is driven in part by a surge of questionable diagnoses. A 2012 government effort to reduce unnecessary antipsychotic drug use in nursing homes included an exemption for residents with schizophrenia. Since then, the diagnoses have grown by 70 percent. Experts say some facilities are using the schizophrenia loophole to continue sedating dementia patients instead of providing the more costly, staff-intensive care that regulators are trying to promote. (Gebeloff, 10/15)

AP: In Quiet Debut, Alzheimer's Drug Finds Questions, Skepticism
The first new Alzheimer’s treatment in more than 20 years was hailed as a breakthrough when regulators approved it more than four months ago, but its rollout has been slowed by questions about its price and how well it works. Several major medical centers remain undecided on whether to use Biogen’s Aduhelm, which is recommended for early stages of the disease. Big names like the Cleveland Clinic and Mass General Brigham in Boston say they’ll pass on it for now. (Murphy, 10/17)

Stat: Biogen Drug For Rare Form Of ALS Fails Pivotal Study 
Biogen reported disappointing results Sunday from a late-stage clinical trial involving its experimental treatment for a rare, genetically defined form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. In the Phase 3 study, the Biogen drug called tofersen failed to slow the neurologic and functional decline of ALS patients compared to a placebo. The drug showed some improvements on other measures of disease progression, the company said, although interpreting those secondary results is challenging because the study’s main goal was not met. (Feuerstein, 10/17)

Anchorage Daily News: National Shortage Of A Chemo Drug Is Affecting Some Alaska Clinics, Providers Say
Over the last few weeks, a manufacturer’s shortage of one medication means some Alaska chemotherapy patients have had to postpone the lifesaving treatment. Abraxane is a prescription drug that is used to treat certain advanced pancreatic, breast and lung cancers. A note on the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ website explains that the shortage is due to manufacturing delays, and that there is currently insufficient supply for usual ordering. “We’ve exhausted our resources, and it’s a well-known national shortage,” said Hertha Monroe, clinical nurse manager with the Katmai Oncology Group, a cancer clinic in Anchorage. (10/17)

The Wall Street Journal: Teen Girls Are Developing Tics. Doctors Say TikTok Could Be A Factor
Teenage girls across the globe have been showing up at doctors’ offices with tics—physical jerking movements and verbal outbursts—since the start of the pandemic. Movement-disorder doctors were stumped at first. Girls with tics are rare, and these teens had an unusually high number of them, which had developed suddenly. After months of studying the patients and consulting with one another, experts at top pediatric hospitals in the U.S., Canada, Australia and the U.K. discovered that most of the girls had something in common: TikTok. (Jargon, 10/16)

Fox News: We May Not Need 10,000 Daily Steps For Long Life, Studies Suggest
Adults likely need at least 7,000 steps daily or should play sports for more than 2.5 hours every week to maximize longevity, according to two large-scale studies. The first study, published in JAMA Network Open last month, followed over 2,000 middle-aged men and women for over 10 years. When the participants first joined the study, they wore a monitor that tracked their steps consecutively over one week. Researchers found that those who took more than 7,000 steps daily cut their mortality risk by 50-70% compared to those who took fewer steps. (Sudhakar, 10/16)

Modern Healthcare: Mobile Tools May Manage Hypertension, Study Finds
Mobile apps may help patients with hypertension manage their blood pressure levels over the long term, according to a new study, but more evidence is needed to determine if such tools can address longstanding health gaps among more vulnerable patients. Using a blood pressure monitor paired with a smartphone app that provided medication reminders and lifestyle coaching was associated with lowering blood pressure levels in more than 85% of adults with stage 2 hypertension after one year. Those who participated for three years had a mean systolic blood pressure reduction of 20.9 mmHG and maintained lower levels over the study period. (Ross Johnson, 10/15)

AP: New Technology Offers Anonymous Way To Report Abuse, Doping
A college basketball player hatched the idea after seeing a discrimination case nearly implode his own team, then wondering why nobody had done anything about it sooner. Ten years later, that player has developed the idea into a key tool for fixing a sports landscape teeming with cases of sexual abuse, along with examples of racism and sexism in the workplace, discrimination, harassment and doping cheats at virtually every level. (Pells, 10/18)

The New York Times: Should You Get A Microbiome Test?
How do I know if my gut microbiome is healthy? Is there a test I can take to see what’s going on? A growing number of companies offer tests that provide a glimpse into our gut microbiome, the community of trillions of microbes that live in our digestive tract. Scientists increasingly recognize that these microorganisms play a crucial role in our health, influencing everything from how successfully we age or fight off infections to our risks of developing obesity, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. (O'Connor, 10/13)

AP: Michigan Moves To Fund Mental Health Like Physical Health
Starting this month, 13 mental health and addiction clinics across Michigan will receive the same Medicaid funding as any other health center in an effort U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow says will help bridge the stigmatic and funding divide between mental and physical health. The selected Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, which meet high standards of care for those in need of mental health and addiction services, will now be fully reimbursed by Medicaid, the same as other health care services, instead of relying on grants to supplement costs. (Nichols, 10/17)

CBS News: A Stench Has Been Lingering Over A California City For 2 Weeks And Residents Say It's Making Them Sick 
A smell like rotten eggs has been lingering over a small California city for the last two weeks, and residents say it has made them sick. "Fortunately, for me, I've been only having to deal with nonstop headaches and bouts of nausea and dizziness," Anna Meni, who has lived in Carson for 42 years, recently told CBS Los Angeles. The stench is coming from the Dominguez Channel, a waterway that runs through Carson. Mark Pestrella, the director of Los Angeles County Public Works, said the odor is hydrogen sulfide, which is created by rotting plants and other materials in the channel, CBS Los Angeles reported. According to the Los Angeles Times, California's ongoing drought has contributed to the vegetation buildup. (Reardon, 10/16)

Bloomberg: U.K. Covid Surge Sparks Call For Probe Into Delta Plus Mutation
Former U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb called for “urgent research” into a mutation of the delta variant -- known as delta plus -- following a surge in Covid-19 cases in the U.K. “We need urgent research to figure out if this delta plus is more transmissible, has partial immune evasion,” Gottlieb said in a tweet. “There’s no clear indication that it’s considerably more transmissible, but we should work to more quickly characterize these and other new variants. We have the tools.” (Yang, 10/17)

Bloomberg: Valneva Says Covid Shot Beat AstraZeneca’s in Trial, Seeks EU Approval
Valneva SE’s experimental Covid-19 vaccine elicited better immunity than AstraZeneca Plc’s shot in a clinical trial that will pave the way for regulatory submissions and sent the shares up as much as 42%. Patients injected with two doses of the product had more antibodies -- a proxy for protection against the coronavirus -- and fewer side effects than those who got the Astra shot in a U.K. study of about 4,000 adults, Valneva said in a statement Monday. Both groups had the same number of Covid cases and no patient got severely ill, the company said. (Mulier, 10/18)

AP: Vaccines, Masks? Japan Puzzling Over Sudden Virus Success
Almost overnight, Japan has become a stunning, and somewhat mysterious, coronavirus success story. Daily new COVID-19 cases have plummeted from a mid-August peak of nearly 6,000 in Tokyo, with caseloads in the densely populated capital now routinely below 100, an 11-month low. The bars are packed, the trains are crowded, and the mood is celebratory, despite a general bafflement over what, exactly, is behind the sharp drop. (Yamaguchi, 10/18)

Axios: Pope Francis Calls On Companies To Release COVID Vaccine Patents 
Pope Francis called on pharmaceutical companies on Saturday to release patents to make COVID-19 vaccines more accessible to the poor, Reuters reports. There is a stark divide between countries that have access to COVID-19 shots and those that don't, and the gap has widened as some wealthier countries have begun distributing third doses. (Frazier, 10/16)

CIDRAP: Sequencing Suggests New DRC Ebola Cases Tied To Earlier Outbreak
Initial genetic sequencing of the Ebola virus isolated in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC's) most recent outbreak suggests a link to the large 2018-2020 outbreak that was centered in North Kivu province, the World Health Organization (WHO) African regional office said yesterday on Twitter. So far, two cases have been confirmed in the flare-up in Beni, one of the hot spots in the earlier outbreak. Earlier this year, a similar recurrence in Butembo in North Kivu province resulted in 12 cases, all but 1 of them confirmed, and 6 deaths. (10/15)