First Edition: Oct. 26, 2023

KFF Health News: Doubts Abound About A New Alzheimer’s Blood Test
For the first time, people worried about their risk of Alzheimer’s disease can go online, order a blood test, and receive results in the privacy of their homes. This might seem appealing on the surface, but the development has Alzheimer’s researchers and clinicians up in arms. The Quest Diagnostics blood test, AD-Detect, measures elevated levels of amyloid-beta proteins, a signature characteristic of Alzheimer’s. Introduced in late July, the test is targeted primarily at people 50 and older who suspect their memory and thinking might be impaired and people with a family history of Alzheimer’s or genetic risks for the condition. (Graham, 10/26)

KFF Health News: Storing Guns Away From Home Could Reduce Suicides, But Legal Hurdles Loom
Mike Hossfeld unlocked a heavy black steel door to his home’s gun safe, unveiling both modern and antique firearms, some dating from the early 1900s. “Most of this is mine. There are a few weapons in here that belong to other folks,” he said. Hossfeld regularly stores firearms for others who are going through a mental health crisis or a rough period. That puts time and space between them and their guns, which can significantly reduce suicide risk. (Bolton, 10/26)

CNN: At Least 22 People Dead And ‘Person Of Interest’ Sought After Shootings In Lewiston, Maine, Officials Say
At least 22 people are dead and dozens are injured following two shootings Wednesday night at a bowling alley and a restaurant in Lewiston, Maine, and an intensive manhunt is underway for a person of interest, officials say. Robert Card, 40, of Bowdoin, is a person of interest and should be considered armed and dangerous, Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck said. Law enforcement officials in Maine tell CNN that Card is a certified firearms instructor and a member of the US Army Reserve. Card had recently made threats to carry out a shooting at a National Guard facility in Saco, Maine, and also reported mental health issues, including hearing voices, the officials said. (Smart, Miller, Sutton and Wolfe, 10/26)

AP and Politico: Firearms Instructor Treated At Mental Health Facility Is Person Of Interest In Maine Mass Shooting, Police Say 
A state police bulletin says the man, Robert Card, had been trained as a firearms instructor at a U.S. Army Reserve training facility in Maine. The document says Card had been committed to a mental health facility for two weeks in the summer of 2023. It did not provide specific details about his treatment or condition. (10/25)

Common Dreams and Truthout: New House Speaker Had Proposed Trillions In Cuts To Social Security And Medicare
The newly elected Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives has previously proposed trillions of dollars in cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid and suggested that slashing the programs should be the top priority of Congress. During his tenure as chair of the Republican Study Committee (RSC) between 2019 and 2021, Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) helped craft budget resolutions that called for roughly $2 trillion in Medicare cuts, $3 trillion in Medicaid and Affordable Care Act cuts, and $750 billion in Social Security Cuts, noted Bobby Kogan of the Center for American Progress. (Johnson, 10/25)

The New Republic: New House Speaker Once Blamed Abortions For Social Security, Medicare Cuts 
In a clip that surfaced Tuesday, Mike Johnson put the onus of Republican cuts to essential programs on unborn children, claiming that if American women were producing more bodies to churn the economy then Republicans wouldn’t have to cut essential social programs like Medicare and Medicaid. (Houghtaling, 10/25)

CBS News: What Is New House Speaker Mike Johnson's Record And Views On Abortion? 
In Jan. 2022, the congressman from Louisiana said "a child in the womb" is a "unique human being with unique DNA" from the moment of conception and he called for the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade long before the Dobbs decision in June 2022. Ahead of Wednesday's speakership vote, House Judiciary Democrats posted a video on X of Johnson saying "Roe v Wade gave constitutional cover to the elected killing of unborn children in America, period. You think about the implications of that on the economy. We're all struggling here to cover the bases of social security and medicare and medicaid and all the rest. If we had all those able bodied workers in the economy, we wouldn't be going upside down and toppling over like this." (Mizelle, 10/25)

ABC News: How New House Speaker Mike Johnson Spent Years Fighting Against Gay Rights
An ABC News examination of public records, news reports and documents shows the extent to which Johnson dedicated earlier phases of his career to limiting gay rights, including same-sex marriage and health care access, and through anti-gay activism on college campuses. In comments from over fifteen years ago, long before he became a lawmaker and while acting as an attorney and spokesman for the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), a Christian advocacy group, Johnson described homosexuals as "sinful" and "destructive" and argued support for homosexuality could lead to support for pedophilia. He also authored op-eds that argued for criminalizing gay sex. "There is clearly no 'right to sodomy' in the Constitution," Johnson wrote in a 2003 column in a Louisiana newspaper. (Steakin, 10/25)

Politico: Mike Johnson On The Issues: Where The New Speaker Stands On Abortion, Transgender Care, And Other Policies 
Since being elected to Congress in 2016, Johnson has been a vocal advocate for spending cuts and enacting new restrictions on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the country’s largest program feeding low-income Americans. While he voted for the last farm bill in 2018, he criticized the legislation for failing to make deeper cuts to SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, which he dubbed “our nation’s most broken and bloated welfare program.” (10/25)

Roll Call: Senate Panel Advances NIH Nominee Bertagnolli
After months of back and forth, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Wednesday advanced the nomination of Monica Bertagnolli to lead the National Institutes of Health by a vote of 15-6, with ranking member Bill Cassidy, R-La., voting for President Joe Biden’s nominee and Chairman Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., opposing it. (Cohen, 10/25)

Roll Call: Senate Adopts Gun Provision Among Amendments To Spending Bill 
The Senate on Wednesday kicked off consideration of its long-stalled spending “minibus” to provide fiscal 2024 funding for transportation, housing, agriculture, military construction and veterans programs with amendment votes. By late afternoon the Senate adopted 27 amendments, including two touching on culture war issues that politically vulnerable Democrats joined with Republicans to support. Provisions now part of the three-bill spending minibus include an amendment offered by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., that would preserve gun rights for veterans deemed mentally unfit to manage their benefits. Opponents warn the provision will lead to an increase in suicides. (Reilly, Donnelly, Yurk and Ferguson, 10/25)

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: JD Vance’s Anti-Mask Amendment Passes The U.S. Senate 
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday approved a proposal introduced by Ohio’s JD Vance that would block the Department of Transportation from using any federal money to enforce mask mandates in response to COVID-19 through the current fiscal year. The Cincinnati Republican’s amendment to a transportation spending bill was approved by a 59 to 38 margin. (Eaton, 10/25)

AP: Billions For Life-Saving AIDS Program Need To Continue, George W. Bush Institute Tells Congress
As billions of dollars for a global HIV/AIDS program credited with saving millions of lives remains in limbo, the George W. Bush Institute is urging the U.S. Congress to keep money flowing for it. In a letter sent to Congress on Wednesday, the former Republican president’s institute pleaded with Congress to keep funding the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR. The program works with nonprofit groups to provide HIV/AIDS medication to millions around the world, fund orphanages and support health systems around the world. (Seitz, 10/25)

NBC News: White House Presses For Money To Prevent Opioid Deaths As Congressional Dysfunction Stymies Aid
The White House on Wednesday requested $1.55 billion from Congress to address illicit fentanyl driving overdose deaths across the country as part of a broader funding package. ... “As we continue to lose an American life to drug overdose every five minutes around the clock, Congress must come together and take immediate action,” Dr. Rahul Gupta, the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, said in a statement. (Guilfoil, 10/25)

Politico: Senators Prep Proposal To Go Around Tuberville's Holds 
Senators are exploring a proposal that could unstick Tommy Tuberville’s military blockade — if it can pass the Senate. Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and others are working on a resolution that would allow military promotions to move en bloc, according to a person familiar with the matter. It could be introduced sometime this month, though the timing remains fluid as senators in both parties try to find some way around Tuberville’s move to slow down military promotions in a protest of the Pentagon’s abortion policies. (Gould, O'Brien and Everett, 10/25)

AP: Tennessee Attorney General Sues Federal Government Over Abortion Rule Blocking Funding
Tennessee’s top legal chief says the federal government is wrongly withholding millions of dollars in family planning funds after the state refused to comply with federal rules requiring clinics to provide abortion referrals due to its current ban on the procedure. Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti filed a complaint in U.S. District Court in Knoxville earlier this week seeking to overturn the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services decision. (Kruesi, 10/25)

San Francisco Chronicle: Here’s How Much Abortions Have Increased In California Post-Dobbs
Abortions have increased 6% in California since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, according to a new national study released Tuesday. ... The new study outlines in stark detail how the United States has become a two-tiered world when it comes to abortion access after the June 2022 Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that rescinded the constitutional right to obtain the procedure and left regulation up to individual states. (Garofoli, 10/25)

The Washington Post: Hunger Worsened Among U.S. Households In 2022, Report Finds
More than 44.2 million Americans lived in households that struggled with hunger in 2022, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report released Wednesday — an increase of 10.3 million over the previous year. The new figures, from the agency’s Economic Research Service, show an end to a nearly decade-long decrease in the number of families reporting food insecurity, at a time when food prices remain elevated because of inflation. (Reiley, 10/25)

Reuters: Millions More Americans Were Food Insecure In 2022 Than 2021 - USDA 
Millions more Americans had difficulty securing enough food in 2022 compared to the year prior, including 1 million more households with children, a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) showed on Wednesday. The increase interrupted a years-long trend of declining hunger in the United States. Previous reports from food banks and the U.S. Census Bureau have indicated that hunger is increasing as low-income Americans struggle to recover from the pandemic and from the end of expanded food assistance. (Douglas, 10/25)

Axios: Health Care Unaffordable Even For Insured Americans: Survey
As health care costs continue to rise, more than half of working-age Americans said they've struggled to afford care this year, according to a new Commonwealth Fund survey. The survey is the latest evidence of how people with insurance are struggling to pay medical bills, forcing them to forgo or delay needed care. (Goldman, 10/26)

Bloomberg: Health-Care Costs, Medical Debt Strain Working-Age Americans 
Paying for health care is increasingly straining US adults as escalating medical costs converge with rising prices throughout the economy. More than half of working-age Americans said they had difficulty paying for health care in 2023, according to a Commonwealth Fund survey published Thursday. Among people without insurance, more than three-quarters reported trouble affording care. But 43% of people with employer health plans said they had difficulty paying, and the rate was even higher among people on public health plans like Medicare and Medicaid. (LaPara, 10/26)

The Washington Post: Flu Shots May Protect Against The Risk Of Alzheimer’s, Related Dementias
There are many good reasons to get a flu shot this fall, but here’s one that might surprise you: It could protect your brain. Recent research suggests that regular vaccinations against influenza and other infectious diseases such as shingles, pneumococcal pneumonia, and tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (whooping cough) may reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. (Cimons, 10/25)

Stat: Biogen's Alzheimer's Drug Slows Cognitive Decline In Early Study
An experimental treatment for Alzheimer’s disease that removes a toxic protein called tau from brain cells showed “favorable trends” across several measures of cognition and function in a small study — results that offer some hope for an emerging drug class that has failed to deliver benefits in the past. The drug, called BIIB080, is being developed by Biogen. (Feuerstein, 10/25)

Stat: Under-The-Skin Injection Of Eisai's Leqembi Is As Effective As IV Infusion
Aversion of the Alzheimer’s disease drug Leqembi that can be given with a simpler, under-the-skin injection is equally effective as the currently approved intravenous infusion, according to study results presented Wednesday by its maker, Eisai. But hopes that the subcutaneous injection would also cause lower rates of brain swelling and bleeding — the drug’s most worrisome side effects — were not borne out in the study. (Feuerstein, 10/25)

AP: Mpox Vaccinations Should Be Recommended For High-Risk Men, Even After Outbreak Ends, Advisers Say
Gay and bisexual men at high risk for mpox infection should get vaccinated for the virus even after the current outbreak ends, government health advisers said Wednesday. The committee’s recommendation now goes to the director to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and — if she signs off on it — is sent out as guidance to U.S. doctors. (Stobbe, 10/25)

Stat: The Adult Vaccine Delivery Process Is Becoming A Mess
Alison Buttenheim was floored by a sign she saw in her doctor’s office when she went to get the first jab of the two-dose shingles vaccine to protect her against painful flare-ups of varicella zoster. “Medicare patients cannot receive Tdap or zoster vaccines here. They need to obtain [them] at their pharmacy. If they receive it here, they need to pay out of pocket,” the notice read. (Branswell, 10/25)

The Atlantic: America May Be Missing Out On A Better COVID Treatment
Ensitrelvir, a drug made by the Osaka-based pharmaceutical company Shionogi, was conditionally approved in Japan last November. Like Paxlovid, ensitrelvir works by blocking an enzyme that the SARS-CoV-2 virus uses to clone itself inside the human body. But for the millions of Americans who will likely get COVID in the coming months, the new drug is almost certain to be out of reach. (Gutman-Wei, 10/25)

CIDRAP: Severe Mental Illness Linked To 50% Increase In COVID-Related Death 
People with severe mental illness (SMI) are at a 50% increased risk of death from all causes following COVID-19 infections, according to a study today in The British Journal of Psychiatry. (Soucheray, 10/25)

The Mercury News: Just Seeing A Sick Person Can Trigger Your Immune System, California Professor Finds
As cold, flu and COVID season sets in, we chatted with Chapman University’s Patricia Lopes, an assistant professor of biology, who studies how sick individuals impact those around them. It’s not as clear-cut as it may seem. Turns out that simply observing a sick individual triggers not only that familiar behavioral response — get away! — but a complex biological response as well. “The really interesting aspect is, it also changes your physiology,” she said. (Sforza, 10/25)

Modern Healthcare: CMS Staffing Rule For Nursing Homes Faces Republican Pushback
Key congressional Republicans signaled opposition to a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services plan to impose staffing minimums on nursing homes Wednesday. Last month, CMS issued a proposed rule to mandate that skilled nursing facilities provide a minimum of three hours of nursing care per resident, per day, including at least 0.55 hours from registered nurses. The nursing home industry has long opposed staffing regulations, and may have found allies on Capitol Hill to help push back on CMS. (McAuliff, 10/25)

Modern Healthcare: Centene, UnitedHealth Layoffs Stem From Medicare Advantage Pay Cuts
Medicare Advantage insurers are laying off thousands of workers and tinkering with benefits in response to unfavorable Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services policies. To compensate for lower Medicare Advantage revenue, health insurers such as Elevance Health and Centene have made workforce reductions while companies such as UnitedHealth Group and Humana are scaling back benefits such as over-the-counter product allowances and increasing cost-sharing responsibilities for the 2024 plan year. (Tepper and Eastabrook, 10/25)

Axios: Biden Admin Rolls Out Cybersecurity Toolkit For Health Care
The Biden administration is ramping up efforts to harden defenses around the U.S. health care infrastructure, releasing an updated cyber "toolkit" to help the sector better defend against hackers. Health care is a high-value, target-rich industry facing increasing attacks, and the problem is increasingly being recognized as a threat to patient safety when providers are forced to divert or shut down care. (Reed, 10/26)

The Boston Globe: Dana-Farber Offers Sneak Peek Of Plans For 300-Bed Hospital
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute will argue to regulators that its proposed independent hospital and collaboration with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center will reduce emergency room wait times and increase competition. The cancer hospital offered a sneak peek into its strategy in a document released early Wednesday. The document, included in a broader filing, is part of the process to seek approval from the state Department of Public Health. (Bartlett, 10/25)

Stat: Oncologists More Likely To Provide Low-Value Care After Receiving Pharma Money
Oncologists were more likely to provide low-value cancer care after receiving money from pharmaceutical companies, and the findings raise questions about the extent to which industry influence may have led to patient harm, according to a new study. (Silverman, 10/25)

AP: Bagged, Precut Onions Linked To Salmonella Outbreak That Has Sickened 73 People In 22 States
An outbreak of salmonella poisoning linked to bagged, precut onions has sickened at least 73 people in 22 states, including 15 who were hospitalized, U.S. health officials said Tuesday. Gills Onions of Oxnard, California, has recalled packages of diced yellow onions, red onions, onions and celery and a mix of onions, celery and carrots, known as mirepoix. The products recalled had use-by dates in August 2023. They are no longer for sale in stores, but consumers may have them — or foods made with them — in freezers. Consumers should not eat, sell or serve the onions for foods made with them, health officials said. (Aleccia, 10/24)

USA Today: 13 Cases Of E. Coli Linked To San Diego Restaurant, Health Dept. Says
The San Diego Health Department has confirmed an outbreak of 13 confirmed or probable cases of Shiga-toxin-producing E. Coli linked to a restaurant in San Diego, California. ... According to the health department, seven cases were hospitalized, and at least one case developed a more severe complication, hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can affect a person's kidneys and blood clotting functions. (DeLetter, 10/25)

Reuters: Consumer Reports Finds More Lead And Cadmium In Chocolate, Urges Change At Hershey
Consumer Reports said on Wednesday it had found "concerning" levels of lead and cadmium in a third of various chocolate products it tested recently, and called on Hershey to reduce the amounts of heavy metals in its chocolate. The non-profit consumer group said 16 of the 48 products from various makers that its scientists tested contained potentially harmful levels of lead, cadmium or both. ... Products found to contain excessive metal content included a dark chocolate bar and hot chocolate mix from Walmart, cocoa powder from Hershey's and Droste, semi-sweet chocolate chips from Target, and hot chocolate mixes from Trader Joe's, Nestle and Starbucks. (Stempel, 10/25)

USA Today: Yellow Pillows Can Affect Your Respiratory, Skin And Sleep Health
As much comfort as you think your yellow pillow brings you, however, it’s time to say goodbye. All that discoloration, experts say, is an accumulation of grime that can pose problems for respiratory, skin and sleep health. “These old yellow stinky pillows, while there is some type of emotional attachment to them, are exposing you to allergens and creating a breeding ground for mold,” said Dr. Zachary Rubin, a pediatric allergist in Illinois. “Plus, as these pillows wear off over time, they don't give you the kind of neck support that you need.” (Camero, 10/25)

Military.com: Veterans Who Are Younger, Female And LGBTQ Are Reporting More Mental Health Issues, Study Finds. 
Veterans who are female, LGBTQ and served after 9/11 are more likely to have experienced recent serious psychological distress compared to other veteran groups, according to a report released this week. But while younger veterans are more likely to experience that distress, they're also more inclined to proactively seek out mental health services and drug or alcohol abuse treatment, according to the report. These post 9/11 vets are part of a generation that is more racially and ethnically diverse than prior groups of vets. (Baker, 10/25)

The New York Times: Is Social Media Addictive? Here’s What The Science Says. 
Experts who study internet use say that the magnetic allure of social media arises from the way the content plays to our neurological impulses and wiring, such that consumers find it hard to turn away from the incoming stream of information. (Richtel, 10/25)

NBC News: Chemical Exposure In Womb May Be Linked To Childhood Weight Gain
Babies exposed to a set of common chemicals in the womb may be at higher risk of gaining weight rapidly during early childhood, a recent study suggests. The research, published last week in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, identified a link between exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals in utero and a rapid increase in a child’s body mass index from birth to 9 years of age. (Mogg, 10/25)