Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Iowa, Nebraska See First Measles Cases As National Infection Rate Declines
CIDRAP: Iowa, Nebraska Announce First Measles Cases
Though measles activity continues to decline in a large outbreak centered in West Texas, other states continue to report a small but steady stream of infections, including the first detections of the year from Iowa and Nebraska. Also, other states added new cases to their totals, including North Dakota, Kansas, and Virginia. (Schnirring, 5/27)
ABC News: Measles Cases Seem To Be Slowing Down In The US. What's Behind It?
About a month ago, the rate of new measles cases was accelerating at a seemingly unprecedented rate with more than 100 infections being confirmed every week. However, over the last couple of weeks, the rate of newly confirmed cases appears to be slowing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed an average of 22 weekly cases over the last two weeks. Even in western Texas, which had been driving most new cases in the U.S., about 11 cases have been confirmed since May 23. (Kekatos, 5/27)
KFF Health News: Silence On E. Coli Outbreak Highlights How Trump Team’s Changes Undermine Food Safety
Colton George felt sick. The 9-year-old Indiana boy told his parents his stomach hurt. He kept running to the bathroom and felt too ill to finish a basketball game. Days later, he lay in a hospital bed, fighting for his life. He had eaten tainted salad, according to a lawsuit against the lettuce grower filed by his parents on April 17 in federal court for the Southern District of Indiana. The E. coli bacteria that ravaged Colton’s kidneys was a genetic match to the strain that killed one person and sickened nearly 90 people in 15 states last fall. Federal health agencies investigated the cases and linked them to a farm that grew romaine lettuce. (Armour, 5/28)
San Francisco Chronicle: New COVID Variant NB.1.8.1 Found By Stanford, US Limits Vaccines
A new and highly transmissible variant of the coronavirus, known as NB.1.8.1, has been detected in California and several other U.S. states, prompting concern among public health experts as the federal government moves to restrict access to updated COVID-19 vaccines. First identified as a driving force behind a major surge in cases across China, the NB.1.8.1 variant has been reported in international travelers screened at airports in Washington, Virginia, New York and California. (Vaziri, 5/27)
CIDRAP: Routine Rubella Vaccination In 19 Countries Could Avert 1 Million Cases By 2055, Data Suggest
A modeling study of vaccination in the 19 low- and middle-income countries that have not introduced rubella-containing vaccines (RCVs) estimates that rolling out these vaccines could prevent 986,000 cases of congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) in the next 30 years. As of 2023, 175 of the 194 World Health Organization (WHO) member countries (90%) had included an RCV in their routine immunization programs. In 2024, the WHO recommended universal RCV for the remaining 19 countries, which saw an estimated 28,000 CRS cases—78% of all cases worldwide—in 2023 alone. (Van Beusekom, 5/27)
