Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Measles Outbreak At Florida School Prompts Investigation
The Hill: Florida Health Officials Investigate Measles Outbreak At School
The Florida Department of Health is investigating a measles outbreak at a South Florida elementary school. The Florida Department of Health in Broward County announced Sunday it is investigating four cases confirmed at Manatee Bay Elementary School in Weston, according to CBS News. The first case was reported Thursday and three others were confirmed Saturday. (Delandro, 2/19)
NBC News: Measles Infections And Symptoms Pose Far More Longterm Risks Than Most Realize
The massive resurgence of measles around the world — attributed to pandemic-related declines in immunizations and rising rates of vaccine hesitancy among parents — raises the risk of more serious complications and deaths, said Dr. James Cherry, a professor of pediatrics and an infectious disease expert at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. In the past two months, doctors in the U.S. have diagnosed dozens of measles cases related to unvaccinated travelers who arrived at international airports, then exposed others at hospitals and day care centers. (Szabo, 2/18)
The Hill: Maternal Syphilis Rates Tripled Between 2016 And 2022: CDC
The number of expecting mothers with syphilis in the United States more than tripled between 2016 and 2022, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study. Between those years, the overall rate of syphilis among pregnant women in the country increased from 87.2 per 100,000 births to 280.4 per 100,000 births. Syphilis cases have risen to levels not seen since the 1950s among the U.S. general population, according to the CDC. Cases of the bacterial infection have gone up by 17 percent in the last year and by 80 percent over the past five years. (O'Connell-Domenech, 2/16)
CIDRAP: CDC Announces E Coli Outbreak Tied To Raw Milk Cheese, More Charcuterie Salmonella Cases
At least 10 people in four states have been infected with pathogenic Escherichia coli in an outbreak tied to cheese made from raw milk by Raw Farm LLC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed late last week, and a day earlier the agency reported 40 more Salmonella illnesses in a 30-state outbreak linked to charcuterie meats. (Wappes, 2/19)
The Washington Post: Falls Are The Leading Cause Of Injury Among Older Americans
About 1 in 4 U.S. adults 65 and older — more than 14 million people — suffer a fall each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Falls are the leading cause of injury among those 65 and older, even though not all falls result in an injury, the CDC says. About 37 percent of older people who have fallen have sustained an injury that required medical treatment or activity restrictions. (Searing, 2/19)
The Wall Street Journal: Do I Really Need An Annual Physical?
Is your annual physical a waste of time? A growing number of physicians say the value of a yearly physical depends in part on your age and health history, and that some young, healthy patients can afford to skip it. Some studies have suggested that the annual visits aren’t doing much to improve our long-term health, and a growing shortage of primary-care doctors can drag out appointment wait times. (Janin, 2/19)
Minnesota Public Radio: Stop The Bleed Training Aims To Create Citizen First Responders
Stop the Bleed training was created about a decade ago in response to mass shootings. When a person suffers a traumatic injury, bleeding is the number one cause of death. Time is of the essence. A person can bleed to death in minutes. (Gunderson, 2/19)
Fortune: Women May Benefit More From Regular Workouts Than Men
They say anything men can do, women can do better—which may include reaping the health benefits of regular exercise. That’s according to a new study published today in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. An international team of researchers from the U.S. and China showed that women who exercise regularly have a significantly lower risk of an early death or a fatal cardiovascular event than men who do the same. On top of that, the advantage holds true even when women put in less effort. (Leake, 2/19)
The Wall Street Journal: Zyn Nicotine Pouches Take Off—And Land In The Culture Wars
A newly popular alternative to cigarettes is changing the way many Americans consume nicotine—and becoming a political flashpoint. The product, a nicotine pouch, looks like a tiny tea bag and comes in flavors such as mint, coffee, berry and mango. It tucks discreetly into the cheek and doesn’t require the user to spit. And if you follow former Fox News host and nicotine-pouch booster Tucker Carlson, you will already have heard a lot about the largest U.S. brand, Zyn. (Maloney, 2/18)
Also —
CIDRAP: Dengue Activity In The Americas Already Outpacing Last Year's Surge
After record dengue activity in 2023 in the Americas, the brisk pace of new infections showed no let-up in the first 5 weeks of the new year, with 11 countries reporting rising cases and Brazil among the hardest-hit nations.In its latest epidemiologic alert, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said cases have increased 157% compared to the same period in 2023 and are 225% above the 5-year average. (Schnirring, 2/19)
In mental health news —
The New York Times: TikTok Is Subject Of E.U. Inquiry Over ‘Addictive Design’
European Union regulators on Monday opened an investigation into TikTok over potential breaches of online content rules aimed at protecting children, saying the popular social media platform’s “addictive design” risked exposing young people to harmful content. ... Policymakers in the United States have also been wrestling with how to regulate the platform for harmful content and data privacy — concerns amplified by TikTok’s links to China. (Alderman, 2/19)
WUSF: Florida Kids Speak Out Against A 'Stupid' Social Media Ban Proposal
The Legislature is close to passing a measure restricting social media accounts for children under 16, and some of them say they aren’t willing to lose access. (Crowder, 2/19)
Bloomberg News: Climate Change Is Fueling A New Type Of Anxiety, Therapists Say
When psychotherapist Caroline Hickman was asked to help a child overcome a fear of dogs, she introduced them to her Labradoodle, Murphy. “You get the child to feel confident in relation to the dog and teach the child skills to manage a dog,” she says. “You build the skills, build the competence, build the confidence, and then they’re less scared of dogs generally.” Climate anxiety is a different beast, Hickman says. “We don’t 100% know how to deal with it. And it would be a huge mistake to try and treat it like other anxieties that we are very familiar with that have been around for decades. This one is much, much worse.” (Rudgard and Wittels, 2/19)
The Wall Street Journal: Congrats On Your Retirement. Time To Find A New Job
The rising cost of living, combined with restlessness, is spurring older Americans to consider coming out of retirement. More than four million Americans will reach 65 this year, the age associated with retirement. Yet many of them will be working. Overall, about one-third of adults 65 to 69 have jobs, up from less than one-quarter in 2000, according to a Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis report. (Ansberry, 2/17)
