Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
With No Word From CDC, Covid And Flu Shot Uncertainty Hovers Ahead Of Fall
MedPage Today: What's Going On With Fall COVID And Flu Shots?
By this time of year, both the FDA and CDC normally have weighed in on fall respiratory virus vaccine recommendations. But given ongoing controversies over vaccination spurred by the Trump administration, a wrench has once again been thrown into the gears of that process. The FDA has done its part, making recommendations about vaccine composition for influenza vaccines in March, followed by recommendations for COVID shots in May. But the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) hasn't done its part as it hasn't held its March or June meetings this year. (Henderson, 8/14)
The Hill: Senator Bill Cassidy Calls Trump's New Vaccine Guidance 'Stupid'
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) on Sunday reiterated his issues with President Trump’s executive order that seeks to tweak the childhood vaccine schedule, with the directive’s impact on insurance costs among them. “Now instead of your child getting two shots, she has to get six shots,” Cassidy told host Martha Raddatz during the senator’s appearance on ABC News’s “This Week,” referring to Trump splitting up the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine into three different shots. (Rego, 8/16)
KFF Health News: Kennedy’s Quiet Hunt For Autism Culprits Stalls As Trump Orders Baseless Changes To Childhood Shots
President Donald Trump has ordered a reduction in childhood vaccines — publicly faulting the shots for an increase in autism cases — even as the nation’s top health official, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has failed to produce evidence linking vaccinations to the disorder. While the executive order released Aug. 10 does not directly mention autism, Trump’s demand to limit vaccine recommendations has puzzled leading medical groups, doctors, and political analysts alike. The directive landed less than 90 days before midterm elections, which Trump’s own pollsters have warned could be jeopardized by anti-vaccine rhetoric. (Seitz and Armour, 8/17)
CNN: States Set School Vaccine Requirements. Trump’s New Executive Order Doesn’t Change That
The administration signaled that it will push states to rework their vaccine requirements to incorporate the new federal guidelines, effectively upending longstanding practices aimed at improving childhood immunization rates. It’s unclear exactly how officials plan to reinforce this, but the Department of Justice, the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services have been directed to tie compliance with federal funding. (McPhillips, 8/16)
In other vaccine news —
CIDRAP: When Pregnant Women Turn To Reddit About The Tdap Vaccine, It Tends To Be For Clarity, Reassurance
Social media has a reputation as a playground for extreme vaccine views and alarmist rhetoric, but, according to a study published yesterday in PLOS Global Public Health, pregnant women discussing the tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine on the social media platform Reddit were often looking for more practical things: clear answers, reassurance, and stories of other women navigating similar questions. The study identified fewer outright instances of vaccine hesitancy and refusal than have often been observed for other vaccines. (Bergeson, 8/14)
CIDRAP: Real-World Studies Show RSV Immunizations Protect Newborns In Their First Year Of Life
A pair of new studies confirm that recently developed immunizations against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) protect infants in their first year of life. The research, including one study conducted in France and another in the United Kingdom, confirm that the immunizations are effective in the real world, not just in carefully supervised clinical trials. (Szabo, 8/14)
In other pharmaceutical developments —
Axios: Why Prescription Drug Prices Are Plunging
America is experiencing its biggest prescription drug price deflation in generations. Why it matters: By one important measure, there is a striking reversal underway for one of health care's most stubbornly expensive necessities amid a major Washington push to lower drug costs. (Brown, 8/17)
The Washington Post: New Weekly Injection Offers Diabetics Alternative To Daily Insulin Shots
More than 36 million people in the United States have Type 2 diabetes, and roughly 22 percent of them — or about 8 million — require daily insulin injections to control their blood glucose levels. Starting this week, that grueling regimen can be reduced to just one shot a week. Novo Nordisk announced Tuesday that it is rolling out a weekly insulin injection for Type 2 diabetes called Awiqli. It is the first-of-its-kind weekly dose to reach the market, after approval by the Food and Drug Administration in March. (Rowland, 8/16)
AP: Obesity Drugs Show Early Promise Against PMOS
Charlotte Touzalin was still a young teenager when she began struggling with weight gain, abnormal periods and unwanted facial hair — the same puzzling symptoms that plagued her mom for decades and that no doctor could piece together. “I’d go home and I’d cry,” said Touzalin, an 18-year-old college student from Colorado. “I didn’t understand why all this weight was coming back or why my friends didn’t have to shave their faces and I had to.” (Ungar, 8/15)
NPR: Some People Are Taking Cialis For More Than Sex
Tadalafil – better known by its brand name Cialis – is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for erectile dysfunction. But in some biohacking and wellness circles, it's increasingly being repurposed for an entirely different reason. (Stone, 8/17)
The Boston Globe: ‘It’s A Miracle’: How A New Drug Could Give Pancreatic Cancer Patients More Time
The bag contained a month’s worth of a new pancreatic cancer drug — an experimental pill that has been hailed as a breakthrough treatment for an infamously lethal cancer. Results from a late-stage clinical trial showed the medication could double the life expectancy of people with advanced disease and keep tumors from growing twice as long as standard chemotherapy. Mandinov is among the first people in the country to receive the drug, called daraxonrasib, outside of a clinical trial. The medication is awaiting approval from the Food and Drug Administration but is being made available for free to more patients who qualify through an expanded access program. (Chiu and Spatz, 8/17)
