Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: What Does A Future Without The WHO Look Like?; Buckle Up For More Birth Control Battles
The Washington Post: Trump Is Withdrawing From The WHO. That's A Grave Mistake.
President Donald Trump announced Monday night he is withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization. Trump already tried this in 2020 — too late in his first term — as a response to what he saw as the WHO’s failure to pressure China during the covid-19 pandemic. His grudge has persisted. This time around, Trump may well succeed. (Richard Coniff and Lawrence O. Gostin, 1/21)
The Boston Globe: JD Vance And The Return Of The Birth Control Battle
In January 2023, two years ahead of his swearing-in as our next vice president, then-Senator Vance signed a letter from Republican lawmakers to the Justice Department requesting the enforcement of the provisions of the Comstock Act of 1873. They wrote, “We demand that you act swiftly and in accordance with the law, shut down all mail-order abortion operations.(Alexandra Marshall, 1/20)
Stat: A Former Surgeon General’s Warning On Childhood Vaccinations
Over the past several years, we’ve witnessed an alarming rise in vaccine hesitancy across the United States. From the reluctant parent to the social media-driven influencer, more and more Americans are questioning the safety and efficacy of childhood vaccines. As we approach the transition to a new administration — one that has promised to let vaccine critics like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “go wild” — the situation is likely only to worsen. (Jerome Adams, 1/20)
Stat: A Deadly Medical Product And A Long Battle To Get It Removed
In 2016, I became the owner of a dangerous product that has since been recalled. Considering its significant cost — an average of $4,875, not including “anesthesia, operating room facilities or other related expenses,” according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons — you might wonder why it took me eight years to return it to the manufacturer. Believe me, I wanted to do so — possessing this item made me nervous and paranoid, for reasons that will become apparent. (Oceana Callum, 1/21)
Stat: What The Trump Administration Shouldn’t Change About The FDA
There has been much speculation about what is in store for the Food and Drug Administration in the incoming administration, as President Trump and his likely nominees for senior health positions — including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of Health and Human Services and Marty Makary for FDA commissioner — have expressed strong views about how the FDA regulates our nation’s foods, drugs/devices, and cosmetics. RFK Jr. has called for a major shakeup at FDA. (Stuart Pape, Wayne Pines and Mitch Zeller, 1/21)
Chicago Tribune: We Are In A Mental Health Crisis. A 'Moonshot' Is Needed.
Rates of PTSD combined with anxiety disorders or diagnoses of depression increased by 177% and 138% in only five years, from 2019 to 2023, according to the most recent edition of the Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, a peer-reviewed journal of the Armed Forces. Skyrocketing rates of depression and anxiety are also being seen in civilian adults and, alarmingly, in our nation’s children. (Kara Margolis, 1/21)
