Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Young International Traveler Arrived In Colorado Infected With Measles
CBS News: International Traveler Tests Positive For Measles After Arriving In Colorado, Visiting Several Counties
An international traveler to Colorado has tested positive for measles. The adolescent arrived at Denver International Airport on Dec. 13 and visited several counties in the state in the past week. Arapahoe County Public Health is leading the investigation with state and other local public health agencies to notify those who have been directly exposed. The adolescent has an unknown vaccination status and has been in isolation since Dec. 18. (McRae, 12/20)
The Colorado Sun: Officials Confirm First Case Of Measles In Colorado Resident In Five Years
Colorado officials have confirmed the first case of measles in a state resident in five years. The patient is an adolescent who traveled abroad to several countries, returning to Denver International Airport on Dec. 13, according to the state health department. It’s the first confirmed measles case in a Colorado resident since January 2019. (Brown and Ingold, 12/20)
Also —
AP: Parents Of Kids Sickened By Lead-Linked Fruit Pouches Fear For Future
When Cora Dibert went for a routine blood test in October, the toddler brought along her favorite new snack: a squeeze pouch of WanaBana cinnamon-flavored apple puree. “She sucked them dry,” recalls her 26-year-old mother, Morgan Shurtleff, of Elgin, Oklahoma. Within a week, the family got an alarming call. The test showed that the 1-year-old had lead poisoning, with nearly four times as much lead as the level that raises concern. Only later did Shurtleff learn that that the fruit puree Cora’s grandmother bought at a Dollar Tree store may have been the cause. (Aleccia, 12/20)
Los Angeles Times: Thousands Overdosed On Ozempic, Wegovy In 2023
Some of those taking Ozempic or Wegovy are learning that too much of a good thing is never good. ... Between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30 this year, at least 2,941 Americans reported overdose exposures to semaglutide, according to a recent report from America’s Poison Centers, a national nonprofit representing 55 poison centers in the United States. ... The nationwide number of semaglutide overdoses this year is more than double the 1,447 reported in 2022, which was more than double the 607 semaglutide overdoses reported in 2021. (Childs, 12/20)
NPR: The Neglected And Deadly Disease Noma Finally Gets Some Attention
It started out as malaria – or at least that's what her grandparents thought. But there was another devious infection lurking beneath the surface of her skin and inside her mouth. Mulikat Okanlawon was a child, only 6 or 7 years old, when she contracted noma – a rare gangrenous infection that ate away at the flesh and bone in her face. Compared to others who get noma, Mulikat was lucky. It almost always leads to death. ... Now, in a great win for noma advocates and survivors, noma has been added to the WHO list of Neglected Tropical Diseases, and with that will bring more attention to the disease than ever before. (Barnhart, 12/20)
Stat: Advocates Call Out 'SNL' Over Stereotypes, Errors In Sickle Cell Skit
Mary Brown was sipping coffee at home in Ontario, Calif., Sunday morning when a friend sent a video clip that ruined her breakfast. It contained a skit from “Saturday Night Live” the night before about the new gene therapies for sickle cell disease. In it, workers gather for an office white-elephant-style gift exchange. A white employee, played by Kate McKinnon, gives a Black employee with sickle cell, played by Kenan Thompson, enrollment in “Vertex Pharmaceutical and CRISPR Therapeutics’ exa-cel program for sickle cell anemia,” explaining that it was a cure and she had an in with the company to get ahead on the waiting list. (Mast, 12/20)
In news on covid —
CBS News: COVID-19, RSV And Flu Cases Spike As UPMC Reinstates Mask Wearing To Slow Spread
UPMC has reinstated its mask mandate.The chief medical officer at UPMC told KDKA-TV that in the last six to eight weeks, more and more people are being treated for respiratory illnesses. The health system is asking everyone to mask up to slow the spread. "That's why the mask inside the hospital and inside the clinics is starting back up. It's not for any other reason. It doesn't have to do with political issues or anything else. We want to do the right things for you," said Dr. Donald Yealy, UPMC's chief medical officer. (Bah, 12/20)
NBC News: CDC Director: U.S. Not Near Peak Covid Or Flu Levels For Season Yet
Winter officially begins Thursday, and with the cold season comes an expected rise in rates of flu and Covid, said Dr. Mandy Cohen, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The U.S. is seeing a "sharp increase" in flu levels right now, particularly in the south, Cohen said Wednesday in an interview. Covid cases also appear to be climbing nationally, she said, while cases of respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, seem to have reached their highest point this season. "We’re seeing RSV peak a bit sooner, but we do not believe we’re near yet at the peak of flu or Covid," Cohen said. (Bendix, 12/21)
Bloomberg: Surging JN.1 Variant In Wastewater Spurs Questions About Covid Shift To The Gut
Spiking Covid-19 cases detected in wastewater have prompted some scientists to ask whether JN.1, the strain driving an explosive winter surge, is selectively targeting peoples’ intestinal tracts. The evidence is extremely limited and theoretical, and there’s no data suggesting that more people are experiencing severe digestive illnesses from Covid. Yet there’s no question that the coronavirus has changed its requirements for entering cells, said Sydney virologist Stuart Turville. This may be consistent with more efficient infection of particular tissues including the gut. (Gale, 12/21)
