USA Today: Biden Touts Prescription Drug Savings For Older Americans
Medicare enrollees next year could save on dozens of medications under a federal law that penalizes pharmaceutical companies if they raise prices faster than the rate of inflation, the Biden administration announced Thursday. Officials with Medicare, the federal health program for adults 65 and older, issued a list of 48 drugs including blood thinners, antibiotics and cancer medications administered at a doctor's office, clinic or hospital, saying that potential savings on these "Part B" medications would range from $1 to $2,786 per dose, beginning Jan. 1, depending on an individual's coverage. (Alltucker, 12/14)

Bloomberg: Biden Touts Drug Rebates As Bid To Crack Down On ‘Price Gouging’
President Joe Biden looked to rally support among seniors with an event highlighting new government caps on prescription drug prices, saying the effort would help “crack down on price gouging.” “Simply it’s a rip off,” Biden said Thursday at the National Institutes of Health, targeting pharmaceutical makers who raise the price of drugs at a faster rate than inflation. “They’re ripping off Medicare. They’re ripping off the American people.” (Jacobs and Sink, 12/14)

More on the high cost of drugs and health care —

The Washington Post: Older Americans Are Increasingly Working After Retirement 
Americans 65 and over are playing a larger role in the labor force, shifting the composition of U.S. workers and reflecting a new reality where retirement has become a more gradual process for many. The share of older Americans who are working, by choice or necessity, has doubled in the past 35 years, according to a report released Thursday by the Pew Research Center. Workers 65 and over also are working longer hours and making more money than they were in the past. (Bhattarai, 12/14)

The Washington Post: Now Healthy Food And Exercise May Qualify For HSA And FSA Funds 
You can now use your pretax dollars to pay for certain types of healthful foods, gym memberships and even fitness trackers. Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and Flexible Savings Accounts (FSAs) allow you to set aside money on a pretax basis to pay for “qualified medical expenses,” including medical, dental, prescription and vision bills. But many people don’t realize they may be eligible to spend the funds on a range of other options, including certain meal kits, gym memberships, protein powders, supplements, fitness trackers and even saunas. (O'connor and O'Hagan, 12/13)

Reuters: Ex-Pharma Exec Shkreli Urges US Appeals Court To End Lifetime Ban
Former drug company executive Martin Shkreli on Thursday urged a U.S. appeals court to strike down an order permanently banning him from the pharmaceutical industry. Shkreli's attorney Kimo Peluso told a 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel in New York that the ban, imposed last year over Shkreli's efforts to curb generic drug competitors, was too broad. (Scarcella, 12/14)

In news from Capitol Hill —

Roll Call: DeGette In Line For Key Democratic Spot On Health Panel 
Rep. Anna G. Eshoo’s decision to retire at the end of this term will leave a key Democratic vacancy on the powerful Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee, and while it’s unclear who will take over her post, early signs point to longtime committee member Diana DeGette of Colorado. (Cohen and Clason, 12/14)

The Texas Tribune: Crenshaw’s Psychedelic PTSD Treatment Bill Passes 
Tucked within Congress’ colossal annual defense bill is a priority a vocal group of Texas conservatives has long pushed: Using psychedelics to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. The U.S. House voted Thursday to pass the annual National Defense Authorization Act, which sets the spending caps and policy priorities for the Defense Department. Included in the bill was U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw’s Douglas Mike Day Psychedelic Therapy to Save Lives Act, legislation that will direct the Defense Department to create grants for studying psychedelic treatments for active duty service members. (Choi, 12/14)

Stat: In Diabetes Hearing, Sanders Takes On A New Foe: Food Makers
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has a new corporate target: the food industry. Sanders held a hearing today on diabetes that implicated both the food and drug industries in what the American Diabetes Association estimates is a $413 billion annual cost to the health care system. That’s up 27% over the past six years, he said, and he warned that new weight loss drugs could send health care spending to the stratosphere. (Wilkerson, 12/14)

KFF Health News and Cox Media Group: ‘Until It Is Fixed’: Congress Ramps Up Action On Social Security Clawbacks 
The Senate Finance Committee is ramping up oversight of Social Security’s overpayment problem and plans to meet with the agency every month “until it is fixed.” The Social Security Administration assured lawmakers in the past that it had been addressed, but “what you all found in your reporting is that the problem hadn’t been fixed,” Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in an interview. (Hilzenrath and Fleischer, 12/15)

Reuters: Healthcare Providers To Join US Plan To Manage AI Risks - White House 
Twenty-eight healthcare companies, including CVS Health, are signing U.S. President Joe Biden's voluntary commitments aimed at ensuring the safe development of artificial intelligence (AI), a White House official said on Thursday. The commitments by healthcare providers and payers follow those of 15 leading AI companies, including Google, OpenAI and OpenAI partner Microsoft to develop AI models responsibly. (Shalal, 12/14)

Modern Healthcare: Physicians Want AI To Reduce Prior Authorization Burdens: AMA
Physicians are excited but cautious about the use of artificial and augmented intelligence in medicine, according to a survey published by the American Medical Association on Thursday. AMA surveyed more than 1,000 doctors for their thoughts on AI, which the advocacy group defines as augmented intelligence. ... The survey revealed the majority of respondents see advantages to AI in healthcare but some are concerned over its potential effect on patient relationships and data privacy. (Turner, 12/14)

In other health care industry news —

Modern Healthcare: HCA Healthcare Breached Terms Of Mission Health Deal: NC AG
HCA Healthcare allegedly breached the terms of the agreement it made with North Carolina when it purchased Mission Health four years ago, according to a lawsuit the state filed Thursday. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) alleges the for-profit, Nashville, Tennessee-based health system has cut staffing at Mission Health facilities, leading to delays in emergency and cancer care and a decline in quality, according to the complaint filed in Buncombe County Superior Court. (Kacik, 12/14)

The CT Mirror: YNHH Sale 'Paramount' To CT Prospect Hospitals' Survival, CEO Says
The head of Manchester Memorial and Rockville General hospitals told Gov. Ned Lamont in October that Yale New Haven Health’s bid to buy those two facilities and Waterbury Hospital is “paramount” to their survival, and that “time is of the essence” in the state’s approval of the acquisition, according to a letter obtained by The Connecticut Mirror. (Carlesso and Altimari, 12/14)

CBS News: Mount Sinai Celebrates Grand Opening Of Harlem Health Center
The Mount Sinai health system continues to move its mission towards more community-based services. This week administrators celebrated the grand opening of their new Harlem Health Center at 158 West 124th Street. The building brings together physical, mental and specialized services neighbors say they need the most. From mental health to podiatry, the Harlem Health Center aims to address all the organs from head to toe. (Mitchell, 12/14)

Kansas City Star: Kansas Gov. Kelly Floats Work Requirements For Medicaid Expansion In Bid To Win GOP Support
Kansas Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly on Thursday offered a Medicaid expansion plan that would ask hospitals to provide funding and includes a work requirement — long a must-have item for many Republicans to support expansion. (Shorman and Ritter, 12/14)

Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota Lawmakers Are Bringing Back A Medicaid Work Requirement Resolution In 2024
Two lawmakers are bringing back a resolution that would have South Dakotans vote on a “clarification” to Medicaid expansion that passed in 2022. The resolution, introduced by Rep. Tony Venhuizen, R-Sioux Falls, and Sen. Casey Crabtree, R-Madison, would allow voters to decide on the 2024 ballot if the state should consider work requirements for those enrolled in Medicaid. A similar resolution was introduced during the 2023 session by Venhuizen but failed in a Senate committee because the language had been too broad, Venhuizen said. (Todd, 12/15)

The Texas Tribune: Nearly 1.7 Million Texans Lose Medicaid As State Nears End Of “Unwinding” 
Nearly 1.7 million Texans have lost their health insurance — the largest number of people any state has removed — in the months since Texas began peeling people from Medicaid as part of the post-pandemic “unwinding.” Around 65% of these removals occurred because of procedural reasons, according to the state. (Bohra, 12/14)

Orlando Sentinel: Ignoring Medicaid Expansion, Florida GOP Leaders Push Live Healthy Plan
It was “the elephant in the room” that almost nobody wanted to talk about. Instead of accepting the $4 billion to $5 billion in federal money that would come with Medicaid expansion in Florida, Republican leaders are pursuing a plan to spend nearly $900 million in state taxpayer and federal trust fund dollars to make medical care more accessible by increasing the health care workforce, building clinics and other means. (Schweers, 12/15)

In other Medicaid and Medicare news —

Bloomberg Law: Watchdog Cites Lax Oversight Of Medicaid Managed Care Spending
A federal budget watchdog raised concerns that the Medicaid agency lacks sufficient guardrails to ensure states’ spending on supplemental payments to providers is appropriate. A report released Thursday by the Government Accountability Office notes the federal approval process lacks sufficient oversight of state-directed payments, which are compensation arrangements where states allocate additional payments to medical providers via a managed care plan in order to meet state-wide health objectives. (Belloni, 12/14)

Harvard T.H. Chan School Of Public Health: Sr Doctors May See Fewer Medicaid, Minority Patients
Senior physicians may avoid seeing racial minorities and lower paying Medicaid-insured patients compared to junior physicians in the same practice, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “It’s a widely known ‘secret’ that in some practices, the older doctors push patients with lower-paying insurance, and by extension patients of minority races to the more junior doctors in their clinic. But this is rarely discussed openly,” said lead author Michael Barnett, associate professor of health policy and management. “Our study finds evidence to back up this hidden practice, which raises concerns of a two-tiered system by physician seniority that promotes racial and economic segregation.” (12/13)

The Washington Post: Therapist Charged With Stealing More Than $263,000 From D.C. Medicaid 
A mental health therapist in the District has been charged with stealing more than $263,000 from the city’s Medicaid program through fraudulent claims, the U.S. attorney’s office said. Bridgette White-Chase, 61, was indicted by a grand jury Wednesday for 20 alleged crimes related to Medicaid claims, including felony fraud and first-degree theft, according to documents filed in D.C. Superior Court. The documents say White-Chase operated Chase Counseling and Consulting Services and was licensed by D.C. Health to provide professional counseling services. (Alexander, 12/14)

Axios: Medicare Urges Payers To Keep Cash Flowing To Pharmacies
Medicare officials are urging health plans and other payers not to put pharmacies in a cash squeeze when a new policy kicks in that may reduce how much they're paid upfront for dispensing drugs. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services wrote to pharmacy benefit managers and insurers Thursday suggesting they make special payment arrangements with pharmacies before the policy takes effect on Jan. 1. (Goldman, 12/15)

Modern Healthcare: Health Insurance Exchange Marketing Rules Imposed By CMS
Federal authorities have stepped up oversight of the health insurance exchange marketplaces since President Joe Biden took office. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, for example, has enforced rules governing marketing practices and the names of insurance policies as more people enroll and more insurers join the market. (Tepper, 12/14)

NBC News: There’s ‘Long Flu,’ Too: Influenza Can Lead To Long-Lasting Symptoms, Study Finds
Evidence continues to mount that Covid isn’t the only viral illness that can lead to persistent and sometimes debilitating symptoms. Research published Thursday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases finds that the flu virus may also have long-lasting effects on health. With the arrival of the pandemic and the resulting rash of long Covid cases, doctors had to rethink their ideas about viral infections, said senior study author Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, chief of research and development at the VA St. Louis Health Care System and a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University in St. Louis. (Carroll, 12/14)

On RSV —

Reuters: US CDC Says There's Urgent Need To Increase Respiratory Vaccine Coverage 
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday issued an alert urging healthcare providers to increase immunization coverage for influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The health regulator said that low vaccination rates, coupled with ongoing increases in respiratory disease activity, could lead to more severe disease and increased healthcare capacity strain in the coming weeks. (12/14)

Reuters: AstraZeneca, Sanofi To Supply 230,000 More RSV Infant Shots To US Market 
The makers of a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) immunization for infants that has been in tight supply will deliver an additional 230,000 doses in January, the White House said on Thursday, after U.S. government officials met with the companies to discuss meeting winter demand. According to a statement from one of the drug's makers - France's Sanofi - the additional supply means the companies will deliver 1.4 million doses of the drug in the U.S. this year, over 25% more shots than they had originally planned. (Hunnicutt and Erman, 12/14)

CIDRAP: Moderna's RSV Vaccine For Older Adults 84% Effective And Safe, Clinical Trial Shows 
Today, researchers from Moderna and around the globe report positive phase 2/3 results for its experimental respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine for people 60 years and older, with an efficacy of 83.7% and a good safety profile. (Van Beusekom, 12/14)

In covid updates —

San Francisco Chronicle: New COVID Variant JN.1 ‘Better At Evading Our Immune Systems,’ CDC Says
Two new immune-evasive coronavirus variants are now responsible for more than half of the COVID-19 cases in the United States, contributing to a wave of infections just ahead of the holidays. ... The JN.1 variant, recently disaggregated from its parent BA.2.86. Accounting for 21.4% of new cases last week — almost triple the estimated 8% reported over Thanksgiving — JN.1 exhibits increased immunity evasion compared with earlier SARS-CoV-2 strains, according to a risk assessment from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Vaziri, 12/14)

The Boston Globe: COVID Vaccines Should Be Inhaled, Says New Boston Study
New research published Wednesday and led by Boston scientists suggests a possible solution. Delivering vaccines directly to the lungs by using a device similar to an asthma inhaler can build up a far larger army of immune cells where it counts: in the breathing passages. That army can intercept and kill COVID-19 virus particles before they make us sick. In the study, detailed in the journal Nature, the team compared immune responses to vaccines delivered to the lungs with immune responses to vaccines delivered as shots to the muscles. (Piore, 12/14)

CIDRAP: Almost A Third Of COVID Survivors Report Symptoms 2 Years Post-Infection
A meta-analysis of 12 studies shows that 30% of COVID-19 survivors have persistent symptoms 2 years after infection, the most common of which are fatigue, cognitive problems, and pain. For the study, published yesterday in the Journal of Infection, an international team led by a researcher from Universidad Rey Juan Carlos in Madrid, Spain, searched the literature for observational and case-control studies of long COVID 2 years after infection. The studies, published up to October 1, 2023, were from Europe, China, and the United States. (Van Beusekom, 12/14)

The New York Times: Mandy Cohen, New CDC Director, Tries To Foster Trust In A Battered Agency 
Dr. Mandy K. Cohen dropped by the Fox affiliate in Dallas in November, just days after the governor of Texas signed a law barring private employers from requiring Covid-19 shots. If she thought promoting vaccination would be a tough sell in a ruby-red state, Dr. Cohen, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, did not give any indication. “I’m not just the C.D.C. director, I’m also a mom,” she said cheerily, noting on live television that her daughters, 9 and 11, had already received the latest Covid and flu shots. She added, “So I wouldn’t recommend something for the American people I wouldn’t recommend for my own family.” (Stolberg, 12/15)

In other outbreaks and health threats —

CIDRAP: Mpox Spread Via Nonsexual Contact Not Common, New Data Show
Though the 2022 mpox outbreak was primarily transmitted through sexual contact among men who have sex with men in the United States, close, nonsexual case contacts have contracted the virus, but data released today show that the risk is quite low. Another mpox study today showed that dose-sparing vaccine administration of the Jynneos vaccine appeared to have worked. (Soucheray, 12/14)

NPR: Mosquitos, Ticks May Spread New, Dangerous Viruses, Caution Researchers
Due to globalization and climate change, insects and the diseases they carry are spreading more widely around the world. At a two-day workshop this week at the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine in Washington, D.C., global public health experts warned that countries like the U.S. are not ready for this looming threat. "If we don't do anything, which is basically what we're doing right now, it's going to get worse," Tom Scott, a medical entomologist and professor emeritus at UC Davis, said during the workshop. (Huang, 12/15)

AP: Millions Infected With Dengue As Hotter Temperatures Cause Virus To Flare 
Dengue is sweeping across the Western Hemisphere in numbers not seen since record-keeping began in 1980 as experts warn that rising temperatures and rapid urbanization are accelerating the pace of infections. (Coto, 12/13)

Politico: Applesauce Pouches Linked To Lead Poisoning May Have Been Contaminated On Purpose, FDA Foods Chief Says 
Tainted cinnamon applesauce pouches that have sickened scores of children in the U.S. may have been purposefully contaminated with lead, according to FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods Jim Jones. “We’re still in the midst of our investigation. But so far all of the signals we’re getting lead to an intentional act on the part of someone in the supply chain and we’re trying to sort of figure that out,” Jones said in an exclusive interview. “My instinct is they didn’t think this product was going to end up in a country with a robust regulatory process,” Jones said. ... U.S. and Ecuadorian authorities have traced the cinnamon to Negasmart, which supplies Austrofoods, the food manufacturer in Ecuador. (Brown and Hill, 12/14)

In other news about food recalls —

Stat: Product Recalls By FDA, CPSC More Than Doubled From 2018-2022
Either American products are getting worse, or scrutiny over their safety is getting tougher. Whichever the case, product recalls by the Food and Drug Administration and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) more than doubled between 2018 and 2022, according to new research published on Wednesday by life sciences software company MasterControl. (Merelli, 12/14)

MoneyWatch: Coca-Cola Recalls 2,000 Diet Coke, Sprite, Fanta Orange Soda Packs
Coca-Cola is recalling 2,000 cases of Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta Orange soda cans because they may contain "foreign material." The recall comprises 12-packs of 12-ounce cans, including 1,557 packs of Sprite, 417 of Diet Coke and 14 of Fanta Orange. The cases were distributed in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida, an FDA filing shows. It remains unclear what the potential "foreign material" could be and what risks, if any, it poses to consumers. The FDA did not immediately respond to CBS MoneyWatch's request for comment. (Napolitano, 12/14)

CIDRAP: CDC Ends Its Probe Of 80-Case Salmonella Outbreak Linked To Onions
Yesterday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that its investigation into a multistate Salmonella outbreak tied to onions has ended. Seven more people, for a total of 80, have been sickened in the Salmonella Thompson outbreak linked to fresh-diced onions. Cases have been reported in 23 states, including 1 death in Wisconsin, and 18 case-patients have been hospitalized. (Soucheray, 12/14)

On pharmaceutical recalls —

Bloomberg: House Republicans Threaten To Subpoena FDA In Drug Quality Investigation
House Republicans threatened the US Food and Drug Administration with a subpoena as they intensify scrutiny of the agency’s efforts to deal with quality problems with drugs made in India and China. US House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, along with leaders of subcommittees on health and oversight, sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf demanding answers to questions about the agency’s work conducting inspections of drug facilities abroad. (Griffin, 12/14)

Bloomberg: How Pediatric Cancer Patients Received Tainted Chemo
Methotrexate, a drug used to treat leukemia and other cancers, is commonly prescribed, usually tolerated, often given as an injection. Much of it is manufactured in India. It’s a pale yellow liquid that’s always supposed to be sterile, free from any bacteria. Employees at Naprod Life Sciences were rushing to complete orders for thousands of vials. No one had been in charge of the quality department for months. The methotrexate they were manufacturing was destined for the most vulnerable: leukemia patients, some of them children, in developing countries. (Taggart and Pulla, 12/15)

Reuters: Benefits Of Moderna And Merck Melanoma Vaccine Plus Keytruda Extend To Three Years 
An experimental messenger RNA cancer vaccine developed by Moderna and Merck & Co paired with Merck's Keytruda cut the chance of recurrence or death from melanoma by half after three years, showing that benefits demonstrated a year ago have held up over time. (Erman and Wingrove, 12/14)

CBS News: Moderna Vaccine Could Help Patients In Later Stages Of Melanoma
Cambridge-based Moderna has used mRNA technology to develop an experimental melanoma vaccine which is custom-built for each patient based on analysis of their tumor once it's been surgically removed. The vaccine is designed to train the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells throughout the body. (Marshall, 12/14)

In other scientific developments —

Stat: Spinal Cord Stimulation Reduces Pain In Amputees, Study Finds
For years, Lauren Gavron relied on oxycodone to quiet the pain in her missing lower left limb. But she hated the fog that came with it, preventing her from feeling comfortable enough to drive. When researchers at the University of Pittsburgh delivered electric jolts to her spine in 2021, the Duquesne, Pennsylvania resident was shocked to feel that pain temporarily melt away — and to feel sensation in her prosthetic foot, improving her walk and balance. (Lawrence, 12/14)

CNN: Early Risers May Have Inherited Faster Body Clock From Neanderthals
Early risers may have inherited genetic variants from Neanderthals that increased their odds of being morning rather than evening people, new research has found. While the human body clock is a complex trait shaped by social and cultural norms as well as genetics, Neanderthals, who evolved at high latitudes in Europe and Asia for hundreds of thousands of years, may have been better adapted to seasonal variation in daylight compared with early Homo sapiens, or modern humans, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Genome Biology and Evolution. (Hunt, 12/14)

AP: A Judge Is Considering Wyoming Abortion Laws, Including The First Explicit US Ban On Abortion Pills
Attorneys for both sides in a challenge to Wyoming abortion restrictions that include the nation’s first explicit ban on medication to end pregnancy urged a judge Thursday to uphold or strike down the new laws without holding a trial. A ruling either way would likely be appealed to the Wyoming Supreme Court. Teton County District Judge Melissa Owens in Jackson didn’t immediately rule after the arguments, however, saying the complex constitutional questions in the case would take time to assess. (Gruver, 12/14)

AP: Hypothetical Situations Or Real-Life Medical Tragedies? A Judge Weighs An Idaho Abortion Ban Lawsuit 
An attorney for Idaho asked a judge on Thursday to throw out a lawsuit seeking clarity about the medical exemptions to the state’s broad abortion bans, saying it was based on hypothetical situations rather than current facts. But an attorney for the four women and several physicians who sued says their claims aren’t hypothetical at all, but real-life tragedies happening in doctors’ offices and homes across the state. (Boone, 12/14)

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: Ohio Abortion Providers Ask Judge To Permanently Block ‘Heartbeat’ Ban Now That Amendment Is In Effect
As promised, abortion providers who are challenging the “heartbeat” ban filed an amended complaint this week, asking a court to permanently block the state from enforcing the law now that a majority of Ohio voters passed the reproductive rights constitutional amendment. (Hancock, 12/14)

KFF Health News: KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Abortion And SCOTUS, Together Again 
The Supreme Court this week agreed to hear a case that could further restrict abortion — even in states where it remains legal. The case to determine the fate of the abortion pill mifepristone is the first major abortion case to come before the court since its overturn of Roe v. Wade in 2022. It could also set a precedent for judges to second-guess scientific rulings by the FDA. (12/14)

From Minnesota and Texas —

CBS News: Report: Minnesota Sees Spike In Out-Of-State Patients Seeking Abortions
The number of people crossing state lines to Minnesota to get an abortion spiked after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, new data show. The number of out-of-state patients jumped from 9% in 2020 to 30% in 2023 over the same time period, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights. Nationwide, one in five patients are traveling out of state for an abortion. (Cummings, 12/14)

Stat: Abortions Denied Hundreds In Texas Despite Health Risks, Data Show 
A Texas woman’s unsuccessful legal fight for an abortion on medical emergency grounds drew nationwide headlines in recent days, but her plight is hardly a rare occurrence amid vague and highly restrictive state laws in the post-Roe era. Kate Cox is likely one of hundreds, if not thousands, of Texans who’ve faced a similar struggle this year to get an abortion for medical reasons, according to a STAT review of studies and abortion data from other states. (Goldhill, 12/15)

The Hill: Dozens Of Texas Businesses Back Challenge To Abortion Ban: ‘This Is Why Our Economy Is Taking A Hit’ 
Ambiguities in Texas's abortion ban are making it harder for businesses in the state to recruit, a coalition of businesses argued on Thursday. Fifty-one businesses have signed onto an amicus brief filed by in-house counsel at dating site Bumble, which was filed in support of 22 women suing the state over the abortion ban. (Elbein, 12/14)

Also —

NPR: More People Are Putting Their Hopes Of Parenthood On Ice
Egg freezing, or oocyte preservation, was once considered an experimental procedure. But since the American Society for Reproductive Medicine dropped that designation in 2012, more people than ever are putting their hopes of parenthood on ice. There was a 400 percent increase in the number of people freezing their eggs between 2012 and 2020 according to the Society of Assisted Reproductive Technology. (12/14)

Reuters: US FDA Warns Chewy, Others Over Selling Unapproved Animal Antibiotics 
Chewy and eight other companies are violating federal law by selling or making unapproved antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs for animals that could potentially give rise to drug-resistant superbugs, the U.S. health regulator said. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday sent letters to nine companies including e-commerce retailer Chewy warning them against selling the products that it said contained antibiotics such as penicillin and amoxicillin. (12/14)

CIDRAP: Study In Cockroaches Illustrates How Resistance Genes Can Be Transmitted Between Groups
An experimental study that involved cockroaches highlights the dynamics of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) transmission, Danish researchers reported today in mSystems. In the study, a team of researchers from the Technical University of Denmark set up an experiment in which they separated 250 Pycnoscelus surinamensis cockroaches into two groups to explore AMR transmission within symbiotic microbiomes across hosts. One group (terrarium B) was treated daily with tetracycline, and the other (terrarium A) went untreated. They then sampled cockroaches and soil from both terraria for metagenomic sequencing. (Dall, 12/14)

In other pharmaceutical news —

AP: Elf Bar-Maker And Others Blocked From Importing Illegal E-Cigarettes 
U.S. agents recently seized more than 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes from overseas manufacturers, including the Chinese company behind Elf Bar, a line of fruity disposable vapes that has become the top brand among American teens, officials said Thursday. Officials pegged the value of the e-cigarettes seized at Los Angeles International Airport at $18 million and said they included several related brands, including Elf Bar, Lost Mary, Funky Republic and EB Create, according to the Food and Drug Administration. The agency announced the seizure with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which helped conduct the operation. (Perrone, 12/14)

Reuters: US FDA Approves Medtronic's System For Heart Condition
Medtronic said on Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved its system for a type of condition that can cause stroke or heart failure. The system, PulseSelect Pulsed Field Ablation (PFA), is used for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF), a condition that is characterized by an irregular rhythm of the heart. (12/14)

St. Louis Public Radio: Affinia Offers Free Drug Disposal Kit
Affinia Healthcare is providing a safer way to dispose of unused prescription medication at home. The St. Louis-based health care provider is offering more than 200 free Deterra Drug Deactivation and Disposal System pouches. Kenyatta Johnson, the pharmacy director at Affinia Healthcare, said the need follows an upward trend of drug overdoses in the region. (Lewis-Thompson, 12/15)

Stat: FDA Publishes New Database Of Wayward Clinical Trial Sponsors
In a bid toward greater transparency, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration earlier this month launched a dashboard containing preliminary notices sent to companies, universities, and researchers that failed to register clinical trials or report study results. (Silverman, 12/14)

Modern Healthcare: WeightWatchers To Prescribe Wegovy, Ozempic Through Clinic
Weight loss company WeightWatchers launched a telehealth service on Thursday, joining a crowded list of virtual care providers that are prescribing glucagon-like peptide-1 agonist medications. The service, called WeightWatchers Clinic, will use clinicians previously employed by Sequence, the telehealth weight loss provider it acquired in March. Clinicians employed by WeightWatchers will prescribe certain patients GLP-1 medications such as Wegovy and Munjaro. They will also prescribe other weight loss drugs for patients not interested or ineligible for GLP-1 medications. (Turner, 12/14)

Also —

USA Today: EPA Begins Process To Potentially Ban Vinyl Chloride, Used In PVC
The U.S. Environmental Agency Thursday took the first step toward potentially restricting or banning the use of five toxic chemicals used to make plastics, adhesives and paints. Among them is a key ingredient in PVC plastic – vinyl chloride – a common material for water and sewer pipes, medical equipment and toys. It’s also a known carcinogen, and exposure to the substance has been linked to numerous health effects. (Le Coz, 12/14)

The New York Times: Getting An IUD Hurts. Why Aren’t More Women Offered Relief?
Women are increasingly turning to the intrauterine device, or IUD, as a form of contraception, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published today. Yet it’s widely known that having an IUD inserted can be excruciatingly painful, and few doctors offer effective relief. The anticipation of the pain is “a potential barrier” to expanding access, said Dr. Lauren Zapata, an epidemiologist with the division of reproductive health at the C.D.C. (Gupta, 12/14)

The Washington Post: After An FTC Crackdown, Some Dietitians Now Say Who’s Paying Them 
A month after a new federal crackdown on social media advertising, nutrition influencers have deleted previous sponsored posts and some are now explicitly disclosing the companies that are paying them That pasta recipe? Dietitian Cara Harbstreet of Kansas City says in her video that it’s made in partnership with Barilla. Steph Grasso of Oakton, Va., a registered dietitian with more than 2 million social media followers, now superimposes #Ad on her videos for Orgain protein powders. (Gilbert, Chavkin and Tsui, 12/13)

CBS News: Hundreds Of Young Children Killed Playing With Guns, CDC Reports
Hundreds of young children in the U.S. have been killed playing with guns over the last two decades, according to a study published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vast majority of cases involved guns that were stored unlocked and loaded. The CDC report's authors say their new findings highlight the rising toll taken by accidental gun deaths that could be preventable. (Tin, 12/14)

Axios: Kids Killed In Gun Accidents Most Often Found Weapon In The Bedroom: CDC
Children and teens involved in unintentional fatal shootings most commonly found the gun inside or on top of a nightstand, under a mattress or pillow, or on top of a bed, according to a new federal study. (Reed, 12/14)

Also —

The Hill: Biden, Lawmakers Push For Gun Reform On Sandy Hook Shooting Anniversary
President Biden and several other Democratic lawmakers pushed for gun reform on the 11th anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting. “Eleven years ago, the souths of Newtown, Connecticut, and the nation were pierced forever when twenty-six lives were stolen at Sandy Hook Elementary School by a lone shooter,” Biden posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, adding that he and the first lady were praying for the families and survivors. (Irwin, 12/14)

The Hill: Supreme Court Refuses To Block Illinois Assault Weapons Ban 
The Supreme Court refused, again, to block Illinois’s ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines Thursday. A gun rights group and gun shop owner argue the bans violate their Second Amendment rights and asked the justices to step in on an emergency basis to block enforcement. The plaintiffs made a similar request in the spring, which was rejected. (Schonfeld, 12/14)

The New York Times: The Guns Were Said To Be Destroyed. Instead, They Were Reborn. 
When Flint, Mich., announced in September that 68 assault weapons collected in a gun buyback would be incinerated, the city cited its policy of never reselling firearms. ... But Flint’s guns were not going to be melted down. Instead, they made their way to a private company that has collected millions of dollars taking firearms from police agencies, destroying a single piece of each weapon stamped with the serial number and selling the rest as nearly complete gun kits. Buyers online can easily replace what’s missing and reconstitute the weapon. (McIntire, 12/10)

WUSF: Kids Who Survive Shootings Face Many Health Challenges. A Sarasota Teen Shares His Story
Aaron Hunter is having a tough time pushing himself through a leg workout at a physical therapy appointment in Sarasota. “It burns,” he moaned, lying on a machine that required him to use his legs to thrust his body off a platform. His physical therapist, Whitney Walker, and mom Erica Dorsey encouraged him to keep going. Aaron, 13, was exhausted, but his performance was night and day from this summer, when simply walking was a challenge. Aaron was shot in the head in June. (Colombini, 12/14)

The Mercury News: California Deaths From All Causes On Track To Be Lowest Since COVID Pandemic Started
For the first year since COVID-19 upended our lives, the number of deaths from all causes is expected to fall under 300,000 in the Golden State, closer to pre-pandemic normals. The decline is primarily due to fewer COVID deaths — there have been close to 6,000 deaths from the virus so far this year, compared to over 18,000 at this time last year. To date, the virus has killed more than 104,000 Californians. (Blair Rowan, 12/14)

On the opioid crisis in California —

San Francisco Chronicle: San Francisco Starts Wastewater Surveillance To Tackle Drug Overdose Crisis
San Francisco has begun testing wastewater for traces of fentanyl, xylazine and other illicit drugs in an attempt to better track and address the local drug overdose crisis that has led to a record 752 deaths this year. The new wastewater surveillance program, announced by public health officials Thursday, will also track the presence of cocaine, methamphetamine and amphetamine, as well as naloxone, the overdose-reversing drug often referred to by the brand name Narcan. (Ho, 12/14)

Los Angeles Times: Fentanyl Has Become Los Angeles County's Most Deadly Drug
Fentanyl has continued to tighten its deadly grip on Los Angeles, with the synthetic opioid causing the majority of fatal overdoses countywide in 2022. For the first time in recent years, fentanyl surpassed methamphetamine as the most common drug listed as a cause of overdose deaths, according to a recent report from the L.A. County Department of Public Health. Fentanyl was blamed in almost 60% of all accidental drug or alcohol overdoses in 2022, the report said, and has continued to disproportionately kill Black Angelenos. (Toohey, 12/14)

In environmental health news —

Los Angeles Times: California Moves To Tighten Rules To Protect Countertop Workers
State regulators estimated that as many as 800 of the industry’s more than 4,000 workers could end up with silicosis if California failed to take protective action, and up to 160 were likely to die of the suffocating disease, according to a presentation at Thursday’s meeting of the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board. That would amount to “an industrial disaster” on a scale not seen in nearly a century, Cal/OSHA said in a report laying out the need for the measure. The new, temporary rules adopted by the board are expected to go into effect by the end of this month. (Alpert Reyes, 12/14)

Bloomberg: Another Wildfire Risk: Toxic Soil Metals Going Airborne
Extreme heat from California’s climate-driven wildfires is transforming a metal common in soil into an airborne carcinogen that can be inhaled by firefighters and people living downwind of conflagrations, according to first-of-its-kind research. In a study published Dec. 12 in the journal Nature Communications, Stanford University scientists discovered what they described as widespread and dangerous levels of toxic chromium in areas of Northern California severely burned by wildfires in 2019 and 2020. (Woody, 12/14)

CBS News: Philadelphia Could Become First U.S. City To Ban Medical Deportations
Philadelphia is on the road to becoming the first city in the U.S. to make medical deportations illegal, according to an immigrant advocacy group. In a 14 to 1 vote Thursday, Philadelphia City Council approved a bill that makes it unlawful for a hospital in the city to send a noncitizen to their home country without consent. (Baietto and Burton, 12/14)

Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio Passes Bill With Gender-Affirming Care Ban And Trans Sports Restrictions
A bill that would block doctors from providing gender-affirming care to trans youth and prevent trans athletes from participating in Ohio women’s sports is going to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk. The Ohio Senate passed House Bill 68 in a 24-8 vote Wednesday afternoon and the Ohio House concurred with the Senate amendments in a 61-27 vote Wednesday night. DeWine now has 10 business days to sign or veto the bill. (Henry, 12/14)

News Service of Florida: Trial Starts In Battle Over Transgender Treatments In Florida
With a mother testifying that it would be “devastating” if her child could not get gender-affirming care, a federal judge Wednesday began a trial in a constitutional challenge to Florida restrictions on such things as puberty blockers and hormone therapy. (Saunders, 12/14)

AP: Fuming Over Setback To Casino Smoking Ban, Workers Light Up In New Jersey Statehouse Meeting 
With prospects for a smoking ban in Atlantic City’s casinos looking hazier than ever, workers who want smoking banned took matters into their own hands, lips and lungs Thursday. Members of the United Auto Workers union disrupted a meeting of a state Assembly committee that had been scheduled to take a preliminary vote on a bill to ban smoking in the casinos by lighting cigarettes and blowing smoke toward legislators. That vote was canceled Wednesday night when one of the main champions of workers who want smoking banned in the gambling halls gave up on a bill that would end smoking in the nine casinos, and embraced some measures the casino industry wants, including enclosed smoking rooms. (Parry, 12/14)

CBS News: Supervised Injection Sites Could Save Lives In Massachusetts, DPH Says
A new DPH report says there were 2,359 opioid-related deaths in the state in 2022, a 3% increase from 2021 and the most-ever recorded in the state. Now the department is recommending that state leaders take steps to open "overdose prevention centers," which would allow people struggling with addiction to use drugs under medical supervision. DPH Commissioner Dr. Robert Goldstein said in a statement that overdose deaths are preventable and Massachusetts should "forge a culture of harm reduction." (Riley, 12/14)

AP: Virginia Lawmaker With Parkinson's Helps Lead The Charge In Creating Panel To Fight The Illness
With a nod to a colleague struggling with an aggressive form of Parkinson’s disease, members of the House saved, for likely the last vote of the year, a bill they hope may one day help stomp out the debilitating illness. The bill is named for Democratic Virginia Rep. Jennifer Wexton, who has the disease, and Republican Florida Rep. Gus Bilirakis’ brother, who passed away in May after a long battle with it. (Freking, 12/14)

Stat: In Cancer Care, Patients With Disabilities Face False Assumptions
People with disabilities often spend a lot of time navigating bias and educating others about their condition. When it comes to cancer, assumptions made by their doctors can undermine their care even before it starts. The potential for pitfalls is vast. Clinicians might assume a woman who uses a wheelchair isn’t sexually active so doesn’t need to be tested for HPV, the virus that causes cervical cancer. They might order a mammogram to screen for breast cancer without considering the fact that the test requires someone who uses a wheelchair to stand. Imaging scans may be unworkable for someone unable to hold their limbs still because of cerebral palsy. (Cooney, 12/13)

The New York Times: How Unconscious Bias in Health Care Puts Pregnant Black Women at Higher Risk
Shakima Tozay was 37 years old and six months pregnant when a nurse, checking the fetal heart rate of the baby boy she was carrying, referred to him as “a hoodlum.” Ms. Tozay, a social worker, froze. She had just been hospitalized at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett, Wash., with pre-eclampsia, a life-threatening complication of pregnancy, and she is Black. “A ‘hoodlum’?” she said. “Why would you call him that?” The fetus was 14 inches long and weighed little more than a box of chocolates. A doctor who came into the room downplayed the comment, saying the nurse was just kidding, but that only hurt Ms. Tozay more. (Rabin, 12/12)

The New York Times: In Los Angeles, The ‘Coroner To The Stars’ Has The Last Word 
In most places, it is a trade of little glamour. Transporting bodies, performing autopsies — the role of a coroner’s office tends to be dismissed as a macabre necessity. But this is Los Angeles, where the list of those who have died unexpectedly is iconic: Marilyn Monroe. The Notorious B.I.G. Whitney Houston. Michael Jackson. (Knoll, 12/10)

The New York Times: Losing Hair, Gaining Followers
Zeph Sanders was 20 when his hair began to fall out. As it thinned from the density of AstroTurf to spare wisps, he hid his head under a beanie before logging on to play video games on the livestreaming platform Twitch. “I started getting people in the comments like, ‘Bro, where’s your hair?’” Mr. Sanders, now 27, said on a recent video call from his home in Orange County, Calif. “I felt a little bit more insecure as the days went on. ”Last year Mr. Sanders allowed a glimpse of his bare scalp in a video he posted to TikTok. It took off, eventually passing four million views. Hundreds of commenters suggested supposedly miraculous regrowth methods, which Mr. Sanders began trying out in his windowless bathroom, with his iPhone camera rolling. (Holtermann, 12/13)

The Washington Post: Smithsonian Took Brains From Dozens Of DC’s Most Marginalized Residents 
A 59-year-old Black woman died of epilepsy in October 1903 at the Washington Asylum Hospital, an institution that housed the District’s indigent. Almost five months later, tuberculosis killed a 21-month-old Black toddler at Children’s Hospital in D.C. The next month, an 11-year-old White boy died of a lung condition at Children’s. Upon their deaths, one of the Smithsonian Institution’s top anthropologists, Ales Hrdlicka, enlisted the local institutions and doctors to help him remove their brains to build a “racial brain collection.” Hrdlicka, who sought brains and other body parts to prove now-debunked theories on racial differences, was taking advantage of the District’s most vulnerable residents, records show. (Dungca and Healy, 12/14)

The Wall Street Journal: Pfizer Helped Save The World With Covid Vaccines. Now It Needs To Right Itself
Thousands of Pfizer employees from around the world were watching through their computer screens in October when Chief Executive Albert Bourla and other executives at the giant drugmaker stepped onto a stage for a company town hall. Pfizer had announced several days earlier it was embarking on a $3.5 billion cost-cutting effort, including layoffs. Bourla and the other executives explained the company was positioning for growth. “Future is bright…but you might get fired,” one employee wrote in the video’s chat room, which the company had left open. “Dumpster fires are [always] bright,” read another message. (Hopkins, 12/14)

Reuters: As UK Dental System Decays, Surging Numbers Seek Treatment Abroad
Once Marion Parks found out she needed intensive dental work, the 55-year-old decided her best course of action was to leave her small English village to have implants — in Istanbul. Parks is one of thousands of British people going abroad for dentistry. Where once they travelled for cosmetic work to achieve the perfect smile, now many are going for basic dental treatment that they say they cannot get in Britain. (Ravikumar and Kucukgocmen, 12/11)

Bloomberg: The Post-Dobbs Dystopian Future Is Here
The Texas Supreme Court's landmark decision to ban a woman from obtaining an abortion that her doctor said was medically necessary — and that a lower court had approved — is a nightmare come true for those in the ongoing fight for reproductive rights. (Nia-Malika Henderson, 12/14)

Stat: ReproductiveRights.Gov Needs A Major Overhaul 
Soon after the end of Roe v. Wade, President Biden issued an executive order attempting to ensure access to reproductive health care services nationally. One outcome of the executive order was the creation of a website, ReproductiveRights.gov, to offer Americans seeking reproductive health care stable, consistent, and accurate information and guidance. (Michael Stebbins and Eric D. Perakslis, 12/15)

USA Today: US Obesity Increase Is Creating An Ozempic Reliant Generation
Despite our unmatched spending on health care, we Americans are not all that healthy. Our chronic disease burden is staggering, and life expectancy slides backward for the first time in generations. We’re burning $4.5 trillion a year – more than $13,000 per citizen – on reactionary medical services, and the results of that investment are nowhere to be seen, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. (John Corsino, 12/15)

Newsweek: America—It's Time To Tell The Government We're Sick Of Big Pharma's Racket 
This year, nearly 300,000 Americans were diagnosed with prostate cancer. That's 300,000 daddies, brothers, and best friends who got hit with sledgehammer news that they have cancer. Then came the second sledgehammer—the cost of treatment. A drug called Xtandi could save their lives, but the price runs up to $190,000 a year. It's a familiar story: a diagnosis could force a family into bankruptcy to save the life of someone they love, while a giant drug company rakes in huge profits from every desperate patient. (Senator Elizabeth Warren, 12/14)

Dallas Morning News: How To Fight Back If Your Health Insurance Claim Is Denied
As open enrollment season for insurance is ending, patients should be aware of an alarming trend — the escalating rate of health insurance claim denials —and what they can do to advocate for themselves if denied coverage. Over the last year, denials have increased nearly 8%, with 11% of all claims being rejected, according to the American Medical Association. (Michael Osso, 12/15)

The Boston Globe: Give Supervised Consumption Sites A Chance To Reduce Drug-Related Deaths 
Some public health advocates have been calling for years for Massachusetts to create supervised consumption sites, where people can use illegal drugs that they obtained themselves under medical supervision. But the issue was a political nonstarter when former governor Charlie Baker opposed them, and former president Donald Trump’s US Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling promised to prosecute. (12/15)

The Washington Post: How To Maximize Health Benefits From Exercise 
For this week’s column, I wrote about three lifestyle changes that can make a big impact on health. One of them — incorporating small amounts of exercise into daily life — prompted many questions from Checkup readers. How can they measure how much exercise they are doing? And what type of exercise is best? (Leana S. Wen, 12/14)