Becker's Hospital Review: US Sets WHO Exit Date
The United States will exit the World Health Organization on Jan. 22, 2026, Reuters reported Jan. 23. The planned exit comes after President Donald Trump signed a executive order Jan. 20 removing the U.S. from the WHO over "the organization's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member state," the order said. (Ashley, 1/23)

Bloomberg: WHO Freezes Hiring And Cuts Costs After Trump Signals US Exit
The World Health Organization is freezing hiring, suspending investments and cutting non-essential travel in response to US President Donald Trump’s decision to take the US out of the global body. (Furlong, 1/24)

The Washington Post: Trump’s Anger Toward World Health Organization May Reshape Global Health, Politics 
Public health experts say the United States’ departure could cripple the WHO’s operations or leave an opening for China to assume greater control over the agency. (Diamond and Sun, 1/24)

On PEPFAR and UNAIDS —

Bloomberg: Africa CDC To Push Local Health Funding Plans As US Move Puts HIV Relief At Risk
African countries need to quickly find ways to raise local health funding as programs including the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief may be reduced, the continent’s chief health advisory body said. The call comes after President Donald Trump decided to exit the World Health Organization, a move that threatens to undermine global health security. (Kew, 1/23)

Bloomberg: UN Official At Davos Slams World Bank-Funded Private Hospitals
The executive director of UNAIDS denounced the role of for-profit health care companies in low-income countries, saying that in some cases it led to denial of emergency care and patient detentions. Speaking during a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Winnie Byanyima said that privately funded hospitals “will never guarantee the right to health for everybody.” (Furlong, 1/22)

Stat: FDA Purges Clinical Trial Diversity Pages
An effort by the Trump administration to pull down Food and Drug Administration website pages focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion has ensnared many pages focused on ensuring that clinical trials used to test drugs and medical devices include people of different ethnic and economic backgrounds. ... The scrubbing of clinical trial-related pages is notable because of how it could affect the ways researchers both inside and outside government, as well as companies, test drugs and medical devices. (Herper and Lawrence, 1/23)

On HHS and Veterans Affairs —

Modern Healthcare: RFK Jr. Confirmation Hearing Date Set For Jan. 29 
The controversial nomination of Robert Kennedy Jr. to be secretary of Health and Human Services is set to move forward next week when he will face questioning from a pair of Senate committees. Kennedy is among the least-certain of President Donald Trump's nominees to be confirmed. Democrats, who cannot block Kennedy on their own, are expected to largely but not unanimously oppose him, and some Republicans have expressed concerns about Kennedy's views on vaccines and his past support for abortion rights. (McAuliff, 1/23)

CBS News: Trump Administration Expected To Go Outside CDC For Acting Director
The Trump administration is expected to tap Susan Coller Monarez, the deputy director of a federal health research agency, to serve as the acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, multiple health officials tell CBS News. Picking Monarez would close an unprecedented leadership gap atop the CDC, which is tasked with tracking and responding to a myriad of emerging diseases and health emergencies. Other health agencies have also been operating without acting heads. (Tin, 1/23)

MedPage Today: Trump's Gag Order Halts CDC Publication
For the first time in its more than 60-year history, the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) did not go out as scheduled because of a communications pause at federal health agencies issued by the Trump administration. Past editors of MMWR and prior leaders of CDC lamented the lack of publication, and its potential impact on the distribution of vital public health information. (Robertson, 1/23)

KFF Health News: KFF Health News' 'What The Health?': Creating Chaos At HHS
President Donald Trump was sworn in Monday and by Wednesday had virtually stopped scientific policymaking at the Department of Health and Human Services. While incoming administrations often pause public communications, the acting HHS head ordered an unprecedented shutdown of all outside meetings, travel, and publications. Meanwhile, Trump issued a broad array of mostly nonbinding executive orders, but notably none directly concerning abortion. (Rovner, 1/23)

Military.com: VA Declares 300,000 Health Care Jobs Exempt From Ordered Freeze On Federal Hiring
More than 300,000 Department of Veterans Affairs health care jobs are exempt from a federal hiring freeze instituted Jan. 20 by President Donald Trump. Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Todd Hunter issued a memo Jan. 21 containing instructions for the department to comply with Trump's executive order, issued shortly after he was sworn into office. (Kime, 1/23)

On birthright citizenship and immigration —

The New York Times: A Judge Halted Trump’s Plan To End Birthright Citizenship
A federal judge temporarily blocked President Trump’s executive order declaring that children born on U.S. soil to undocumented immigrants would no longer be treated as citizens. The judge, John Coughenour, sided with states that had sued Trump arguing that the president’s order violated the 14th Amendment. “This is a blatantly unconstitutional order,” he said today. “Frankly,” Judge Coughenour, a Reagan appointee, added, “I have difficulty understanding how a member of the bar would state unequivocally that this is a constitutional order. It just boggles my mind.” (Cullen, 1/23)

New Hampshire Public Radio: NH Medical Society Speaks Out Against Policy Allowing ICE Arrests At Hospitals
The New Hampshire Medical Society is speaking out against the Trump administration’s decision to allow immigration arrests at hospitals, saying it could deter patients from seeking care. “We saw this in previous years, where there was increased and heightened threat of deportation, that resulted in delay of seeking treatment by patients with immigrant status within the state,” said Dr. Marie-Elizabeth Ramas, a board member and the medical society’s president-elect. (Cuno-Booth, 1/23)

Axios: Analysis Of 40 Cities Shows Violent Crime Dropped In 2024: Report
Violent crime in 40 U.S. cities dropped in 2024 to at or near pre-pandemic levels, according to a new report out Thursday that shows the COVID-era crime wave evaporating. President Trump has falsely asserted that immigration caused rising crime nationwide, but the new report suggests crime fell dramatically in President Biden's last two years — even below levels of Trump's last year in office. (Contreras, 1/23)

The New York Times: Instagram And Facebook Blocked And Hid Abortion Pill Providers’ Posts
Instagram and Facebook have recently blurred, blocked or removed posts from two abortion pill providers. Instagram also suspended the accounts of several abortion pill providers and hid the providers from appearing in search and recommendations. The actions ramped up in the last two weeks, and were especially noticeable in the last two days, abortion pill providers said. Content from their accounts — or in some cases, their entire accounts — were no longer visible on Instagram. (Cain Miller, Conger and Isaac, 1/23)

More on the abortion pill  —

The New York Times: New Research Finds Potential Alternative To Abortion Pill Mifepristone
A new study suggests a possible alternative to the abortion pill mifepristone, a drug that continues to be a target of lawsuits and legislation from abortion opponents. But the potential substitute could further complicate the politics of reproductive health because it is also the key ingredient in a contraceptive morning-after pill. The new study, published Thursday in the journal NEJM Evidence, involved a drug called ulipristal acetate, the active ingredient in the prescription contraceptive Ella, one of two types of morning-after pills approved in the United States. (Belluck and Bazelon, 1/23)

In other abortion and maternal health news —

The Hill: Republican Senators Introduce Bill To Ban Taxpayer Funding For Abortions
Republican lawmakers reintroduced a piece of legislation that would ban the use of federal funds for abortions or health coverage that includes abortion this week. If passed, the bill would essentially codify a decades-old policy called the Hyde Amendment which has banned the use of any federal dollars on abortions since 1977. There are two caveats, however. The Hyde Amendment does allow for federal funds to be spent on abortions if continuing a pregnancy endangers the life of the mother or if the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest. (O’Connell-Domenech, 1/23)

The Guardian: As Trump Returns, State Lawmakers Pursue Bills That Would Treat Abortion As Homicide
Legislators in at least four states have introduced bills this year that would change the legal definition of “homicide” to include abortion – proposals that pave the way for states to charge abortion patients with murder. Pregnancy Justice, a group that tracks these kinds of efforts, says it has recorded more “homicide” bills this year than ever before. Abortion bans have typically penalized providers, rather than patients. (Sherman, 1/23)

Mississippi Today: Mississippi Bill To Revise Law For Low-Income Pregnant Women Passes First Legislative Hurdle
Low-income women in Mississippi would be able to access free prenatal care faster under a bill that passed the House Medicaid committee Wednesday. The same law passed the full Legislature last year, but never went into effect due to a discrepancy between what was written into state law and federal regulations for the program, called Medicaid pregnancy presumptive eligibility. House Medicaid Chair Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, author of the bill, revised last year’s bill to remove the requirement women show proof of income. (Paffenroth, 1/23)

The New York Times: Christian Nonprofit’s Members Avoid Florida’s Group Home Standards 
As religious groups across the country open more maternity homes for pregnant women and teenagers, the nonprofit that oversees some of those homes in Florida is facing renewed criticism from state lawmakers over its practices. The nonprofit, the Florida Association of Christian Child Caring Agencies, has regulatory authority over about two dozen maternity homes, ranches for troubled youth, and group homes for children whose parents cannot take care of them. (Morel, 1/24)

Axios: Trump Pardons 23 Anti-Abortion Activists On March For Life Rally Eve
President Trump signed pardons on Thursday for 23 anti-abortion protesters who were convicted of illegally blockading a reproductive health clinic in Washington, D.C. "They should not have been prosecuted, it's a great honor to sign this," Trump said as he signed the order one day before he's due to speak via video at anti-abortion activists' annual March for Life rally at the national mall in D.C., which Vice President JD Vance is due to address in person. (Falconer, 1/24)

The Hill: Trump To Address March For Life Via Video, Vance To Speak In Person
President Trump will address the annual March for Life event on the National Mall via video message Friday, while Vice President Vance will speak to the crowd in person. The president is scheduled to visit North Carolina and California on Friday, so he will instead address the crowd via video message, organizers said. (Samuels, 1/23)

AP: March For Life Returns To Washington: What To Look For When Anti-Abortion Activists Gather
Thousands of anti-abortion activists are coming to Washington Friday for the annual March for Life, seeking to build momentum after a string of victories and maintain pressure on legislators. After decades of fighting to overturn Roe v. Wade, organizers are seeking to focus on the multiple state-by-state battles taking place over abortion rights. (Fields, Fernando and Khalil, 1/24)

The New York Times: Sensing Political Support, Abortion Opponents Raise Ambitions
Anti-abortion activists are charging ahead with their ultimate mission to end all abortions nationwide, freshly emboldened by powerful allies in Washington, a continued Supreme Court majority and legislative opportunities in conservative states. At the March for Life on Friday, the three most powerful men in America are expected to give remarks: President Trump via recorded video, and Vice President JD Vance and Speaker Mike Johnson in person. On Thursday Mr. Trump pardoned 23 activists convicted of obstructing access to abortion clinics. (Dias and Lerer, 1/24)

The New York Times: Sacklers Up Their Offer To Settle Purdue Opioids Cases, With A New Condition 
Seven months after the Supreme Court struck down a deal that would have resolved thousands of opioid cases against Purdue Pharma, the company’s owners, members of the Sackler family, have increased their cash offer to settle the litigation — but with a novel catch. Under the framework for a new deal, the Sacklers would not receive immunity from future opioid lawsuits, a condition that they had long insisted upon but that the court ruled was impermissible. (Hoffman, 1/23)

In other pharmaceutical news —

Fierce Healthcare: AIDS Org Wins $10M Antitrust Ruling Over Prime Therapeutics
An arbitrator has determined Prime Therapeutics violated federal and state antitrust laws against the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) and independent pharmacies. In a ruling (PDF) handed down Jan. 17, the AHF was awarded more than $10 million and injunctive relief after Prime Therapeutics was found to engage in horizontal price-fixing with Cigna’s pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), Express Scripts. (Tong, 1/23)

MedPage Today: More Thyroid Cancers Found After Starting GLP-1s: Researchers Think They Know Why
More thyroid cancers were detected soon after starting a GLP-1 receptor agonist than other diabetes drugs, a secondary analysis of a target trial emulation of a comparative effectiveness study found. ... But when the analysis was broadened beyond year one -- now looking at any length of time since treatment initiation -- GLP-1 agonist use wasn't significantly tied with thyroid cancer compared with the three other diabetes drug classes (HR 1.24, 95% CI 0.88-1.76), they wrote in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery. (Monaco, 1/23)

On vaccines and vaccine hesitancy —

CNBC: Norovirus Vaccine From Moderna Could Have Phase 3 Results This Year
Norovirus is raging across the U.S. this winter. Moderna might soon have a vaccine for it. A large phase three trial of the shot is underway, with results expected as soon as later this year or 2026. Moderna needs to see a certain number of cases before it can analyze the data and determine how well its vaccine works, putting the timeline in flux. The 25,000-person study is enrolling ahead of schedule, said Doran Fink, Moderna’s clinical therapeutic area head for gastrointestinal and bacterial pathogens. (Peebles, 1/23)

The New York Times: Yes, Some Vaccines Contain Aluminum. That’s A Good Thing.
R.F.K. Jr. and others have blamed the ingredient for allergies and other illnesses. Scientists say it actually bolsters the immune response. (Rosenbluth, 1/24)

The New York Times: Pediatricians Try New Tactics To Win Over Vaccine Skeptical Parents
In pediatricians’ offices across the country, doctors are increasingly confronting concerns from parents about vaccines that for decades have protected children from serious and sometimes deadly diseases. Vaccine hesitancy is nothing new. But physicians say this skepticism has gained new momentum in recent years as vaccine misinformation has become widespread on social media, and as more Americans have become distrustful of the medical establishment. (Moyer, 1/24)

Stat: UnitedHealth Group Names Noel As Head Of Health Insurance Business
UnitedHealth Group has named Tim Noel as the next CEO of UnitedHealthcare, replacing Brian Thompson, who was killed in New York City in December. (Herman, 1/23)

The Daily Pennsylvanian: 2020 Penn Graduate, Murder Suspect Luigi Mangione Detailed Health Impact Of Fraternity ‘Hell Week’ 
2020 Engineering graduate Luigi Mangione was affiliated with Phi Psi, a University-affiliated fraternity. He suffered from mental and physical health problems while at Penn, which he claimed in a social media post was exacerbated by his fraternity’s “hell week" — the final week of intense pledging ahead of initiation. Mangione also posted frequently on Reddit about his difficulty maintaining focus amid exhaustion and brain fog. His posts also attributed his decline in academic success to these issues, citing their negative impact on his overall well-being. (Mahtani and Grantland, 1/25)

On the high cost of health care —

Modern Healthcare: High Cancer Costs Drive Employers To Focus On Screenings, Tests
Employers faced with rising cancer rates among working-age people and costly new treatments are adding specialized programs to their employee benefits in hopes of containing costs. Businesses are offering more screening options and hiring vendors such as Color Health that promise to help workers identify the disease early, thus giving them their best chance and potentially saving money. (Berryman, 1/23)

CIDRAP: Analysis Shows Significant Financial Burden Of Long COVID In US
Managing long-COVID cases could cost US employers $1.99 billion to $6.49 billion annually, according to a new model published yesterday in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. The model estimates current and future financial burdens related to long COVID, which affects an estimated 44.7 million to 48.0 million Americans. The model took into account the clinical course, health effects, and associated costs of a person with long COVID for 1 year. ... Approximately 92.5% to 95.2% of these costs come from productivity losses. (Soucheray, 1/23)

The CT Mirror: Amid Prospect Medical Bankruptcy, Lamont Proposes Oversight Bill
Connecticut officials gathered at the state Capitol Thursday to announce a proposal backed by Gov. Ned Lamont enhancing state oversight of major mergers, acquisitions and asset transfers in the health care sector. (Golvala, 1/23)

Fierce Healthcare: Healthcare Bankruptcies Dip In 2024, Report Finds
Though not quite reaching 2023’s highs, healthcare bankruptcies remained elevated across 2024 with a six-year high among physician practices as well as “the largest hospital sector bankruptcy by far in the last 30 years,” according to new research from Gibbins Advisors. The restructuring advisory firm’s Thursday report outlined 57 Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings among healthcare companies with more than $10 million in liabilities. This was down from the high of 79 filings during the prior year but remains above the average of 42 filings seen from 2019 to 2022, per the report. (Muoio, 1/23)

KFF Health News: A Program To Close Insurance Gaps For Native Americans Has Gone Largely Unused
A few years before the covid-19 pandemic, Dale Rice lost a toe to infection. But because he was uninsured at the time, the surgery at a Reno, Nevada, hospital led to years of anguish. He said he owes the hospital more than $20,000 for the procedure and still gets calls from collection agencies. “It can cause a lot of anxiety,” Rice said. “I can’t give you what I don’t have.” (Orozco Rodriguez, 1/24)

On AI in health care —

Politico: Boosting AI At The VA
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) wants to know whether VA secretary nominee Doug Collins, a former Republican congressman from Georgia, will use artificial intelligence to process the massive backlog of people applying for VA disability benefits. Cassidy pressed Collins on the VA’s AI capabilities during a Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday. ... As it turns out, the department started using AI to tackle its claims backlog at least five years ago. (Reader, Payne and Paun, 1/23)

Newsweek: Texas May Change Rules For Health Insurance Companies
Texas lawmaker is trying to push for the state to tighten controls on health insurance companies using artificial intelligence (AI) to handle patient claims. Newsweek has contacted Texas Senator Charles Schwertner, who filed the new legislation, via email for comment. (Laws, 1/23)

San Francisco Chronicle: Studies: S.F. Strategy Helps Combat Sexually Transmitted Infections
Rates of chlamydia and syphilis — two of the most common sexually transmitted infections in the United States — plummeted in one key demographic after patients were offered a widely prescribed antibiotic after sex, according to two new studies by San Francisco researchers. The studies, published in JAMA Internal Medicine this month, found that incidence of syphilis and chlamydia fell dramatically among gay and bisexual men and transgender women after patients were offered doxy-PEP, short for doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis. (Ho, 1/23)

In news from Maryland, North Carolina, and Colorado —

The Washington Post: Maryland Crematory Shut Down After Bodies Found Piled Up, Decomposing
Maryland officials have suspended the operating permit of a crematory in the southern part of the state after inspections showed that, among other things, has allowed bodies to pile up and block a refrigeration unit door from closing, with some visibly decomposing after being stored at too-warm temperatures. The Board of Morticians and Funeral Directors has reached out to people and funeral homes who may have worked with Heaven Bound Cremation Services LLC to inform them of a disciplinary order issued on Jan. 17 against the crematory located about 30 miles south of Washington. (Shepherd and Mettler, 1/24)

The Baltimore Sun: Baltimore Area Food Insecurity Is Down, Hopkins Survey Says
The 2024 Baltimore Area Survey conducted by Johns Hopkins University researchers found less food insecurity for Black residents as well as higher satisfaction with schools and local governments. (Bazos, 1/23)

North Carolina Health News: NC Man With Disabilities Waits Months In An ED For A Better Place To Stay
For more than four months, 32-year-old Jackson Hedgepeth has lived in a small room at Atrium Health Union hospital in Monroe, waiting for help. Jackson has autism, and he’s nonverbal. He’s been on the waitlist for admission to J. Iverson Riddle, a state-operated center that provides services for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities (often referred to as I/DD) for more than a year. (Vespa, 1/24)

The Colorado Sun: Colorado Plans To Limit Coverage Of Weight-Loss Drugs Like Wegovy For State Employees To Save $17M 
Colorado plans to start limiting insurance coverage of prescription weight-loss drugs for its roughly 40,000 state employees, a cost-cutting measure in a difficult budget year that officials say will save nearly $17 million annually. (Paul, 1/23)

In bird flu updates —

CIDRAP: Avian Flu Hits More Poultry In 4 States Amid Snow Geese Deaths In Delaware
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) today confirmed more H5N1 avian flu detections in poultry from four states, all involving commercial poultry. Two of the events involved broiler farms, one a facility in Arkansas’ Cleveland County that has nearly 107,000 birds and another in Maryland’s Dorchester County that has 152,000 chickens. (Schnirring, 1/23)

Healthbeat: Bird Flu Isn’t An Immediate Health Threat In New York. But Preparations Have Begun.
As more cases of bird flu emerge across the country, public health leaders in New York City are watching warily — and making preparations in case the virus becomes a more immediate threat. There have been no confirmed cases of bird flu in humans in New York state. But cases have emerged recently among wild birds and poultry, including at a commercial farm on Long Island, which started euthanizing 100,000 ducks this week. (Fawcett, 1/24)

Stat: Inside The Looming Crisis In The Infant Formula Market
Danielle and Andrew West spent their first month as parents praying their child would live. Their son Owen, born six weeks early in November 2015, developed necrotizing enterocolitis a few days after birth. The condition kills bowel tissue and is most common in preterm babies, where it is often deadly. The illness was sudden and mysterious. Their doctor could not tell them precisely where it had come from. (Lawrence, 1/21)

AP: How Scientists With Disabilities Are Making Labs More Accessible 
The path to Lost Lake was steep and unpaved, lined with sharp rocks and holes. A group of scientists and students gingerly made their way, using canes or a helping hand to guide them. For those who couldn’t make the trek, a drone brought the lake — blue and narrow — into view. The field trip was designed to illustrate the challenges disabled researchers often face and how barriers can be overcome. “Just because you can’t do it like someone else doesn’t mean you can’t do it,” said Anita Marshall, a University of Florida geologist leading the outing. (Ramakrishnan, 1/18)

AP: How Baltimore Is Saving Lives By Offering Young Men Resources When They Put Down The Guns 
With his dad in prison and his mom suffering from alcoholism, Malik Grant faced abandonment and instability early on. ... Two years later, Grant has an apartment and a full-time job with the city’s Department of Public Works. ... Grant, 29, is among about 200 people receiving support through Baltimore’s relatively new Group Violence Reduction Strategy, which targets the root causes of gun violence: hopelessness, joblessness, poverty, mental health, substance abuse, housing instability, poor conflict resolution and more. (Skene, 1/19)

The New York Times: How Trump Was Persuaded to Pardon an Online Drug Kingpin
Libertarian and crypto allies of Ross Ulbricht, who was serving a life sentence for distributing drugs on his Silk Road website, leveraged President Trump’s desire for political support to secure his release. (Yaffe-Bellany and Mac, 1/22)

Politico: What Samantha Power Regrets And Her Advice To The Trump Administration
For a self-proclaimed idealist like Samantha Power, the last four years have been tough. As administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, she’s been a key player in delivering U.S. assistance to Ukraine and managing responses to humanitarian crises in Armenia, Haiti, Sudan, Congo and other regions of the world. And of course, no humanitarian crisis in recent memory has been quite as devastating and all-consuming for the U.S. aid agency as the war between Israel and Hamas, which has left the Gaza Strip in ruins. In an exit interview with POLITICO Magazine, Power voiced regret that the Biden administration wasn’t able to stop the war more quickly. (Gramer and Bazail-Eimil, 1/19)

The New York Times: Without The United States, Global Health Will Fall Apart
The United States has long been a leader in global health, and it is critical to the safety of Americans that we remain so — which is why some of President Trump’s isolationist impulses are worrisome. (Kathleen Sebelius, 1/24)

Chicago Tribune: Illinoisans Must Stay Vigilant On Abortion Rights
Many Illinois residents believe their abortion rights and access are “Trump proof,” thanks to many years of legislative victories in Springfield. It’s true that Springfield has put important protections into place in recent years, such as the Reproductive Health Act, the expansion of Medicaid and private insurance coverage for abortion care, and protections for patients and providers from criminalization. But the scary truth is, our rights remain at risk with Donald Trump in the White House with control over the Supreme Court and both the House and Senate. (Sarah Garza Resnick, 1/24)

The Washington Post: I Photographed Abortion Clinics. What Caught My Eye Hung On The Walls. 
I’ve lived in Ohio for a little over a decade. When I moved to the Midwest in 2014 for a teaching job, there were 29 functioning abortion clinics. Today there are nine. (Carmen Winant, 1/23)

The New York Times: A Legacy Of Lies Is Stalling The Quest To Cure Alzheimer's
Medical advances have beaten back many relentless assassins in recent decades, such as cancer and heart disease. A wide range of treatments share credit: surgery, medicines, radiation, genetic therapies and healthful habits. Mortality rates for those two diseases, the top causes of death in the United States, have fallen sharply. But in an aging population, Alzheimer’s death rates have gone in the opposite direction. (Charles Piller, 1/24)

The Boston Globe: AG Campbell’s Suit Highlights Why Insulin Prices Are So High
In 2021, the FDA approved a new insulin drug, Semglee, that was interchangeable with a brand-name insulin called Lantus. Lantus cost $292 for a 30-day supply. Drugmaker Viatris launched two versions of its drug — Semglee cost $269 and a generic version cost $99 for the same amount, according to the Biosimilars Council. Now, in a rational world, insurers would immediately switch to the generic drug so patients with diabetes could save money. (1/24)

Stat: Homelessness Is A Health Care Problem
When we first encountered Daniel, we didn’t have a medical van. Back then we drove our own vehicles around town, searching for people who needed care. Daniel fit the bill. He was in his late 30s, had a lengthy criminal record, and had been living on the streets of Long Beach, California, for two years. (Indu Subaiya and Benjamin Kaska, 1/24)

Also —

The Boston Globe: Addiction Treatment Should Be Free
For people who study the opioid epidemic, 2025 marks a grim anniversary: It has been 30 years since the Food and Drug Administration approved the opioid OxyContin for the treatment of chronic pain. The crisis that ensued is dizzying in its reach and scope, but there is little doubt that Purdue Pharma’s reckless and cynical rollout of OxyContin marked the beginning. (Philip Eil, 1/23)

Stat: Overdose Rates Are Still Far Too High Among Black Americans
For years, we have studied and cared for patients living with a condition that resulted in annual death rates in the U.S. of more than 100,000 people per year. Now, we have seen the first real sign of hope in more than a decade: a stunning 14% decline in the national overdose death rate. We are encouraged by this sharp decline, yet are also deeply troubled that this hard-fought progress is not being shared equally across all our communities. (Natrina L. Johnson and Miriam Komaromy, 1/24)