The Hill: Oncologists Urge Congress To Act On Cancer Drug Shortages 
The House Energy & Commerce subcommittee on health held a hearing on Tuesday to examine avenues for improving preparedness against public health security risks. The hearing occurred amid an ongoing shortage of chemotherapy drugs in the U.S. ... “Frustration and outright anger do not begin to describe how I feel in reading heartbreak stories of patients with cancer not being able to receive treatment due to shortages of decades-old, low-cost generic drugs,” Ted Okon, executive director of the Community Oncology Alliance, told the House panel on Tuesday. (Weixel and Choi, 6/14)

Ohio Capital Journal: Cancer Drug Shortages Decried In Congressional Hearing
There’s an acute shortage of injectable cancer drugs because manufacturers can’t make money off of them, two experts told a U.S. House subcommittee Tuesday. But it’s unclear whether chaos in the GOP Caucus that’s supposed to be running the chamber will allow for action. The testimony came before the Health Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. A subject of the hearing was to consider reauthorization of the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness Act, or PAHPA. It was passed in 2006 amid a threat of an Avian Influenza pandemic that didn’t materialize, but was used heavily during the coronavirus pandemic 14 years later. (Schladen, 6/15)

CIDRAP: Life-Threatening Cancer Drug Shortages Are Result Of A Cascade Of Troubles
The current shortage of widely used cancer drugs—the result of a convergence of ongoing problems—is putting adults' and children's lives at risk in the United States and globally, experts say. ... Supplies of at least 20 chemotherapy drugs and adjuvants (drugs given to augment primary treatment or prevent adverse effects) are limited, including amifostine, capecitabine, carboplatin, cisplatin, dacarbazine, dexamethasone, docetaxel, fludarabine, fluorouracil, hydrocortisone injection, leucovorin, methotrexate, octreotide, ondansetron, paclitaxel, palifermin, and streptozocin, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), and azacytidine, cytarabine, lutetium lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan, per the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). (Van Beusekom, 6/14)

Also —

Miami Herald: Recall: Cancer, AIDS Drugs In Bipolar Disorder Drugs’ Boxes
Boxes labeled for a drug used for mental health patients actually had blister packets of a drug used to help patients dealing with AIDS or cancer treatments. The Harvard Group aka Major Pharmaceutical and Rugby Labatories recalled one lot each of Ziprasidone Hydrochloride, 20 mg strength, and Dronabinol capsules, 2.5 mg strength. The blister packs of Dronabinol were inside the boxes labeled for Ziprasidone, although the blister packs were labeled as containing Dronabinol. (Neal, 6/14)

Axios: Medicare Surge To Drive Health Care Spending Past $7 Trillion
A surge of Medicare spending on hospitals and other services later this decade will push U.S. health care expenditures to outpace inflation and top $7.2 trillion by 2031, federal actuaries said on Wednesday. (Bettelheim, 6/15)

Modern Healthcare: CMS: National Health Expenditures To Surpass $7T A Year 
National health expenditures will surpass $7 trillion and consume nearly one-fifth of the U.S. economy in 2031, according to projections the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Office of the Actuary published Wednesday. Healthcare spending will rise by an average of 5.4% a year from 2022 through 2031, when it will reach $7.17 trillion, or 19.6% of gross domestic product. "Health spending over the course of the next 10 years is expected to grow more rapidly, on average, than the overall economy," CMS actuaries wrote in the journal Health Affairs. (Turner, 6/14)

In updates from the CDC —

Roll Call: CDC Alerts States Of Cuts To STI Workforce, Blames Debt Deal
The CDC told states on Tuesday that it was reducing funding for workers who fight sexually transmitted infections by $400 million, according to an email obtained by CQ Roll Call. The spending cuts are caused by the recently passed debt ceiling deal. (Cohen, 6/14)

Stat: How Mandy Cohen Would Bring Political Chops To CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may be about to undergo a paradigm shift with the anticipated appointment of former North Carolina health secretary Mandy Cohen as the agency’s next director. (Branswell, 6/15)

On antibiotic resistance —

Reuters: U.S. Farm Agency To Better Verify Antibiotic Use Claims On Meat
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will take steps to better verify antibiotic-free labels on meat and poultry products after receiving petitions challenging its existing process for not being rigorous enough, the agency announced Wednesday. Consumer, food safety and environmental groups have long warned that the overuse of antibiotics in livestock farming can contribute to human antibiotic resistance. The World Health Organization in 2017 recommended that the food industry curtail antibiotic use to fight resistance. (Douglas, 6/14)

On the drug pricing debate on Capitol Hill —

Modern Healthcare: Senate PBM Bill Would Unlink Fees, Rebates From Drug Prices
Pharmacy benefit managers would not be allowed to incorporate fees, pharmaceutical company rebates and other costs into prescription drug prices for Medicare Part D plans under bipartisan Senate legislation introduced Wednesday. (Nzanga, 6/14)

Modern Healthcare: Pharmacy Benefit Manager Legislation Explained
Pharmacy benefit managers are in the federal government's crosshairs. Here's how they got there and what could happen next. (Nzanga, 6/14)

Politico: Thousands Lose Medicaid In Arkansas: Is This America’s Future? 
Twaniesha Boose was surprised to get a call from her doctor recently canceling her appointment because her Medicaid was terminated. The reason surprised her even more. Boose lost her health insurance because she failed to submit paperwork to help the state collect the child support she is owed. “What’s that got to do with me, the kids’ dad?” she said on a 90-degree June day inside a stuffy, unairconditioned community center in Marvell, where Legal Aid attorneys tried to help people who had recently lost their Medicaid. “If you don’t cooperate, they turn off everything.” (Messerly, 6/14)

Politico: Meet 5 Arkansans Who Are Worried About Their Family’s Medicaid 
Anxiety is high in Arkansas as the state decides how many of its more than 1 million Medicaid recipients should keep their health insurance. Not only is Arkansas one of the poorest states in the nation — more than a third of its residents are enrolled in the health insurance program for low-income people — but the state is rushing to complete its review of whether people who kept their Medicaid during the pandemic are still eligible for it in six months, instead of the 12 months the Biden administration has recommended. (Messerly, 6/14)

WLRN: 'Trying To Survive': Families Dropped From Medicaid Seek Reinstatement
Vanessa Brito, a public policy analyst and community activist in Miami, has been busy on Facebook alerting Medicaid recipients around Florida to make sure they haven’t been booted off the government medical insurance program for low-income families and individuals. “I'm getting people that are either going to the doctor or going to the pharmacy to pick up their refill for the month and they're being told, 'Well, your Medicaid is no longer active,'" Brito said. ... One of her Facebook followers, Melissa, who asked WLRN not to use her last name because she worries speaking out might impact her employment, said she got no notice from state officials. She lives in Titusville, near Cape Canaveral, and her children recently lost Medicaid. "We never got anything telling us to re-certify," she said. "We never got anything saying we were booted out of the system.” (Zaragovia, 6/15)

The 19th: Loss Of Medicaid Dental Coverage Greatly Impacts Pregnant People, Researcher Says
Over a million Americans have begun losing Medicaid coverage, among them postpartum parents who relied on it for dental care that helped protect their health during pregnancy and beyond. (Barber, 6/14)

In other Medicaid news —

Montana Free Press: Montana Governor Boosts Medicaid Payments For Health Care Providers By Hundreds Of Millions
Gov. Greg Gianforte on Wednesday announced signing the state’s roughly $14.3 billion primary budget bill, creating a roadmap for funding state government for the next two years and substantially increasing reimbursement rates for health care providers who care for Medicaid patients. (Silvers, 6/14)

NJ Spotlight News: Hospital System To Leave NJ Medicaid Network, Could Send Special-Needs Kids Scrambling For Care
South Jersey families with children who need highly specialized health care are worried about what will happen after a Delaware-based children’s hospital system with a growing presence here leaves New Jersey’s Medicaid network, a withdrawal that begins Aug. 1.Nemours Children’s Health alerted New Jersey patients and doctors in late April that it will no longer accept new cases under the state’s Medicaid managed-care plans, which insure almost 97% of the 2.3 million residents in the state- and federally funded program, after that date. (Stainton, 6/15)

Stat: Health Insurance Stocks Tumble On UnitedHealth Comments
Atop executive at UnitedHealth Group said Tuesday that the health insurance and services conglomerate has noticed “a meaningfully higher number” of outpatient visits among Medicare patients in the second quarter of this year. The trend indicates a lot of older adults are getting care they had previously put off, which would eat into insurers’ earnings. (Herman, 6/14)

Reuters: US Drug Overdose Deaths Top 109,000 In The Past Year 
More than 109,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in the 12-month period ending January 2023, a slight increase from the previous year, according to provisional data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released on Wednesday. The figure is up 0.7% from 108,825 overdoses recorded in the 12-month period ending January 2022, according to U.S. data. (Srinivasan and Mandowara, 6/14)

National Institutes Of Health: Men Died Of Overdose At 2-3 Times Greater A Rate Than Women In The U.S. In 2020-2021
Men were significantly more vulnerable than women to overdose deaths involving opioid and stimulant drugs in 2020-2021, according to a new study(link is external) analyzing death records data from across the United States. (6/14)

Also —

ABC News: California Authorities Seize Enough Fentanyl In San Francisco To Kill City's Entire Population Nearly 3 Times Over
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced late Wednesday that the state's highway patrol has seized enough fentanyl in San Francisco in the past six weeks to kill the city's entire population nearly three times over. (Winsor, 6/15)

The New York Times: San Francisco Mayor London Breed Discusses City Struggles 
"My perspective growing up in San Francisco is a lot different than the perspective of the people who have problems with my approach," said Mayor London Breed. "I have relationships with a lot of the people who are experiencing challenges every day and suffering with addiction. Addiction is a complicated thing. It requires tough love. It requires force to a certain extent, not tolerance." (Fuller, 6/14)

Los Angeles Times: Counterfeit Pills Now Found In Pharmacies Across Mexico
Some of the pills looked just like antibiotics. Others were unlabeled white tablets. Several mimicked well-known American pills, and a few came in sealed bottles. They were all purchased in Mexico, at legitimate pharmacies from Tulum, at the country’s southeast tip, to Tijuana, at the northwest border with California. And at least half of them were fakes. (Sheets and Blakinger, 6/14)

In other news about addiction —

Healthline: Can Ozempic And Wegovy Really Help Curb Addiction Too?
Ozempic, a medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, has been making headlines in recent times for its weight loss benefits. Now, a growing number of users report that Ozempic and Wegovy — a class of drugs known as GLP-1 agonists that contain the active compound semaglutide — have also reduced their addictive tendencies. (Stokes, 6/14)

AP: Suicides And Homicides Among Young Americans Jumped Early In Pandemic, Study Says 
The homicide rate for older U.S. teenagers rose to its highest point in nearly 25 years during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the suicide rate for adults in their early 20s was the worst in more than 50 years, government researchers said Thursday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report examined the homicide and suicide rates among 10- to 24-year-olds from 2001 to 2021. (Stobbe, 6/15)

Big Think: Most Americans Unaware Of 988 Mental Health Helpline
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline relaunched last year with a new number, yet few Americans are aware of the helpline and its purpose. (Dickinson, 6/14)

If you are in need of help —

Dial 9-8-8 for 24/7 support from the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It's free and confidential.

In other mental health news —

Sports Illustrated: Nick Kyrgios Says He Considered Suicide After 2019 Wimbledon Loss 
Tennis star Nick Kyrgios is opening up again about the mental health issues he dealt with during the 2019 season, saying he contemplated suicide during a time of personal struggles. Kyrgios harmed himself that year, specifically on his arms, to the point that he had to wear sleeves to cover up his scars, he said in upcoming episodes of Netflix’s tennis docuseries Break Point. (Williams, 6/14)

Houston Chronicle: Consuming News Focused On Kindness Proven To Help Mood, Study Found
A stroll through the crime section — recounting stories of death, injury and violence — may leave a reader harboring feelings of anxiety or hopelessness, which is a key component of a study by associate professor Kathryn Buchanan at the University of Essex. To combat these feelings, she suggests something not previously proven to counteract bad news: Reading positive stories, or, the news of kindness. In her research, Buchanan found news focusing on acts of kindness made people feel positive emotions, dispelling some of the negative feelings coming from viewing bad news. (Fonstein, 6/14)

Insider Higher Ed: Report: Campus Mental Health Services And Their Effectiveness
A new report from the American Council on Education offers analysis of different programs with proven evidence to have impacted students’ well-being, and those that are under evaluation. To address the student mental health crisis, colleges and universities have implemented a swath of resources and services targeting mental well-being and resilience. Evaluating the effectiveness of each measure, however, remains a challenge for leaders. (Mowreader, 6/14)

The Hill: Google Hosts, Profits From Fake Abortion Clinic Ads: Report
Google is profiting from ads placed by anti-abortion groups for so-called crisis pregnancy centers that pose as reproductive healthcare clinics but aim to dissuade pregnant people from accessing abortion care, according to a report released Thursday. The report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate’s (CCDH), a non-profit that aims to counter online misinformation, found that Google earned an estimated $10.2 million from ads for the fake abortion clinics in the last two years. (Klar, 6/15)

Axios: Ban On Selling Cellphone Location-Based Data Pushed In Massachusetts By Pro-Abortion Rights Advocates
There's a new effort afoot to restrict cellphone data-sharing, in order to protect the privacy of patients seeking abortions and gender-affirming care in the state. A coalition of advocacy groups, led by the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, launched a campaign today to push for a state law banning the sale and trade of cellphone-based location data. (Solis, 6/14)

In other abortion updates —

The Washington Post: Documents Show How Conservative Doctors Influenced Abortion, Trans Rights
A small group of conservative doctors has sought to shape the nation’s most contentious policies on abortion and transgender rights by promoting views rejected by the medical establishment as scientific fact, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post that describe the group’s internal strategies. (Weber, Gilbert and Lorenz, 6/15)

WGLT: Illinois Continues To Enact Abortion Protections A Year After Roe V. Wade Reversal
Reproductive rights advocates look to Illinois as a Midwestern safe haven for abortion access, while opponents of abortion say the state has gone to extreme lengths to make it the “abortion capital” of the country. Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, the abortion battle in Illinois rages on — despite the state previously enacting some of the strongest abortion protections in the country. Since June 2022, Democratic state lawmakers have passed a slew of bills ramping up protections for out-of-state patients and expanding overall access. But a small coalition of GOP legislators has been working to undo many of the abortion-rights bills introduced by their colleagues across the aisle — without much luck. (Iqbal, 6/14)

Los Angeles Times: Camp Pendleton Marine And Accomplice Charged With Firebombing Costa Mesa Planned Parenthood 
FBI agents and naval investigators arrested an active duty U.S. Marine and his alleged accomplice Wednesday on federal charges of firebombing a Costa Mesa Planned Parenthood clinic last year. (Winton, 6/14)

Politico: Tuberville Rejects GOP Attempts To End Military Promotions Blockade 
Sen. Tommy Tuberville is rejecting off-ramps and advice from more senior Republicans to end his hold on military promotions, even as Pentagon officials step up their warnings that the maneuver is compromising America’s security. ... Tuberville first imposed the blocks in protest of the Defense Department’s new policy to pay travel costs for service members seeking abortion or other reproductive care. He claims that decision from late last year cuts against the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, and vows to maintain the holds until Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin changes course or the senator gets a straightforward vote on the issue. (Ward, Gould and O'Brien, 6/14)

NPR: Nearly A Year Later, Most Americans Oppose Supreme Court's Decision Overturning Roe
The data, released days before the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision that overturned decades of precedent, suggests continued growth in public support for abortion rights. It comes at a time when many states are implementing new restrictions, which often include only limited exceptions for medical emergencies. A year after Dobbs, 61% of respondents said overturning Roe was a "bad thing," while 38% said it was a "good thing." (McCammon, 6/14)

In other reproductive health news —

The Texas Tribune: Austin Employee’s Stillbirth Prompts Calls To Change Parental Leave Policy
When Elena Andres held her stillborn daughter in her arms, she thought there was no way she could feel more devastated than she did at that moment. The 15-hour labor wrecked her body, and she was drowning in grief. Rather than enjoying the early hours of her daughter’s life, she was filling out a mountain of paperwork and figuring out funeral home logistics. When Andres notified her employer, Austin Public Health, that she’d be starting her planned maternity leave a little early, the response added insult to all that injury. She no longer qualified for the city’s eight-week paid parental leave, human resources told her. “I felt so small, like they were saying my pregnancy didn’t count,” Andres said. “Like my daughter didn’t count.” (Klibanoff, 6/15)

CNN: Scientists Report Creation Of First Human Synthetic Model Embryos
A team of researchers in the United States and United Kingdom say they have created the world’s first synthetic human embryo-like structures from stem cells, bypassing the need for eggs and sperm. These embryo-like structures are at the very earliest stages of human development: They don’t have a beating heart or a brain, for example. But scientists say they could one day help advance the understanding of genetic diseases or the causes of miscarriages. (Goodman, 6/14)

The Washington Post: Endometriosis May Be Caused By Bacteria Commonly Found In The Gut, Mouth 
Emerging research points to a possible link between endometriosis, a chronic disease that causes debilitating pain, and bacteria commonly found in the mouth and gastrointestinal tract. Endometriosis has baffled physicians for years. The condition affects roughly 10 percent of women worldwide and more than 11 percent in the United States. Scientists have theorized about possible triggers, but for now the root cause is largely unknown, which means treatment options are limited. (Malhi, 6/14)

WBUR News: Harvard Medical School Morgue Manager Accused Of Stealing, Selling Human Body Parts As Part Of 'Nationwide Network'
A manager of Harvard Medical School's morgue and his wife are accused of stealing human body parts — among them heads, brains, skin and bones — from donated cadavers and selling them, according to a federal indictment. Cedric Lodge, 55, was identified as the morgue manager in a federal indictment filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Lodge and five others, including his wife, Denise Lodge, 63, are facing charges of conspiracy and transport of stolen goods. (Jarmanning, 6/14)

The Boston Globe: Harvard Morgue Manager Accused Of Stealing, Selling Body Parts
According to Harvard Medical School, Lodge’s responsibilities included “preparing for and intaking anatomical donors’ bodies, coordinating embalming, overseeing the storage and movement of cadavers to and from teaching labs, and, when studies were complete, preparing remains to be transported to and from the external crematorium and, when appropriate, for burial.” He did not manage other employees, according to the school’s media relations team. (Porter, 6/14)

In other health care industry news —

KFF Health News: International Rights Group Calls Out US For Allowing Hospitals To Push Millions Into Debt 
Human Rights Watch, the nonprofit that for decades has called attention to the victims of war, famine, and political repression around the world, is taking aim at U.S. hospitals for pushing millions of American patients into debt. In a new report, published June 15, the group calls for stronger government action to protect Americans from aggressive billing and debt collection by nonprofit hospitals, which Human Rights Watch said are systematically undermining patients’ human rights. (Levey, 6/15)

The Baltimore Sun: Johns Hopkins University And Health System Hit By MOVEit Data Breach; Students And Patients Asked To Be Vigilant
Students, staff and faculty at the Johns Hopkins University as well as patients at the related medical system may have had sensitive information exposed following a recent cybersecurity attack on widely used software, according to the institution. A data breach May 31 involving MOVEit, a file transfer software, impacted both the private research university as well as Johns Hopkins Medicine, the university and medical system said in a letter. (Belson, 6/14)

Stat: Advisory Group Rejects Bid To Make Medical Device Tracking Easier
Every medical device has its own unique code, allowing manufacturers to keep track of their products once they enter the market. But while these codes are critical for recalling faulty devices or issuing updates, they rarely make their way into health records. (Lawrence, 6/14)

Modern Healthcare: Top Takeaways From Modern Healthcare's ESG Summit
Tackling environmental, social and governance issues in the healthcare industry requires a long-term view that can often be overshadowed by daily operations. Health system executives at this week's Modern Healthcare’s ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit addressed strategies to reduce carbon emissions, vetting suppliers based on their carbon footprints and incorporating sustainable governance structures, among other topics. Here are five takeaways. (Kacik, 6/14)

CIDRAP: Monoclonal Antibody Injection Shown To Prevent COVID-19 During Delta, Omicron
A single injection of the monoclonal antibody adintrevimab prevented COVID-19 in the phase 2/3 EVADE trial, finds a study yesterday in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. The randomized controlled trial measured outcomes among 2,582 vaccine-naive participants ages 12 years and older who received either a single 300-milligram intramuscular injection of adintrevimab or placebo. ... There were no serious side effects reported during the study. (Soucheray, 6/14)

More on covid —

CNN: FDA Advisers To Vote On Composition Of Fall Covid-19 Boosters
A panel of outside advisers to the US Food and Drug Administration will vote Thursday on the composition of updated Covid-19 vaccines that are expected to roll out in the fall, as the pandemic continues to recede from daily life but the coronavirus shows no signs of slowing its evolution. In documents posted this week, the FDA said available evidence suggests that the new vaccine should protect against just one strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus – a departure from the currently available bivalent vaccines – and should target one of three that are currently circulating in the US. Called XBB.1.5, XBB.1.16 and XBB.2.3, they’re all sublineages of the Omicron variant. (Tirrell, 6/15)

Time: Want to Predict the Next Big COVID-19 Variant to Hit the U.S.? Look to Airports
With the summer travel season about to begin, public-health officials face a daunting challenge in keeping on top of ever-evolving COVID-19 variants. Most countries—including the U.S.—have scaled down or eliminated pandemic measures, including pre-flight testing and screening, giving the virus a greater opportunity to slip into countries undetected and start spreading. But even though the U.S. now has less robust COVID-19 data collection, one important but little-known source remains: samples from international passengers flying into the U.S. (Park, 6/14)

Bloomberg: Covid Test Maker Ellume Set To Liquidate After Failed Sale To Hough Consolidated
An Australian company that clinched the first US clearance for its at-home Covid-19 test kit has collapsed into liquidation after a sale to a competitor fell through. Covid-19 test maker Ellume Ltd.’s sale to Hough Consolidated Pty Ltd. unraveled this week, and the company is now winding down operations, according to a statement. Hough had agreed to buy the company in December for $38 million (A$56 million), but the deal fell apart after Hough made repeated requests to extend deadlines tied to the agreement. (Griffin and Pollard, 6/14)

KFF Health News: Tech Luminaries Give RFK Jr.’s Anti-Vaccine Message A Boost
Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the latest scion of the Kennedy clan to seek the presidency, has a set of unusual fans: some of the most influential tech executives and investors in America. Kennedy’s strong anti-vaccine views are, for this group, a sideshow. “Tearing down all these institutions of power. It gives me glee,” said one of his boosters in tech, Chamath Palihapitiya, a garrulous former Facebook executive, nearly two hours into a May episode of the popular “All-In” podcast he co-hosts with other tech luminaries. The person who might help with the demolition was the show’s guest, Kennedy himself. (Tahir, 6/15)

On long covid —

San Francisco Chronicle: ‘Game Changer’: 5 Long COVID Treatments Researchers Are Excited About
For now, research into treatments for long COVID is focused on repurposing drugs that are already on the market for other ailments. These medications are largely being studied as treatments for specific symptoms of long COVID, rather than for the disease as a whole. And while it could be a year or more before clinical trials lead to the regulatory approval of a medication to treat long COVID symptoms, researchers — including one who is a long COVID patient — told The Chronicle that they’re excited about treatments in the pipeline that tackle the illness in a variety of ways. Here are five they highlighted. (Castro-Root, 6/15)

Forbes: InnovationRx: Scientists May Have Figured Out What’s Behind Long Covid
Doctors are still trying to make sense of long Covid, which is still impacting hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people who were infected during the pandemic. The persistent symptoms often leave patients suffering, with no real good treatment options. But there may be some hope on the horizon: researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center and the Allen Institute have discovered that at the root of long Covid may be an overactive inflammatory response. This builds on previous research which also suggested a link between an inflammatory response and long Covid. The type of inflammation is similar to that seen in rheumatoid arthritis, and it’s possible that for long Covid patients with this type of inflammation, treatments used for that disease might be helpful here. (Knapp and Rice, 6/14)

How rough will the next flu season be? —

Fox News: Early Surge Of Flu Activity In Australia Has Doctors On Alert For What May Happen In US This Fall And Winter
Epidemiologists this summer are closely watching the sharp rise in flu activity in the Southern Hemisphere, where it is currently winter, to see if it’s a sign of what’s to come in the U.S. The Australian Department of Health and Aged Care reported an increase in influenza-like illness activity in almost all jurisdictions in the final two weeks of May. The illness activity was highest in young children ages 5 to 9, followed by children 4 years and younger, and then those ages 10 to 14. (Sudhakar, 6/14)

CNN: Experts Say Influential Group’s Guidance On CTE Is Too Weak 
In a statement Wednesday, the Concussion in Sport Group, a panel of the world’s leading experts on concussion and head trauma, stopped short of definitively linking the brain disease CTE with repeated head trauma. ... “The CISG statement on CTE, and their refusal to clearly acknowledge a causal relationship between contact sports participation and CTE, is a danger to the public,” Chris Nowinski, co-founder and CEO of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, said in a statement to CNN. (Kounang, 6/14)

Nature: Concussion Guidance For Sports Sidesteps Brain-Disease Link — Critics Are Baffled
“The CTE literature is almost exclusively case series studies,” says clinician Bob Cantu, a co-author of the consensus report at the Boston University School of Medicine in Massachusetts. “And that literature did not meet the inclusion criteria for the systematic review.” ... The authors’ review concluded that amateur athletes were not at greater risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases than the general population. However, they says that studies of professional American football and soccer players show a greater mortality rates from the neurodegenerative disease ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. (The link between ALS and CTE has been suggested but is not clear.) (Sanderson, 6/14)

USA Today: Hockey Hall Of Famer Henri Richard Had CTE At Time Of His Death
Henri Richard, the Hockey Hall of Famer who holds the NHL record of 11 Stanley Cup titles as a player, has been diagnosed posthumously with the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Richard died in March 2020 at age 84 and the diagnosis of Stage 3 (out of 4) CTE was made by Dr. Stephen Saikali at Laval University in Quebec City, according to a news release from Concussion Legacy Foundation Canada. (Brehm, 6/14)

In other health and wellness news —

Wyoming Public Radio: Feds Are Raising Awareness About Black Lung Disease In Wyoming Coal Miners
According to the Northwest Community Action Programs (NOWCAP) Black Lung Clinic, more people in Wyoming likely have black lung disease than is actually reported, and a federal event this week is trying to raise awareness. Black lung disease comes from inhaling coal dust. It is incurable, as it chars the lungs – making breathing extremely difficult. It is a progressive disease, meaning it gets worse with time. Often, miners will not realize they have the disease until retiring from the mines. (Tan, 6/14)

The New York Times: New Obesity Drugs Come With A Side Effect Of Shaming
The belief persists — fed by diet gurus, influencers and an industry selling supplements and diet plans — that if people really really tried, they could shed pounds. So those who take a drug like Wegovy often end up in uncomfortable situations that are influenced by the common view that obesity is a lifestyle choice. (Kolata, 6/14)

Scientific American: How To Protect Yourself From Ticks And The Dangerous Diseases They Spread 
Roughly the size of a sesame seed, these semimobile sacks of blood trail closely behind mosquitoes for the top transmitters of disease. Ticks are responsible for about 75 percent of the 650,000 vector-borne disease cases that occur annually in the U.S. New England and the Upper Midwest have seen the lion’s share of increase in tick-borne illnesses, such as Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and babesiosis. Last month Maine recorded its first-ever death from the rare, tick-associated Powassan virus. But over the past few decades, various species of ticks have been migrating to new regions, leading to an increase in Rocky Mountain spotted fever cases throughout the South and mid-Atlantic. (Broderick, 6/14)

NBC News: Collagen Supplement Promoted By Jennifer Aniston Recalled
Tens of thousands of canisters of Collagen Peptides powder from the brand Vital Proteins, for which Jennifer Aniston is a spokesperson, have been recalled out of fear that shards of a broken plastic lid contaminated the product. The 24-ounce supplement canisters were distributed to Costco stores in 20 states and Puerto Rico, according to a voluntary recall notice from Vital Proteins posted on the Food and Drug Administration website. (Planas, 6/14)

Axios: Strawberry Recall: Frozen Strawberries Sold At Walmart, Costco Recalled
Multiple brands of frozen strawberries and fruit products sold at Walmart, Costco and HEB stores are being recalled after being linked to a Hepatitis A outbreak that has sickened nine people. (Tyko, 6/14)

The New York Times: In Minnesota, Canada Wildfire Smoke Descends In An Unhealthy Haze
The state pollution control agency said that the air quality should improve for northern Minnesota on Thursday, but that smoke would continue to linger across much of the southern part of the state. And this might not be the last of the smoky skies this year. The possibility of poor air quality in Minnesota and other parts of the United States will continue, said Nick Carletta, one of the lead meteorologists at the Twin Cities office of the National Weather Service, “as long as these fires keep on going in Canada.” (Betts and Londono, 6/14)

In other health news from across the U.S. —

San Francisco Chronicle: Fecal Bacteria Is Polluting Some Of California’s Beaches. Five Of The Dirtiest Are In The Bay Area
Five of the 10 dirtiest beaches in California are in San Mateo County, with Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica ranking third worst, according to an annual report from an environmental group. While Linda Mar faces the Pacific Ocean, the other San Mateo County beaches that scored poorly were all located in enclosed areas or along the bay with poor water circulation, according to the 2022-23 report by the nonprofit organization Heal the Bay. The report looks at water quality at beaches from the Tijuana, Mexico, area to Washington state. (Duggan, 6/14)

St. Louis Public Radio: New Report Examines The Region’s 911 System
The St. Louis region will have to work together to implement universal change if it wants to improve public safety and the 911 system. That's according to a new report by Forward Through Ferguson that examines 911 systems and reimagines how the region uses public safety. The report, released Wednesday, laid out several key findings, including that an “inefficient” and “fragmented” 911 system relies on outdated technology and has inconsistent response times. (Lewis-Thompson, 6/14)

KFF Health News: Montana Clinics Chip Away At Refugees’ Obstacles To Dental Care
Yu Yu Htwe had never had dental problems, so she was surprised when a dentist told her she had three cavities at her first appointment in this small city in western Montana. Htwe, 38, is from Myanmar and worked as an OB-GYN there until a military coup overthrew the government in February 2021. Alongside other medical workers, she participated in a civil disobedience movement against the military, and, fearing reprisal, fled the country with her husband and young daughter. (Zurek, 6/15)

In news about transgender health care —

AP: Federal Judge Hears Bid To Block Indiana's Ban On Gender-Affirming Care For Minors
Indiana’s Legislature trampled upon the rights of young transgender patients and their parents with a new law aiming to ban them from accessing puberty blockers, hormones and gender-affirming surgeries, an attorney told a federal judge Wednesday. A federal judge in Indianapolis made no immediate ruling after hearing about 90 minutes of arguments from the Indiana attorney general’s office and the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which is seeking a preliminary injunction that would stop the law from taking effect July 1. The group filed its lawsuit, on behalf of four transgender patients and an Indiana doctor who provides transgender medical treatment, within hours after Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb signed the bill April 5. (Davies, 6/14)

The 19th: Health Care For Trans Youth Is Becoming A Core Issue For Republican Candidates
Trans girls playing in girls sports, Nikki Haley has said for months on the campaign trail, is “the women’s issue of our time.” In Iowa, on the first day of his presidential campaign last week, Mike Pence said he would support a national ban on “radical gender ideology” and gender-affirming health care for transgender kids. (Barclay, 6/14)

The Washington Post: LGBTQ Americans Have Stronger Support Than Ever Amid Legislative Attacks 
Across the country, LGBTQ activists say they have told themselves one thing over and over this year: We’ve been here before. Though some might think social progress is a straight line up, historian Hugh Ryan said policymakers have often moved to curtail rights after periods of social liberation. Ryan, the author of LGBTQ history books including “When Brooklyn Was Queer,” noted that New York passed its first specifically anti-gay law, a cruising ban, 100 years ago, “immediately after [a] moment that is so progressive, it is still referred to as the Progressive Era.” (Parks, 6/14)

CIDRAP: Studies Spotlight Burnout, Online Harassment Of Health Workers During COVID-19 
Two new studies illustrate the mental toll COVID-19 took on healthcare workers (HCWs), with the first documenting high rates of burnout among HCWs and the second describing harassment on social media platforms suffered by physicians and scientists during the pandemic. (Soucheray, 6/14)

CIDRAP: Breast, Colon, Prostate Cancer Diagnoses Dropped During Pandemic 
A new study based on data collected from Alberta, Canada, shows significant drops in the diagnoses of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancers as well as melanoma, likely due to the delay of routine screenings and cancellations of health care visits during the first part of the pandemic. (Soucheray, 6/12)

CIDRAP: Telehealth-Supported Stewardship Shows Promise In VA Study 
A study conducted at three Veterans Administration (VA) hospitals found that telehealth-supported stewardship activities were associated with reduced antibiotic use in long-term care (LTC) units, researchers reported today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. The telehealth-supported intervention, implemented at VA hospitals in Iowa, Georgia, and New York, involved thrice-weekly virtual meetings between an off-site infectious disease physician and the local stewardship pharmacists at each hospital to review patients on antibiotics in the acute-care and LTC units and provide real-time feedback on prescribing. (Dall, 6/14)

CIDRAP: Survey Finds 8% Omicron-Positivity Rate After Medical Meeting 
Of attendees at the in-person 2022 German Society of Ophthalmology meeting who completed a survey 3 weeks later, 8% reported testing positive for COVID-19, according to a research letter published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. A team led by Saarland University Medical Center researchers sent online surveys to attendees of the meeting, which took place during the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant wave. Held in Berlin, the conference was the first face-to-face meeting in 3 years due to the pandemic. Infection-prevention measures such as COVID-19 testing, confirmed vaccination, and mask wearing were not required. (Van Beusekom, 6/14)

The Washington Post: FDA Should Limit Approval Of New Alzheimer's Drug Leqembi
The Food and Drug Administration is slated to soon give full approval to Leqembi, a new medicine for Alzheimer’s disease that offers only modest benefit, could pose worrisome risks and stands to cost the nation $2 billion to $5 billion per year. (Jerry Avorn, 6/15)

The Boston Globe: Help Foreign-Trained Doctors Get Licensed
When Deeb Salem was a medical student in Boston in 1967, he recalls meeting an older Cuban pediatrician who worked sweeping hospital floors. Occasionally, Salem and fellow students would ask the man, who came to the US seeking asylum, medical questions. (6/15)

Cincinnati Enquirer: State Support Needed To Stem Children’s Mental Health Crisis 
We are on the front lines, and we can tell you the situation is dire. Our state’s mental health sector is facing the worst supply-and-demand dynamics in modern history. (John Banchy, Eric Cummins and Paul Haffner, 6/14)

Stat: Should Employer Health Plans Cover GLP-1s Like Ozempic? 
We have a knack in the U.S. for blurring behavior and medicine. Look at weight. For a long time, we’ve treated obesity as a moral failing, a lack of willpower. That was wrong. Now we’re treating weight as a medical issue that can be cured by pill or injection. Is this any better? (Owen Tripp, 6/15)

Stat: Beware Reading Your Test Results Before Your Doctor Does 
Not so long ago, a father broke down in tears with me over Zoom — tears of relief. When this father had received test results for his child, some of the values in the report appeared in red. That font color made him terrified for his child’s health. It was only when we hopped on Zoom to go over the results that I was able to reassure him: They were in red because the system was comparing them with adult range values. (Christopher Medrano, 6/15)