The New York Times: Biden Invokes Defense Powers In A Bid To Ease Formula Shortage 
President Biden took urgent action on Wednesday to address the nationwide baby formula shortage, invoking the Defense Production Act to increase production and creating “Operation Fly Formula” to deploy Defense Department planes and speed formula shipments into the United States from overseas. The moves are Mr. Biden’s first major initiative to respond to a crisis that has sown fear and frustration among parents across the country and prompted Republicans and Democrats alike to demand action. (Karni and Cochrane, 5/18)

AP: Biden Invokes Defense Production Act For Formula Shortage 
The Defense Production Act order requires suppliers of formula manufacturers to fulfill orders from those companies before other customers, in an effort to eliminate production bottlenecks. Biden is also authorizing the Defense Department to use commercial aircraft to fly formula supplies that meet federal standards from overseas to the U.S., in what the White House is calling “Operation Fly Formula.” (Miller and Freking, 5/19)

And the baby formula funding bill advances —

Bloomberg: House Passes FDA Baby Formula Bill, But Senate Fate Is Uncertain
The House passed a $28 million emergency funding bill for the Food and Drug Administration to address the shortage of infant formula in the US and provide tighter oversight of the industry. The legislation was approved Wednesday night on a 231 to 192 vote. Democrats argued that increasing funding for inspections would help bolster supplies by expediting sourcing of formula from new domestic and international suppliers, which must be FDA-approved. (Wasson, 5/19)

More on the formula shortage —

Columbus Dispatch: Baby Formula Shortage: Ohio Moms On WIC May Soon Have Some Relief
The Ohio Department of Health said Wednesday that it has applied for waivers from the federal government to give low-income mothers more choices when selecting baby formula. Low-income mothers often rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, more commonly known as WIC, to secure money for baby formula and food for their children. WIC often comes with strict guidelines that say what brand and how much of infant formula a mother can purchase at a time. (Wu, 5/18)

Houston Chronicle: Here's What Houston Doctors Want You To Know About Dangerous Baby Formula Alternatives
As parents hunt for alternative solutions amid a nationwide baby formula shortage, Texas Children’s Hospital pediatricians have a message: Be careful where you’re looking. Baby formula, a supplement or substitute for breastfeeding, is made through an extremely complicated process that ensures the right combination of fats, proteins and carbohydrates, said Dr. Stan Spinner, chief medical officer and vice president of Texas Children’s Pediatrics and Texas Children’s Urgent Care. Using how-to videos on YouTube to make the formula yourself could be “very, very dangerous,” he said. (Gill, 5/18)

Fox News: Baby Formula Shortage: Why Many Mothers Can't Breastfeed
With the recent nationwide baby formula shortage, breastfeeding is often suggested for mothers as a natural alternative, but it’s not so simple, according to a recent the New York Times report. "TRY BREASTFEEDING. It’s free and available on demand," singer and actress Bette Midler, 76, tweeted on Thursday, May 12 in response to the national formula shortage. "Most mothers have the ability to breastfeed, so I feel it’s hard for them to understand what it’s like for a mother who cannot. As a new mom, we’re told it’s so important to breastfeed, even before the baby is born, they drill it into you. After working with five lactation consultants, I wasn’t built for it," first-time mother Misty Mortezaie, 40, told Fox News. (Sudhakar, 5/18)

The Boston Globe: State Health Officials Confirm Rare Case Of Monkeypox In Massachusetts
A man who traveled to Canada has been diagnosed with the monkeypox virus, the nation’s first confirmed case of the rare disease, and is being treated in isolation at Massachusetts General Hospital. State public health officials and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the case on Wednesday, and hospital officials said they are trying to track down anyone who may have come in contact with the patient. The man was admitted to the hospital on May 12 and “during the course of their admission, they were identified as a possible monkeypox suspect,” Dr. Erica Shenoy, director of the Infection Control Unit at MGH, said at an evening news conference outside the hospital. Officials did not identify the man or say when he traveled to Canada or to what areas of the country. The CDC said he used “private transportation” for the trip. (Stoico, 5/18)

USA Today: Massachusetts Officials Report First US Case Of Monkeypox In 2022
Officials and health care providers are working to identify people who may have been in contact with the patient. Officials believe the case does not currently pose a risk to the public. Monkeypox is a rare viral illness that typically causes flu-like symptoms and swelling of the lymph nodes. But it can be serious, and patients have also reported a rash on the face and body. Most infections last between two and four weeks. ... There is not currently a proven treatment for monkeypox virus infection, according to the CDC. (Pitofsky, 5/18)

CIDRAP: UK, Spain, Portugal Report More Monkeypox Cases
The possibility of community spread is growing more likely in the United Kingdom, as recent cases have no travel history to a country where the virus is endemic. The most recent cases have also been seen in men who have sex with men (MSM). Though monkeypox is not known to be sexually transmitted, it can be passed through close, personal contact, and via the clothing and linens that have been used by a person with monkeypox. (Soucheray, 5/18)

More on monkeypox —

NPR: What Is Monkeypox And What Do We Know About The Cases In The U.K. And Europe?
There's a monkeypox outbreak in the United Kingdom, Portugal and Spain. The outbreak is quite small — just 36 suspected cases spread across the three countries, including eight in England and 20 in Portugal. A case in the U.S. has also been reported. But health officials have little clue where people caught the monkeypox virus. And there's concern the virus may be spreading through the community — undetected — and possibly through a new route of transmission. "This [outbreak] is rare and unusual," epidemiologist Susan Hopkins, who's the chief medical adviser of the U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said in a statement on Monday. (Doucleff, 5/18)

The Washington Post: What Is Monkeypox, The Rare Virus Now Confirmed In The U.S. And Europe?
Monkeypox is not known to spread easily between humans. The fact that cases are emerging in several countries at once — with signs of “sustained” transmission in people — is striking, said Aris Katzourakis, a professor of evolution and genomics at the University of Oxford. “It’s either a lot of bad luck or something quite unusual happening here,” Katzourakis said. (Kornfield and Knowles, 5/18)

Virginia issues a warning about measles, and a global hepatitis outbreak grows —

AP: Virginia Health Officials Warn Of Possible Measles Exposures 
Health officials are warning the public about possible exposures to a child with measles at two northern Virginia locations. The unvaccinated child contracted measles during international travel, but is now improving, the Virginia Department of Health said Wednesday in a news release. People may have been exposed at Kaiser Permanente Ashburn Medical Center between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Friday or Inova Fairfax Hospital’s pediatric and adult emergency departments in Falls Church on Sunday or Monday nights, officials said. Outside of these locations and times, officials said they believe the risk to the community is low. (5/18)

ABC News: Investigation Into Mysterious Pediatric Hepatitis Cases In The US Expands
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now investigating at least 180 cases of severe hepatitis with unknown cause among children — an increase from the 109 cases that were reported earlier this month, federal officials confirmed on Wednesday. Thirty-six states and territories have now reported cases, and the CDC said it is working with health departments and clinicians nationwide to identify and investigate why the mysterious illness may be sickening children. (Mitropoulos, 5/18)

AP: A Third Of US Should Be Considering Masks, Officials Say 
COVID-19 cases are increasing in the United States — and could get even worse over the coming months, federal health officials warned Wednesday in urging areas hardest hit to consider reissuing calls for indoor masking. Increasing numbers of COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations are putting more of the country under guidelines issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that call for masking and other infection precautions. Right now, about a third of the U.S. population lives in areas that are considered at higher risk — mostly in the Northeast and Midwest. Those are areas where people should already be considering wearing masks indoors — but Americans elsewhere should also take notice, officials said. (Miller and Stobbe, 5/18)

The Washington Post: Top Biden Health Officials Sound Warning On Rising Covid Infections 
Top Biden administration officials warned Wednesday that one-third of Americans live in communities experiencing rising levels of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations and urged them to resume taking personal protection measures, including wearing masks. The increase in new infections — nearing 100,000 a day — comes as the nation heads into Memorial Day weekend with its large gatherings and travel. That case count is almost certainly an undercount, officials said, given the widespread use of at-home tests for which results are often not reported to health officials. (Abutaleb, 5/18)

CIDRAP: As US Battles COVID Rise, Officials Press For Resources For Next Surge
In his first briefing since taking on the role of White House COVID-19 response coordinator, Ashish Jha, MD, said the nation has a high degree of immunity but is experiencing brisk COVID-19 activity driven by "incredibly contagious" subvariants, with the nation's homegrown BA.2.12.1 variant posing a huge challenge. ... One piece of good news is that two developments are poised to make useful impacts, Jha said, which include a new round of free home tests that federal officials launched on Mar 16. So far, 8.5 million households have ordered tests. (Schnirring, 5/18)

HHS Chief Xavier Becerra and First Daughter Ashley Biden test positive for covid —

AP: US Health Secretary Tests Positive For COVID On Germany Trip 
President Joe Biden’s top health official tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, the latest member of his Cabinet to be infected with the virus. U.S. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra tested positive while visiting Berlin, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services said. Becerra, who is fully vaccinated and boosted, was experiencing mild symptoms. ... Becerra was last at the White House last Thursday. He is not considered a close contact of Biden. (Jordans and Murphy, 5/18)

CNN: Ashley Biden Tests Positive For Covid-19, Drops Off Trip With First Lady 
First daughter Ashley Biden has tested positive for Covid-19 and is no longer joining first lady Jill Biden on a trip to South and Central America, according to the first lady's press secretary, Michael LaRosa. Ashley Biden had been scheduled to depart with the first lady Wednesday afternoon for Ecuador. Jill Biden is scheduled to also travel to Panama and Costa Rica on the trip, before returning to Washington on Monday. "Ashley Biden is not considered a close contact to the President and first lady," LaRosa said. (Bennett, 5/18)

In other news about the spread of covid —

The New York Times: 70 N.Y. Judges Went On A Montauk Retreat. 20 Came Down With The Virus. 
More than 70 New York City judges descended on a Long Island resort last week to enjoy an annual three-night retreat. In the days after, 20 tested positive for the coronavirus. Lucian Chalfen, a spokesman for New York’s courts, confirmed Wednesday that the judges had tested positive. He said that, to his knowledge, none of the judges were seriously ill, and that those who were symptomatic had not reported to work. (Bromwich, 5/18)

Los Angeles Times: Jimmy Kimmel Tests Positive For COVID, Lines Up Guest Hosts
COVID-19 has continued to plague the late-night TV circuit, this time hitting Jimmy Kimmel — again. “I’m such a positive person, I tested positive AGAIN,” the host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” tweeted Tuesday. “I am feeling fine.” While Kimmel recovers, fellow comedy stars John Mulaney and Andy Samberg “have graciously agreed” to guest host his show on Wednesday night. Kimmel has previously disclosed that he is vaccinated and boosted. (Carras, 5/18)

Politico: New York Made 11M Bottles Of Hand Sanitizer. Now It Has 700,000 Gallons It Can't Get Rid Of. 
In the first days of the Covid-19 pandemic, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced New York would use prison labor to address a hand sanitizer shortage and make bottles that were superior to “products now on the market.” New York made so much of the “NYS Clean” hand sanitizer — a whopping 11 million bottles, to be exact — that it still doesn’t know how to get rid of it. (Spector, 5/18)

CIDRAP: Kids With Heart Conditions Prone To Severe COVID-19
Congenital and acquired heart conditions such as biventricular defects, cardiac arrest, and heart failure are associated with increased COVID-19 severity in US children, suggests a multicenter study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. (5/18)

CNN: New York Mayor Says He's Not Reinstating Mask Mandates As Health Officials Say City At 'High' Covid Alert Level 
As health officials warn of rising Covid-19 infections and hospitalizations, the mayor of New York said the city would not reinstate mask mandates at this time. "I'm proud of what we are doing and how we are not allowing Covid to outstmart us," Mayor Eric Adams said during a Wednesday news conference, after he was asked about reinstating a mandate, specifically in the city's schools. "We're staying prepared and not panicking." To defend his stance, Adams cited what he said were stable hospitalization numbers and deaths across the city, as well as Covid-19 testing in schools. (Alsharif, Ly and Maxouris, 5/18)

The Boston Globe: Health Experts Call For Stricter COVID Measures In Massachusetts As Cases And Hospitalizations Rise
A coalition of public health leaders, infectious disease doctors, and community organizers called on the Baker administration Wednesday to reinstitute mask mandates in public schools and on transportation, amid rising numbers of people infected and hospitalized for COVID-19 in Massachusetts. The group is also urging the state’s Department of Public Health to issue an “immediate advisory” recommending use of masks inside public spaces and for people to avoid large gatherings until the current COVID surge subsides. (Lazar, 5/18)

Des Moines Register: Des Moines Mayor Says City May Require Masks In Buildings Again
Des Moines is considering making people wear masks in all city facilities again as Polk County enters the latest wave in the COVID-19 pandemic. In February, Des Moines dropped its mask mandate in city buildings, because the number of COVID-19 cases declined significantly. Community transmission at the time was "low" in Polk County, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Polk County is still classified as having "low" levels of community transmission, according to the CDC, but cases have risen significantly recently. (Joens, 5/18)

In other mask news —

Science: Hate Your Face Mask? There’s Hope
In the shipping room of his factory here, Richard Gordon pulls open the drawer of a restaurant-style convection oven to show off a tray filled with his company’s new, freshly sterilized product: multicolored face masks that feature an origami design. “I thought masks were a total horror,” Gordon says. “They looked awful, felt awful, were hard to breathe in, were hot, and leaked.” So he and Min Xiao, his wife, started a company named Air99 in 2016 to produce something much better. Now, their mask, named the Airgami, is vying for part of the half-million dollar purse in the final phase of the Mask Innovation Challenge, run by the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). (Cohen, 5/18)

Tacoma News Tribune: COVID Masks Could Make Concrete Stronger, WA Researchers Say
During the COVID-19 pandemic, disposable face masks became a staple for millions of people. But what should you do with them once they’ve been worn? Researchers at Washington State University may have found a purpose for those used masks: using them to make concrete more durable. (Ravikumar, 5/18)

On vaccine mandates —

AP: COVID-19 Vaccine No Longer Required, For Louisiana Students 
Gov. John Bel Edwards’ administration has agreed to remove the COVID-19 vaccine from the list of vaccines students are required to get to enroll in school in the state, officials said Wednesday. The state health department said in a news release that it will continue to strongly recommend the vaccine, in accordance with recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics, but acknowledged that the vaccine had not yet received full U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for those under age 16. (5/18)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Firefighters Who Refused Vaccines Fought Their Firings With Misinformation And Conspiracy Theories
Termination proceedings for San Francisco firefighters who have refused COVID-19 vaccines are nearing a bruising conclusion, after more than 50 hours of hearings in which the department’s last holdouts — and their supporters — denigrated the public health order, brandished conspiracy theories and compared the city government to an authoritarian regime. Seventeen of the Fire Department’s 1,735 employees refused to get vaccinated, and 13 have been fired to date, each one entitled to a videoconferenced hearing before the Fire Commission and often featuring a drawn-out, vitriolic period of public comment, according to videos and documents reviewed by The Chronicle. (Swan, 5/18)

CIDRAP: On-Campus COVID-19 Measures Couldn't Contain Omicron
A study assessing Cornell University's COVID-19 surveillance and vaccination programs during the Omicron variant surge suggests that vaccination protected against severe infection, but it and other mitigation measures—including mass testing—didn't prevent rapid viral transmission. The study, published today in JAMA Network Open, describes the outcomes of the university's SARS-CoV-2 transmission-prevention programs implemented after the campus reopened for in-person instruction in fall 2021. Steps included mandatory vaccination for students, urging of vaccination for employees, and an on-campus mask requirement. In addition, isolation and contact tracing took place within hours of all COVID-19–positive tests. (Van Beusekom, 5/18)

Bloomberg: Long Covid Patients’ Symptoms Helped After Vaccination In Study
Fewer Covid-19 patients reported lingering symptoms from the infection after getting vaccinated, according to a study that suggests the shots could help alleviate the burden of long Covid. A first vaccine dose after infection with the virus was associated with a 13% decline in the odds of having long Covid and a second shot with a 9% drop in the study published Thursday in the BMJ. Over the course of seven months in 2021, researchers regularly visited the households of more than 28,000 people to ask whether they were experiencing symptoms long after infection. (Fourcade and Hernanz Lizarraga, 5/18)

Stat: Study Links Vaccination After Covid Infection To Lower Odds Of Long Covid
Ever since Covid-19 vaccines became available, some people with long Covid have said vaccination eases the constellation of symptoms that persist weeks and months after their original infection clears. Research exploring this anecdotal evidence has so far been intriguing but inconclusive, in part because of the small numbers of people studied. A new study published Wednesday in BMJ solves the size problem, combing through responses from more than 28,000 adults taking part in the U.K.’s nationally representative Covid-19 Infection Survey. Vaccination after infection was associated with a lower likelihood of long Covid, the researchers report, but more data will be needed to clinch any cause-and-effect connection. (Cooney, 5/18)

In related news about long covid —

The New York Times: Over 75 Percent Of Long Covid Patients Were Not Hospitalized For Initial Illness, Study Finds 
More than three-quarters of Americans diagnosed with long Covid were not sick enough to be hospitalized for their initial infection, a new analysis of tens of thousands of private insurance claims reported on Wednesday. The researchers analyzed data from the first few months after doctors began using a special diagnostic code for the condition that was created last year. The results paint a sobering picture of long Covid’s serious and ongoing impact on people’s health and the American health care system. (Belluck, 5/18)

More on vaccines and the vaccine rollout —

CIDRAP: MRNA COVID Vaccines Show Stronger Immune Response Against Variants
COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, elicited stronger antibody responses against four variants of concern (VOCs) and the original virus compared to viral vector vaccines developed by Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and AstraZeneca. The research is published in PLOS Medicine. The study was conducted by using blood samples gathered from 165 healthcare workers in the Netherlands 3 and 4 weeks after first and second vaccinations, respectively, for the Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines, and at 4 and 8 weeks after J&J vaccine administration. (5/18)

The New York Times: Since You’re Already Getting A Flu Shot, Why Not One For Covid, Too? 
As the coronavirus morphs into a stubborn and unpredictable facet of everyday life, scientists and federal health officials are converging on a new strategy for immunizing Americans: a vaccination campaign this fall, perhaps with doses that are finely tuned to combat the version of the virus expected to be in circulation. The plan would borrow heavily from the playbook for distributing annual flu shots, and may become the template for arming Americans against the coronavirus in the years to come. (Mandavilli, 5/18)

Oklahoman: COVID-19 Vaccines Could Have Saved Over 5,800 Lives In Oklahoma
Thousands of COVID-19 deaths could have been prevented in Oklahoma if more of the state’s residents had been vaccinated, a new analysis has found. If Oklahoma had reached 100% vaccination of its adult population, more than 5,800 deaths could’ve been avoided. At 90% vaccinated, over 4,300 could have been prevented, and at 85%, 3,600 lives might have been spared, the analysis showed. As the nation reached the staggering 1 million mark for the COVID-19 death toll this week, Oklahoma’s toll climbed over 16,000. (Branham, 5/18)

NPR: Republican-Leaning Areas Continue To Face More COVID Deaths
Even with widely available vaccines and newly effective treatments, residents of counties that went heavily for Donald Trump in the last presidential election are more than twice as likely to die from COVID-19 than those that live in areas that went for President Biden. That's according to a newly-updated analysis from NPR, examining how partisanship and misinformation are shaping the pandemic. NPR examined COVID deaths per 100,000 people in roughly 3,000 counties across the U.S. from May 2021, the point at which most Americans could find a vaccine if they wanted one. Those living in counties that voted 60% or higher for Trump in November 2020 had 2.26 times the death rate of those that went by the same margin for Biden. Counties with a higher share of Trump votes had even higher mortality rates. (Wood and Brumfiel, 5/19)

KHN: This Rural, Red Southern County Was A Vaccine Success Story. Not Anymore
At a glance, it seemed like a Southern pandemic success story in a most unlikely place. A small county northeast of Chattanooga, along the twisting banks of Chickamauga Lake, for much of the past year has reported the highest covid-19 vaccination rate in Tennessee and one of the highest in the South. Meigs County, which is overwhelmingly white, rural, and conservative — three demographics that strongly correlate with low vaccination rates — appeared to have broken a pattern of hesitancy and distrust that has stymied vaccination efforts across the U.S. (Kelman, 5/19)

Fox News: Abortion Providers To Meet With Kamala Harris Virtually At The White House
Vice President Kamala Harris will meet virtually with abortion providers at the White House on Thursday morning, as the Supreme Court considers a key abortion case after an opinion overturning Roe v. Wade (1973) leaked earlier this month. Harris will speak with abortion providers over livestream video in a 2 p.m. Eastern event at the White House Thursday, a White House official told Fox News. The vice president will provide opening remarks, speak with the providers, and engage with pro-choice advocates in the audience. (O'Neil, 5/19)

NPR: 64% Of U.S. Adults Oppose Overturning Roe V. Wade, Poll Says
About two-thirds of Americans say they do not support overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal in the United States, according to the latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll. Seven-in-10 U.S. adults, however, say they are in favor of some degree of restrictions on abortion rights. That includes 52% of Democrats. The issue of abortion rights was once again thrown into the hot spotlight of American politics after the unprecedented leak of a draft opinion from the Supreme Court earlier this month that showed the majority-conservative court ready to overturn Roe. (Montanaro, 5/19)

AP: With Roe In Doubt, Some Fear Tech Surveillance Of Pregnancy 
When Chandler Jones realized she was pregnant during her junior year of college, she turned to a trusted source for information and advice. Her cellphone. “I couldn’t imagine before the internet, trying to navigate this,” said Jones, 26, who graduated Tuesday from the University of Baltimore School of Law. “I didn’t know if hospitals did abortions. I knew Planned Parenthood did abortions, but there were none near me. So I kind of just Googled.” (Dale, 5/18)

In abortion news from Oklahoma, Utah, Maryland, and elsewhere —

PBS NewsHour: As Nearly All Abortions Come To A Halt In Oklahoma, Clinics Search For New Ways To Connect Patients With Care
Before Oklahoma’s governor signed a six-week abortion ban earlier this month, Dr. Iman Alsaden was often driving hundreds of miles a week, mostly from Kansas to Oklahoma, to see patients. As the lead medical director for Planned Parenthood Great Plains, which operates two of the four abortion clinics in Oklahoma, Alsaden was seeing upwards of 50 patients a day at her clinic in Oklahoma City. Demands on the clinic had grown since last September, when more people from Texas sought care following a new law that banned most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. Overnight, her clinic and others in Oklahoma had become critical access points for Texans seeking care. Months later, after Oklahoma’s new ban, Planned Parenthood Great Plains has stopped scheduling surgical and medical abortions in the state altogether. For Alsaden, it’s now the patients she’s no longer seeing that worry her the most. (Kemp, 5/18)

Salt Lake Tribune: What Utah Schools Can Teach About Abortion
For a conservative state that heavily regulates what public schools can teach about sex, it may come as a surprise that there is nothing specific in Utah law about classroom discussions on abortion. Some parents have questioned how the topic is presented to Utah’s students after a Supreme Court draft opinion was recently leaked, showing a majority of the court privately voting to overturn Roe v. Wade and leave the decision on allowing abortions up to each state. Parent groups have been posting on social media about making sure that abortion is not being presented as an option to teens — especially since it will be generally banned in Utah, if the court moves forward as expected. But students at several Salt Lake Valley high schools walked out last week in protest of the anticipated ruling and in favor of abortion rights. (Tanner, 5/18)

The Baltimore Sun: Kelly Schulz Vows Not To Change Maryland Abortion Laws If Elected Governor. As A Lawmaker, She Tried
As a Republican state lawmaker in a conservative district a decade ago, Kelly Schulz sponsored and voted for bills that would have restricted women’s access to abortions in Maryland. But as a candidate for governor in a blue state as a landmark legal decision giving women that right appears poised to be struck down, she’s vowing a different approach. “The laws that are in place right now, I will do nothing in my office to be able to change that,” Schulz said Tuesday when asked about her record in the House of Delegates and what she would do if she’s elected and the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. (Janesch, 5/18)

NPR: Some States Are Bracing For A Huge Influx Of Patients If Roe Falls
Across the U.S., health clinics that offer abortions are gearing up for a huge migration of patients from the more than two dozen states that are likely to ban abortions, if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. Some warn they will not be able to handle the surge in demand. The nation's high court will soon deliver its ruling in a Mississippi case that could eliminate the nationwide right to abortion. A leaked opinion from the court — while only a draft — has already signaled that as a likely outcome. (Stone, 5/19)

Green Bay Press-Gazette: Buffalo Shooting Exposes Lack Of Mental Health In Black Community
Michael Vinson was surprised to feel his heart pounding while shopping at his local grocery store on Sunday afternoon. Yet, there he stood in the store he knew so well, scanning the walls for exit signs. Vinson wasn't in any immediate danger, but being Black while grocery shopping ended in bloodshed for 13 people at a Tops Friendly Markets supermarket in Buffalo, New York, on Saturday. Ten people lost their lives. "Unexpectedly, I felt a rush of fear and a need for self-protection. I started to look for the exits," Vinson, sales director at Schreiber Foods in Green Bay, told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin Monday. "What's happening in the broader world impacts the way that I show up in the world where I do live. (Ellbert and Lynch, 5/18)

Philadelphia Inquirer: How The Buffalo Mass Shooting Raises The Stress And Trauma Of Black Philadelphians
Incidents of violence against Black people have made it into the therapy sessions Charlotte Andrews holds in Elkins Park — no matter where they’d happened in the nation. “I noticed that there’s a significant amount of anxiety, fear, anger,” said the therapist, recalling the emotions Black patients expressed after police killings, such as the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. “People bring it with them. People are carrying it with them.” (Gutman, 5/17)

WHYY: After Buffalo Shooting, Mental Health Professionals Advise Taking A Break From The News. For Black Americans, That’s Easier Said Than Done
Experiencing forms of racial violence is a burden that many Black Americans carry over generations. Last week’s shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York, is the latest example. For clinical psychologist Dr. Ariane Thomas, explaining this racist mass shooting to her 12-year-old son conjures past feelings of frustration. “I want him to be able to have some freedom and lightness and joy,” said Thomas, who is also a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania. “And yet, I have to have more conversations that I should never have to have with him about realities he should never have to face.” (Biddle, 5/17)

Chicago Defender: Racism And The Impact On The Mental Health Of Black Men 
The conversation surrounding mental health in the Black community has increased over the years with the increased number of police-related killings, the COVID-19 pandemic, and more awareness and understanding surrounding the trauma that one experiences just by being black in America. Statistically, Black men are less likely to report mental and psychological issues. According to a 2021 study by the American Psychological Association, less than 30% of Black men who experienced daily feelings of anxiety or depression were likely to use mental health services. In addition, when Black men seek help, they find it difficult to find Black psychologists or culturally sensitive mental health practitioners. Distrust and Implicit bias by medical providers, lack of access to quality mental health services combined with socio-economic factors also prove as barriers for Black men seeking treatment or care. (Sanders, 5/17)

In related news about the Buffalo shooting —

The New York Times: 911 Dispatcher May Be Fired Over Handling Of Buffalo Shooting Call 
An emergency services dispatcher in Buffalo could be fired after being accused by a supermarket employee of hanging up on a 911 call during a racist shooting rampage at the store last week. The dispatcher was placed on administrative leave on Monday after an internal investigation and faces a disciplinary hearing on May 30, at which “termination will be sought,” Peter Anderson, a spokesman for the Erie County executive, said. (Shanahan, 5/18)

And the White House puts a spotlight on mental health —

Roll Call: White House Turns Focus To Youth Mental Health 
For Jazmine Wildcat, a young member of the Northern Arapaho tribe in Wyoming, finding a therapist who understood her struggles was difficult. “Where I’m from, on the reservation, it’s not very talked about,” she said Wednesday, with tears in her eyes, during an event at the White House focused on the nation’s youth mental health crisis. “I’ve been to way too many funerals, and so I took the liberty to really, you know, say this isn’t OK.” On Wednesday, Wildcat was not alone. (Raman, 5/18)

In other mental health news —

ABC News: America's Mental Health Care Deserts: Where Is It Hard To Access Care? 
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and two years into a global pandemic that has highlighted the need for increased access to mental health care, 570 counties across the United States still have no psychologists, psychiatrists or counselors. They're known as mental health care deserts. (Livingston and Green, 5/18)

CNBC: Americans Are Stressed About Money And Finances, Hurting Mental Health
Americans are more stressed about money than they’ve ever been, according to the American Psychological Association’s latest Stress In America Survey. “Eighty-seven percent of Americans said that inflation and the rising costs of everyday goods is what’s driving their stress,” said Vaile Wright, senior director of health care innovation at the American Psychological Association. More than 40% of U.S. adults say money is negatively impacting their mental health, according to Bankrate’s April 2022 Money and Mental Health report. (Morabito, 5/18)

Stat: Pharma Wins A Court Battle Over HHS Rule On Patient Financial Assistance
In a notable win for the pharmaceutical industry, a federal court judge tossed a rule that would have required drugmakers to pay higher rebates to Medicaid for providing financial assistance to patients. At issue are widely used promotional tools such as copay coupons and discount cards, and whether these should be included when calculating the so-called best price that drugmakers must offer the government to participate in the Medicaid program. (Silverman, 5/18)

And 'Pharma Bro' is freed from prison —

AP: 'Pharma Bro' Shkreli Freed From Prison For Halfway House 
Convicted pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli was freed Wednesday from prison after serving much of a seven-year prison sentence for lying to hedge fund investors and cheating investors in a drug company. His attorney, Ben Brafman, said Shkreli, 39, was released early from a prison in Allenwood, Pennsylvania. The move was confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. (Neumeister, 5/18)

Stat: 'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli Released From Prison
The unexpected move, which first came to light on Twitter on Wednesday morning, is the latest twist in a complicated and sensational saga that transfixed the American public over Shkreli, who played an outsized role in the controversy over the rising cost of prescription medicines. ... Earlier this year, he was ordered to pay $64.6 million in profits and was banned for life from the industry. The decision followed a trial in which Shkreli was accused by federal and state authorities of stifling competition. An expert who testified on behalf of the government calculated his company would have generated $67.6 million less in sales had the price of the drug not been raised as it had. (Silverman, 5/18)

In news from the FDA —

Axios: The FDA Considers A "Healthy" Food Label
The Food and Drug Administration is testing designs of a label that food manufacturers could voluntarily put on the front of packages indicating that a product is "healthy." The effort is controversial, in part because the meaning of "healthy" continues to evolve. The FDA itself is in the process of updating its definition, which dates back to 1994. Other concerns are that such a label could be of dubious value, used too liberally by food makers, or seen by consumers as a product endorsement by the FDA. Nutritionists make the point that a balanced diet matters more to health than any individual food. (Kingson, 5/19)

Stat: Former Medicare Official Blasts The Medicare Advantage Coding Industry
Parts of the Medicare Advantage program — essentially, private Medicare plan options — are ripe for reform, former and current top Medicare officials said Wednesday. One of the most abused areas is risk coding, where health insurers document people’s illnesses and conditions as a way to get higher payments from the federal government, the officials said. (Herman, 5/18)

In other health care industry news —

The Wall Street Journal: Cerebral Replaces CEO Kyle Robertson, A Move He Calls Illegal
Cerebral Inc. has replaced Chief Executive Kyle Robertson, according to a statement released by the company, a move Mr. Robertson called illegal after accusing board members of making him a scapegoat for the mental-health startup’s troubles. The board said in the statement that it has replaced Mr. Robertson with David Mou, the company’s president and chief medical officer. The leadership tumult comes as the company is facing a federal probe into its prescription practices and possible violations of the Controlled Substances Act. (Winkler, 5/18)

Indianapolis Star: IU Health Forced Doctors To Reduce Patient Time, Lawsuit Says
The conflict between a long-time IU Health doctor and his former employer has spilled into the public with a lawsuit claiming the state’s largest health care system pressured physicians to spend less time with patients to increase revenues. Brian Leon, 57, began working as a doctor at IU Health and as a faculty member at the IU School of Medicine in 1997, according to the lawsuit. He was the site medical director at IU Health’s University primary care facility at 550 North University Blvd. before he was selected to be one of the five primary care regional medical directors in 2018. (Magdaleno, 5/18)

Stateline: Ransomware Attacks On Hospitals Put Patients At Risk
A University of Vermont Medical Center employee accidentally opened an emailed file from her homeowners association, which had been hacked, in October 2020. That one mistake eventually led to the University of Vermont Health Network, which includes the state’s largest hospital in Burlington, having to cancel surgeries, put off mammogram appointments and delay some cancer patients’ treatments. The ensuing ransomware attack had forced officials to shut down all internet connections, including access to patients’ electronic health records, to prevent cybercriminals from doing any more damage. (Bergal, 5/18)

KHN: The Private Sector Steps In To Protect Online Health Privacy, But Critics Say It Can’t Be Trusted 
Most people have at least a vague sense that someone somewhere is doing mischief with the data footprints created by their online activities: Maybe their use of an app is allowing that company to build a profile of their habits, or maybe they keep getting followed by creepy ads. It’s more than a feeling. Many companies in the health tech sector — which provides services that range from mental health counseling to shipping attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder pills through the mail — have shockingly leaky privacy practices. (Tahir, 5/19)

Modern Healthcare: Bayada, Home Care Trade Groups Form Alliance To Tackle Workforce Challenges
A new home care industry coalition issued a call to action Wednesday for the country to address a what its members described as a staffing "crisis." Bayada Home Health Care, the National Association for Home Care and Hospice, and the Home Care Association of America are seeking partners to join their Home Care Workforce Action Alliance. They aim to catalyze action to resolve a severe workforce shortage the members say is leaving potential patients without care. "We all recognize this is a problem that needs to be addressed, but we all continue to work within our silos," National Association for Home Care and Hospice President Bill Dombi said during a webinar Wednesday. (Christ, 5/18)

Also —

Cincinnati Enquirer: Health Sponsorships In Sports Are On The Rise. Are They Civic Minded?
When Major League Baseball's gross revenue cratered during the COVID-19 pandemic due to caps on fan attendance, one money-making sector skyrocketed.  Sponsorships. The league's sponsorship revenue rose from $900 million in 2019 to $1 billion in 2020 before exploding by 70% to $1.7 billion in 2021. That number is expected to continue to grow. The increase in 2020 came even as the league's 30 teams combined for an estimated operating loss of $3 billion in a shortened season with no fans, according to league commissioner Rob Manfred. (Sutherland, 5/18)

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Missouri Launches Data Dashboard To Track Rising Drug Overdose Deaths 
In addition to an online COVID-19 data dashboard showing the seriousness of the pandemic, the state of Missouri has launched another public dashboard to track the increasing number of drug overdose deaths. Drug overdose has become the leading cause of death among Missouri adults age 18 to 44, state health officials say. More than 70% of the deaths involve opioids such as heroin and fentanyl. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services launched the new website late Tuesday at health.mo.gov/data/opioids. It provides data on fatal and nonfatal overdoses, where they occurred and their demographic characteristics. (Munz, 5/18)

VTDigger: Fentanyl Continues To Drive Opioid Overdose Deaths Even As Latest Numbers Dip 
Fentanyl continues to wreak havoc in the state, with the drug playing a role in all eight accidental opioid overdose deaths among Vermonters in February. At the same time, the deaths represent Vermont’s lowest monthly fatal overdose count in almost two years. It’s the lowest figure since June 2020, when six Vermonters accidentally overdosed, new data from the state health department shows. (Tan, 5/19)

ABC News: Did The Fentanyl Crisis Thrive Because The US Ignored Opioid Abuse? 
Some say the rise in fentanyl deaths has been exacerbated by ignoring the opioid crisis and the millions of people who are already suffering from addiction who continue to seek available opioids - in many cases, fentanyl. Ryan, who wished to be identified by first name only, said he has been living with an opioid addiction for decades. He said he just recently started using fentanyl. “I stopped for many years. I just relapsed three months ago and I hadn't used in 10 years,” said Ryan. “Fentanyl is in everything now.” (Ordonez, Luna, Salzman and Yamada, 5/18)

Colorado Sun: Is This Littleton Detox Center That Feels Like A Hotel The Way Out Of The Fentanyl Crisis?
Each private room has a queen bed covered in a plush, gray comforter, plus a flat-screen TV and a remote control to browse Netflix and Hulu. For lunch and dinner, restaurant menus circulate and meals arrive via Uber Eats. Guests can log into their jobs from their rooms, or read a book beside a window looking into a grassy courtyard. In the group kitchen, there is popcorn, frozen fruit for smoothies and a Keurig coffee machine. But this welcoming space isn’t a hotel. It’s a $1,950-per-night detox center tucked into a discreet medical office building in Littleton where clients who can afford it are coming clean off fentanyl, or whatever drug they are ready to rid from their system. (Brown, 5/17)

In other news about drug use —

Dallas Morning News: Most Texans Support Legalizing Pot, But Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Says No
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is unmoved by a new poll revealing that a majority of Texans support legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use. Abbott said Tuesday that his position has not changed beyond what he’s proposed in the past — reducing the criminal penalty for marijuana possession to a Class C misdemeanor, but not legalizing the drug. But according to a Dallas Morning News-University of Texas at Tyler poll released Sunday, an overwhelming percentage of registered Texas voters — 91% of Democrats, 85% of independents and 74% of Republicans, combining for 83% total — back the idea of legalizing marijuana for medical use in the state, something the Legislature has continuously expanded, including as recently as last year. When it comes to recreational use, which is legal in 18 other states, including neighboring New Mexico, Texans are a bit more hesitant. (Jeffers Jr. and Caldwell, 5/17)

AP: Tennessee Doctor Agrees To Prescription Limits In Settlement 
A Tennessee physician has been barred from prescribing a number of controlled substances in settling a lawsuit that accused him of prescribing drugs with no legitimate medical purpose. The settlement was reached last week between Manchester doctor David Florence and the U.S. attorney’s office for the Middle District of Tennessee, according to a news release. (5/19)

Health News Florida: Florida Neurological Injury Fund Fights Ruling Of Appeals Court Panel 
A Florida program that pays for care of children who suffer neurological injuries at birth is asking a full federal appeals court to take up a lawsuit about whether the program has inappropriately shifted costs to Medicaid. Attorneys for the Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association filed a motion this past week asking the full 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to consider whether the lawsuit should have been dismissed. A three-judge panel of the court last month rejected arguments that the program, known as NICA, should be shielded from the whistleblower lawsuit because of sovereign immunity. (5/18)

Indianapolis Star: Free Healthcare Clinic To Begin With IndyGo At Downtown Transit Center
A mobile health care clinic at a downtown bus station had no issue attracting walk-ins. Like 27-year-old Tationa Sims, a single mom out for a walk on a nice day with her 1-year-old son, Noah. She saw the RV parked at the Julia M. Carson Transit Center Tuesday afternoon and decided to see if the physician would fill some of her prescriptions, saving her from finding a ride to her nearest CVS. (Dwyer, 5/19)

Bangor Daily News: Maine Lawmakers Frustrated With Child Welfare System May Seek Access To Confidential Files
Nearly a year after high-profile child deaths placed renewed attention on Maine’s child welfare system, lawmakers growing impatient with the state raised the idea of gaining access to confidential case files to inform overhaul efforts. Much of the discussion at a legislative hearing on Wednesday revolved around whether a watchdog committee should seek access to depersonalized case records from the Office of Child and Family Services that are now used by nonpartisan investigators to gain a better understanding of potential missteps taken in child welfare cases. (Andrews, 5/18)

The Baltimore Sun: 80% Of Baltimore 911 Calls Are Non-Emergencies. A New Plan Will Make The Department More Efficient, Officials Say
If you call 911 to report a stolen package in Baltimore, dispatchers will soon ask you to do it over the phone or online, instead of sending a police officer to respond in person. If you report someone having a behavioral health crisis, a social worker will be dispatched instead of the cops. Non-emergency calls and minor car accidents will trigger similar non-police responses. The goal is to make the Baltimore Police Department more efficient amid persistent staffing shortages and rising gun violence, according to city leaders. (Skene, 5/18)

Politico: New York Accuses Amazon Of Pregnancy, Disability Discrimination
The New York Division of Human Rights filed a complaint Wednesday against Amazon over alleged pregnancy and disability discrimination against workers, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced. The complaint accuses Amazon of denying reasonable accommodations to workers who are pregnant or have disabilities, in violation of New York’s Human Rights Law. It alleges that the company, which operates 23 worksites in New York, has policies that force such employees to take unpaid leave rather than allowing them to work with accommodations. “New York has the strongest worker protections in the nation and was one of the first to have protections for workers who are pregnant and those with disabilities,” Hochul said in a statement. “Working men and women are the backbone of New York and we will continue to take a stand against any injustice they face.” (Young, 5/18)

The Baltimore Sun: Dr. Anthony Fauci To Speak At University Of Maryland, Baltimore Commencement 
Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden, plans to address future doctors, nurses, pharmacists and others in this year’s graduating class at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Fauci, a familiar face on television during the coronavirus pandemic, will speak to a class that spent a good deal of time learning during the pandemic and also contributing to patient care and vaccine research and development for COVID-19. (Cohn, 5/17)

In news about LGBTQ+ health —

Dallas Morning News: Texas AG Paxton Wants To Intervene In Battle Over Care For Trans Youth At Dallas Hospital
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wants the state to intervene in a court battle over medical care for transgender youth at a Dallas hospital. Paxton filed a petition in a Dallas County court Tuesday night asking that the state be allowed to get involved in the case between Children’s Medical Center Dallas and the doctor who once led its Genecis medical program. A judge recently granted Dr. Ximena Lopez’s request to temporarily resume her regular practice after Children’s and UT Southwestern, which jointly ran the program, last year stopped providing certain medical treatments for adolescent patients newly seeking care for gender dysphoria. The attorney general is arguing that transgender adolescents should be blocked from accessing treatments such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy, which he says may constitute abuse but which are broadly supported by the medical community. (Wolf and McGaughy, 5/18)

AP: Federal Judge Strikes Down Tennessee Bathroom Signage Law 
A federal judge on Tuesday struck down Tennessee’s first-of-its-kind law requiring businesses to post special signs if they allow transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger makes permanent her previous decision from July 2021 that blocked enforcement of the law just days after it took effect. Businesses had sued over the law, arguing the signs would violate their First Amendment rights by compelling them to communicate language they find offensive. (Mattise, 5/17)

Bloomberg: DRC Congo Ebola Fatalities In Congo Raise Concern Of More Virulent Strain
The strain of Ebola virus that killed all three people known to have caught it in the Democratic Republic of Congo since April may be more virulent, according to a nonprofit group that runs three treatment centers there. An acute loss of blood was the first symptom observed in all three patients reported in Congo’s remote northwestern province of Equateur, said Baweye Mayoum Barka, the incoming head of mission in the country for the Alliance for International Medical Actions. That’s unlike cases seen during the previous two outbreaks there in which most began with fever or fatigue and only about 15% of patients hemorrhaged, he said. (Sguazzin and Kew, 5/19)

In news from Spain and the U.K. —

The Washington Post: Spain Plans For Paid ‘Period Leave’ For Women Workers, Wider Abortion Access
Spain’s left-wing coalition government this week approved a draft proposal with a broad range of reproductive rights provisions, including one that would make Spain the first European country to grant workers paid “menstrual leave.” Under the plan, the government would foot the bill for women to take days off work if they are diagnosed by a doctor with severe menstrual pain. More than half of women who menstruate experience some pain for one to two days each month, with some feeling pain so acute that it keeps them from doing normal tasks, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. (Westfall, 5/18)

Press Association: Bulimia Anorexia Hospital Admissions Almost Double In England In 5 Years
Hospital admissions for people with eating disorders have risen 84% in the last five years, with boys and young men increasingly affected, a new analysis has found. There were 11,049 more admissions for illnesses such as bulimia and anorexia in 2020/21 than in 2015/16, reaching 24,268 admissions across England. Admissions in children and young people rose from 3,541 to 6,713, with a 35% increase in the last year alone as the Covid pandemic hit, according to the analysis by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. (Kirby, 5/19)

Bloomberg: NHS Patients Left With Drill Bits, Scalpels Other Objects Inside: Analysis
There have been nearly 100 cases of a foreign object - including drill bits - left inside NHS patients by mistake, according to a new analysis. Some 407 "Never Events" - things so serious they should never happen - were recorded in the NHS in England from April 2021 until March 2022, figures examined by the PA news agency show. This is the equivalent of nearly eight every week and is an increase from the same period the year before, which had 364 in total. (Bradley, 5/19)

CIDRAP: Study Finds MRSA And VRE Can Linger In Nursing Homes
Environmental screening of single-occupancy rooms in a nursing home found high levels of circulation and persistence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE), according to a study published today in Antimicrobial Stewardship & Healthcare Epidemiology. In the prospective cohort study, researchers screened five high-touch surfaces in a cluster of nine single-occupancy rooms at a nursing home three times a week for 34 weeks. They also screened patients if they agreed to participate. Overall, there were 146 distinct occupancy events captured during the study, with 387 study visits and 4,670 swabs collected. (5/16)

CIDRAP: Trial Suggests Awake Prone Position Doesn't Cut Need For Intubation In COVID
A randomized, controlled trial of 400 adults hospitalized for COVID-19–related respiratory failure suggests that awake prone positioning doesn't significantly reduce the need for endotracheal intubation at 30 days, but the authors caution that the effect size was imprecise and a therapeutic benefit cannot be ruled out. (5/16)

CIDRAP: Study: Readmission Rate For COVID-19 Is 11% 
Eleven percent of Canadian patients who were discharged after hospitalization for COVID-19 were readmitted to the hospital or died within 30 days of discharge, according to a study today in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal). (Soucheray, 5/16)

ScienceDaily: Protein Linked To Intellectual Disability Has Complex Role
Researchers have identified a previously unknown function for the fragile X protein, the loss of which is the leading inherited cause of intellectual disability. The researchers showed that the protein modulates how neurons in the brain's memory center process information, a central part of learning and memory. (Washington University School of Medicine, 5/17)

CIDRAP: Study Shows How Flu-Like Illness Silently Limits Physical Activity 
A new study in JAMA Network Open involved giving wearable sensors to adults during the 2018-19 flu season to monitor physical activity levels and found that participants with influenza-like illness (ILI) symptoms were significantly less active than their healthy peers. (Soucheray, 5/13)

The Washington Post: How To Think About Severe Hepatitis Cases In Children
 
As if parents don’t have enough to worry about — a global pandemic, a baby formula shortage — there is a new mysterious ailment afflicting young children in the form of severe hepatitis. Here’s the bottom line: This is not reason for panic, but it does deserve vigilance. Parents should also be wary of speculation about the illness. There is still much we don’t know. (Leana S. Wen, 5/17)

The New York Times: You Shouldn’t Need A Doctor’s Note To Switch Formula Brands 
On Wednesday, responding to the baby formula shortage crisis, President Biden said he is invoking the Defense Production Act “to ensure that manufacturers have the necessary ingredients to make safe, healthy infant formula here at home.” He also announced something called Operation Fly Formula “to speed up the import of infant formula and start getting more formula in stores as soon as possible. ”It’s about time. If you’re a parent struggling to feed an infant, the shortage is, indeed, a crisis. Two children in Tennessee were hospitalized recently because they couldn’t get the specialized formula they needed for their medical condition. (Jessica Grose, 5/18)

The Atlantic: What Parents Did Before Baby Formula 
The baby was just two weeks old, and hungry. Elizabeth Hanson tried to breastfeed, but didn’t have enough milk. With terror, she watched as her daughter lost weight, tiny bones protruding from her skin. In America, in modern times, most parents can count on multiple safe, healthy options for feeding an infant: breast milk or formula. That is, unless they are experiencing the impacts of the current formula shortage, as thousands of families across the United States are. (Carla Cevasco, 5/18)

The New York Times: The Formula Shortage Has Led To Misguided Calls For Women To Breastfeed 
My son began drinking formula in earnest when he was 7 weeks old, after I was taken to the emergency room in an ambulance because I had postpartum pre-eclampsia and a blind spot had erupted in my vision, a potential stroke symptom. The whole experience was terrifying, but as I sat in the emergency room having not eaten in 12 hours, my breasts leaking all over the hospital dressing gown, my biggest concern was not that my brain might be malfunctioning but that my baby might be going hungry because I wasn’t at home to feed him. As the doctor informed me that I appeared to have a brain aneurysm, it barely registered; all I could think of was how I was going to get breast milk to my son if I had to stay in the hospital overnight. (Mercifully, the doctor was wrong about the brain aneurysm, but I learned that six weeks later.) (Elizabeth Spiers, 5/18)

Also —

Scientific American: What The U.S. Can Learn From Brazil's Successful COVID Vaccination Campaign 
During the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, media outlets, health experts and scholars have explained the COVID-19 vaccine divide in the U.S. as partisan, educational, racial or socioeconomic. As it stands, the overall U.S. adult vaccination rate has hovered around 65 percent for months now. But this division may go back to the founding ideals of democracy in the U.S.: Americans simply aren’t accustomed to expecting much from their government. (Adriana de Souza e Silva, Claudio Araujo, 5/18)

The New York Times: The Covid Pandemic Still Isn’t Over. So What Now? 
In March 2020, just weeks after the pandemic had been declared and the world cast into crisis, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, went on CNN to prepare Americans for what he thought was the worst-case scenario. With about just 125,000 confirmed cases in the country at that point, he warned that Covid-19 could eventually kill between 100,000 and 200,000 Americans, far exceeding the flu’s annual death toll even in its most severe years. (Spencer Bokat-Lindell, 5/18)

The Washington Post: College Students With Disabilities Deserve Accessible Campuses
So often shared spaces don’t equal shared experiences. A broken sidewalk might go unnoticed by most people who walk across it but prove an obstacle to someone who uses a wheelchair or is blind. Or maybe it’s not a broken sidewalk that splits experiences and instead is a too-narrow doorway, or excessive red tape for accommodations; or a construction project that blocks off nearby parking. (Theresa Vargas, 5/18)

The CT Mirror: Expand School-Based Health Centers To CT's Underserved Districts
School-based health centers (SBHCs) fill a critical gap in children’s mental health care in Connecticut, and funding should be expanded to underserved school districts. In December 2021, the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory, “Protecting Youth Mental Health,” reported that symptoms of anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders have increased among youth on a global level. But even before the pandemic, we had a mental health crisis brewing. According to the Centers for Disease Control, up to one in five children ages 3 to 17 in the United States had a mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral disorder between 2013 – 2019, but fewer than 15 percent of children ages 5 to 17 received mental health treatment in 2019. (Tricia Orozco, 5/19)

Stat: NEJM, Other Journals Must Make Conflicts Of Interest More Transparent
Are medical journals reliable sources of objective information, or do they, at times, act as shills for the pharmaceutical industry and other interests? We believe the latter after reading a Perspective article on drug pricing in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) that presented the perspective of the pharmaceutical industry on what drugs should cost without explicitly revealing the industry ties of its authors. Editorial content in journals is expected to provide objective information about medical science, care, and health policy. That objectivity is threatened by authors of editorials, review articles, and other “perspective” pieces with critical conflicts of interest due to financial associations with the topics being discussed. To prevent this, or at least limit it, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors advocates transparency about such conflicts. (Martin F. Shapiro and Sidney M. Wolfe, 5/19)

Stat: Take A Stand For Those Who Can't With The Promising Pathway Act 
Every five years since 1992, Congress has reauthorized the Food and Drug Administration user fee package to allow the agency to collect funds from companies that produce human drugs and biological products. Over the last 30 years, this process has helped the FDA, the biomedical industry, and Congress to rethink, redesign, and modernize existing FDA programs and pathways as well as introduce new regulatory policies to advance drug development and approvals. But it still isn’t fast or innovative enough to help Americans living with rare or life-threatening and progressive diseases. (Brian Wallach and Mike Braun, 5/19)

The CT Mirror: Connecticut Desperately Needs A Stable Naloxone Supply
“Can I get some Narcan?” a regular client at one of Connecticut’s largest syringe services programs recently asked.“ No, we’re out,” I said in response, as I watched them walk out the door for what could be the last time. Theirs was a reasonable request, given that the United States is in the midst of one of the most volatile opioid epidemics globally, with over 100,000 deaths across the country in 2020 alone. This is the equivalent of a Boeing 737-400 crashing every day for a year straight. (William Eger and Francesca Maviglia, 5/19)

Los Angeles Times: Heat Waves Are Killing Californians In Their Homes. Cooling Standards Could Save Lives
In the summer it can get up to 120 degrees inside the un-air-conditioned home Agustin Pedro Pedro rents in the San Joaquin Valley city of Madera, so unbearably hot that he sweats, feels faint and gets headaches. “I arrive tired from work, but I can’t even rest in my own home because the heat doesn’t allow me,” the 60-year-old farmworker told state lawmakers at a recent hearing in Sacramento. He has asked his landlord to install something to cool the rental unit, but he refuses. (5/18)

Newsweek: HHS Guidance On Trans Pharmacology Raises More Questions Than It Answers 
Last month, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs (HHS/OPA) issued a "guidance document" called Gender Affirming Care in Young People. The document claims to outline an established standard of care on how to proceed with social, pharmacological and surgical "affirmation" of children and adolescents who identify as transgender. When announcing the new document, Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine went so far as to state "there is no argument among medical professionals—pediatricians, pediatric endocrinologists, adolescent medicine physicians, adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, etc.—about the value and the importance of gender-affirming care." (David Gortler, 5/19)