Los Angeles Times: It’s Time To Get Your COVID Shot, CDC Director Says. Like, Now
A month after officially recommending that everyone 6 months and older get an updated COVID-19 vaccination, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Mandy Cohen rolled up her sleeve Wednesday in Los Angeles for the latest shot. ... “October is the right time to get vaccinated,” Cohen said. “As we get into late fall and winter ... what we expect is to see more COVID circulation in November, December and January.” (Garcia, 10/11)

NBC News: ‘Waiting With Bated Breath’: Health Clinics Anxious For Covid Vaccines Weeks After Rollout
Weeks after the approval of updated Covid vaccines, community health centers across the country say they are still waiting on their doses to arrive. The delays are preventing many vulnerable adults and children from getting vaccinated ahead of a potential winter wave. Cahaba Medical Care, which has 26 community health clinics throughout Alabama, hasn’t received a single shipment of the new Covid vaccines since the rollout began in September, said Veronica Ford, a nursing manager at the center. (Lovelace Jr. and Bellamy, 10/12)

Los Angeles Times: COVID-19 Vaccines Easier To Get In L.A. County
While COVID-19 vaccines have been in short supply in parts of Los Angeles County, that dearth is easing in some places, officials say. The L.A. County Department of Public Health says the updated COVID-19 vaccine is now available at all eight of its public health centers — in downtown L.A., Hollywood, Willowbrook, Monrovia, Pacoima, Pomona, Whittier and Lancaster. ... For those who are eager to get the updated vaccine as soon as possible, “I hope people can take advantage of the places where there is ample vaccine available,” L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said. (Lin II, 10/11)

More on covid vaccines —

Military.com: Troops Suing Defense Department Over Vaccine Mandate Reach $1.8 Million Settlement 
The Defense Department has been ordered to pay $1.8 million in legal fees as settlement for two lawsuits that challenged its requirement that all U.S. troops be vaccinated against COVID-19. A Florida U.S. District Court judge awarded the money last week to the firm representing the plaintiffs, Liberty Counsel. The cases, one involving several Navy SEALs, were filed by a total of 48 service members -- the majority of whom were officers -- representing all branches of the armed forces and components. (Kime, 10/10)

FiercePharma: Novavax Taps Breakout Star Of TV Show For COVID Vaccine Campaign
Novavax is throwing marketing muscle behind its bid to capture a piece of the fall COVID-19 booster vaccine market. ... Novavax has enlisted Nicole Ari Parker, a Black actor who The Washington Post called the breakout star of the "Sex and the City" sequel "And Just Like That …," to front the campaign. (Taylor, 10/10)

Vanity Fair: Operation Warp Speed: The Untold Story Of The COVID-19 Vaccine 
How an unlikely group of scientists, generals, and government officials supercharged the effort to get us back to some kind of normal. (Nocera and McLean, 10/12)

On the spread of covid —

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: They’re Back: Cleveland Clinic To Return To Masking At Ohio Hospitals 
Patients at Cleveland Clinic hospitals may soon be seeing a little bit less of their doctors - their faces, that is. The hospital system has requested that caregivers and visitors on inpatient floors of its Ohio hospitals return to masking, beginning next week. (Kroen, 10/11)

Axios: AI Tool Forecasts New COVID Variants
Harvard and University of Oxford researchers are harnessing AI to predict threatening new strains of COVID-19 and other viruses. The approach could prove more efficient than lab-based testing, because it doesn't rely on people becoming infected or getting vaccinated to develop antibodies. (Bettelheim, 10/12)

KUNC: Study Finds Indigenous People Are Much More Likely To Contract Severe COVID
Researchers at the University of New Mexico have found that COVID-19 hit American Indian and Alaska Native patients hard — even inside the university’s hospital. The researchers met with around 500 patients of various races and ethnicities who were admitted with COVID-19 infections from 2020 to 2021. They found a disproportionate number of Indigenous individuals were admitted both in and outside of the ICU. The research was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Nexus journal in August. (VandenEinde, 10/10)

The Texas Tribune: For Texans With Long COVID, The Search For Treatment Centers Continues
After going for a quick run last year, weeks out from a mild COVID-19 infection, Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez returned home more exhausted than usual. She broke out in hives and felt a migraine crash down on her. The next months marked changes in her daily lifestyle: her blood pressure and heart rate would fluctuate wildly. It was hard to go on walks. She had treated hundreds of patients with long-term symptoms of COVID, or “long COVID,” for almost two years, operating out of a center based in San Antonio with a months-long waitlist. But even then, she felt other doctors wouldn’t listen to what she needed. (Bohra, 10/12)

CBS News: Newly Approved RSV Vaccine In High Demand, Causes Supply Shortage Problems
A big complication right now is the cost – at nearly $500 a dose. While the shot is expected to be covered by most insurance plans, providers need to order the shot before knowing how much they'll be reimbursed. That's created a lot of frustration. "We're angry. As pediatricians, we're angry because it feels like we have an opportunity that may be missed," Dr. Fitzpatrick said. This summer, the American Academy of Pediatrics urged federal leaders to provide support so the shots can be administered widely and equitably. (Stahl, 10/11)

CBS News: RSV Antibody Shot For Babies Hits Obstacles In Rollout: "As Pediatricians, We're Angry"
Dr. Lauren Fitzpatrick ... says pediatricians were optimistic the drug could help reduce cases after a record year in 2022. "We thought that this was groundbreaking, that this could be our game-changer, that we could potentially really reduce the risk of patients being admitted for RSV," she told CBS News. "I think there was our hopes, and then there was our reality," "There was not an infrastructure in place to roll out this vaccine, or monoclonal antibodies, so even though we have families that are requesting it, we can't meet their demands." (Brand and Moniuszko, 10/11)

FiercePharma: Widespread Use Of Pfizer's Maternal RSV Shot Would Reduce Costs And Prevent Infant Hospitalizations: Study 
After a recent FDA approval and CDC recommendation, Pfizer's Abyrsvo is the first maternal vaccine to protect babies from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Now, new research from the company suggests that widespread uptake of the shot could significantly reduce infant hospitalizations and save hundreds of millions of dollars in annual costs. Widespread uptake of the vaccine could slash annual hospitalizations in half, reduce emergency department visits by 31.8% and cut outpatient clinic visits by 32.2% among the 3.7 million U.S. babies that are less than one year old, according to projections shared by the drugmaker ahead of the annual IDWeek meeting. (Becker, 10/11)

Noticias Telemundo: Latinas Behind RSV, COVID Vaccines Aim To Boost Hispanic Rates
Latinas who had key roles in the development of the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID-19 vaccines are hopeful their work can contribute to improving vaccination rates among Hispanics. The big picture: Latinos in the U.S. have consistently low inoculation rates against the flu, polio, HPV or hepatitis, and are less likely than other racial or ethnic groups to be vaccinated against COVID-19, research shows. (Franco, 10/12)

Undark: For An RSV Vaccine: Trial, Error, And Two Young Lives
The new RSV vaccines are celebrated medical milestones. But what is owed to the families who unknowingly helped pave the way? (Schulson, 10/9)

In related news about the flu —

The Colorado Sun: How Two Anthropologists Busted A Myth About The 1918 Pandemic
Dead men tell no tales, but their bones sure do. Even more than 100 years later. And now a pair of researchers — one from the University of Colorado Boulder and another from McMaster University in Canada — are using those skeletal stories to question a conventional wisdom about the 1918 flu pandemic. (Ingold, 10/12)

Kiplinger: Social Security's 2024 COLA Due Tomorrow: What To Know 
A projected 3.2% COLA increase would be higher than the average over the past 20 years, Senior Citizens League says. (Solitro, 10/11)

AP: The Social Security Cost-Of-Living Adjustment Is Coming — But It Won't Be As Big As This Year's 
Looking ahead to retirement next spring, Karla Abbott finds comfort in the cost-of-living increase that millions of Social Security recipients get each year. ... After working 38 years as a nurse, the 61-year-old Sioux Falls, South Dakota, resident says she’s been saving for retirement since she was 18. But she isn’t certain that it will be enough, even with her Social Security benefits. (Hussein, 10/11)

The Motley Fool: Filed For Social Security Too Early? Here's Why All Isn't Lost.
One lesser-known Social Security rule is that filers get a single do-over option in their lifetime to withdraw an application for benefits and sign up again down the line. This option could come in handy if you've claimed your benefits too early and regret the reduction that resulted. (Backman, 10/11)

KFF Health News: House Panel To Hold Hearing On Erroneous Social Security Payments 
A House of Representatives panel has scheduled a hearing for next week on how the Social Security Administration has been clawing back payments it mistakenly made to beneficiaries. The announcement signals that members of Congress are focusing on the trauma many poor, retired, and disabled people have experienced from the government trying to reclaim safety-net payments — some in the tens of thousands of dollars — it says they shouldn’t have received. (Hilzenrath and Fleischer, 10/11)

Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Published New Abortion Statistics. Here’s What They Tell Us
In 2021, there were 3,129 abortions in Utah, 2,978 of which were provided to Utah residents. When asked the reason for terminating their pregnancy, with nine reasons to choose from, approximately half of people seeking an abortion told their doctor it was for socioeconomic reasons — they couldn’t afford to go through with giving birth and caring for a child. (Stern, 10/11)

Abortion news from Ohio and New Jersey —

AP: Ohio Votes On Abortion Rights This Fall. Misinformation About The Proposal Is Spreading 
A ballot measure in Ohio that would guarantee access to abortion rights is fueling misleading claims about how the proposal could influence abortion care, gender-related health care and parental consent in the state. (Swenson and Fernando, 10/11)

New Jersey Monitor: NJ Democrats Highlight Abortion On Campaign Trail As They Fight For Their Legislative Majorities 
With anti-abortion ballot measures failing in even the most conservative of states, New Jersey Democrats hope the issue will motivate voters here in November. (Nieto-Munoz, 10/9)

In other reproductive health news —

Axios San Francisco: Birthrate On The Decline In California, San Francisco 
California's birthrate fell dramatically between 2007 and 2022 — and San Francisco is mirroring that trend. The state's birthrate dropped 31% from approximately 15.6 births per 1,000 people in 2007 to 10.7 in 2022. (Fitzpatrick, Beheraj and Chen, 10/11)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: CHOP And Penn Get $50 Million To Study Environmental Effects On Pregnancy
The University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have won a $50 million grant to study how environmental factors affect the health of fetuses, babies, and toddlers. Researchers plan to enroll 2,500 pregnant patients and their partners over a 7-year period with the grant from the National Institutes of Health, as part of a larger study of more than 60,000 children. The study will track harmful environmental exposures such as pollution, violence, and extreme temperatures, as well as beneficial ones like walkability and green space. (Avril, 10/12)

The Hill: Breast Cancer Rates Are Rising. But More Women Are Surviving, Too 
While rates continue to creep up year-on-year, particularly among younger women, evolutions in diagnostics and treatment mean breast cancer patients face far better prospects than ever before.  Rapid drug development, personalized screening recommendations, targeted therapies and new treatments like immunotherapies have all helped women diagnosed with early stage and even metastatic breast cancer. (Weixel and Manchester, 10/11)

KFF Health News: California Bans Controversial ‘Excited Delirium’ Diagnosis
California is the first state to ban doctors and medical examiners from attributing deaths to the controversial diagnosis known as “excited delirium,” which a human rights activist hailed as a “watershed moment” that could make it harder for police to justify excessive force. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Oct. 8 to prohibit coroners, medical examiners, physicians, or physician assistants from listing excited delirium on a person’s death certificate or in an autopsy report. Law enforcement won’t be allowed to use the term to describe a person’s behavior in any incident report, and testimony that refers to excited delirium won’t be allowed in civil court. The law takes effect in January. (Young, 10/12)

The New York Times: ‘Excited Delirium’: California Bans Term As A Cause Of Death 
Michele Heisler, the medical director of Physicians for Human Rights, an advocacy group based in New York, called the signing of the bill a victory for “justice, police accountability, human rights and health.” “This baseless concept can no longer be used in California to absolve law enforcement for deaths in custody, misinform responses to people facing medical and behavioral crises, or block access to legal remedies,” Dr. Heisler said in a statement. (Ives, 10/11)

CBS News: Antioch Man Inspires First In The Nation Law To Ban Term "Excited Delirium" As Cause Of Death
The bill, authored by Assemblyman Mike Gipson, is in honor of Angelo Quinto, 30, who died in December 2020 after Antioch police responded to reports of a mental health emergency. "Angelo Quinto is the reason why I'm in this space. It's because a United States Navy man who had a mental health issue and police were called," Gipson said. "The Antioch police laid on his neck and he died, and they put on the death certificate that he died from excited delirium, which is not correct. It causes us to raise questions." (Sowards, 10/11)

In other mental health news —

Stateline: Insurers Often Shortchange Mental Health Care Coverage, Despite A Federal Law
The federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, enacted in 2008, doesn’t require insurance plans to offer mental health coverage — but if they do, the benefits must be equal with coverage for other health conditions. ... But despite the federal law, many insurers continue to charge higher copayments for mental health care, limit the frequency of mental health treatment, or impose more restrictive prior authorization policies, according to The Kennedy Forum, a nonprofit that advocates for equal mental health coverage. (Hassanein, 10/11)

Fox News: Here Are The Best And Worst US States For Mental Health, As Revealed In A New Report
Where you live could have a lot to do with how you feel. A recent study from Soliant Health, a health care staffing and research company based in Atlanta, Georgia, has revealed this year’s best and worst U.S. states to live in for mental health. Drawing from national registries and agency data, the report weighed numerous factors that impact people's mental health status across all 50 states. (Stabile, 10/11)

CNN: World Mental Health Day: When Talking About Suicide, Avoid Using These Words 
When it comes to reducing stigma around suicide, not treating it as the elephant in the room is helpful, say mental health experts. But it’s not just talking about it that matters, it’s also about what you say and how you say it — which is why some have moved away from saying “committed suicide” and other phrases that can have harmful consequences. (Rogers, 10/10)

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.

CNN: OCD: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Explained By Experts
When someone likes things just so or always seems to have their home in perfect condition, others may say “he is so OCD.” But OCD — obsessive-compulsive disorder — isn’t a nifty personality trait of people who are organized. The condition is a disorder that can impact a person’s work, relationships and well-being, said Stephanie Woodrow, clinical director of the National Anxiety and OCD Treatment Center in Washington, DC. (Holcombe, 10/11)

Also —

The New York Times: FDA Issues Warning Over Misuse Of Ketamine Therapy 
The Food and Drug Administration issued an alert on Tuesday about the dangers of treating psychiatric disorders with compounded versions of ketamine, a powerful anesthetic that has become increasingly popular among those seeking alternative therapies for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and other difficult-to-treat mental health problems. Compounded drugs are those that have been modified or tailored in a lab for the specific needs of an individual patient. (Jacobs, 10/11)

USA Today: 'Fentanyl Fighter': Opvee Opioid Overdose Reversal Drug Lasts Longer
More than four months after the Food and Drug Administration approved the overdose reversal medication Opvee, the manufacturer, Indivior, has started shipping the life-saving drug to first responders and pharmacies. Opvee, a nasal spray version of the drug nalmefene, works by blocking opioid receptors in the brain to quickly reverse the effects of an overdose. The rescue medication is approved for people 12 and older and requires a prescription. (Alltucker, 10/12)

CBS News: LA County Libraries To Offer Free Naloxone Clinics
Five Los Angeles County public libraries will host free naloxone clinics starting Wednesday at select locations made possible with a partnership with the County Department of Public Health and California Department of Health Care Services. The free clinics run through Nov. 9. The free doses of naloxone are available and do not require proof of identification, insurance or payment. Those receiving the doses need to complete watching a brief video training of how to administer the medication, and the video will be available on site. The doses are limited to one per customer while supplies last. (10/11)

News 4 San Antonio: San Antonio Pharmacy Slapped With $275,000 Fine For Illegal Opioid Distribution
A federal court has ordered a local pharmacy and pharmacist to pay a $275,000 civil penalty relating to illegal dispensing of opioids and other controlled substances. ... The fine comes following a civil complaint filed in Jan. 2022, stating that prescriptions were being filled in violation of the Controlled Substances Act. The pharmacy also repeatedly ignored "red flags" delegitimizing claims that prescriptions were being used for their intended purpose. (Trejo, 10/11)

CBS News: What Is Fentanyl, And How Is It Made? CBS New York Goes Inside A DEA Laboratory For Answers About The National Crisis 
Fentanyl is a potent drug that can kill with even the smallest of doses, but what is fentanyl? How is it made, and what's being done to track the people smuggling it into our area? CBS New York takes us inside a Drug Enforcement Administration laboratory for the answers. (McNicholas, 10/11)

Becker's Hospital Review: How Instacart Is Delivering The Next Healthcare Disruption
Grocery delivery company Instacart is expanding its number of partnerships with hospitals and health systems to incorporate medical expertise and benefits into their services, aiming to enhance patient access to nutritious food and promote a healthy lifestyle. Instacart launched its Instacart Health initiative in September 2022 and has since partnered with Boston Children's Hospital; Orange, Calif.-based Alignment Healthcare; Mount Sinai Solutions; and Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente.  (Talaga, 10/11)

Axios: Surprise Billing Arbitration Is Still A Mess
Nearly two years after a surprise medical bill ban took effect, the process for settling billing disputes between insurers and providers is still mired in litigation and many cases remain unresolved. Uncertainty around how providers get paid for disputed out-of-network services isn't likely to ease as multiple challenges to the Biden administration arbitration rules continue to work through the courts. (Goldman, 10/12)

New Mexico In Depth: Lawmakers Tackled New Mexico’s Crisis Of Rural Health Care Workers. It Wasn’t Enough
New Mexico has a severe shortage of healthcare workers, particularly in the state’s rural and frontier areas, where a third of the state’s 2.1 million people live. Lawmakers and the governor invested millions to close the gap earlier this year, but advocates say it’s not enough. “We don’t have enough doctors anywhere in New Mexico, but especially in rural New Mexico,” said. Dr. Mario Pacheco. (Childress, 10/11)

KFF Health News: ‘I’m So Burned Out’: Fighting To See A Specialist Amplified Pain For Riverside County Woman
Teresa Johnson can’t escape the pain. It’s as if she’s getting pierced by needles all over her body, all at once. At night, she sometimes jolts out of sleep thinking bedbugs are attacking her. But it’s just the unfailing pain — day in and day out. Johnson, 58, said her ordeal started in September 2022, when she went for a CT scan of her abdomen after a bout of covid-19. Though Johnson warned the lab she was allergic to iodine, she believes the lab tech used it in an injection, triggering an allergic reaction. She spent the next three weeks in the hospital, feeling as if her body was on fire. (Castle Work, 10/12)

In corporate news —

WUSF: BayCare Announces Plans To Replace St. Joseph's Children's Hospital In Tampa 
BayCare has announced plans to build a new children's hospital in Tampa by 2030. The nonprofit hospital system will replace St. Joseph's Children's Hospital with a state-of-the-art facility on the same campus. The children's hospital has seen its patient numbers grow over the past few years creating a "pivotal point for pediatrics," according to Sarah Naumowich, president of St. Joseph's Children's and St. Joseph's Women's hospitals. (Bowman, 10/11)

Modern Healthcare: Blue Cross Of Michigan, Vermont Complete Merger
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan has finalized its deal to acquire Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont, the companies announced Wednesday. The insurers will maintain separate headquarters, boards of directors and workforces and will continue to be led by the same executives under the non-cash deal. The combined entity will have 5.4 million members. (Berryman, 10/11)

Modern Healthcare: Presbyterian Healthcare, UnityPoint Health Call Off Merger Plans
Presbyterian Healthcare Services and UnityPoint Health have ended their merger plans, the nonprofit health systems said Wednesday. Albuquerque, New Mexico-based Presbyterian and Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint  had planned to form a roughly $11 billion system with 48 hospitals in Illinois, Iowa, New Mexico and Wisconsin. The organizations announced the signing of a letter of intent to merge on March 2 and a definitive agreement on March 30. (Kacik, 10/11)

The CT Mirror: Yale Seeks State Funding, Lower Price For Prospect Medical Hospitals
Yale New Haven Health has asked the state to provide financial assistance in its acquisition of three Connecticut hospitals recently hit with a debilitating cyberattack, and for Prospect Medical Holdings, which owns the hospitals, to lower the $435 million purchase price. (Carlesso and Altimari, 10/11)

Modern Healthcare: Envision Healthcare Bankruptcy Reorganization Gets Court OK
Envision Healthcare plans to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy this month, the physician staffing company announced Wednesday. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas approved a reorganization plan for Envision Healthcare that will eliminate 70% of its funded debt. The for-profit company expects to finalize the transaction within weeks, according to a news release. (Hudson, 10/11)

Modern Healthcare: Humana CEO Bruce Broussard To Step Down In 2024
Humana President and CEO Bruce Broussard will end his tenure at the health insurance company after 13 years, Humana announced Wednesday. Broussard will hand over the reins to Envision Healthcare President and CEO Jim Rechtin next year. Rechtin will assume the roles of president and chief operating officer on Jan. 8, then take over as CEO during the second half of 2024, according to a news release. After stepping down as chief executive, Broussard will be a strategic advisor to the company into 2025, the company said. Humana did not respond to an interview request. (Berryman, 10/11)

Stat: Wellcome Trust Names Rottingen As Its New CEO
The Wellcome Trust — the world’s second largest private funder of biomedical research — announced on Wednesday that Norwegian scientist and public health official John-Arne Røttingen has been appointed its new CEO. (Joseph, 10/11)

Axios: "Toxic": Radiation Therapy Descriptions Can Scare Cancer Patients Away
Radiation therapy has saved countless lives, but the way its effects are commonly described as "brutal" or "toxic" makes some cancer patients avoid it as an option, according to a commentary published in JAMA Oncology. While radiation therapy can leave damaging side effects, major improvements have made it safer, more precise and more effective, Narek Shaverdian, an author of the viewpoint and a radiation oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, told Axios. (Reed, 10/11)

USA Today: Animal Research Offers New Hope For People In Need Of Organ Transplant
A Massachusetts-based company announced Wednesday that it has kept a monkey alive for two years with a pig kidney, the longest an animal has survived with an organ from a different animal. The work marks another substantial step toward solving the human organ shortage by using animals as donors. ... More than 100,000 Americans are waiting for a new organ, the vast majority for a kidney. ... The findings could open the door to many more patients receiving a viable transplant. (Weintraub, 10/11)

Reuters: Blood Tests Needed For Widespread Alzheimer's Diagnosis On The Way
Blood tests for Alzheimer's are needed to more widely diagnose the brain-wasting disease and understand its prevalence, but it will be another couple of years before they become an everyday tool, medical experts and company executives say. Blood testing is initially likely to be used to rule out Alzheimer's, with positive results signaling the need for more advanced diagnostics. (Beasley, 10/11)

In other pharmaceutical updates —

Reuters: Pfizer To Pay $50 Mln To Settle Drug Wholesalers' EpiPen Antitrust Claims
Pfizer has agreed to pay $50 million to settle claims by drug wholesalers that they overpaid for EpiPen allergy treatment devices as a result of anticompetitive tactics by the drugmaker. (Pierson, 10/11)

Reuters: GSK Settles Another California Lawsuit On Heartburn Drug Zantac
GSK on Wednesday said it agreed to settle another lawsuit in California alleging its discontinued heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer, as the British drugmaker sought to end costly litigation that has weighed on shares. The company, which has so far only settled cases in California, did not give the financial details of the settlement but said it was a "non-material" sum. (Mathews and Fick, 10/11)

Reuters: FDA Finds No Misconduct At Trial Sites For Pfizer's Lyme Disease Shot, Care Access Says
The U.S. health regulator did not find any misconduct at clinical sites managed by Care Access for Pfizer and French partner Valneva's trial of a Lyme disease vaccine candidate, the contract research firm said on Wednesday. Pfizer and Valneva said in February they will stop testing the vaccine in roughly half of U.S. patients in a late-stage study, due to a breach of clinical trial guidelines by a third-party contractor. (10/11)

Bloomberg: Ozempic And Wegovy: Novo Nordisk Obesity Drugs Ripple Through Stock Markets
The disruptive impact on stock markets of Novo Nordisk A/S’s diabetes drugs is getting ever wider. The Danish company, now Europe’s largest by market value, said late Tuesday it was halting a study which looked at the impact of its blockbuster Ozempic drug on kidney failure after it showed effectiveness surprisingly early. (Rees, 10/11)

Wisconsin Examiner: Wisconsin Bills Blocking Gender-Affirming Health Care, Transgender Athletes In Women’s Sports Head To Assembly 
Two bills condemned by members of Wisconsin’s trans community and their allies advanced out of Assembly committees Tuesday on party-line votes, teeing them up for an Assembly floor vote later this week. Gov. Tony Evers has vowed to veto both measures if they reach his desk. Public hearings last week that lasted for hours drew impassioned testimony from opponents of the legislation. ... Both bills were scheduled for Thursday’s Assembly floor session before the committees took their votes. (Gunn, 10/11)

The Hill: North Carolina Family, Doctor Sue To Block State’s Gender-Affirming Health Care Ban
Two national LGBTQ rights groups, a North Carolina doctor and a family with a transgender child are challenging a new North Carolina law preventing transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming health care. The coalition argues in a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday that the law discriminates on the basis of gender identity and infringes on the right of parents to make medical decisions on behalf of their children. (Migdon, 10/11)

In related news —

The Washington Post: The First National Coming Out Day 35 Years Ago Took On Reagan And AIDS Stigma 
Today, National Coming Out Day is often seen as a mainstream, social-media-focused event, but its origins 35 years ago lie in a desperate push for more visibility as tens of thousands of people were dying in part because of government inaction. (Neus, 10/11)

KFF Health News: PrEP, A Key HIV Prevention Tool, Isn’t Reaching Black Women 
Alexis Perkins thought her OB-GYN’s office in Atlanta would be just the place to get a prescription for the type of drug that reduces a person’s risk of contracting HIV. But during a recent visit, the medical assistant who greeted her had not heard of the medicines known as preexposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, and she seemed uncomfortable discussing it, Perkins said. Her provider had heard of it but didn’t feel confident prescribing it. (Whitehead, 10/12)

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

News Service of Florida: DeSantis Administration Fights Allegations Over Medicaid Redeterminations 
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is trying to fend off a potential class-action lawsuit that alleges the state has not provided adequate information to Medicaid beneficiaries before dropping them from the health-care program. Attorneys for the state Agency for Health Care Administration and the Department of Children and Families on Friday filed court documents arguing that a federal judge should reject requests to issue a preliminary injunction and to make the lawsuit a class action. (Saunders, 10/10)

Roll Call: California Law Signals Ongoing Push For Single-Payer System 
During the same weekend that California took its first steps toward securing universal health coverage, the state’s top three Democratic Senate candidates emphasized that the issue remains very much a part of the health care debate. While the issue has stalled at the federal level, the push toward single-payer health care continues to resonate as a campaign issue for Democrats. Advocates of a unified health system have mostly rallied behind “Medicare for All,” a federal effort that would fund medically necessary care for U.S. residents through taxes. (Raman, 10/11)

San Francisco Chronicle: Jail Inmate Ignored For Days Before Death In Alameda County, Suit Says
The family of a man who died in an Alameda County jail in 2021 alleges that video footage proves he was left alone and unresponsive for three days before jail officials intervened. Maurice Monk’s daughter initially filed the suit on his behalf in July 2022, less than a year after Monk, 45, died in Santa Rita Jail. Monk’s official cause of death was hypertensive cardiovascular disease, according to the lawsuit, but his family alleged his death was caused by the jail failing to give him his medication. (Munce, 10/10)

CBS News: Metro Detroit Medical Spa Offers Free Health Services To Uninsured
A local medical spa is making healthcare more accessible for the uninsured. Now through the end of the year, the House of Contour in Southfield is offering free services, including lab work, vital sign monitoring, and vaginal PH checks. Volunteering with the City of Detroit over the summer sparked the idea for owner and registered nurse Stormie Anderson. "Everyone who would come to our booth to get their blood pressure checked, everybody's blood pressure was high," Anderson said. (Winfrey, 10/11)

Axios: More Than 1.3M Assault Injuries Treated In Emergency Rooms In 2020
Assaults accounted for more than 1.3 million — or roughly 6% — of all injuries treated in emergency departments in 2020, according to new figures from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics. The data, which doesn't include sexual assaults, provides a snapshot of the burden violence-related injuries places on the health system. (Reed, 10/12)

In other health and wellness news —

The New York Times: New A.I. Tool Diagnoses Brain Tumors On The Operating Table
Once their scalpels reach the edge of a brain tumor, surgeons are faced with an agonizing decision: cut away some healthy brain tissue to ensure the entire tumor is removed, or give the healthy tissue a wide berth and risk leaving some of the menacing cells behind. Now scientists in the Netherlands report using artificial intelligence to arm surgeons with knowledge about the tumor that may help them make that choice. (Mueller, 10/11)

Stat: Kidney Disease Boosts Cardiac Arrest Risk For Hispanics, Latinos 
Chronic kidney disease was the strongest risk factor for sudden cardiac arrest among Hispanic and Latino adults in the first study to evaluate this population in the U.S. for risk factors of this major cause of death. (Nayak, 10/11)

NPR: Scientists Think AI Can Speed Up Their Discoveries
Artificial intelligence is promising to upend the knowledge economy. It can already code computer programs, draw pictures and even take notes for doctors. But perhaps nowhere is the promise of AI closer to realization than the sciences, where technically-minded researchers are eager to bring its power to bear on problems ranging from disease to climate change. On Thursday, the U.S. National Academies convened a two-day meeting on the potential for AI to change science. "AI scientists can really be more systematic, more comprehensive and not make errors," says Yolanda Gil, director of AI and data science initiatives at the Information Sciences Institute at the University of Southern California, who is attending the event. (Brumfiel, 10/12)

The Washington Post: How Much Sunshine Are You Getting? Now Your Watch Can Keep Track.
Your smartwatch tracks your steps and sleep. Now, the makers of the Apple Watch want to track your sunshine. Apple’s Time in Daylight feature uses the watch’s ambient light sensor, as well as its GPS and motion sensors, to detect whether a person is outside. Clouds, shade and even a long-sleeve shirt can affect results. The feature is available on Apple Watch Series 6 or later models. (Amenabar, 10/11)

Military Times: Want To Join The Air Force? Now You Have To Deadlift
The Air Force has revamped its strength test for new recruits for the first time in more than 20 years as it tries to diversify a host of traditionally male career fields. Prospective airmen are now judged on their ability to perform a series of increasingly heavy deadlifts, rather than the power clean-and-press motion that was used for decades, the Air Force confirmed in an Oct. 4 email. (Cohen, 10/19)

Reuters: Exclusive: India Allows Cough Syrup Firm Linked To Uzbek Deaths To Re-Open Factory
India's Uttar Pradesh state has permitted the resumption of most production at a factory owned by Marion Biotech, whose cough syrups Uzbekistan linked to the deaths of 65 children last year, according to an order seen by Reuters. Marion is among three Indian companies whose cough syrups the World Health Organization (WHO) and other agencies have linked to the deaths of 141 children in Uzbekistan, Gambia and Cameroon since the middle of last year, in one of the world's worst such waves of poisoning. (Das, 10/11)

The Washington Examiner: Israel War: Israeli Health Minister Instructs Public Hospitals Not To Treat Hamas Members 
Israel's health minister instructed the country's public hospitals not to treat wounded members of Hamas. Israeli Health Minister Moshe Arbel urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to instruct all public hospitals to abide by the directive "immediately," according to the Jewish News Syndicate. The reasoning behind the order was that hospitals should focus on treating Israeli civilians and Israeli Defense Forces soldiers. (Knox, 10/11)

Medscape: European Doctors Paid Half As Much As US Counterparts
United States physicians make far more on average than their counterparts in 10 other countries, according to Medscape's survey of physicians in North America, South America, and Europe. Whereas US doctors averaged $352,000 per year in salary, the country closest in pay was Canada ($273,000). The lowest-paying country was Mexico, at $19,000. In Germany, which has the highest pay among the European countries in the survey, doctors make $160,000 on average. (Frellick, 10/11)

The Military Times and AP: WWII Medic Honored For Treating Dozens Of Troops Under Enemy Fire
An African American combat medic who was wounded while landing on Omaha Beach during the D-Day invasion in northern France but went on to tend to dozens of troops was posthumously honored Wednesday in a ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. His family and supporters continue to push for an even higher recognition they believe his heroism is owed. ... Waverly B. Woodson Jr. was a 21-year-old Army medic assigned to the only African American combat unit to land in Normandy, across the English Channel from Britain, on June 6, 1944. (Santana and Wolf, 10/11)

The Journal Of Nutrition: Iron Deficiency Is Related To Depressive Symptoms In US Non-Pregnant Women Of Reproductive Age
Non-pregnant women of reproductive age with iron deficiency in the US have higher prevalence of somatic depressive symptoms scores than those with iron sufficiency, especially if they are of low income. (Ciulei, 9/30)

On infection control —

New England Journal of Medicine: Decolonization In Nursing Homes To Prevent Infection And Hospitalization 
Nursing home residents are at high risk for infection, hospitalization, and colonization with multidrug-resistant organisms. ... In nursing homes, universal decolonization with chlorhexidine and nasal iodophor led to a significantly lower risk of transfer to a hospital due to infection than routine care. (Miller et al, 10/10)

CIDRAP: Enhanced IPC Measures At Cancer Center Linked To Reduced Infections During COVID 
Robust infection prevention and control (IPC) measures at a comprehensive cancer center during the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with significant decreases in healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), researchers reported today in the American Journal of Infection Control. (Dall, 10/5)

CIDRAP: Study Links Opioid Exposure To Colonization With Drug-Resistant Bacteria
A study conducted at two Rhode Island hospitals found that exposure to opioids was associated with a nearly four-fold risk in vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE) colonization, researchers reported this week in the American Journal of Infection Control. (Dall, 10/11)

More on the covid-19 pandemic —

CIDRAP: Codagenix Announces Promising Findings For Intranasal COVID Vaccine
Against the backdrop of a global push for new COVID vaccines that can provide broader and longer lasting protection, Codagenix today announced that its live-attenuated intranasal vaccine candidate prompted robust humoral and cellular immunity in adults who took part in a phase 1 clinical trial. (Schnirring, 10/11)

CIDRAP: Study: Prenatal Telehealth Visits Did Not Take Off During Pandemic 
During the first months of the pandemic, many healthcare providers pivoted to telehealth appointments as way to limit potential exposure to COVID-19, including obstetricians and gynecologists caring for pregnant patients. But a new study in JAMA Network Open shows most patients chose in-person visits from June to December 2020 out of personal preference, despite the availability of telehealth. (Soucheray, 10/10)

CIDRAP: Pandemic Procedures Slowing Heart Attack Responses 
A new study presented at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) Quality Summit 2023 this week shows door-to-balloon (D2B) procedure time during acute heart attacks has suffered since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, partly because of the need for COVID-19 screening, associated isolation procedures, and terminal cleaning in the cardiac catheterization lab. The study is based on heart attack patients seen at Ocean University Medical Center in New Jersey from 2018 through 2022. (Soucheray, 10/4)

CIDRAP: RSV Hospitalizations Have Worse Clinical Outcomes For Older Americans Than Flu, COVID 
Though hospitalizations for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are less common than those for flu or COVID-19, they are more severe and more likely to occur in adults ages 75 and older, according to new data published today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The study looked at adult hospitalization for RSV in the United States from February 2022 to May 2023. A total of 5,784 adults aged 60 years or older hospitalized with acute respiratory illness and laboratory-confirmed RSV, SARS-CoV-2, or influenza infection were prospectively enrolled in the study conducted at 25 US hospitals. (Soucheray, 10/5)

Miami Herald: It Shouldn’t Take A Lawsuit To Get Florida COVID Data
A settlement in a lawsuit filed by the Florida Center for Government Accountability ... means the state will have to let the public see the records it tried so hard to keep hidden as the Delta variant tore through the state. ... The settlement also means the state will have to pay $152,250 in attorneys fees to those who filed the suit. Is Gov. Ron DeSantis paying that money? No, of course not. We are. This settlement never should have been necessary. If the state had been transparent, instead of attempting to circumvent state public-records laws, we would have known all along just how bad the outbreaks were. We also would have $152,000 to spend on some other need in the state. (10/10)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Nutrition Can Be A Prescription For Healthcare
Using food as healthcare is happening nationwide. Impressive studies are showing results for patients and health systems. Only Washington remains behind the curve. The good news is that there are three things Congress can do today to jumpstart Food Is Medicine policies. (Shelby Luce and Kim Corbin, 10/10)

New Jersey Globe: If You Think Abortion Isn’t On The Ballot This November In New Jersey, Think Again 
Our record on abortion stands in stark contrast to states across the country. Florida, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, etc., have all taken steps to restrict abortion rights. We have done the opposite. But all of our successes could be overturned if Democrats lose our majority this November. Currently, there are nearly a dozen bills introduced by extreme Republican legislators in Trenton that would turn back the clock on a woman’s freedom to choose, including bans on abortion like we see in other states. (Democratic New Jersey State Sen. Andrew Zwicker, 10/11)

Salt Lake Tribune: Will Utah Leaders Actually Care For Kids?
Utah is home to the most children per capita of any state. We have a cultural ethos that purports to value children and families. Yet, the state invests nearly nothing in the care and education of young children. We offer little support to young families struggling with unaffordable housing, high food and gas prices and, of course, ballooning child care costs. Most young families in Utah need every available adult in their household working to meet their basic needs. (Brigette Weier, 10/11)

The CT Mirror: Yale New Haven, Stop Extra Out-Of-Pocket Medical Fees
As a physician of over 40 years and a patient advocate who has spent many years working with the legislature to improve patient safety and fairness in insurance reimbursement, I am disgusted by a recent trend in health care billing that I believe the citizens and legislators of Connecticut should be made aware of. (Elwin G. Schwartz, MD, 10/12)

Stat: How Good Are AI Health Technologies? We Have No Idea
Artificial intelligence has the ability to revolutionize human health. It is used to detect potentially cancerous lesions in medical images, to screen for eye disease, and to predict whether a patient in the intensive care unit could have a brain-damaging seizure. Even your smartwatch has AI built into it; it can estimate your heart rate and detect whether you have atrial fibrillation. But how good are these algorithms generally? The truth is, we just don’t know. (Cynthia Rudin, Zhicheng Guo, Cheng Ding and XiaoHu, 10/11)