The Hill: Appeals Court To Hear Arguments About ObamaCare Preventive Coverage
A federal appeals court will hear arguments Tuesday about whether to continue a pause of a Texas district court’s ruling that struck down an ObamaCare provision requiring insurers to cover preventive services for free. Last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit temporarily paused Judge Reed O’Connor’s decision until a panel could hear oral arguments on whether the pause should be continued during the appeals process. (Weixel, 6/5)

Axios: Appeals Court To Weigh Fate Of ACA Preventive Care Requirement
The three-judge panel that will preside over the court hearing is comprised of Judges Edith Brown Clement and Leslie Southwick, two George W. Bush appointees, and Judge Stephen Higginson, an Obama appointee. The Justice Department argues the public will be harmed unless the lower court ruling is stayed. Regardless of the outcome, the decision is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court. (Gonzalez, 6/6)

Also —

Axios: LGBT Health Coverage Improved After ACA, Supreme Court Marriage Ruling
Health insurers responded to the 2015 Supreme Court decision recognizing same-sex marriage with more equitable coverage for LGBTQ couples, including spousal benefits, according to a new study published in Health Affairs. The percentage of all LGBTQ adults with a usual source of health care access increased from 64% to 75% from 2013 to 2019. (Dreher, 6/6)

More news about health insurance coverage —

Minnesota Public Radio: MinnesotaCare Expands Eligibility To Minnesotans With Undocumented Status 
Thousands of Minnesotans with an undocumented status will soon be able to get coverage through the state's low-income health insurance marketplace, MinnesotaCare. Gov. Tim Walz signed the legislation into law at the end of this session and it will take effect in January 2025. (Crann and Bui, 6/5)

The CT Mirror: Ned Lamont, CT Hospitals Reach Deal To Lower Health Care Costs
After months of negotiations and at the eleventh hour of the 2023 General Assembly session, Gov. Ned Lamont and the Connecticut Hospital Association landed on a final deal Monday aimed at bringing down health care costs for Connecticut residents — one of the governor’s top priorities this year. (Phillips and Carlesso, 6/5)

USA Today: U.S. To Import Chemotherapy Drug Cisplatin From China To Ease Shortage
Citing a shortage of commonly prescribed drugs for U.S. cancer patients, the Food and Drug Administration will temporarily allow overseas drug manufacturers to import some chemotherapy drugs. The FDA will let Qilu Pharmaceutical, a drug manufacturer in China, import the injectable chemotherapy drug cisplatin in 50-milligram vials. Toronto pharmaceutical company Apotex Corp. will distribute the medication in the United States. (Alltucker, 6/5)

The Washington Post: Record-High Shortage Of Chemo Drugs Puts Patients At Risk 
Cancer patients and their doctors are grappling with a record-high shortage of effective chemotherapy, putting their treatment — and lives — at risk. “The majority are cheap, generic drugs that have been utilized in cancer medicine for decades,” says Satyajit Kosuri, clinical director of the stem cell transplant and cellular therapy program at the University of Chicago, who has experienced the consequences firsthand. At the end of last year, there were 295 active medication shortages, ranging from antibiotics and anesthetics to cardiac mediations and chemotherapy drugs, according to a Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs report, a 30 percent increase since 2021. (Ebersole, 6/5)

More on cancer treatments and research —

USA Today: DNA Sequencing Improves Cancer Treatment But Remains Underused. Why?
Unlike many oncologists, the tears Dr. Thomas Roberts often saw in his office were those of joy. His patients had been told they had less than six months to live. But Roberts, then a fellow specializing in lung cancer care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, was able to give many an extra lease on life. Because they had certain genetic mutations in their tumors, he could promise them at least another year and often three, five or more. (Weintraub, 6/6)

Stat: The Woman Behind AstraZeneca’s Cancer Winning Streak
It was the kind of moment scientists who develop new medicines wait their entire careers to experience. On Sunday, thousands of oncologists applauded after researchers presented data on AstraZeneca’s Tagrisso. When given after surgery to the right lung cancer patients, selected using genetic tests, it cut the death rate in half. (Herper, 6/6)

In related news about the FDA —

Stat: FDA Cancer Head Wants Advisory Panels To Keep Voting On Drugs
As commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Robert Califf has made clear he’d like to do away with the votes that punctuate meetings of expert panels evaluating new drugs for approval. On Sunday, Richard Pazdur, director of the FDA’s Oncology Center of Excellence, took issue with his boss. (Chen, 6/5)

Stat: More Than 200 FDA Staffers Have Retired In Less Than A Year 
More than 230 people have retired from the Food and Drug Administration since Oct. 1, Chief of Staff Julie Tierney said Monday. It’s part of a bigger wave of exits: In total, 634 employees have left the agency, which has a staff of about 18,000 people. There are about 2,000 vacancies at the FDA, which is a normal level at an agency that has for a long time struggled to hire and keep employees who can make bigger salaries in the private sector. (Wilkerson, 6/6)

Stat: Medicare Taps Acting Official To Head Drug Price Negotiations 
Medicare has chosen a Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation official to temporarily lead its implementation of Democrats’ drug pricing law, a document obtained by STAT shows. Christina Ritter is listed on a document dated June 2 as acting director of the Medicare division implementing the Inflation Reduction Act, which enabled Medicare to negotiate drug prices and penalize drugmakers for price hikes. (Cohrs, 6/6)

MarketWatch: Medicare Trustees Report For 2023 Contained No Bad News
The Medicare Trustees issue an annual report projecting the program’s finances under current law. In addition, the actuaries prepare an alternative scenario that limits the extent to which Medicare payments to hospitals and physicians fall below those made by private insurers.  (Munnell, 6/6)

In related news about drug costs —

Axios: More States Embrace Drug Price Boards To Curb Health Costs
More states are pushing their own plans to lower drug costs, viewing it as an extension of efforts to set payment rates for utilities, transportation and other essential services. Colorado, among the states to create a state prescription drug affordability board, is rolling out a dashboard this week that will show which drugs are the likeliest to have price caps. (Reed, 6/6)

On the 'unwinding' of Medicaid —

Modern Healthcare: Medicaid Redeterminations Tech Solutions Aim To Ease Process 
As states grapple with Medicaid redeterminations and high rates of disenrollments, states are teaming up with technology vendors to facilitate communications and outreach to affected enrollees. (Turner, 6/5)

McKnights Long-Term Care News: As Medicaid Disenrollments Surge, Concerns About Nursing Home Residents Persist
Although hundreds of thousands have been knocked off state Medicaid rolls this spring, worries about dropped coverage for Medicaid-dependent nursing home residents have so far not proven reality in large numbers. McKnight’s Long-Term Care News surveyed a dozen sector associations about the impact the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and a Medicaid continuous coverage requirement have had on facilities. Several were unable to provide detailed insight, noting that they had not heard from members that they were experiencing widespread disenrollment issues. (Towhey, 6/5)

Bloomberg: FDA Revokes Authorization Of J&J’s Covid Vaccine As Demand Wanes 
US regulators revoked emergency authorization for Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine after the company’s Janssen unit requested its withdrawal. Janssen informed the Food and Drug Administration that shots bought by the government had expired and there was no demand for the product in the US, the regulator said in a statement released last week. (Cattan, 6/5)

Reuters: Novavax Exec Says Its New COVID Shot Should Work Against Variants On The Rise
Novavax Inc's head of research and development on Monday said an updated COVID-19 vaccine the company is already producing is likely to be protective against other fast-growing coronavirus variants circulating in the U.S. Protein-based vaccines like Novavax's take longer to produce than the messenger RNA-based versions made by Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech. (Erman, 6/5)

On the anti-vaccine movement —

Reuters: Musk Hosts Twitter Event For Anti-Vaxx Democratic Candidate RFK Jr. 
Elon Musk on Monday hosted Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the anti-vaccine activist and long-shot Democratic presidential hopeful, in his second Twitter Spaces event for a 2024 White House candidate. But unlike Republican Ron DeSantis's glitch-plagued campaign launch on Twitter in May, the live audio chat with Kennedy was broadcast without major technological problems. Their 2.5-hour conversation had an audience of over 64,000 at some points. (Bose and Singh, 6/5)

Newsweek: Jamie Foxx Becomes Figurehead Of Anti-Vax Movement
Despite the specifics of his recent illness being kept private, Jamie Foxx has become the figurehead for an anti-vax movement after a rumor went viral online. The actor was suffering from "medical complications," according to his daughter Corinne Foxx, and the family were spotted visiting him in a Chicago physical rehabilitation facility in May. With just that information and an unsubstantiated rumor started by a notable gossip columnist, some people are saying Foxx suffered a stroke brought on by a blood clot caused by a COVID vaccination. (Burton, 6/5)

In long covid research —

CIDRAP: Study Finds 27% Rate Of Long COVID In Infected Health Workers
A new case-control study of Brazilian healthcare workers (HCWs) suggests as many as 27% developed long COVID after infection, and multiple infections raised the risk. The findings were published today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. (Soucheray, 6/5)

Also —

Roll Call: Biden's Pick To Lead The CDC Faces Tough Summer On Capitol Hill 
Mandy Cohen, the former secretary of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and Biden’s expected pick to head the public health agency, would take the helm at a critical time. The agency will spend this summer lobbying Congress to increase its funding and authorities via two must-pass bills: the reauthorization of a pandemic preparedness law which expires on Sept. 30, and fiscal 2024 appropriations legislation. (Cohen, 6/5)

MLive.Com: During The Darkest Days Of COVID, Some Michigan Hospitals Made 100s Of Millions -
During the first years of the pandemic, Michigan hospitals told the public their situation was dire. Their staffs were overworked. Emergency rooms were bursting with patients. Resources were limited. Many furloughed staff, cut workers’ salaries or trimmed executive pay, at least temporarily. But an examination of tax records, audited financial statements and federal data collected by a nonprofit found that a few hospitals and health systems did great, posting increases in both operating profits and overall net assets as the pandemic raged. (Miller and Salisbury, 6/6)

In other health care industry news —

Stat: UnitedHealth Starts Bidding War With $3.3 Billion Offer For Amedisys
There’s now a two-party showdown for one of the largest home health companies in the country. UnitedHealth Group and its Optum division on Monday formally proposed to buy Amedisys for $100 per share, or about $3.3 billion. (Herman, 6/5)

Detroit Free Press: Sparrow Health To Get New Name In University Of Michigan Acquisition
One year after the University of Michigan's acquisition of Sparrow Health, the Lansing-based health system will get a new name. As of April 1, 2024, it will be known as the University of Michigan Health-Sparrow. (Jordan Shamus, 6/5)

Modern Healthcare: Mayo Clinic Announces Rochester Campus Redevelopment
Mayo Clinic on Monday announced a large redevelopment of its main campus in downtown Rochester, Minnesota, two weeks after the health system's threats to scrap investment in the state led to changes in a nurse staffing bill. Minnesota legislators removed a provision to enforce nurse staffing levels after Mayo Clinic officials said they would pull billions of dollars in investments unless the proposal was thrown out or an exemption was provided for the health system. (Hudson, 6/5)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Penn Is Closing An Inpatient Addiction Treatment Program That Advocates Say Homeless Patients Rely On For Care
Saying that Penn Medicine is not prioritizing care for opioid addiction at a time of soaring overdose deaths, several dozen protesters chanted “patients over profits” to protest the closure of a West Philadelphia addiction treatment unit at a rally last week. The protest urged Penn to keep open Wright 4, an 18-bed addiction treatment unit at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. (Whelan, 6/6)

Stat: Carbon Health Is Already Using AI To Write Patient Records 
Primary care tech startup Carbon Health is using artificial intelligence to listen in on patient appointments and automatically write up near-complete notes within minutes, directly in its own electronic health record software. (Ravindranath, 6/5)

Also —

The Boston Globe: Wu Launches Workforce Initiative To Get 1,000 Boston Residents Into Biotech Jobs 
Mayor Michelle Wu unveiled a plan Monday to plug more Boston workers into the growing biotech industry, launching a workforce initiative aimed at getting 1,000 city residents trained and hired at drug research and production labs and other life sciences operations by the end of 2025. The city government will initially commit $4 million to the program, funded through grants from the city’s Neighborhood Jobs Trust and the federal American Rescue Plan, but the investment is expected to grow. (Weisman, 6/5)

Stat: Teetering Postdoc System Imperils Life Sciences Diversity 
For young life scientists hoping to land a prestigious faculty job in academia, postdoctoral research is practically a requirement. But it’s not a path equally open to everyone. Freshly minted life science Ph.D. graduates who have started families or have big loans, or are Black or female, say they plan to pursue postdoc positions at lower rates than their peers, according to a STAT analysis that includes previously unreported data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. (Wosen, 6/6)

KFF Health News: As Fewer MDs Practice Rural Primary Care, A Different Type Of Doctor Helps Take Up The Slack
For 35 years, this town’s residents have brought all manner of illnesses, aches, and worries to Kevin de Regnier’s storefront clinic on the courthouse square — and he loves them for it. De Regnier is an osteopathic physician who chose to run a family practice in a small community. Many of his patients have been with him for years. Many have chronic health problems, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or mental health struggles, which he helps manage before they become critical. (Leys, 6/6)

KFF Health News: 'An Arm and a Leg' Podcast: A ‘Payday Loan’ From A Health Care Behemoth
Alex Shteynshlyuger, a urologist with a practice in New York City, feels surrounded by UnitedHealth Group. He has seen the company gobble up private practices and says it’s slow to pay claims. It also started offering cash-flow services that, Shteynshlyuger says, feel a lot like payday loans. UnitedHealth Group is the largest employer of physicians in the United States. And it’s growing. Has the company become too big? (6/6)

The Hill: Louisiana Senate Passes Resurrected Gender-Affirming Care Ban
The Louisiana Senate voted Monday to pass a controversial bill to ban gender-affirming health care for transgender minors, advancing the measure even after it was defeated by a GOP-controlled state Senate committee last month. The measure, House Bill 648, seeks to bar health care providers from administering gender-affirming medical care to patients younger than 18 under the threat of having their professional licenses revoked. (Migdon, 6/5)

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

Health News Florida: DeSantis Vetoes A Bill Intended To Remove Patient Confusion Over Medical Titles
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday vetoed two bills, including a measure that would have added restrictions about titles used by medical professionals and required practitioners to wear name tags or display licenses when treating patients. DeSantis did not detail his reasons in two veto letters sent to Secretary of State Cord Byrd. (6/5)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Mayor Breed Urges Biden To Step Up Federal Action On Fentanyl
San Francisco Mayor London Breed led two dozen fellow mayors to urge the Biden administration on Monday to step up enforcement against trafficking of fentanyl, start a public awareness campaign against open-air drug markets and increase public health interventions to address an out-of-control epidemic nationwide. (Moench, 6/5)

In abortion news from Texas, Missouri, and Wyoming —

Reuters: Texas Seeks To Bolster $1.8 Bln Fraud Claim Against Planned Parenthood
Texas and an anonymous anti-abortion activist made a joint court filing over the weekend, urging a federal judge to decide a $1.8 billion fraud lawsuit they brought against Planned Parenthood in their favor, saying a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling strengthened the case. ... Texas and the anonymous plaintiff are seeking to force Planned Parenthood to return money it collected from Texas' and Louisiana's state Medicaid programs after the states tried to cut off its funding, plus heavy additional penalties. (Pierson, 6/5)

Missouri Independent: Missouri AG Asked Treasurer To Inflate Abortion Amendment Cost
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey overstepped his authority when he demanded changes to the cost estimate of an abortion-rights initiative petition, state Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick argued in a legal brief filed in Cole County Court last week. Fitzpatrick, Bailey and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, all Republicans, were sued last month by the Missouri ACLU over delays in finalizing the ballot summary for an initiative petition seeking to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. (Hancock, 6/5)

Jackson Hole Community Radio: Wyoming’s Secretary Of State And Other Parties Cannot Intervene In Abortion Case
Wyoming’s secretary of state and other parties will not be allowed to weigh in on a lawsuit that could decide the future of reproductive rights in the state. Secretary Chuck Gray, two conservative state lawmakers and an anti-abortion advocacy organization tried to intervene, to help defend the state’s near-complete abortion ban. But Teton County Judge Melissa Owens decided the group didn’t qualify as intervenors. (Merzbach, 6/2)

Environmental health news from Texas and Minnesota —

Houston Chronicle: 3 Texans Die From Fungal Meningitis, CDC Ties Deaths To Mexican Clinic
Three Texas residents have died this year as a result of a fungal meningitis outbreak linked to elective surgeries in Mexico, prompting a travel advisory warning of the newfound dangers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Nickerson, 6/5)

Minnesota Public Radio: State Health Officials: Norovirus May Have Sickened Dozens At Dakota County Lake 
State health officials on Monday said there are indications that norovirus is responsible for sickening dozens of swimmers and closing a popular beach in Dakota County. The beach at Schulze Lake, in Lebanon Hills Regional Park in Eagan, was closed over the weekend and remained closed Monday. (6/5)

Minnesota Public Radio: U Of M Expert Warns Of Increasing Likelihood Of CWD Transmission To Humans 
Minnesota scientists have watched chronic wasting disease (CWD) — a fatal, neurological illness — kill deer and elk. Now, they’re studying its potential to jump to humans. The University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy has received more than $1.5 million in state money to start prepping for the possibility of CWD spreading to cows, pigs and possibly humans. (Wurzer and Brown, 6/5)

On gun violence in North Carolina and Texas —

AP: North Carolina Governor Launches Safe Gun Storage Campaign As Raleigh Recovers From Mass Shooting
A safe firearm storage campaign launched Monday by the North Carolina governor’s administration aims to counter a recent surge in gun thefts and shooting injuries by making safety features available to more gun owners statewide. The initiative will distribute free gun locks starting this week and equip local law enforcement, doctors and school personnel with resources they can use to teach community members how to prevent children from accessing guns. (Schoenbaum, 6/6)

Dallas Morning News: Medics Saved ‘Every Recoverable Victim’ Of Allen Mass Shooting, Fire Department Says
The Allen Fire Department released a report Monday related to how long it took for emergency medical crews to respond to the May 6 shooting at an outlet mall. Within five minutes of the first call about the Allen Premium Outlets shooting, dispatch notes showed emergency crews receiving information about victims at various stores at the mall. Emergency crews also dealt with unsubstantiated reports of a second possible gunman, the notes state. (Choi, 6/5)

USA Today: Should A Baby's DNA Be Sequenced At Birth? Yes, New Study Suggests
What would happen if every newborn's genes were sequenced at birth? That's the question the BabySeq study has been trying to answer for a decade. Its newest results suggest the genetic information could be used to save lives. And not just the baby's. (Weintraub, 6/5)

More on children's health —

CNN: How Long You Breastfeed May Impact Your Child’s Test Scores Later, Study Shows 
Whether children were breastfed as infants and for how long may have an impact on their test scores when they are adolescents, according to new research. The report, published Monday in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, followed about 5,000 British children from their infancy in the early 2000s to their last year of high school, according to lead study author Dr. Reneé Pereyra-Elías, a doctoral student and researcher in the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit at the University of Oxford. (Holcombe, 6/5)

Reuters: Microsoft To Pay $20 Mln To Settle US Charges For Violating Children's Privacy 
Microsoft will pay $20 million to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission charges that the tech company illegally collected personal information from children without their parents' consent, the FTC said on Monday. The company had been charged with violating the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children who signed up to its Xbox gaming system without notifying their parents or obtaining their parents' consent, and by retaining children's personal information, the FTC said in a statement. ... "This action should also make it abundantly clear that kids' avatars, biometric data, and health information are not exempt from COPPA," said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. (Singh, 6/5)

In other health and wellness news —

CNN: Oral Estrogen-Only Use Riskier Than Patch Or Vaginal Cream For Menopausal Women, Study Says
People who use estrogen-only pills during menopause were more likely to be diagnosed with high blood pressure than those using patches or creams, a new study found. However, doctors who treat menopause say estrogen-only pills are rarely prescribed for high-risk patients, and the overall benefits of hormone replacement therapy far outweigh the risks for many patients. (LaMotte, 6/5)

The Washington Post: You Can Reduce Your Odds Of Getting Osteoporosis As You Age 
Osteoporosis — a disease that thins and weakens bones, making them more likely to break — afflicts about 10 million people in the United States age 50 and older, and four times more women than men, according to the Osteoporosis Workgroup, a panel of experts in the Department of Health and Human Services that focuses on improving screenings and treatment to reduce the prevalence of the ailment. ... A bone density scan, a type of low-dose X-ray that measures the minerals in a person’s bones, can help evaluate bones’ strength and thickness. (Searing, 6/5)

The Washington Post: If You’re Hurt In A Fall, Follow These Tips For Recovery
A fall may be minor, leading to only a bit of bruising. But some can cause traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, even death. In fact, falls are a leading cause of death for adults over 65. Each year, 3 million older people are treated in emergency rooms because they’ve had a serious fall. Following a recovery plan can help you heal. (Loria, 6/5)

CBS News: Massage Therapists Ease The Pain Of Hospice Patients — But Aren't Easy To Find
Ilyse Streim views massage for people in hospice care as "whispering to the body through touch." "It's much lighter work. It's nurturing. It's slow," said Streim, a licensed massage therapist. Massage therapy for someone near the end of life looks and feels different from a spa treatment. Some people stay clothed or lie in bed. Others sit up in their wheelchairs. Streim avoids touching bedsores and fresh surgery wounds and describes her work as "meditating and moving at the same time." She recalled massaging the shoulders, hands, and feet of one client as he sat in his favorite recliner and watched baseball on TV in the final weeks of his life. (Ruder, 6/6)

KFF Health News: Recovery From Addiction Is A Journey. There’s No One-And-Done Solution
The atmosphere inside the Allen House is easygoing as residents circulate freely through the hallways, meet in group sessions, or gather on a large outdoor patio that features a dirt volleyball court with an oversize net. The 60-bed safety-net residential treatment center in Santa Fe Springs, run by Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse, has a dedicated detox room, on-site physicians and nurses, substance abuse counselors, licensed therapists, and other practitioners. It offers group counseling as well as individual and family therapy, and it endorses the use of medications for addiction treatment, such as buprenorphine and naltrexone, which are increasingly considered the gold standard. (Wolfson, 6/6)

The Washington Post: Health Care Doesn't Have To Pit Patients Against The Environment 
If the U.S. health-care system were a country, it would rank 13th in the world for greenhouse gas emissions. You read that right: Our nation’s health-care system by itself contributes more to the climate crisis than the entirety of most other countries. (Leana S. Wen, 6/6)

The Washington Post: When Kids Miss Their Milestones, Parents Might Have Nowhere To Turn 
Every state early-intervention program that responded to a 2022 survey from the IDEA Infant and Toddler Coordinators Association said it was short providers, especially speech-language pathologists, physical and occupational therapists, and special educators. Programs struggle to hire in these areas because of their low reimbursement rates relative to the fees available in private practice. (Alyssa Rosenberg, 6/6)

Modern Healthcare: Generative AI In Healthcare Requires New Skills, Mindsets
We are inundated with stories about how tech firms and teenagers have found novel uses for AI to improve our lives. Thousands of healthcare AI applications are available for drug discovery, clinical practice, supply chain, provider productivity, employee engagement and customer service, to name a few. (Christy Harris Lemak, 6/5)

Stat: Public Health Communication Lessons From Covid 
Now that the Covid-19 public health emergency has ended, it’s awfully tempting to put the pandemic firmly behind us. But now is the time to look at what we have learned so that our public health communication can be more clear, consistent, and effective from now on. One thing that we haven’t talked about enough is the victories. (Estelle Willie, 6/6)

Stat: When Hospitals Should Keep Requiring Masks 
Is the pandemic over? On the one hand, Covid-19 is clearly still with us. In the U.S., over the past month there was a weekly average of 557 deaths, though the numbers are dropping sharply, from 849 four weeks ago to 208 last week. On the other, for those who are not vulnerable or immune compromised, most facets of life have returned to normal, thanks to high levels of immunity from vaccines, boosters, and past infections. One of the last vestiges of the pandemic seems to be mask mandates in hospitals, which are now being lifted in the U.S. and Canada to much controversy. (Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz and Gavin Yamey, 6/6)