The Texas Tribune: Emergency Rooms Not Required To Perform Life-Saving Abortions, Federal Appeals Court Rules
Federal regulations do not require emergency rooms to perform life-saving abortions if it would run afoul of state law, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. After the overturn of Roe v. Wade in June 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services sent hospitals guidance, reminding them of their obligation to offer stabilizing care, including medically necessary abortions, under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). (Klibanoff, 1/2)

The New York Times: Texas Can Ban Emergency Abortions Despite Federal Guidance, Court Rules 
The appeal was heard by Judge Leslie H. Southwick, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, and judges Kurt Engelhardt and Cory Wilson, who were appointed by President Donald Trump. Judge Engelhardt wrote that the federal guidance does not mandate physicians to provide emergency abortions, adding that the guidance “does not mandate any specific type of medical treatment, let alone abortion.” (Jimenez, 1/2)

Demand for abortion pills has soared —

USA Today: More Abortions Pills Ordered Ahead Of Possible Pregnancy And Bans
The number of Americans who weren't pregnant and wanted abortion pills increased nearly 10 times in the days after the Supreme Court's 2022 decision leaked, according to new research published this week in a medical journal. A research letter published Tuesday in the JAMA internal medicine reported more than 48,000 requests for abortion pills were made between September 2021 and April 2023, based on data provided through a telemedicine provider. (Robledo, 1/2)

The New York Times: More Women Who Are Not Pregnant Are Ordering Abortion Pills Just In Case 
Advance provision requesters were more likely than those already pregnant to be 30 or older, white and childless, and to live in urban neighborhoods with lower poverty rates than the national average. That might be partly because Aid Access offers free or reduced-price services to pregnant patients who need financial assistance, while advance provision requesters were expected to pay the full $110 cost, said Dr. Abigail Aiken, an associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin and a co-author of the study. (Belluck, 1/2)

Also —

Louisville Public Media: New Research Analyzes How Abortion Bans In Kentucky And Midwestern States Affected Birth Rates
A recent report estimates how abortion bans in states like Kentucky and Missouri affected birth rates during the first half of 2023. It’s an early indicator that the bans aren’t equal in terms of impact. (Watkins, 1/2)

Slate: Arkansas Abortion Ballot Proposal: It's A Worse Law Than Roe V. Wade, No Matter The Intentions.
In November, a political group in Arkansas announced it was pursuing a 2024 ballot measure to put a right to abortion in the state constitution. If successful, it would be a huge deal in a state with a total abortion ban. But there’s one big catch: The proposal would offer less protection than Americans had before Roe v. Wade was overturned, because it would codify abortion only through 18 weeks of pregnancy, with limited exceptions. The previous standard had been about 24 weeks. (Rinkunas, 1/3)

KMUW: Abortion Remains Hotly Contested In Kansas Heading Into The 2024 Legislative Session
Abortion rights groups continued to work in 2023 to keep abortion as accessible and affordable as possible in a rapidly evolving policy landscape. Abortion opponents in the Kansas Legislature worked to restrict reproductive care in new ways, with mixed results. And as lawmakers prepare to head back to Topeka next week for a new legislative session, Republicans have a veto-proof supermajority — but remain constrained by the Kansas Constitution’s firm protections for abortion rights. (Conlon, 1/2)

Politico: Abortion Wins At The Ballot Box. But It Doesn’t Provide An Automatic Win For Democrats
Democrats are scrambling to put state abortion-rights initiatives on the ballot this year in the hope that the measures will drive turnout and boost their candidates in national and local elections. But those initiatives may not give Democrats the lift they are aiming for, according to a POLITICO analysis of five abortion-related measures that have appeared on the ballot since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. (Ollstein, Piper and Fernandez, 1/3)

Daily Beast: The GOP Hopes Contraception Can Solve Its Abortion Problem
The Supreme Court’s abortion rollback last year was a long-awaited, much-celebrated victory for the Republican Party. But that win in the courts has not translated to wins at the polls, and Republicans are starting to recognize that abortion isn’t an issue that voters are just going to get over. Cue former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway. The GOP pollster and strategist-turned-Trump adviser has a plan for Republicans to address the problem: embracing contraception. (Rogerson, 1/2)

News Service of Florida: Florida Abortion Measure Tops 863,000 Signatures And Needs Less Than 30,000
With a deadline a little more than a month away, supporters of a proposed constitutional amendment aimed at ensuring abortion rights continue getting closer to meeting a petition-signature requirement. The Florida Division of Elections website Friday showed 863,876 valid petition signatures for the proposal, up from 833,743 a week earlier and 753,306 two weeks earlier. (1/2)

Reuters: US FDA Approvals Bounce Back In 2023, Sparking Hopes Of A Biotech Recovery 
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved nearly 50% more novel drugs in 2023 than in 2022, putting it back on pace with historical levels, an improvement analysts and investors said could lead to increased investment in biotech firms. FDA nods for innovative therapies containing an active ingredient or molecule not previously approved, rose to 55 in 2023, up from 37 in 2022 and 51 in 2021. Historical data shows the FDA typically green lights about 45-50 new drugs a year and hit a peak of 59 in 2018. (Mishra and Jain, 1/2)

The Wall Street Journal: How To Put A Lid On Your Drug Costs In 2024 
The start of a new year means a fresh round of out-of-pocket costs for people taking prescription drugs. Health-insurance deductibles reset on Jan. 1. That means, if your deductible applies to your prescription-drug costs, you could be on the hook for thousands of dollars while you’re spending down the deductible and more favorable insurance coverage kicks in. (Of course, you might still be on the hook for any copays and coinsurance.)If you’re uninsured, you’ll face the challenge of paying the full cost of a medicine throughout the year. Here are steps you can take—some of which are new this year—to help control your prescription-drug costs. (Loftus, 1/3)

On marijuana use —

The Washington Post: Seniors Using Marijuana Face Drug Interactions, Other Side Effects 
The 82-year-old dementia patient’s condition stumped his psychiatrist. His anxiety was overwhelming, she recalled him saying. He had repeatedly gone to the emergency room after intense abdominal pain and vomiting. He insisted he never drank or smoked tobacco. Then he told her medical assistant how he fell asleep: “Two hits of Burmese Kush, and I’m good to go. ”That’s when it clicked: His nightly marijuana habit could be causing problems. “I said, ‘I thought you said you don’t use drugs,’ and he said, ‘I don’t. That’s my medicine,’” said Libby Stuyt, the Colorado psychiatrist who treated the patient three years ago. (Nirappil, 1/2)

In other pharmaceutical news —

Reuters: Explainer: What Other Health Conditions Might Weight-Loss Drugs Treat? 
New data suggests that semaglutide may also cut the risk of stroke or heart attack, and may delay the progression of kidney disease in diabetes patients. Here are other conditions that GLP-1 treatments are being tested against. (1/2)

Reuters: Weight-Loss Drugs: Who, And What, Are They Good For?
Powerful weight-loss medicines like Novo Nordisk's Wegovy leapt into public view in 2023, from social media to doctors' offices and cocktail parties, offering a new way to address record obesity rates. But extraordinary demand, and high prices, for these drugs will keep them out of reach in the coming year for many patients who are likely to benefit. The new drugs are known as GLP-1 agonists, which mimic the activity of a hormone that slows digestion and helps people feel full for longer. In clinical trials, people lost 15% to 20% of their body weight, depending on the drug. Nearly 120 million American adults could be eligible for treatment, while Novo says its target market is more than 760 million people with obesity worldwide. (Gershberg, 1/2)

NPR: Treatment For Acute Sleeping Sickness Has Been Brutal — Until Now
Acute sleeping sickness – the treatment is almost as horrific as the disease. But now there is encouraging news about an oral medication – one that's also been used for chronic sleeping sickness to great success. ... The European Medicines Agency has given their "positive scientific opinion" on the use of fexinidazole for the treatment of acute sleeping sickness as well. That opinion is based on results from an ongoing clinical trial showing that a 10-day course of pills cures the disease in 97% of patients – and should lead to approval of the drug by countries outside of the EU. (Barnhart, 1/2)

KFF Health News and Tampa Bay Times: Patients With Narcolepsy Face A Dual Nightmare Of Medication Shortages And Stigma
Nina Shand couldn’t stay awake. She had taken afternoon naps since she was a teenager to accommodate her “work hard, play hard” attitude, but when she was in her mid-20s the sleepiness became more severe. Menial computer tasks put her to sleep, and a 20-minute drive across her city, St. Petersburg, Florida, brought on a drowsiness so intense that her eyelids would flutter, forcing her to pull over. She knew something was really wrong when she no longer felt safe behind the wheel. In 2021, she received a diagnosis: narcolepsy, a rare disorder that causes excessive daytime sleepiness. (Peace, 1/3)

Medscape: Long COVID Has Caused Thousands Of US Deaths: New CDC Data
While COVID has now claimed more than one million lives in the United States alone, these aren't the only fatalities caused at least in part by the virus. A small but growing number of Americans are surviving acute infections only to succumb months later to the lingering health problems caused by long COVID. Much of the attention on long COVID has centered on the sometimes debilitating symptoms that strike people with the condition, with no formal diagnostic tests or standard treatments available, and the impact it has on quality of life. But new figures from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that long COVID can also be deadly. At least 4600 Americans have died from long COVID since the start of the pandemic, according to new estimates from the CDC. (Rapaport, 1/3)

Your covid tests may have expired —

WAVY: Feel Sick But Testing Negative? Check Your COVID Tests
Tests you may have in your bathroom cabinet, like the iHealth COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test or the BinaxNOW, are among those with extended expiration dates. For iHealth kits with printed expiration dates ranging from February 2023 to September 2023, the extended dates have since passed. BinaxNOW kits with printed dates prior to June 2023 have also passed their extended expiration dates. You can find the full list of COVID tests with extended expiration dates on the FDA’s website. (Bink and Martichoux, 1/3)

More on the spread of covid —

Fox News: New COVID Variant JN.1 Now Comprises Up To 30% Of US Cases: CDC
The latest variant of the COVID-19 virus, JN.1, is now responsible for an estimated 15% to 29% of cases in the U.S. as of Dec. 8, according to a posted update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (Rudy, 1/2)

CBS News: Doctors Have New Warnings As Post-Holiday Spike Of Respiratory Infections Are Expected To Rise
Hospitals are packed with sick patients, as the surge of respiratory infections continues to grow. It's the post-holiday spike of COVID, flu and RSV and it's expected to increase. Doctors have said now that people are back to work and school after the holidays, the infections are expected to become even more widespread. (Stahl and Nau, 1/2)

CIDRAP: COVID, Flu Severity Similar, But Omicron BA.5 Patients More Likely To Die, 2021-22 Study Suggests 
In 2021 and 2022, the proportion of hospitalized COVID-19 and influenza patients admitted to a US intensive care unit (ICU) were similar, but COVID-19 patients admitted during the Omicron BA.5 variant period were more likely to die in the hospital, according to a study published late last week in Open Forum Infectious Diseases. (Van Beusekom, 1/2)

Minnesota Public Radio: A Trusted Minnesota COVID-19 Tracking Source Is Ending 
One of the most reliable sources of COVID-19 tracking in Minnesota is coming to an end. David Montgomery started his thorough tracking of COVID-19 numbers as a data reporter at MPR News. He has since left the newsroom, but he kept up his COVID-19 tracking for more than three years. That tracking has come to an end with the new year. (Wurzer and Kuznetsov, 1/2)

Also —

CBS News: Whooping Cough Cases Popping Up Around Tri-State Area Prompt Doctors To Reiterate Need For Vaccines
"This COVID thing has done a doozy on people. They're avoiding even the flu shot. We already had a horrible flu season in pediatrics. These old illnesses are going to come back. These viruses and bacteria that we put the kibosh on are going to come back if people don't get vaccinated," Yazdi said. The doctor said all children should be vaccinated against pertussis, and recommends parents get a booster shot every 10 years. (Moore, 1/2)

Modern Healthcare: Blue Shield Of California Layoffs To Hit 165 Workers 
Blue Shield of California will lay off 165 workers by Jan. 31. The nonprofit insurance company will shed employees across six counties, with the largest number of cuts coming from its office in Oakland, California, according to Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification documents the insurer filed with the state Employment Development Department Friday. (Tepper, 1/2)

Fierce Healthcare: BJC, Saint Luke's Close $10B Missouri Health System Merger
BJC HealthCare of St. Louis and Saint Luke’s Health System of Kansas City have officially completed their cross-market deal to merge into a single integrated, academic nonprofit health system. The Missouri organizations’ arrangement brought Saint Luke’s under BJC’s organizational umbrella on Jan. 1. Though the two are maintaining responsibility for their original markets and branding, the new partners said they now operate as a single healthcare organization of 24 hospitals and 44,000 employees. (Muoio, 1/2)

The Colorado Sun: UCHealth Merges With Pueblo's Parkview Health System
On a chilly morning last month, Darrin Smith, the president and CEO of Pueblo’s Parkview Health System, stood outside the 100-year-old system’s flagship hospital and gazed upon a bundled-up crowd. “This is a wow moment,” he said. “This is a wow moment for Parkview and for the citizens of southern Colorado. ”The occasion was to announce that Parkview would no longer be an independent health care system. (Ingold, 1/3)

Becker's Hospital Review: Tower Health Rejects 4th Purchase Offer; 'I'm Not Sure What They're Thinking,' StoneBridge CEO Says
West Reading, Pa.-based Tower Health has turned down a $706 million offer from StoneBridge Healthcare, a hospital turnaround firm, making this the fourth purchase offer rejected by the system since 2021. StoneBridge received an email from Andrew Turnbull, a managing director at Houlihan Lokey, an investment bank that works with Tower Health, saying that there had been a board meeting and the firm's offer had been rejected, Joshua Nemzoff, CEO of StoneBridge Healthcare, told Becker's. ... "Given their cash position and given their extraordinary amount of debt, I think our plan is just to frankly to wait for them to go bankrupt and show up in court for the auction. I think that's going to happen next year," Mr. Nemzoff said. (Ashley, 1/2)

Modern Healthcare: The Ensign Group Acquires Facilities In Tennessee, Nevada
Senior living and skilled nursing home operator The Ensign Group kicked off 2024 with the acquisition of two skilled nursing facilities in Tennessee and Nevada. The company, one of the nation’s largest independent operators of skilled nursing and senior living facilities, said Monday it acquired TriState Health and Rehabilitation Center, a 116-bed skilled nursing facility in Harrogate, Tennessee, for an undisclosed amount. (Eastabrook, 1/2)

Also —

Becker's Hospital Review: New York Governor To Curb Hospitals Suing Patients
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has vowed to protect New Yorkers from medical debt, limit hospitals' ability to sue patients and expand financial assistance programs as part of her 2024 State of the State. Ms. Hochul aims to introduce legislation that would curb hospitals' ability to sue patients earning less than 400% of the federal poverty level ($120,000 for a family of four). (Condon, 1/2)

Houston Chronicle: MacKenzie Scott, Melinda Gates Donate $23 Million For Student Health Center
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott and Pivotal Ventures, a company founded by Melinda French Gates, have donated a combined $23 million to School-Based Health Alliance. The national, non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., works to set up and expand healthcare service centers in schools that primarily serve students from low-income families. With the $16 million grant from Pivotal Ventures, SBHA will launch care coordination initiatives in Houston, Atlanta, Chicago and Miami. (Elliott, 1/2)

Stat: 2024 Health Tech Budgets To Be Driven By AI Tools, Automation
Hospitals and clinics are expecting a slightly better 2024 compared to last year thanks to a return to mostly in-person care, patients resuming preventive visits and the gradual easing of labor costs and shortages. Still, the evaporation of pandemic-related emergency funding will deal a blow to resource-strained health systems, and leaders say they’ll ramp up tech investments, including in artificial intelligence-based tools. (Ravindranath, 1/3)

Axios: ChatGPT Had High Error Rate For Pediatric Cases
Researchers found ChatGPT incorrectly diagnosed over 8 in 10 selected pediatric case studies, raising questions about some bots' suitability for helping doctors size up complex conditions. (Bettelheim, 1/3)

CIDRAP: Study: Food Insecurity In US Dropped During Pandemic 
Through government programs that included the expansion of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), food insecurity among low-income US adults dropped by nearly 5% during the pandemic but rose by 2022, according to a study today in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The findings were based on results from the 2019, 2021, and 2022 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a nationally representative survey from the National Center for Health Statistics; 2020 was excluded due to pandemic-related restrictions on conducting the survey. Adults aged 18 and older were included in the survey, and low-income adults were those with household incomes at or below 200% of the federal poverty limit. (Soucheray, 1/2)

The Texas Tribune: Texas WIC Could Run Out Of Money Without Congressional Action
More than 225,000 low-income Texas women and young children are in danger of losing federal nutrition assistance as Congress battles over government funding, activists and the White House warn. In Texas, nearly 800,000 pregnant women and children under 5 years old rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, commonly known as WIC, which helps low-income families access tools to boost infant nutrition. That includes nutrition counseling, help with breastfeeding, fresh produce and other nutrition assistance. (Choi, 1/3)

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

The Washington Post: Half Of Black D.C. Residents Lack Easy Access To Health Care, Analysis Shows 
Nearly half of Black D.C. residents live in medically underserved areas — neighborhoods with a shortage of primary care services where the rates of heart disease, hypertension and other serious chronic conditions are more prevalent than in the rest of the city, a Washington Post analysis of federal data shows. The numbers underscore the troubled state of health outcomes for Black residents in the nation’s capital, who for decades have been disproportionately affected by ailments like heart disease, diabetes, asthma and HIV, despite a flurry of initiatives to stem the tide. That concern is especially acute in the low-income communities concentrated east of the Anacostia River, where outcomes are notably worse than for White, Asian and Latino residents citywide. (Brice-Saddler, Portnoy, Harden and Chen, 1/3)

Minnesota Public Radio: Earned Safe And Sick Time Goes Into Effect, Providing Minnesotans With Guaranteed Sick Leave
One of the new laws that will probably affect the most people is called Earned Safe and Sick Time. It requires employers in Minnesota to provide employees one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked. It’s capped at 48 hours each year. That means after six weeks, a worker could be eligible for an eight hour day off. (Wurzer, 1/2)

CBS News: Minnesota Schools Now Required To Provide Free Menstrual Products To Students 
Minnesota schools are now required to provide access to free menstrual products to students in grades 4 through 12. It's one of several new laws now in effect in the new year. "It's been a long time coming," Erica Solomon Collins, executive director of the National Council of Jewish Women Minnesota, said. (Leone, 1/2)

North Carolina Health News: Task Force To Focus On Social Media Algorithms, Gun Storage Education To Help Keep NC Kids Safer In 2024
In 2024, North Carolina’s leading child health and welfare advocates hope to build on some of last year’s successes and tackle other threats to children in the state. The Child Fatality Task Force, which is made up of volunteer experts in child health and safety, state agency leaders, community leaders and state legislators, has been working since 1991 to prevent child death and promote child well-being. (Fernandez, 1/3)

Axios: Requiring Defibrillators At More Public Places Might Not Be Enough
A number of states require places like gyms and sports arenas to keep automated external defibrillators (AEDs) on hand, but those laws have made little difference in how often the life-saving devices are deployed in emergencies, a new JAMA Internal Medicine study finds. (Reed, 1/3)

KFF Health News: California Is Poised To Protect Workers From Extreme Heat — Indoors 
The stifling heat inside some warehouses where workers might spend 10-hour days isn’t just a summer problem. In Southern California, it can feel like summer all year. It’s easy to break into a sweat and grow tired, workers say. The ventilation feels inconsistent, they say, and workers have testified in a public hearing about nosebleeds, nausea, and dizziness. In some warehouses, the walk to find a place to cool down is at least half a mile. (Young, 1/3)

New Hampshire Public Radio: Mass. Resident Dies From Legionnaires’ Disease After Visiting Mountain View Resort 
Two people contracted Legionnaires’ disease – and one of them died – after recent stays at the Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa in Whitefield, according to New Hampshire health officials. (Cuno-Booth, 1/2)

WMUR: Massachusetts Man Says His Wife Died From Legionnaires' Disease After Stay At Mountain View Grand Resort
Henry Kruschwitz said his wife, Barbara Kruschwitz, 71, had gone swimming in the pool and at the hot tub at the resort, but he hadn't. He said he believes more should have been done after his wife died to prevent a second person from potentially getting sick. (Mitropoulos, 12/31)

In other health alerts —

ABC News: 22 Hospitalized With Carbon Monoxide Poisoning After Attending Utah LDS Church
At least 22 people were hospitalized after suffering carbon monoxide poisoning at a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints building in Utah on New Year's Eve, officials said. The Sevier County Sherriff's Office (SCSO) said it received two medical calls from the building in Monroe East, about 170 miles south of Salt Lake City. ... The cause of the carbon monoxide poisoning is currently unknown, but church officials said they are investigating and working to resolve the problem, according to the sheriff's office. (Kekatos, 1/2)

CBS News: 40% Of Pennsylvania Homes May Be Exposing People To Cancer-Causing Gas, American Lung Association Says
The Lung Association said the gas comes up from the ground so areas like a basement could be impacted and if your house is built on a slab, that doesn't mean you're in the clear either. Radon is the result of naturally present uranium breaking down. Outside, that's not a problem. The issue is when it's trapped in a building in high quantities. "People can be exposed to really high levels and not know it," said Kevin Steward, the American Lung Association's director of environmental health. (Hoffman, 1/2)

CBS News: Salmonella Found Inside Charcuterie Sampler Sold At Minnesota Retailers
State health officials are issuing a salmonella warning after a Minnesotan fell ill from eating a Busseto's Charcuterie Sampler, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. That person was not hospitalized but reported becoming sick after eating food from a package. Officials don't yet know what parts of the sampler were the source of contamination and whether other similar products might be affected. (Kahner, 1/2)

USA Today: 7,000 Pounds Of Ground Beef Recalled For E. Coli Contamination
About 7,000 pounds of ground beef products are being recalled due to E. Coli concerns, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDS) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The FSIS announced Wednesday that approximately 6,768 pounds of raw ground beef produced by Valley Meats, LLC on December 22, 2023, may be contaminated with E. coli. (Walrath-Holdridge, 1/2)

Becker's Hospital Review: Duke Reports Success In World's 1st Partial Heart Transplant
Nearly a year after a newborn received the world's first partial heart transplant, the transplanted valves and arteries are functioning well and growing along with the child's heart — a key measure of success in the procedure paving the way for future advancements. A team at Durham, N.C.-based Duke Health performed the partial heart transplant in a newborn with truncus arteriosus last spring. The transplant involved fusing the arteries and valves from a freshly donated heart onto the patient's existing heart. On Jan. 2., Duke Health physicians who led the landmark transplant published a study that showed the approach led to functioning parts of the heart that are growing along with the patient. (Carbajal, 1/2)

In other innovations —

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Engineer Invented A ‘People Picker-Upper' For Aging Parents
Steve Powell had a problem — one common to many people with older relatives. His mother and father kept falling down. His divorced parents, who both wanted to age at home, lived separately near Powell’s Livermore home. They’d call him, and he’d go over and get them back on their feet. Once he wasn’t available. His mom had to call 911 and felt humiliated in her nightgown in front of four burly firefighters. (Said, 1/2)

WMFE: 'Arm Identity'? A UCF Company Is Using AI To Personalize Prosthetics For Kids
When generative artificial intelligence tools became available this year, many identified them as a disruptive technology. Limbitless Solutions creative director Matt Dombrowski embraced them with open arms. "Limbitless started on what was, unfairly, called a disruptive technology with 3D printing," Dombrowski said. "Everyone thought that was scary. And so seeing what we can do with the next disruptive technology, like AI, gives us a lot of hope. It gives us a lot of creative fuel for the future." (Pedersen, 1/2)

Bloomberg: UK Scientists Developing Smart Headband To Stop Teeth Grinding And Jaw Clenching
A headband that can stop teeth grinding and jaw clenching - a condition thought to affect about a third of adults at some point in their life - is being developed by scientists in the UK. Researchers at Nottingham Trent University have teamed up with JawSense, a medical technology start-up, to develop the device with the aim to treat bruxism. (1/1)

USA Today: Dreading Your Colonoscopy? New Tests Give Consumers More Options And Require Less Prep
The most common test to check for colon cancer is the once-a-decade colonoscopy. However, easier methods that can detect signs of the disease in a person's stool are available. And new prescription blood tests are on the horizon. Researchers and manufacturers say simpler tests like these could encourage more Americans to get tested. The tests are less invasive and time-consuming than colonoscopies, they're often less expensive and they could improve screening rates. Nationwide, about two out of five eligible adults were not up to date on colon cancer screenings in 2021, meaning they did not know their risk for the second deadliest type of cancer. (Alltucker, 1/2)

Stat: How 'Safe Bathrooms' Against Opioid Overdose Deaths Came To Be
First, a light starts to flash. Then a high-pitched siren starts to blare. Then come the sounds of nearby doors being flung open, and the frantic footsteps of doctors and nurses rushing toward a restroom at the end of a hallway. They’re in a hurry for good reason. These distress signals have a specific meaning: Somebody in the bathroom is overdosing. (Facher, 1/3)

KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest 'KFF Health News Minute' 
This week on the KFF Health News Minute: Decision-makers are awash in slick marketing and gimmicky products from companies looking to cash in on opioid settlement funds. Self-driving cars could be a lifeline for people with disabilities living in rural America. (1/2)

New England Journal of Medicine: Nirsevimab For Prevention Of Hospitalizations Due To RSV In Infants 
The safety of the monoclonal antibody nirsevimab and the effect of nirsevimab on hospitalizations for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)–associated lower respiratory tract infection when administered in healthy infants are unclear. (Drysdale, et al, 12/28)

CIDRAP: Switch To Oral Antibiotics Occurred For Fewer Than Half Of Eligible Bloodstream Infection Patients 
A study of US patients hospitalized with gram-negative bloodstream infections (GN-BSIs) found that fewer than half of those eligible were transitioned from intravenous (IV) to oral antibiotic therapy. (Dall, 1/2)

CIDRAP: Diagnostic Stewardship Bundle Linked To Reduced Antibiotic Use In Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia 
Implementation of a diagnostic stewardship intervention for suspected pneumonia at a Michigan hospital was associated with a reduction in positive respiratory cultures and broad-spectrum antibiotic use, researchers reported last week in Clinical Microbiology and Infection. (Dall, 1/2)

ScienceDaily: New Method Illuminates Druggable Sites On Proteins 
Scientists develop a new, high-resolution technique for finding potential therapeutic targets on proteins in living cells. The findings could lead to more targeted therapeutics for nearly any human disease. (Scripps Research Institute, 1/2)

CIDRAP: Less Than 5% Of US Preschool Cohort Hospitalized For COVID Were Fully Vaccinated, Study Finds
Only 4.5% of a cohort of pediatric COVID-19 patients admitted to US hospitals during the period of Omicron predominance had completed their primary COVID-19 vaccine series, and 7.0% had started but didn't finish the series, The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal reports. (Van Beusekom, 12/29)

The Washington Post: Can Obesity Drugs Transform America’s Health? 
On the surface, the argument seems simple: More than 4 in 10 Americans have obesity, a chronic medical condition that is second only to smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. The class of drugs known as GLP-1s appears highly effective in reducing weight and decreasing negative health outcomes including diabetes and heart disease. Therefore, widespread adoption of these drugs must improve the public’s health. (Leana S. Wen, 1/3)

The Boston Globe: Xylazine, A New Scourge In The Opioid Crisis
Not too long ago, a Boston-born man in his early 50s was referred to our addiction treatment clinic in Boston after he discovered that Percocet pills — powerful opioid painkillers — he had obtained from the streets had been laced with some other potent substance. He reached out to his primary care physician for help, but for a variety of reasons his appointment was delayed. Ten days later, he was found unconscious in his apartment and was pronounced dead from an unintentional overdose. (Maelys Amat and Michelle Silver, 1/2)

The Star Tribune: New Treatment For Drug Prices Risks Side Effects
In a public effort to bring down prescription drug prices, the Biden administration plans to use the government's "march-in" authority to sever some pharmaceutical drug patent protections. (Bruce Yandle, 1/2)

Stat: A Single Drug, Study Failures Leave Anavex With Nothing But Cash
It took Anavex Life Sciences seven months to finally acknowledge the failure of a late-stage clinical trial in Rett syndrome. The negative study outcome was never in doubt, so the only surprise from Tuesday’s announcement was the company’s lame attempt at damage control. (Adam Feuerstein, 1/2)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Veterans Need Access To Non-Opioid Pain Management Options
Opioids are still the fallback solution for treating pain, even as we lose many veterans to addiction. Drug overdose mortality rates among veterans increased by 53% from 2010–2019. According to an analysis of Drug Enforcement Agency data on oxycodone and hydrocodone shipments, counties with higher shipment rates saw higher opioid death rates from 2006 to 2019. (Tom Synan, 12/27)

The Atlantic: Whatever Happened To Zika? 
In 2015, a horror movie came to life. The mosquitoes that swarm almost all tropical climates began infecting people with a strange new virus. In most, Zika caused no symptoms, or a mild rash and fever. But if it happened to infect a pregnant woman, her baby could be born with severe birth defects. (Olga Kahzan, 2/2)

USA Today: DeWine Vetoed Ohio Anti-Trans Bill, Saving Lives – And Parent's Rights
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services calls gender-affirming care “a supportive form of healthcare. It consists of (various) services that may include medical, surgical, mental health, and non-medical services for transgender and nonbinary people.”  (Ray Marcano, 1/3)

The CT Mirror: CT Lawmakers: Support Ending Hospital Billing Disparities
As a Hartford native, I’m invested in the well-being of my fellow community members. My mission is to elevate the voices of those in Hartford who are often left out of the decision-making table on matters that impact them, especially regarding health care. (Ayesha Clarke, 1/3)

The Washington Post: As A Young Surgeon I Had The Yips. It Made Me A Better Doctor.
Each year right about now, with the sunny start of term long past, it dawns on my students and residents that surgery is not just about perfection and precision; it is also frustrating and fraught with compromise. Each winter I reflect on something that happened to me at their age and stage. (James Naples, 1/3)

Stat: Chronically Ill Young Patients Struggle To Find Fertility Info
I recently turned 25. I should be taking risks, jet-setting with other Barbies, and flouncing around in tiny tops. Instead, this chronically ill Barbie spent her first four days of 25 in a scene from “Oppenheimer.” (Catherine Ames, 1/3)