Modern Healthcare: HHS Establishes Environmental Justice Office
The Biden administration established a Department of Health and Human Services office Tuesday to address environmental health issues facing underserved communities. The Office of Environmental Justice will be situated under the HHS Office of Climate Change and Health Equity, which was established in August 2021. The new office will serve as a center for "policy, programming and analysis" and will focus on developing environmental justice initiatives, environmental justice reports and an environmental justice workforce, according to a news release. (Abrams, 5/31)

CNN: Health And Human Services Announces New Office Focused On The Environmental Risks To Underserved Communities 
The new office will be led by interim director Sharunda Buchanan, a former official at the Centers for Disease Control specializing in environmental health issues like lead exposure. While there are other federal offices, including the White House Council on Environmental Quality, that focus on environmental justice, Buchanan told CNN she hopes the HHS office will bring new resources to communities, especially low incomes communities and communities of color dealing with elevated lead exposure or inadequate waste water treatment. (Nilsen, 5/31)

In updates on the infant formula shortage —

The Hill: Biden To Hold Virtual Meeting With Executives To Address Baby Formula Shortage 
President Biden is convening a virtual meeting Wednesday of administration officials and industry representatives to discuss the nationwide infant formula shortage, according to the White House.  Biden will virtually host executives from Bubs Australia, Reckitt, Gerber, Perrigo Company, and ByHeart to “to receive updates on their progress in ramping up the supply of formula in the U.S.,” a White House official said.  Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Surgeon General Vivek Murthy are also scheduled to attend the event at the White House Wednesday afternoon.  (Chalfant, 6/1)

Reuters: Australia In Talks With U.S. To Supply Infant Formula 
Australia is in talks with the United States to supply baby food, an Australian government spokesperson said on Wednesday, after the apex U.S. health regulator relaxed its import policy to address a nationwide shortage. Makers of baby food globally are exploring opportunities of supplying to the U.S. after the easing of import norms. Two million cans of formula from the UK are headed to American shores, while Bubs Australia struck a deal with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week to supply 1.25 million cans. (6/1)

In other news from the Biden administration —

CBS News: "My Brain Is Broken": Former CIA Analyst Struggling With Havana Syndrome Says She Has Not Received Promised Care 
Despite public assurances of medical care and financial support through congressional legislation for those suffering from the mysterious health condition known as Havana Syndrome, a CBS News investigation has identified more than a dozen current and former government operatives, and in some cases family members, who say the government has not had their back.  "I'm not sure I'll ever be able to work again. I mean, I've lost everything," former CIA analyst Erika Stith told CBS News as part of a monthslong investigation. (Herridge, 5/31)

ABC News: Reported COVID-19 Infection Levels Nearly 6 Times Higher Than Last Memorial Day
Millions of Americans traveled for Memorial Day weekend at levels not seen since before the onset of the pandemic. It marked a return to normalcy for many and a chance to gather with family and friends. But in reality, the situation was far from normal -- with confirmed COVID-19 cases nearly six times higher than last Memorial Day, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Mitropoulos, 5/31)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Cases Swell Again; It’s ‘Very Hard Right Now To Avoid Getting COVID’
Coronavirus cases blew up across the Bay Area in May, as the region became entrenched in a sixth surge that is likely many times larger than what reported infections show and may even be approaching the magnitude of this past winter’s massive omicron wave, health experts say. COVID hospitalizations are climbing in the Bay Area too — they’ve nearly doubled since the start of the month — though they remain at a relatively low and manageable level compared to prior surges, experts said. The number of patients with COVID needing intensive care in the region has more than doubled over the past month, but ICU capacity is not tapped out. (Allday, 5/31)

Houston Chronicle: Houston's COVID Cases Are Climbing Again, Wastewater Data Shows
Coronavirus infections are on the rise across Houston, wastewater tracking shows, even as fewer people seek testing two years into the pandemic. Four months after the city saw record infection rates caused by the highly contagious omicron variant, new COVID-19 cases are once again climbing, according to data collected by Rice University and the Houston Health Department. The most recent sewage samples show increased viral loads at all but a few of the city’s three dozen wastewater treatment plants. (Mishanec, 5/31)

Mississippi Clarion Ledger: COVID-19 Cases In Mississippi Have Risen Slightly In May
Mississippi's COVID-19 numbers are on the rise with 533 new cases reported by the Mississippi State Department of Health between Jan. 1 and May 26. According to the MSDH, there have been a total of 12,466 deaths in the state since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. "We are seeing a slight increase in cases, long term care, and hospitalization," said Liz Sharlot, MSDH director of communications of the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases, mostly of the Omicron variant. "Nothing dramatic at this time. Omicron presents as a milder subvariant than previous, such as Delta." (Williams, 6/1)

The Boston Globe: Coronavirus Levels In E. Mass. Waste Water Saw Upticks Late Last Week
An encouraging downward trend in coronavirus levels in Eastern Massachusetts waste water was interrupted by two upticks late last week. The seven-day average virus level edged up Thursday and then down Friday in the northern section of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority system, while the level in the southern section was flat Thursday before edging up Friday. Officials say waste water virus data can be an important early warning signal, detecting COVID-19 infections before people get tested and the tests are officially reported. As more people are using rapid at-home tests, whose results are usually not reported to state public health officials, waste water testing has become a key indicator of the virus’s prevalence. (Finucane and Huddle, 5/31)

The Atlantic: Coronavirus Cases Are Being Undercounted. What Should You Do?
Take Hawaii, for example. Last week, the state reported about 900 new cases a day, but a spokesperson for Hawaii’s department of health, Brooks Baehr, warned that the true number could be “five, six, seven times” greater. “That would be an extra 4,500 to 6,500 new cases every day,” Baehr told the local news channel KHON2. What exactly is the average person supposed to do with that information? Many people know that COVID cases—as shown in all those jagged charts and splotchy, color-coded maps that decorate front pages—are likely underreported right now. That uncertainty makes calculating one’s own risk extra tricky. If cases could be 10 times worse than what you see on a graph, how do you know if your local outbreak is bad enough that it’s worth slapping your mask back on? Or, more drastically, canceling plans altogether? (Mimbs Nice, 5/29)

But cases in New York City have leveled off —

ABC News: COVID-19 Cases Plateau In New York City, Indicating Latest Surge May Be Over 
COVID-19 cases in New York City have plateaued, signaling that the latest surge is at least slowing, if not over. An ABC News analysis of city data shows 4,204 confirmed and probable cases were recorded on May 24 -- the latest date for which data is available -- with a seven-day rolling average of 3,312.This is the lowest average recorded in the last two weeks. (Kekatos, 5/31)

In other news about the spread of covid —

The New York Times: During The Omicron Wave, Death Rates Soared For Older People 
Despite strong levels of vaccination among older people, Covid killed them at vastly higher rates during this winter’s Omicron wave than it did last year, preying on long delays since their last shots and the variant’s ability to skirt immune defenses. This winter’s wave of deaths in older people belied the Omicron variant’s relative mildness. Almost as many Americans 65 and older died in four months of the Omicron surge as did in six months of the Delta wave, even though the Delta variant, for any one person, tended to cause more severe illness. (Mueller and Lutz, 5/31)

The Wall Street Journal: Covid-19 Can Leave You Infectious After Five Or Even 10 Days
How long are people infectious? Into the pandemic’s third year, as new, more infectious variants continue to circulate widely and more people have built-up immune defenses, researchers aren’t totally sure when or how long individuals with Covid-19 might be contagious and shedding virus, particularly at the end of an infection. (Abbott, 5/31)

Fortune: The 5 Types Of Long COVID, According To One Expert
Dr. Alexandra Brugler Yonts, an infectious disease specialist at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., and the head of its new Pediatric Post-COVID Program, told Fortune she divides the types of long COVID into five categories, grouped by causes. (Prater, 5/31)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Not Included In US OSHA Virus Safety Pact With Meatpacker JBS
Safety regulators are requiring meatpacking giant JBS to follow experts' plans to prevent future virus outbreaks — but not in Iowa. Company officials have settled cases with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration related to COVID-19 outbreaks that infected hundreds of JBS workers across the country in 2020, the federal agency has announced. JBS will pay a $14,502 fine and let the U.S. Department of Labor and the United Food and Commercial Workers appoint outside experts to assess seven factories in Colorado, Illinois, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin. (Jett, 5/31)

CIDRAP: COVID-19 Severely Disrupted Global Cardiac Care, Increasing Deaths 
A meta-analysis of 158 observational studies from 49 countries on six continents reveals severe disruptions in cardiovascular (CV)-related hospitalizations, diagnostic and interventional procedures, and outpatient visits during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study, the first global evaluation of cardiac-services delivery amid the pandemic of its kind, was published yesterday in the European Heart Journal. (Van Beusekom, 5/31)

The Wall Street Journal: Pulse Oximeters Are Less Accurate Among Black, Hispanic And Asian Covid-19 Patients 
Pulse oximeter measurements among Black, Hispanic and Asian Covid-19 patients were less accurate than measurements for white patients, a study showed, underscoring shortcomings in a critical device used to monitor the disease’s riskiest outcomes. The discrepancies may have led to some patients of color with severe disease receiving delayed or no treatment despite having oxygen levels low enough to warrant it, researchers said Tuesday in a study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. (Mosbergen, 5/31)

Stat: Faulty Oxygen Readings Delayed Covid Care For Darker-Skinned Patients
Undetected low oxygen levels led to delays in Black and Hispanic patients receiving therapies such as the drugs remdesivir and dexamethasone. Widely used pulse oximeters, which measure oxygen levels by assessing the color of the blood, have been under increasing scrutiny for racial bias because they can overestimate blood oxygen levels in darker-skinned individuals and make them appear healthier than they actually are. A 2020 study comparing oxygen levels measured by the devices with readings taken from “gold standard” arterial blood samples found pulse oximeters were three times less likely to detect low oxygen levels in Black patients than in white patients. (McFarling, 5/31)

Nevada demands answers after faulty covid tests —

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Northshore’s COVID Tests ‘Terribly Wrong,’ Lab Supervisor Says
The Nevada public health laboratory supervisor who detected that a Chicago-based lab’s COVID-19 testing was missing most positive cases said the operation’s data was so flawed as to suggest it had not even run the tests. Skeptical that Northshore Clinical Labs’ COVID-19 testing operation on the University of Nevada, Reno campus was providing accurate results, a university official sent specimens to both the Chicago lab and the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory. The Nevada state lab determined that Northshore’s PCR testing had missed 96 percent of positive cases, a finding reported in a ProPublica investigation, which said officials never arrived at a clear explanation for the unreliable results. (Hynes, 5/31)

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Susie Lee Says Northshore Exploited Nevada With Faulty COVID-19 Tests
Rep. Susie Lee demanded accountability for Northshore Clinical Labs, a company that contracted with local governments in Nevada for COVID-19 testing but whose results were almost entirely wrong. “This lab exploited Nevada and other states for its own gain when we were at our most vulnerable,” said Lee, D-Nev., in a statement to the Review-Journal. “Through its reprehensible actions, it encouraged the spread of COVID-19 and put an even heavier burden on our already strained hospitals,” Lee said. “These bad actors must be held accountable.” (Martin and Robertson, 5/31)

On vaccines —

Bloomberg: Covid Booster Shots Are Key To Stopping Severe Infection: Study
A third dose of messenger RNA Covid-19 vaccine provides a key boost to immunity against the coronavirus, regardless of the original type of immunization, researchers said. An mRNA booster following an initial course of two shots of the same type is the most effective way to prevent non-severe Covid infections, according to an analysis of studies published Wednesday in the BMJ medical journal. Adding a third mRNA shot to other primary vaccination regimens raises protection to almost the same level, the authors from the Chinese University of Hong Kong said. (Hernanz Lizarraga, 5/31)

Axios: Novavax (Finally) Prepares For Takeoff In The U.S.
As one of America's first big bets under Operation Warp Speed, Novavax's COVID vaccine is notably late to the party as the Maryland biotech seeks a potential FDA emergency use authorization for its COVID shot. But company leaders say they see a clear runway to market success for its protein-based product — not only as a booster for the vaccinated but as an alternative first-line defense for those who've refused mRNA shots. (Reed, 5/31)

Axios: The Evolution Of Omicron Potentially Creates A New Vaccine Dilemma
Efforts to update COVID vaccines can't seem to keep up with changes in the virus itself. New variants appear to be even more immune-resistant than the original Omicron strain, raising the possibility that even retooled vaccines could be outdated by the time they become available this fall. Preliminary data suggests that the most recent Omicron subvariants are significantly different from the original version that began spreading late last year. (Owens, 6/1)

On ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine —

St. Louis Public Radio: Missouri Bill Would Block Pharmacists From Ivermectin Advice
A bill passed by the Missouri legislature this past session prohibits pharmacists from telling patients about dangers related to certain medications — specifically, ivermectin or hydroxychloroquine sulfate tablets. If signed into law by Gov. Mike Parson, House Bill 2149 would prevent pharmacists from questioning physicians or patients about the two medications, both sometimes used to treat COVID-19 despite having no FDA clearance for that use. (Woodbury, 5/31)

The Washington Post: San Diego Doctor Jennings Staley Sentenced In Hydroxychloroquine Scheme 
In March and April of 2020, as the coronavirus spread and people isolated in their homes, a doctor in San Diego boasted that he had his hands on a “miracle cure,” according to prosecutors — hydroxychloroquine. In mass-marketing emails from his business, Skinny Beach Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley said the drug was included in his coronavirus “treatment kits,” despite the medication becoming increasingly scarce. But Staley had a way of getting it, he later told an undercover federal agent. He planned to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the help of a Chinese supplier, prosecutors said. Staley was sentenced last week to 30 days in prison and a year of home confinement for the scheme. He pleaded guilty last year. (Peiser, 5/31)

NPR: DOJ Asks Federal Appeals Court To Reverse Order Lifting Travel Mask Mandate
The Justice Department asked a federal appeals court on Tuesday to overturn last month's court decision by a federal judge that declared the mandate requiring masks on airplanes and other public transportation unlawful. In a 48-page document filed in the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department argues that the order issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in early 2021 "falls easily within the CDC's statutory authority." Last month, the Justice Department said that it would appeal U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle's decision to strike down the CDC's mask mandate for public transportation if the agency determines the mandate is still needed to protect public health. (Franklin, 6/1)

The Washington Examiner: Biden Justice Department Appeals Ruling That Lifted Federal Mask Mandate 
The CDC has statutory authority over “sanitation” measures, which includes mask wearing, the DOJ argued in its appeal. Therefore, the agency did not exceed its authority and issued an order that was reasonable, as social distancing is not always feasible on public transit and handwashing is not effective against airborne illnesses, the filing states. ... It’s not entirely clear whether the CDC would reinstate the mask mandate if the ruling is overturned. (Mondeaux, 5/31)

In other news about mask-wearing and vaccine mandates —

AP: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Reinstates Indoor Mask Mandate
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo reinstated indoor masking on Tuesday due to rising numbers of COVID-19 cases. The numbers are not on the order of what was seen during the worst of the winter omicron surge but they are still concerning from a health and safety standpoint, Anthony J. Knight, executive director of public safety, said in a statement. (5/31)

AP: Bill Would Ban Vaccination Proof To Enter Civic Facilities 
State and local governments and educational institutions in Louisiana could not require proof of vaccination against COVID-19 for entry into government facilities under legislation advanced by a state Senate committee Tuesday. The 4-2 vote sends the House-passed bill by Rep. Larry Bagley, a Republican from Stonewall, to the full Senate. (5/31)

Indianapolis Star: Indiana St. Vincent Workers Who Declined COVID-19 Vaccine Sue Hospital
Dozens of St. Vincent Health and Ascension Health workers in Indiana who were suspended without pay for not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine are asking a federal court to open a class action lawsuit. The 64 workers claim the hospital network discriminated against them because they objected to the vaccine on religious grounds. "Ascension Health established a coercive process calculated to force healthcare workers and staff to abandon their religious objections to the COVID-19 vaccination and receive the vaccination against their will," the lawsuit claims. Ascension Health owns St. Vincent Health. (Magdaleno, 5/31)

CNN: Supreme Court Roe V. Wade Leak Investigation Heats Up As Clerks Are Asked For Phone Records In Unprecedented Move 
Supreme Court officials are escalating their search for the source of the leaked draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade, taking steps to require law clerks to provide cell phone records and sign affidavits, three sources with knowledge of the efforts have told CNN. Some clerks are apparently so alarmed over the moves, particularly the sudden requests for private cell data, that they have begun exploring whether to hire outside counsel. (Biskupic, 5/31)

In abortion news from Tennessee, Oklahoma, and New Hampshire —

Knoxville News Sentinel: Two Legal Paths Could Determine When Tennessee Bans Abortions
If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, Tennessee's "trigger law," passed in 2019, would go into effect 30 days after the decision comes down. If the law is activated, the Attorney General would notify the Tennessee Code Commission. Then, within 30 days of that notice, the state would have an abortion ban in place. The measure would make it a felony for a doctor to perform an abortion, while women seeking abortions would be exempt from prosecution. (Kellar, 5/30)

Oklahoman: What Does Oklahoma's Ban On Abortion From Fertilization Mean For IVF?
Oklahoma’s latest abortion ban quickly raised concerns over whether the law might, even inadvertently, hinder in vitro fertilization, or IVF. Local providers and advocates say the law won’t pose any issues for infertility treatments including IVF. But confusion over House Bill 4327, which bans abortion from the point of fertilization, has still rattled patients. “They’re panicking,” said Dr. Eli Reshef, an Oklahoma City reproductive specialist who also serves on the board of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. (Branham, 6/1)

New Hampshire Public Radio: N.H.'s Buffer Zone Law Is Frequently Debated, Rarely Used 
On one recent Friday in Concord, a group of about eight protesters gathered on the sidewalk outside Equality Health Center, holding signs that read “Babies Are Murdered Here” and “Pray to End Abortion.” They were joined by another group of around 10 volunteer clinic escorts, patrolling the sidewalk in rainbow pinnies. “We're trying to block cameras, block signs,” explained Eileen Ehlers, a longtime clinic volunteer and the self-proclaimed “grandmother of the group.” Fridays are when Equality Health Center usually offers surgical abortions. Ehlers said she’ll often wrap an arm around patients arriving at the clinic and walk them inside, to protect them from having to engage with the protesters. If protesters are yelling, sometimes she yells back, to drown them out. (Fam, 6/1)

Also —

FiveThirtyEight: There’s A New Age Gap On Abortion Rights
Americans’ views on abortion have been relatively consistent for years despite massive demographic changes, social upheaval and shifting perspectives on sexuality. But that may be about to change. A new report from the Pew Research Center found that support for abortion rights is considerably higher among young Americans. Roughly three-quarters of 18- to 29-year-olds say abortion should generally be legal, including 30 percent who say it should be legal in all cases. Meanwhile, Americans 65 and older expressed much more tepid support — only 54 percent said abortion should be legal without exception (14 percent) or with some exceptions (40 percent). (Cox, 6/1)

The New Yorker: What The End Of Roe V. Wade Will Mean For The Next Generation Of Obstetricians
All students and young doctors have to sort out questions of how they want to practice medicine; aspiring ob-gyns’ views on abortion might determine what training they seek out, which specialities they pursue, and where they choose to live. In a post-Roe world, that self-sorting process would grow even more intense: in roughly half the country, abortion would be all but illegal, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive-rights think tank. Medical residents in those states would likely have to go elsewhere to learn about abortions, just as patients would have to travel to get the procedure. In the other half of the country, demand for abortions would almost certainly shoot up, putting pressure on physicians, hospitals, and clinics to serve patients from out of state. For all doctors and trainees, no matter their views, this geographic divide could pose dilemmas—even for anti-abortion students who would presumably welcome the reversal of Roe. (Green, 5/31)

KHN: Abortion Opponents Take Political Risks By Dropping Exceptions For Rape, Incest, And The Mother’s Life
If it seems as though the anti-abortion movement has gotten more extreme in recent months, that’s because it has. But it’s not the first time — positions taken by both sides of the abortion debate have ebbed and flowed repeatedly in the 49 years since the Supreme Court declared abortion a constitutional right. (Rovner, 6/1)

Yahoo News: Doctors Who Worked Before Roe V. Wade Speak Out: ‘Many Women Died’
Dr. Warren Hern, founder of the Boulder Abortion Clinic. Hern, who graduated from medical school in 1965, tells Yahoo Life that he saw the "tremendous problems" women had before they could legally access abortion care. "Many women died," he says. Hern shares that he and his fellow residents spent many nights taking care of women who were "desperately sick" from having illegal abortions. (Miller, 5/31)

Bloomberg: Abortion Pill Startup Choix Raises $1 Million In Venture Capital
Choix Inc., a startup that provides women with pills that induce an abortion, has raised $1 million in seed funding from venture capitalists, weeks after a report that indicated the Supreme Court was on the verge of overturning Roe v. Wade. “Because of what is going on in this country, we wanted to be able to grow quickly,” said Cindy Adam, co-founder and chief executive officer of Choix. “We’re on a lot more people’s radar now, just because of what’s going on.” The funding came from Oregon-based Elevate Capital. Adam declined to give the startup’s valuation. (Anand, 6/1)

Houston Chronicle: Abortions, Booze On Sundays And Marijuana. Here's What Texans Say Is Harder To Get Than A Gun
Many Republicans have zeroed in on the mental health crisis in the U.S., while Democrats have said it is too easy for people like the Robb Elementary shooter, Salvador Ramos, to purchase or get a hold of high-powered weapons. In fact, Ramos was too young to purchase alcohol but old enough to buy an assault-style rifle. As is usually the case, the gun control debate found its way onto social media. On Reddit, for example, one thread in particular is starting to gain traction after the person who started the thread said it was harder to buy a motorcycle in Texas than a gun. (Pettaway, 5/31)

The Hill: Texas Artist Donating Customized Caskets For Uvalde Victims
A Texas artist is donating customized caskets for victims of last week’s mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Trey Ganem, the owner of custom casket company SoulShine Industries, pivoted to helping the victims’ families shortly after the shooting. The massacre left 19 children and two teachers dead, galvanizing the nation and reigniting a fight over gun regulations. (Schonfeld, 5/31)

More on the gun violence epidemic —

NBC News: Brooklyn Subway Shooting Victim Sues Gun Maker Glock For Fueling 'Public Nuisance'
A woman who was shot in the Brooklyn subway shooting in April that left 10 people wounded filed a lawsuit Tuesday against gun maker Glock Inc. and its parent company, accusing them of fueling "a public nuisance" in New York and endangering public health and safety. Ilene Steur, the woman behind the federal lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of New York, was on her way to work when she was shot in the April 12 attack where a gunman fire dozens of bullet into a busy subway train. (Da Silva, 6/1)

St. Louis Public Radio: St. Louis ER Physician On Gun Violence’s Toll 
While the nation reels from the mass shooting in an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, Dr. Kristen Mueller finds herself reflecting on the sheer amount of everyday gun violence in St. Louis. “Firearm injuries have become one of [the] regular reasons people seek medical care in the city,” the emergency medicine physician told St. Louis on the Air. “It's almost what we call a ‘bread and butter case,’ as terrible as that sounds.” Mueller works in the emergency departments at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. She’s also an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Washington University’s School of Medicine. She said St. Louis’ four Level 1 trauma hospitals have cared for more than 10,000 patients with acute firearm injuries in the past decade. (Woodbury, 5/31)

The Texas Tribune: America’s First Modern Mass Shooting Never Really Ended 
The stench of burnt powder hung in the air as the elevator doors opened, knocking Ramiro Martinez back on his heels for an instant. Having muttered a desperate Hail Mary to himself, the off-duty Austin police officer rushed into the observatory of the Tower at the University of Texas, where a depraved killer, armed with a Remington 700, a shotgun, an M1 rifle and a grudge against the world, had rained bullets down on the “Forty Acres” for nearly 90 minutes. Eleven were dead on the ground. Thirty-one were wounded. Inside the tower, three people had been killed, and two others wounded. (McGraw, 6/1)

NPR: School Shooting In Scotland Can Teach Us Lessons About Gun Violence In The US
As Americans continue to reel from the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas that left 19 students and 2 teachers dead, headlines and commentators repeat a common refrain: The U.S is the only country where this happens. Nowadays that may be true, but 26 years ago, it happened in Scotland. In March 1996, a gunman entered Dunblane Primary School, killing 16 students, a teacher, and injuring 15 others. To this day, it is the deadliest mass shooting in UK history. But that's where the similarities end. In the aftermath of the shooting, parents in Dunblane were able to mobilize with the kind of effectiveness that has eluded American gun control activists. By the following year, Parliament had banned private ownership of most handguns, as well as semi-automatic weapons, and required mandatory registration for shotgun owners. There have been no school shootings in the U.K since then. (Shapiro, Jarenwattananon and López Restrepo, 6/1)

In related news about students' mental health —

EdSource: Counselors Not Part Of One California District’s Plan To Tackle Student Mental Health 
Faced with escalating student mental health needs, one California school district is trying an unusual new approach – one that does not include counselors. Saugus Union School District in northern Los Angeles County, which in recent years has endured a nearby school shooting, wildfires and increasing political polarization, is eliminating all four of its counselor positions and replacing them with social workers. In the fall, the district will have nine social workers and no counselors. (Jones, 5/31)

The Washington Post: Schools Are Struggling To Meet Rising Mental Health Needs, Data Shows
A survey released Tuesday documents the toll the pandemic has taken on students’ mental health, with 7 in 10 public schools seeing a rise in the number of children seeking services. Even more, 76 percent, said faculty and staff members have expressed concerns about depression, anxiety and trauma in students since the start of the pandemic. (Meckler, 5/31)

Also —

Newsweek: McConnell Says 'Biggest Decision' As Leader Was Blocking Merrick Garland
Mitch McConnell says blocking then-President Barack Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court in 2016 is his single greatest accomplishment during his 15 years leading Senate Republicans. McConnell made the remarks to supporters, The Washington Times reported Tuesday, reflecting on his tenure as Senate Republican leader. The Kentucky Republican's refusal to even consider Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, enraged Democrats and aided the court's rightward drift. McConnell made the remarks as Democrats are now looking to McConnell to help broker a deal on gun control. (Thomas, 5/31)

Stat: Arizona Doctors Are Trying To Rewrite Surprise Billing Law To Boost Their Pay
Doctors in Arizona are crafting a state ballot measure that would modify the new federal surprise billing law and drastically tilt the scales in their favor during behind-the-scenes billing negotiations in the state — with consumers ultimately picking up the tab. On its surface, the draft ballot initiative, obtained by STAT, extends new federal protections for surprise medical bills to patients with insurance plans that operate in Arizona. But it would also strip out a key part of the federal arbitration process. And while the initiative is tabled in Arizona for now, it could still serve as a blueprint for health care providers in other states who want to collect higher payments in out-of-network disputes with health insurance companies. (Herman, 6/1)

In other health care industry news —

Modern Healthcare: Cedars-Sinai, Union Agree To Three-Year Contract 
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and a union representing 2,000 workers reached a three-year contract agreement weeks after workers staged a five-day strike, the union announced Saturday. Service Employees Union International-United Healthcare Workers West, members of which include certified nursing assistants, transporters, environmental services workers, plant operations workers, surgical technicians and food service technicians, said in a news release that the ratified contract includes the largest raises in its history with the not-for-profit Los Angeles hospital. (Christ, 5/31)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F.’s Chinese Hospital Receives Huge Donation To Expand Care
San Francisco’s Chinese Hospital, a nonprofit health care provider to mostly low-income Chinatown seniors, has received $7 million from the foundation of businessman Charles Huang, representing the largest single donation in the hospital’s 123-year history. The money will be used to renovate electrical and mechanical infrastructure at the hospital’s six-story outpatient building on Jackson Street, which opened in 1979, and to expand services including the laboratory and outpatient surgery, said Chinese Hospital CEO Dr. Jian Zhang. The hospital operates as two buildings — the second one being the eight-story inpatient building next to the outpatient tower. (Ho, 5/31)

Modern Healthcare: UHS Taking Sole Ownership Of George Washington University Hospital
Universal Health Services will assume full ownership of George Washington University Hospital, the for-profit health system announced Saturday. A Universal Health Services subsidiary and George Washington University owned and operated George Washington University Hospital in Washington for nearly 25 years. Under that arrangement, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania-based Universal Health Services held an 80% stake and the university owned the remainder. "We are confident that through this restructured partnership, we will be able to mutually meet our quality-of-care goals while also growing our integrated delivery model and further expanding access to care," Marc Miller, president and CEO of Universal Health Services, said in a news release. (Berryman, 5/31)

On health care personnel —

Stat: Mistreatment In Medical School Leads Students To Leave 
Medical students who report being mistreated or discriminated against are far more likely to drop out of medical school, according to a study published Tuesday in JAMA Pediatrics. Previous studies have linked discriminatory treatment in medical school to burnout and depression among students. The new paper is the first to link discrimination to medical school attrition, according to the authors, and it may be one reason the number of students from many racial and ethnic groups underrepresented in medicine has declined in recent decades despite efforts to diversify medical school classes and the profession in general. (McFarling, 5/31)

The 19th: Climate Change Is Forcing Care Workers To Act As First Responders
A few years ago, Marquisa Jackson, a certified nurse assistant, was faced with an emergency: The power went out at the Highland, California, mental health facility where she worked. It was a sweltering summer day, and the building was quickly getting too hot for patients. “At first I was a little panicky,” she said. “How are we going to take them outside and make it better if it’s even hotter outside?” But with the temperatures climbing to unsafe levels inside the facility, getting patients out was her only option. She and two other nurse assistants, each in charge of their own group of residents, evacuated the building. They moved them into the shade, providing cooling towels, water and popsicles until the power was restored a few hours later. (Kutz, 5/31)

The New York Times: The Doctor Prescribed An Obesity Drug. Her Insurer Called It ‘Vanity.’ 
Maya Cohen’s entree into the world of obesity medicine came as a shock. In despair over her weight, she saw Dr. Caroline Apovian, an obesity specialist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, who prescribed Saxenda, a recently approved weight-loss drug. Ms. Cohen, who is 55 and lives in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, hastened to get it filled. Then she saw the price her pharmacy was charging: $1,500 a month. Her insurer classified it as a “vanity drug” and would not cover it. (Kolata, 5/31)

Stat: A ‘Dark Horse’ Emerges In DNA Sequencing Race, Boasting A $100 Genome
Bay Area biotech Ultima Genomics on Tuesday claimed that its technology can sequence a whole human genome for $100, making it a surprise player in the race to read DNA quickly, accurately, and cheaply. The company didn’t provide specifics or immediately reply to an inquiry from STAT as to how it calculated that cost. But a $100 genome would represent a major drop in price, one that could help researchers unlock sequencing’s potential to unravel the mysteries of undiagnosed diseases, spot early signs of cancer, and better understand human health. (Wosen, 5/31)

Stat: Pricey Alzheimer’s Therapy Used Globally Has Limited Evidence To Back It Up
Looking more like a barber than a doctor, orthopedic surgeon Musa Citak squirted gel on on his patient’s head and massaged the gooey substance into his scalp as though it were shampoo. He then pulled out a handheld device and began sliding it across the side of the elderly man’s head. “This is shockwave therapy,” Citak explained. As he moved the device, it made rapid clicking sounds, each click a high-frequency sound wave intended to stimulate brain regions and, according to Citak, help regenerate cells and halt the rapid deterioration of the patient’s brain. (Moens, 6/1)

Modern Healthcare: Providers Urge FTC To Probe PBM Practices
Providers want the Federal Trade Commission to investigate pharmacy benefit managers' business practices, but PBMs and insurers say pharmaceutical manufacturers are to blame for sky-high drug prices. The FTC published a notice in February asking for input on how PBM practices such as rebates and fees, potentially anticompetitive contracts, and attempts to steer patients toward certain pharmacies affect patients and payers. The commission received more than 23,700 submissions by the time the comment period expired Wednesday. Providers wrote that PBMs engage in practices that decrease quality and threaten providers' finances. (Goldman, 5/31)

Stat: Documents Show Problems At Novartis Facility Production Was Halted
Earlier this month, Novartis took the surprising step of voluntarily suspending production of two therapies that use nuclear medicine to target and treat cancer cells, and also halted clinical trials for one of the treatments. At the time, the company explained it was doing so “out of an abundance of caution” in order to “address potential quality issues identified in its manufacturing processes” at facilities in Millburn, N.J., and Ivrea, Italy. No further explanation was offered, although a spokesperson did acknowledge regulators cited the company last fall for issues at the New Jersey plant. (Silverman, 5/31)

Bloomberg: Gen Z Prefers Marijuana Or Shrooms To Alcohol
Gen Z, the meme-hungry, gender-fluid generation that’s already reshaping everything from social media to shopping, is also redefining how society unwinds. Of people aged 18 to 24, 69% prefer marijuana to alcohol, according to a recent survey by New Frontier Data, a cannabis research firm. Consumers up to age 44 have a similar stance. But the youngest cohort is of particular interest, because many of Gen Z’s members still don’t have paychecks and purchasing power. Its oldest members, up to age 24, may thus be a leading indicator, given that they already have around $360 billion in disposable income, are just of legal age to spend it on alcohol or marijuana, and will doubtlessly influence their younger peers. (Kary, 5/31)

Axios: Youth Vaping Reversed Declines In Tobacco Use
More than a million teens started vaping from 2017 to 2019, throwing decades of declining tobacco use in reverse, according to a new study in Pediatrics. The popularity of Juul in particular led a new generation of 14- to 17-year-olds to get hooked, although use dropped off after an outbreak of vaping-related illnesses and deaths. "We saw a huge increase in addiction," study co-author John Pierce told Axios. (Dreher, 5/31)

In other news about drug use —

The Hill: South Dakota Will Vote On Legalizing Pot — With A Twist 
South Dakota voters will decide later this year whether to become the 20th state in the nation to legalize marijuana for recreational use, after supporters filed thousands of signatures with state elections officials earlier this month. But five months before Election Day, it’s not clear exactly what share of the vote supporters must rally in order to win approval. That’s because those same voters head to the polls next week in a primary election that could rewrite the rules just ahead of November’s vote. (Wilson, 5/31)

The Boston Globe: Ipswich Health Board Considers Syringe Service Program
The Ipswich Board of Health at its Monday, June 6 meeting will continue public discussions about the possibility of bringing a syringe service program to town. Interested community members are invited to attend the session, set for 5:30 p.m. in Town Hall Room C. The board began discussing the potential syringe service program on May 9, when Susan Gould Coviello, executive director of the Gloucester-based North Shore Health Project, met with the panel to suggest the idea. Since 2016, the Project has provided such a service for Gloucester. (Laidler, 5/31)

The Boston Globe: ‘They Treated Me Like I Was An Inmate.’ Despite Protests, State Continues To Support Prison-Based Programs For Addicted Men
Advocates and addiction specialists have long decried the practice of forcing men into correctional settings for addiction treatment, saying that doing so shames and often traumatizes people who are sick but not criminals. But the state government continues to support these programs. Funding to operate the facility where Hiltz was taken — the Massachusetts Alcohol and Substance Abuse Center, or MASAC — has doubled since 2019 to $20.5 million, and the fiscal year 2023 budget now before the Senate would provide an additional $1.5 million. Some $36 million in capital improvements are underway. “Rather than move away from correctional administration, the state is doubling down on it,” said Bonnie Tenneriello, a lawyer with Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, which in 2019 sued the state over the issue. (Freyer, 5/31)

And Canada has decriminalized opioids in British Columbia —

The New York Times: Canada Decriminalizes Opioids And Other Drugs In British Columbia
Facing soaring levels of opioid deaths since the pandemic began in 2020, the Canadian government announced Tuesday that it would temporarily decriminalize the possession of small amounts of illegal drugs, including cocaine and methamphetamines, in the western province of British Columbia that has been ground zero for the country’s overdoses. ... The announcement was applauded by families of deceased opioid users and by peer support workers, and was supported by police associations and British Columbia’s chief coroner, but many harm reduction activists demanded that the government go further by expanding the exemption across the country and increasing the threshold to include larger quantities. (Isai and Porter, 5/31)

The Washington Post: Esophageal Cancer May Be Rising Among The Middle-Aged 
About 20,640 U.S. adults will be diagnosed with esophageal cancer this year, according to estimates from the American Cancer Society (ACS). This type of cancer, which affects the esophagus — the tube that carries swallowed food from your throat to your stomach — has been found most often in people 65 and older, especially men. The ACS says that, overall, diagnosis rates have been fairly steady in recent years. A report, however, suggests that esophageal cancer may be increasing among middle-aged people. (Searing, 5/31)

In other public health news —

The Hill: Pentagon Reports High Levels Of ‘Forever Chemicals’ In Drinking Water Near Bases
The Defense Department is reporting high levels of toxic perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water near several of its bases, according to new data released by the department. Drinking water testing near bases in Washington state, Pennsylvania, Florida and Michigan found levels of the chemicals well above a health threshold set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  (Frazin, 5/31)

KCUR: How The Lead Industry Misled The Public About Its Toxic Problem For Decades 
Lead is a dangerous neurotoxin. Researchers have known that for decades. But the substance stuck around in everyday products like paint and gasoline for decades. One big reason: The lead industry spent years using racial bias to divert public attention away from the dangers of the toxin and minimized the impact of mounting evidence indicating lead was poisoning children with devastating effects. Health officials warn that there is no safe level of lead in children. (Savage, 5/31)

WUSF Public Media: Drownings: Researchers Warn Of The Deadly Combination Of Water And Young Children 
Drownings are preventable. But already this year, more than 20 young children have perished this way in Florida. Not all of them lived here. The Florida Department of Health has asked the Florida Prevention Research Center at the University of South Florida to analyze an ad it put up at Orlando International Airport to warn tourists of the dangerous mix of standing water and small children. April Ingram, deputy director of FPRC, said drownings often happen away from “pool time” for children under 5. But even water inside the house presents danger. (Wantuck, 5/31)

Axios: It's Time To Soak Up More Sun
Nearly half of us — regardless of age, race and home state — are deficient in the sun’s vitamin. We need vitamin D for healthy bones and teeth and strong immune systems but simply fail to get enough from the sun and other sources. 42% of us have less than 20 nanograms of "the sunshine vitamin" per milliliter of blood — the amount we need to thrive. (Pandey, 5/31)

Fortune: Low Back Pain: How Over-The-Counter Medicine Might Be Making It Worse
Low back pain is the most common and debilitating of all pain complaints. Heavy lifting can cause it, but so can sitting at a desk all day, especially if you have bad posture and poor back support. Think hunching over a laptop at your dining table. Most times, an acute injury causing lower back pain will get better on its own in a matter of weeks. But it also can become a more lasting problem, especially as you age. Now some new science suggests one reason for this could be that we've been approaching the inflammation that comes with back pain all wrong. (Morgan, 5/31)

Also —

Houston Chronicle: What Is ICU Delirium? Doctors Grapple With A Mystery Diagnosis
Four years ago, Richard Cheatum watched his 64-year-old wife lose her grip on reality inside a Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center intensive care unit. Belinda Cheatum had suffered from Crohn’s disease, a type of chronic inflammatory bowel disorder, and developed severe complications that put her on a mechanical ventilator for about three weeks. When she recovered enough to breathe on her own, she thought the helicopters flying outside of her hospital room window were part of an invasion, Richard said. She tried talking through the TV remote like a cellphone. (Gill, 5/31)

Columbus Dispatch: Ohio Medicaid Dispute Threatens Drug Access At Pharmacies
Pharmacy deserts for the poorest and disabled Ohioans could grow unless a dispute over new state Medicaid contracts gets settled soon, industry advocates say. "The public is going to start losing independent pharmacies, they’re going to be losing chain pharmacies if this does not get resolved," said Ernie Boyd, executive director of the Ohio Pharmacists Association. In some rural Ohio counties, a pharmacist is the only health professional regularly available. “If they lose them, I can guarantee you that the health of that county will continue to spiral downward,” Boyd said. (Rowland, 5/31)

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

Bangor Daily News: Maine Child Dies From Flu
A child died from influenza in what is the first death to date in Maine during the 2021-22 season, the Maine Center for Disease and Prevention reported on Tuesday. The last influenza-associated death in a Maine child happened in February 2020, according to Robert Long, spokesperson for the Maine CDC. An influenza-associated death is when a person has symptoms with a positive flu test, but dies before recovering, he said. The Maine CDC did not specify the child’s age, but said that they had tested positive for influenza A. (Lausier, 5/31)

Chicago Tribune: Pritzker Signs Nursing Home Bill Aimed At Increasing Staffing, Improving Care
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation Tuesday that ties funding increases for Illinois nursing homes to staffing levels and quality of care. To qualify for bonus reimbursements, nursing homes will have to meet at least 70% of federal staffing level guidelines, and payments will also be based on the home’s quality star rating from the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The law, which Illinois lawmakers passed without opposition in April, is intended to keep nursing home operators from “playing both sides” by billing Medicaid extra for high-need residents without funding adequate staffing to provide the necessary level of care for those residents, Pritzker said. (5/31)

WUSF Public Media: A Tampa Event To Distribute Hygiene Products Highlighted Environment And Health Disparities
Advocates for under-served communities of color hosted the first Banco de Mujeres in Tampa this past weekend. The event, which has had success in Kissimmee, provided free hygiene products. About 200 families came through the tents outside of the Tampa Spanish Seventh-day Adventist Church when services ended Saturday afternoon. Chispa Florida, an environmental justice organization, distributed eco-friendly and non-toxic menstrual products, along with diapers for babies and adults, and sanitizing wipes. (Meszaros, 5/31)

North Carolina Health News: Annual County Health Rankings Report Starts Conversations Across The State About A Community’s Health 
When one calls the Columbus County Health Department, there’s an automated message narrated by Health Director Kimberly Smith. The message presents options such as calling 911 for an emergency or entering the four-digit extension for a specific staff member. Right in the middle of the typical menu options, Smith issues a blunt and sobering truth. “The national County Health Rankings report ranks Columbus County as one of the unhealthiest counties in North Carolina for the eighth year in a row.” (Crumpler, 6/1)

KHN: ‘Desperate Situation’: States Are Housing High-Needs Foster Kids In Offices And Hotels 
Isela Perez entered the custody of Georgia’s child welfare system at age 10. It happened after her father was deported and her mother left her and her brother alone in their home for two weeks, she said. Perez estimates she moved more than 20 times among group homes, mental health facilities, and foster families. “A lot of foster parents didn’t know how to deal with my anger issues or my depression,” said Perez, now 18 and in an independent living program in Dahlonega, Georgia. (Whitehead, 6/1)

KHN: Montana Hires A Medicaid Director With A Managed-Care Past
Montana, one of only about a dozen states with a fully government-run Medicaid program, has hired a new Medicaid director who oversaw managed-care programs in Iowa and Kansas and championed the idea of having outside companies do the work. Mike Randol took over May 31 as head of Montana’s Medicaid program, which serves 280,000 people who live in low-income households or have disabilities in a state of 1.1 million people. The program has a roughly $2.3 billion annual budget, with the federal government picking up about 80% of the total. (Houghton and Leys, 6/1)

On hunger and food security —

Anchorage Daily News: Food Aid Groups In Alaska Say Need Is Approaching Early Pandemic Levels As Relief Money Ends And Prices Rise
More and more Alaskans need help with food as prices spike at the gas pump and on grocery shelves, while pandemic relief dollars dry up, local providers say. “Most of our partners are saying they’re seeing the need really ramp up in the last one to two months,” said Cara Durr, chief of advocacy and public policy at the Food Bank of Alaska, which distributes food to some 150 agencies statewide. Agencies are now seeing demand approach what it reached in the early months of the pandemic, when providers saw a roughly 75% increase — which at the time reflected record-breaking levels of need, Durr said. (Krakow, 5/31)

The Colorado Sun: Ute Mountain Ute Leaders Fundraise To Open New Grocery Store
In Towaoc, capital of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, there are about 347 households and no place within 15 miles to shop for fresh, healthy food. That’s a significant barrier to improving health in a community where rates of obesity and diabetes are nearly three times higher than the rest of Colorado. An ambitious plan to raise $12 million to build a grocery store could improve health and potentially resolve the persistent food desert in the southwest Colorado town. (Flowers, 5/31)

KHN: Taco Bowls And Chicken Curry: Medi-Cal Delivers Ready Meals In Grand Health Care Experiment
Every Friday, Frances De Los Santos waits for a shipment of healthy, prepared meals to land on her front porch at the edge of the Mojave Desert. From the box, the 80-year-old retired property manager with stage 4 chronic kidney disease unpacks frozen food trays that she can heat in the microwave. Her favorite is sweet-and-sour chicken. In the three months since she began eating the customized meals, De Los Santos has learned to manage her diabetes by maintaining a healthy blood sugar level. (de Marco and Hart, 6/1)

NPR: A Promising Treatment For Memory Loss Could Be An HIV Drug
An HIV drug — known as maraviroc — may have another, unexpected, use. The medication appears to restore a type of memory that allows us to link an event, like a wedding, with the people we saw there, a team reports in this week's issue of the journal Nature. (Hamilton, 5/28)

CIDRAP: Inappropriate Antibiotics For Kids Tied To Adverse Events, Higher Costs
New research suggests the negative consequences of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing in children with common infections aren't limited to antibiotic resistance. The study, published yesterday in JAMA Network Open, found that children who received inappropriate or non-recommended antibiotics for common viral and bacterial infections had an increased risk of adverse side effects such as Clostridioides difficile infection, severe allergic reactions, and rashes. The additional medical care needed to address these adverse events resulted in roughly $74 million in excess healthcare costs in 2017. (Dall, 5/27)

CIDRAP: New ASPR Report Bares Frayed, Fractured US Drug Supply Chains
A new US government report characterizes risks in the 100-day supply chains of 143 essential prescription drugs, including 86 priority drugs deemed critical to the health of Americans. The vulnerability of these supply chains, which underlies drug shortages, has been exposed by the pandemic and other recent natural disasters, such as hurricanes in Puerto Rico. (Van Beusekom, 5/27)

Stat: Counterfeit Pills Keep Circulating As New Law Lurches Into Effect
As far as Shane Jerominski was concerned, the many bottles of a widely used HIV medicine that he dispensed at his pharmacy nearly two years ago appeared just fine. That proved not to be true. A patient later returned a prescription because it contained the wrong pill. As it turns out, someone had tampered with the foil seals, replacing the legitimate pills with counterfeit drugs before resealing the bottles and shipping them to pharmacies across the country. (Silverman and Wosen, 5/31)

American Academy Of Pediatrics: Postnatal Corticosteroids To Prevent Or Treat Chronic Lung Disease Following Preterm Birth 
The American Academy of Pediatrics continues to provide guidance on the use of postnatal corticosteroids to manage or prevent chronic lung disease following preterm birth (formerly referred to as bronchopulmonary dysplasia). (Cummings, MD, MS, FAAP, and Pramanik, MD, FAAP, 5/30)

ScienceDaily: Scientists Solve Long-Standing Mystery: Why Do Some Asthma Patients Respond Poorly To Treatment? 
Patients with the most severe form of asthma produce special substances in their airways when taking medicine during an asthma attack that block the treatment from working, according to a study where Rutgers scientists collaborated with researchers at Genentech, a member of the Roche Group. (Rutgers University, 5/30)

FiercePharma: Sanofi's Dupixent Nabs Priority Review For Prurigo Nodularis
Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent is on fire. A week after scoring the first FDA approval for eosinophilic esophagitis, the drug scored priority review for prurigo nodularis. If it wins the agency's blessing, Dupixent would be the first FDA-approved treatment for the disease. The agency's target date for a decision is Sept. 30, Sanofi said Tuesday. (Becker, 5/30)

Reuters: FDA Presses Pause On Trial For OTC Version Of Anti-Impotence Drug Cialis 
The U.S. health regulator has put on hold a trial designed to evaluate switching the prescription-only erectile dysfunction drug Cialis to an over-the-counter (OTC) treatment, French drugmaker Sanofi (SASY.PA) said on Monday. The pause is related to concerns about how the trial protocol has been designed, the company said, adding that no patients had so far been recruited for the study. (Hummel and Grover, 5/30)

New England Journal of Medicine: Perverse Incentives — HIV Prevention And The 340B Drug Pricing Program
July 2022 will mark a decade of availability of preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the use of antiretroviral medications to prevent HIV infection, yet less than a quarter of the 1.2 million people in the United States who could benefit from PrEP are taking it (see map). What went wrong? (Julia L. Marcus, Ph.D., M.P.H., Amy Killelea J.D., and Douglas S. Krakower, M.D., 5/28)

Tallahassee Democrat: The Senate Must Act Now On High Drug Prices
One morning last year, I woke up to a slight pain in my left eye. Over the next couple days, my vision blurred, and I lost the ability to see color in that eye. After a whirlwind afternoon of seeing my doctor, being rushed to an ophthalmologist, and then sent to the Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare emergency room for an MRI – I learned I have multiple sclerosis (MS). (Samantha Cooksey Strickland, 5/29)

The Washington Post: Four Things Biden Can Do To Improve His Standing 
The White House has consistently tried to do too many things at once (e.g., Biden’s overstuffed Build Back Better bill, a “Unity Agenda,” etc.). In the lead-up to the midterms, Biden should limit his agenda to a short list of inflation-fighting measures (including a prescription drug cost-containment bill and energy bill to bring down fuel prices), a crime bill (including popular gun-safety measures) and a populist agenda targeting corporate irresponsibility. (Jennifer Rubin, 5/31)

The Washington Times: Price Controls For Drugs Aren't Conservative Policy 
The writer P.J. O’Rourke said, “If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it’s free.” Politicians claim we have high health care costs and prescription drug prices, then imply that government price controls would lower costs. Some politicians have hopped on the price controls train. The fact is, that government price controls do far more harm than good. Nor are government price controls conservative ideas. (James Edwards, 5/30)

Charleston Gazette-Mail: Hold China Accountable For Fentanyl 
Over the past decade, a superpower has quietly invaded a peaceful country and killed hundreds of thousands of its citizens. The superpower isn’t Russia, and the victims aren’t Ukrainians. The weapons of war aren’t conventional weapons, they’re chemical weapons. The culprit is China, and the death toll is that of our fellow Americans. The United States has been flooded with synthetic fentanyl and other opioids from China. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last week that 71,200 Americans died of overdoses of these drugs in 2021. (Morgan Ortagus, 5/31)

The Washington Post: Breastfeeding Is Not A ‘Free’ Solution To The Baby Formula Shortage
What’s the least helpful advice for a parent desperate to find scarce baby formula? “TRY BREASTFEEEDING! It’s free and available on demand.” “God literally designed mothers to feed their babies.” This is cruel to any parent who can’t make the milk their child needs. And it’s not true. Even in the best-case scenario, breastfeeding isn’t free. It costs money for the supplies that keep a nursing mother comfortable and healthy enough to keep producing milk. And it costs time. I can show you exactly how much time, because I used an app to track every minute I spent nursing and pumping over the first six months of my son’s life. (Alyssa Rosenberg, 5/31)

The New York Times: My Governor Can Pass Bad Abortion Laws. But I Won’t Enforce Them
If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, the rights of thousands of Virginian women will be thrown into question. While the commonwealth does not have an abortion ban on the books, our governor has said that he is “staunchly, unabashedly” against abortion and fully committed to “going on the offense” against abortion rights in our legislature. Should Roe fall, he could well strip women of their reproductive rights — and go after thousands more who flock to the state whenever neighboring jurisdictions clamp down on abortion access. What’s more, in Virginia today women who are suspected of terminating a pregnancy without the assistance of a certified medical professional can face felony charges if they miscarry. (Steve Descano, 5/31)

The Washington Post: Here Is What Antiabortion Laws Force Women To Endure 
Like abortion foes who wave photos of bloody fetuses outside clinics (fetuses that could not survive outside a woman’s uterus), we who oppose the annihilation of our bodily autonomy ought to plaster statehouses with photos of our episiotomy incisions, our Caesarean scars, our intravenous-line hematomas, our bloody postnatal sanitary pads and bloodstained bedsheets, our cracked nipples and infected breasts. (Kate Manning, 5/31)

Also —

The Wall Street Journal: Why Won’t The FDA Let Doctors Prescribe Fluvoxamine For Covid?
The Food and Drug Administration is under attack for being too cozy with drugmakers, but there’s nothing wrong with regulators cooperating with private industry. That’s how we got Covid vaccines and therapies in record time. What’s rotten is that applications for new uses of generic drugs are reviewed under different standards than those for novel treatments. That’s what the FDA did this month when it rejected a Covid emergency-use authorization (EUA) application by doctors for the antidepressant fluvoxamine. (Allysia Finley, 5/30)

The Mercury News: It's Still COVID's World. We're Just Living In It
There are days now when you can almost forget about the virus. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world are still being infected with COVID-19 daily — an average of about 361 Americans died from it every day in the last week — but after more than two years and millions of lost lives, the pandemic has given way in headlines and breaking-news crawls to older and more familiar atrocities. Across much of the United States, the rhythms of life have returned to something like their pre-pandemic tempo. Bars and restaurants are packed, there’s a wedding boom, and Memorial Day weekend looks likely to kick off a busy summer travel season. (Farhad Manjoo, 5/31)

The Boston Globe: The (Vaccine) Hoard Heard Around The World 
In a world where pandemics are the norm, medical apartheid has become the civil rights issue of the 21st century. With most deaths occurring in 20 Black and Brown nations, about 14.9 million people died between Jan. 1, 2020 and Dec. 31, 2021. The highest number of deaths are in India, despite, or perhaps because of, it being the pharmacy of the world. (Vidya Krishnan, 5/31)

The New York Times: PEPFAR Shows What A Global Response To Covid Can Look Like
Almost exactly 20 years ago, President George W. Bush stood in the White House Rose Garden and announced a $500 million initiative in Africa and the Caribbean to reduce H.I.V. transmission from women living with H.I.V. to their newborns. The United States was already the largest donor to the newly minted Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. The new initiative further solidified America as a leading contributor to what was then the most consequential global plague. Yet Mr. Bush told aides that it wasn’t enough. He wanted to do more. (Emily Bass, 6/1)

NBC News: I Suffered A Stroke With No Signs Of Damage. Then The Seizures Began
Had I known I’d had a stroke, I would have gone to the hospital. But shouldn’t part of my body have gone limp, or my face drooped? Shouldn’t I have slurred or had blurred vision? Despite the moderate buzz in my head and ears, I was 100 percent. (D. Michael Whelan, 5/31)

Stat: Proposed Act Could Be A Game Changer For Those With Rare Diseases 
The term “medically necessary” is the yardstick by which insurance companies, including Medicare and Medicaid, decide if they will pay for a particular treatment. For the millions of Americans living with rare diseases, most of which do not have FDA-approved treatments, identifying a treatment as medically necessary can be a lifeline — or the end of the line. A white paper released in April by the influential Institute for Clinical and Economic Review offers several misguided proposals that attempt to balance public interest in incentivizing innovation with payer cost containment goals in rare diseases. The proposals are unlikely to benefit people living with rare diseases, clinicians like us who care for them, or those trying to bring rare treatments to market. (Darcy Krueger and Emanual Maverakis, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal: When ‘Temporary’ ObamaCare Subsidies Are Forever
A time-honored political trick is to pass a “temporary” subsidy that people get used to and then cry hardship when the emergency program ends. The latest example is the Democratic scramble to make permanent a huge ObamaCare subsidy expansion passed during the pandemic. ... The Congressional Budget Office predicted the pandemic subsidy provisions would cost about $34 billion, but that is only the beginning if the spigot stays on. Last week CBO increased its estimate of spending on ObamaCare subsidies this year by 15%, or $11 billion, over last year’s forecast, thanks to higher enrollment and higher premiums than anticipated. Companies would likely respond by sending more of their employees to the exchanges for coverage. (5/30)

Scientific American: Science Shows How To Protect Kids' Mental Health, But It's Being Ignored 
Young people in the United States are experiencing a mental health crisis. Warnings from the surgeon general, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association and other prominent organizations, as well as regular news reports, highlight the catastrophe, with parents struggling to help their children, and students lined up in school halls to get even a few minutes with counselors, psychologists or social workers who are overwhelmed with young patients seeking services. (Mitch Prinstein and Kathleen A. Ethier, 5/31)

The CT Mirror: Access To Care Cannot Be Equitable While Stigma Remains Pervasive
More than half of people with mental illness receive no treatment at all. Oftentimes, people avoid or delay seeking support and other forms of treatment due to concerns that they will be treated differently once they come forward. They may fear losing their job, alienating family or friends, or even fear for their safety. It’s time to face the facts; this is not equitable or sustainable access to care. A proven barrier to equitable care is the pervasiveness of stigma, prejudice, and discrimination. (Scott Brabant, 6/1)

Kansas City Star: Kansas, Missouri Lag In Mental Health To Fight Gun Violence 
One week after an 18-year-old gunman murdered 21 people, including 19 children, opponents of reasonable gun restrictions continue to shift the focus to other possible causes, including a lack of mental health services. “We need to look at what is causing these attacks,” said Rep. Vicky Hartzler of Missouri. “Are there mental health problems that we can address?” she asked. “We need to continue working to ensure anyone who has a mental or behavioral health issue can get the treatment they need, when they need it,” Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri told the PBS NewsHour. “We as a state, we as a society, need to do a better job with mental health,” said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. Americans should not be misled. The problem is individual access to high-powered weaponry, not just mental illness. (6/1)

Dallas Morning News: Gun Violence Is A Solvable Public Health Crisis
As the murdered children of Uvalde are laid to rest this week, our nation needs to muster the courage and political will to treat rising gun violence and mass shootings as an acute public health crisis. When auto accidents claimed a large number of lives, government and industry dollars funded research to make cars safer, leading to seat belts, airbags and other now standard safety features. Public health studies that linked smoking to cancer, lung disease and other health risks changed smoking habits. Subsequent legal action held tobacco companies responsible for having hidden the health risks associated with their products. (6/1)