The Hill: Medicare Part B Premiums To Decrease For The First Time In Over A Decade 
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced that Medicare Part B premiums will decrease in 2023, marking the first time this cost has been lowered in more than a decade. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that Medicare Part B premiums would be lowered by three percent, or $5.20, going from $170.10 a month to $164.90. The program’s annual deductible will also fall by $7, from $233 to $226. (Choi, 9/27)

AP: Millions Of Americans Will Save On Medicare Fees Next Year
The rare 3% decrease in monthly premiums is likely to be coupled with a historically high cost-of-living increase in Social Security benefits — perhaps 9% or 10% — putting hundreds of dollars directly into the pockets of millions of people. “That’s something we may never see again in the rest of our lives,” said Mary Johnson, the Social Security and Medicare policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League. “That can really be used to pay off credit cards, to restock pantries that have gotten low because people can’t afford to buy as much today as they did a year ago and do some long-postponed repairs to homes and cars.” (Seitz, 9/27)

Bloomberg: Medicare Premiums Cut After Lower Than Forecast Drug Spending
In his remarks, Biden also touted measures to curb costs in Democrats’ massive health, tax and climate package, in particular allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices for the first time, calling it “a godsend to many families.” The law also capped the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 per month for Medicare beneficiaries, but Republicans blocked a provision that would have extended the cost cap to private insurance. Republicans uniformly opposed the Inflation Reduction Act that introduced those measures in the House and Senate. (Tozzi and Fabian, 9/27)

Reuters: Biden Medicare Costs Victory Due Mostly To Alzheimer's Drug Change 
The Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which runs the Medicare health plan, said on Tuesday the bulk of the drop comes from its limiting coverage of Biogen Inc's Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm to patients in clinical trials. "The 2022 premium included a contingency margin to cover projected Part B spending for a new drug, Aduhelm. Lower-than-projected spending on both Aduhelm and other Part B items and services resulted in much larger reserves," the agency said. (Aboulenein, 9/27)

In related news about Medicare coverage —

The New York Times: Biden Says Social Security Is On ‘Chopping Block’ If Republicans Win Congress 
President Biden warned on Tuesday that Republicans posed a threat to Social Security and Medicare, amplifying an effort by Democrats to make the fate of America’s social safety net programs a central campaign issue ahead of November’s midterm elections. The comments were part of a push by Democrats across the country to steer the political conversation away from soaring prices and growing recession fears and remind anxious voters that some Republicans have been calling for restructuring or scaling back entitlement programs that retirees have relied on for decades. (Rappeport, 9/27)

Modern Healthcare: Stopgap Funding Bill Would Extend Medicare Programs For Rural Hospitals
Two Medicare programs that boost rural hospital payments would be temporarily extended as part of a stopgap federal spending bill that advanced past an initial vote in the Senate Tuesday. (Kane and Goldman, 9/27)

Stat: Alzheimer’s Treatment Slowed Cognitive Decline In Closely Watched Trial
An investigational Alzheimer’s disease treatment from Biogen and Eisai slowed the rate of cognitive decline by 27% in a clinical trial, the companies said Tuesday, meeting the goals of a closely tracked study and strengthening the drug’s case for approval as early as January. (Garde and Feuerstein, 9/27)

USA Today: Alzheimer's Drug Slowed Decline In Late-Stage Study: Eisai And Biogen
In a widely-anticipated study, Eisai and Biogen on Tuesday said their Alzheimer's drug slowed cognitive decline among people with early signs of the disease. The study, led by Eisai, which has teamed with Biogen to develop the drug called lecanemab, showed the drug targeting amyloid beta in the brains of study participants slowed memory and thinking problems. (Alltucker, 9/27)

The Washington Post: Experimental Alzheimer’s Drug Slows Cognitive Decline In Trial, Firms Say 
The upbeat news served as a stark contrast to the calamitous rollout last year of another drug, marketed as Aduhelm, sponsored by the two companies. Like Aduhelm, lecanemab reduces abnormal clumps of beta amyloid, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s. But unlike Aduhelm, for which the data was confused and conflicting, the trial results for lecanemab told a straightforward and encouraging story, some experts said. Aduhelm was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but Medicare refused to cover it broadly, and the drug collapsed in the marketplace. (McGinley, 9/27)

The New York Times: Alzheimer’s Drug Slows Cognitive Decline In Key Study 
Eisai had already applied for accelerated approval, the type of approval given to Aduhelm. The process allows the Food and Drug Administration to greenlight drugs if they have uncertain evidence of benefit but affect a disease’s biological pathway in a way that is considered reasonably likely to benefit patients. The company said on Tuesday night that it would first continue with the accelerated approval process, with an F.D.A. decision expected by early January, and then use the newer data to seek full approval. (Accelerated approval requires companies to do further trials and prove that their drug works.)Analysts predict that lecanemab, or any effective Alzheimer’s medication, would most likely be a multibillion-dollar blockbuster. (Robbins and Belluck, 9/27)

Reuters: Eisai, Biogen Say Alzheimer's Drug Succeeds In Slowing Cognitive Decline
Eisai said results from the 1,800-patient trial prove the longstanding theory that removal of sticky deposits of a protein called amyloid beta from the brains of people with early Alzheimer's can delay advance of the debilitating disease. (Beasley and Steenhuysen, 9/27)

In related news about Alzheimer's disease —

Stat: In Texas, A Bold Plan To Diversify Alzheimer’s Research Takes Shape
Gladys Maestre is on a scouting mission. The Alzheimer’s disease researcher is driving through Southmost, a Mexican American neighborhood just north of looming sections of the border wall and a checkpoint that leads to Mexico. (McFarling, 9/28)

Stat: Where Caregiving Is A Family Affair, Alzheimer's Is A Heavy Burden
Here in the Rio Grande Valley almost everyone knows, or cares for, someone with dementia. The region has some of the nation’s highest rates of the disease. (McFarling, 9/28)

AP: New California Abortion Laws Set Up Clash With Other States 
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed more than a dozen new abortion laws Tuesday, including some that deliberately clash with restrictions in other states — a sign of the coming conflicts that must be sorted out as lawmakers rush to set their own rules now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned. Most abortions are now illegal in 13 states, and others — including Texas, Oklahoma and Idaho — allow people to sue anyone who performs or aids in an abortion. Meanwhile, Democratic-led states like California, New York and Connecticut have been writing and passing laws to make it easier to get an abortion, with California promoting its abortion services on a state-funded website designed in part to reach women who live in other states. (Beam, 9/27)

San Francisco Chronicle: Gov. Newsom Responds To Anti-Abortion Laws With Cheaper Vasectomies
California will require health plans to cover vasectomy costs starting in 2024 under a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Tuesday. The federal Affordable Care Act already required most health plans to cover birth control for women. The new law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed, SB523 , extends that requirement to vasectomies, a reversible sterilization procedure for men. It will require health plans to cover the procedure without charging co-pays or cost-sharing. (Bollag, 9/27)

Politico: 5 Ways California Is Protecting Abortion
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed roughly a dozen laws aimed at turning California into an abortion sanctuary, a moment that couldn’t come at a better time for the Democratic politician’s fiery brand of politics. With the midterms just weeks away and a number of the state’s congressional races hinging on the issue, the governor approved a sweeping reproductive rights package designed to shield patients and clinicians from criminal investigations, defray the costs of traveling to California for the procedure and expand the number of people who can perform abortions, among other changes. (Colliver, 9/27)

CBS News: California Attorney General Warns Town Against Abortion Ban As Governor Signs 13 Reproductive Health Bills
A city in California is considering legislation that would ban abortions within the city. In response, California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned Temecula's city council not to pass such legislation, threatening legal action if it attempts to go above state law. (Mandler, 9/27)

Indianapolis Star: Judge Blocks Indiana Abortion Law Requiring Fetal Burial, Cremation
A federal judge has barred Indiana from enforcing a law that forced health care providers to bury or cremate fetal tissue. U.S. District Judge Richard L. Young found the law, which was signed by former Gov. Mike Pence in 2016, violates the U.S. Constitution because it infringes upon the religious and free speech rights of people who do not believe aborted fetuses deserve the same treatment as deceased people. (Magdaleno, 9/28)

In abortion news from Ohio and Iowa —

AP: Pause On Ohio 'Heartbeat' Abortion Ban Extended To Oct. 12 
A judge extended a temporary block Tuesday on an Ohio law banning virtually all abortions for an additional 14 days, further pausing a law that had taken effect after federal abortion protections were overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in June. The decision by Hamilton County Judge Christian Jenkins means pregnancy terminations through 20 weeks’ gestation may continue in Ohio through Oct. 12. (Smyth, 9/27)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Lawyers Want 'Fetal Heartbeat' Abortion Ban Reinstated
Lawyers for Gov. Kim Reynolds say a blocked six-week abortion ban should be allowed to go into effect, as recent court decisions have drastically changed the bedrock of Iowa law. Abortion is less protected now under the law than it was when Reynolds signed the "fetal heartbeat" law in 2018, they contend. (Akin, 9/27)

From South Carolina, Idaho, and Texas —

AP: South Carolina Lawmakers Won't Pass Stricter Abortion Laws 
Abortion laws in South Carolina almost certainly won’t get more restrictive, after Republicans in the General Assembly could not agree on a total ban on the procedure during a special legislative session Tuesday. South Carolina was for decades at the forefront of more restrictive abortion laws that challenged Roe v. Wade even before the landmark case was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court this summer. The state requires ultrasounds, parental consent and 24-hour waiting periods before abortions. (Collins, 9/27)

Boise State Public Radio News: White House Responds To University Of Idaho Email Regarding Abortion
The White House has issued a statement criticizing an email the University of Idaho sent to employees last week. “For years, GOP officials have gone after contraception and family planning services. After the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs, GOP officials appear more empowered to strip Americans of their basic rights," wrote White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Twitter. (Luchetta and Kloppenburg, 9/27)

The Texas Tribune: Texas Abortion Funds Worry Ken Paxton Will Sue Over Out-Of-State Abortions
A federal judge heard arguments Tuesday about Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s role in enforcing the state’s abortion laws — and whether Paxton should be called to the stand to explain things himself. (Klibanoff, 9/27)

The Texas Tribune: Texas’ Largest Anti-Abortion Group Suspends Support For Sen. Robert Nichols
A leading statewide anti-abortion group suspended its endorsement of state Sen. Robert Nichols this week after the Republican leader from Jacksonville said he’d support a loosening of Texas’ abortion ban. (Salhotra, 9/27)

On prosecuting women for abortions —

The Washington Post: GOP Governor Nominee Once Urged Murder Charges For Women Getting Abortions
Doug Mastriano, a Pennsylvania state senator who is the GOP nominee for governor, said in 2019 that women who violated his proposed abortion ban should be charged with murder. NBC News on Tuesday resurfaced a 2019 interview in which Mastriano, speaking to Pennsylvania radio station WITF, spoke about a bill he was sponsoring in the state legislature that would have outlawed abortion as soon as cardiac activity is detected, around six weeks of pregnancy. (Alfaro, 9/28)

ABC News: Prosecuting Pregnancy Loss: Why Advocates Fear A Post-Roe Surge Of Charges
For Chelsea Becker, a fourth pregnancy at 25 years old was complicated from the start, challenged by her homelessness and an addiction to methamphetamine. It ended in a stillbirth, a murder charge and more than 16 months behind bars in California. (Dwyer and See, 9/28)

Also —

Reuters: U.S. Justice Alito Says He Is Mindful Of 'Real World' Impact Of Supreme Court
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, author of a blockbuster ruling that revoked nationwide abortion rights, said on Tuesday that his Catholic faith requires him to consider the real-world implications of his decisions on the nation's highest court. Speaking to a sympathetic audience shortly before the court begins its next term, the conservative justice did not discuss the abortion ruling or other landmark decisions on guns and federal power issued earlier this year. (Thomsen, 9/27)

The New York Times: What It Costs To Get An Abortion Now 
L.V. found out she was pregnant on Aug. 7. The next day she called Women’s Health and Family Care in Jackson, Wyo. — the only abortion provider in the state — to schedule an abortion. She was told the procedure would typically cost $600 at the clinic, but a state law banning abortion might take effect soon. In that case, she would have to travel out of state, setting her back even more. L.V., who asked to be identified only by her initials, panicked. She had recently been in a car accident and had outstanding medical and car bills to pay. (McCann, 9/28)

The Washington Post: Do Covid Vaccines Affect Periods? A New Study Says They Do
Not long after the rollout of coronavirus vaccines last year, women around the country began posting on social media about what they believed was a strange side effect: changes to their periods. Now, new research shows that many of the complaints were valid. A study of nearly 20,000 people around the world shows that getting vaccinated against covid can change the timing of the menstrual cycle. Vaccinated people experienced, on average, about a one-day delay in getting their periods, compared with those who hadn’t been vaccinated.(Morris, 9/27)

The New York Times: Covid Vaccines Temporarily Affect Periods, New Study Shows
“Menstruation is woefully understudied, which is troubling considering it is a key indicator of fertility and overall health,” said Dr. Alison Edelman, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine and the paper’s lead author. “We hope our findings further validate what so many individuals reported experiencing, and allow health care professionals to provide patients with better care and clinical recommendations.” (Sheikh, 9/27)

In other news about covid treatments and vaccinations —

CIDRAP: SARS-CoV-2 Mutation Leads To Resistance To Remdesivir In 2 Patients
A report published yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases describes a new SARS-CoV-2 mutation that confers resistance to the COVID-19 antiviral drug remdesivir in two persistently infected kidney transplant recipients treated with immunosuppressive drugs. ... One patient was in his or her 60s and had received two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine before being infected with the Omicron subvariant BA.1.1 6 months after transplant and receiving a 5-day course of remdesivir. ... The other patient was in his or her 50s and had received two doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine before becoming infected 14 months after transplant. (9/27)

The Washington Post: All Major Cruise Lines Will Soon Allow Unvaccinated Travelers
Disney Cruise Line will no longer require vaccinations on most of its voyages beginning in October, the company announced Tuesday, marking the final major cruise line to ease its vaccine requirement on most U.S. sailings. ... The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ended its covid program for cruises in July. Since then, all major cruise lines serving the U.S. — including Norwegian, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Princess and MSC Cruises — have dropped their vaccine requirements for all but a few voyages, according to their websites. (Bikales, 9/27)

Bloomberg: Covid, Flu Shots Offered To 30 Million To Avert UK ‘Twindemic’
UK health authorities are offering flu shots and Covid-19 boosters to more than 30 million people as the government attempts to avert a hospital crisis amid worries that the two illnesses will cause a so-called “twindemic” this winter. (Lyu, 9/28)

More on the spread of covid —

NBC News: Mounting Evidence Shows Autoimmune Responses Play A Significant Role In Long Covid
Dr. Manali Mukherjee, the study’s senior author and an assistant professor of medicine at McMaster University, said her team plans to follow up with the patients up to two years post-infection to see if their symptoms resolve or they develop diagnosable autoimmune diseases. "There will be a subset of patients who will end up with a diagnosis for life," she said. (Bendix, 9/27)

Reuters: U.S. FDA To Review Fewer Emergency Use Requests For COVID Tests 
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday it will now review only a small number of emergency use authorization requests for COVID tests that are likely to have a significant benefit to public health, including fulfilling an unmet need. The agency is revising its COVID-19 test policy in light of the current manufacturing status and number of cases, it said, adding companies seeking EUA for their COVID tests will have to now apply for the agency's traditional premarket review process. (9/27)

AP: Walmart To Cover Fertility Treatments Under Insurance Plan 
Walmart is teaming up with a fertility startup to offer benefits under its insurance plan that will help its workers expand their families. The nation’s largest retailer and private employer said Tuesday it’s partnering with New York-based Kindbody to offer benefits such as in vitro fertilization as well as fertility testing regardless of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. (D'Innocenzio and Murphy, 9/27)

In other health industry news —

Houston Chronicle: Billionaire MacKenzie Scott Donates $20M To Houston Nonprofit
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated $20 million to Episcopal Health Foundation to help the Houston nonprofit in its mission to improve health and health care in Texas, the foundation announced Tuesday. The donation will be used to bolster the effectiveness of EHF’s ongoing grantmaking, research and community engagement programs, according to a news release. (MacDonald, 9/27)

Reuters: DaVita Loses Bid To Dismiss Class 'No-Poach' Claims
A Chicago federal judge on Monday said a private civil antitrust case could move forward against DaVita Inc and other large employers in the outpatient medical-care market that are accused of conspiring to restrict employee compensation and mobility. (Scarcella, 9/27)

Modern Healthcare: GoHealth Gets $35M Investment From Anthem
Weeks after laying off one-fifth of its workforce, health insurance brokerage, GoHealth closed a $50 million private investment round. According to an FCC filing, more than half of the investment came from Indianapolis-based insurance giant, Anthem, which recently re-branded to Elevance Health. (Turner, 9/26)

Axios: Back To Business: Health Care M&A Activity Expected To Accelerate
The Justice Department's failed attempt to block UnitedHealth's $13 billion acquisition of health tech Change Healthcare could bode well for other mega-deals as the nation pushes past the pandemic and health industry players firm up their growth plans. (Dreher, 9/28)

Modern Healthcare: Mass General Brigham's Big Cost-Cutting Plan Approved By State
The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission on Tuesday unanimously approved Mass General Brigham’s 18-month plan to curb excessive spending. In January, the commission ordered Mass General to come up with a performance improvement plan after it exceeded the commission's spending growth benchmark by $293 million from 2014 to 2019.  The commission said Mass General’s actions could jeopardize the state and its care delivery system. (Hudson, 9/27)

The Boston Globe: This Next Step Of Integrating Mass General Brigham Will Be The Toughest One Yet
As some doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s ordered replacements for worn-out lab coats over the last year, many noticed a change when they received their new garments: the emblem on the breast no longer bore the crests of their individual hospitals, but instead carried the logo for the corporate parent — Mass General Brigham. (Bartlett, 9/27)

Also —

Modern Healthcare: Telehealth, In-Person Visits Comparable In Quality: Study
Telehealth visits for primary care can be comparable in quality to in-person visits, suggesting remote testing and screenings are valuable tools to augment patient care. The finding follows a study of more than 500,000 patients across 200 outpatient care sites in Pennsylvania and Maryland who either had exposure to telemedicine or only had in-person visits between March 1, 2020, and November 30, 2021. (Devereaux, 9/27)

KHN: Few Places Have More Medical Debt Than Dallas-Fort Worth, But Hospitals There Are Thriving 
Almost everything about the opening of the 2019 Prosper High School Eagles’ football season was big. The game in this Dallas-Fort Worth suburb began with fireworks and a four-airplane flyover. A trained eagle soared over the field. And some 12,000 fans filled the team’s new stadium, a $53 million colossus with the largest video screen of any high school venue in Texas. Atop the stadium was also a big name: Children’s Health. (Levey, 9/28)

KHN: Montana Health Officials Aim To Boost Oversight Of Nonprofit Hospitals’ Giving 
Montana health officials are proposing to oversee and set standards for the charitable contributions that nonprofit hospitals make in their communities each year to justify their access to millions of dollars in tax exemptions. The proposal is part of a package of legislation that the state Department of Public Health and Human Services will ask lawmakers to approve when they convene in January. It comes two years after a state audit called on the department to play more of a watchdog role and nine months after a KHN investigation found some of Montana’s wealthiest hospitals lag behind state and national averages in community giving. (Houghton, 9/28)

KHN: $2,700 Ambulance Bill Pulled Back From Collections
Peggy Dula is as surprised as she is relieved. The 55-year-old resident of St. Charles, Illinois, had been fighting a $2,700 ambulance bill for nearly a year. Now, the amount she owes from her September 2021 car wreck appears to be zero. This summer, KHN, NPR, and CBS News spotlighted Dula in the Bill of the Month series. The initial $3,600 charge for Dula’s ambulance ride was significantly higher than the charges received by her two siblings, who were riding in her car at the time and were transported to the same hospital. The siblings rode in separate ambulances, each from a different nearby fire protection district. All three were billed different amounts for the same services. Dula’s injuries were the least serious, but her bill was the most expensive. (Sable-Smith, 9/28)

Reuters: Opioid Crisis Cost U.S. Nearly $1.5 Trillion In 2020 -Congressional Report
Fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic toll of the opioid addiction and overdose crisis on the United States reached nearly $1.5 trillion in 2020 alone and is likely to grow, a Congressional report seen by Reuters shows. Opioid-related deaths soared during the pandemic, including from the powerful synthetic painkiller fentanyl, exacerbating an already tragic and costly nationwide crisis that accounted for 75% of the 107,000 drug overdose fatalities in 2021, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data. (Aboulenein, 9/28)

ABC News: DOJ Seizes 10 Million Fake Fentanyl-Laced Pills From May To September This Year
“Of this year, DEA agents conducted 389 investigations, including 35 cartel linked investigations in 201 cities,” Attorney General Merrick Garland told reporters. “Over the course of these investigations, we seized over 10 million fake pills and 82 pounds of fentanyl powder motor crews across all 50 states. That is enough to kill 36 million Americans. In addition agencies 338 weapons during this operation, including shotguns pistols, and hand grenades.” (Barr and Haworth, 9/28)

AP: DEA: Fake Pills Containing Fentanyl Helping Drive OD Deaths
An increasing number of fake prescription pills that contain potentially deadly fentanyl are helping drive overdose death rates to record levels in the U.S., including some now manufactured in rainbow colors designed to look like candy, federal officials said Tuesday. Drug Enforcement Administration agents are working to crack down on violent drug cartels in Mexico believed to be trafficking the drugs into the U.S., Attorney General Merrick Garland said. Between May and September, the DEA and local police around the country seized more than 10 million fentanyl pills and hundreds of pounds of powder, he said. (Whitehurst, 9/27)

In other news —

Forbes: Medical Cannabis Could Replace Addictive Opioids For Pain Relief, Study Suggests
Medical cannabis could be a viable substitute for effective, but highly-addictive, opioids often used for pain relief, a new survey suggests, as researchers continue to explore the potential health benefits of cannabis amid a growing national opioid crisis. (Bushard, 9/28)

Bloomberg: Google Pilots Opioid Addiction Moonshot In Dayton, Ohio
Christopher Boggs started smoking pot in his teens, moved on to cocaine, and finally settled on opioids, which allowed him to evade the drug testing program at the car factory where he worked. He sounds like a seasoned pharmacist as he ticks off the drug regimen he built up. “Any kind of opioid you could get. Oxycodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone, fentanyl patches—just everything,” he recalls. “It was real cheap and readily available.” (Bergen, 9/27)

Bangor Daily News: Maine Judge To Decide If Fentanyl Can Be Considered A Weapon When Kids Overdose
A Superior Court judge in Bangor will decide if a father accused of allowing his 11-month-old daughter to get into his stash of fentanyl, overdose and nearly die last year is guilty of multiple drug charges. (Harrison, 9/27)

Southern California News Group: USC Researchers Identify Drug That May Treat Cancerous Brain Tumors
The identification of a small molecule drug that can target the brain’s circadian clock proteins may prove effective for treating glioblastoma, the most common cancerous brain tumor in adults, researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC announced Monday. (Rosenberg, 9/27)

Axios: Study Finds Gaps In Reporting Harms From U.S. Cancer Screenings
Reporting on the physical and psychological harms from cancer screenings is inconsistent, making it hard to compare risks with rewards and potentially exposing patients to unnecessary hazards, according to new research published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (Gonzalez, 9/27)

The CDC issues an update on enterovirus D68 —

Bloomberg: Polio-Like Viral Infection Causing Muscle Weakness In Children Flagged By CDC
Young children with respiratory illnesses and muscle weakness may be infected with enterovirus D68, a lung virus strain that’s been linked to rare, serious cases acute flaccid myelitis, a nervous system ailment, according to a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report Tuesday. The most common signs and symptoms seen in hospitalized children have been shortness of breath or rapid, shallow breathing, wheezing, coughing and nasal congestion. Infections can also worsen asthma symptoms. (Muller, 9/27)

In other health and wellness news —

AP: Study Tries To See If Child Vaccines And Asthma Are Linked
A number of scientists have wondered if aluminum, a vaccine additive that has been used for decades, had a role in allergies and asthma in children. A new federally funded study has found a possible link, but experts say the research has important shortcomings and is not a reason to change current vaccine recommendations. The study doesn’t claim aluminum causes the breathing condition, and officials say more work is needed to try to confirm any connection, which hadn’t been seen in earlier research. (Stobbe, 9/27)

San Francisco Chronicle: EPA To Reconsider Approval Of Herbicide Linked To Parkinson’s Disease
After complaints from farmworkers and environmentalists, the Biden administration says it is reconsidering its 15-year re-approval of paraquat, a widely used herbicide that has been linked to Parkinson’s disease in many studies. (Egelko, 9/27)

The Washington Post: Short Menstrual Cycle Could Be Linked To Early Menopause 
A shorter-than-average menstrual cycle — 25 days or fewer between periods — might predict early onset of menopause and more menopausal symptoms, including more severe issues, according to research published in the journal Menopause. Researchers found that, as women approached menopause in midlife, those with short cycles were more likely to have sleep problems, heart discomfort, depression, and physical or mental exhaustion than those whose menstrual cycles were closer to either a normal or longer length (26 to 34 days from the first day of one period to the first day of the next). The findings were based on data from 634 women who were tracked for nearly two decades. (Searing, 9/27)

Fox News: FDA Warning About NyQuil Chicken TikTok Challenge May Have Spiked Interest
A statement issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asking people to stop combining NyQuil with chicken after a "Sleepy Chicken" challenge went viral on social media earlier may have unintentionally spiked interest in the trend. There were fewer than five searches for NyQuil chicken content on TikTok a day prior to the Sept. 15 statement from the FDA, according to data provided to Fox News Digital by the social media app. By Sept. 21, around 7,000 searches were recorded. (Casiano, 9/27)

KHN: ‘American Diagnosis’: When Indigenous People Move To Cities, Health Care Funding Doesn’t Follow 
Over 70% of Indigenous people in the United States live in urban areas. But urban Indian health makes up less than 2% of the Indian Health Service’s annual budget. While enrolled members of federally recognized tribes can access the Indian Health Service or tribally run health care on their reservations, Indigenous people who live in cities can find themselves without access to the care they’re entitled to. (9/28)

Food bank demand is up—

Bloomberg: Hunger In America: Inflation's Driving Up Need For Food Banks
Nursing aides, maintenance workers, store clerks and roofers are among the Americans already turning to food banks for help, the consequence of political opposition to the administration’s efforts to extend temporary pandemic benefits and a spike in inflation that has been especially hard on families near the precipice of poverty. (Dorning, 9/27)

The Chronicle of Philanthropy: White House Conference Puts Spotlight On Hunger Relief
For months, Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas has had to waitlist families hoping to join a food pantry program, as the nonprofit and other charities have struggled to meet soaring demand amid rising food prices and the end of federal pandemic relief aid. (Herschander, 9/27)

The Hill: Feeling Lonely, Unhappy Can Accelerate Aging More Than Smoking
Poor mental health can speed up a person’s aging process more than smoking or certain diseases, according to a new study.  Humans have two different ages. There is chronological age, which measures how much time a person has spent on Earth, and then there is biological age, referring to how old a person seems. ... A new study from Deep Longevity, a Hong Kong-based longevity company, the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Stanford University found that feelings that cause poor mental health like sadness, loneliness and general unhappiness add an extra 1.65 years to a person’s biological age. (O'Connell-Domenech, 9/27)

In other mental health news —

The Washington Post: Pregnancy During Hurricane Sandy Linked To Kids’ Psychiatric Disorders, Study Says 
At the time Hurricane Sandy made landfall over New Jersey and inundated New York City in October 2012, Yoko Nomura, a psychology professor at the CUNY Graduate Center and Queens College, had already assembled a cohort of local pregnant women in preparation for a study about the impact of stress during pregnancy on their offspring’s development. ... The study, published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, found that children who were exposed to Sandy, a superstorm, while in utero had substantially increased risks for depression, anxiety and attention deficit and disruptive behavior disorders. The symptoms of these disorders presented when the children were preschool-age. (Gibson, 9/27)

New Hampshire Public Radio: N.H. Mental Health Centers Receive Millions In Grants To Expand Services
Two community mental health centers in New Hampshire are getting sizable federal grants to improve and expand their services. (Cuno-Booth, 9/27)

The Atlantic: Teachers, Nurses, And Child-Care Workers Have Had Enough
The country is in the midst of a burnout crisis. In a recent American Psychological Association Work and Well-Being Survey, large proportions of American workers said that they felt stressed on the job (79 percent), plagued by physical fatigue (44 percent), cognitive weariness (36 percent), emotional exhaustion (32 percent), and a lack of interest, motivation, or energy (26 percent). Such measures are up significantly since the pandemic hit. (Lowrey, 9/27)

Bloomberg: London Coroner To Review Instagram Role In Teen’s Suicide
Senior Meta Platforms Inc. and Pinterest Inc. executives were quizzed over the malign influence of social media algorithms on young people at an inquest into the death of a British teenager.  A two-week London inquest is examining factors that caused the death of 14-year-old Molly Russell who died by suicide in 2017. The coroner will decide whether her prolific social media use played a part. (Gemmell, 9/28)

In related news about transgender health —

Oklahoman: Oklahoma GOP Bill Blocks Funding For Gender Reassignment Treatment
Republican state lawmakers plan to give $39.4 million in federal stimulus funds to the University of Oklahoma health system to build a new pediatric mental health facility, but the money comes with restrictions. None of the funds can be used to perform "gender reassignment medical treatment" on minors, according to legislation filed Monday by GOP lawmakers. (Forman, 9/27)

Reuters: Europe's Generic Drugmakers Say They May Cut Output Due To Energy Bills
Europe's drugmakers have warned they may stop making some cheap generic medicines because of surging electricity costs and are calling for an overhaul of the way they are priced, the latest industry to seek help as the energy crisis deepens. The generic drug industry lobby group Medicines for Europe, which represents companies including Teva, Novartis's Sandoz unit and Fresenius SE's Kabi business, on Tuesday sent an open letter to European Union member states' energy and health ministers. (Burger, 9/28)

On fecal transplants —

CIDRAP: FDA Advisers Approve Fecal Transplant Treatment For Recurrent C Difficile
Swiss biopharmaceutical company Ferring Pharmaceuticals announced yesterday that the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) voted in favor of the company's investigational fecal microbiota transplant (FMT)-based therapy. ... FMT therapy involves transplanting beneficial bacteria into the gut of a patient with recurrent CDI, which is traditionally treated with antibiotics. (9/23)

CIDRAP: Trial: Fecal Microbiota Transplantation Superior To Antibiotics For C Difficile
A randomized clinical trial conducted in Denmark found that, in patients with a first or second Clostridioides difficile infection, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) was superior to standard-of-care antibiotic treatment in achieving sustained resolution of symptoms, researchers reported last week in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology. (9/27)

In other pharmaceutical industry news —

Reuters: Biden Administration Asks Supreme Court To Reject Amgen's Repatha Patent Appeal
The Biden Administration told the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday that it should turn down a request by Amgen Inc to review a decision that invalidated patents on its blockbuster cholesterol drug Repatha. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit correctly found that the relevant parts of the patents did not describe Amgen's inventions adequately when it ruled for Sanofi SA and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar said. (Brittain, 9/21)

Reuters: Novartis To Take U.S. Drug Patent Case To Supreme Court 
Novartis AG plans to ask the U.S. Supreme court to uphold the validity of a patent it holds on the dosing regimen for multiple sclerosis drug Gilenya after suffering a setback in a federal appeals court ruling, the Swiss drugmaker said on Wednesday. (9/22)

Reuters: Novartis To Prioritize U.S. Market, Unfazed By Drug Pricing Pushback
Swiss pharma giant Novartis said it would make growth in the United States its top geographic priority, even after laws were passed to rein in drug prices in the world's largest pharmaceutical market. (Burger and Revill, 9/22)

FiercePharma: Daiichi Sankyo Bags First Approval For Blood Cancer Drug Ezharmia
While Daiichi Sankyo has been focusing on a stable of antibody-drug conjugates, the Japanese company has won a global first in an area that Pfizer is also targeting. (Liu, 9/26)

Reuters: U.S. FDA Puts Avidity's Muscle Disorder Drug Trial On Partial Hold
Avidity Biosciences Inc said on Tuesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has put a hold on patient enrollment in an early-to-mid-stage trial of its drug to treat a genetic muscle disorder, sending the company's shares down over 15%.The agency put the partial hold after a serious adverse event seen in a patient during the study. (9/27)

FiercePharma: Hospira Must Wait To Launch Generic Lexiscan But Only Two Weeks
Fourteen years after it launched Lexiscan in the U.S., Astellas is trying to wring the last bit of market exclusivity it can get out of the scanning agent. (Dunleavy, 9/26)

FiercePharma: The Most Productive Biopharma Workforces Of 2021
A lot has changed since we last ranked the most productive biopharma companies with numbers from 2016. For starters, two of that year’s top 10 companies—Celgene and Allergan—are no longer independent firms. (Liu, Becker, Dunleavy, Kansteiner, and Sagonowsky, 9/26)

Bloomberg: GSK Will Be Helmed By Two Women As Drugmaker Hires Brown As CFO 
GSK Plc hired Julie Brown as chief financial officer to work alongside Chief Executive Officer Emma Walmsley, putting two women in charge of the UK drugmaker -- a milestone in an industry dominated by men. (Fourcade, 9/26)

The Baltimore Sun: Stop Mandatory Testing Of Drugs On Animals 
Data show that animal tests are unreliable predictors of the human response to drugs (”Johns Hopkins University can continue barn owl testing after permit battle with PETA,” July 14). Many drugs found safe in nonclinical tests fail during human clinical trials due to toxicities not predicted by traditional animal tests or lack of efficacy. Yet the Food and Drug Administration requires animal testing even if there are superior non-animal methods. (Scott A. Schulman, 9/24)

The Baltimore Sun: More Vaccine Options Critical To Addressing COVID 
Right now, we are at a critical turning point in the fight against COVID. Vaccines remain an important weapon in preventing the spread of the infection, but there is still much work to be done to build vaccine confidence both here in the U.S. and around the world. More vaccine options are needed to ensure all Americans are able to decide how to best protect themselves and their loved ones. (Gregory M. Glenn, 9/23)

Dallas Morning News: MADE In America Act Is Critical For The Pharmaceutical Industry
When supply chains are down and global shipping is at a standstill, waiting on decorations, toys and other consumer goods can be frustrating. But when it comes to prescription drugs, waiting can be life-threatening. (Victoria Ford, 9/24)

Los Angeles Times: Prevent A Legal Catch-22 That Could Push Thousands Of Generic Drugs Off The Market 
Carvedilol could be the poster child for how to lower drug prices. Since 2007, over 20 million patients with cardiovascular conditions have enjoyed generic versions of the popular beta-blocker, which cost 2 cents a dose compared with $4.81 for the brand-name product. Patents on the drug Coreg, dating back to 1978, have long expired, enabling these price-saving generics. (Michael A. Carrier, Charles Duan and S. Sean Tu, 9/21)

New England Journal of Medicine: Product Hopping In The Drug Industry — Lessons From Albuterol 
any patients with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rely on albuterol, a short-acting β2-agonist, to relieve acute symptoms of bronchospasm. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first two albuterol inhalers — Ventolin (Glaxo Wellcome) and Proventil (Schering–Plough) — in 1981. Each went off patent in 1989, and by 1997 there were four generic albuterol inhalers on the U.S. market, typically priced at $15 or less. (Oliver J. Wouters, Ph.D., et al, 9/24)

Stat: FDA: Ignore The False Racial Equity Argument For Keeping Makena 
In an effort to sway the Food and Drug Administration not to withdraw accelerated approval of Makena, a drug developed to prevent preterm birth that does no such thing, a pharmaceutical company owned by a private equity company is making the specious argument that the drug should be kept on the market because it may — the emphasis is mine — work in Black people. (Adam C. Urato, 9/26)

Newsweek: It's Time To Undo The Harm The CDC Has Done To Pain Patients | Opinion
After the U.S. Centers for Disease Control suggested dosage thresholds for patients receiving pain medication in 2016, 38 states rushed to pass legal limits on opioid prescribing and dispensing. (Jeffrey A. Singer and Josh Bloom, 9/21)

Newsweek: On Drug Prices, Big Pharma Is In Charge—Not Joe Biden 
President Joe Biden recently flaunted having "beat Pharma this year." But on a policy that would immediately lower drug prices for millions of Americans, he is losing—and badly. (C. Boyden Gray and Simone Marstiller, 9/27)

Chicago Tribune: After A Pandemic Boom In Child Obesity, It’s Time For Families To Recommit To Health
As a pediatric endocrinologist at Lurie Children’s Hospital, I’ve seen firsthand an explosion of child obesity among our patients during the pandemic. My colleagues and I have also observed an alarming increase in children with new onset Type 2 diabetes, which is directly related to the widespread weight gain among our patients. (Jami Josefson, 9/27)

The Atlantic: Teachers, Nurses, And Child-Care Workers Have Had Enough 
An untold number of nurses, teachers, and child-care workers are asking themselves Is this worth it? and deciding that it is not. Nurses are walking off their jobs and quitting in droves, while those still at the bedside are experiencing high rates of depression. (Annie Lowrey, 9/27)

Los Angeles Times: Now That The CDC Has Dropped Masking, A Plea To Doctors And Hospitals 
With a one-two punch, the Biden administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have tossed tens of millions of Americans at high risk of death and disability from COVID into a sea of contagion without any clear guidance for infection prevention and control. (Kathleen Quinn, 9/27)

Stat: Medicare Needs To Cover The Full Range Of Substance Use Disorders
Imagine if Medicare covered treatments for stage 1 or stage 4 cancers, but nothing in between. Absurd, right? Yet that is how Medicare approaches treatment for substance use disorders for its 64 million beneficiaries. (Fred Riccardi, Judith Stein and Ellen Weber, 9/28)

The Tennessean: Daily Wire Report On Vanderbilt Transgender Clinic Is No Investigation
A report labeled as an “investigation” has gone viral by claiming that a major Nashville-based health care institution has been committing unethical and illegal acts against children. (David Plazas, 9/26)