CDC Data Raises Alarm Over Spread Of Dangerous Fungus, Candida Auris
March 21, 2023
Morning Briefing
Cases of Candida auris (C. auris) infections accelerated during the covid pandemic, with older people and patients with immunocompromised systems vulnerable to the fungus that can be deadly.
Bill Protecting Abortion Providers And Patients Passes Minnesota House
March 21, 2023
Morning Briefing
A version of the bill is also advancing through the state’s Senate as well, as Minnesota moves to reinforce itself as an abortion refuge state.
Biden Signs Covid Origin Bill To Declassify Intel On Wuhan Lab
March 21, 2023
Morning Briefing
The legislation, that passed both congressional chambers with unanimous support, requires the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to declassify within 90 days information gathered related to possible links between the lab in China and the origins of the covid outbreak.
First Edition: March 21, 2023
March 21, 2023
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Mental Health Care by Video Fills Gaps in Rural Nursing Homes
By Tony Leys
March 21, 2023
KFF Health News Original
In-person mental health care is hard to arrange in rural nursing homes, so video chats with faraway professionals are filling the gap.
Some Roadblocks to Lifesaving Addiction Treatment Are Gone. Now What?
By Martha Bebinger, WBUR
March 21, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The federal government has lifted restrictions on one of the most effective opioid addiction treatment medications. The change sets up a “truth serum moment”: Will mainstream doctors and nurses now treat addiction as a common disease?
Mexican President Says America’s Fentanyl Crisis Caused By Lack Of Hugs
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who has been on the defensive since four Americans were kidnapped while visiting Mexico for a medical procedure, said U.S. family values are to blame, in part because parents don’t let their children live at home long enough, AP reported.
State Laws, Business Practices Shape Nascent Field Of Psychedelic Medicine
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Stat News dives into the business of ketamine clinics, while NBC News reports on a new political action committee that aims to bolster legal access to psychedelics as treatment for mental health conditions.
Black Veterans Were Denied PTSD VA Benefits More Often: Report
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
The report was from 2017, but has been “newly surfaced,” NBC News explains, and shows that between 2011 and 2016 Black veterans seeking disability benefits for PTSD were denied 57% of the time, compared with 43% for white veterans. High cancer rates in military pilots are also in the news.
California Partners With Civica To Make Insulin, With Cost Capped At $30
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, announced Saturday his state’s selection of generic maker Civica to make its own insulin on which costs will be capped at $30. Newsom’s administration is moving forward on manufacturing injectable and nasal naloxone to tackle opioid overdoses.
Medicare Experts Tell Congress Hospitals Aren’t Failing, Despite Alarm
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
A Stat report says despite industry groups’ worry over hospital finances, Medicare policy experts are confident the situation isn’t as bad as expected, and they are saying as much to Congress. Meanwhile, HHS owes tens of millions of dollars of adjusted Medicare payments to dozens of safety-net hospitals.
Morning Briefing for Monday, March 20, 2023
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Abortion pills, women’s health, covid, hospital finances, bird flu, medical students, fentanyl, psychedelics, and more are in the news.
Medical Students Are Ditching The ER, Choosing Other Specialties
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
The Washington Post and Axios say Match Day trends show more medical student graduates are shunning the ER and instead choosing specialties like orthopedics and plastic surgery. In Boston, reports say medical residents are planning to unionize. A shortage of medical interpreters is among other news.
With Bird Flu Threat On Horizon, Drugmakers Prepare Vaccines For Humans
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Rich nations are locking in supplies of the shots, Reuters reports. Hundreds of millions of shots could be ready within months in case of a cross-species jump. Two vaccines for poultry tested by a Dutch facility, meanwhile, have proved effective against highly infectious bird flu.
Global Pandemic Declaration Expected To End In 2023
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says he’s optimistic that the agency will lift the public health emergency designation this year in light of current covid trends. In the U.S., deaths hit a 3-year low.
WHO Calls On China To Release All Covid Data After Origins Clue Discovery
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Genetic sequencing pointing to a possible zoonotic link to the start of the covid pandemic was unearthed this month on an international database — and then withdrawn by China when flagged. The World Health Organization is urging China to halt a pattern of hampering investigations into the virus’ origins and to release all its available information.
Idaho Hospital Labor Ward Shuts Due To Abortion Politics, Staffing Shortage
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
A hospital official cited the “political climate” that has made it too difficult to keep obstetric services staffed at Idaho’s Bonner General Health, the only hospital in Sandpoint, a city of more than 9,000 people. Meanwhile, Vermont and New Mexico make legal moves to protect abortion providers.
Wyoming Governor Signs Nation’s First Ban On Abortion Pills
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
On Friday night, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed the first ban explicitly targeting abortion pills, making it a felony to prescribe, sell, and to use “any drug” for the purpose of performing an abortion. He also allowed new abortion restrictions to become law.
First Edition: March 20, 2023
March 20, 2023
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.