Medicine

The Washington Post reports: The World Health Organization will reconvene its emergency committee Thursday to determine whether the coronavirus outbreak amounts to a public health emergency of international concern, as the total number of people infected in mainland China surpassed those infected with SARS during the 2002-2003 epidemic. More than 6,000 cases have been confirmed in China, with thousands more …

Business Insider reports: Scientists in Melbourne, Australia, have successfully grown the Wuhan coronavirus from a patient sample, which could help provide international experts with crucial information to beat the virus. It’s the first time the virus has been grown in a cell culture outside China. The scientists come from the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity — a joint …

The BBC reports: Hong Kong has announced plans to slash cross-border travel between the city and mainland China as the new coronavirus continues to spread. More than 100 people have now died in China, with confirmed infections surging to more than 4,500. High-speed trains and ferries that cross the border will be suspended from Thursday, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam …

The Associated Press reports: On the eve of the Lunar New Year, transportation was shut down in at least 13 cities home to more than 36 million people. The cities are Wuhan, where the illness has been concentrated, and 12 of its neighbors in central China’s Hubei province. Normally bustling streets, malls and other public spaces were eerily quiet in …

The Guardian reports: Three Chinese cities with a total population of 20 million have been put on lockdown and Beijing has cancelled a number of major public events in an attempt to contain the spread of a deadly coronavirus outbreak. Authorities banned transport links from Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, on Thursday, as well as the nearby central Chinese …

The Hill reports: Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar said Tuesday that “there’s really not a need” for the Trump administration to put forward an ObamaCare replacement plan at the moment. Azar was asked where the administration’s replacement for the health law is in an interview on the “Kevin Wall Radio Show.” He replied that there is not …

The New York Times reports: A person in Washington State is infected with the Wuhan coronavirus, the first confirmed case in the United States of a mysterious respiratory infection that has killed at least six people and sickened hundreds more in Asia. The man is a resident of Snohomish County, Wash., who experienced symptoms after returning from a trip to …

The BBC reports: The number of people diagnosed with HIV in the UK has dropped substantially since 2012, according to figures released by Public Health England. Gay and bisexual men have experienced the most dramatic decline in new infections, with rates falling by 71%. It has been attributed to a rise in the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Campaigners are …

The Associated Press reports: Researchers on Wednesday reported the largest-ever one-year decline in the U.S. cancer death rate, a drop they credited to advances in lung-tumor treatments. The overall cancer death rate has been falling about 1.5% a year since 1991. It fell 2.2% from 2016 to 2017, according to the new American Cancer Society report. That’s the largest drop …

The Associated Press reports: More companies could begin making an easy-to-use version of an opioid overdose antidote under a deal announced Thursday by New York’s attorney general. Under the agreement, Emergent BioSolutions will no longer enforce a contract that had allowed it to be the only company to develop a nasal spray version of the drug nalmefene for use as …

Axios reports: U-Haul will not hire people who use nicotine products in 21 states beginning Feb. 1 in an attempt “to establish one of the healthiest corporate cultures in the U.S. and Canada,” the company announced in a statement. The ACLU considers anti-nicotine hiring policies “discriminatory” and a violation of worker privacy, but smokers are not a protected class under …

CNBC reports: The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it has issued a ban on flavored vaping products, with the exception of tobacco and menthol. Under the new rule, companies that do not stop the distribution of fruit and mint flavors within 30 days are at risk of regulatory action by the FDA, the agency said. “The United States has …

Bloomberg News reports: A possible ban on flavored e-cigarettes appears to be back on the table, as the White House is currently reviewing a new guidance from the FDA. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) began reviewing the guidance from FDA on Dec. 26. The administration finished reviewing an earlier version of the guidance in November, but …

CBS News reports: Thousands of students in Seattle have 10 days to get vaccinated or they will not be allowed to go to school. This comes after Washington state had two measles outbreaks this year, one forcing a state of emergency. The Seattle Public Schools district issued a notice to families saying their kids could not attend school “until the …

Agence France-Press reports: The US Congress voted Thursday to raise the minimum age to buy tobacco and e-cigarettes from 18 to 21 across the country, a move intended to stem the rising tide of youth vaping. Passed by the Senate as part of a wider budgetary bill, it will take effect next year and will mean that tobacco and e-cigarettes …

Axios reports: A federal appeals court on Wednesday ruled that the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate is unconstitutional, but ordered a lower court to take a fresh look at how much of the rest of the law should fall along with it. This decision will likely keep the ACA’s protections for pre-existing conditions in legal limbo well past the 2020 …

The New York Times reports: As scrutiny of Purdue Pharma’s role in the opioid epidemic intensified during the past dozen years, its owners, members of the Sackler family, withdrew more than $10 billion from the company, distributing it among trusts and overseas holding companies, according to a new audit commissioned by Purdue. The amount is more than eight times what …

Politico reports: Congress is on the verge of a sweeping health care reform: Federally prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to people under 21. The legislation significantly raising the age cap on cigarettes and e-cigarettes is increasingly likely to be included in the year-end spending deal, the result of support from a diverse coalition of lawmakers, according to four people …

Bloomberg Law reports: A judge in Albany, N.Y., upheld a state law boosting vaccine requirements, dismissing a case brought by parents who don’t want their children vaccinated and say the measure violates their religious rights. Under the law, parents are required to have their children vaccinated before they can attend school or day care, unless they have a medical condition …

The Washington Post reports: In 2005, Gilead Sciences notified federal regulators that it was suspending development of a potentially safer, more potent HIV-fighting drug than the one on the market. The company did not restart its Food and Drug Administration application until 2010. Now the five-year delay of a promising drug is at the core of accusations by advocates that …