Medicine

USA Today reports: U.S. health officials are warning clinicians to be alert for cases of measles following several outbreaks, largely among children who were eligible for the vaccine but did not receive it. The CDC urged vigilance among health providers across the U.S. following reports of nearly two dozen cases of the preventable virus since December. Most cases were in …

The Washington Post reports: More than 21 million people have signed up for health plans through the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces, the Biden administration announced Wednesday. The record level of enrollment comes as former president Donald Trump, seeking the GOP nomination, is again vowing to repeal the program if elected. Sign-ups in the health insurance marketplaces — a …

The BBC reports: The world’s first routine vaccine programme against malaria has started in Cameroon, in a move projected to save thousands of children’s lives across Africa. The symbolic first jab was given to a baby girl named Daniella at a health facility near Yaoundé on Monday. Every year 600,000 people die of malaria in Africa, according to the World …

Gothamist reports: The state alleged that midwife Jeannette Breen falsified the immunization records for about 1,500 children statewide at the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year. Breen was penalized $300,000 and permanently barred from administering vaccines reportable to the state, officials said. The state said the fabrications included records of vaccines for polio, chickenpox, measles, mumps and rubella, but excluded …

Vice News reports: In You Are What You Eat: A Twin Experiment, a new documentary airing on Netflix, New York City mayor Eric Adams promotes not taking medication for diabetes and instead adopting a whole-foods, plant-based diet—a potentially deadly recommendation rejected by both the director of the documentary and the expert who designed the study on which it’s centered. In …

The Associated Press reports: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has prostate cancer and his recent secretive hospitalization was for surgery and later to treat an urinary tract infection related to that operation, doctors said Tuesday. The 70-year-old Austin was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Dec. 22 and underwent surgery to treat the cancer. Austin developed the infection …

Axios reports: The Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved a plan allowing Florida to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada, opening the door for states to buy direct from pharmacies there to stock their state-run health programs. The approval, the first of its kind, allows the Biden administration to show it’s addressing a major voter concern in an election …

CNN reports: More Americans with diabetes will get a break on their insulin costs in 2024. Sanofi is joining the nation’s two other major insulin manufacturers in offering either price caps or savings programs that lower the cost of the drugs to $35 for many patients. The three drugmakers are also drastically lowering the list prices for their products. The …

USA Today reports: Owning a pet may help slow cognitive decline among older people who live alone, according to a study published this week. A large cohort study of adults ages 50 and older living in the United Kingdom showed pet owners had less verbal memory and verbal fluency declines compared to people who lived alone without a pet. The …

The Washington Post reports: Americans’ life expectancy decline remains a pressing public health problem — but not a political priority. The Washington Post spoke with more than 100 public health experts, lawmakers and senior health officials, including 29 across the past three presidential administrations, who described the challenges of attempting to turn around the nation’s declining life expectancy. Those challenges …

Axios reports: Wastewater analysis sites nationwide are showing high levels of COVID-19 as we head into the holiday travel season, per the latest CDC data. Almost every state reporting such data is showing at least “high” levels compared to baseline trends, with many reporting “very high” levels, as defined by the CDC. As of early December, 22 states had “very …

The Messenger reports: Hospitalizations and deaths owed to COVID-19 are rising as the nation heads into the holidays, according to new data from the CDC. The CDC’s most recent report highlights a nearly 18% increase week over week in COVID hospitalizations. Concerningly, the data also shows a 25% increase in COVID deaths during the same week. The CDC estimates that …

The Messenger reports: Tens of thousands of Americans are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, as the world braces for a fourth year dealing with the deadly virus. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, COVID hospitalizations are on the rise for the third straight week. COVID hospitalizations have increased by nearly 11%, resulting in almost 20,000 new hospitalizations …

The Messenger reports: Getting at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine before your first bout of infection can significantly cut the risk of developing long COVID, according to a new study. Researchers from Sweden, who published findings Wednesday on The BMJ, analyzed data from over half a million Swedes aged 18 and over, who registered their first COVID infection …

Yahoo News reports: The U.S. flu season is underway, with at least seven states reporting high levels of illnesses and cases rising in other parts of the country, health officials say. The CDC posted new flu data on Friday, showing very high activity last week in Louisiana, and high activity in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, New Mexico and South Carolina. …

CBS News reports: The number of countries battling disruptive outbreaks of measles surged to 37 last year, a report published by the CDC confirmed Thursday, as officials warn that the global fight against the disease has struggled to recover in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Measles can be deadly, especially in children, but it is preventable with a common …

The New York Times reports: The decision by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday to approve the weight loss drug tirzepatide adds a potent new tool to the fast-growing arsenal of obesity drugs. The drug, which will go by the brand name Zepbound, contains the same compound in the sought-after diabetes drug Mounjaro. Many people have used Mounjaro off-label …

NBC News reports: A new Covid variant has become dominant in the U.S., but relatively few people have thus far gotten the new shots that could offer some protection against it. The variant, called HV.1, replaced EG.5 as the country’s most prevalent this week, according to data released Friday by the CDC. Just around 3.5 % of the U.S. population …

The Insider reports: CVS this week said it is pulling many popular decongestants from its shelves after advisors to the Food and Drug Administration said the active ingredient simply does not work. In September, an advisory panel to the FDA ruled that phenylephrine, when taken orally, is no better than a placebo despite being on the market for more than …

The Jerusalem Post reports: In a totally unexpected move, the Jordanian government has been forced to act quickly against what it called two parties who spread false information, causing chaos among children and parents. The prosecutor general is looking into possible cybercrimes committed to dissuade the public from the acceptance of the new measles (MR) vaccine that will be rolled …