First Edition: Aug. 1, 2023

KFF Health News:
Black Women Weigh Emerging Risks Of ‘Creamy Crack’ Hair Straighteners

Deanna Denham Hughes was stunned when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer last year. She was only 32. She had no family history of cancer, and tests found no genetic link. Hughes wondered why she, an otherwise healthy Black mother of two, would develop a malignancy known as a “silent killer.” After emergency surgery to remove the mass, along with her ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, and appendix, Hughes said, she saw an Instagram post in which a woman with uterine cancer linked her condition to chemical hair straighteners. “I almost fell over,” she said from her home in Smyrna, Georgia. (Cohen, 8/1)

KFF Health News:
‘Epidemic’: Do You Know Dutta? 

By the mid-1970s, India’s smallpox eradication campaign had been grinding for over a decade. But the virus was still spreading beyond control. It was time to take a new, more targeted approach. This strategy was called “search and containment.” Teams of eradication workers visited communities across India to track down active cases of smallpox. Whenever they found a case, health workers would isolate the infected person then vaccinate anyone that individual might have come in contact with. (8/1)

ABC News:
Biden Administration Opens New Office To Study Long COVID Response, NIH Begins Clinical Trials

The Biden administration announced Monday it is forming a new Office of Long COVID Research and Practice to study the condition and help those who have been diagnosed with it. The office, which will be under the Department of Health and Human Services, “is charged with on-going coordination of the whole-of-government response to the longer-term effects of COVID-19,” according to a news release. (Kekatos, 7/31)

USA Today:
Suffering From Long COVID? How New NIH Study Could Help Ease Symptoms

The National Institutes of Health is launching several clinical trials related to treatment for long-COVID patients, hoping to evaluate multiple treatments that may finally ease symptoms for millions worldwide. The trials will include four potential treatments and lead to additional trials in the coming months that will test at least seven more treatments, including drugs, biologics, medical devices and other therapies. (Rodriguez, 7/31)

Stat:
National Panel Will Explore Requiring Free Covid Tests

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force will discuss recommending Covid-19 screening, the first step in requiring insurers to permanently cover the tests at no cost to patients. The national panel of experts will convene and “determine whether and how Covid-19 screening might be considered within the Task Force’s scope,” chair Michael Barry wrote in a letter to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) exclusively shared with STAT. (Owermohle, 7/31)

Politico:
What The New Covid-19 Surge Really Means 

Covid-19 hospitalizations are rising for the first time since the beginning of 2023, but public health experts and the White House appear confident the U.S. is well-positioned to manage the virus heading into the fall. It is more difficult than earlier in the pandemic to know how many infections are circulating in the U.S. due to the end of state data reporting requirements that were tied to the public health emergency, which ended in May. But a 10.3 percent increase in weekly Covid-19 hospital admissions in mid-July to 7,109 is a reminder that the virus is still a public health challenge. (Lim, 7/31)

USA Today:
‘Fairly Shocking’: Secret Medical Lab In California Stored Bioengineered Mice Laden With COVID

A months-long investigation into a rural California warehouse uncovered an illegal laboratory that was filled with infectious agents, medical waste and hundreds of mice bioengineered “to catch and carry the COVID-19 virus,” according to Fresno County authorities. Health and licensing said Monday that Prestige Biotech, a Chinese medical company registered in Nevada, was operating the unlicensed facility in Reedley, California — a small city about 24 miles southeast of Fresno. The company, according to Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba, had a goal of being a diagnostics lab. (Nguyen and Martin, 7/31)

The Hill:
Leprosy Cases Surging In Central Florida: CDC 

Health officials say that cases of leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, are surging in Central Florida. In a news release Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that Central Florida has accounted for 81 percent of reported cases in the state and almost one-fifth of reported cases nationwide. (Oshin, 7/31)

CBS News:
Leprosy Could Be Endemic In Central Florida, CDC Says. What To Know About The Disease

“Leprosy has been historically uncommon in the United States; incidence peaked around 1983, and a drastic reduction in the annual number of documented cases occurred from the 1980s through 2000,” the letter’s authors wrote. “However, since then, reports demonstrate a gradual increase in the incidence of leprosy in the United States. The number of reported cases has more than doubled in the southeastern states over the last decade.” (Moniuszko, 7/31)

CIDRAP:
Study Shows Proctitis As Predictor Of Mpox Among Symptomatic Men

Proctitis was the strongest predictor of clinically confirmed mpox in thousands of patients with suspected illness who presented for testing, according to a new study in Clinical Microbiology and Infection. (Soucheray, 7/31)

The Washington Post:
The Hepatitis C Cure Rate Is Far Behind U.S. Goal For 2030, CDC Says 

Just 34 percent of Americans diagnosed with the most common type of hepatitis — hepatitis C — are being cured of the liver infection, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The finding stems from the analysis of data on more than 1.7 million people who tested positive for hepatitis C from 2013 through 2022. (Searing, 7/31)

Reuters:
Judge Blocks Idaho Prosecution Of Out-Of-State Abortion Referrals

A U.S. judge on Monday blocked the state of Idaho at least temporarily from prosecuting doctors who refer patients out of state to get an abortion, finding that would violate a medical provider’s right to free speech. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill of the District of Idaho agreed with a challenge led by Planned Parenthood that Republican Attorney General Raul Labrador’s interpretation of the state’s criminal abortion law was “chilling” to providers’ First Amendment rights. (Trotta, 8/1)

AP:
ACLU Of Indiana Asks State’s High Court To Keep Hold On Near-Total Abortion Ban In Place For Now 

The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana asked the state’s high court Monday to keep Indiana’s near-total abortion ban on hold while it pursues a narrower preliminary injunction in a trial court to address the scope of the ban’s exemption allowing women facing serious health risks to obtain abortions. The petition seeking a rehearing will delay the ban from taking effect as soon as Tuesday while the Indiana Supreme Court considers the matter. The ACLU of Indiana’s request comes after the high court ruled on June 30 that Indiana’s Republican-backed ban doesn’t violate the state constitution. (Callahan, 7/31)

Reuters:
Abortion Providers Sue Alabama To Block Prosecution Over Out-Of-State Travel 

Healthcare providers and an abortion rights group on Monday sued Alabama in an effort to block the state from criminally prosecuting people who help others travel out of state to get abortions. In a lawsuit filed in Montgomery, Alabama federal court, the West Alabama Women’s Center, the Alabama Women’s Center and its medical director Yashica Robinson said any such prosecutions would violate a basic right to travel between states under the U.S. Constitution. The Yellowhammer Fund filed a separate, similar lawsuit. (Pierson, 7/31)

Stateline:
Lawsuit Over Texas Abortion Ban Could Be A Model In Other States

Texas is one of 14 states that banned abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. The Texas ban includes an exception that allows physicians to end a pregnancy if it could result in the death of the woman or a “substantial impairment of a major bodily function.” But the plaintiffs in the case, more than a dozen Texas women, argue that doctors and hospitals denied them necessary care because the providers were afraid to run afoul of the law. Those who violate the ban could face up to 99 years in prison, a $100,000 fine and loss of their medical license. (Montgomery, 8/1)

The Hill:
‘Unacceptable’: Susan B. Anthony List Slams DeSantis’s Position On Abortion 

The Susan B. Anthony List, a conservative anti-abortion group, is slamming Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis for his position on abortion and sidestepping of whether he would support a federal ban on abortion. “A pro-life president has a duty to protect the lives of all Americans,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America group, in a statement. She added that DeSantis should be the “National Defender of Life.” (Nazzaro, 7/31)

AP:
Appeals Court Lets Kentucky Enforce Ban On Transgender Care For Minors

A federal appeals court is allowing Kentucky to enforce a recently enacted ban on gender-affirming care for young transgender people while the issue is being litigated. The 2-1 decision Monday from the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati is not unexpected. The same three-judge panel ruled the same way earlier this month on a similar case in Tennessee. (Barakat, 7/31)

Stat:
How Primary Care Doctors Are Learning About Trans Health

Harrison has an informal test that he runs on primary care physicians when he meets them for the first time: the eye contact test. When he arrives at the appointment and tells them that he’s transgender, he watches their eyes for a reaction. He’s looking for signs of shock — have they ever met a trans person before? Do they get nervous, or start talking at him, rather than with him? Trying to find an accepting clinician, especially where he lives in the mountains of North Carolina, can be tough. He’s been ghosted before — doctors tell him to follow up over an online patient portal or to call back later, which he does, only to never hear back again. (Gaffney, 8/1)

USA Today:
US News & World Report Hospital Rankings: Find Out Which Hospitals Made The ‘Honor Roll’

U.S. News and World Report on Tuesday released their latest “Best Hospital” rankings for the 34th consecutive year amid criticism from schools and public officials, and recent changes to their rating system. The report ranks 484 regional hospitals, evaluating them on 30 medical and surgical services. Of those facilities, 22 hospitals were named to the national “Honor Roll.” This year, the outlet decided to scrap ordinal rankings in favor of an “Honor Roll” in no particular order. (Rodriguez, 8/1)

The Boston Globe:
US News & World Report: Boston Hospitals Ranked Best In Nation

Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital made the publication’s honor roll of 22 hospitals, a distinction awarded to medical centers that have demonstrated exceptional performance across many specialties, according to the rankings published Tuesday. “A recent survey of US News users revealed more than four in five (84%) consider a hospital’s quality metrics to be important factors when deciding where to seek treatment for a serious medical issue,” Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at US News, said in a statement. (Larson, 8/1)

The Wall Street Journal:
CVS To Shed 5,000 Jobs In Cost-Cutting Push 

CVS Health said it is shedding about 5,000 jobs to help reduce costs as the retail pharmacy giant sharpens its focus on healthcare services. The company on Monday said in a statement that the jobs affected are primarily corporate positions. CVS said it doesn’t expect customer-oriented roles in stores, pharmacies and clinics will be affected in the layoff plan. (Yeung, 7/31)

The Hill:
600K Medicare Beneficiaries’ Data Accessed In Breach

The personal information of 612,000 Medicare beneficiaries were accessed in a sweeping data breach that affected what could be hundreds of organizations, including the government contractor, Maximus Federal Services. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in a press release Friday that it is notifying people affected by the data breach, which could have affected information including beneficiaries, names, Social Security numbers, medical histories, diagnoses and other personal details. (Fortinsky, 7/31)

AP:
Health Care Provider To Pay Largest Medicare Fraud Settlement In Maine History

Martin’s Point Health Care Inc. will pay nearly $22.5 million to resolve allegations of submitting inaccurate codes for Medicare Advantage Plan enrollees to increase Medicare reimbursements, federal prosecutors said Monday. The U.S. attorney’s office in Maine confirmed it was the largest Medicare fraud settlement in state history. A Martin’s Point representative didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment on Monday. The company was accused of submitting the inaccurate diagnosis codes for Medicare Advantage Plan enrollees in Maine and New Hampshire between 2016 and 2019. (7/31)

Modern Healthcare:
Medicare Dementia Pilot Aims To Improve Quality Of Life

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will test a dementia care model that aims to improve quality of life for 6.7 million beneficiaries and their unpaid caregivers, the agency announced Monday. The eight-year Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience Model (GUIDE) seeks to keep Medicare enrollees outside of long-term care facilities by extending a package of local care coordination and management and caregiver education and support services. (Tepper, 7/31)

Stat:
Medicare’s Plan To Improve Alzheimer’s Care Sidesteps Drug Prices

Medicare announced Monday a pilot program aimed at improving dementia care and reducing the strain on unpaid caregivers, but it does not deal with controlling the price of new Alzheimer’s drugs. (Wilkerson, 7/31)

Reuters:
Quest Diagnostics Launches Alzheimer’s Blood Test For Consumers

Quest Diagnostics on Monday launched the first direct-to-consumer blood test to detect abnormal levels of beta amyloid, a key Alzheimer’s disease protein that can appear years before dementia symptoms arise. The $399 test, called AD-Detect, uses the same technology as a blood test the company began selling for use by doctors in early 2022. (Seenhuysen, 7/31)

Los Angeles Times:
An Actor’s Heart Problems Highlight Health Insurance Concerns Amid SAG-AFTRA Strike 

When Brooklyn McLinn nearly died of a heart attack in his kitchen, he felt a sense of peace that his health troubles — the open-heart surgeries, the pacemaker, the fear of the next big one — could finally be over. This is the sentiment the actor and former college basketball player, 50, has after surviving two heart attacks, a stroke and a heart transplant. The first heart attack happened a few years earlier while playing basketball in Los Angeles in 2016. He was home taking a quick break from filming as a cast member for Tyler Perry’s “The Haves and Have Nots” before he flew back to Atlanta. (Evans, 7/31)

The Washington Post:
How Scientists Make Corrections And Retractions After Errors In Research

Marc Tessier-Lavigne, an internationally known neuroscientist, recently resigned as president of Stanford University after an investigation determined he had failed to correct errors in years-old scientific papers, and that labs he led had an unusual number of instances of manipulated data. Tessier-Lavigne said he would ask for three papers to be retracted and two corrected, a request the publications say they will honor or review. (Svrluga and Johnson, 7/31)

Modern Healthcare:
Wegovy, Ozempic Craze Leaves Traditional Weight Loss Docs Wary

The popularity of GLP-1s, such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic, has led to a growing number of weight loss entrants in the virtual health industry. In the last year, digital health companies such as Teladoc and Noom have launched virtual weight loss businesses with GLP-1 medication prescription offerings. Traditional weight loss company WeightWatchers acquired a telehealth company to begin prescribing the drugs. (Turner, 7/31)

San Francisco Chronicle:
New Blood Test That Screens For Cancer Raises Hopes — And Concerns

Galleri, priced at $949, is the first of a wave of so-called multi-cancer early-detection tests, which analyze DNA fragments in the blood for abnormalities associated with cancer. Grail, the Menlo Park-based biotech company that created Galleri, says it checks more than a million specific DNA sites for cancer signals and can identify more than 50 types of cancer, including cervical, colon, breast and prostate. More than a dozen prospective rivals are developing their own cancer-screening products. (Kreidler, 7/31)

Los Angeles Times:
L.A. County Gave Up On A Mental Health Program — And Is Handing Back Millions In Grants

Providers insist that what are known as child and adult outreach triage teams were saving some of L.A. County’s sickest residents by closing a gap in care. Officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, however, said they were underwhelmed by the teams’ performance. (Seidman, 7/31)

The Colorado Sun:
Not All 988 Crisis Calls Are Reaching Colorado’s Call Center

A year after it went live, the 988 national mental health hotline is still working out some issues — and Colorado needs a huge increase in staff to meet the 24/7 demands. For starters, when people dial the three-digit number, their call is routed to the state call center that matches their area code, not their location. This is particularly bad for Colorado, which has a high number of transplants who moved here with out-of-state area codes and a large military population. Also, Colorado realized it needs 260 additional employees to answer the calls on top of the 130 it started with if it’s going to meet a federal requirement taking effect in April that call centers must pick up within 20 seconds. The current threshold is 59 seconds. (Brown, 7/31)

Modern Healthcare:
EEOC Sues New York Home Health Agency For Racial Discrimination

A home health agency accused of reassigning Black and Hispanic employees to placate patients is under fire from federal regulators. On Monday, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against Brooklyn, New York-based Four Seasons Licensed Home Health Care Agency on charges it engaged in discriminatory practices by factoring in patient preferences against non-white home health aides when making assignments. (Hartnett, 7/31)

Stateline:
In A Summer Marked By Extreme Heat, Some Suggest It Is Time For A National Cooling Standard

Heat, humidity and the quest for air conditioning are a part of every summer. But Ashley Ward believes this summer is a wake-up call for many Americans. Ward directs the Heat Policy Innovation Hub at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability. Her work focuses on the health impacts of climate extremes and community resilience. “We’re not talking about a heat wave anymore,” Ward said in a media briefing last week. “We’re talking about a season. We’re talking about a marker of a shift in our heat regime that we need to pay attention to.” (Henkel, 7/31)

The Washington Post:
Marijuana Addiction Is Real. Those Struggling Often Face Skepticism. 

But as legal recreational sales have expanded — Maryland in July became the latest state to permit sale of marijuana products for recreational use — the suggestion that marijuana is addictive has often met with derision, especially because science isn’t always clear on the benefits and harms. There can be reluctance to seek treatment. (Ovalle and Nirappil, 7/31)

ABC News:
Doctors Increasingly Discourage Vaping Amid Mounting Health Concerns

Doctors are increasingly discouraging people from using e-cigarettes given the mounting evidence about the significant negative health impact of vaping– even as a smoking cessation tool. For current smokers, “there are other very powerful, safe and FDA approved interventions,” Dr. Petros Levounis, the President of the American Psychiatric Association and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said. (Oje, 7/31)

The New York Times:
Scenes From A City That Only Hands Out Tickets For Using Fentanyl 

For the past two and a half years, Oregon has been trying an unusual experiment to stem soaring rates of addiction and overdose deaths. People caught with small amounts of illicit drugs for “personal use,” including fentanyl and methamphetamine, are fined just $100 — a sanction that can be waived if they participate in a drug screening and health assessment. The aim is to reserve prosecutions for large-scale dealers and address addiction primarily as a public health emergency. (Gale and Hoffman, 7/31)