The White House’s COVID-19 response coordinator is optimistic bivalent boosters will offer protection against omicron “escape variants” BQ.1 and BQ.1.1, which now account for nearly 30 percent of U.S. infections.
Category: Public Health
Public health success hinges on connecting vision with funding, Harvard panelist says
Connecting the vision between funding and implementation regarding public health solutions can help implement change, according to one of the Cambridge, Mass.-based Harvard School of Public Health panel of practitioners collaborating on public health s…
US COVID-19 admissions tick up: 10 CDC findings
COVID-19 hospitalizations increased slightly this week after nearly two months of decline, while omicron subvariants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 — dubbed ‘escape variants’ for their immune evasiveness — continued to gain prevalence nationwide, according to the CDC…
Flu positivity rate, hospitalizations on the rise: 7 FluView notes
More than 2,300 patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza were admitted to a hospital for the week ending Oct. 22, according to the CDC’s latest FluView report.
Man killed by flesh-eating bacteria after Hurricane Ian
A man who traveled to Florida from Michigan to help with hurricane repairs died Oct. 11 after contracting a flesh-eating bacterial infection found in warm saltwater, The Washington Post reported.
Despite Katie Couric’s Advice, Doctors Say Ultrasound Breast Exams May Not Be Needed
When Katie Couric announced she had breast cancer, she urged women to get a mammogram — and, if they have dense breasts, to get supplemental screening by ultrasound. But medical experts point out that ultrasound and other auxiliary screenings haven’t been proven to do more than regular mammography in reducing mortality.
When Monkeypox Reaches Rural Communities, It Collides With Strained Public Health Systems
In Nevada, local health officials are assessing the threat of monkeypox, but their response may be hampered by historically limited public health infrastructure worn thin by the covid-19 pandemic.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Voters Will Get Their Say on Multiple Health Issues
Abortion isn’t the only health issue voters will be asked to decide in state ballot questions next month. Proposals about medical debt, Medicaid expansion, and whether health care should be a right are on ballots in various states. Meanwhile, the latest lawsuit challenging the Affordable Care Act has expanded to cover all preventive care. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Victoria Knight of Axios join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more.
Tuberculosis cases rise for first time in years: WHO
Tuberculosis infections, including those that are drug-resistant, increased globally in 2021 for the first time in years, according to an Oct. 27 report from the World Health Organization.
WHO identifies 19 fungal ‘priority pathogens’
For the first time, the World Health Organization released a list of fungal “priority pathogens” that have emerged as significant public health threats. The list can be found here.
