Category: Public Health

Biden weighs declaring abortion access a public health emergency 

President Joe Biden said he is weighing whether to consider declaring abortion access a public health emergency, The Washington Post reported July 10.

Colorado’s Efforts Are Not Enough to Solve Its Ozone Problem

Some health experts said measures underway by state and federal officials won’t lower ozone pollution to safe levels across nine counties of Colorado’s Front Range.

COVID-19 cases dip slightly as BA.5 threat looms: 10 CDC findings

COVID-19 cases dipped nationwide in the past week, though the number of areas with high levels of community spread is rising as the highly transmissible omicron subvariant BA.5 remains dominant in the U.S., according to the CDC’s COVID-19 data tracker …

In a slow rollout, 1.5% of children under 5 are vaccinated against COVID-19

Of the 19.5 million children younger than 5 in the U.S., more than 267,000 have received their first COVID-19 shot, ABC News reported July 7. 

The Push for Abortion Lawmaking After ‘Dobbs’ Is Unique, Legal and Political Experts Say

The surge of calls for special legislative sessions to pass abortion laws is an unusual occurrence in modern U.S. history, according to experts — one caused by the Supreme Court’s decision to give states more power to regulate abortion.

Vaccine and Testing Delays for Monkeypox Echo Failures in Early Covid Response

Public health officials say monkeypox is not as dangerous as covid and can be handled well with current treatments and if those at risk use caution. But the rollout of vaccines has been slow and led to angst among some at-risk people.

Dr. Eric Topol on BA.5: ‘There’s a wave afoot’

The highly transmissible omicron subvariant BA.5 will likely spur another wave of COVID-19 infections in the U.S., Eric Topol, MD, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in San Diego, told The New York Times. 

WHO to reconsider monkeypox threat as cases top 6,000: 3 updates

As monkeypox global cases surpass 6,000, the World Health Organization will reassess whether the outbreak constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. 

Seeking to Kick-Start Biden’s Agenda, Schumer Unveils a Bill for Medicare Drug Price Negotiations

In addition to allowing federal officials to negotiate the price that Medicare pays for some drugs, the bill would cap annual out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000. But before Democrats can pass the bill under special rules that prevent Republicans from staging a filibuster, they must get approval from the Senate parliamentarian.

Montana Clinics That Provide Abortions Preemptively Restrict Pill Access for Out-of-State Patients

Montana is an island of legal abortion, but four of the state’s five clinics are limiting access to abortion pills for out-of-state patients in an effort to protect themselves and patients from legal attacks.