Plan to ban menthol cigarettes prompts last-minute lobbying blitz
As federal officials finalize a long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes, dozens of interest groups have met with White House staffers to try to influence the process, which has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives while wiping out billions in tobacco sales. Biden administration officials have heard...
During Pittsburgh seminar, FDA chief lays misinformation battle on doorsteps of universities, health systems
The head of the Food and Drug Administration called on academic and health systems such as the University of Pittsburgh to take a stance in the battle against misinformation, calling it the “problem of our time.” The call for action from Dr. Robert Califf, FDA commissioner, came during a virtual...
Rates for measles, other vaccinations dip for kindergartners
A smaller portion of U.S. children got routine vaccinations required for kindergarten during the pandemic, government researchers said Thursday, raising concerns that measles and other preventable diseases could increase. Rates were close to 94% for measles, whooping cough and chickenpox vaccinations for the 2020-21 school year. That was down 1%...
UPMC disputes report challenging its community benefits
Health care giant UPMC is disputing a report from a health care think tank that gives it low marks on what it spends on charity care and community investment compared to the tax exemptions it receives. The report from the Massachusetts-based Lown Institute says Pittsburgh-based UPMC is the 5th worst...
Expert on masks and flying: ‘It is not one size fits all’
On Monday, the mandate for passengers to wear masks on airplanes, in airports and on public transportation was lifted after a federal judge in Florida struck down the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s authority. The ruling has been met with celebration from some — as many passengers on planes...
Puzzling outbreak of liver disease in kids spreads to EU, U.S.
LONDON — Health officials say they have detected more cases of a mysterious liver disease in children that was first identified in Britain, with new infections spreading to Europe and the U.S. Last week, British officials reported 74 cases of hepatitis, or liver inflammation, found in children since January. The...
Moderna announces step toward updating covid shots for fall
Moderna hopes to offer updated covid-19 boosters in the fall that combine its original vaccine with protection against the omicron variant. On Tuesday, it reported a preliminary hint that such an approach might work. Today’s covid-19 vaccines all are based on the original version of the coronavirus. But the virus...
Abortion training under threat for med students, residents
Browse any medical dictionary, and before hitting appendectomy and anesthesia, you’ll find abortion. The first two procedures are part of standard physician education. But for many U.S. medical school students and residents who want to learn about abortions, options are scarce. And new restrictions are piling up: Within the past...
How the test-to-treat pillar of the U.S. covid strategy is failing patients
The federal “test-to-treat” program, announced in March, is meant to reduce covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths by quickly getting antiviral pills to people who test positive. But even as cases rise again, many Americans don’t have access to the program. Pfizer’s Paxlovid and Merck’s Lagevrio are both designed to be started...
‘Magic mushrooms’ for therapy? Veterans help sway conservatives
SALT LAKE CITY — Matthew Butler spent 27 years in the Army, but it took a day in jail to convince him his post-traumatic stress disorder was out of control. The recently retired Green Beret had tried antidepressants, therapy and a support dog. But his arrest for punching a hole...
Pennsylvania confirms 1st case of avian influenza
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture confirmed on Saturday the state’s first positive case of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in domestic poultry. Positive samples were detected in a flock of commercial layer chickens at an East Donegal Township, Lancaster County poultry farm, the department said. The farm and commercial poultry...
Flu cases, colds up in Western Pa. as people relax covid-19 precautions
Influenza cases now outnumber covid-19 cases in some areas of Western Pennsylvania, though they remain far below pre-pandemic numbers, experts say. “Over the last couple weeks, there has certainly been a surge in noncovid-related illnesses in the region. Chief among these pathogens has been the yearly influenza virus,” said Dr....
FDA authorizes 1st breath test for covid-19 infection
WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday issued an emergency use authorization for what it said is the first device that can detect covid-19 in breath samples. The InspectIR covid-19 Breathalyzer is about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage, the FDA said, and can be used...
Washington, D.C., man stops in Pittsburgh on his 3,400-mile e-bike journey to raise money for charity
The wooden shoes on the back of the trailer attached to the electric bicycle are more than footwear – they symbolize the home country of the rider. And the clogs are making a 3,400-mile trek with him. Gregory Maassen, a native of the Netherlands, is riding an e-bike from Washington,...
Bill proposal would allow medical marijuana edibles in Pa. dispensaries
Pennsylvania medical cannabis patients currently have access to tinctures, pills, oils, topicals, and dry leaf to vaporize. A new bill will soon be introduced by state Sen. Dan Laughlin, R-Erie, to possibly expand those options and allow patients to purchase medical cannabis edibles. Launglin said that 25 other states already...
Can cancer blood tests live up to promise of saving lives?
Joyce Ares had just turned 74 and was feeling fine when she agreed to give a blood sample for research. So she was surprised when the screening test came back positive for signs of cancer. After a repeat blood test, a PET scan and a needle biopsy, she was diagnosed...
Treatment for opioid addiction often brings discrimination
PHILADELPHIA — Danielle Russell was in the emergency department at an Arizona hospital last fall, sick with covid-19, when she made the mistake of answering completely when she was asked what medications she was on. “I said yes, I was taking methadone,” said Russell, a doctoral student who also was...
Pittsburgh public health advocates attend Affordable Care Act event at White House
Two public health advocates from Pittsburgh attended a White House ceremony Tuesday celebrating the 12th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act. Amy Raslevich, a doctoral candidate at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public Health, and Adrianne Sapienza, a Pitt alumna and diabetes educator at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh,...
Nursing home care, funding system need overhaul, report says
NEW YORK — Nursing home residents are subjected to ineffective care and poor staffing, while facility finances are shrouded in secrecy and regulatory lapses go unenforced, according to a report Wednesday that called for wholesale changes in an industry whose failures have been spotlighted by the pandemic. To anyone who...
Biden orders push on long covid, pandemic’s shadowy mystery
WASHINGTON — Confronting the pandemic’s lasting shadow, President Joe Biden on Tuesday ordered a new national research push on long covid, while also directing federal agencies to support patients dealing with the mysterious and debilitating condition. Biden assigned the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate an urgent new...
U.S. health care system ‘consistently fails’ women of reproductive age
The U.S. health care system “consistently fails” to meet the basic needs of reproductive-age women, which may partly explain why women are more than three times as likely to die during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth in the country compared to other high-income countries, according to new research from the...
Obama, back at White House with Biden, celebrates his signature health care law’s anniversary
WASHINGTON — Former President Barack Obama will return to the White House Tuesday for the first time since leaving office to celebrate the 12th anniversary of his landmark health care law, which President Joe Biden is planning to bolster with two new actions. Biden will sign an executive order to...
Bruce Willis’ aphasia battle: Living in a country where you don’t speak the language
Living with aphasia has been compared to living in a country where you don’t speak the language. Gestures, sign language or other forms of communication may not be much help. And the people who want to help you struggle to understand. “You know what things are. You are the person...
Scientists finally finish decoding entire human genome
Scientists say they have finally assembled the full genetic blueprint for human life, adding the missing pieces to a puzzle nearly completed two decades ago. An international team described the first-ever sequencing of a complete human genome — the set of instructions to build and sustain a human being —...
Poll: Americans ease up on masks, coronavirus safeguards
Many Americans have taken significant steps back from once-routine coronavirus precautions, with less than half now saying they regularly wear face masks, avoid crowds and skip nonessential travel. Americans are letting down their guard even as experts warn a new wave of covid-19 cases is coming. A new poll from...
