On June 26, HSS’ newly formed Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 5-2 to recommend Merck’s respiratory syncytial virus monoclonal antibody drug and against an ingredient in some flu vaccines. The RSV drug in question, clesrovimab, is recommended for infants…
Public Health
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force updated its screening recommendations for intimate partner violence and elder abuse June 24. About 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men are expected to experience violence in their life, making intimate partner…
On June 18, the Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law that prohibits minors from receiving gender-affirming care, and opens the doors for other states to enact similar laws. The case, United States v. Skrmetti, arose from the Biden administration suing…
HHS’ recent overhaul of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has stripped the organization of valuable institutional knowledge and left the nation’s vaccine program “critically weakened,” according to a June 16 viewpoint published in JAMA. The article was authored by…
NB.1.8.1 — a new COVID-19 variant tied to a surge in China — now accounts for around 37% of cases in the U.S., according to variant proportion estimates from the CDC. Four notes:
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More than two dozen major medical groups are urging payers to continue covering COVID-19 vaccinations for pregnant patients without burdensome utilization management or cost-sharing requirements. The June 11 letter comes several weeks after HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said…
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. named eight new members to the CDC panel that oversees vaccine recommendations June 11. The appointments come two days after HHS terminated all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices. Mr. Kennedy…
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has launched a quality initiative to improve firearm safety conversations and interventions in emergency departments. Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the U.S., with about 30 million kids living in…
A new study found that measles vaccination rates in children have declined in most U.S. counties since before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a research letter published June 2 in JAMA Network. The analysis, conducted by researchers at Baltimore-based John…
The CDC updated its childhood immunization schedule May 29, recommending a shared decision-making process for healthy children 6 months and older. “Where the parent presents with a desire for their child to be vaccinated, children 6 months and older may…