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☆ New Covid vaccines are on the way as 'Eris' variant rises
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Michael Erman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Some public health experts hope that Americans will welcome the new shot as they would a flu jab. In the fall of 2022, by which time most people had either had the COVID virus or the vaccine, fewer than 50 million people got the shots. Its biggest rival, Moderna, conceded demand could be as few as 50 million shots. POST PANDEMIC VACCINEThe COVID public health emergency ended in May and the government has handed much of the duty of vaccinating America to the private sector. As with the flu, Pfizer (PFE.N)/BioNTech SE (22UAy.DE), Moderna (MRNA.O) and Novavax (NVAX.O), have created versions of the COVID vaccine to try to match the variant they believe will be circulating this fall.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Ashley Kirzinger, Kirzinger, BioNTech, Jefferies, Michael Yee, " Yee, Mandy Cohen, William Schaffner, Schaffner, David Boulware, Michael Erman, Caroline Humer, Diane Craft Organizations: REUTERS, CVS Health, Family, Reuters, Pfizer –, Moderna, Pfizer, U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, EG, Vanderbilt University, University of Minnesota, Thomson Locations: U.S, America, United States, COVID, CDC's

☆ These are the cruise ships with the best — and worst — sanitation scores so far this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

These are the cruise ships with the best and worst sanitation report cards in 2023 so far. There's nothing like a stomach virus to ruin your vacation, as hundreds of cruise ship passengers have unfortunately learned this year. "People often associate cruise ships with acute gastrointestinal illnesses such as norovirus, but acute gastrointestinal illness is relatively infrequent on cruise ships," the CDC explains on its website. In the past 10 years, only three other cruise ships have received sanitation scores below 70, CDC records show. These are the cruise ships with the highest and lowest sanitation scores so far this year:The 15 cruise ships with perfect scores of 100The majority of cruise ships have received CDC sanitation scores in the high nineties this year.

Persons: Gerard Bottino Organizations: CDC, Morning, Health, Vessel Sanitation, MSC, MSC Cruises, Royal Caribbean International Cruise, Seas Royal Caribbean, Cruise Lines, Inc, Sunshine, Disney, Disney Cruise, Cruise Management, Joy Norwegian Cruise, Pearl Norwegian Cruise, Riviera Oceania, Rotterdam Holland America, Silversea Cruises, Getty Locations: United States, Rotterdam

☆ U.S. officials say risk of locally acquired malaria remains low as nationwide cases jump to seven
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Joe Raedle | Getty ImagesU.S. public health officials say the risk of locally transmitted malaria in the country remains low as seven new cases in Florida and Texas raise questions. "Despite these cases, the risk of locally acquired malaria remains extremely low in the United States," the agency added. The seven are the first known cases of "locally acquired" malaria in the country since 2003. Health experts say the new locally acquired cases shouldn't warrant panic about widespread malaria transmission in the U.S. Here's what you need to know about the locally acquired malaria cases in the U.S. – and why the risk of transmission remains low right now.

Persons: Barrington Sanders, Joe Raedle, it's, vivax, Daniel Parker, –, Parker, Sadie Ryan, Ryan, Chandan Khanna, UC Irvine's Parker, we're, Rajiv Chowdhury, Chowdhury, Stephane de Sakutin Organizations: Miami - Dade Mosquito Control, Getty, Florida Department of Health, Centers for Disease Control, CDC, CNBC, UC Irvine, University of Florida, Florida Climate Institute, Local, Sarasota County Mosquito Management Services, AFP, UC, Florida International University Locations: Miami, Miami , Florida, Florida, Texas, Sarasota County, United States, U.S, Florida , Texas, Sarasota, Sarasota , Florida

☆ Flavored e-cigarette sales are booming despite federal crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Stefan Sykes | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Flavored e-cigarettes represented 41.3% of U.S. retail-store e-cigarette unit sales in December 2022, up from 29.2% in January 2020, the organizations found. Overall e-cigarette sales in the U.S. rose about 47% in the period. The spike in sales comes despite a federal crackdown that placed more restrictions on the flavors and marketing for tobacco products. From January 2022 to December 2022, disposable e-cigarette unit share increased from 24.7% to 51.8% of total unit sales. Last year, the FDA ordered Elf Bar and Breeze Smoke off the U.S. market, according to the CDC report.

Persons: JUUL, Deirdre Lawrence Kittner, Robin Koval Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, CDC Foundation, Truth, FDA, Elf, CDC Locations: New York City, U.S

☆ Baby raccoon euthanized after woman took it to a pet store and let people kiss it — possibly exposing them to rabies
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A woman brought a baby raccoon into a pet store in Maine to have its nails trimmed. The raccoon was handled and kissed by multiple customers, possibly exposing them to rabies. In order to test if the raccoon had rabies, it needed to be euthanized. Anyone with information about the woman who brought in the juvenile raccoon is requested to contact the Maine Warden Service, authorities said. "Please 'Keep Wildlife Wild'" and "If you care, leave them there," the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife reminded people.

☆ New HIV infections decline in U.S. but most people at risk are not receiving prevention drugs
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The decline was driven by a 34% drop in new HIV infections among 13- to 24-year-olds, according to the data. The U.S. has set a national goal to end the HIV epidemic by reducing new infections 90% by 2030. About 40% of new infections within the gay community were among Black men and 35% were among Hispanic men, according to the data. Among heterosexual women, 60% of new infections were among Black women. Among heterosexual men, about 61% of new infections were among Black men, according to the CDC.

☆ CDC urges mpox vaccination among people at high risk to prevent summer surge
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The patients in the Chicago cluster all have mild symptoms, according Demetre Daskalakis, deputy head of the White house mpox task force. Many of the people who caught mpox in the Chicago cluster were fully vaccinated against the virus, raising questions about whether immunity from the shots might wane over time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday urged gay men and other individuals at high risk from mpox to get fully vaccinated to prevent a summer resurgence of the virus. Though the estimates of mpox vaccine effectiveness vary, Daskalakis said the message is clear: "One dose is good, two doses are better." It's also possible that the vaccine the patients in the Chicago cluster received were compromised in some way or weren't administered properly, he said.

☆ Here's why Covid vaccines will still be free for uninsured Americans as public health emergency ends
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Vanessa Leroy | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesBut the vast majority of Americans will not have to pay out of pocket for Covid vaccines even after the federal government's stockpile runs out. Insured Americans will be able to access Covid shots as part of their coverage, without having to pay out of pocket. Under the arrangement, the CDC will continue to purchase Covid vaccines at a discount and distribute them through 64 state and local health departments. That HHS effort will leverage the "public commitments" by drug manufacturers to provide free Covid vaccines and treatments to uninsured people. Pfizer and Moderna have not said whether they would supply free shots to pharmacies.

☆ MSC cruise ship fails health inspection with the lowest score in years after CDC finds a door handle covered in hamburger blood and yogurt containers with 'black filth residue'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The cruise ship MSC Seaside failed its CDC's sanitation inspection on April 27, records show. The vessel received a 67 out of 100 — the lowest score a cruise ship has received in five years. The cruise ship MSC Seaside failed the CDC's vessel sanitation inspection at the end of April with an unusually low score. The vessel received 67 out of 100 points, nearly twenty points below the agency's passing grade. In the past 10 years, only three other cruise ships have received sanitation scores below 70, CDC records show.

☆ CDC will have less data to track Covid and new variants after public health emergency ends
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"The end of the public health emergency means CDC will have less authority to collect certain types of public health data — that means less data will be available to us," Dr. Nirav Shah, the CDC's principal deputy director, told reporters during a call Thursday. Congress required these labs in March 2020 to send results to the federal government, but that mandate was tied to the public health emergency. "In some of the jurisdictions or some of the states those authorities will go away with the end of public health emergency," he said. The spotty reporting of case data also means the CDC will no longer report virus transmission at the county level after the public health emergency ends. Shah said the CDC will still have ways to monitor Covid after the public health emergency ends.

"The end of the COVID-19 public health emergency marks a tremendous transition for our country, for public health, and in my tenure as CDC Director," Walensky wrote to President Joe Biden in her resignation letter. "We have all benefited from her service and dedication to public health, and I wish her the best in her next chapter," Biden said in a statement. "For 75 years, CDC and public health have been preparing for COVID-19, and in our big moment, our performance did not reliably meet expectations," she told CDC staff last summer. Public health experts said Walensky wrestled with political and technical challenges during her tenure. "Dr. Walensky was put into place at the CDC at a time when the agency was basically captive to politicians which clearly hampered her ability to lead," he said.

WASHINGTON, May 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday it would stop reporting or monitoring COVID-19 case data and transmission rates after the government ends the pandemic's public health emergency designation next week. The government on May 11 will end the COVID-19 public health emergency that allowed millions of Americans to receive vaccines, tests, and treatments at no cost during the pandemic. "The changes that we're discussing today are happening because the end of the Public Health Emergency means that CDC will have less authority to collect certain types of public health data," said CDC Principal Deputy Director Dr. Nirav Shah. The CDC will continue to provide COVID death rates but will no longer rely on aggregate case data reported by local jurisdictions and will instead use national death certificate data, Jackson said. COVID-19 surveillance will be folded into a wider integrated strategy for monitoring respiratory viruses, he said, adding that some data reporting including demographic case data, the CDC's work on long COVID, and wastewater surveillance for the virus will continue past May 11.

☆ Gilead Sciences battles U.S. government in court over HIV prevention patent
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. is trying to enforce four patents issued to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on a two-drug regimen known as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP for short. The government accuses Gilead of reaping billions of dollars in PrEP sales without paying royalties to the CDC. Gilead has rejected U.S. allegations that the company's sales of its PrEP oral medications, Truvada and Descovy, infringe on any CDC patents. "Indeed, Gilead has reaped billions from PrEP through the sale of Truvada and Descovy, but has not paid any royalties to CDC." Gilead rejects CDC claims that agency scientists developed the the PrEP regimen.

Foster City, California-based Gilead collaborated with the CDC in the mid-2000s to test if Truvada could prevent HIV as well as treat it. The government received four patents for HIV prevention drug regimens that CDC researchers invented. Its lawsuit claims the patents also cover Gilead's pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) drug regimen for lowering HIV infection risk. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Gilead's Truvada for HIV prevention in 2012 and approved its related drug Descovy for the same purpose in 2019. Descovy, which earned Gilead over $1.8 billion last year, is its fourth-best selling drug behind the HIV drugs Biktarvy and Genvoya and COVID-19 treatment Veklury.

☆ Candida auris fungus spreading in U.S. hospitals - CDC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

FollowMarch 21 (Reuters) - Potentially deadly fungal infections with Candida auris are spreading rapidly in U.S. healthcare facilities, with cases nearly doubling between 2020 and 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. A high fever with chills that does not get better after taking antibiotics may be a sign of Candida auris infection. The CDC noted that spread of the infections in 2021 may have been exacerbated as the healthcare system was hit by pandemic-related stressors, such as staff and equipment shortages. Other countries have also reported increased spread of the fungus, the researchers said. Reporting by Leroy Leo in Bengaluru; editing by Caroline Humer, Nancy Lapid and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Pregnancy-related deaths in US surged during pandemic - CDC
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Mariam Esunny | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The United States has one of the highest rates of pregnancy-related deaths among developed countries. It recorded more than 1,200 deaths in pregnant women in 2021, compared with 861 in 2020 and 754 in 2019, according to CDC data. About 32.9 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births were reported in 2021, compared with 23.8 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020 and 20.1 in 2019. The mortality rate for Black women in the United States was at 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021, about 3 times higher than white and Hispanic women. UN agencies reported last month that nearly all parts of the world saw a spike in maternal mortality rates in 2020.

☆ More than 300 people on one of Princess Cruises' ships fell ill and suffered from vomiting and diarrhea, CDC says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

More than 300 people became sick on one of Princess Cruises' ships, the CDC said. Princess Cruises said it was a "mild gastrointestinal illness" likely caused by norovirus. In a statement to Insider, Princess Cruises described the sickness as a "mild gastrointestinal illness." The company said it was likely caused by norovirus, a stomach bug that causes vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, and stomach pain. COVID-19 outbreaks occurred on many cruise ships during the pandemic.

☆ U.S. CDC issues advisory after confirmed measles case in Kentucky
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 3 (Reuters) - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday it was issuing a health alert advisory to notify clinics and public health officials to be watchful after a case of measles was confirmed at a large gathering in Kentucky. On Feb. 24, the Kentucky Department for Public Health identified a confirmed case of measles in an unvaccinated individual with a history of recent international travel, the CDC said. The CDC said doctors should consider measles as a diagnosis with anyone with clinically compatible symptoms. The agency also asked physicians to recommend measles, mumps and rubella shots for patients who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated. The advisory also recommends healthcare professionals to immediately notify local or state health departments about any suspected case of measles to ensure rapid testing following the CDC's testing recommendations.

Those who experience a "gray divorce" can still retire comfortably by making vital life decisions. Spousal support plays a key roleAfter you do your budgeting, you might realize that you have to live with a lot less. Whether you're the one giving spousal support or receiving it, that number will make a huge difference in your financial future. Depending on your state, spousal support may not continue past the retirement age for Social Security, Harounian added. So if you get divorced at 60, you may only receive or give spousal support for five more years.

☆ Not enough data to support multiple annual COVID boosters, U.S. CDC advisers say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Aditya Samal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A general view of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia September 30, 2014. The CDC advisers did not vote on new recommendations for how the COVID-19 shots should be administered on Friday. But ACIP advised showing flexibility in recommendations for those with compromised or weakened immune systems to allow more frequent doses for those most vulnerable to severe COVID. About 53.3 million people in the United States - around 16% of the U.S. population - have received a COVID-19 booster shot since updated versions of the vaccines were authorized in September. That compares with 230 million people, around 70% of the population, that received an initial two-dose series of the COVID vaccines.

☆ Analysis: Why public health officials are not panicked about bird flu
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Julie Steenhuysen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

They say the attributes that have made this virus thrive in wild birds likely make it less infectious to people. Although the exact changes required for a bird flu virus to become easily transmissible in people are not known, a pair of landmark studies done a decade ago offer some clues. Mink have both avian and human-type receptors, but avian receptors are scarce in humans and located deep in the lungs. That change is a must if a bird flu virus is to spread easily in people. None of the experts discounted the possibility that H5N1 or another avian flu virus could mutate and spark a pandemic, and many believe the world has not seen its last flu pandemic.

☆ Flu vaccine was 68% effective at preventing hospitalization in children but less protective for seniors this season
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Paquita Bonillo, 84 years old, receives the fourth dose of Covid-19 and flu vaccine in the garden of the Feixa Llarga nursing home on September 26, 2022 in Barcelona, Spain. The flu vaccine has been 68% effective at preventing hospitalizations in children but has been less protective for seniors this season, according to preliminary data released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccine was 35% effective at preventing hospitalization for seniors in one study, and 42% effective in a second analysis. The flu hit early this season, as the weekly hospitalization rate peaked in December and has declined since then, according to CDC data. More than 100 children have died from the flu this season.

☆ Teen girls seeing 'dramatic' rise in poor mental health - U.S. CDC
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Nandhini Srinivasan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The data shows a "dramatic" rise in experiences of violence, poor mental health and suicide risk in teens, especially in girls, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control said on Monday. "The levels of poor mental health and suicidal thoughts and behaviors recorded by teenage girls are now higher than we have ever seen," said CDC's Kathleen Ethier told reporters. The current study did not examine the cause of the spike but the CDC noted there was also a 20% increase in reports of sexual violence among high school girls since 2017, when the agency started monitoring this measure. "CDC and many other researchers have looked at this and we know that with sexual violence, it is associated with mental health issues, substance use and also long-term health consequences," CDC's Debra Houry said. Overall, 42% of high school students felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for at least two weeks in a row that they stopped their usual activities.

HONG KONG, Feb 8 (Reuters) - The world should "calm down" about the possibility of new COVID-19 variants circulating in China, leading Chinese scientist George Gao said. "The world should completely calm down from the fear that there are new variants or special variants circulating (in China)," Gao, professor at the Institute of Microbiology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and former head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told Reuters. The variants causing infections in China were the same Omicron sub-variants - BA.5.2 and BF.7 - seen elsewhere in the world, he said by email. Gao said China was continuing widespread viral genomic sequencing, and would identify any new variants if they emerged. A total of 13 cases of variants were found, including 1 case of XBB.1, 5 cases of BQ.1.1, 1 case of BQ.1.1.17, 4 cases of BQ.1.2 and 2 cases of BQ.1.8.

☆ White House opposes bill to lift foreign air visitor vaccination rule
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - The White House said Tuesday it opposes legislation before Congress that would end a requirement that most foreign air travelers be vaccinated against COVID-19. Currently, adult visitors to the United States who are not citizens or permanent residents must show proof of vaccination before boarding their flight, with some limited exceptions. The White House plans to end the COVID public health emergency on May 11. "As we approach the end of the public health emergency, the administration will review all relevant policies, including this one," the White House said. In December, the United States imposed mandatory negative COVID test requirements on most travelers from China as COVID infections rocketed there.

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