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☆ Inside the stunning unraveling of Bright Health, a health-insurance upstart that rocketed to an $11.2 billion valuation and then cratered as it grew too fast
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Bright Health Group grew fast. "We're just starting to realize the full potential of our differentiated model, and we're excited about the future of Bright Health Group," Bright CEO G. Mike Mikan told analysts at that investor event. Bright Health is one of a handful of upstarts trying to take on the health-insurance industry. Clover Health; Bright Health; Oscar Health; Olivia Reaney/Business InsiderBreaking into the health-insurance industry is tough. Bright moves to cut expensesAs losses mounted in 2021, Bright scrambled to raise capital.

☆ RSV, flu and colds: How to tell when your child is too sick for school
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Madeline Holcombe | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Almost all children catch RSV at some point before they turn 2, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. Here’s how to assess when to keep your child home from school and when to visit the pediatrician, according to experts. Ideally, public health professionals would like it if no child showing symptoms were sent to school or day care, where they could potentially spread infections Schaffner said. Again, here is where schools may have different policies and it becomes important to check with written information, a school administrator or school nurse, Wen said. “Parents should know that treating RSV and other respiratory infections is the bread and butter of pediatricians and emergency physicians,” Wen said.

☆ Twitter is no longer enforcing its Covid misinformation policy
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Donie O'Sullivan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN Business —Twitter said it will no longer enforce its longstanding Covid misinformation policy, yet another sign of how Elon Musk plans to transform the social media company he bought a month ago. In 2020, Twitter developed an extensive set of rules that sought to prohibit “harmful misinformation” about the virus and its vaccines. Between January 2020 and September 2022, Twitter suspended more than 11,000 accounts for breaking Covid misinformation rules and removed almost 100,000 pieces of content that violated those rules, according to statistics published by Twitter. Instead, some Twitter users Monday night spotted a note added to the page on Twitter’s website that outlines its Covid policy. It is possible that among the restored accounts will be some of the 11,000 banned under Twitter’s former Covid misinformation rules.

☆ China's people are protesting the country's severe zero-COVID policies, and public-health experts agree with them
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | Paola Rosa-Aquino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Protests are erupting across China over the country's restrictive zero-COVID policies. Public-health experts say the policies are unsustainable, ineffective, and unnecessarily severe. Without vaccination campaigns targeting older adults, China's lockdowns may only delay a catastrophic COVID wave. Tyrone Siu/ReutersThere is no easy way forward for China, but constant 2020-style lockdowns are not the solution, according to public-health experts, who called the policies unsustainable, ineffective, and irrational. As a result, Huang thinks the zero-COVID lockdowns are completely unwarranted.

But now the states' motion sets the stage for a protracted legal battle that throws the future of the policy in doubt. A record number of migrants have been apprehended at the border since Biden took office in January 2021 and Republicans say ending Title 42 will draw even more crossers. After Sullivan's ruling, the Biden administration said it was making plans to manage the border without the order. The states said in their motion to intervene in the case that border states like Arizona and Texas would face "increased migrant flows" and that wherever migrants end up, "they will impose financial burdens on the states involuntarily hosting them." The states could also take the matter to the U.S. Supreme Court, where there is a majority of conservative justices.

One of the biggest makers of generic drugs, Israeli-based Teva said it aims eventually to secure a 10% global market share of biosimilars. A division of Novartis (NOVN.S), Sandoz is currently the second biggest player after Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) in the biosimilar market by gross sales globally, per IQVIA data, cited by Sandoz. Sandoz launched eight biosimilar drugs between 2017 and 2021, including a version of Bristol-Myers’ multiple myeloma drug Revlimid. The analysis projected the value of the global biosimilar market could more than triple to an estimated $74 billion by 2030. Sandoz and Teva are both working on biosimilars for Humira.

The GVA includes any type of shooting in its analysis including domestic violence, shootings in private homes, gang violence among others. The GVA recorded 610 multiple victim shootings in 2020 and 690 last year, when the pandemic was already easing and the pace of deadly violence increased across the United States. It has been keeping a tally of mass shootings since 2014, when it recorded 273. The GVA counts injuries and deaths in each incident. “Scary to think that in 2016 we recorded 382 mass shootings and now we will probably end 2022 with an estimated 680 mass shootings,” said Herrmann, who based his estimate on the fact that there has been an average of 13 mass shootings a week this year.

The law allows the government to choose 10 drugs to negotiate from among the 50 costliest drugs for Medicare. Even so, Republicans will "chip away" at the drug price negotiation provision and its implementation, said Joel White, founder and president of Horizon Government Affairs. Biden is unlikely to weaken his signature domestic achievement, said Larry Levitt, Executive Vice President for Health Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation. Even Republican support for the drug pricing provision is not guaranteed because it is popular with voters across the political spectrum, he said. "All Republicans voted against drug price negotiation, but they have to tread carefully in any effort to weaken it."

☆ Elections 2022 shows the Latino vote moving to the right. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Keith Humphreys | Keith Humphreys Is The Esther Ting Memorial Professor Of Psychiatry At Stanford University School Of Medicine. He Served As A Drug Policy Advisor In The Bush | Obama White Houses | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

In the five years prior to the pandemic, Hispanic median household income grew more than twice as much as whites. It follows that, just as people rarely consider quitting jobs or divorcing spouses that they like, they find political change unappealing when they are satisfied with their life situation. There are certainly many Hispanic Americans who are poor and oppressed, but there’s considerable evidence that many are doing better than ever. In this year’s entering class at the University of California, the largest racial and ethnic group is Hispanics. But it’s easy for political junkies to assume that most people follow political nuances closely, when in fact they don’t.

The Food and Drug Administration is pushing for drugmakers to apply for over-the-counter approval for naloxone, the opioid overdose antidote. Naloxone is only offered as a prescription, though many states have found work-arounds to make the drug easier to get. By making the medication available over the counter, it removes stigma, said Dr. Scott Hadland, an addiction specialist at Mass General for Children in Boston. Nearly 20,000 deaths from overdose, between 1999 and 2020, have been prevented by the self-administering of naloxone, according to the FDA. The FDA noted that over-the-counter naloxone will not divert supplies away from community-based naloxone distribution programs and hospitals.

Now, a woman from Austin, Texas, has come forward because she nearly died when she couldn’t get a timely abortion. “We found out that we were going to lose our baby,” Amanda said. “To see in a matter of maybe five minutes, for her to go from a normal temperature to the condition she was in was really, really scary,” he said. That leaves the Zurawskis scared – and furious that they might never have a family because of a Texas law. She and Josh worry about women in rural areas, or poor women, or young, single mothers in states like Texas.

☆ How to protect your family against Covid-19 illness this Thanksgiving
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Katia Hetter | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

FG Trade/E+/Getty ImagesWhat are steps people can take to protect themselves and their loved ones against Covid-19 during Thanksgiving dinners and other gatherings over the coming holidays? The most important thing we can all do to reduce the likelihood of becoming severely ill is be up-to-date with the Covid-19 vaccine. Of course, masking is a precaution that will reduce risk, though it’s harder to do when attending events with food and drink. The other mitigation measures that help reduce the risk of Covid-19, including ventilation and masking, will also help to reduce other virus transmission. There are steps we can take to reduce risk and allow for happy, in-person reunions over Thanksgiving and other upcoming holidays.

☆ Doctors explain why pending 'ominous' cuts to Medicare would limit healthcare for seniors in the new year
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Reimbursements for doctors who see Medicare patients are set to be cut by up to 8.5% starting next year. Doctors warn cuts will prevent seniors from getting vital health services. Among them are Medicare cuts to doctors through the Physician Fee Schedule, which is used to determine which services doctors are reimbursed for, and how much they get. It affects the quality of care patients are able to get, and can even impact how many Medicare patients a healthcare provider can take on, Shalgain said. "And as that Medicare number goes down, you can't see as many Medicare patients," he said.

☆ Spanish truckers start new strike over freight rules, cost of living
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Truck drivers, who brought Spain to a halt earlier this year, began a new strike on Monday as hundreds marched through the capital Madrid demanding changes to road freight rules and protesting at the cost of living. The month-long strike by truckers in March and April brought Spanish supply chains to a halt, caused food shortages, triggered a bout of inflation and hit quarterly economic growth. The Platform for the Defence of Transport called for another open-ended strike on Monday, seeking changes in road freight regulation to protect margins and keep truckers' costs down. [1/4] Spanish truckers and farmers march to protest over working conditions and fair prices in Madrid, Spain, November 14,2022. ($1 = 0.9668 euros)Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Charlie Devereux, William Maclean and Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The ballot measure amended the state constitution to enshrine expansion for Medicaid health care coverage to all adults who earn up to 138% of the federal poverty level. Eliot Fishman, the senior director of health policy for the health care advocacy group Families USA, said that in South Dakota parents with practically any work income were ineligible for Medicaid. It took over two years, because advocates first pursued the process in South Dakota in October 2020. Supporters cheer for South Dakota Gov. Medicaid expansion, however, would not remain its focus.

☆ Here's what the midterm election results could mean for energy ETFs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Energy has been a key political topic this year, with soaring oil prices leading to discussions about how to boost U.S. energy production. "Sector-focused policy changes would be even more limited under a divided Congress than under Republican control. That could be good news for the clean energy policies pushed in the Inflation Reduction Act, which included several provisions to boost green energy that some Republicans opposed. Some progressive lawmakers had resisted the idea, which could ease the process for approving new oil pipelines and green energy projects. Pipeline funds Tortoise North American Pipeline fund (TPYP) and Global X MPL & Energy Infrastructure ETF (MLPX) were outperforming traditional energy funds on Wednesday, but still lower as oil prices declined.

☆ Market sees divided government after the election as a positive, and a thin GOP majority is good enough
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That would be viewed as a positive by markets, which generally view gridlock in Washington as a good thing and clearly prefer divided government to the current Democrat-controlled Congress. Therefore, there is no declaration yet of victory for either party in the House or Senate. "We think Republicans will have the [House] majority, but it's going to be a very narrow majority," said Ed Mills, Washington policy analyst at Raymond James. "The more you can keep the fight between the House and Senate, that slightly reduces some of the brinksmanship out there." "Sector-focused policy changes would be even more limited under a divided Congress than under Republican control," the Goldman analysts note.

☆ New U.S. cancer drug prices rise 53% in five years -report
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Deena Beasley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"I do think there is a possibility we see launch prices go up," she said. Reuters GraphicsPorter, who championed inflation-based caps on drug prices, is calling for additional national legislation to link launch prices to how well a drug works. The report found that the average launch price of a self-administered cancer drug, after adjusting for inflation, rose by nearly 26% to $238,000 between 2017 and 2021. By 2022, six out of the eight newly-launched oral cancer drugs had prices over $200,000 per year. Based on current trends, the report calculated that by 2026, when Medicare will first be able to negotiate drug prices, the average self-administered cancer drug launch price will be nearly $325,000 per year and over $525,000 for pills and biologics.

☆ Far-right figures gained thousands of new Twitter followers in the 24 hours before Elon Musk's takeover, research company finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Far-right figures gained thousands of new Twitter followers in the 24 hours before Musk took over. Among these new followers, thousands were new to the platform, researchers told The New York Times. Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert gained almost 18,700 new followers in the 24 hours leading up to Musk's takeover, with nearly half from new accounts. Memetica CEO Ben Decker told Insider the findings were alarming because those who gained followers "are really well-known purveyors of disinformation, harassment, and hate." "The more followers and wider reach these accounts have, the more distribution these ideas have," Decker told The New York Times.

☆ Staff shortages make patient surges harder for children’s hospitals – and the situation won’t get better soon
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“We’re extremely overwhelmed,” said Dr. Rishi Lulla, director of pediatric hematology/oncology at Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. Seasonal respiratory viruses fill children’s hospitals every year, but the number of beds that are full now is well above the average. Driving much of the current need for beds at children’s hospitals is a spike in cases of RSV, which are 60% higher than at 2021’s peak. Nurse turnover is up 50% across the country since 2019, according to Mark Wietecha, CEO of the Children’s Hospital Association. Get CNN Health's weekly newsletter Sign up here to get The Results Are In with Dr. Sanjay Gupta every Tuesday from the CNN Health team.

☆ Millions at risk of losing health insurance if U.S. ends Covid public health emergency in January
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

The Health and Human Services Department will give the public 60 days notice before lifting the public health emergency, Becerra said. The health emergency also allowed millions of people to receive increased food benefits through the federal government's nutrition program. When the public health emergency does end, HHS estimates up to 15 million people will be disenrolled from Medicare and the Children's Health Insurance Program. Millions to lose Medicaid coverageThe most dramatic impact from ending the public health emergency will fall on people enrolled in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program. Trump administration Health Secretary Alex Azar activated the FDA's emergency authorization powers in March 2020, about two months after first declaring the public health emergency.

The doctor sent along the questions and answers and received a resounding “no” from the PR official: “We ask that you do not comment to the NY Times at this time.”“They’re censoring me,” the doctor told CNN. Even when they are permitted to speak about abortion as private citizens, these doctors say, their employers have made it clear that they would prefer the doctors not talk at all, and so they have hesitated to speak up. UT Southwestern isn’t the only medical center that has been hesitant to allow their doctors to speak with the media. About 10 hospitals and medical practices said no, Wade told CNN. And I thought we would use our position as a respected women’s health institution to continue to educate about the impact these laws have on women’s health,” she told CNN.

☆ Recession: Biden acknowledges a 'slight recession' is possible, even if he doesn't think it'll happen
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Maegan Vazquez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

That is we’ll move down slightly,” Biden told Tapper in his first exclusive interview with CNN since taking office, adding later, “It is possible. Look, it’s possible. I don’t anticipate it.”Investors, economists and banks, however, are all warning that the US is likely to enter a recession in the coming months. “Every six months they look down the next six months and say what’s going to happen. “I mean … so much has been accomplished that the idea that … there’s an automaticity to recession is just not … there,” Biden remarked.

☆ Covid death rates higher among Republicans than Democrats, research shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( Aria Bendix | Aria Bendix Is The Breaking Health Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Covid deaths are unevenly distributed among Republicans and Democrats. Excess death rates in Florida and Ohio were 153% higher among Republicans than Democrats during that time, the paper showed. But the June study suggested that Covid vaccine uptake explained just 10% of the partisan gap in the deaths. Both Wallace and Sehgal said their studies shouldn't be misinterpreted as blaming Republicans for Covid deaths. Gerald predicted that the partisan gap in Covid deaths could narrow over time as more people get Covid and acquire immunity, regardless of their vaccination status.

☆ The Inflation Reduction Act aims to lower drug costs — but here’s how Big Pharma could get around it
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Berkeley-Lovelace-Jr.Jpg | Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The Inflation Reduction Act is set to lower drug prices for millions of people in the United States — but experts fear pharmaceutical companies could exploit loopholes in the bill, ultimately keeping prescription costs high for many. The tactics may ultimately threaten the law’s ability to lower drug costs for consumers. Higher prices for new drugsOther experts are concerned about how companies might abuse the inflation rebate rule in the health law. The provision, which takes effect next year, imposes a rebate on drug manufacturers that raise the prices of their medications faster than inflation. By releasing new drugs at higher prices, drug companies will be able to make up for any lost revenue that they would normally receive from steadily raising prices each year, she said.

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