WORLD POPULATION: 8,040,800,125*
YEAR 2050 PROJECTION: 9,800,000,000**
YEAR 2100 PROJECTION: 11,200,000,000**
U.S. POPULATION: 334,962,194***
*https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/
**https://www.un.org/en/desa/world-population-projected-reach-98-billion-2050-and-112-billion-2100
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POLITICS & POLICIES
June 24, 2023: Preventable deaths are a major issue opens in a new tab or window in the U.S. healthcare system, and maternal mortality is one very concerning contributor. For instance, four out of five opens in a new tab or window pregnancy-related deaths are avoidable. Just recently, a medical examiner’s report showed that Olympic medalist Tori Bowie tragically died opens in a new tab or window from childbirth complications. Despite being one of the richest nations in the world, the U.S. has double the number opens in a new tab or window of maternal deaths compared to other developed countries. This is the dangerous reality of being a pregnant person in the U.S.
https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/second-opinions/105169
June 23, 2023: The Health Policy Institute of Ohio has released an action guide that highlights policy options for improving employment, one of the social drivers of infant mortality in Ohio. HPIO recently produced the Social Drivers of Infant Mortality: Recommendations for Action and Accountability in Ohio report as an update to the 2017 A New Approach to Reduce Infant Mortality and Achieve Equity report. The action guide takes a closer look at the employment recommendations in the Action and Accountability report and provides state and local health stakeholders with additional information and tools to support next steps. “Employment that pays a self-sustaining wage and offers health insurance and other benefits can pave the way for good health and positive birth outcomes,” according to the guide. The action guide highlights policies prioritized by HPIO’s Social Drivers of Infant Mortality Advisory Group. For example, one policy recommendation in the brief is for state and local policymakers to expand paid family leave benefits to 12 weeks or more and eliminate or mitigate the impact of waiting periods to access paid leave for public employees. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia have paid family leave laws, as illustrated above. HPIO recently released similar action guides on housing, education and transportation. In the coming weeks, HPIO plans to release another guide on eliminating racism. The guide and additional tools posted on HPIO’s website can be used to prioritize, advocate for and implement the recommendations.
https://www.healthpolicynews.org/
PROGRAMS, PROJECTS, CONFERENCES, GRANTS, AWARDS & EVENTS
May 16, 2023: State, local, territorial and tribal jurisdictions may apply through June 30 for grants of up to $500,000 each for three years to implement interventions to address social determinants of health across four domains: the built environment, community-clinical linkages, food and nutrition security, and social connectedness. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects to award up to five grants focused on implementing established Social Determinants of Health Accelerator Plans. AHA supported legislation that created the accelerator plans.
https://www.aha.org/news/headline/2023-05-16-cdc-announces-grants-address-social-determinants-health
January 13, 2023: CLEVELAND — If they do their work well — they’re the ones we don’t see. We’re talking about public health employees. “Sanitarians, environmental health specialists out there enforcing restaurant safety, helping with any kind of health code violations, people who are in our factories making sure the air quality is safe,” said David Margolius, director of the Cleveland Department of Public Health. Not to mention nurses who do vaccines, those who maintain safety in barbershops and tattoo parlors, help with addiction services and lead in housing. Now a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is now giving those essential workers a leg up. A partnership between the Cleveland Department of Public Health and Case Western Reserve University means the award will help pay tuition for free classes, all the way up to a free masters degree in public health for more than 50 practitioners.
HISTORICAL, REPORTS, DOCUMENTS, DATA & INDEXES
May 18, 2023: Three in five Americans now believe the COVID-19 pandemic is over, according to the latest Axios/Ipsos American Health Index. The survey, which was fielded in the days immediately after the public health emergency ended on May 11, shows that fewer Americans are masking in public compared to earlier this year and very few report taking at-home tests or contracting COVID recently. As COVID recedes from Americans’ collective consciousness, more Americans now believe access to guns is the #1 threat to American public health at the moment and many are wrestling with their attitudes toward gender identity and whether it is okay for adults and teens to decide how they identify. Separately, Americans are broadly opposed to reductions in Medicare or Social Security spending to lower the federal deficit, with significant opposition from both sides of the aisle.
https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/axios-ipsos-american-health-index
RESEARCH
June 24, 2023: Smoking is recognised as a critical public health priority due to its enormous health and economic consequences. Constant monitoring of the effectiveness of tobacco control programs calls for timely population-based data. This study reports the national and sub-national patterns in tobacco consumption among Iranian adults based on the results from the STEPwise approach to chronic disease risk factor surveillance (STEPS) survey 2021. This study was performed through an analysis of the results of the STEPS survey 2021 which had been conducted as a nationally representative cross-sectional study. Participants included Iranian adults aged ≥ 18 years in all provinces of Iran, who were selected via multistage cluster sampling method. Data were analyzed via survey analysis while considering population weights. The total number of participants was 27,874, including 15,395 (55.23%) women and 12,479 (44.77%) men. The all-ages prevalence of current tobacco smoking was 14.01% overall, 4.44% among women, and 25.88% among men. The all-ages prevalence of current cigarette smoking was 9.33% overall, 0.77% among women, and 19.95% among men. The all-ages prevalence of current hookah smoking was 4.5% overall, 3.64% among women, and 5.56% among men. The mean (SD) number of cigarettes smoked per day was 12.41 (10.27) overall, 7.65 (8.09) among women, and 12.64 (10.31) among men. The mean (SD) monthly times of hookah use was 0.42 (7.87) overall, 2.86 (23.46) among women, and 0.3 (6.2) among men. The national all-ages prevalence of second-hand smoking at home was 24.64% overall, 27.38% among women, and 20.26% among men. The national all-ages prevalence of second-hand smoking at work was 19.49% overall, 17.33% among women, and 22.94% among men. The tobacco consumption in Iran remains alarmingly high, indicating the current tobacco control policy implementation level is ineffective and insufficient. This calls for adopting, implementing, and enforcing comprehensive packages of evidence-based tobacco control policies.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-37299-3
June 24, 2023: Ongoing diarrheal disease surveillance throughout Bangladesh over the last decade has revealed seasonal localised cholera outbreaks in Cox’s Bazar, where both Bangladeshi Nationals and Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMNs) reside in densely populated settlements. FDMNs were recently targeted for the largest cholera vaccination campaign in decades. We aimed to infer the epidemic risk of circulating Vibrio cholerae strains by determining if isolates linked to the ongoing global cholera pandemic (“7PET” lineage) were responsible for outbreaks in Cox’s Bazar. We found two sublineages of 7PET in this setting during the study period; one with global distribution, and a second lineage restricted to Asia and the Middle East. These subclades were associated with different disease patterns that could be partially explained by genomic differences. Here we show that as the pandemic V. cholerae lineage circulates in this vulnerable population, without a vaccine intervention, the risk of an epidemic was very high.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-39415-3
DISEASES & DISASTERS
June 23, 2023: KFYR-TV reported that a storm Wednesday night wrecked a manufactured home near Selfridge in south-central North Dakota. Brothers Arlin and Will Lund told the station about 3 inches of rain fell in 20 minutes as their home was destroyed by straight-line winds. The brothers were thrown to opposite sides of the house and their barn was also destroyed.
May 5, 2023: Covid is no longer a global public health emergency, the World Health Organization said Friday. The WHO issued the declaration more than three years ago, on Jan. 30, 2020. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he made the decision following a recommendation from the WHO’s emergency committee, which met on Thursday for the 15th time. “I have accepted that advice,” Tedros said. “It is therefore with great hope that I declare Covid-19 over as a global health emergency.” The WHO’s designation of a “public health emergency of international concern” is reserved for the most serious disease outbreaks. The organization has assigned the label to seven outbreaks since 2007: monkeypox, Covid, Zika, H1N1 flu, polio and Ebola (which has twice been designated an emergency). Globally, Covid deaths have fallen steadily over the last three months, from more than 41,000 weekly deaths at the start of January to around 3,500 on April 24, according to WHO data.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/who-ends-covid-global-health-emergency-rcna83046
TECHNOLOGY
June 22, 2023: The 510(k)-cleared BabySat device is designed for physician-supervised monitoring of babies that healthcare providers determine could benefit from additional oversight at home. Once the wireless sock is placed on the baby’s foot, the device captures pulse rate and oxygen saturation data and sends the information to a mobile app. Owlet’s earlier device, Smart Sock, had similar features but BabySat “has adjusted reading levels,” the company said. Smart Sock is now only available outside the U.S. and Canada and Owlet does not plan to sell the older device in those North American markets. Securing 510(k) clearance for BabySat marks a step in Owlet’s attempt to recover from its regulatory problems even as it continues to deal with the fallout. A class action complaint is advancing through the U.S. legal system and Owlet’s financial position still reflects its recent difficulties.
June 22, 2023: France has emerged as a hotspot for action against Philips. Last year, the French device regulator ordered Philips to repair or replace all of its recalled respiratory devices by the end of 2022. When Philips missed the deadline, the agency applied more pressure to the company and referred the case to a prosecutor who could bring criminal proceedings. In parallel, lawyers behind a collective legal action platform have been preparing cases against Philips. Details of the legal activity became public last week, when attorney Christophe Lèguevaques began civil proceedings and filed a criminal complaint in quick succession. In between the two filings, a toxicologist commissioned by the legal platform delivered findings from an analysis of data on Philips’ devices. The toxicologist said “continuing to expose individuals who believe they are receiving treatment, without their awareness, to [volatile organic compounds] and foam particles, known for their toxicological risks, is tantamount to endangering others.”
https://www.medtechdive.com/news/Philips-PHG-France-lawsuits-respirators-Respiratorgate/653454/
CLIMATE CHANGE & ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
March 7, 2023: The blaze broke out last Thursday, according to Kerala’s fire department. The cause has not been established, but landfill fires can be triggered by combustible gases from disintegrating garbage. Images and video released by officials showed workers racing to extinguish the billowing flames that sent thick plumes of toxic smoke rising high into the sky. While the fire has been largely put out, a thick cloud of smoke and methane gas continues to cover the area, reducing visibility and the city’s air quality, while emitting a lingering, pungent odor. Some firefighters had fainted from the fumes, the fire department said. Kerala’s top court said it will take up the case on Tuesday. India creates more methane from landfill sites than any other country, according to GHGSat, which monitors emissions via satellites. Methane is the second most abundant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide – but it is a more potent contributor to the climate crisis because it traps more heat.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/07/india/india-bhramapuram-landfill-toxic-waste-fire-intl-hnk
March 7, 2023: The Biden administration is expected to make a decision soon on whether to approve the controversial Willow Project in Alaska. ConocoPhillips’ massive Willow oil drilling project on Alaska’s North Slope has been moving through the administration’s approval process for months, galvanizing a sudden uprising of online activism against it, including more than one million letters written to the White House in protest of the project, and a Change.org petition with more than 2.9 million signatures. Here’s what to know about the Willow Project.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/07/politics/willow-project-alaska-oil-explained-climate
EQUITY & DISPARITIES
June 19, 2023: “That is an urgent call to action,” said Jay Bhatt, DO, MPH, the institute’s director. “It’s not just the right thing to do, there’s a business imperative.” The Deloitte Health Equity Institute report says health inequities account for roughly $42 billion in lost productivity annually and add about $15.6 billion in unnecessary spending associated with diabetes and $2.4 billion treating asthma. These costs are the result of delayed care, access barriers, missed diagnoses and limited access to preventive services and scientific advances. “Health equity is everyone’s business,” Dr. Bhatt told attendees at the Executives’ Club of Chicago’s inaugural Healthcare Summit, hosted by Deloitte. “As a company, if you have employees, you’re a health company because of the support that your employees need when it comes to their health and well-being,” he added.
https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/health-equity/inequity-damages-health-and-drains-economy
June 12, 2023: Throughout the pandemic, the AMA Code of Medical Ethics provided all-important ethical guidance on how to provide equitable care, including through Principle IX of the AMA Principles of Medical Ethics, which enjoins physicians to “support access to care for all people.” Nevertheless, “additional guidance is needed to explicitly address the ethical implications of social forces that drive how and to whom health care is provided,” according to an AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs report whose recommendations were adopted at the 2023 AMA Annual Meeting. “To make meaningful progress in achieving equitable care, physicians must recognize how the pathologies of social systems impact their patients’ lives,” said AMA Trustee David H. Aizuss, MD. “The commitment to serve patients in need means that we have an obligation to examine prevailing attitudes, habits, policies and practices that determine what care is available to who and to take steps to remove or re-engineer obstacles that undermine the ability to ensure equitable care for all.”
WOMEN, MATERNAL, NEONATAL & CHILDREN’S HEALTH
June 24, 2023: It took 12 years for Allison Tuckman to get an accurate diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome, then another 10 to find a treatment to help keep her most severe symptoms in check. Now that she’s finally found a drug that works, the 44-year-old from Manalapan, New Jersey, says there’s no going back. “I’ll be taking it ‘till the end of time,” she said. That medication happens to be semaglutide, the same drug in high demand largely for its effects on weight loss. It’s approved under the name Ozempic for Type 2 diabetes and under the name Wegovy for weight loss. Semaglutide falls into a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists, which also includes the diabetes drugs Mounjaro and Victoza, among others. Since the drugs flooded the scene, there have been reports of other potential uses for them, to treat conditions ranging from PCOS to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, addiction, alcohol use disorder, liver disease and possibly cancer.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/ozempic-other-health-conditions-pcos-alzheimers-rcna90457
June 23, 2023: WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Friday will sign an executive order designed to protect and expand access to contraception after a Supreme Court ruling last year overturning the constitutional right to abortion raised fears that birth control could also face restrictions. Biden senior adviser Jen Klein told reporters that the order will increase ways for women to access contraception and lower out-of-pocket costs. Klein said the order directs federal departments to consider requiring private insurers to offer expanded contraception options under the Affordable Care Act such as by covering more than one product and streamlining the process for obtaining care.
POVERTY ALLEVIATION & ERADICATION
June 21, 2023: Forced displacement is a complex development challenge that requires host countries to have access to robust, reliable and timely data in order to be able to respond effectively. Although forced displacement disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries, where nearly 75 percent of the world’s refugees live, the bulk of relevant data currently comes from high-income countries. Building on recent World Bank efforts to collect representative data on forcibly displaced peoples (FDPs) and their hosts in several countries, the Bank has invested in a harmonization effort of representative surveys covering 10 countries across five regions that hosted displaced people in the period 2015-2020. The findings from the harmonized surveys are summarized in three Policy Briefs.
The World Bank Group’s goals are to end extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity. This mission underpins our analytical, operational, and convening work in about 140 client countries. Dive into our country poverty assessments to learn more about countries’ journeys to eradicate extreme poverty and reduce inequality.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/world-bank-country-poverty-assessments
HUMANITARIAN, NONPROFITS, FOUNDATIONS & NGOS
April 2, 2023: Kaiser Foundation Hospitals’ new nonprofit organization Risant Health is acquiring Geisinger Health as the first health system to join the organization. Upon regulatory approval, Geisinger will become part of the new organization through acquisition, according to Kaiser. The move was announced Wednesday by both the Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Geisinger Health. The definitive agreement will make Geisinger the first health system to join Risant Health. Geisinger will maintain its name and mission and will continue to work with other health plans, employed physicians and independent providers. The Pennsylvania-based health system gains Risant Health’s value-based platform for care practices and capabilities in areas such as care model design, pharmacy, consumer digital engagement, health plan product development and purchasing, Kaiser said in the release. As the first health system to become part of Risant Health, Geisinger will participate in developing the organization’s strategy and operational model.
February 27, 2023: More than half of U.S. hospitals are nonprofit, meaning they receive generous tax exemptions in exchange for benefiting their communities. Many aren’t fulfilling that mission. Some nonprofits have billed patients who should have qualified for charity care, racking up billions of dollars in charges. Some have aggressively collected on medical debt through legal action or reports to credit agencies. Others have exploited poor communities by maintaining a token presence there to qualify for federal subsidies that benefit the needy, only to expand in rich communities. At least one institution has explicitly set up care pathways that prioritize the elite at the expense of the general public.
IH CONNECT 