Senate Committee Advances HHS Assistant Secretary Nomination
The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 12-11 along party lines Thursday to recommend that Brian Christine, MD, be confirmed as assistant secretary for health at HHS, in addition to five other Trump administration nominees. “These nominees are vital to advancing President Trump’s pro-worker, pro-family, pro-patient agenda,” HELP Committee Chair Sen. Bill […]
Senators Grill NIH Director Nominee on Drug Prices, Gender-Affirming Care
WASHINGTON — Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee questioned Monica Bertagnolli, MD, President Biden’s nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health (NIH), about the high cost of prescription drug prices, the limits of transgender care, and rebuilding faith in the agency, during her confirmation hearing on Wednesday. Biden tapped Bertagnolli, […]
Senate Committee Advances Pandemic Preparedness Legislation
The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 17-3 with relatively little fanfare Thursday to send pandemic preparedness legislation to the full Senate for a vote. “I don’t think any of us will ever forget we have lost over a million Americans from COVID,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chair of the HELP Committee, […]
Cardiac Arrest Growing More Common in the Delivery Room?
Cardiac arrest during labor and delivery appeared more common than previously seen — particularly for older, Black, and low-income pregnant patients — but with better survival rates, according to a national study. Among women admitted for delivery in the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) from 2017 to 2019, cardiac arrest occurred in about one in 9,000 […]
Are U.S. Healthcare Workers Better Off Unionized?
Labor unionization among U.S. healthcare workers was low in recent years, even though union membership or coverage was tied to higher weekly earnings and better non-cash benefits, researchers reported. Out of 14,298 healthcare workers surveyed, 13.2% reported union membership or coverage, with no significant trend from 2009 through 2021, according to Xiaojuan Li, PhD, of […]
Infants exposed to domestic violence have poorer cognitive development: Study explores impact of multiple father figures on infant neurodevelopmental delays
While assessing a pregnant woman with premature labor in 1983, Linda Bullock noticed bruises on the woman. When she asked what happened, the woman told Bullock a refrigerator had fallen on her while cleaning the kitchen. “Something didn’t seem right, but I didn’t know what to say at the time. I just went on to […]
After Pandemic Missteps: Senators Seek Lessons for Future Emergencies
Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee played the blame game for false steps during the pandemic. At a hearing on Tuesday, HELP committee chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said the nation was ill-equipped to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic because of a weak and underfunded public health infrastructure. She called for […]