EPA Imposes New Limit on Medical Sterilization Chemical, Citing Cancer Risk
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule on Thursday that aims to markedly reduce cancer risks for those living near commercial sterilization facilities by lowering toxic emission standards for ethylene oxide. Ethylene oxide, the most commonly used sterilant for medical devices in the U.S., is used for everything from wound dressings to endoscopes […]
Latest COVID Shots Protect Against Serious Outcomes
The recently updated COVID vaccines showed protection against serious virus-related outcomes in immunocompetent adults, data from the CDC’s IVY and VISION networks showed. From September 2023 to January 2024, vaccine effectiveness (VE) against COVID-related emergency department or urgent care encounters landed at 47% (95% CI 44-50), while protection against hospitalizations associated with the coronavirus ranged […]
Fracture Risk Bumped With Testosterone Therapy in Hypogonadal Men
Testosterone treatment didn’t offer protection against fractures in men with hypogonadism, a TRAVERSE subtrial indicated. Compared with placebo, men who were on a testosterone gel actually had a significantly higher risk for fracture (HR 1.43, 95% CI 1.04-1.97), found Peter Snyder, MD, of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, and colleagues. During the median 3.19-year […]
The Case for a Yearly COVID Booster Shot
BOSTON — A yearly booster with an mRNA-based COVID vaccine may provide the best protection against catching the pandemic disease, a new analysis of the phase III COVE trial suggested. “Interestingly, we found that the longer duration between boosting actually provides better protection against COVID-19,” Dean Follmann, PhD, of the National Institute of Allergy and […]
Don’t Forget Mosquito Protection to Prevent West Nile Virus – Wyoming Department of Health
Don’t Forget Mosquito Protection to Prevent West Nile Virus August 10, 2023 With human cases in nearby states and a higher-than-usual number of mosquito pools within Wyoming testing positive for West Nile virus, the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) wants people to remember to protect themselves from mosquito bites. “Wyoming’s reported human West Nile virus […]
Don’t Forget Mosquito Protection to Prevent West Nile Virus – Wyoming Department of Health
Don’t Forget Mosquito Protection to Prevent West Nile Virus August 10, 2023 With human cases in nearby states and a higher-than-usual number of mosquito pools within Wyoming testing positive for West Nile virus, the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) wants people to remember to protect themselves from mosquito bites. “Wyoming’s reported human West Nile virus […]
New Report Warns of Medical Credit Cards, Loans Pushed on Patients
As medical debt continues to saddle many Americans, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is warning against costly medical credit cards and loans that are being pushed on patients. These products can cause patients to pay “significantly more than they would otherwise pay,” the CFPB detailed in a new report. Medical providers can offer alternative […]
Senate Democrats Reintroduce Sweeping Bill To Codify Federal Abortion Protections
A group of Senate Democrats reintroduced the Women’s Health Protection Act on Wednesday evening — legislation that aims to codify federal abortion protections since the Supreme Court repealed its landmark 1973 ruling Roe v. Wade. The legislation, sponsored by Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) and Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), aims to “protect a person’s ability to […]
CDC: Bivalent COVID Vaccines Stop Illness From XBB.1.5
Currently authorized bivalent COVID-19 boosters demonstrated similar protection against symptomatic illness from the XBB/XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariants as from BA.5-related subvariants, according to a CDC study. From December 2022 to January 2023, the bivalent boosters’ vaccine effectiveness (VE) against symptomatic infection was a similar 48% versus XBB/XBB.1.5-related strains and 52% versus BA.5-related sublineages, reported Ruth Link-Gelles, […]
EPA Favors Stricter Air Quality Standards
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) wants to tighten the national annual limit on particulate matter (PM) pollution, according to its proposed updates to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Fine Particulate Matter. Part of the EPA’s plan is to lower the primary (health-based) annual PM2.5 standard down to 9.0-10.0 µg/m3, compared with the […]