Research published Friday shows various acute respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, influenza and the common cold, may present with long-term symptoms, similar to COVID-19. “Long cold” symptoms could linger for up to four weeks in some cases, much like “long COVID,” the UK-based researchers said. The study tracked more than 10,000 …
Read More »DEA extends pandemic telehealth rules for prescribing controlled substances
The Biden administration on Friday extended flexibilities regarding controlled substances to be prescribed via telemedicine. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) said in a notice it would allow providers to continue using telemedicine to prescribe certain controlled substances through the end of 2024. The temporary rule is meant “to ensure a …
Read More »Will Medicare Part B premiums go up again in 2024?
Next year’s Medicare Part B premiums are expected to be announced soon and there is speculation that coverage of another pricey new Alzheimer’s medication could cause monthly costs to go up, echoing what occurred in 2022. Leqembi received full approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in July, becoming …
Read More »Deadly Bird Flu Reappears in US Commercial Poultry Flocks in Utah and South Dakota
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Highly pathogenic bird flu has made its first appearances in U.S. commercial poultry flocks this season, affecting one turkey farm in South Dakota and one in Utah and raising concerns that more outbreaks could follow. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that avian influenza, which is deadly to commercial …
Read More »Walgreens Pharmacy Staffers Stage Walkouts Over Work Conditions
NEW YORK (AP) — Walgreens has named a new CEO as pharmacy staff walked off the job this week over concerns that working conditions are putting employees and patients at risk. Tim Wentworth, who formerly headed Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit manager, was named CEO as of Oct. 23. Walgreens …
Read More »Pakistan officials consider a new way to boost polio vaccination: prison
KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — Authorities in one Pakistan province are turning to a controversial new tactic in the decades-long initiative to wipe out polio: prison. Last month, the government in Sindh introduced a bill that would imprison parents for up to one month if they fail to get their children …
Read More »Stay Protected This Fall! Everything You Need to Know About COVID, Flu, and RSV Vaccinations!
WASHINGTON (AP) — Updated COVID-19 vaccines may be getting a little easier for adults to find but they’re still frustratingly scarce for young children. Health officials said Thursday the kid shots have started shipping — and reminded most everyone to get a fall flu shot too. About 2 million Americans have gotten …
Read More »Unveiling the FDA’s Surprising Move: Regulating Untouched Lab Tests! You Won’t Believe What They’ve Found!
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration on Friday laid out a proposal to begin regulating laboratory medical tests, a multibillion-dollar industry that the agency says poses a growing risk to patients because of potentially inaccurate results. The proposed rule would end decades of regulatory ambiguity and formally bring …
Read More »Game-Changing STD Protection: The Affordable ‘Morning-After Pill’ for Safe Encounters
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. health officials plan to endorse a common antibiotic as a morning-after pill that gay and bisexual men can use to try to avoid some increasingly common sexually transmitted diseases. The proposed CDC guideline was released Monday, and officials will move to finalize it after a …
Read More »Nebraska Expands Medicaid for New Moms Who Can’t Afford Private Health Insurance
Nebraska will give new moms who cannot afford private health insurance a full year of Medicaid coverage under an order issued this week by Gov. Jim Pillen. Mr. Pillen, a Republican, signed the law enabling the expansion in June, touting it as a show of the state’s commitment to the …
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