U.S. Lockdown Return Debunked; Insurer Eases Prior Auths; Mudder Race Infections?

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The AP debunked misinformation about U.S. plans for early pandemic-style lockdowns and masking mandates.

Meanwhile, a report from the Royal Society found that lockdowns and face masking “unequivocally” reduced the spread of COVID-19. (The Guardian)

After receiving backlash, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services tossed out a plan that might have limited breast cancer patients’ options for reconstructive surgery. (KFF Health News)

Armed with new or updated vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), COVID-19, and the flu, U.S. health officials laid out their plans for the upcoming respiratory season.

As for the cost of the new fall vaccines, that depends on the virus and people’s insurance status. (KFF Health News)

Only 2 weeks into the school year, one Kentucky school district canceled classes for the rest of the week after multiple outbreaks of respiratory illness and strep throat. (NBC News)

Tens of thousands of workers at Kaiser Permanente will soon vote on whether to strike. (Insider)

About 500 patients were potentially exposed to tuberculosis (TB) at an Indiana hospital after a staffer tested positive. (Fox News)

Medicare is taking a closer look into shady hospice practices and fraud. (Axios)

Cigna announced it’s dropping prior authorization requirements for nearly 25% of medical services and said it plans to ditch another 500 for its Medicare Advantage plans by the end of the year. (Healthcare Dive)

West Nile virus remains the most common mosquito-borne disease in the U.S., according to a CDC report.

The FDA issued a voluntary correction Class I recall — not a product removal — for Draeger’s Carina Sub-Acute Care Ventilator because of contaminants in the device’s air path. The vents can still be used in adults, but not pediatric patients.

Several phased-out flame retardants and new endocrine-disrupting replacement chemicals were found in the breast milk of mothers. (NPR)

The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommended the very first requirements to make nursing pillows safer following many infant deaths. (NBC News)

Midwestern health system Allina Health has ended its practice of denying care to patients in debt. (New York Times)

Health data breaches in the first half of 2023 were fewer compared with 2022, but they were larger. (Fierce Healthcare)

UCLA researchers said they recruited 40 times more research patients than usual by embedding study recruitment into patients’ pre-appointment check-in. (Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association)

After surviving acute myeloid leukemia, Tae Butler followed in the footsteps of her pediatric oncologist and is now a fourth-year medical student — and now they even work together. (People)

Around 40% of Texas medical schools possibly used unclaimed bodies for medical education in recent years, raising “ethical concerns regarding the nonconsensual use of human remains,” said JAMA researchers.

Several competitors in a Bay Area “Tough Mudder” race last weekend have fallen ill with possible staph or serious bacterial infections. (ABC7 News)

A pharmaceutical lab agreed to boost protections of South Carolina horseshoe crabs used in medical tests. (Reuters)

A 26-year-old doctor in Japan who died by suicide last year reportedly worked over 200 hours of overtime in just 1 month. (CNN)

The higher rate of complications and deaths Black pregnant women face is “completely preventable,” said a public health official. (KFF Health News)

American nurse Alix Dorsainvil opened up about her time held captive for 13 days in Haiti. (CNN)

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