Health
Related to factors impacting health and healthcare (pandemics, healthcare regulation, new drugs)
May 24, 2022
On May 23rd, the White House announced that a military plane had landed in Indiana carrying 78,000 pounds of Nestlé specialty infant formula under the Biden administration's Operation Fly Formula. Operation Fly Formula was launched to speed up the importation of baby formula into the US in response to the ongoing nationwide shortage.
May 23, 2022
The World Health Organization has revealed in a press release that, as of the 21st of May, 92 confirmed cases and 28 suspected cases of monkeypox had been reported from 12 Member States. The recent outbreaks have occurred in non-endemic countries (that is, not in Central or West Africa), baffling experts. Most will not need to be hospitalized after contracting monkeypox. However, infections can occasionally lead to death.
May 23, 2022
Covid cases in Shanghai have fallen to a two-month low, with no new community infections being recorded in two days. Cases fell 28.3% to 622 on Saturday, the lowest since the 758 recorded on March 20.
May 22, 2022
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials stated that a sixth child in the United States has died after contracting acute hepatitis. Officials on Friday said the child was among 71 additional cases of hepatitis among children nationally identified in the past two weeks, bringing the total number of infections to 180 in the past seven months.
May 21, 2022
Canada's public health agency has confirmed two cases of monkeypox in the country. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) stated, "Tonight, the Province of Quebec was notified that two samples received by the NML have tested positive for monkeypox. These are the first two cases confirmed in Canada."
May 21, 2022
The Biden administration is planning to fly hundreds of pallets of baby formula from Europe to counter the shortage of infant food in the US. President Biden launched Operation Fly Formula to hasten the import of infant formula to mitigate the shortage.
May 19, 2022
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has detected 2 new cases of monkeypox which carry the possibility of having been acquired through community transmission. The UKHSA stated, "The latest cases bring the total number of monkeypox cases confirmed in England since 6 May to 9, with recent cases predominantly in gay, bisexual or men who have sex with men (MSM)."
May 14, 2022
The US House Committee on Oversight and Reform requested information from four baby formula manufacturers, addressing the nationwide shortage of infant food. The four companies controlling nearly 90% of the US market for infant food are Abbott Nutrition, Mead Johnson Nutrition, Nestle USA, and Perrigo Company.
May 13, 2022
Speaking in Vienna, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was deeply concerned about the possibility of hunger spreading globally as the Ukraine war threatens food security. The Ukraine war has affected the shipping of grains and other commodities from Ukraine and Russia via the Black Sea.
May 12, 2022
Provisional data released by the CDC has estimated that there were a total of 107,622 drug overdose deaths in the US in 2021. Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, Dr. Nora Volkow, called the numbers "truly staggering" and stated that it was indicative of a "continuation of an awful trend."