CDC director Walensky tests positive for COVID-19

CDC director Walensky tests positive for COVID-19

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday, according to a release from the agency. Walensky tested positive Friday night and is experiencing mild symptoms, the CDC said. The director is isolating at her home and will participate in planned meetings virtually in accordance with CDC guidelines.  CDC senior staff and Walensky’s […]

Is it safe to use mouth tape for sleeping?

Is it safe to use mouth tape for sleeping?

It’s easy to tell when you get good sleep. You feel rested, alert and ready to tackle the day.  But good sleep quality isn’t always easy to achieve. For some people, they breathe through their mouth, which might lead to trouble sleeping.  Mouth breathing can be a nuisance. It can cause a dry or scratchy throat, bad breath and snoring. […]

About 1,000 students absent from a Virginia high school with flu-like symptoms

About 1,000 students absent from a Virginia high school with flu-like symptoms

A Virginia high school canceled all activities this weekend after almost half of its students called in absent this week due to a flu-like illness. “Due to the high number of student and staff illnesses reported this week, all Stafford High School activities and athletics scheduled through Sunday, October 23, are canceled,” wrote Stafford High’s official Facebook account on Friday. […]

Here’s what you need to know about the respiratory disease surging among children

Here’s what you need to know about the respiratory disease surging among children

A virus common among young children is surging in the U.S. and sparking concerns that hospitals could become overwhelmed this year by potential winter spikes in both the flu and COVID-19.  Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is extremely common, with nearly everyone having been exposed to the pathogen by the time they’re 2 years old. In healthy adults and older children, RSV typically causes mild, […]

FDA’s AI Medical Device Approvals

FDA’s AI Medical Device Approvals

In recent years, FDA has approved a number of pieces of software that use artificial intelligence (AI) under its medical device approval system. FDA approved only 5 AI-power medical devices in 2015, but approved 115 of these in 2021 and likely will approve even more in 2022. Which companies are the ones with the most […]

Health Care — Pfizer plans price hike on its COVID vaccine

Health Care — Pfizer plans price hike on its COVID vaccine

A Massachusetts woman is accused of “weaponizing honeybees” against a group of police officers. She wasn’t even the person the officers had been sent to deal with.  In health news, Pfizer is eyeing a major price hike of its coronavirus vaccine once the government’s pandemic-era contract runs out.   Welcome to Overnight Health Care, where we’re following the latest moves on policy and […]

DOJ requests more info on CVS, Signify deal

Listen to the article 2 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Dive Brief: CVS Health and Signify have received a request for more information from the Department of Justice about CVS’ $8 billion acquisition of the home health provider, the pharmacy giant disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The […]

Abbott Nutrition plans $500 million infant formula manufacturing facility amid continued shortages

Abbott Nutrition plans $500 million infant formula manufacturing facility amid continued shortages

Abbott Nutrition says it plans to build a new $500 million facility for specialty and metabolic infant formulas, amid calls from advocates and experts that there needs to be more domestic manufacturing and diversity in the supply chain. The company in an earnings call this week said it also made leadership changes at its Sturgis, Mich., baby formula manufacturing plant […]

Investing in social services will improve population health, execs from Kaiser & Mass General Brigham say – MedCity News

Investing in social services will improve population health, execs from Kaiser & Mass General Brigham say – MedCity News

Health maintenance is in some ways overmedicalized in the U.S., executives from major health systems said Thursday at Reuters’ Total Health conference in Chicago.  The panelists agreed that treatments and procedures aren’t the only ways to support patients’ health and said that providers would be wise to place more emphasis on integrating social services into their care models. “We fail […]

CMS to crack down on poor-performing nursing homes

CMS to crack down on poor-performing nursing homes

Nursing homes that consistently perform the worst compared with their peers will have to meet tougher standards and demonstrate systemic quality improvements in order to avoid enforcement actions, including being excluded from Medicare and Medicaid, the Health and Human Services Department announced Friday. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is revising the Special Focus Facility Program, which addresses poor nursing home […]