Check today’s KFF Health News
About pharma
The US relies on China for key medicines. They won’t be spared from tariffs “President Trump’s tariffs in China are in place and hitting all products imported from the country — including a number of pharmaceutical drugs that Americans rely upon.
Chinese imports account for a significant proportion of U.S. prescriptions and over the counter drugs. Many of the Chinese-produced drugs are generics, which account for 91 percent of prescriptions dispensed in the U.S.”
Hims & Hers faces scrutiny from senators on Super Bowl ad that ‘risks misleading’ patients “Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Roger Marshall, R-Kan., wrote a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday expressing concerns over an ‘upcoming advertisement’ that ‘risks misleading patients by omitting any safety or side effect information when promoting a specific type of weight loss medication.’”
Also, their drug is compounded, which avoids direct FDA scrutiny.
About the public’s health
Flu season in the US is the most intense it’s been in at least 15 years “One indicator of flu activity is the percentage of doctor’s office visits driven by flu-like symptoms. Last week, that number was clearly higher than the peak of any winter flu season since 2009-2010, when a swine flu pandemic hit the nation, according to data posted Friday morning by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”
Measles outbreak expands in West Texas around county with low vaccination rate A measles outbreak is growing in a rural area of West Texas where vaccination rates are well below the recommended level.
In late January, two children in Gaines County were hospitalized for measles. On Wednesday, the state health department shared in a health alert that the number of confirmed cases had grown to six. As of Friday afternoon, the outbreak has jumped to 14 confirmed cases and six probable cases among people who are symptomatic and had close contact with infected individuals, Zach Holbrooks, executive director of the South Plains Public Health District, told CNN.”
About healthcare technology
BD bids farewell to its diagnostic, bioscience divisions with company split “After parting ways with its diabetes franchise nearly three years ago, BD is slimming down even further with a plan to divest its diagnostic and biosciences businesses as the company nears the finish line in its five-year ‘BD 2025’ strategy.
The ‘New BD,’ as the company describes it, will continue on as a pure-play medtech company with its enterprises in medical essentials—such as its ubiquitous hardware for collecting blood samples and delivering IV medications, which number in the tens of billions of units per year—as well as its interventional devices and connected care programs, with the latter including the recent acquisitions from Edwards Lifesciences.”
About healthcare personnel
Physicians working more but generating less revenue Physician productivity and pay increased during the fourth quarter of 2024, but reimbursement for hospitals remained low, according to Kaufman Hall's Physician Flash Report.
The report, issued Feb. 4, includes data from 200,000 providers showing the investment or subsidy per physician was up 5% to $306,792 and work relative value units increased 8% to 6,313 year over year for the quarter.