Read today’s Kaiser Health News
In other news:
NIH moving to ban grants to universities with DEI programs, Israeli boycotts: The National Institutes of Health says it will pull medical research funding from universities with diversity and inclusion programs and any boycotts of Israeli companies, according to a policy note issued Monday.
The agency “reserves the right to terminate financial assistance awards and recover all funds” if grant recipients do not comply with federal guidelines barring diversity and equity research and “prohibited boycotts,” the notice stated.
About Covid-19
Studies across 14 nations show 25% to 30% rate of long COVID: Among the 25.1% of participants who said they experienced long-COVID symptoms, 12.8% reported sleeping disorders, 9.8% reported joint pain, 8.7% had fatigue, and 8.1% noted headaches. Almost a third of participants (29.8%) from lower middle-income countries said they had long COVID, compared with 14.4% in high-income countries (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.53; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10 to 2.14).
The highest long-COVID prevalence was seen in patients with Arab/North African ethnicity (36.1%), and hospitalized patient were also at increased risk of long COVID (aOR, 2.04; 95% CI, 1.63 to 2.54).
About health insurance/insurers
U.S. Supreme Court appears likely to uphold ACA preventive care coverage mandate: The Supreme Court seemed likely to uphold a key preventive-care provision of the Affordable Care Act in a case heard Monday.
Conservative justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett appeared skeptical of arguments that Obamacare’s process for deciding which services must be fully covered by private insurance is unconstitutional.
About pharma
Walgreens paying up to $350M as it tries to close the book on opioid lawsuits: Walgreens Boots Alliance has agreed to pay a $300 million settlement to resolve allegations that the pharmacy chain illegally filled invalid opioid prescriptions and filed false Medicare claims for the invalid prescriptions, federal agencies announced this morning.
The settlement further states that Walgreens will have to pay an additional $50 million if it is sold, merged or transferred before fiscal year 2032.
That eventuality seems likely, as Walgreens in the midst of a turnaround strategy and in March announced it is pursuing a private-equity sale.
About the public’s health
Differential Associations of Cigar, Pipe, and Smokeless Tobacco Use Versus Combustible Cigarette Use With Subclinical Markers of Inflammation, Thrombosis, and Atherosclerosis: The Cross-Cohort Collaboration–Tobacco Working Group: Use of noncigarette tobacco products is linked to subclinical markers related to cardiovascular harm. Inflammatory markers, such as high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and interleukin-6, have the potential for assessing early cardiovascular harm from using these products and aiding regulatory authorities in evaluating their associated risks.
China’s restrictions on rare earths could hurt U.S. health care Among these metals used for healthcare applications are gadolinium, lutetium and yttrium.