Health Care


California Confirms First WNV Cases of 2018

The risk of serious illness to most people is low, but some people can develop serious illnesses such as encephalitis or meningitis. In 2017, there were 553 reported WNV cases in California, including 44 deaths.

The rule will require employers to notify OSHA of work-related fatalities within eight hours and work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations, or an employee

Health Canada Regs Would Strengthen Surveillance of Drugs, Medical Devices

The proposed regulations would require hospitals to report all serious adverse drug reactions and medical device incidents, in writing, within 30 days of when the incident was first documented within the hospital.

SAMHSA Updates Toolkit to Help Prevent Opioid Deaths

The toolkit recommends that naloxone be made available to first responders and others who might respond to a possible overdose.

Final Rule Will Streamline Bill Processing for Disabled Miners

The new regulations adopt industry-standard payment formulas derived from those used by Medicare and are similar to those used by other OWCP-administered compensation programs for federal employees, and the rule codifies the black lung program's current payment practice for prescription drug payments.

Research Shows Gaps in Aquaculture Industry Safety, Health

"Aquaculture occupational health and safety is frequently marginalized or lost by government, industry, and sometimes labor organizations," Watterson said.

NIH Outlines Plans for $500 Million to Address Opioid Epidemic

Earlier this year, Congress passed a two-year budget that included $6 billion to address the opioid epidemic and mental health, $500 million of which went to NIH to address the crisis that is causing an estimated 115 U.S. deaths daily.

FDA Issues Draft Guidance to Aid Development of Critical Drugs

FDA is discussing with other agencies changing the model for reimbursement of certain new, anti-microbial drugs that meet critical public health needs, possibly by using a licensing model so that acute care institutions that are most likely to prescribe these medicines would pay a fixed licensing fee for access to the drug.

OSHA Sets Long Timetables for Tree Care, Infectious Disease Standards

The semiannual regulatory flexibility agenda includes rules that are likely to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. Two from OSHA are prerule stage -- Communication Tower Safety and a Tree Care Standard -- and two are long-term actions -- Infectious Diseases and Process Safety Management.



DOL Hails Contingent Worker Report

"Never before in this series of data have these percentages been so low, providing evidence that the 2017 American workforce was more secure in their jobs than at any other time that this survey was taken," DOL said in a statement about the new BLS report.

SAMHSA Offers Opioids Treatment Grants to Hard-Hit States

Thirty-five states and tribal organizations nationwide are eligible to apply. SAMHSA says the desired outcomes of the grant program are to increase the number of people receiving medication-assisted treatment for their opioid use disorder and a decrease in heroin use and prescription opioid misuse.

Bloodborne Pathogens Compliance Still a Concern

Two former OSHA staffers identified the agency's most-cited violations during 25 years of enforcement (1991-2015), presenting their findings at AIHce EXP 2018.

NIOSH and FDA Collaborate to Streamline Regulatory Oversight for N95 Respirators

NIOSH and FDA Collaborate to Streamline Regulatory Oversight for N95 Respirators

Subject to conditions and limitations, some N95s will be exempt from FDA premarket notification requirements, meaning that N95 manufacturers will be able to submit a single application to NIOSH rather than submitting paperwork for clearance and approval from both agencies.

ACGIH Presenting 2018 Awards at AIHce

This year's honorees include Dr. Bennet Omalu, best known for having first identified the disease he named Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in athletes who had competed in high-impact contact sports. He will receive the William Steiger Memorial Award.

Minnesota Fentanyl Deaths Soared in 2017

"This dramatic increase shows that the opioid epidemic in Minnesota has also become a fentanyl public health crisis," said Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm. "These data confirm that Minnesotans addicted to opioids may unknowingly be exposing themselves to far greater and more deadly risks than they know."

Each year, 660,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with cancer related to tobacco use, and 343,000 people die from such cancers, according to CDC.

Most Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Aren't Smoke-Free

People with mental and/or substance use disorders are more than twice as likely to smoke cigarettes as people without such conditions and are more likely to die from a smoking-related illness than from a behavioral health condition, CDC noted, yet many people aren't screened for tobacco use in behavioral health facilities.

New IARC Website Tracks UV Radiation Cancers

The Cancers Attributable to UV Radiation website provides the population attributable fractions associated with UV radiation exposure and will help national decision makers as they set priorities for cancer prevention.

FDA: U.S. Experiencing EpiPen Shortage

The FDA said the spot shortages don't mean patients cannot obtain EpiPens or generics, but they may have to look harder or use a different brand.

Random Drug Screening Urged for FECA Program Patients

During a Capitol Hill hearing May 8 on the opioid epidemic's implications for the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, one witness said the program must build an approach that includes random screening for all patients who are prescribed opioids.

Largest-Ever Cholera Vaccine Campaign Announced

By mid-June, oral cholera vaccine will be provided to more than 2 million people through campaigns in Zambia, Uganda, Malawi, South Sudan, and Nigeria.

Michigan Reports Progress Against Opioid Use

The number of opioid prescriptions issued in 2071 was 10.7 percent below the number in 2015, and the overall number of schedules 2-5 controlled substance prescriptions dispensed fell by 7.1 percent during the same period.

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