Health Care


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.

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.



Southern Nevada Health District: 48 Flu Deaths in Clark County

The Las Vegas-based Southern Nevada Health District announced an updated count of 48 flu deaths for Clark County, Nevada, the southern county that includes the city of Las Vegas, on April 23.

HHS Buys Anthrax Antitoxin for Stockpile

The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a component of ASPR, provided funding under Project BioShield for continued manufacturing and purchase of the treatment called Anthim or obiltoxaximab.

Drone Distribution of Sterile Mosquitoes Successfully Tested

"The release mechanism for mosquitoes has until now been a bottleneck in the application of SIT to control human diseases," said Jeremy Bouyer, medical entomologist at the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture. "The use of drones is a breakthrough and paves the way for large-scale and cost-efficient releases, also over densely populated areas."

Ontario Increases Cancer Coverage for Firefighters

Ontario Increases Cancer Coverage for Firefighters

The process for claiming Worker’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) benefits once a firefighter is diagnosed with cervical, ovarian, or penile cancers will be expedited, and the individual will not be required to prove that their cancer is work-related.

CDC Hosting 67th EIS Conference This Week

The April 16-19 conference includes four special sessions on critical public health topics: the Rohingya refugee crisis in Bangladesh, the need for innovative use of big data in public health, the 1918 influenza centenary, and the U.S. opioid overdose epidemic.

NIOSH Publishes Updated NORA Public Safety Agenda

Cardiovascular disease, cancer, and chronic diseases are the first recommendation because stress is such a big factor affecting public safety workers' health, it says. Sudden cardiac events are responsible for 7 to 22 percent of on-duty deaths among police officers, 17 percent among wildland firefighters, and 11 percent among EMS workers, it says.

Ambulance bills in general can often top $600 or $800 or more, and most ambulance services tack on an "emergency response charge" that tops $300 on average.

HHS Tests Moving Highly Infectious Patients

Seven people acting as patients with Ebola symptoms, including one pediatric patient, were to present themselves at health facilities in Texas, South Carolina, Oklahoma, or Idaho. Health care workers were to collect collect and ship samples for diagnostic tests to state laboratories and have the patients transported by air or ground ambulance to designated Regional Ebola Treatment Centers.

DOL Hosting Event for Ames Laboratory Workers This Month

Representatives of the Department of Labor's Office of the Ombudsman for the EEOICPA, the Ombudsman to NIOSH for the EEOICPA, and DOE's Former Worker Medical Screening Program will be on hand. After the presentation, staffers will answer questions regarding existing claims, provide claim status updates, and help workers file new claims.

European Commission Setting New PELs for Five Carcinogens

According to the commission, the new limits would improve working conditions for more than 1 million EU workers and prevent more than 22,000 cases of work-related illness, including cancers.

HELP Committee Sets April 11 Hearing on Opioids Bill

"The opioid crisis is currently our most serious public health epidemic and despite efforts in every state, it's getting worse," Sen. Lamar Alexander said. "We've been listening to the experts for the last six months on how the federal government can help states and communities bring an end to the opioid crisis, and the bipartisan proposals in this draft reflect what we've learned."

Surgeon General Says More Americans Should Carry Naloxone

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams is now recommending that more individuals, including family, friends, and those who are personally at risk for an opioid overdose, keep the drug on hand.

Colorado Investigating Infection Control Breach at Denver Hospital

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment issued a statement April 4 about the breach at Porter Adventist Hospital. The department is working with the hospital, which is notifying people who had orthopedic or spine surgery there between July 21, 2016, and Feb. 20, 2018, that some orthopedic or spine surgery patients may be at risk for surgical site infections or for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, or HIV. No patient infections have been confirmed.

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