Purdue Pharma has to resolve ongoing inquiries with the Justice Department before finalizing its plan to enter bankruptcy, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing the newly released terms of the settlement.
Why it matters: Purdue's bankruptcy plan, and its proposed settlement to resolve the national opioids lawsuit, are already facing resistance from state and local governments.
As world leaders, advocates and others meet in France this week to discuss the Global Fund's replenishment for its programs targeting tuberculosis, HIV and malaria, a group of international experts say malaria can be completely eradicated within this generation — via more funding, new data tools, political will and promising drugs.
Why it matters: The fight against malaria has seen great overall progress since 2000, with death rates dropping 60%, global incidences falling 36% and more than half of all countries reporting being free of malaria. However, it still kills a child every 2 minutes and the fight has plateaued or lost ground in some parts of the world.
Almost three-quarters of likely 2020 voters support banning flavored vaping products, according to a new survey by Schoen Consulting, commissioned by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
Why it matters: Some Republicans have warned that President Trump's proposed ban on flavors could anger vapers and risk his 2020 chances, as Axios' Alayna Treene has reported, but this survey suggests there's more political risk to inaction.
The Trump administration is proposing to loosen regulations that prohibit doctors from steering patients insured by federal programs to facilities where they have a financial interest and that outlaw health care companies from offering bribes and kickbacks in exchange for patient referrals.
Why it matters: The industry has long clamored for an overhaul to these laws, which companies say obstruct their goals of providing "value-based care." But critics worry the broad and vague changes could engender more fraud and abuse than there already is.
65% of pregnant women in the U.S. said they were unvaccinated for influenza and whooping cough, according to a Vital Signs report released on Tuesday by the CDC.
Why it matters: Only 9% of women in the U.S. ages 15–44 become pregnant each year. But pregnant women accounted for at least 34% of influenza-related hospitalizations each season between 2010 and 2018.
Medical bills have created financial hardship for most Americans within the last 5 years, including most people with high credit scores, according to a new survey by Elevate's Center for the New Middle Class.
Why it matters: Health care costs are increasingly unaffordable not just to low-income or financially illiterate people, but also to those who are comfortably middle class with a proven track record of money management.
A mysterious vaping-related lung illness has now afflicted more than 1,000 people and killed at least 21 — and America's patchwork approach to marijuana law is probably part of the problem.
The big picture: Most of these lung illness cases involve people who vaped THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, and many of those pods are believed to have come from the black market. A more cohesive regulatory scheme could help consumers know what to trust.
