Axios

The mystery of how SARS-CoV-2 may cause brain fog or other neurological symptoms in some people is driving new global research.

Why it matters: Roughly 79 million Americans contracted COVID-19 in the first two years of the pandemic. While most survived, many are grappling with long-term symptoms, or long COVID, that affect the brain and other body systems.

Pharmacies that say they've been a linchpin in the U.S. pandemic response are pressing for key regulatory changes and higher payment rates to cement their enhanced role in patient care.

Why it matters: Pharmacies have become fixtures of pandemic life through testing, vaccinations and, increasingly, dispensing antivirals. But pharmacists say they're being shortchanged, because they can't prescribe COVID pills and receive prohibitively low fees to dispense them.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will end a Trump-era order that expelled unaccompanied child migrants, the agency announced late Friday night.

Why it matters: Title 42, enacted in March 2020, was introduced as a public health policy to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The controversial bill is currently being litigated with the ACLU calling it "inhumane."

Travis County District Judge Amy Clark Meachum on Friday issued a statewide temporary injunction against Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's (R) directive, which ordered the state to investigate parents for child abuse if they seek gender-affirming care for their children.

Driving the news: A supervisor for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services testified on Friday that investigators were required to prioritize cases involving parents of transgender children but were prohibited from closing them if they determined that the case likely did not involve child abuse, according to media reports of video footage from a state district court hearing.

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday ruled that state officials do not have the ability to enforce the state's six-week abortion ban, effectively ending providers' case challenging the law.

Driving the news: Because the law was written so private citizens could enforce it, the court wrote, "Texas law does not grant the state-agency executives named as defendants in this case any authority to enforce the Act’s requirements, either directly or indirectly."

Americans owe at least $195 billion of medical debt, despite 90% of the population having some kind of health coverage, according to new research from the Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Why it matters: People are spending down their savings and skimping on food, clothing and household items to pay their medical bills.

The key factor determining how Americans have handled COVID-19 — more than race, education or even political affiliation — is where they get their news, according to an analysis of two years of data from our Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index.

Why it matters: Partisan divisions weaken U.S. leaders' ability to deal with such existential crises — and the modern media landscape feeds that cycle.