Why it matters: Both attended the confirmation vote of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon. Warnock was spotted huddling with Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) as the vote took place.
Medicare will cover the controversial Alzheimer's drug Aduhelm but it will limit it to patients who enroll in a clinical study, officials announced Thursday.
Why it matters: The drug has been the center of a fierce battle between patient groups and members of Congress pushing for access, and members of the medical community questioning the lack of evidence supporting the drug's safety and efficacy.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on Thursday filed a lawsuit to protect the right to having an abortion under the state's Constitution even if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.
Driving the news: Michigan has a 1931 abortion ban that criminalizes the procedure in the state that has been dormant since Roe went into effect in 1973. However, the ban is still part of the state's penal code, and now Whitmer is asking the Michigan Supreme Court to officially deem it as unconstitutional and to recognize abortion rights under the state's Constitution.
Half of the states are seeing COVID case numbers rise again while nationwide totals continue to fall.
The big picture: The Omicron subvariant known as BA.2 is the dominant strain circulating around the U.S., accounting for almost three out of every four cases.
Congress may punt on a $10 billion COVID preparedness funding package until the end of this month due to a fight over immigration policy.
Why it matters: The Biden administration has warned that it’s running out of money for countermeasures to ward off future pandemics and COVID surges — and has already paused testing and treatment for the uninsured.
As federal health officials debate the logistics of administering fourth coronavirus vaccines to some older Americans, children under five years old remain ineligible for any shots — and it's unclear when that will change.
The big picture: Less-than-ideal clinical trial results and growing backlash against children's vaccinations writ large have complicated what was already a delicate decision-making process.
Jamal Simmons, communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris, tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, according to a statement from Harris' press secretary Kirsten Allen.
Why it matters: Simmons is the latest in a spate of positive COVID-19 cases that have hit Washington, D.C.'s elites in recent weeks, affecting both White House officials and members of Congress.
Zoos across the country are taking precautions to protect their bird populations against a recent bird flu outbreak, with some even closing their bird exhibits to the public.
Why it matters: In less than two months, at least 24 states have reported bird flu cases and nearly 23 million birds have been killed to limit the spread of the virus, making this the worst bird flu outbreak since 2015, NPR reported.
Shanghai health officials said Wednesday that they would allow some parents to stay with their children who have been infected with COVID-19, AP reports.
Driving the news: Shanghai's lockdown measures included separating kids who had tested positive from their families, which sparked outrage across China.
There was a 6.5% drop in both C-sections and induced deliveries in the first month of the pandemic in the U.S. with a sustained drop thereafter, according to a study published today in the journal Pediatrics.
Details: In the study, which is the first large-scale examination of COVID-era birth data, researchers from Georgia Tech's School of Economics looked at records of nearly 39 million U.S. births from 2010 to 2020.
Two blood thinners that Medicare spent a collective $46 billion on between 2015 and 2020 have more than doubled their list prices since entering the market, according to a new analysis by Patients for Affordable Drugs.
Why it matters: List prices don't reflect the rebates negotiated between drug manufacturers and payers, but they are often used to determine Medicare Part D cost sharing — meaning as prices go up, patients pay more out of pocket.
FDA advisers today will begin sketching out a long-term strategy for COVID vaccinations, addressing the risk of new variants and the need for new boosters.
Why it matters: Today's discussions could help lend clarity to a sometimes baffling vaccination effort that’s left many people unsure whether or when to shore up their immunity.
Driving the news: The 61-year-old lawmaker wrote he is "feeling fine and grateful to be vaccinated and boosted. In the coming days, I will quarantine and follow CDC guidelines. And remember, please get vaccinated!"
