Axios

Caitlin Bernard, the OB-GYN who provided an abortion on a 10-year-old girl from Ohio who was raped, dropped her lawsuit Thursday against Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita.

Driving the news: Court filings show Bernard voluntarily dismissed the suit, which was intended to stop the attorney general from investigating her, just over a month after it was filed.

If Congress wants to see a more effective and modernized Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it needs to give it more authority, CDC director Rochelle Walensky said at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit on Wednesday.

Why it matters: Her call for more support from Congress comes as the Biden administration has continued to push for additional COVID funds that have, thus far, been batted down by Republicans and some Democrats for much of the year.

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized updated COVID-19 shots from Pfizer and Moderna that target the omicron variant for children as young as six months.

Driving the news: FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said in a statement that it was important to get young children vaccinated ahead of the holidays, "where more time will be spent indoors."

Hospitals in some non-Medicaid expansion states are pitching expansion as a way to help solve the rural health crisis. But the industry is hardly speaking with one voice.

Driving the news: Facilities with fewer commercially insured patients that treat a large number of uninsured people see expansion as a potential lifeline in tough economic times.

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There's a growing population of seniors who are aging alone — without any close family around them.

The big picture: A number of demographic trends are coming together to give rise to "kinless seniors," the New York Times' Paula Span writes.

• There are nearly a million Americans over the age of 55 living without a spouse or a partner, any children or siblings.

Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, the former president and chief operating officer of failed blood-testing company Theranos, on Wednesday was sentenced to 12 years and nine months in prison, plus three years of probation.

Driving the news: Balwani's sentencing comes less than three weeks after his former boss and girlfriend, Elizabeth Holmes, received a prison sentence of 11 years and three months that's scheduled to begin in April.

Medicare Advantage plans and other government-funded insurers would have to overhaul the electronic process they use to approve medical services and prescriptions under a rule proposed by the Biden administration on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Prior authorization is a top concern of physicians, who say it imposes excessive administrative burdens and have pressed Congress to make changes in the lame-duck session. The rule could dramatically reduce the cost of a Medicare Advantage prior authorization fix.

A nasal spray for reversing opioid overdoses could become available over-the-counter as early as next March after the Food and Drug Administration gave it priority review.

Why it matters: Advocacy groups, medical associations and federal agencies have said expanding the availability of naloxone is critical to addressing the addiction epidemic that killed more than 100,000 Americans last year.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — should he run for the GOP's 2024 presidential nomination — has an opening to attack former President Trump's COVID response from the right.

The big picture: The federal COVID response has become a red-meat issue for the party's base, and DeSantis' 2020 actions are much more aligned with the GOP's tone today.