Asian Americans' psychological stateover the last few years has been one of hypervigilance and pretending — constantly having to act as if everything is "business as usual" even amid high-profile anti-Asian attacks and the aftereffects of collective trauma, health advocates and experts tell Axios.
The pandemic experience varied sharply from state to state, with some of the highest adjusted death rates reported in Arizona, the District of Columbia and New Mexico, according to an analysis published in The Lancet.
Why it matters: It's among the first deep dives to explore the social and economic factors at play during the pandemic in the U.S., and it found a nearly fourfold variation in COVID infection and death rates between states.
State efforts to control health costs through public options are stalling in the face of resistance from providers and lackluster enrollment, even as talk of a federal version recedes.
Why it matters: The states' underwhelming attempts offer an ominous warning for lawmakers seeking to lower health costs: Insurers and providers aren't going to willingly cooperate with programs that threaten their profits and revenues.
The World Athletics Council voted Thursday to ban athletes who are transgender women "or who have Differences of Sexual Development" from competing in elite track and field competitions.
The big picture: The new rule follows similar bans on transgender athletes competing in elite women's competitions, including swimming.
Federal health officials are continuing to investigate a multi-state outbreak of drug-resistant infections linked to eye drops.
Driving the news: At least 3 people have died and 68 people from 16 states were diagnosed with a rare strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in connection with the outbreak, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More than 4 in 10 U.S. adults are obese, with states in the South and Midwest showing some of the highest prevalence, a new analysis from NORC at the University of Chicago shows.
Why it matters: Obesity is associated with hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke and other conditions that are among the leading causes of preventable, premature death.
Driving the news: After years of complaints from transplant surgeons and patient advocates, the Biden administration is breaking up the monopoly held for nearly four decades by the non-profit United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).
Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel would not commit during a Senate hearing Wednesday to reconsidering the decision to roughly quadruple the price of his company's COVID-19 vaccine once government purchases end.
The big picture: Ire over high health care costs is one of the few topics uniting Democrat and Republican lawmakers these days, and Moderna’s price hike has lawmakers concerned.
Food and Drug Administration advisers on Wednesday signaled openness to expediting an experimental drug from Biogen that targets a rare form of ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.
Why it matters: ALS is a progressive and fatal neurological disease that typically kills patients within three to five years of the first symptoms, and there are no approved therapies for this genetic form of the condition. The drug tofersen didn't achieve the main goal of a late-stage trial last year and carries the risk of serious side effects.
A U.S. District Court judge in Wyoming on Wednesday temporarily blocked a statewide abortion ban that came into effect over the weekend, according to multiple reports.
Driving the news: Judge Melissa Owens granted a restraining order due to a wider lawsuit challenging the state's new law that prohibits abortion at all stages of pregnancy except in cases of rape or incest, or to save a pregnant person's life, and another banning abortion pills that's due to take effect in July, per the New York Times.
How we carry ourselves doesn't just affect our bodies — it also touches our brains.
Why it matters: Slumped posture isn't just an aesthetic concern. It has wide-ranging effects on our well-being — both physical and mental.
"Bad" posture can look different for different people. Broadly, it refers to when your ears are out of alignment with the center of your body,Healthline notes.
