Researchers have identified a dozen symptoms that most commonly characterize long COVID, based on an analysis of nearly 10,000 participants in a National Institutes of Health effort to study the long-term health effects of the virus.
Why it matters: Though more than 658 million people worldwide have been infected with the virus, researchers said most studies have focused on defining long COVID based on the frequency of individual symptoms — and have generated widely divergent estimates of their prevalence.
The Food and Drug Administration granted full approval Thursday to Pfizer's COVID antiviral pill Paxlovid for adults considered at high risk for getting severely ill from COVID-19.
Why it matters: Once considered a "game changer," Paxlovid is the first oral antiviral pill to be approved by the FDA to treat COVID-19 in adults, a few years after the pandemic's outset.
ElevateBio, a Massachusetts-based developer of cell and gene therapies, raised $401 million in Series D funding led by existing investor Matrix Capital Management.
Why it matters: This is the year's largest biotech VC deal, topping the mark set just one day earlier when ReNAgade Therapeutics raised a $300 million Series A round.
Addressing the fentanyl crisis has become a priority in an often-deadlocked federal government with the Biden administration calling on Congress to pass a bill aimed at tackling fentanyl trafficking in the U.S.
Why it matters: The overdose death rate involving the synthetic opioid fentanyl in the U.S. nearly quadrupled between 2016 and 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
About 1 in 4 Medicaid enrollees don't know where to look for other coverage if they drop off the safety net program's rolls, and 15% say they'll be uninsured, according to a new KFF survey.
Why it matters: The findings begin to quantify how unprepared many enrollees are for the eligibility renewal process that's begun in states with the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday advanced a series of health care measures to promote price transparency and overhaul regulation of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) in a mostly bipartisan markup.
Driving the news: The measures advanced on a unanimous 49-0 vote addressed:
House Republicans' first major attempt to address the opioid crisis since taking power is resurfacing a long-running debate over the role of law enforcement in drug policy.
Driving the news: The GOP-sponsored HALT Fentanyl Act is up for a House vote on Thursday, marking this Congress' first substantive response to the epidemic.
As federal policymakers step up oversight of hospital mergers, more states are taking steps to encourage consolidation in the industry — or to have the final say on whether such moves are anti-competitive.
Why it matters: The policies are a sign of the power some hospital lobbies continue to wield in statehouses, where they've argued mergers are a way to expand the patient base and keep otherwise unprofitable facilities open.
Minnesota is poised to expand its state-funded health insurance program, becoming the latest to add a public option for residents with incomesabove 200% of the federal poverty level.
Why it matters: States like Colorado and Washington state have turned to public option plans to control health costs but are encountering lackluster interest and resistance from providers.
Why it matters: The crisis put drugmakers, insurers and other health sector players at the top of most everyone's mind. Now, Americans have shifted their focus to companies that offer more tangible services.
South Carolina's GOP-controlled State Senatevoted to ban abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy on Tuesday despite opposition from the chamber's five women, including three Republicans.
The big picture: Planned Parenthood South Atlantic's South Carolina office praised the three Republican, one Democrat and one independent women lawmakers for their attempted filibuster and vowed to challenge the legislation, which Gov. Henry McMaster (R) pledged to sign soon.
