AJMC Staff

Health officials have concerns as people nationwide participate in mass gatherings to protest the death of George Floyd; Trump cuts US ties with WHO over handling of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); former FDA commisioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, says addressing racial inequities in COVID-19 transmission and higher death rates could halt the pandemic.

A bill introduced yesterday by Representative Maxine Waters, with support from the American Diabetes Association, would eliminate cost sharing for patients with diabetes requiring insulin amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic; White House officials have decided to not release economic projections this summer for the first time since the 1970s; CDC provides recommendations for employers returning to the workplace.

A new study highlights medical associations' financial ties with pharmaceutical and device companies; CDC data finds nearly 300 health care personnel have died of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); the federal government is permitting methadone deliveries for those with opioid use disorder or addiction.

Fresenius Kabi is hoping to position itself in the US biosimilar market.

Only half of US adults say they would receive a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine should it become available; diagnoses of colorectal cancer fell during March and April; slow uptake led to delays in a child hunger prevention program.

There has been an uneven distribution of bailout funds among economically disparate hospitals under the CARES Act; people are medicating as a result of increasing stress from the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic; the World Health Organization stops trials of hydroxychloroquine.

Trastuzumab deruxtecan, an antibody–drug conjugate (ADC) marketed as Enhertu, has been granted Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) for the treatment of gastric cancer, including gastroesophageal junction cancer.

More than one-quarter of elderly women with HER2-negative metastatic breast cancer did not receive care in accordance with National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) treatment guidelines, and that was linked to higher mortality as well as higher Medicare costs.

A new analysis found use of hydroxychloroquine in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with increased mortality rates; the Government Accountability Office (GAO) appointed a new chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC); nearly 80% of Americans live in counties where COVID-19 is spreading widely.

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A new survey highlights a nationwide lack of personal protective equipment (PPE); a model shows how earlier social distancing guidelines could have spared thousands from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); parents fear consequences of online schooling for their special needs children.

Johnson & Johnson talc-based baby powder sales will soon cease in North America; CMS provides detailed guidance on how to reopen nursing homes to visitors; CDC provides additional information for schools and business looking to resume operations.

President Trump announced yesterday he was taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive measure for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) despite reported adverse effects and lack of beneficial evidence; Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine shows early promise; CDC finds less than half of infants 5 months or younger are on track for vital vaccinations.

The approval is the fifth for the immunotherapy in lung cancer and the fourth in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

President Donald Trump is considering whether to cut off funding to the World Health Organization; relief for the public amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic remains stagnant as Republicans and Democrats have yet to agree on a new stimulus bill; no spike in COVID-19 cases has been observed so far in reopened states.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and a 2015 paper showed the potential for electronic health visits to provide access to care for patients who needed immediate assistance.

A recent study describes the use of a liquid assay to uncover any links between response to treatment and tumor load score in patients with stage 2 or stage 3 cancer with solid tumors. Circulating tumor DNA is linked with more advanced cancer.

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President Trump will restructure the Strategic National Stockpile and increase America's production of supplies; the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is testing a new combination therapy for coronavirus disease 2019; FDA officials issue warning on Abbott Laboratories' rapid response test.

French pharmaceutical company Sanofi will expand access to a potential coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine among Europeans; COVID-19 outbreaks in prisons threaten already-strained rural hospitals; individuals with chronic illnesses report alcohol intake exceeding recommended guidelines.

Organ donations and transplants have seen precipitous decreases since the start of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic; access to medicines used to treat opioid dependence has improved in recent months in light of COVID-19; will gym goers feel safe working out when their gyms reopen?

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus said there are 7 or 8 top vaccine candidates for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); hydroxychloroquine alone, or paired with azithromycin, showed no benefit for hospitalized patients with severe cases of COVID-19; the reported death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 80,000 yesterday, with a CDC report suggesting that thousands of unreported New York City deaths may be linked to the virus.

The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, MD, and other health officials are entering various levels of quarantine after potential exposure to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases details how and why it halted a study on remdesivir in patients with COVID-19 early; the president’s economic advisers project rising unemployment rates.

The paper appeared a few months before the EMPA-REG OUTCOME trial revealed the potential of a new drug class, the SGLT2 inhibitors, in preventing hospitalization for heart failure.

Testing will now be possible for those who cannot get to a collection center, including those who are home because they are ill, quarantined, or at high risk of infection due to their age or comorbidities. A Rutgers official said the new method will allow for a dramatic increase in the number of people who can be tested.

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CMS announced a final payment notice for the 2021 coverage year; experts say children should be more well-represented in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) clinical trials; a new report predicts sharp increases in deaths of despair resulting from the pandemic.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has not affected Florida as much as previously thought; despite emergency use authorization, remdesivir distribution is confusing many; a CDC report meant to provide guidance on reopening the country will apparently not be released.

Investigators hope that an experimental test could detect the novel coronavirus at a much lower cost than current tests; the FDA has extended the action date for a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy application from Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS); engineering teams devise inexpensive ventilators for emergency use.

After first relaxing regulations that let them enter the market, the FDA will now require companies manufacturing antibody tests for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to submit data on their efficacy; Anthony Fauci, MD, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that current research indicates that COVID-19 evolved naturally; a novel COVID-19 mortality model predicts nearly double its initially projected death toll after factoring in some states beginning to ease social distancing restrictions and allowing businesses to reopen.