NIH investigates a serious side effect from a COVID-19 vaccine trial; a report says the pandemic has erased 25 years' worth of global health gains; the US seeks to extend a ban on global health aid for foreign organizations that provide or promote abortions.
Reported by Kaiser Health News, the NIH has launched an investigation into a serious side effect stemming from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine trial by AstraZeneca, in which a participant suffered spinal cord damage. AstraZeneca has not confirmed what the participant was afflicted with, but neurologists consider the side effect to be transverse myelitis, a disorder that produces inflammation along the spinal cord. The FDA is weighing whether to resume the halted trial.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said the pandemic has set global health back 25 years when looking at metrics such as childhood vaccinations, rising food insecurity, and levels of poverty. The organization's annual Goalkeepers report said most of the 18 metrics tracked by the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals have regressed.
The Trump administration is seeking to extend a ban on global health aid for foreign organizations that provide or promote abortions, according to The Hill. Called the “global gag rule” by opponents, the ban already applies to grants and cooperative agreements between the US government and foreign organizations, but the proposed rule extension would expand the policy to contracts, where foreign groups would be required to not provide or promote abortions to maintain global health aid. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, contracts contribute approximately 40% of global health aid.
Addressing Racial Disparities in Health Care Expenditures: The Impact of Racial and Economic Equity
November 3rd 2023“Our findings further reinforce that place is important and that the social, economic, and health care equity context is key to minimizing health care expenditure disparities for Black adults in the US," investigators explain.
Read More
Reaching Rural America: Value-Based Care Solutions for Systemic Health and Social Inequalities
March 7th 2023On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we speak with Jennifer Schneider, MD, co-founder and chief executive officer of Homeward, a value-based care provider aiming to improve access to high-quality care in rural communities through tech-enabled clinical services, partnerships with local physicians and health plans, and community-level demographic data.
Listen
Cultural Humility, Pioneering Leadership Are Key to Address Health Disparities
October 19th 2023Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, FACOG, a distinguished infertility specialist, highlights the pivotal role of cultural humility, diversity, acknowledgment of historical injustices, and collective action in addressing disparities and fostering equitable access to health care.
Read More
Research Highlights Racial Disparities in US Sperm Donor Banks
October 18th 2023"The racial and ethnic distribution of United States sperm donors differs significantly from the United States population, particularly for those of African American or Black descent,” Cassie Hobbs, MD, explained.
Read More
Call for Cultural Considerations When Screening Oocyte Donors and Gestational Carriers
October 17th 2023Wiyatta Fahnbulleh, PsyD, and Pamela Blackwell, PsyD, LMSW, presented on the cultural limitations of the Personality Assessment Inventory and Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory for assessing individuals for third-party reproduction.
Read More