The Zika Coffers Are Bare, CDC Director Warns
If the virus starts spreading more broadly within the country, the agency says its hands will be tied as its financial resources will run out next month.
The New York Times:
U.S. Funding For Fighting Zika Virus Is Nearly Spent, C.D.C. Says
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Tuesday that federal funds to fight the Zika virus were nearly exhausted, and that if Congress did not replenish them soon, there would be no money to fight a new outbreak. As of Friday, the C.D.C. had spent $194 million of the $222 million it was allocated to fight the virus, said Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the director of the agency. Congress left for its summer recess without approving additional funding. Now that the virus is actively circulating in Florida, Dr. Frieden is pressing his case for funding with new urgency. (Tavernise, 8/30)
In other national health care news —
The Washington Post:
Obamacare Exchanges Are Shedding Insurer Options In Lots Of Close 2016 States
One of the assets Hillary Clinton has at her disposal as the 2016 campaign hits the home stretch is that she's supported by a fairly popular incumbent president. Granted, most politicians are popular compared to Clinton and Donald Trump, but President Obama's popularity — at or above 50 percent in 17 of the last 20 weeks of Gallup surveys — means that she can position herself as his heir in a way that appeals to enough people to make up a majority of voters. But there's a risk to that strategy. Obama's signature accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act (better known as Obamacare), is having the roughest year of its existence. (Bump, 8/30)
Los Angeles Times:
After Ohio Passed Abortion Law, Risk Of Complications Nearly Tripled
Women seeking medical abortions in Ohio experienced a higher rate of complications after the state implemented a law that put new restrictions on doctors who performed the procedure, according to a study published Tuesday. The law, which took effect in 2011, requires abortion providers to adhere to specific guidelines from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration when giving patients a combination of two drugs, mifepristone and misoprostol. The drugs have been shown to terminate early pregnancies safely and effectively. (Netburn, 8/30)
Stat:
A History Of Health Rumors In Presidential Campaigns
There’s a long history of allegations and rumors about the health of presidential candidates. Hillary Clinton is the latest: Donald Trump’s campaign and other conservatives have insinuated — and in some cases outright claimed — that the Democratic nominee is concealing various health problems. Here are some of the earlier episodes involving other candidates, dating back almost 50 years. (Scott, 8/30)
Stat:
WHO Releases New Guidelines For Treatment Of STDs
For the first time in 13 years, the World Health Organization on Tuesday is outlining new recommendations on how to treat three common sexually transmitted diseases, one of which — gonorrhea — has been rapidly developing resistance to nearly every weapon in the medical arsenal.vThe voluminous guidelines are used by member countries to develop their own guidance to doctors for the treatment of gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia. (Branswell, 8/30)