Today's Headlines: March 25, 2019
Biological Agents & Infectious Diseases
Ebola Outbreak Hits 1,000 Cases ( The Hill ) More than a thousand people have been infected with the deadly Ebola virus in two eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in an outbreak that has claimed hundreds of lives and flummoxed public health officials. Go to article
Government Affairs & National Security
Name the Much-criticized Federal Program That Has Saved the US $2.3 Trillion. Hint: It Starts with Affordable ( STAT ) Even before the Affordable Care Act became law, about 90 percent of the conversation and criticism of it was about coverage. Little has been said about its ability to control costs. March 23, the ninth anniversary of the ACA’s passage, presents a good opportunity to examine its legacy on cost control — a legacy that deserves to be in the foreground, not relegated to the background behind the exchanges, Medicaid expansion, and work requirements. Go to article

White House Details Proposed Cuts to Science Agencies ( Science) The White House this week unveiled new details of its 2020 budget request to Congress, which it first outlined last week. That first glimpse promised savage cuts to science, and the fresh numbers don't offer any comfort. They reveal that President Donald Trump's $4.7 trillion plan would slash federal spending on basic research by at least 10.5% and cut outlays for applied research by at least 14.4% in the fiscal year that begins 1 October. Go to article

Global Health Security
Doctors Face Two Enemies in Fight Against Ebola ( Spiegel Online ) The second-largest outbreak of Ebola in history is ravaging the Democratic Republic of Congo. But as humanitarian organizations and the Congolese government struggle to fight the virus, they find themselves thwarted by the very people they are trying to help. Go to article

Building Trust Is Essential to Combat the Ebola Outbreak ( Nature ) A disaster is quietly unfolding in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where Ebola has infected nearly 1,000 people and killed more than 600. It is the second-largest outbreak of the disease — and epidemiologists worry that it will continue to grow because the virus could be spreading undetected. New cases are being diagnosed late, which means that the virus has ample time to spread. Go to article

Ebola and Evidence: Five Years On ( Evidence Aid ) On March 23rd 2014, the Ministry of Health in Guinea notified the World Health Organization of an Ebola outbreak in the South-eastern region of the country. What was to follow was the deadliest Ebola outbreak ever recorded, resulting in an epidemic primarily affecting Guinea and its neighbours Sierra Leone and Liberia. Over the next two years 28,616 cases and 11,323 deaths were reported, although this is likely to be an underestimate due to the significant number of unreported cases and deaths. Go to article

Venezuelans' Right to Health Crumbles Amid Political Crisis ( Lancet) The rising prosperity of Venezuela during the 20th century helped to consolidate gains in health outcomes made over decades. Now, a country rich in natural resources is submerged in a complex humanitarian emergency due to the politico-economic crisis that started in 2008, progressively destroying the health-care system. Go to article
Medicine & Public Health

Confirmatory Testing, Insurance Coverage Growing Alongside DTC Genetic Testing ( Genome Web ) Recognizing the growing popularity of direct-to-consumer genetic testing services like 23andMe, clinical labs are being asked to verify results that indicate individuals have an increased risk for diseases like cancer, and some commercial insurers are even paying for this confirmatory testing. A company called My Gene Counsel this week launched a pilot program that will provide education, facilitate genetic counseling, and if needed, offer confirmatory testing to individuals with a personal or family history of cancer who have taken a DTC cancer risk test but still have unanswered questions. My Gene Counsel is partnering with telegenetics firm GeneMatters to provide counseling and clinical testing lab Ambry Genetics for confirmatory testing. Go to article

Planning for Food Access During Emergencies: Missed Meals in Philadelphia ( AJPH ) To illustrate the effects that minor social or environmental disruptions could have on the food access of low-income households in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and provide suggestions for how cities can better incorporate food into emergency planning. Go to article

The State of the US Governmental Public Health Workforce, 2014-2017 ( AJPH) Public health workforce development efforts during the past 50 years have evolved from a focus on enumerating workers to comprehensive strategies that address workforce size and composition, training, recruitment and retention, effectiveness, and expected competencies in public health practice. Go to article

Synthetic Biology Could Bring a Pox on Us All ( Wired) At around 11:30 am on July 1, 2014, a scientist from the Food and Drug Administration went inside Room 3C16, a cold-storage area at the National Institutes of Health Labs in Bethesda, Maryland. The FDA had been using the space since the early 1990s to store samples for biological research but had been cleaning it out in preparation for a move to a nearby campus in Silver Spring. The scientist who entered saw 12 mysterious cardboard boxes on a crowded shelf in the far left corner of the storage space and pried one open to see what it contained. Go to article

Science & Technology

Effects of Dengue Immunity on Zika Virus Infection ( Nature) The factors that contributed to the explosive nature of the 2015 Zika outbreak in the Americas are not well understood. A new analysis explores the link between prior dengue virus exposure and Zika virus infection. Go to article

Molecular Evidence of Human Monkeypox Virus Infection, Sierra Leone ( Emerging Infectious Diseases) Monkeypox virus is a zoonotic disease endemic to Africa. In 2017, we confirmed a case of human monkeypox virus in Sierra Leone by molecular and serologic methods. Sequencing analysis indicated the virus belongs to the West African clade and data suggest it was likely transmitted by wild animals. Go to article
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