February 7th, 2022
The Out-of-Pocket Health News Digest
Below you will find briefs about recent health policy news stories. Our hope is for students to have an information outlet at their fingertips to keep up-to-date with the most pressing news stories in health policy.
This compilation is produced by the HPSA Education Committee: Brynna Thigpen, Christopher Whitlock, Easheta Shah, Hannah Lane, Hassan Kourani, Jourdan Clements, and Lizzy Peppercorn
The Olympics: COVID-19 Control
by Jourdan Clements
The Beijing Olympics are remaining positive about their COVID-19 control measures, with cases are on a decline as arrivals are progressing. In the past week, almost all of the 2,900 athletes expected to compete along with their coaches and team support have arrived in Beijing. 

On February 5th, China detected 10 new COVID-19 cases among Olympic Games-related personnel, which is much lower than the 45 cases detected on February 4th. Since arrivals commenced in January, measures have been put in place to keep Olympic Game personnel away from the public and in quarantine. Directors attribute the number of cases to the number of arrivals at the airport and organisers predict to not encounter any more large fluctuations in infection numbers.

The Olympic Games expect large reductions in arrivals in the following days, and hope to keep the trend in lower associated COVID-19 cases going. In addition, organizers have taken measures - such as keeping game personnel in a “closed loop” - to avoid any internal spread. 

China expects that their thorough measures, including bringing game personnel in on special charter flights, daily testing, and ensuring that all individuals remain in the loop at all times will successfully keep cases at a minimum throughout the Olympic Games.

Sources: US News, Team USA
Biden Reinvigorates Cancer Moonshot Effort
by Brynna Thigpen
Last week, alongside his wife and Vice President Harris, President Joe Biden announced that he is re-launching the Cancer Moonshot Initiative that he led under the Obama Administration. The aims of this current iteration of the effort are to: 
  • Lower cancer’s death rate by 50%+ over the next 25 years
  • Improve the experience of patients and their families living with cancer
  • End cancer as we know it

The initial effort, which launched in 2016, came a year after President Biden lost his son, Beau to glioblastoma - a form of brain cancer - at 46. $400 million of the original $1.8 billion remains to be allocated, and Biden has called on Congress to increase future funding. 

This new moonshot intends to draw on the lessons learned from the last one. Biden has tapped the previous head, Dr. Danielle Carnival, a neuroscientist, to lead this effort. There will be a designated “Cancer Cabinet” made up of experts from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Cancer Institute, and other organizations. The initiative relies heavily on screenings: increasing access, lowering inequitable barriers to screenings, and emphasizing early detection through methods like mobile screening, at-home screening, and community health networks. 

Some experts in the area are skeptical, citing concerns that screenings aren’t always proven to improve patient outcomes. They suggest instead that funding should be spent more on prevention efforts, like smoking cessation and obesity prevention. 
 Biden FDA Nominee Faces Challenging Senate Confirmation
by Christopher Whitlock
Dr. Robert Califf, previously confirmed by an 89-to-4 Senate vote in 2016 to lead the FDA during the Obama administration, faces scrutiny from both Democrat and Republican senators as President Biden’s nominee for the same position. Tasked with oversight of several pressing issues including development of COVID-19 tests and therapeutics, the new FDA commissioner will play a crucial role in the government’s ongoing pandemic response.

Califf became an expert conducting clinical trials during his career as a cardiologist at Duke University Medical School. He founded the Duke Clinical Research Institute and eventually became FDA commissioner in 2016 with overwhelming bipartisan support. Following his FDA tenure, he held multiple lucrative leadership roles with different pharmaceutical companies and joined Alphabet, the parent company of Google, as its head of clinical policy and strategy.

Republican lawmakers initially backed Califf during his first nomination, but the party’s support waned quickly when Califf eased restrictions on medication used for chemical abortions. Four Republicans crossed the aisle to advance Califf’s nomination during last month’s Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee vote, but he has received minimal public support from any other Republican senators this time around.

Several Senate Democrats also have reservations about Califf, who will likely need near-unanimous support among the party to overcome the 50-50 party divide in the Senate. Some Democrats, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, have already voiced opposition to the nomination citing Califf’s past relationships with the pharmaceutical industry and lenient opioid regulations during his previous tenure.

The Biden administration remains confident Califf’s nomination will pass the Senate, but they will likely require the support of several Republicans to counter Democratic opposition. Califf has held meetings with an estimated 45 different senators to answer questions and ease concerns regarding his nomination, and he recently won support from Democrat Elizabeth Warren with an ethics pledge to not seek compensation from pharmaceutical or biotech companies for four years following his term. The timeline for a deciding vote remains unclear, but if Califf is not confirmed, Janet Woodcock would continue as the FDA’s acting commissioner.
One-Liners
  • Medicare coverage: The Department of Health and Human Services announced that Medicare would now be providing coverage for at-home COVID-19 tests, giving Medicare beneficiaries the same access to tests that their counterparts with private insurance have. (The Hill)
  • White House boosts residency funding: The Biden administration recently announced $19 million in grants to increase primary care residency funding and address physician shortages in rural and medically underserved communities. This effort aims to reduce health disparities and combat COVID-related staffing limitations. (Kaiser Health News)
  • COVID-19 Vaccine Research: A recent publication finds no adverse association between the COVID-19 vaccine and fertility, in both males and females. (Medical News Today)
  • Virginia mask mandates: After being inaugurated this past month, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin made it a priority to allow parents to opt-out of school mask mandates for their children. This past week, a judge sided with seven different school districts suing the state in opposition, and put a hold on this policy. (NPR)