Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Maryland Joins List Of States With Locally Acquired Malaria Case
Another case of rare "locally acquired" malaria, this one in the Washington, D.C., area, has been reported amid a string of such infections since May, officials said Friday. The unidentified patient had not traveled recently outside the U.S., the Maryland Health Department said in a statement. The person was hospitalized and is recovering, it said. (Romero, 8/20)
Four new cases of the locally acquired mosquito-borne illness dengue fever were reported in Broward and Miami-Dade counties between July 30 and Aug. 5 by the Florida Department of Health. There have been 10 locally acquired cases in Florida this year. Eight in Miami-Dade and two in Broward. (Herrera, 8/18)
An 11-state salmonella outbreak has been linked to small turtles, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Friday.聽At least 26 illnesses have been reported, with nine hospitalizations, the health organization said. The outbreak spans the country. Tennessee, with six cases, has been hit hardest. There are also cases in Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, California, Pennsylvania and New York. (Chasan, 8/20)
Two years ago, children in the heart of Silicon Valley were found to have blood lead levels聽higher than those found at the peak of the Flint,聽Mich., water crisis. One likely culprit: an airport where local pilots fill up their planes with fuel containing lead, embedded among schools, homes, parks, a Boys & Girls Club and a mall in a largely Latino community in East San Jose. (Hao, 8/19)
In Florida, the latest drinking water results show an 鈥渁larming level鈥 of PFAS compounds at the Orangewood Water System in Holiday and in the city of Pembroke Pines. (Meszaros, 8/18)
Wildfire smoke may produce more damaging smoke particles than scientists had thought, according to a study led by Washington University scientists. The research team worked with NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2019 to examine wildfire smoke across California, Idaho, Oregon and Arizona. Scientists analyzed the smoke produced by megafire events and the carbon emitted into the atmosphere and observed more light absorption from dark brown carbon, a previously overlooked particle. (Davis, 8/21)
On the heat wave 鈥
More than 100 people were initially treated for medical concerns at the Garmin KC Air Show Saturday amid an extreme heat wave. The show went on Sunday as sweltering temperatures continued, and dozens more people were treated. Of those who received medical attention Saturday, five had to be transported to the hospital, Johnson County MED-ACT said in a post on Facebook reporting patient numbers. A sixth person was hospitalized Sunday. (Spoerre, 8/20)
Research has shown that hot classrooms can impair student learning. In one study published in 2020, researchers found that "students who experience hotter temperatures during the school year before their exams exhibit reduced learning" and that students scored lower with each additional day of temperatures around 80 degrees or above. The study also found that heat "has substantially larger impacts on the achievement of students in lower-income school districts," especially Black and Latino students. (Silva, 8/19)