Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Three More H5N1 Outbreaks Confirmed In Dairy Cattle, USDA Reports
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed three more H5N1 avian influenza outbreaks in dairy cattle, raising the national total to 181 from 13 states. The latest confirmations are from Colorado, South Dakota, and Texas. (Schnirring, 8/5)
Raw milk continues to grow in popularity, despite bird flu in dairy cattle bringing increased scrutiny from health experts. (Rossi, 8/6)
On the covid surge —
Nationally, test positivity is 16.3%, up slightly from the previous week. Levels are highest in Texas and surrounding states, averaging 25.7%, followed by the Southeast, the Midwest, and the Northwest. ... In its latest variant proportion update, the CDC said the percentage of KP.3.1.1 sequences jumped from 14.4% to 27.8% over the past 2 weeks. The variant is cutting into the proportion of its parent variant KP.3, which currently makes up 21.1% of sequences. (Schnirring, 8/5)
While many studies have shown that COVID-19 pandemic-era school closures had negative effects on student mental health, a new study in JAMA Network Open shows the opposite: the re-opening of schools trigged an increased incidence of acute psychiatric emergencies, suggesting school can be a substantial source of stress for some students. The study is based on 13,014 psychiatric emergency department (ED) visits at 9 university hospitals in Italy from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2021. (Soucheray, 8/5)
Oropouche virus suspected in fetal deaths, newborns with microcephaly —
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recently issued an epidemiological alert for rising Oropouche virus infections, urging countries to step up surveillance amid spread to new areas, reports of the first deaths, and suspected maternal transmission. ... Brazilian officials are investigating a link between Oropouche virus and poor fetal outcomes. So far, the country has reported one fetal death, a miscarriage, and four newborns with microcephaly. The country is also investigating three more possible cases of maternal transmission, all involving fetal deaths reported from Pernambuco state. In one of the three cases, the Oropouche virus genome was detected in fetal tissue and blood samples. (Schnirring, 8/5)
