DeSantis Gives False Vax Info; Phony Nursing Degrees; Roche Launches XBB.1.5 Test

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) falsely said the bivalent COVID booster vaccine increases chances of SARS-CoV infection, according to a fact-checking report. (Tampa Bay Times)

The FDA’s deputy commissioner for food policy and response has resigned, citing concerns about the agency’s oversight structure. (AP)

Newly put under lockdown for an unspecified respiratory illness: Pyongyang, North Korea. (Reuters)

The FDA is joining the World Health Organization’s investigation of contaminated cough syrups that have killed hundreds of children in Africa and Asia. (Reuters)

A network of nursing school operators allegedly sold bogus nursing degrees that let students skip training. (Miami Herald)

Meanwhile, a backlog at Minnesota’s nursing board is creating very long licensure processing times for applicants. (Star Tribune)

Roche announced the launch of a new PCR test to detect the fast-spreading XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant.

The NIH failed to keep track of the research that EcoHealth Alliance was doing, a HHS watchdog reports. (New York Times)

FDA details the class I recall of Cardiosave Hybrid and Cardiosave Rescue intra-aortic balloon pumps.

Abortion pill maker GenBioPro and a North Carolina doctor separately filed federal complaints challenging state restrictions on mifepristone. (ABC News)

Is guinea worm disease on its way to global eradication? (The Guardian)

The number of cardiovascular deaths in 2020 topped the previous record from 2003, according to the American Heart Association 2023 Statistical Update. (Circulation)

A California law targeting COVID misinformation was halted by a U.S. district court. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Some troubleshooting for people who think they have COVID but are testing negative on rapid tests. (New York Times)

Detection of a highly infectious strain of bird flu has Bulgaria culling quails. The disease’s risk to humans is considered to be low. (Reuters)

An unprecedented 16.3 million people signed up for health care coverage in ACA marketplaces during the 2022-2023 open enrollment season, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid services says.

Extracorporeal and conventional CPR performed similarly for resuscitating people in refractory out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, a Dutch trial showed. (New England Journal of Medicine)

Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, says it performed its first separation surgery for conjoined twins after months of planning.

In the Middle East, some doctors are being driven to emigrate because of local violence against healthcare providers. (DW)

An Illinois man was nabbed after allegedly setting fire to a Planned Parenthood in Peoria, the Department of Justice announced.