Little Chance Of Pandemic Agreement By World Health Assembly – But Charting Process For Future Is Likely - Health Policy Watch Members of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) face another sleep-deprived week as talks on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) pandemic agreement Health Policy Watch

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Ahead of Hajj, CDC alerts doctors to look out for meningococcal disease tied to travel to Saudi Arabia | CNN The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging doctors to be on the lookout for potentially deadly meningococcal disease linked to travel to Saudi Arabia. Jen Christensen CNN

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Since April, there have been 12 confirmed cases of meningococcal disease associated with travel for Umrah, an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad in Saudi Arabia....

Uptake of flu, whooping cough, and COVID-19 vaccines remains low among pregnant women A study conducted by researchers at the University of Warwick has unveiled crucial insights into the complex factors shaping vaccination decisions among pregnant women, particularly in the wake of the ... Kat Beauchamp Medical Xpress

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Warwick has unveiled crucial insights into the complex factors shaping vaccination decisions among pregnant women, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

CDC continues to respond to the public health challenge posed by a multistate outbreak of avian influenza A(H5N1) virus, or “A(H5N1) virus,” in dairy cows and other animals in the United States. CDC is working in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), state public health and animal health officials, and other partners using a One Health approach. USDA is now reporting that 51 dairy cattle herds in nine U.S. states have confirmed cases of A(H5N1) virus infections in cattle. There have been no additional human cases detected since the one recent case from Texas was reported on April 1, 2024. ^[1][2] 

North Carolina lawmakers push bill to ban most public mask wearing, citing crime Republican lawmakers in North Carolina are pushing forward with their plan to repeal a pandemic-era law that allowed the wearing of masks in public for health reasons, a move spurred in part by demonstrations against the war in Gaza that have included masked protesters camped out on college campuses AP News

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US government suspends funding for virus research group at center of Covid-19 origin controversy | CNN The US Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday suspended funding to EcoHealth Alliance, a virus research organization tied to controversy about the origins of the virus that causes Covid-19. The agency also proposed the group be blocked from receiving federal funds in the future, possibly for years. Jamie Gumbrecht CNN

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Hospital COVID patients 35% more likely to die than flu patients last winter, study suggests During the 2023-24 respiratory virus season, hospitalized US COVID-19 patients were at a 35% higher risk for death from any cause than those admitted for influenza, compared with a 61% higher risk the winter before, estimates a research letter published today in JAMA. CIDRAP

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Warning over deadly mpox variant amid fears disease will cross borders An outbreak of mpox in Africa has health officials sounding the alarm for the public to get vaccinated before the disease spreads to North America.

US health authorities warned Thursday that a deadlier version of mpox (formerly monkeypox) spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo could soon cross international borders, urging those at risk to get vaccinated.

New virus variants threaten a summer Covid-19 wave, but experts say the risk remains uncertain | CNN Covid-19 levels are about the lowest they’ve ever been in the United States, but another new crop of virus variants once again threatens to disrupt the downward trend as the country heads into summer. Deidre McPhillips CNN

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The mutations of the FLiRT variants make increased transmissibility — and a possible summer wave — a real threat. Covid-19 is settling into some seasonal patterns, which have included a summer bump in years past, but the exact level of risk for this year is unclear.

The New U.S. Strategy on Global Health Security | Think Global Health

The New U.S. Strategy on Global Health Security | Think Global Health The strategy seeks to make U.S. foreign policy on global health more effective Council on Foreign Relations

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How Europe reduced its greenhouse gas emissions last year The European Union's greenhouse gas emissions fell by 5% last year, official data published this week showed, continuing a trend of declining emissions in Europe. Kate Abnett Reuters

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