RFK on vaccines, young people and cancer

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It’s been a busy November here at STAT, and it’s not slowing down. I’m writing this on a Friday afternoon and everyone is on Zoom discussing new messaging ideas. I guess I’m a little biased, but I think we’ve done an incredible job on the election and its fallout. If you would like to support our coverage, sign up for a STAT+ subscription. You won’t regret it.

How RFK Jr. could turn decades of vaccine policy upside down

We have two new pieces on Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who plans to dramatically shake up America’s health care system if he is named head of the Department of Health and Human Services.

First, Rachel Cohrs Zhang elaborates on how Kennedy could strip legal protections from vaccine makers, even though vaccines can eradicate deadly diseases and save millions of lives every year. If vaccine makers waver on whether to enter or stay in the market, Americans could remain vulnerable to preventable infectious diseases and biosecurity threats.

Second, several of my colleagues have compiled what Kennedy’s top priorities are likely to be. Here’s what you need to know about RFK Jr.’s views. about food, vaccines, abortion and the FDA.

Why are more and more young people getting cancer?

With cancer rates rising among people under 50, researchers and healthcare executives discussed efforts to detect cancer earlier and save lives last week at the Milken Institute’s Future of Health Summit.

Although expanded screenings may explain some of the increase in cancer prevalence, these procedures remain highly underutilized. For example, black women have a lower incidence of breast cancer than white women 40% higher chance of dying from it.

“We need to break the stigma of cancer because right now what was science fiction becomes scientific reality in a clinic next door,” said Mohit Manrao, head of US oncology at AstraZeneca, referring to recent advances in screening and treatment. Read more about this panel.

Being transgender in the US has only become more difficult

Bathroom bills are back in fashion. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine is expected to do so sign a bill that would require all students (including those at colleges) to use bathrooms that correspond to the gender assigned to them at birth. In Odessa, Texas, city officials announced a $10,000 premium for anyone willing to report a trans person guilty of going to the bathroom. Similar pieces of anti-trans legislation And lawsuits appear elsewhere.

Thanks to my colleague Theresa Gaffney, we know that healthcare professionals are concerned about how the new Trump administration could upend trans medicine, especially with its promise to end federal funding for gender-affirming care. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will hear a challenge to Tennessee’s ban on puberty blockers and hormone therapy for trans minors in early December. Stay informed.

Forced sterilization should not be an option for people with disabilities: First Opinion

New guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics suggest that forced sterilization should be considered as a treatment option for children, adolescents, and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is a “troubling approach” to reproductive health for this population, says Consuelo Senior, a mental health physician, in a STAT First Opinion.

Forced sterilization is a fundamental violation of a person’s bodily autonomy, but people with I/DD have been subjected to this procedure for more than a century. Many people see it as a way to keep this population safe 90% of the people with I/DD will experience sexual abuse at some point in their lives.

Read more about why the new AAP ruling is an issue for the disability community here.

Telehealth prescribing rules have been expanded to include treatments for ADHD and opioid addiction

Federal officials expanded pandemic-era rules allowing health care providers to prescribe medications for opioid addiction and ADHD through telehealth.

This temporary ruling is the latest from the Drug Enforcement Agency, and its extension until the end of 2025 will leave the new Trump administration with a decision to make. In 2023, the Drug Enforcement Agency released rules for reintroducing restrictions that were criticized by telehealth advocates and providers, and last October it extended the flexibility through the end of this year.

The flexibility allows prescribers to give their patients access to treatments like buprenorphine and Adderall, and has proven to be a boon for telehealth companies. Read more about the issue from STAT’s Mario Aguilar and Katie Palmer.

First US case of new mpox strain detected in California

California has discovered the nation’s first case of a new mpox strain spreading from person to person, STAT’s Helen Branswell reports. The infected person had recently traveled from East Africa, where several countries are battling the transmission of this virus.

The version of the virus that infected the person is known as clade Ib, which is different from the clade IIb virus responsible for the major international mpox outbreak that started in 2022. California health authorities say there are no concerns or indications the version is spreading in the U.S. Read more.

What we read

• Organic Carrots Leaked to E. Coli Outbreak, Wall Street Journal
• Q&A: American Heart Association President on GLP1-s and ‘common ground’ with the next White House, STAT
• The Texas medical school has ordered a stop to liquefying bodies after using them for training. NBC News
• Some patients pay up to $50,000 a year in fees for “concierge medicine.” Here’s what’s behind the rise, STAT
• Pay first, deliver later: Some women are asked to pay in advance for their baby, KFF Health News