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UPI
3 days ago
- General
- UPI
2025 to be 'hot year for ticks' in U.S., experts warn
Ticks can be found across the contiguous United States, but several species thrive in the warm and humid climates of the central and eastern parts of the country from spring through fall. File Photo by Judy Gallagher Meteorological summer got underway on Sunday, June 1, and with the rising temperatures comes a danger for outdoor enthusiasts across the country: ticks. Ticks can be found across the contiguous United States, but several species thrive in the warm and humid climates of the central and eastern parts of the country from spring through fall. This year is shaping up to be a "hot year for ticks," according to Thomas Hard of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. A tick bite can threaten the health of humans and pets alike in the form of Lyme disease. "Early symptoms of Lyme disease, unfortunately [are] going to look a lot like the flu, so there'll be things like fever, fatigue, headaches and muscle aches," Hard said. A bull's eye-shaped rash may also appear on the skin around a tick bite, but not always. In 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) documented over 89,000 new cases of Lyme disease. If left untreated, the disease can have serious, long-lasting effects on health. Ticks can also transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Colorado tick fever, tularemia, and anaplasmosis, as well as other ailments, according to the CDC. There is also evidence that a bite from a Lone star tick can trigger alpha-gal syndrome, which causes an allergy to red meat. Experts recommend wearing long sleeves and pants tucked into socks when spending time in areas where ticks live, such as in the woods or around tall grass. It is also important to check your body for ticks after spending time outdoors. If you have been bitten by a tick and start to feel the symptoms of Lyme disease, experts recommend contacting your doctor.
USA Today
3 days ago
- USA Today
Burying my 14-year-old was my worst nightmare. This is the question I wish I'd asked.
Burying my 14-year-old was my worst nightmare. This is the question I wish I'd asked. | Opinion Gun injuries are the leading cause of death in the U.S. for children and teens. The rate of them dying from firearms has gone up 106% since 2013. We can save children from that tragedy. Show Caption Hide Caption New Mexico deputies disarm two boys in coordinated response Newly released drone footage captured two boys passing a loaded weapon before being surrounded by sheriff's deputies. The sheriff's office blurred their faces. When I bought my 14-year-old son a crisp, navy suit with a yellow bowtie for his upcoming spring formal, I never imagined that I'd have to bury him in it just days later. My radiant, joyful boy went over to a family member's house, where he and his cousin found an unsecured gun in a drawer, hidden beneath a T-shirt. They started playing with it, not realizing it was loaded. Minutes later, JaJuan was gone. The phone call we received that afternoon, informing us what happened, was every parent's worst nightmare. And it was entirely preventable. My husband and I had always been protective of JaJuan. We had taught him as a child to look both ways before crossing the street and not to accept rides from strangers. And we had always ask other parents the usual questions – about screen time, video games and curfews – before letting JaJuan go to a friend's house. But we never asked: "Is there a gun in the house? If so, is it stored securely?" It never occurred to us that the thing that posed the greatest risk to JaJuan's life would be a firearm, but gun injuries are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the United States. And since 2013, the firearm death rate among children and teens has increased by 106%. Opinion: Gun violence stole our children from us. Mother's Day carries loss – and hope. We can agree that children shouldn't die from guns One of the things I've realized since my son passed away is that addressing gun violence and its impact – especially on children – doesn't have to be a partisan issue. With our children and teens at the center of this crisis, it can't be. A recent study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health showed that gun injuries claimed over 2,500 children's lives in 2022 – more than car crashes, overdoses or cancers. For older teens, 1 out of every 3 ages 15-17 who died in 2022 died as a result of a firearm injury. Whether you're a lifelong gun owner or someone who has never touched one, we all want our children to be safe. And there are plenty of solutions that the majority of Americans support – if we'd simply start a conversation about gun violence prevention, one rooted in the common ground we share. In fact, 8 in 10 Americans agree that productive conversations can help reduce gun injury and death among children and teens. Everyone shares the goal of reducing suicides and unintentional shootings – which in 2022 accounted for nearly 60% of all gun deaths. These tragedies often receive less media attention than intentional shootings, but they devastate families and communities all the same. To save lives, we need a cultural shift. That starts in our homes and communities, with conversations that help people understand how asking simple questions, practicing secure storage and understanding the signs of a mental health crisis can prevent irreversible loss. Opinion: I survived the FSU shooting. Your thoughts and prayers are killing us. Talk to kids, other parents about gun safety. Here's how. For starters, ask other parents, friends and relatives if they keep firearms and how they're stored. It might feel awkward at first. But just like you'd ask about peanuts if your child has an allergy, asking about guns could save a life. Similarly, parents – even the ones who don't personally own guns – need to talk to their kids about firearm safety. Make sure kids understand that guns aren't toys, and as a precaution, what to do – and not do – if they see one. Ultimately, it's the adults' responsibility to keep them safe. We also need to normalize open conversations around mental health. This is especially important when it comes to putting necessary time and space between a teen in a moment of crisis and a firearm, so that they don't make a tragically irreversible decision. Parents of teens who show signs of emotional distress – like becoming suddenly withdrawn or having decreased interest in school and other activities – should consider alternative storage options for their firearms until the crisis passes. I don't enjoy talking about this topic, but I've become so passionate about this issue because JaJuan's story could help save another family from going through what we did. Talking about secure storage and crisis intervention doesn't have to be controversial. It just has to be done to protect our children. I encourage – in fact, I beg – other parents to start those lifesaving conversations today. And for those who don't know where to begin, information and resources to help start the conversation are available. We don't have to – and might not – always agree on everything, but we can all agree that we can all play a role in creating a safer America where gun violence is no longer the leading cause of death for children and teens. Julvonnia McDowell is the mother of a son who died from an unintentional shooting and is an advocate for secure gun storage.
NBC News
29-05-2025
- Health
- NBC News
A new Covid variant could drive up summer cases: Here's what you should know
A new Covid variant that's gaining momentum globally has landed in the U.S. The World Health Organization announced last week that it was monitoring the variant, NB.1.8.1, following a rise in cases in several parts of the world, including Europe, Southeast Asia and North and South America. The variant appears to be more transmissible than the dominant strain worldwide, LP.8.1, meaning it has the potential to drive up cases this summer. But it does not seem to be much better than LP.8.1 at evading protection from vaccines or a prior infection. And the WHO has found no evidence that it leads to more severe illness, so the agency has determined that it doesn't pose an added health risk. 'It's an important one to track, but it doesn't show any signs so far of being able to drive a large surge in Covid-19 cases — at least in the U.S.,' said Andrew Pekosz, a virologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Federal and state health officials regularly monitor Covid strains to identify potential changes in how the virus behaves and help inform vaccine updates. The strains that have been dominant in the U.S. since late 2021 are versions of the omicron variant and generally produce similar symptoms. NB.1.8.1 is part of that lineage. Covid vaccines are updated each fall to better match the circulating strains, but eligibility will likely be limited this year to older adults and young people with medical conditions. Infectious disease doctors said NB.1.8.1 could potentially lead to a small surge of infections for two reasons: The U.S. hasn't seen a Covid wave in awhile and less than a quarter of adults have received the latest booster, meaning population immunity has likely waned. 'It may unfortunately come back with a little bit of vengeance on us. Let's hope that doesn't happen, but I am concerned that we may be setting ourselves up for that with this combination of factors,' said Dr. Thomas Russo, chief of infectious diseases at the University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Covid cases typically rise twice a year — in the summer and winter — regardless of what variant is circulating, said Dr. Scott Roberts, associate medical director of infection prevention at the Yale School of Medicine. 'I'm going to go ahead and guess that it's going to lead to an uptick in the summer — probably a mild to moderate one,' he said of NB.1.8.1. A spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there have been fewer than 20 sequences of NB.1.8.1 reported in the U.S. to date. That means the variant is not prevalent enough to appear on the CDC's dashboard, which lists variants that make up more than 1% of national Covid cases over a two-week period. The Arizona Department of Health Services said it identified three samples of the variant in late April and early May through routine surveillance. NB.1.8.1 has also been detected in Rhode Island, according to the state's health department. The Cleveland Clinic said it had detected a few cases in Ohio. 'Whether it gets a foothold in this country and it becomes our new dominant variant or not remains to be seen,' Russo said. The variant is now dominant in China, where it has spread rapidly since the start of the year. By late April, it made up nearly 11% of genetic sequences submitted to a global virus database called GISAID, up from 2.5% earlier that month. Meanwhile, LP.8.1 has become less prevalent since mid-April, according to the WHO. A preprint study, which has not been peer-reviewed, found that NB.1.8.1 had the 'potential for future dominance' over other circulating variants due to additional mutations that could make it more transmissible. People who haven't been vaccinated or had Covid in awhile should get a booster now if they're eligible, Roberts said. NB.1.8.1 is a cousin of JN.1 (the variant targeted by the current booster), so the vaccine should protect against it to some degree. The Food and Drug Administration has asked drugmakers to update Covid vaccines to target the LP.8.1 variant this fall. Data from Pfizer and Moderna suggest the updated vaccines would offer protection against NB.1.8.1 as well. But the FDA has said it will limit its approval of updated Covid shots to older adults and younger people with a medical condition that puts them at risk of severe illness. And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday stopped recommending Covid vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women. 'I haven't seen any substantial new data to guide these decisions,' Roberts said. Doctors said they worry that, because of those changes, pregnant people and children under 5 may be vulnerable to severe outcomes from Covid this winter. And even healthy adults who've been vaccinated before might not have optimal protection, Russo said. 'Even for people that have received one shot, two shots, even three shots — yes, that's better than no shot,' he said. 'But we know that immunity wanes and we know the virus evolves.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Illinois advocates push for gun violence prevention
Gun violence prevention advocates and victims' families gathered under the Illinois Capitol rotunda to demand safety and transparency. Lawmakers have filed few bills, like the Safe at Home bill to require gun owners to store guns in locked containers to prevent kids from getting to them. Another is the Homicide Data Transparency Act, requiring police departments to publish online how many homicides were solved every four months. Data from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows on averagemore than 1,300 people die from gun violence in Illinois every year, and 80% of those deaths are homicides. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
18-05-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Will Drug Costs Plummet 90% Under Trump? Experts Weigh In
Earlier this week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that promises to drastically lower prescription drug prices in the U.S. The president said he would be able to cut drug costs by as much as 90 percent, however experts remain skeptical about whether this will be possible, given the potential court or political challenges the order could face as well as the fact it is not yet entirely clear how the Trump administration will manage such a feat. The order aims to target a key problem facing Americans—that they pay significantly more for prescription medications than consumers elsewhere, with branded drugs in the U.S. costing around three times more than those in other countries. Gerard Anderson, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told Newsweek, that in some cases, the difference in price can be as much as 100 times greater in the U.S. While the order aims to tackle the major issue of high prescription drug costs for Americans, experts warn that the fact it relies on manufacturers to voluntarily lower their prices means little change could be felt for consumers. Trump's executive order set a 30-day deadline for drugmakers to lower the cost of prescription drugs in the U.S, directing Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr, to kick off negotiations to that effect. Should deals, or "significant progress" toward deals, not be made, Kennedy is to enforce what is known as the "most-favored-nation" pricing, which would in theory tie the price the U.S. pays for medications to lower prices paid by other countries. Anderson said: "The executive order is much ado about nothing. Drug companies are not going to voluntarily lower their prices, and other countries are not going to voluntary increase their prices." The incentive for manufacturers to lower the price is also based on the possibility that they could sell directly to consumers, however, Dr. Mariana Socal, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told Newsweek that "most drug manufacturers do not have a structure to provide direct-to-consumer sales today." As the new order targets high-cost drugs, health insurers, which help cover the cost of some prescription drugs, are also a big part of the picture. So, the question is how health insurers would respond, Socal said. "Insurers charge lower copays when patients buy their drugs from in-network pharmacies and providers," she added. It is therefore hard to know whether health insurance would cover drugs purchased directly from drug manufacturers, and if so, how much they will charge patients for in-network or out-of-network rates, Socal said. "In the U.S., the patient experience is determined by their insurer, so even if prices were lower, patients may not get access to those prices," she added. This is because some patients may be paying a fixed copay, such as $5 or $50, for a drug and would not pay less if the drug is cheaper, while patients who pay based on the drug price may not be covered if they buy directly from the manufacturer, Socal said. These factors therefore make it hard to determine whether manufacturers will lower drug prices at their end, and if they were to lower the price, whether patients would pay fewer out-of-pocket costs for the drugs. Another key determinant as to whether consumers will feel a drop in out-of-pocket costs of drugs, following the signing of the order, is whether or not it will face various challenges, which could stunt the proposed changes. "Any effort to peg U.S. drug prices to those in other wealthy countries would probably require Congress to change the law, and it's unclear whether Congress would support such a move," Olivier Wouters, a professor in the department of health services, at the Policy and Practice at Brown University's School of Public Health, told Newsweek. Anderson also thought the order could face political challenges. "Congress is not going to be receptive to this idea," he said, adding that the Democrats proposed a version of the "most favored nation" idea, in the Build Back Better legislation that passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2021. He added: "But all the Republicans opposed it. It seems very unlikely that the Republicans would make a 180 degree change and now support the idea." Wouters added that the executive order is also "thin on details" about how the administration would actually achieve such large price cuts, making it hard to know how the it intends to implement the proposal. "Beyond the political hurdles, such a measure would likely face a flurry of legal challenges," she added. She said: "Many see the proposal as dead on arrival, which is likely why shares of both small biotechs and large pharmaceutical companies rose following the announcement." Wouters said that the Trump administration "is sidestepping the hard job of figuring out which drug prices offer good value." Related Articles Bernie Sanders Issues Warning About Trump's Drug Pricing Executive OrderThe 1600: Air Force One, Courtesy of Qatar?Donald Trump Vows To Reduce Prescription Drug Costs by up to 80 PercentWill Donald Trump Succeed in Lowering Drug Prices? 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