This month, we introduce a new regular feature, Leadlines, a collection of articles highlighting topics that are relevant to The Floating Hospital’s mission. We hope it will provide a fuller understanding of the issues that drive our work each day. As can be expected, measles outbreaks have been driving much of the headlines in the health news space (see this month’s related feature article). Still, there are plenty of articles of interest in recent news.

Measles

The recent measles outbreaks across several states has made vaccination concerns and worries a frequent topic of conversation. In public remarks, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has appeared to veer back and forth between supporting the MMR vaccine as a means of prevention and questioning its safety and efficacy, the latter position causing concern among medical professionals.

Meanwhile federal funding for immunization programs has been cut, potentially leaving vulnerable populations across the country unprotected. The lack of state funding for such clinics was found to be a driver of the current outbreaks in West Texas.

For those who do have access to the MMR shot but are still holdouts, CNN ran an article in March about communicating with vaccine-hesitant parents to help alleviate their concerns.

Avian or Bird Flu

As of April 15, human cases of bird flu in the United States have increased to 70 with California accounting for more than half of them, primarily from exposure to infected cattle. So far, one person has died from being infected, and that person was immunocompromised.

Concerns have grown about eating eggs and poultry, but experts say that as long as both are cooked to at least 165 degrees, they are safe. People should avoid runny eggs, raw batter with eggs in it and undercooked chicken. Prior to Easter, one outlet asked experts if dyeing Easter eggs was a concern, and the same safety tips were cited. Drinking raw milk is also considered unwise in general, but especially now.

CDC Director nominee

In late March, Susan Monarez was nominated to lead the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. She has served as acting director since January and has received positive reactions from many of her peers. “She has a strong reputation as a solid researcher and expert in infectious diseases,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association in The New York Times. But in the same article, officials at the agency told the paper that she had not spent much time in the Atlanta headquarters or offered active leadership or communication since assuming the role.

New York City poverty

A report by Columbia University and Robin Hood, an anti-poverty group, found that the affordability crisis in New York City has spiked in the last two years, with a quarter of residents without enough money for housing or food and many saying they can’t afford to go to the doctor. The report also found 26 percent of children in New York City (420,000) live in poverty, according to an article summarizing the findings in The New York Times.

Other health headlines

A recent study based on data from the CDC’s division of reproductive health found large disparities in pregnancy-related deaths across states and ethnicities, with a large portion of them preventable, in the years from 2018 to 2022. Many of these deaths occur long after delivery, as The New York Times noted in its coverage. The United States has the highest rate of pregnancy-related death among high-income countries. The CDC has previously reported that four in five pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. are preventable.

Earlier this month, the CDC published a study finding the number of infections from an invasive strain of strep more than doubled from 2013 to 2022. According to the report, “Incidence was particularly high among those 65 years or older, American Indian or Alaska Native persons, residents of long-term care facilities, people experiencing homelessness, and people who inject drugs.” Pediatric cases have also spiked in recent years. The group A strep bacteria causes the more common strep throat, but can become invasive if it spreads to the blood stream or other parts of the body, and can quickly become life threatening.