NEXT WEEK: From Avenues for Youth via Facebook, VERBATIM: “Building on Dreams is coming up on March 27 and our goal is to raise $140,000 for youth experiencing homelessness! We are grateful to Riverbridge Partners and UCare for their Partner sponsorships! We're over halfway to our goal thanks to sponsorships from companies and faith partners, along with gifts from individuals.” POST: https://fluence-media.co/4bNmvls (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
SURVEY: Via Inc., VERBATIM: “Three months into 2025, nearly half of employees are looking back almost fondly at the pandemic as an easier and more stable time than today. That’s one finding in a recent survey by workplace mental health company Modern Health, which determined that ‘current events have overtaken crime and finances as the top driver of employee distress.’ But whether that trio of worries are addressed individually or as a whole, the 1,000 full-time employees polled made it clear the increasing uncertainty and dramatic pace of domestic and world events is taking a toll on their morale.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hHxnmh
MORE: Via Modern Health, from the survey:
71% say global political tensions are making fostering a positive workplace culture harder
74% believe anxiety caused by the global political environment leads to burnout at work
61% of Gen Z employees are reconsidering their career path due to the mental toll of today’s global political climate
READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bNBADA
CRYING: Via Personnel Today, VERBATIM: “Half of employees say they have cried because of work issues, and 58% have considered quitting their job as a result of their mental health, worrying new research has suggested. The conclusions, in the Annual Workplace Mental Health Report from Headspace, suggest that, if anything, employers are going backwards in terms of provision and support for mental health in the workplaces.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kFsHQp
BURNOUT: Via Newsweek, VERBATIM: “At just 25 years old, many young Americans are already experiencing the kind of exhaustion once associated with midlife, according to a new survey. The survey from Talker Research has found that one in four Americans report hitting peak burnout before turning 30, challenging long-held assumptions about when life's pressures reach their peak. The findings offer a stark glimpse into the state of modern stress.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bR1SVu
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
OVERDOSES: Via The Wall Street Journal, VERBATIM: “The U.S. is making progress against one of its most devastating public-health threats: drug overdoses. Over the 12 months ended in October 2024, the country saw a 25% decline in overdose deaths compared with the same period the year prior, according to the latest preliminary estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 82,000 overdose deaths were reported. The leading factor? A falling number of fatalities involving synthetic opioids, a drug class in which bootleg fentanyl is the big killer.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41HqXgS
EMERGENCY: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration is extending through mid-June an emergency declaration linked to the opioid overdose crisis that was set to expire on Friday. In a statement, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. acknowledged drug deaths in the U.S. ‘are starting to decline’ but said the Trump administration will continue treating the opioid crisis as ‘the national security emergency that it is.’ President Trump has linked fentanyl smuggling to his tariffs against Canada, China and Mexico.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kF2NfF
MORE: Via CBS News, VERBATIM: “As the bird flu continues to wreak havoc on the U.S. egg supply, U.S. Customs and Border Protection data show there have been significantly more egg products seized at U.S. borders than the number of seizures of the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl so far in fiscal year 2025.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kGc6vL
ABORTION: Via Politico, VERBATIM: “Abortion rights supporters across the country are scrambling to strengthen protections for clinics in response to moves by the Trump administration that they believe will put providers and patients in danger. Democratic lawmakers have introduced bills in Illinois, Michigan, New York and elsewhere to restrict demonstrations outside of clinics, increase criminal penalties for people who harass doctors and patients, or allocate more funds for abortion providers to buy security cameras, bulletproof glass and other protections.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4j0R6yn
DR. OZ: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) expressed skepticism about Dr. Mehmet Oz’s, President Trump’s pick to oversee Medicare and Medicaid, views on abortion and transgender rights.” QUOTE: “I’ve been reading up on Dr. Oz – I see he’s praised trans surgeries for minors and supported hormone treatments & puberty blockers for kids in the past,” Hawley wrote on X. “And has also criticized state laws protecting life. I hope he’s changed his views to match President Trump!” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ipOkCS
MEDICAID SUPPORTS HEALTH CARE FOR ALL OF US: Medicaid keeps Minnesota’s hospitals strong and ensures communities across the state have access to care. Policymakers must protect Medicaid so every Minnesotan — regardless of income or health status — can get the care they need, when they need it. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/3FtrCuH (SPONSORED: Minnesota Hospital Association)
VACCINATIONS: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “Experts say the key to communicating with families about vaccination is to address their specific concerns. ‘Tailoring your approach and your communication to that family-specific concern has been the most effective for me and my practice,’ said Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez, a primary care pediatrician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. ‘That is really what helps families feel confident about their choice.’ For some families, this includes addressing worries about side effects they may hear through anecdotes in their communities. Pediatricians say these often circulate in community or family WhatsApp groups or through parent Facebook groups.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ht4nOW
STUDY: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “A new study by Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers found that the presence of a specific genetic mutation — KRAS circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) — strongly indicates a higher risk of cancer spread and worse survival rates for patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). The mutation was identified using a readily available and clinically approved blood and abdominal fluid test.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hq9O18
GUN VIOLENCE: Via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “A first-of-its-kind law clinic is addressing gun violence head-on. Students at the University of Minnesota Law School focus on gun violence prevention through litigation. They're working pro bono on real Second Amendment cases through the attorney general's office, serving as special assistants. For many, the work is personal.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4bGMVoT
From morning take…
HEALTHCARE: via WCCO Radio, VERBATIM: “A Minnesota House committee is hearing a bill that would prohibit health insurance providers from dropping medication coverage in the middle of a plan year. … The measure is part of a package of health care policy bills. The others would require pharmacy benefit managers and health insurers to include lower-cost drug options in their offerings, and would require them to accept prescription drug rebates.” READ/LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/41Ct0Ts
VA: via Minnesota Reformer, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Democrats blasted the Trump Administration’s plans to fire upwards of 80,000 Veterans Affairs employees as part of its war on the size of the federal workforce, saying the cuts will rob veterans of the benefits they’ve earned. … ‘Elon Musk has made it abundantly clear that he has no interest in making targeted cuts to increase efficiency, to stop waste, fraud and abuse in any meaningful way,’ U.S. Rep. Angie Craig said at a news conference with veterans and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith in West St. Paul on Tuesday. … Klobucher voted to confirm Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins and half a dozen other cabinet members, [but] she wouldn’t go as far as saying she regretted voting for Collins, saying she will ‘assess that as time goes on [because] he is not standing up to the degree that he should.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kFDcmT
BENEFITS: via House Session Daily, VERBATIM: “Rep. Emma Greenman (DFL-Mpls) is offering a ‘simple solution’ in Minnesota to go after ‘claim sharks’ who profit off veterans desperate to get earned benefits. HF1855 would require federal accreditation of for-profit veterans benefit services providers and prohibit such providers from making a benefit guarantee. … Approved Wednesday by the House Veterans and Military Affairs Division, the bill was sent to the House Judiciary Finance and Civil Law Committee.” READ/LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4kx1nUx
OVERDOSES: via House Session Daily, VERBATIM: “As the state creates new health curriculum standards this year, high school students want them to include how to prevent, recognize and respond to drug overdoses. … HF2023, sponsored by Rep. Nolan West (R-Blaine), [would] require education on cannabis use and substance abuse in grades six through 12 to include overdose recognition, prevention and response education. The House Education Policy Committee laid the bill over Wednesday for possible omnibus bill inclusion. Committee members expressed bipartisan support for the bill.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4inAUY4
SOCIAL MEDIA: via FOX 9, VERBATIM: “Minnesota lawmakers are proposing legislation that would require social media platforms to show users an initial mental health warning label, as well as an occasional pop-up timer tracking their time spent on any social media website or app. … The bill would be paired with efforts to protect children from the harms of social media under the existing ‘Prohibiting Social Media Manipulation Act’ in Minnesota.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4hlZCqo
NIH: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “Mental health advocates gathered in Minneapolis on Wednesday to discuss their future amid the federal government's plan to cut costs. … Local advocates say the cuts would directly target research done here in Minnesota. In 2024, the National Institutes of Health gave out $32 billion in research grants. That could drop by $5 billion if the cuts are allowed. … Sen. Tina Smith [said] ‘They are unilaterally cutting research funding with no notice.’ … ‘We should be moving forward, trying to make progress with our research and innovation — not backward,’ said Minnesota Rep. Kelly Morrison.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/41HurQv
MORE: via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “Some Minnesota researchers' grants from the National Institutes of Health were abruptly canceled last week. … [Nationwide], at least 209 projects had their NIH awards terminated. … The bulk of the terminated grants on the TAGGS list had to do with vaccine hesitancy, HIV, Black or Latino communities and/or sex, gender and LGBTQ+ identities. … The terminations affect three projects at the University of Minnesota [and] two projects at the HealthPartners Institute.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bGDQfG
Sign up for morning take… https://fluence-media.co/3ClMOla
ESSENTIA HEALTH INVESTS IN TWIN PORTS NURSES: Total payroll for Essentia Health Duluth-Superior nurses is $164 million, with $53 million paid in salary increases over the past 3 years. Essentia Health has also increased clinical support staff by 10% over the past 3 years, providing additional support for those nurses. Over half of Duluth area nurses have been with us for over 5 years and enjoy exceptional work-life balance. To join our team at Essentia Health, search for openings HERE: https://fluence-media.co/3FzLe0i (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
MENTAL HEALTH: From New Brighton-based Nystrom via PRNewswire, VERBATIM: “Minnesota House Rep. Robert Bierman (DFL-Apple Valley) recently met with mental health and substance use treatment clinicians at Nystrom & Associates Apple Valley Clinic to discuss the urgent need to increase funding for mental health and addiction treatment. One in five Minnesota adults and one in six children in Minnesota experience a mental health condition.” QUOTE: "We all know that medical assistance is critical for health care coverage in Minnesota," said Rep. Robert Bierman when introducing a bill to address the chronic underfunding of the program. "Reimbursement rates to providers who serve these Minnesotans have fallen woefully behind. Our current rates are unsustainable and have created a crisis in access to care." READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bFNpM1
POT: Via Fox News, VERBATIM: “While marijuana has been legalized in many states, research has shown that it could have detrimental health impacts for some — including a higher risk of heart attacks. Two recent studies have linked cannabis use to cardiac events, particularly among young, healthier people, according to a release from the American College of Cardiology (ACC).” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hpBB1A
MED SCHOOL: Via KFF Health News, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration’s crackdown on DEI programs could exacerbate an unexpectedly steep drop in diversity among medical school students, even in states like California, where public universities have been navigating bans on affirmative action for decades. Education and health experts warn that, ultimately, this could harm patient care . . . After the Supreme Court’s ruling [banning consideration of race in admissions], the numbers of Black and Hispanic medical school enrollees fell by double-digit percentages in the 2024-25 school year compared with the previous year, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. Black enrollees declined 11.6%, while the number of new students of Hispanic origin fell 10.8%. The decline in enrollment of American Indian or Alaska Native students was even more dramatic, at 22.1%. New Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander enrollment declined 4.3%.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bIFNIC
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
HHS: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “A small government agency responsible for putting medical products and services to practical use and making health care safe is feared to be the latest target for mass layoffs by the Trump administration. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, has about 300 employees and a budget of $369 million, which is about 0.02% of what the government spends on health care. But AHRQ hasn’t escaped the notice of the U.S. DOGE Service, which has been slashing agency payrolls and budgets across the government. Insiders say that DOGE aims to reduce AHRQ staff by 80% to 90%.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bNWkLs
ED DEPARTMENT: Via Vox, VERBATIM: “Amid the upheaval, one thing is clear: Any plan to shut down the Education Department — and, indeed, the cuts and layoffs that have already happened — will disproportionately hurt students with disabilities. That includes kids who receive special education, but also those in general education classrooms who get supports or accommodations to learn, from speech therapy to sign language interpreters to counseling. Any kid who has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 plan through their school could be affected by what’s going on at the Education Department.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4iFm1Qq
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
ALZHEIMER’S: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “For the first time, scientists say, they have evidence that using a biologic drug to remove sticky beta amyloid plaques from the brains of people destined to develop Alzheimer’s dementia can delay the disease. The researchers have been testing amyloid-removing therapies in a group of people who have rare genetic mutations that make it almost certain they’ll develop Alzheimer’s.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bKSEde
FIBER: From RMIT University via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “Australian food scientists have reclassified dietary fibres -- beyond just soluble and insoluble -- to better guide nutritional decisions and drive targeted health food products. Dietary fibres in fruit, vegetables, beans and whole grains are some of the most important food components for human health. They help digestion, weight management, blood sugar control, heart health, cancer prevention and more. But RMIT University food scientist Professor Raj Eri said consumer advice on how best to use them for these various benefits is sorely lacking.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4iKUMnH
Copyright © 2025 Fluence Media, All rights reserved.
You signed up or are media / a public official interested in health care news from Fluence Media.
Our mailing address is:
Fluence Media
PO Box 270031
Minneapolis, MN 55427