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POLLING
TOP ANXIETIES: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “The cost of health care, including paying for health insurance and out-of-pocket expenses, tops the list of the public’s economic anxieties, rising well above other necessities. Two-thirds of the public (66%) say they worry about being able to afford health care for them and their family, ranking higher than utilities, food and groceries, housing, and gas. In addition, most adults (55%) say their health care costs have gone up in the past year, including at least one in five who say they have increased at a faster rate than food or utilities.”
READ: https://fluence-media.co/3NNwI9p
MORE: Via CBS News, VERBATIM: “KFF’s [Shannon Schumacher] added that additional KFF research shows that some Americans plan to forego health insurance altogether because they deem the plans too expensive without the subsidies. Alternatively, some consumers are switching to cheaper plans that offer less coverage or seeking out employment that offers health insurance.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4t35OKZ
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
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)
HEALTH IN MN
FLU: In its weekly update this morning, the Minnesota Department of Health reported 130 flu-related deaths, 4,133 hospitalizations, 216 school outbreaks, and 85 long-term care outbreaks. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3Y10bib
BEMIDJI: Via Lakeland PBS, VERBATIM: “Sanford Health has lifted visitor restrictions at all clinics and hospitals in its Bemidji region due to improving respiratory illness trends. The visitor restrictions were implemented about a month ago on Dec. 23 to protect patients and employees from potentially catching and spreading illness. They were put in place at the time due to a rise in respiratory illnesses at Sanford hospitals and clinics in the Bemidji region at the time.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4a4zhLN
LIFE, CARE & COST
LIFE EXPECTANCY: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “People in the United States can expect to live longer than ever, as death rates returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2024. Life expectancy in the US had been trending up for decades before dropping by nearly a year and a half between 2019 and 2021, but it’s been on the rise again since 2022. Another 4% drop in the death rate between 2023 and 2024 raised life expectancy by more than half a year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45DPoi9
MORE: Via CDC, the data, which also includes death rates by demographic group and by cause. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/49NasVP
CAREGIVERS: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “Caring for the elderly in America is costly — too costly for many people to afford. Now, the Trump administration is attempting to tackle that problem by rolling back wage protections for more than 3 million workers who care for seniors and the disabled in their homes. The Labor Department has proposed rescinding an Obama-era rule that extended coverage of the Fair Labor Standards Act to home care workers. The 2013 rule granted them labor protections most other workers have had since 1938.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4qqpMgh
RETAIL: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “Walmart is reshaping pharmacy jobs — raising pay and elevating thousands of technician roles as it invests more heavily in pharmacy workers, the world’s largest retailer tells Axios. Why it matters: As pharmacy jobs evolve beyond filling prescriptions, Walmart’s move shows how retailers are reworking frontline roles in the health system to meet patient demand.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45Gb3WN
FROM DC
VA: Via Military.com, VERBATIM: “The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has ended abortion services and most abortion counseling for veterans nationwide, with officials telling Military.com that a Department of Justice (DOJ) opinion leaves the agency no legal authority to provide that care.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4rlFTMD
PILL: Via Mother Jones, VERBATIM: “After Roe v. Wade was overturned, the Biden administration enforced a rule in 2022 mandating that retail pharmacies receiving any federal funding had to carry and dispense mifepristone, misoprostol, and methotrexate—drugs used in medication abortions and, in the case of methotrexate, the treatment of ectopic pregnancies and autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus—in order not to discriminate on the basis of sex and disability. The Trump administration formally withdrew that rule on Tuesday, allowing pharmacists to refuse to stock or dispense misoprostol and methotrexate, despite their other uses.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4rlHYbC
STUDY: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “As FDA leadership initiates a new safety review of mifepristone following claims by abortion opponents that the drug was not adequately evaluated before it was granted approval, a new study published in JAMA examining more than 5,000 pages of internal FDA documents from 2011 to 2023 finds that agency decisions were consistently driven by scientific evidence, not politics. The study found that agency leaders almost always followed the recommendations of career scientists, repeatedly reviewed safety data, and reaffirmed that mifepristone is safe while making cautious changes to access.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/46lQ2AV
PREP: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “HIV/AIDS activists heralded the approval of a new twice-yearly pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication last year, but these celebrations were tempered by insurers’ reluctance to cover its exorbitant cost. In the months since, payers are coming around, and more patients have access to this landmark advancement.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4rs2mIh
AUTISM: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “The Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday announced the appointment of 21 new members to a federal committee that advises health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on autism. Many of the new members of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee share a common trait: They have publicly expressed or belong to groups that have publicly expressed a belief in the debunked claim that vaccines can cause autism.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bq8eNp
DESPITE THE CHALLENGES OF RURAL HEALTH CARE, ESSENTIA IS RECOGNIZED FOR PROVIDING TOP CLINICAL CARE: According to the latest report from Minnesota Community Measurement, a statewide resource on health care quality, costs and equity, Essentia ranked as a high performer with 19 of 20 clinical quality metrics scoring above statewide averages. According to Dr. Maria Beaver, chief quality and patient safety officer at Essentia: “This is a testament to the amazing care provided by all our clinical care teams and all our colleagues who support them.” LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/4dCxy1D (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
HEALTHCARE
MEDICARE: Via Politico, VERBATIM: “Health insurers cheered last year when the Trump administration agreed to pump $25 billion more into private Medicare plans in 2026, hoping it signaled a turnaround from the Biden administration’s more modest yearly increases. Instead of the big boost the insurers say they badly need, the Trump administration on Monday offered an increase of less than 1 percent, or $700 million, in 2027. The announcement has left insurers distressed about the future of Medicare Advantage, the privately run alternative to traditional Medicare, as seniors’ medical costs have skyrocketed over the past few years.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3ZBCwWa
ACA: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “More than a million fewer people have signed up for Affordable Care Act coverage for 2026, according to federal data released Wednesday. The drop comes after the expiration of the enhanced federal premium subsidies caused monthly payments to skyrocket for many enrollees. Just under 23 million people selected plans for 2026, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. That compares to just under 24.2 million people in roughly the same period last year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45E0DXO
WOMEN + LGBTQ+: Via The 19th, VERBATIM: “Their health care premiums have skyrocketed. And now, women and LGBTQ+ people across the country are scrambling. Some are pushing off paying for retirement, or dipping into their savings. Some are looking for extra work to afford plans that they aren’t sure will actually cover their health care bills. And some are planning to go without insurance, hoping they won’t get too sick to manage medical expenses on their own.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4a8pX9T
PARTNERSHIP: Via HealthPartners, VERBATIM: “Combining the strengths of two care and coverage organizations, HealthPartners and Quartz today announced a new partnership that will give businesses in Minnesota and Wisconsin more high-quality, affordable self-funded health plan options for their employees.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4a58qiA
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
NEW RESEARCH
GENE EDITING: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Mayo Clinic researchers have developed a promising gene-editing therapy that directly corrects a genetic mutation responsible for autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), the most common inherited kidney disorder. A single treatment of the gene therapy slowed kidney cyst growth, improved heart and liver health, and extended survival in preclinical models of ADPKD.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4tcH2rS
LONG COVID: Via Northwestern, VERBATIM: “A massive international study of more than 3,100 long COVID patients uncovered a striking divide in how brain-related symptoms are reported around the world. In the U.S., the vast majority of non-hospitalized patients described brain fog, depression, and anxiety, while far fewer patients in countries like India and Nigeria reported the same issues. The difference doesn’t appear to be about the virus itself, but about culture, stigma, and access to mental health care.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4rpKHko
CANCER: Via KAIST, VERBATIM: “Scientists in South Korea have discovered that one of the most common malignant brain tumors in young adults may begin years before a tumor can be seen. IDH-mutant glioma, long treated by removing visible tumor tissue, actually starts when normal-looking brain cells quietly acquire a cancer-linked mutation and spread through the brain’s cortex. Using advanced genetic mapping and animal models, researchers traced the cancer’s true origin to glial progenitor cells that appear healthy at first.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4amEDTO
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