THIS MONTH: From UCare via Instagram, VERBATIM: “Free flu fighter clinics from UCare are coming your way all month long. Here’s what’s on tap in November. Thanks for protecting yourself and your loved ones.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/487j6xn (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
POLLING
AGING: Via Pew, VERBATIM: “49% of adults ages 65 and older say they are aging extremely or very well. By comparison, 30% of those younger than 65 expect to age similarly well. Among those in the younger group who say they think about what life may be like in their 70s and beyond at least sometimes, more are worried about their later years (67%) than excited (51%). Income and the aging experience: Among adults ages 65 and older, experiences with getting older differ vastly by income.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49fmrLU
MORE: Via Clinical Advisor, VERBATIM: “Among adults under 65 who think about their later years, 67% say they feel worried, while 51% say they feel excited. Top concerns include future health problems, not having enough money, and becoming a burden to their family. More than 4 in 10 adults under 65 (45%) say they are not confident they will have enough savings to retire.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nLcPfr
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
BOTULISM
WHAT’S HAPPENING: Via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “Minnesota is among the states impacted by an infant botulism outbreak linked to baby formula. The Minnesota Department of Health says that one case of the rare but serious illness has been reported in an infant in the state, one of 13 cases reported across 10 states, all of which have resulted in hospitalization.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/47A9fQB
MORE: Via FDA, where there are cases:
Here are product images provided by FDA:
MORE INFO: https://fluence-media.co/49f3clQ
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)
HEALTHCARE
IMMIGRANTS: Via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “Munira Maalimisaq has seen firsthand the disparities that immigrants face in the health care system. As a nurse practitioner who has worked in health care for more than a decade, she has seen that some patients of color weren’t having their needs met. Inaccurate translations led to confusion about medical care. Rushed doctor’s appointments left community members not feeling valued . . . Those experiences led her to create Inspire Change Clinic, which aims to provide culturally responsive care to community members in a diverse corridor of the city.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4p09Qkf
CHILDBIRTH: Via Rochester Post Bulletin, VERBATIM: “When Northfield Hospital renovated its Birth Center in 2020, it increased its capacity to handle as many as 750 births a year. It could reach that number soon. Lisa Bauer, vice president and chief nursing executive for Northfield Hospital + Clinics, said the hospital is on track to deliver 700 babies this year. ‘Depends on when those December babies want to come, or the January babies, if they come early,’ Bauer said. Since the renovation, Northfield Hospital’s birth volume has increased by 33%, going from 492 babies born in 2020 to 652 last year. Northfield Hospital’s rising birth volume — and investments into that service line — come as other hospitals struggle to keep their labor and delivery units open.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43pTKbz
SHUTDOWN
SENATE: Via CBS News, VERBATIM: “The Senate took a major step toward ending the government shutdown late Monday by passing a funding bill that unlocks a broader agreement on long-term spending and the promise of a future vote on extending health care tax credits. The vote was 60-40, with eight Democrats providing the votes needed. One Republican voted against it.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3WTsCxQ
MORE: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “The president was back at it on Monday, promising an imminent solution to America’s growing health care crisis — on which he has repeatedly failed to deliver in the past. ‘I tell you, we’re going to be working on that very hard over the next short period of time, where the people get the money,’ President Donald Trump said, referring specifically to Americans thrown into crisis by expiring enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies. ‘We’re talking about trillions and trillions of dollars, where the people get the money,’ he added, without giving details about a vague idea to send cash to affected policyholders to replace subsidies while bypassing insurance firms.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49T7fUS
BIG PICTURE: Via KFF Health News, a look at challenges facing Democrats looking to make healthcare more affordable. VERBATIM: “The appetite for big, bold ideas to drive down such high costs has waned in part because Democrats lack political leverage, according to economists, political strategists, and health care advocates. They’ve also been burned before for backing significant changes.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/47ycN5S
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)
SIDE EFFECTS
VACCINES: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “A powerful Centers for Disease Control and Prevention committee hand-picked by Kennedy is now scrutinizing the childhood vaccine schedule. The schedule is the finely calibrated timetable pediatricians use to administer the sequence of more than 30 doses to protect against more than a dozen diseases. The move is being welcomed by some advocates, physicians and scientists. ‘I think it is true that any vaccine schedule should periodically be assessed,’ says Dr. Ofer Levy, a vaccine scientist at Harvard. ‘As we like to say, ‘Moses did not come down from Mount Sinai saying: ‘This will be the only way that you immunize.’’ But others worry the review is part of Kennedy’s campaign against vaccines.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4p9rPoK
TYLENOL: Via MedPage Today, VERBATIM: “A comprehensive review of all existing evidence about acetaminophen (Tylenol) use during pregnancy and the risk of autism or attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children found no clear link between the two. The umbrella analysis critically assessed nine systematic reviews, including four with meta-analyses. Six of the primary studies in the reviews evaluated autism and 17 evaluated ADHD.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3JYx1wx
RESEARCH
VETERANS: Via Military.com, VERBATIM: “A large study by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has found that veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan had a 55 percent higher risk of developing asthma from dust and burn pit exposure than veterans who were not deployed to those countries. The study included 48,000 veterans who were deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Those soldiers showed exceedingly higher rates of chronic respiratory ailments.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/49LWEuU
CANCER: From USC via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “TAR-200, a small drug-releasing implant, wiped out tumors in most patients with high-risk bladder cancer. Its slow, consistent release of chemotherapy proved far more effective than traditional short-term treatments. The therapy may replace bladder removal surgery for many and has earned FDA Priority Review due to its impressive results.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3WSNkxR
COFFEE: Via UC San Francisco, VERBATIM: “Drinking coffee can protect against atrial fibrillation (A-Fib), a common heart rhythm disorder that causes a rapid, irregular heartbeat and can lead to stroke and heart failure. Doctors typically recommend that people with heart issues like A-Fib avoid caffeine out of fear that it will trigger symptoms. But a study by UC San Francisco and the University of Adelaide concluded that drinking a cup of caffeinated coffee a day reduced A-Fib by 39%.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/443XjEi
MAYO: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “At Mayo Clinic, cardiologists Peter Noseworthy, M.D., and John Giudicessi, M.D., Ph.D., are uncovering the earliest signs of a genetic heart condition that often strikes without warning. Their work shows that early detection, and even prevention, may be possible long before symptoms appear. The condition, arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, weakens the molecules that hold heart cells together. As those bonds deteriorate, healthy muscle is replaced with scar tissue and fat, leaving the heart weaker.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/47SW7VE
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)
INNOVATION
HEARING: Via KMSP-TV, VERBATIM: “A Minnesota-based medical device company is on the verge of transforming how hearing is improved. Envoy Medical‘s journey began decades ago as St. Croix Medical. Brent Lucas, the CEO, shared that the company was founded by an audiologist frustrated with traditional hearing aids. The company, now known as Envoy Medical, is making waves with its fully implanted hearing devices, Esteem and Acclaim, which differ from typical hearing aids and cochlear implants.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3JNJ2F5
CHOLESTEROL: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Merck, the company that introduced statins to the world nearly 40 years ago, has a new, intensely powerful pill that can slash levels of dangerous LDL cholesterol to levels almost never seen in adults. The new pill, enlicitide, blocks a liver protein, PCSK9, that slows the body’s ability to clear cholesterol. With most PCSK9 blocked, LDL levels plummet and rates of heart attacks and strokes in high risk patients fall by up to 20 percent in just the first year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4p8uTkY
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
HISTORY: From University of Exeter via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “Historians have traced myths about the Black Death’s rapid journey across Asia to one 14th-century poem by Ibn al-Wardi. His imaginative maqāma, never meant as fact, became the foundation for centuries of misinformation about how the plague spread. The new study exposes how fiction blurred with history and highlights how creative writing helped medieval societies process catastrophe.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3JV4Pe0
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