HEALTH FAIR: From UCare via Instagram, VERBATIM: “Our Community Outreach Manager Pang Cha reports it was very busy at today’s Pillsbury United Waite House Health Fair in the East Phillips neighborhood. The UCare Healthmobile offered free health screenings with our fabulous partners at M Health Fairview.” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/3J3x9Ks (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
POLL: Via YouGov, a wide-ranging poll covering Gaza, Epstein, health, and guns. From the health category:
FULL RESULTS: https://fluence-media.co/3HcAXbN
SOCIAL MEDIA: Via APA, VERBATIM: “According to new polling from the American Psychiatric Association (APA), Americans’ relationship with technology is complicated: even as 62% of adults get anxious without access to their phone, two in five are cutting back on phone time overall. Meanwhile, 50% have actively limited their social media usage in 2025.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oIB2oD
HEALTH INFO: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “Just over half (55%) of adults, including larger shares of young adults and Black and Hispanic adults, say they use social media to find health information and advice at least occasionally and most adults report seeing health-related content in the past month on social media, with the largest shares saying they’ve seen content about weight loss, diet, or nutrition (72%) and mental health (58%). Overall, fewer adults report seeing content related to vaccines (38%), abortion (30%), and birth control (22%). Even people who say they never use social media for health information and advice report being exposed to health information in the past month – with weight loss, nutrition, and diet information being the most common.”
“Among those who report regularly getting health information and advice from influencers on social media, six in ten (61%) say health influencers are mostly motivated by their own financial interests, while about four in ten (39%) say health influencers are mostly motivated by serving the public interest.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3HnOVHO
CHILD HEALTH: Via Emory University, VERBATIM: “Federal spending cuts and organizational restructuring recently ended several infant safety and monitoring programs, including the ‘Safe to Sleep’ campaign, the Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children (ACHDNC), and the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). These programs help prevent newborn sleep-related deaths, provide guidance on newborn screening for health conditions, and provide recommendations to improve outcomes for mothers and infants. The survey found that Americans across party lines did not support cutting these child-focused programs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oqwSkX
SMOKING: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “Almost 3 in 4 Americans support government public awareness campaigns to discourage smoking and efforts to track the effectiveness of the messages, according to an Ipsos poll. Why it matters: This spring's sweeping layoffs at Health and Human Services eliminated the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Office on Smoking and Health, which was behind the ‘Tips From Former Smokers’ ad campaign that's been credited with reducing premature deaths and the cost of treating smoking-related illness.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fvDBpJ
IBS: Via AGA, VERBATIM: “Despite social media helping to increase awareness of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) among the public (81% of health care providers agree) and advancements in treatment over the past decade, IBS symptoms continue to significantly impact patients' daily lives and productivity, according to a new survey released by the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), in partnership with The Harris Poll, a Stagwell (STGW) agency.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45pngxY
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
VACCINES: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “The Department of Health and Human Services will cancel contracts and pull funding for some vaccines that are being developed to fight respiratory viruses like COVID-19 and the flu. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced in a statement Tuesday that 22 projects, totaling $500 million, to develop vaccines using mRNA technology will be halted.” KENNEDY: "To replace the troubled mRNA programs, we're prioritizing the development of safer, broader vaccine strategies, like whole-virus vaccines and novel platforms that don't collapse when viruses mutate." READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lhhwfE
MORE: University of Minnesota epidemiologist Dr. Michael Osterholm had this response on NPR, OSTERHOLM: “The only trouble that those programs ran into was the fact that ideologically, this administration wants to reject the mRNA technology because it just reminds them of what happened with the pandemic. It's notable that this discovery of the effectiveness of the mRNA vaccine for COVID actually came out of the Trump 1 administration and was heralded as a major advance for which the president and the administration took a great deal of credit. So it's somewhat ironic, if not painful, to hear four or five years later that now they're totally rejecting it. So that's the only problem we have right now with the vaccine.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4m2VX3H
MOSQUITOES/TICKS: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “Mosquito- and tick-borne illnesses like West Nile virus and Lyme disease are already a concern in the summer months, but scientists say human impacts on our climate and environment are making the risks for contracting those diseases even greater. In a panel hosted Monday by SciLine and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, researchers said that higher temperatures and greater precipitation lead to faster growth of ticks and mosquitoes and, by extension, greater opportunity for disease to spread.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4m0c5TC
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 CARE: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “A new analysis of initial rate filings for Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace plans submitted by 312 insurers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia finds the median proposed increase for 2026 is 18%, more than double last year’s 7% median proposed increase. The proposed rates are preliminary and could change before being finalized in late summer. In addition to rising cost and utilization of services, insurers cited the expiration of enhanced premium tax credits as a significant factor in their rate hikes for next year. The analysis includes a data table showing proposed premium increases by state and by insurers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fvFsLd
MORE: Via Health System Tracker, the report. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4mtVY0n
STUDY: Via Stateline, VERBATIM: “As more hospitals have gobbled up private physician practices, costs for childbirth and other services have gone up, according to a new study. Since the early aughts, the share of physicians in the United States working for hospitals has nearly doubled, according to the study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a nonprofit research organization. And as fewer doctors work in physician-owned practices, patients or their insurers end up paying more, the study’s authors found.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lBxFgt
SOBER HOMES: Via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “A dozen men left Nick Carchedi’s St. Paul sober home last week as the housing dollars they relied on came to an abrupt halt. He worries about what the displacement will mean for their recovery — and for the sober home he started last year, which was left with just two residents. ‘These people are going to be out on the street or doing something that they shouldn’t be doing,’ Carchedi said. ‘It’s not going to be good for the community.’ The same story is playing out across many Minnesota sober homes as a new state law took effect last Friday that blocks addiction treatment providers from covering housing costs for people who attend their outpatient programs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/40UPEa0
BIRTH CONTROL: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “Contraception is a routine part of life for many Americans and polls show people across political parties agree that it should be legal and accessible. But the Trump administration is walking back access to birth control for some people — including withholding funding from a Nixon-era program that guarantees access to contraception for low income people.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45nCWSp
NIH FUNDING: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration broke the law when it terminated about 1,800 grants and interrupted funding for the National Institutes of Health, a federal watchdog said on Tuesday. It was the fifth time that the Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan legislative agency, faulted President Trump and his top aides for rearranging the budget in defiance of Congress. From February to June, investigators estimated, the N.I.H. awarded $8 billion less for research and other grants than it had a year earlier. The findings underscored the real stakes in the growing clash between the Trump administration and Congress over the power of the purse.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3HgBA48
CHAT GPT: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “ChatGPT will tell 13-year-olds how to get drunk and high, instruct them on how to conceal eating disorders and even compose a heartbreaking suicide letter to their parents if asked, according to new research from a watchdog group. The Associated Press reviewed more than three hours of interactions between ChatGPT and researchers posing as vulnerable teens. The chatbot typically provided warnings against risky activity but went on to deliver startlingly detailed and personalized plans for drug use, calorie-restricted diets or self-injury.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4oIEdN5
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)
MEASLES: Via Minnesota Reformer, VERBATIM: “The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) is urging residents to get vaccinated amid the confirmation of the first measles cases in the state this year and as families begin back-to-school preparation with vaccine rates still down. DHS confirmed nine cases of measles in Oconto County over the weekend — the first cases in the state this year. The agency said no public points of exposure have been identified and the risk to the community remains low.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3UWBp0N
BACK TO SCHOOL: Via news release from the Minnesota Dental Association, VERBATIM: “Tooth decay is the most common chronic disease in children and, if left untreated, may lead to infections and problems with focusing on school. The Minnesota Dental Association (MDA) recommends scheduling a dental check-up for your child at the beginning of the school year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fr0P09
AIR: Via Minnesota Department of Health, VERBATIM: “Fifty years ago, Minnesota became the first state to adopt landmark legislation restricting smoking in indoor public places and workspaces. That legislation, the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act (MCIAA), protects workers and the public from the harmful effects of breathing secondhand smoke. It also has helped put smoking out of sight and out of mind – preventing young people from starting and encouraging people who smoke to quit.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45Bw6tX
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)
SAUNAS: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “Fighting fire is sweaty work, but Minneapolis firefighters are still cheering the installation of saunas in five stations this year. Why it matters: Minneapolis' fire department is the latest to install saunas on the theory they could reduce firefighters' alarmingly high cancer risk. St. Paul already has saunas in all of its stations for a similar reason. How it started: Local firefighters were returning from fires covered in toxic soot and realized that even after a shower, they'd still smell like fire for days — but the stench would be gone after a sauna.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Hf8aTW
LYMPH LOUNGE: Via MplsStPaul, VERBATIM: “In the Golden Triangle, where Edina, Eden Prairie, and Bloomington meet, Lymph Lounge opened its doors (and our lymphatic systems) in March, but the story begins long before. ‘I began offering Brazilian lymphatic drainage out of my basement—just me and a massage table—with a vision to help others feel the same healing I experienced,’ says owner Macy Grishaw. She upsized from her 2021 home studio to a Grand Avenue space in St. Paul, then to Eagan, before hard-launching Lymph Lounge as a full-service spa with its Edina grand opening this spring.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4or6lnr
BRAINS: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “On this week's episode of Tomorrow's Cure, we explore brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), cutting-edge technologies that create direct communication pathways between the human brain and external devices. Once considered science fiction, BCIs are now transforming lives.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/45MPpzB
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
GRAPES: From California Table Grape Commission via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “A new article appearing in the current issue of the peer-reviewed Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry explores the concept of ‘superfoods’ and makes a case that fresh grapes have earned what should be a prominent position in the superfood family. The author, leading resveratrol and cancer researcher John M. Pezzuto, Ph.D., D.Sc., Dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at Western New England University, brings forth an array of evidence to support his perspective on this issue.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3UDsJwx
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