SCHOOL SUPPLIES: From Keystone Community Services via Facebook, VERBATIM: “Members of Associated Bank, UCare, and Midway Chamber of Commerce volunteered their time to pack school supplies in backpacks in preparation for our School Supply Giveaway event this Thursday, August 21! At Keystone we are working hard with our partners to ensure youth going back to school have the supplies they need to be successful. Thank you for volunteering your time in this way!” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/41cSzLu (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
MISINFORMATION: Via NBC News, VERBATIM: “A survey of doctors released Wednesday showed how pervasive medical falsehoods have become — not only online, but also within the walls of medical exam rooms where doctors and patients talk. The survey from the Physicians Foundation, a nonprofit research group, found that 61% of doctors said they encountered patients influenced by misinformation or disinformation a moderate amount or a great deal of the time over the past year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lK21xh
MORE: Via Physicians Foundation, from the survey:
SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3UCq3PJ
MED DEBT: Via West Health, VERBATIM: “More than 31 million Americans (12%) report needing to borrow about $74 billion last year to pay for healthcare despite most having some form of health insurance, according to a new survey from West Health and Gallup. Nearly one-third (28%) report being ‘very concerned’ that a major health event could throw them into debt. The survey found almost 20% of Americans aged 49 and under needed to borrow money to cover medical costs compared with just 9% of those 50 to 64. Women between the ages of 50 and 64 were twice as likely as men in the same age group to say they had to borrow (12% vs. 6%).” READ: https://fluence-media.co/460JKae
ANIMAL RESEARCH: Via news release from Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, VERBATIM: “Eighty-three percent of U.S. college students believe that animals should not be used in classroom teaching laboratories if the animals are killed afterward and if other methods can teach the same material without using animals, according to a new OpinionWorks survey. Among those majoring in the sciences, 90% believe animals should not be used . . . The survey results arrive amid an ongoing lawsuit against fatal animal experiments at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minn., where students will begin arriving for the new school year on Aug. 25.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/47qHjz5
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
WATER: Via Northern News Now, VERBATIM: “Whether you’re on a small body of water or on Lake Superior, water safety experts say you should always think about the risks before hitting the water. Those risks are top of mind for many in the Northland in light of a recent string of water emergencies in the region, including a man who died cliff jumping at Tettegouche State Park, a man killed by being swept into Lake Superior, and a rescue of four young girls from an island off of Black Beach near Silver Bay. Wilderness Water Safety instructor Matti Erpestad from Duluth teaches courses mostly to wilderness guides, but the lessons apply to anyone recreating on water.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4fK2tKq
CHAPLAINS: Via CCX Media, VERBATIM: “A police chaplain can be a vital support in times of crisis. But right now, Crystal, Robbinsdale and New Hope share just one. However, a new training is aiming to boost their ranks to eight. Police officers’ jobs have many layers—responding to traffic stops, noise complaints and tragedies. When viewed daily, those tragedies can stick with officers. Oftentimes, they have to handle those feelings alone.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3HAbvgy
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)
FERTILITY POLITICS: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Less than two weeks after an Alabama Supreme Court decision upended in vitro fertilization in the state and prompted a national backlash, over 100 conservative congressional staff members and I.V.F. skeptics crammed into a meeting room a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol. They lined the walls and spilled into the hallway, straining to hear the advice of the 25-year-old woman who would help them figure out how to respond. Some in the room that day harbored deep moral and ethical reservations about a procedure that involved discarding human embryos. But I.V.F. was overwhelmingly popular, and many Republicans, including Donald J. Trump, were racing to denounce the Alabama ruling and embrace the procedure. Emma Waters, then a senior research associate at the conservative Heritage Foundation, would offer another way.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45unm99
FORMULA: Via Newsweek, VERBATIM: “Parents of newborns are being urged to take extra care when preparing powdered infant formula after new research revealed that the ambiguity of many current instructions may leave babies vulnerable to a deadly foodborne bacteria. The study, published in the Journal of Food Protection by Cornell University researchers, highlights dangerous gaps in the guidelines printed on formula packaging.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fOsCIa
PRISONS: Via Stateline, VERBATIM: “Summer heat is bearing down on U.S. prisons, where temperatures in uncooled cells can climb well into the triple digits. Facing growing pressure from advocacy groups, lawsuits and climate projections that show hotter days ahead, some state prison systems are moving to install air conditioning and expand cooling measures — though many facilities remain years away from significant upgrades. But in other states, such efforts have stalled or failed. That may lead to more lawsuits in the future, experts say, even as judges may raise the bar for such cases.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4mlLmB6
COSTS: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “Medicare and Social Security play a central role in the lives of tens of millions of older adults and people with disabilities in the U.S., in the form of health insurance from Medicare and retirement or disability income from Social Security. Yet, even with Medicare coverage, beneficiaries can face substantial out-of-pocket health care costs, which can erode the financial support provided by Social Security.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45KLcMq
UNITEDHEALTH: Via Healthcare Dive, VERBATIM: “UnitedHealth is forming a new board committee to “monitor and oversee financial, regulatory and reputational risks” as the healthcare juggernaut tries to improve its standing with lawmakers, regulators, investors and the U.S. public. The ‘public responsibility committee’ will ‘provide an additional layer of governance,’ UnitedHealth said in a securities filing on Wednesday. The committee’s key responsibilities include underwriting and forecasting, regulatory relationships, reputational matters and mergers and acquisitions — all areas for which UnitedHealth has been in the public eye.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/47CDJ4M
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)
CANCER: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “For years, cancer researchers have been trying to halt a type of molecule that's involved in several cancers. The molecules — enzymes known as trypsins — split proteins that help tumors grow and spread. Mayo Clinic cancer biologist Evette Radisky, Ph.D., previously found that one trypsin, called mesotrypsin, plays a role in breast, prostate, pancreatic and lung cancer.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3UEYvJm
GRANTS: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration has delayed or blocked millions of dollars in federal grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), leaving state and local health departments in the dark, uncertain when or even if they will get money that’s already been appropriated by Congress for key public health initiatives. With little communication from the White House, CDC staff are trying to expedite getting grants out the door, and public health officials are scrambling to spend the money they have before it expires Sept. 30.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4mvv0WK
CUTS: Via ProPublica, VERBATIM: “When the Trump administration announced massive cuts to federal health agencies earlier this year, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he was getting rid of excess administrators who were larding the government with bureaucratic bloat. But a groundbreaking data analysis by ProPublica shows the administration has cut deeper than it has acknowledged. Though Kennedy said he would add scientists to the workforce, agencies have lost thousands of them, along with colleagues who those scientists depended on to dispatch checks, fix computers and order lab supplies, enabling them to do their jobs.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41fHsRT
RFK JR: Via ABC News, VERBATIM: “More than 750 employees across the Department of Health and Human Services sent a signed letter to members of Congress and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday morning, calling on the secretary to stop spreading misinformation. The letter states the deadly shooting that occurred at the Atlanta headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Aug. 8 was ‘not random’ and was driven by ‘politicized rhetoric.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3HLcQkz
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)
NEXT MONTH: Via Medical Alley, VERBATIM: “Join us on Tuesday, September 30 for Women in Health Leadership — a morning dedicated to connection, reflection, and growth.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4msfnPR
NUCLEUS: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn is taking the top spot at a radiopharmaceuticals startup, bringing him back into the field where he started his career. Hahn has been named CEO of [Rochester-based] Nucleus RadioPharma, a contract development and manufacturing company for what are called radiopharmaceuticals or radioligand therapies, the company told STAT exclusively.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/478xqWr
STILLWATER: Via news release from AMFM, VERBATIM: “AMFM Healthcare, a national leader in mental health services, is proud to announce the opening of their adult residential mental health treatment facility, A Mission for Michael, in Stillwater, Minnesota. This new location opened its doors on August 18th, marking a significant step in the organization's mission to broaden access to quality, evidence-based mental health care nationwide.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41gMPAe
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
STUDY: Via NBC, VERBATIM: “Being overweight or obese has long been linked to a greater risk of developing or dying from breast cancer. New research suggests a reason: Certain breast cancer tumors may feed on neighboring fat cells. The findings may help scientists find ways to treat triple-negative breast cancer, which is notoriously aggressive and has lower survival rates. Moreover, the results may apply to any cancer that uses fat as an energy source, according to the report, published Wednesday in Nature Communications.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41RI0h1
TYLENOL: From Mount Sinai via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “A large-scale review finds that acetaminophen use during pregnancy may increase the risk of autism and ADHD in children. The strongest studies showed the clearest links, pointing to biological pathways like oxidative stress and hormone disruption. Experts call for caution, updated guidelines, and safer alternatives.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4mrWr3D
PEACE: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Robert W. ‘Bob’ Fleming, a visionary leader whose 43-year career helped shape Mayo Clinic into the institution it is today, passed away July 31. He was 97. Fleming began his Mayo career in 1950 in insurance and collections and rose to serve as vice president and chief administrative officer from 1982 to 1993. His leadership was instrumental in the development of Mayo Clinic in Florida and Arizona, the integration of Saint Marys and Rochester Methodist Hospitals, and the launch of Mayo Clinic Health System and Mayo Clinic Ventures.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45MqWKH
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