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POLLING
FOREIGN AID: Via KFF, VERBATIM: “When asked about their awareness of the Trump administration’s reductions to U.S. spending on foreign aid, including funding to improve health for people in developing countries, nearly six in ten (58%) adults correctly identify that the administration has made cuts, including over four in ten (44%) who say there have been ‘major’ cuts and one in seven (14%) who say there have been ‘minor’ cuts. An additional third (36%) of adults say they don’t know enough to say.”
“When it comes to assessing the impact of the changes the Trump administration has made to foreign aid and global health, majorities of the public say these changes have had a negative impact on ‘how people around the world view the U.S.’ (64%) and on ‘the health of people in developing countries’ (59%). Additionally, nearly half (46%) say ‘the ability to keep infectious disease from spreading to the U.S.’ has been negatively impacted by the changes made by the Trump administration.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4wqwGGm
SUNSCREEN: Via Scripps, VERBATIM: “According to a new study, Americans are four times as likely to remember to plug their phone in at night than they are to put sunscreen on daily. The poll of 2,000 U.S. adults revealed 53% frequently forget to put on sunscreen daily, and only 10% said they put on SPF products daily.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4d4RBHr
OTC MEDS: Via U.S. News & World Report, the results of a Harris Poll survey of pharmacists and dermatologists on their picks for the best over-the-counter meds and other health products. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4u5Z8LY
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)
MN + HEALTH
TOMORROW: Via news release from the Attorney General, VERBATIM: “Attorney General Ellison is holding a forum on the future of Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), a flagship health care institution that Minnesotans across the state rely on, on Wednesday, May 13 at 6:00 pm in Minneapolis. HCMC is enduring a significant financial pressure, but closure is not an option. Attorney General Ellison will hear from HCMC staff, civic leaders, community members, and patients about their ideas for making HCMC stronger.”
340B: From Minnesota Hospital Association via Facebook, VERBATIM: “Hospital leaders from across the state joined bipartisan lawmakers Tuesday at the Capitol to urge the Minnesota House to pass legislation that protects Minnesota patients’ access to local care by enforcing the state’s 340B program. Reps. Natalie Zeleznikar, Dave Baker, and Robert Bierman spoke at the event, along with hospital leaders from Blue Earth, Staples, Ely, Cuyuna, Crosby, Cloquet, and Grand Marais.” POST: https://fluence-media.co/4wlN237 WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4nqaR5x
STRIKE: Via KARE-TV, VERBATIM: “Nearly 600 nurses at North Memorial Health’s Maple Grove Hospital have voted to authorize an unfair labor practice strike, the Minnesota Nurses Association announced Tuesday morning. A strike is not immediate. Under Minnesota law, nurses would be required to give a 10-day notice before any walkout could begin.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3PF21o9
MORE: Via CCX Media, VERBATIM: “Last year, the nurses voted to become part of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA), and after 29 bargaining sessions, they have yet to come to terms on their first contract with leadership from North Memorial Health.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4u9qW2h
HARM REDUCTION: MinnPost profiles a Duluth nonprofit helping to keep those struggling with addiction alive. VERBATIM: “Not long ago, the idea of harm reduction was considered radical. As the name suggests, it’s not a treatment for substance use disorder but a set of approaches aimed at reducing the negative consequences of drug use, including infections and overdoses, until users can manage a safer, more stable lifestyle. Today, it is largely accepted by medical and public health professionals as a life-saving approach to the addiction crisis. But over the past year, harm reduction has become a political target tied up with rhetoric around crime-ridden streetscapes and open-air drug use. Directives from President Donald Trump and his appointees threaten to criminalize key harm reduction practices, throwing the future of nonprofits like Harm Reduction Sisters, and the people they serve, into uncertainty.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4uaArOK
RURAL DOCS: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “The University of Minnesota Medical School is adding a site to its rural family medicine residency program — the only program of its kind in Minnesota. The medical school is partnering with Lakewood Health System to launch a residency in Staples, a small 3,000-person city in west-central Minnesota located across Todd and Wadena counties. Residents will begin with one year of training at North Memorial Health in Minneapolis, followed by two years in Staples.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4d7WEXy
NEW DOCS: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Mayo Clinic honored the achievements of its newest physicians and scientists from the Class of 2026 during a combined commencement ceremony held Saturday, May 9, in Rochester, Minnesota. Degrees were conferred by Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine and Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4uJTQWD
340B HOSPITAL MARKUPS HURT PATIENTS: Minnesota’s latest 340B report shows covered entities generated $1.34 billion IN PROFIT in 2024, including an estimated $261 million from Medicaid prescriptions. Independent research finds the program raises costs for patients, taxpayers, and employers statewide. Minnesota should sunset the 340B mandate and Congress should fix the federal 340B program, so it actually helps patients. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/46Bh9IA (SPONSORED: PhRMA)
DC + HEALTH
FDA: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Dr. Marty Makary, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, resigned on Tuesday, according to an administration official, after weeks of pressure and rumors that President Trump was planning to fire him. Dr. Makary ultimately resigned over concerns about the administration’s decision to authorize fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, an action he opposed, according to four people familiar with the matter.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fi5O5b
COVID: Via UofM CIDRAP, VERBATIM: “Maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy was not associated with an increased risk of congenital anomalies in newborns, according to a large population-based study published last week in JAMA Network Open. Some initial studies had raised concerns about maternal COVID infection and birth defects, specifically heart abnormalities, while other research has shown no connection.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4tv35Ja
ABORTION PILL: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “The Supreme Court on Monday gave itself more time to consider a national ban on telemedicine access to the abortion pill mifepristone. Justice Samuel Alito extended an earlier order he issued by three more days, so rules for prescribing mifepristone online or through the mail remain in effect through Thursday at a minimum.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3QW2aEa
FERTILITY: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “A new proposed rule from the Trump administration aims to make it easier for employers to offer coverage of fertility treatments, as part of larger efforts to expand access to fertility services including in-vitro fertilization. The new rule released Sunday from the Department of Labor would create a new exempted insurance benefit — in the same category as dental and vision benefit coverage— for treating infertility.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4uBbMm0
VACCINES: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said little publicly about vaccines in recent months, at the behest of a White House worried that his unpopular stance will hurt Republicans in November’s midterm elections. But he has not abandoned his quest for evidence that they are unsafe. Working behind the scenes, Mr. Kennedy is spearheading an intense push, across health agencies under his purview, for government scientists and federal data contractors to examine his long-held theory that vaccines are helping to fuel an epidemic of chronic disease, according to multiple people familiar with the effort.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dfDjm4
STUDY: Via UofM CIDRAP, VERBATIM: “The mental images that pop up when pregnant women consider vaccinations during pregnancy may affect their opinion and uptake of the vaccines, according to a study published in Social Science & Medicine.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48ZoHWF
NEW NAME: Via Stat, VERBATIM: “PCOS is dead. Long live PMOS. Revealed Tuesday, the one-letter change in nomenclature for a common metabolic condition in women may seem unremarkable, but it follows more than a decade of vigorous debate over the need for a name that more precisely and completely describes what until now was known as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3R74I2b
PRESCRIPTION DRUG PRICES CONTINUE TO SOAR: While Minnesota’s safety-net hospitals navigate bleak financial outlooks, drug manufacturers continue to raise drug prices at rates that far outpace inflation, rising 23% in the last year alone. By strengthening the 340B drug pricing program, local hospitals can weather these soaring prices and continue to deliver the care and treatments that Minnesotans need. NEW: Minnesota Prescription Drug Price Transparency, Report to the Minnesota Legislature, March 2026 (SPONSORED: Essentia Health)
INNOVATION
PITCH COMPETITION: Via Twin Cities Business, VERBATIM: “A Minnesota version of innovation pitch show Shark Tank (that’s not on TV), Walleye Tank celebrated its 10th anniversary on Monday at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Walleye Tank is a health care and life science pitch competition connecting early-stage startups with investors. Some Walleye Tank companies have gone on after the competition to raise $52 million in capital.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4wFsnHs
WEARABLES: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “Researchers and scientists at the University of Minnesota’s College of Design Wearable Technology Lab are developing wearable apparel that combines traditional garments with new technology to make clothing more useful for people. [Lucy Dunne], a professor in the College of Design, founded the Lab in 2008. One project she is currently focused on is a specialized onesie for newborns that treats jaundice while allowing caregivers to hold and comfort them during treatment.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4u76Q8P
DEVICE: Via CCX Media, VERBATIM: “A medical device company based in Maple Grove is poised to redefine the standard of care for prostate cancer patients worldwide. Francis Medical has officially received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for its ‘Vanquish Water Vapor Ablation System,’ a breakthrough technology eight years in the making.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4wuUfxW
SMELL: Via MPR, a Fargo chef who had to retrain herself after a car accident messed up her sense of smell. VERBATIM: “Specialists diagnosed [Candace Stock] with dysosmia, or a distortion of her sense of smell. Smell plays a significant role in the way food tastes. For Stock, under-ripe fruit tastes like chemicals, fresh meat smells spoiled and, generally, she can’t really be sure what anything she cooks truly tastes like to anybody else, even her son.” STOCK: “I couldn’t even feel confident feeding my child because I was like, ‘How do I even know this is good?’” she said. “How could I ever cook for anybody knowing that this is how I perceive things?” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/48VFmdR
BP EXERCISE: Via American College of Cardiology, VERBATIM: “An ancient Chinese exercise routine may be just as powerful as a daily brisk walk for lowering blood pressure — without equipment, gyms, or intense workouts. In a major clinical trial, adults with stage 1 hypertension who practiced baduanjin, a gentle mind-body exercise combining slow movements, breathing, and meditation, saw meaningful drops in blood pressure within three months that lasted for an entire year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4uNr3R6
BANKING: Via Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank, VERBATIM: “U.S. Bank is expanding its healthcare business banking offerings with a new startup loan product for dentists and veterinarians, giving clinicians a new option to build independent practices and serve patients in their communities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42zyHlU
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
STUDENT VIDEOS: Via MDH, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is proud to announce the winners of the 2026 Escape the Vape Video Challenge. More than 260 students from 29 schools across Minnesota created 30-second videos to spread the word about the dangers of vaping. Winners were selected from high school and middle school divisions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4dEj6Yv
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