NEXT WEEK: From UCare via Facebook, VERBATIM: “No one knows how to maintain high-quality provider data better than UCare's own Dan Sarles, Senior Manager of Provider Data & Network Analyst. He'll be speaking all about mastering strategies to keep data timely and accurate at the national Becker's Healthcare conference next week.” POST: https://fluence-media.co/4jIQSvS (SPONSORED: UCare)
All Fluence tipsheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
PUBERTY: Via University of Michigan, VERBATIM: “The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health asked a national sample of parents of children 7-12 years old about their experiences talking with their child about puberty. Parents report getting information about how to talk with their child about puberty from parenting resources (34%), health care providers (30%), and schools (14%); however, 44% of parents have not gotten any information on how to talk about puberty. Parents describe their approach to talking with their child about puberty as proactive (54%), only when asked (41%), or trying to avoid it (5%).”
“Sixty percent of parents of children 10-12 years, and 17% of parents of children 7-9 years, say they have started seeing signs of puberty in their child.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/44Agtmk
MORE: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “The poll’s researchers focused on why many preteens and tweens are unprepared for the changes that they experience during puberty. ‘Our thinking was, how much of that (lack of preparation) might be due to how their parents are approaching the task of talking with them, helping prepare them for puberty,’ said Sarah Clark, codirector of the poll and a research scientist in the department of pediatrics at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42zHntv
MIGRANTS: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “Most California voters support the state’s efforts to increase health care coverage for migrants without legal status, a new survey found. According to a new survey from the University of California, Berkeley and Politico, 21 percent of surveyed voters believe the state should continue to offer Medicaid coverage to migrants without legal status, even if it means there will be cuts elsewhere in the budget.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YdBejT
MORE: Via Politico, VERBATIM: “But the program has more recently become a political punching bag in conservative media, with MAGA figures arguing it shows the Democratic majority in Sacramento prioritizing immigrants over citizens. That’s been exacerbated by the larger-than-expected price tag for the program, which has greatly contributed to a multibillion-dollar shortfall for Medi-Cal.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4cJ1XL5
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
THIS WEEK: Via MDH, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has proclaimed April 21-28 Infant Immunization Week in Minnesota and the Department of Health is urging families to get children caught up on vaccines. The proclamation is being made in conjunction with National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW) to highlight the importance of protecting infants and children from serious diseases by keeping them up to date with well-child visits and recommended vaccines.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lNCBjE
OPIOIDS: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “Walgreens has agreed to pay up to $350 million in a settlement with the US Department of Justice, who accused the pharmacy of illegally filling millions of prescriptions in the last decade for opioids and other controlled substances. The nationwide drugstore chain must pay the government at least $300 million and will owe another $50 million if the company is sold, merged or transferred before 2032, according to the settlement reached last Friday.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ipuaI7
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)
MAMMOGRAMS: Via NPR, VERBATIM: “As of September 2024, federal regulations began requiring all mammogram reports to include information about breast density, including language saying, ‘in some people with dense tissue, other imaging tests in addition to a mammogram may help find cancers.’ But with 40% of women falling under these dense breast categories, when is magnetic resonance imaging, known as MRI, or other follow-up imaging a good idea? It is a tough question to answer, and there is not a one-size fits all approach.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3Rwh9BM
From morning take…
VACCINES: via Minnesota Reformer’s Christopher Ingraham, VERBATIM: “This morning, [GOP Rep. Isaac] Schultz and seven of his colleagues introduced a bill banning mRNA vaccines and labeling them ‘weapons of mass destruction.’ It would make manufacturing, possessing or administering them a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.” TWEET: https://fluence-media.co/4k3anQf BILL: https://fluence-media.co/44mNYZB
HEALTHCARE: via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “In 2023, the Minnesota Department of Human Services projected 5,800 undocumented residents would apply [for health insurance] at a cost to taxpayers of $220 million over four years. So far this year, 17,400 have applied, with an estimated 4-year cost of over $600 million — numbers Republicans say will keep growing. ‘This is the closest thing that you will ever see to treason, where taxpayer dollars are going to fund people who are here illegally,’ Rep. Isaac Schultz, R-Elmwood Township, said. … But DFL legislators say healthcare for the undocumented is not a handout. … Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy warns that cutting undocumented care ‘does financial harm, costing people more in the form of increased premiums and uncompensated care.’ … A bill to eliminate state benefits for the undocumented is under consideration at the Minnesota Legislature.” READ/WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/44C6Rrk
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FAMILIES: Via MDH, VERBATIM: “Family home visiting offers a unique opportunity to connect families with key resources, services and support across the state of Minnesota. These efforts lead to better birth outcomes, improved school readiness and strengthened family self-sufficiency. Family home visiting is a voluntary service where trained staff visit a family to support them through pregnancy and the critical early years of a child's life. Home visitors connect pregnant people to prenatal care, educate families on healthy child development and promote positive relationships that foster healthy growth. Governor Tim Walz has proclaimed April 21-25 as Home Visitor Appreciation Week.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3EsWCuX
ACA: Via The New York Times, VERBATIM: “The Supreme Court appeared divided during arguments on Monday over the constitutionality of a provision of the Affordable Care act that can require insurance companies to offer some types of preventive care for free. At issue is a part of the 2010 health care law that established a task force that determines certain kinds of preventative health measures that insurance companies are required to cover.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YdnlCp
AUTISM: Via CBS News, VERBATIM: “The National Institutes of Health is amassing private medical records from a number of federal and commercial databases to give to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s new effort to study autism, the NIH's top official said Monday. The new data will allow external researchers picked for Kennedy's autism studies to study ‘comprehensive’ patient data with ‘broad coverage’ of the U.S. population for the first time, NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya said.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4471H6E
MORE: Via People, VERBATIM: “Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary, is claiming that the impact of autism exceeds the impact of COVID-19 on American lives during a new interview. Speaking about autism on The Cats Roundtable radio show on WABC 770 AM on Sunday, April 20, Kennedy said, ‘It dwarfs the COVID epidemic and the impacts on our country because COVID killed old people. Autism affects children and affects them at the beginning of their lives, the beginning of their productivity.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3GkR7ix
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)
LIVER: Via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease affects about one-third of adults worldwide. Its advanced form, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, is expected to become the leading cause of cirrhosis and the reason for liver transplants in the coming years.” QUOTE: "This discovery opens a window into how rare inherited genetic variants can drive common diseases," says Filippo Pinto e Vairo, M.D, Ph.D., a lead author and medical director of the Program for Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases at Mayo Clinic's Center for Individualized Medicine. "It provides new insights into this disease pathogenesis and potential therapeutic targets for future research." READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Euxd42
DYES: Via NBC News, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration said Monday it will announce a plan to remove petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the nation’s food supply. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are expected to discuss the plan at a news conference Tuesday afternoon, according to a release from the Department of Health and Human Services.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3EAcBqW
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 WEEK: Via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “For nearly three decades, people focused on the mental health of children and teens have gathered in Duluth for the Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health’s (MACMH) annual Child and Adolescent Mental Health Conference. This year’s conference, the association’s 29th, will be held at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center on April 27-29. The conference draws scores of professionals and individuals concerned about the mental health of young people.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/440VR6J
CANCER: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “A new report on cancer in the US shows a steady decline in overall deaths from 2001 through 2022. The rate of diagnoses among men fell from 2001 through 2013 and then stabilized through 2021 but these incidence rates among women increased slightly every year between 2003 and 2021. Those trends were interrupted in 2020, when cancer incidence rates fell significantly, the report shows, possibly because of disruptions in medical care related to the Covid-19 pandemic. After 2020, they returned to expected levels. ‘Because fewer cancers were diagnosed in 2020, especially through screening, we may see a larger percentage of cancers diagnosed at a late stage in future years,’ the report says.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3GxedlS
SCREENING: Via CCX Media, VERBATIM: “A dentist in Golden Valley is urging people to be screened for head and neck cancer. ‘Everyone should be screened because it’s not only those people that are in those risk categories, it really can happen to anyone,’ said Dr. Brian Evensen of Valley Dental Group. On Thursday, dozens of people made their way to Valley Dental Group for a free oral cancer screening. The event was part of Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week, where doctors examine a patient’s head, neck, ears, nose, skin and the inside of their mouth.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/42msF8W
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
SPERM: Via UofM CIDRAP, VERBATIM: “A study in China has found that COVID-19 is associated with poor sperm quality, researchers reported earlier this month in Scientific Reports. To investigate the impact of COVID-19 on sperm quality, researchers with the Center for Reproductive Medicine at China Medical University conducted two studies among male patients who had come to their fertility center to receive semen analysis from early December 2022, when China loosened its COVID rules, through late January 2023. In both studies, researchers compared semen parameters between those who had contracted COVID-19 and those who had not.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3RZoPMT
MUSCLES: From University of Illinois via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “A new study asked three questions about muscle protein synthesis in response to a nine-day diet and weight training regimen: First, does the source of protein -- plant or animal-based -- make any difference to muscle gain? Second, does it matter if total daily protein intake is evenly distributed throughout the day? And third, does a moderate but sufficient daily protein intake influence any of these variables? The answer to all three questions is ‘no,’ the researchers found.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lM1Um8
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