CDC measles death count still lags Pennsylvania’s
The item is a STAT Morning Rounds newsletter roundup. It points readers to a Monday newsletter item by Amanda on rising mortality rates for treatable surgical conditions such as appendicitis, noting the link is past the first five abstracts. It then reports that the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement appears to have gone corporate: at yesterday’s MAHA Summit, government officials and private-sector leaders mingled in a chandeliered Waldorf Astoria ballroom while reporters were largely excluded. STAT’s Isabella Cueto and Daniel Payne write that most panels featured firms from the sponsor page, and some longtime MAHA supporters were appalled. Jeffrey Tucker, president and founder of the MAHA-aligned Brownstone Institute, said, 'There are a lot of people very upset about it. It’s just this weird attempt to capture the reins of the MAHA label for something that doesn’t seem to have much to do with MAHA.'
On measles, the CDC has updated its website to show two measles deaths in the U.S. this year, but it remains out of step with Pennsylvania, where officials count four measles-related deaths in a historic outbreak. As The Washington Post reported yesterday, it is unclear which of the four Pennsylvania deaths the CDC added to its count. A recent First Opinion essay explains the key difference between 'dying from' a disease and 'dying with' one, including how death certificates work. The authors wrote, 'If we wanted to be literal about it, the cause of death for nearly everyone would be cardiac arrest, since in the end our hearts stop.' STAT recommends reading the essay in full.
Meanwhile, Americans are confused about Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s stance on the measles vaccine. Kennedy has made misleading claims about shots, including recently at a conference for Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine nonprofit he helped start. According to the latest survey from the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center, 31% of adults believe Kennedy recommends children be vaccinated against measles, 29% believe he does not recommend it, and 40% are unsure.
A growing number of congressional lawmakers are urging the Trump administration to rethink a federal rule going into effect next month, over concerns it will prevent Americans from obtaining prescription medicines from licensed international pharmacies. The pending rule requires medicines mailed from abroad to go through a customs process that includes a licensed customs broker and a financial guarantee in the form of an entry bond.