General
February 18 News:'Controlling COVID-19 will require flexibility and funding' says APHA’s Georges Benjamin, late bedtime linked with obesity for children under 6, global cases of coronavirus top 71,000
The Hill – Global cases of coronavirus top 71,000
Coronavirus has infected more than 71,000 people globally, the World Health Organization confirmed Monday. The number of cases is still heavily focused in mainland China, where the virus originated.
Congress must act to protect the public and health workers, who are already strained, says APHA’s executive director
Associated Press – Virus claims life of hospital director in hard-hit Wuhan
As a mysterious new virus enveloped central China’s Wuhan early this year, Liu Zhiming mobilized all the resources of his hospital in the city’s Wuchang district to deal with the thousands of sick people arriving daily, threatening to overwhelm the local health care system.
NPR – Losing sleep over the quest for a perfect night’s rest
Sleep trackers measure how you breathe, how fast your heart is beating, how much you're tossing and turning. They crunch that data to produce a sleep score, usually through a smartphone app. But in an irony of our digital lifestyles, for some people, perfecting that sleep score becomes an end unto itself — so much so that they can lose sleep over it.
STAT – Are e-cigarette companies helping smokers quit? Survey suggests Americans don’t buy it
E-cigarette companies have been trying for years to rebrand as a public health solution to smoking. Most Americans aren’t buying it, a new survey from tobacco control advocates suggests.
Kaiser Health News – Changing clocks is bad for your health, but which time to choose?
Changing over to daylight saving time — a major annoyance for many people — may be on its way out as lawmakers cite public health as a prime reason to ditch the twice-yearly clock-resetting ritual.
AP — New Mexico legislators seek enforcement of age limits on tobacco sales
Vaping shops and other tobacco retail outlets in New Mexico would be licensed and regulated by the state for the first time, under a proposal headed toward a decisive state House vote.
The New York Times — Video game makers want to get players off the couch
Developers are offering a physical twist to keep traditional fans interested and draw new ones who are bored with their workouts.
CNN — Later bedtime linked with obesity for children under 6, study says
A new study has linked a later bedtime with an increased risk of obesity for kids -- although the researchers say parents shouldn't rush to put their preschoolers to sleep earlier as a result.
WTTW — Study: ‘No clear rationale’ for 45% of Medicaid antibiotic prescriptions
Millions of Medicaid patients are being prescribed antibiotics for no clear reason, according to a new study from Northwestern Medicine.
Babies' exposure to household cleaning products tied to later asthma risk
Canadian research shows that an infant's exposure to household cleaning products in the first few months of life is tied to heightened odds for asthma by age 3.
HHS — Largest study of sepsis cases among Medicare beneficiaries finds significant burden
U.S. hospitals saw a 40 percent increase in the rate of Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with sepsis over the past seven years, and in just 2018 had an estimated cost to Medicare of more than $41.5 billion according to an unprecedented study by researchers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
