At CDC's urging, Justice Department appeals judge’s decision to drop mask mandate

The Justice Department has appealed a federal judge’s decision that struck down the mask mandate on public transportation, the Washington Post reports, after CDC recommended the move. “It is CDC’s continuing assessment that at this time an order requiring masking in the indoor transportation corridor remains necessary for the public health,” the agency said late yesterday. “CDC believes this is a lawful order, well within CDC’s legal authority to protect public health.” The ruling in question was made on Monday by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle in Florida, who concluded that the mandate exceeded CDC’s statutory authority. Her decision blindsided the Biden administration and set off changes mid-flight on some airlines. The Justice Department on Tuesday had said that it would wait for CDC’s recommendation on whether to proceed with an appeal, which could tee up a battle at the Supreme Court.

CDC advisers air frustration over booster policy

Experts who advise the CDC met yesterday to discuss a thorny issue: Covid vaccine boosters, specifically the new policy to allow people 50 and older and people who are immunocompromised to get a second booster. By the end of the meeting — during which members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices expressed frustration with the lack of clarity about the goal of the U.S. booster policy — it wasn’t entirely clear why people are being offered a second booster at this time. Data presented by CDC experts suggested the protection that immune-competent people have received from their primary series and first booster is holding up and the expected benefits from the fourth shots are modest at best. ACIP member Beth Bell raised concerns about “booster fatigue” and said offering another dose now could undercut confidence in vaccines that are working well at protecting people from severe Covid. The policy to offer the fourth doses was made without consulting ACIP.

Natural immunity to Covid reinfection looks similar to vaccination

Among the many views expressed around vaccine mandates, one theme persists: the idea that Covid-19 infection protects unvaccinated people against reinfection. While CDC says “getting a Covid-19 vaccination is a safer and more dependable way to build immunity to Covid-19 than getting sick with Covid-19," a research letter in JAMA Network Open tested the concept of natural immunity by analyzing data from more than 121,000 patients receiving health care in the western U.S. from October 2020 through November 2021, before the Omicron variant took hold. Unvaccinated people who’d been sick with Covid had an 85% lower risk of acquiring Covid again compared to unvaccinated individuals without prior Covid. That level is similar to what mRNA vaccines deliver. Previous infection conferred 88% protection against hospitalization after reinfection and 83% protection against reinfection that did not require hospitalization. The authors conclude natural immunity works as well against both mild and severe illness. One difference: Natural immunity didn't wane, but mRNA vaccines' protection did. “This study may have important implications for vaccine policy and public health,” they write.

Closer look: Psychedelic therapist allegedly took millions from a Holocaust survivor

(mike reddy for stat)

After surviving the Holocaust, George Sarlo arrived in the U.S. as an 18-year-old refugee. Over the decades, he became a wealthy venture capitalist and philanthropist. Suffering from depression, he discovered psychedelics a decade ago, but their relief didn’t last. On a trip to Hawaii last year, Sarlo was in deep despair. He was joined by Vicky Dulai, 46, companion, personal assistant, and a trained psychedelic therapist with whom he also had a romantic relationship, according to court records. When Sarlo, now in his 80s, repeatedly expressed suicidal thoughts, Dulai allegedly offered to help him end his life. A friend warned Sarlo’s family, according to a lawsuit that also alleges Dulai exploited her relationship with Sarlo to take more than $4 million from him. Dulai maintains in court documents that she received the money from Sarlo as gifts and that she was always working to help and protect him. A STAT investigation by Olivia Goldhill highlights the vulnerability of older people who take these mind-altering drugs. Read more.

Mediterranean diet during pregnancy linked to lower risk of preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a serious danger during pregnancy, sending blood pressure soaring and threatening liver and kidney damage. A new study asked whether eating a Mediterranean diet, whose heart benefits are well-known, might make a difference in developing preeclampsia. Previous research results have been mixed, but the authors of the paper published in the Journal of the American Heart Association noted that many studies don’t include significant numbers of Black women, who are twice as likely as white women to experience preeclampsia. In their cross-sectional study of more than 8,500 women giving birth in Boston’s biggest safety-net hospital, Black women made up nearly half of participants and Hispanic women accounted for more than one-quarter enrolled. Overall, women who said they ate foods from the Mediterranean-style diet — vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, olive oil, whole grains, and fish — were 20% less likely to develop preeclampsia, with Black women experiencing the greatest reduction in risk.

Older Americans of color report discrimination harms their health

Percent of older adults who feel their health care system treats people differently because of their race or ethnicity. (Michelle M. Doty et al., How Discrimination in Health Care Affects Older Americans, and What Health Systems and Providers Can Do)

In a damning new report, 1 in 4 older Americans of color say health care providers treated them unfairly because of their race or ethnicity, a far higher proportion than people in 10 other high-income countries. Discrimination can include dismissing a patient’s symptoms or concerns, offering different treatment depending on insurance type, or not providing care in a patient’s preferred language. The Commonwealth Fund survey of adults over 60 found that among Americans who experienced discrimination, more than a quarter said their care suffered because of it. Almost half of this group said they were in fair or poor health, twice the level of those who did not report discrimination. Three-quarters have three or more chronic conditions and they are far more likely to feel socially isolated, have a mental health diagnosis, or face economic problems.

Correction: Last week I gave you the wrong link to the American Lung Association's 2022 "State of the Air" report. You can find it here.

What to read around the web today

Migrant workers in China find new jobs — and precarious conditions — in Covid control. NPR
More pandemic fallout: The chronically absent student. New York Times
Pfizer faces criticism for arguing that intellectual property for its Covid-19 pill is a human right. STAT+
Report: Hunger kills hundreds of kids in Ethiopia's Tigray. Associated Press
Opinion: Pharma’s role in value-based care starts with value-based research. STAT+