disability
Forced sterilization shouldn't be an option for people with disabilities: First Opinion
New guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests that forced sterilization should be considered a treatment option for children, adolescents, and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is a "troubling approach" to reproductive health for this population, said mental health clinician Consuelo Senior in a STAT First Opinion.
Forced sterilization fundamentally violates a person's bodily autonomy, but people with I/DD have been subject to this procedure for more than a century. Many people view it as a way to keep this population safe, as 90% of people with I/DD will experience sexual abuse at some point in their lives.
Read more about why the new AAP ruling is an issue for the disability community here.
health tech
Telehealth prescription rules extended for ADHD and opioid addiction treatments
Federal officials have extended pandemic-era rules that allow health providers to prescribe drugs for opioid addiction and ADHD over telehealth.
This temporary ruling is the Drug Enforcement Agency's latest punt, and the extension to the end of 2025 will saddle the incoming Trump Administration with a decision. In 2023, the Drug Enforcement Agency released rules for reinstating restrictions that were criticized by telehealth advocates and providers, and last October it extended the flexibilities to the end of this year.
The flexibility allows prescribers to help their patients access treatments such as buprenorphine and Adderall, and has proved a boon to telehealth companies. Read more about the issue from STAT's Mario Aguilar and Katie Palmer.
infectious diseases
First U.S. case of new mpox strain detected in California
California has detected the country's first case of a new mpox strain that is spreading from person to person, STAT's Helen Branswell reports . The infected individual had recently traveled from Eastern Africa, where multiple countries are battling transmission of this virus.
The version of the virus the person is infected with is known as clade Ib, which is different from the clade IIb virus that is responsible for the large international mpox outbreak that began in 2022. California health authorities say there's no concern or evidence that the version is spreading in the U.S. Read more.
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