No more thimerosal

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. formally accepted recommendations that would eliminate thimerosal from the remaining 4% of flu vaccines that still contain the mercury-based preservative, Helen Branswell writes.

Typically, it would be up to the CDC director to accept or reject recommendations from the agency's outside advisers, but there is no director. Kennedy has sought to remove the preservative from vaccines for decades and even dedicated a book to the subject, though vaccine proponents say there is overwhelming evidence that thimerosal in vaccines does not pose a health risk.

bird flu

Ferreting out bird flu's waning death rate

Helen also has an interesting story on the hypothesis for why H5N1 bird flu virus seems to be killing very few people.

Remember the H1N1 virus that emerged in 2009? The immunity our bodies created to that virus might offer some protection against the H5N1 virus, according to a study published Wednesday.

You can thank ferrets for those research findings.

organ donation

Congress fears loss of trust in organ donations

Trust is foundational to an organ donation system, and public health officials have spent decades trying to convince more people to register as organ donors.

But members of a House oversight committee fear the results of a federal investigation could shatter that trust, Chelsea Cirruzzo reports.

Among the findings are that an organization tasked with overseeing organ transplants in Kentucky ignored signs of life in patients when authorizing attempted organ removals. Read more.

medicaid

Funding cuts jeopardize Kentucky cancer care model

Kentucky has the highest incidence rate of cancer and one of the higher cancer mortality rates in the country. It has been working to close the divide with a years-long, multilayered effort that has few parallels elsewhere.

But the state has another dubious distinction that threatens to set back those efforts, Ted Alcorn reports. Rural areas of Kentucky are expected to be hit harder by Republicans' Medicaid cuts than any other state.

Over the next decade, Kentucky is expected to lose $12.3 billion in federal Medicaid funding in rural parts of the state alone, which could put dozens of hospitals out of business. Read more.

maha

MAHA promos and parties

MAHA took to airwaves and social media timelines this week with a new ad campaign promoting the movement's wins ahead of the second MAHA Commission report, due Aug. 12.

The Kennedy-backing group MAHA Action spent six figures on its campaign, called A New Day in America, according to a press release.

MAHA Action was also in D.C. this week, partying. The group held a reception Monday night, hosted by Kennedy adviser Calley Means, at the members-only Ned's Club near the White House. Means' co-hosts included the influencers Russell Brand and Eric Berg, and vaccine skeptics Aseem Malhotra and Leigh Merinoff (of Children's Health Defense).

Meanwhile, consumer advocacy groups are trying to drum up opposition to Surgeon General nominee Casey Means, whose confirmation hearing date hasn't been announced. Public Citizen and the Center for Science in the Public Interest are soliciting signatures on a letter to senators that cites concerns about Means' conflicts of interest, views, and lack of government experience. — Isabella Cueto

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