Transcript:
Welcome to your Weekly Dose, a 3 minute or less recap of some of the health related headlines that caught my attention this week.
U.S. hospitals are facing an IV fluid shortage due to hurricane damage at the Baxter International facility, which produces 60% of the countries IV fluids. Hospitals are adopting aggressive conservation strategies, such as reducing IV fluid use and administering medications directly without IV bags. These changes, though innovative, can strain nursing staff and raise patient safety concerns due to faster drug delivery. Some hospitals are exploring long-term conservation measures including using patient oral hydration, limiting waste, and fully utilizing IV bags. While these strategies have environmental and cost benefits, there are concerns about their impact on patient outcomes.
Some pregnant women are being asked to prepay for their baby… Many pregnant women in the U.S. are being asked to pay large out-of-pocket fees for maternity care upfront, sometimes as early as the first trimester, which deviates from the norm of billing after delivery and insurance claims. While legal, this practice can cause significant financial and emotional stress, particularly if estimates are inaccurate or pregnancies have complications. Providers argue that prepayments help ensure they are compensated for care, but advocates call it unethical and warn it may deter women from seeking prenatal care.
Over the summer the FDA announced plans to establish a Rare Disease Innovation Hub. The FDA has finally made the first step in establishing The Hub. The Hub plans to foster a community at the FDA for open dialogue and knowledge sharing to identify new approaches to drug and biologic development and overcome hurdles that have traditionally impeded progress for rare disease treatments.
In our Research Rundown this week Eli Lilly presented data that the highest dose of an experimental pill developed by Lilly dramatically lowered an inherited form of high cholesterol in a mid-stage trial. The drug, muvalaplin, reduced levels of lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), by 70% using a traditional blood test. Elevated Lp(a) can significantly increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, narrowing of the aortic valve, and peripheral artery disease. Lilly’s drug is the only oral treatment in a field of several injectable therapies being tested to treat high Lp(a).
Thank you for joining me for your Weekly Dose. If you made it this far you are clearly interested in health news so why not follow for more? See you next week.
Story Source Links:
Nationwide IV Fluid Shortage Could Change How Hospitals Manage Patient Hydration: https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/iv-fluid-shortage-hospitals-conservation-bags-baxter-plant/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZzGFvffKuBPqjll0HLxV_kJfoGQhx9XaQ3PQtn6lGeGARiJDt4dnBEyu8_aem_S57XIGESxnKExLJrrUrCiA
Pay first, deliver later: Some women are being asked to prepay for their baby: https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/pregnancy-maternity-care-prepayment-billing-insurance/
FDA Takes Exciting Steps Toward Establishing the Rare Disease Innovation Hub: https://www.fda.gov/news-events/fda-voices/fda-takes-exciting-steps-toward-establishing-rare-disease-innovation-hub?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
Lilly pill cuts genetic form of cholesterol nearly 86% in study: https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/lilly-pill-cuts-genetic-form-cholesterol-nearly-86-study-2024-11-18/