Today’s NewsStand

Today’s NewsStand

By Roxanne Strike|
|January 13, 2023

Iowa news

Iowa pharmacist compounds medicines in wake of Tylenol shortages

An Iowa pharmacy is relying on “old school” methods to provide liquid forms of common medications to children. Leslie Herron, a pharmacist and owner of the Sumpter Pharmacy in Adel, is compounding acetaminophen to fight Tylenol shortages. “The reason why there’s a shortage for children is because there’s a shortage of liquid of the Tylenol and ibuprofen,” Ms. Herron said. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

Univ. of Iowa study finds bivalent COVID-19 booster effective for older adults

Researchers at the University of Iowa studied the bivalent COVID-19 booster’s impact on people 65 and older. Early findings show the bivalent booster – the shot protecting against the omicron variant and the original strain – offered significant protections for that age group. 84% were less likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 compared to those unvaccinated. 73% were less likely to be treated in a hospital compared to those who got the original Pfizer or Moderna doses, but not a bivalent booster. (KCRG)

Clive facility continues helping people in acute mental health crisis

February marks two years since the Clive Behavioral Health Hospital opened its doors. In those two years, the staff has helped more than 2,000 patients from across Iowa as well as helped reduce the burden on the overall health care system. The 100-bed facility mainly specializes in treating people with acute mental health issues, which means they are going through an active crisis. It treats people of all ages. (WHO-13)

National news

Childhood vaccination rates drop for measles, polio

Immunization rates for measles, polio and other disease have once again dropped among kindergartners last school year, a trend public health officials warn puts kids at risk for vaccine-preventable disease. About 93% of kindergartners during the 2021-22 school year completed vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella; diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis; polio; and chickenpox. The coverage dropped nearly 1% from 2020-21 and about 2% from the years before the COVID-19 pandemic started according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study. (USA Today)

Health care bankruptcies accelerate in 2022, hospital an exception

Large bankruptcy filings in the healthcare sector increased 84% in 2022 over the previous year, but the hospital sector managed to escape relatively unharmed, according to a Jan. 12 report from restructuring firm Gibbins Advisors. While such bankruptcy cases were dominated by the senior care sector in the first half of 2022, it was the pharmaceutical sector that took over in the second half of the year. In total, there were 46 bankruptcy filings of entities with over $10 million in liabilities, with almost three times as many examples in the fourth quarter versus the first quarter of 2022. In the hospital sector, however, there were only two such filings compared with 10 cases in 2019, a period when overall bankruptcy filings in healthcare were at a similar level, the report said. Those two filings were El Segundo, Calif.-based Pipeline Health and San Jorge Children’s Hospital in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Becker’s Hospital Review)

Obamacare hits record numbers of signups

The Affordable Care Act health insurance marketplace just hit a record: nearly 16 million people signed up for the insurance known as Obamacare. That is about a million more people than signed up for ACA health insurance last year, and enrollment is still open on Healthcare.gov and in most state marketplaces until Sunday, Jan. 15. Cheaper plans are driving the upward trend. (National Public Radio)

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