The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through its Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), today announced that it has awarded Moderna $176 million to develop a prepandemic vaccine against H5 avian influenza. [Kaiser Health News & Univ. of MN]

In its announcement, HHS said the award helps bolster the nation's pandemic flu vaccine capacity, which currently relies on an older traditional vaccine platform. Moderna will leverage its domestic large-scale commercial mRNA vaccine manufacturing platforms and ongoing development of mRNA-based seasonal flu vaccines.

The award comes as officials confirm more H5N1 avian flu in US cattle and poultry.

Phase 3 trials could begin next year

Dawn O'Connell, JD, assistant secretary for preparedness and response at HHS, said the $176 million represents the base award and the agreement contains other options that allow the government to quickly pivot funding to other mRNA vaccines when new flu strains or other disease threats emerge. She said the H5 vaccine is in clinical development and that phase 3 trials could begin in 2025.

The award also includes an option for large-scale production and pandemic response. At today's briefing, Robert Johnson, PhD, director of medical countermeasures at BARDA, said it's too early to project production capacity. He said the number will depend on dosing information, which should be available later this year. 

Moderna said in a statement today that in 2023 it launched a phase 1/2 clinical trial of an investigational pandemic flu vaccine in healthy adults, which included candidates against H5 and H7 viruses, and results are expected this year. 

Meanwhile, fill-and-finish activity continues on vaccine from bulk stocks of candidate cell-based adjuvanted H5 vaccine made by CSL Seqirus, and O'Connell said the first of 4.8 million doses will be available in the middle of July, with production continuing through August. This is faster than the government had anticipated. 

Officials weigh early vaccine use for high-risk groups

As vaccine production and planning continues, federal officials are in ongoing discussions about how to best protect farm workers and others exposed to cattle.

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 A survey of low-income adults in four southern US states shows that nearly half of those disenrolled from Medicaid after COVID-19 pandemic protections ended had no insurance in late 2023, leading to struggles to afford healthcare and prescription drugs and threatening to broaden a gap that had narrowed during expanded governmental benefits. [University of MN] 

'These findings suggest that the recent unwinding of COVID-19 pandemic–related safety-net policies may worsen health care affordability and widen existing income-based inequities.'

The data were derived from 89,130 adult residents of Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas participating in the National Health Interview Survey in 2019, 2021, and 2022. In 2023, states rechecked Medicaid eligibility after COVID-19 governmental protections expired, disenrolling millions. The average participant age was 48.0 years, and 51.6% were women.

Researchers from Beth Israel Medical Center and Harvard Medical School published the results late last week in JAMA Health Forum.

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The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) endorsed new COVID-19 and influenza vaccines for the 2024-2025 respiratory virus season on Thursday. [MedPage Today]

In a unanimous 11-0 vote, the ACIP recommend that everyone 6 months of age and older should receive an updated COVID-19 vaccine, similar to last year's recommendation.

The committee also voted unanimously that everyone 6 months of age and older should receive an updated 2024-2025 influenza vaccine, with rare exceptions. Also, in another unanimous vote, members voted that high-dose inactivated (HD-IIV3) and adjuvanted inactivated (aIIV3) influenza vaccines are acceptable options for influenza vaccination in solid organ transplant recipients.

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Federal health officials with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have issued an alert, warning health professionals and the public about an increased risk for dengue virus infections in the United States. [MedScape]

The global incidence of dengue in 2024 is the highest on record, reported the agency.

In the Americas, more than 9.7 million cases of dengue have been reported in the first 6 months of 2024 — more than double the 4.6 million cases reported in all of 2023.

In the United States, Puerto Rico has declared a public health emergency, with 1498 dengue cases reported so far and a "higher-than-expected" number of dengue cases having been identified among US travelers in the first half of this year at 745 cases, according to the alert.

The CDC reports 197 dengue cases in Florida, 134 in New York, 50 in Massachusetts, 40 in California, 14 in Colorado, nine in Arizona, and eight in the District of Columbia, among others.

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The National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine on Wednesday said law and policy changes aimed at eliminating health disparities have made slow and uneven progress improving racial inequities over the past 20 years. [Modern Healthcare]

The Ending Unequal Treatment report found that people of color in 2024 are still disproportionately uninsured, underutilizing care services and underrepresented in the healthcare workforce. The report is funded by the National Institutes of Health and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and is a follow up to the academies' 2003 study on pervasive inequities in care access, coverage and treatment between patients of color and their white peers.

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"No evidence" new COVID variant LB.1 causes more severe disease," CDC says. [CBS & KFF Health News]

There are no signs so far that the new LB.1 variant is causing more severe disease in COVID-19 patients, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, as infections have begun to accelerate in this summer's wave around the country.

The LB.1 variant currently makes up 17.5% of new COVID cases, the CDC projected Friday, and could be on track to overtake its sibling, the KP.3 variant, which has also been growing in recent weeks.

"There is currently no evidence that KP.3 or LB.1 cause more severe disease. CDC will continue to track SARS-CoV-2 variants and is working to better understand the potential impact on public health," CDC spokesperson David Daigle said in a statement.

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Share of high school students who said they felt sad or hopeless for at least two consecutive weeks in the last year

Youth mental health has begun to improve after major pandemic dips, new data shows.  [Axios]

Why it matters: The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare students' struggles as well as a fractured system to help them navigate recovery.

• Some of the recovery, though, trails pre-pandemic mental health metrics.

State of play: In seven of nine states identified by Axios with published 2023 data, surveys showed lower rates of sadness and hopelessness.

• Overall, dedicating more resources to student well-being during the pandemic has started to pay off, Kathleen Ethier, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Adolescent and School Health, told Axios.

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The U.S. Census Bureau today released a new report on adults age 65 and over who are living in poverty. Using data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), the Profile of Older Adults by Poverty Status: 2021 report examines the sociodemographic characteristics, living arrangements, program participation, and net worth of older adults by poverty status. [US Census Bureau]

The SIPP is a nationally representative, longitudinal survey administered by the Census Bureau that provides comprehensive information on the dynamics of income, employment, household composition, and government program participation.

Download report here>

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In 2019, Michael Dowling began reaching out to peers at other leading health systems to garner support in collectively acknowledging and addressing gun violence as a public health crisis. Few were willing to sign on to such efforts. [Beckers Health Review

"I couldn't get anybody," Mr. Dowling, president and CEO of New York City-based Northwell Health, told Becker's. "They all acknowledged that it was an issue, and they were all very appreciative that I was taking the lead on it. But very few of them wanted to engage." 

Firearm-related deaths hit an all-time high of nearly 49,000 in 2021 and remain the leading cause of death in children and adolescents. Historically, it was typical and expected for healthcare institutions to shy away from taking a firm stance on controversial political issues. But the tide has begun to turn in the past few years, with a growing pack of prominent voices in healthcare and beyond recognizing and treating gun violence as a nonpolitical health issue. 

Mr. Dowling has spearheaded efforts to bring health system leaders together around the cause. In 2021, he launched the Gun Violence Prevention Learning Collaborative for Hospitals and Health Systems, which has since convened more than 600 healthcare professionals to discuss strategies on how their organizations are working to prevent gun violence in their communities. Through that effort, more than 40% of members have said they have started or expanded evidence-based prevention strategies at their organizations. The multi-year effort is in its second phase, which involves developing a national repository and dashboard of health systems' firearm injury prevention initiatives. 

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We are excited- one to the 2024 Annual Leadership Awards and Annual Convening! More details here>

The Institute of Medicine of Chicago is hosting its 2024 Annual Leadership Awards and Annual Convening on June 20, 2024 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM CT at Maggiano’s-Chicago. This is the Institute’s major fundraiser for the year supporting its mission of “advancing health equity by reducing healthcare disparities.” The Institute is closing the gap in several key areas and promoting social change. 

Opening Guest Speaker- Dr. Erik Mikaitis, MD, MBA, FACP, CPE- He was appointed as the Interim Chief Executive Officer for Cook County Health in November 2023 by the Cook County Board of Commissioners. Dr. Mikaitis provides executive leadership to advance the health system's strategic imperatives and ensure the provision of high-quality care and services in collaboration with CCH's medical and business leaders.

Keynote Speaker- David T. Jones was named, by Gov. Pritzker, the Associate Secretary at the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), where he serves as the statewide Chief Behavioral Health Officer (CBHO). Chief Jones joined IDHS as the Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery (SUPR) in October 2020.

IOMC is pleased to honor the 2024 Leadership Award Recipients, they are:

IOMC Outstanding Leadership & Compassion Award in Healthcare

Richard Lieber, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab

IOMC Global Humanitarian Award

Damiano Rondelli, MD, Michael Reese Professor of Hematology, University of Illinois at Chicago

IOMC Innovation in Healthcare Delivery - Individual

Arvind K. Goyal, MD, MPH, MBA, FAAFP, FACPM

Medical Director, State of Illinois Medicaid, Dept. of Healthcare & Family Services, Clinical Associate Professor, Chicago Medical School

IOMC Innovation in Healthcare Delivery – Organization

Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science

The new class of Fellows will be announced and recognized at the event.

We wish to thank our sponsors for their support: Golden Square, Midwest Business Group on Health, and Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP. Our tables sponsors are Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, University of Chicago Medicine, Cook County Health, Washington Square Health Foundation, and The Portes Foundation.

The Institute of Medicine of Chicago (IOMC), since 1915, is an independent non-profit organization of distinguished leaders in the health field who collaborate to improve the health of the public. Drawing upon the expertise of a diverse membership and other regional leaders, the IOMC addresses critical health issues through a range of interdisciplinary approaches, including education, research, communication of trusted information, and community engagement. With the public's health at its core, IOMC is building new programs and services to meet better the needs of its members and the Chicago, Counties and the State of Illinois community. 501c3 non-profit organization. Visit www.iomc.org.

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