Norovirus News:
- Norovirus is raging across the country and the CDC’s wastewater surveillance data shows its spreading much earlier and faster than usual. (The Hill)
- Test positivity was at around 11.6% last week, with hotspots in the West and South. (Outbreak Outlook)
- A noro outbreak closed a Boston-area school for two full days after over 100 student absences. (Boston 25)
- Mesa County, CO has had 5 noro outbreaks since the start of the season. (KKCO)
Health News:
- There are 27 new cases and more than 250 people quarantined for measles exposure in South Carolina, including a church gathering and a group of kids starting their second 21-day quarantine. (NBC)
- Obamacare health subsidies are set to end on January 1 after the Senate rejected proposals today. 24 million Americans will face significant price increases for health insurance. (Reuters)
- Oregon had 1,475 whooping cough cases this year, breaking the state record that’s held since 1950. (Newsweek)
- Bird flu has been confirmed in the 70 dead vultures found on the grounds of a school in Ohio. (WLWT)
- The FDA is reviewing RSV vaccine safety, a vaccine that has reduced infant RSV hospitalizations by up to 90% since it was introduced. (The Guardian)
- A Seattle Indian restaurant is now closed after many guests who had takeout or Thanksgiving meals delivered became ill. (KOMO News)
- Suicide rates dropped slightly last year from some of the highest levels ever. (AP)
- A local gym appears to be at the epicenter of a Legionnaires' outbreak in Central Florida. (ABC)
Best Question:
We’ve had a great relationship with the FDA and CDC over the years. How is that changing with HHS cuts and layoffs?
ZHH and many of our clients have had great relationships with FDA, CDC, USDA, and other federal and state agencies that they work with. In the past, we’ve gotten:
- Heads up about an outbreak (“Still TBD, but that Listeria outbreak is rumored to be linked to deli meats.”)
- Cooperation on messaging (“Here’s what we’ve drafted to publish. Let us know if you have edits and we’ll see what we can do.”)
- Courtesy of not going public (“We’ll keep your name off of this since it’s a multistate supplier issue.”).
We just saw the first few of FDA’s Executive Incident Summaries (EIS) for recent outbreaks, and they were heavily redacted to remove brand names, states, potentially contaminated food items, and other identifying info. Whether that’s a sigh of relief or a frustrating lack of transparency depends on which side of it your brand is on.
All of the relationships that retail partners have built with FDA and CDC are actually with individual people - many of whom are no longer there. If these people go to other organizations, like the state or city health alliances or other alternative public health groups cropping up now, we may be able to carry that trust over, or we may need to build it with an entirely new set of players.
What’s clear is that things won’t always work the same way they used to. That said, ZHH is fortunate to have built a deep bench of contacts over many years. Many of our former agency contacts are still advising behind the scenes, helping connect us to the right people who remain, and offering clinical guidance when clients need it most. We’re actively navigating this new normal alongside you, and if you run into an issue or crisis, we’re here to help you think through it and act quickly.
Sources: FDA, KFF, HHS
Best Read:
Even though we’re using caution when using the CDC’s website due to messaging changes for hot-button topics, we are still using their health data on flu, norovirus, and other diseases. YLE dives deep in this excellent piece, discussing how CDC’S communication about that data has been drastically reduced, but the numbers themselves come up from the state level. We’ll keep an eye on this for any changes, but for now, we’ll still be using this data.
