Plasma Donor Deaths Probed; Doc AI Use Doubles; Aetna Medicare Fraud Lawsuit Settled

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Canadian health officials are investigating the deaths of two people who donated plasma at for-profit clinics. (CBC News)

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced a bill to revoke FDA approval of the abortion pill mifepristone. (The Hill)

Residue from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or “forever chemicals,” was on nearly 40% of conventional produce grown in California, an investigation from the Environmental Working Group found.

As confidence grows in the technology, more than twice as many doctors now say they use artificial intelligence (AI) in their practices than they did in 2023 (81% vs 38%), according to a survey from the American Medical Association (AMA).

With some bipartisan support and AMA’s backing, momentum appears to be building for an office of men’s health at HHS. (STAT)

Medicaid spending on autism therapy now surpasses that of a new cancer patient in some states, and watchdog audits have found irregularities. (Wall Street Journal via MSN)

The Trump administration sparked criticism after appointing an ophthalmologist with no air pollution expertise to a key Environmental Protection Agency scientific panel. (New York Times)

And the administration announced an initiative to expand legal guardianships for homeless veterans, which could push more into institutional or involuntary care. (New York Times)

One-third of survey respondents — equivalent to over 82 million Americans — reported cutting back on daily living expenses to afford healthcare, a Gallup poll found.

Food stamp recipients sued the Agriculture Department over restrictions barring them from using their benefits to purchase sugary drinks and candy. (Newsweek)

Oral antibiotics can leave a footprint on the gut microbiome for up to 8 years, researchers reported in Nature Medicine.

A study in The BMJ further linked the use of the antiseizure drug valproate during pregnancy to neurodevelopmental disorders in children.

Vinay Prasad, MD, MPH, is headed for the exit, but the chaos may not be over at FDA, Axios reports.

Parents of children with autism are frustrated by the FDA’s narrow expanded approval of leucovorin. (CNN)

In other agency news, the FDA added another dietary supplement that contains toxic yellow oleander to its safety alert on products to avoid due to potentially fatal effects.

California plans to funnel over $1 billion to fund behavioral health facilities in rural and tribal communities. (USA Today)

Can gray hair be prevented or reversed? (New York Times)

Aetna will pay $117.7 million to resolve allegations that it submitted inaccurate and untruthful diagnosis codes for its Medicare Advantage plan enrollees in order to increase its payments, the Department of Justice announced.

West Virginia can uphold its ban on Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming surgeries, an appeals court ruled. (Reuters via MSN)

Loneliness and social isolation were associated with subjective cognitive decline in perimenopausal women, a cross-sectional study found. (Menopause)

What a 26-year-old woman thought were just stomach problems turned out to be stage III rectal cancer. (USA Today)