Nearly 40% of people in the US live with unhealthy air pollution, report says | CNN More people across the United States – nearly 40% – live in places with unhealthy levels of polluted air, according to a new report from the American Lung Association. Jacqueline Howard CNN

...Extreme heat, drought and wildfires are among the factors that have contributed to a rise in deadly air pollution, especially in the Western part of the country, said Katherine Pruitt, author of the report and senior director of the American Lung Association’s Nationwide Clean Air Policy. 

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Global immunization efforts have saved at least 154 million lives over the past 50 years A major landmark study reveals that global immunization efforts have saved an estimated 154 million lives – or the equivalent of 6 lives every minute of every year – over the past 50 years. The vast majority of lives saved – 101 million – were those of infants.

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NASA chief asks nations to work together on climate change NASA is hoping that nations will work together more closely in the future on topics such as climate change, including greenhouse gas emissions, the space agency's head, Bill Nelson, said on Tuesday. Stefanie Eschenbacher Reuters

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Massive amounts of H5N1 vaccine would be needed if there's a bird flu pandemic. Can we make enough? The first signs that H5N1 avian flu was starting to spread from person to person would trigger a race to produce massive amounts of vaccine. Helen Branswell STAT

There is no way to predict if the virus will acquire the capacity to spread between people, or when and under what conditions it would make that fateful leap if it does.

Q&A: Climate change and health care—how individuals and institutions can help

Unseasonably mild winters. Forest fires and smoke. More reports of catastrophic storms. We've experienced increasingly extreme weather changes in the past few years, and the intersection between environmental issues and health is a pressing concern.

Myles Sergeant is an assistant clinical professor in McMaster's Department of Family Medicine who is deeply involved in efforts locally, provincially and nationally to reverse the effects of climate change. ...

We spoke with Sergeant about the dangers of climate change, the power individuals and the health care sector have to make more sustainable choices, and why he hasn't lost hope to save our "frail planet."

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Biden Administration Sets Higher Staffing Mandates. Most Nursing Homes Don’t Meet Them. - KFF Health News The staffing regulation was disparaged by the industry as unattainable. Patient advocates say it doesn’t go far enough. Labor unions welcomed the requirement. khnerich KFF Health News

The Biden administration finalized nursing home staffing rules Monday that will require thousands of them to hire more nurses and aides — while giving them years to do so.

US respiratory virus activity continues to tail off Wastewater COVID detections declined to the minimal level and are highest in the Midwest. CIDRAP

Respiratory virus activity from flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) continues to decline across most of the country, with only two jurisdictions—North Dakota and Wyoming—reporting high activity, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in updates today. ...

Hospitalizations continue to decline, but overall deaths were up slightly.

Dengue cases top 5.2 million in the Americas as outbreak passes yearly record, PAHO says | CNN Dengue cases are surging in the Americas, with cases reported topping 5.2 million as of this week, surpassing a yearly record set in 2023, according to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Michael Rios CNN

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