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Maryn McKenna @marynmck.bsky.social · 12h

Extremely bad news if true (and unlikely this reporter would run with it if not). The MMWR has been the earliest warning bell for outbreaks since it announced the first US cases, in 1981, of what was later identified as AIDS.

This will be a grievous shock to what remains of US public health.

Sheryl Gay Stolberg @sherylnyt.bsky.social · 12h

BREAKING: Friday night massacre underway at CDC. Doznes of "disease detectives," high-level scientists, entire Washington staff and editors of the MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) have all been RIFed and received the following notice:

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Jeremy Faust, MD @jeremyfaust.bsky.social · 11h

We have breaking news in Inside Medicine.

We had heard rumors of RIFs to CDC.

But this is the first visual confirmation that it has occurred tonight, and at high levels in the agency.

Here is what we know...and then some well-sourced rumors (but rumors, nonetheless, not confirmed) 🧵...

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Ted McCormick @tedmccormick.bsky.social · 2d

Generative AI, in both form and content, and whether looked on favourably or critically, seems to embody a collective hopelessness about the prospect of human learning and creativity, if not human knowledge altogether. It’s as if climate change had fans.

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Ted McCormick @tedmccormick.bsky.social · 2d

A striking thing about articles I’ve read claiming to “study the effects” of generative AI on student writing skills and consumption of information is that (1) they nearly always find the effects are negative and (2) most “conclusions” are still written assuming that we must use AI, for some reason.

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Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 2d

Report is here. cdt.org/insights/han...

Hand in Hand: Schools’ Embrace of AI Connected to Increased Risks to Students

Artificial intelligence (AI) has continued to alter the educational experiences of teachers, students, and parents during the 2024-25 school year. The frequency and variety of AI uses continues to gro...

cdt.org

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The American Academy of Pediatrics @ameracadpeds.bsky.social · 8d

Currently, millions of children are unable to access COVID-19 vaccines through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program, a program that provides free vaccines to families that are unable to afford them. Read the full story in AAP News. publications.aap.org/aapnews/news...

Pediatricians express frustrations over delay in COVID vaccines for children in federal program

Millions of children are unable to access COVID-19 vaccines through the Vaccines for Children program because federal health officials have not finalized recommendations on who should get vaccinated.

publications.aap.org

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Sarah J. Jackson @sjjphd.bsky.social · 9d

I think the model was: you can do something you passionately love, be an expert in it, that thing can be good and make the world better—and people will love you for it. What a dream.

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Sarah J. Jackson @sjjphd.bsky.social · 9d

When I was a little girl I wanted to be like Jane Goodall.

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NPR @npr.org · 9d

JUST IN: Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.

Jane Goodall, legendary primatologist, has died at age 91

Jane Goodall, primatologist who transformed our understanding of the lives of apes, has died, according to an announcement from the Jane Goodall Institute.

n.pr

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BK. Titanji @boghuma.bsky.social · 10d

A landmark new study in JAMA Pediatrics shows the HPV vaccine is doing exactly what it promised & more. 17yrs after rollout, adolescent vaccination has slashed HPV infxns not only among those vaccinated but also those unvaccinated, showing powerful herd protection.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Population-Level Effectiveness and Herd Protection 17 Years After HPV Vaccine

This cross-sectional study investigates population-level effectiveness and herd protection in the first 17 years after human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among adolescent girls and young women at ...

jamanetwork.com

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Anne Lutz Fernandez @lutzfernandez.bsky.social · 12d

Say it often, say it loud:

"Overall, research has not supported the common-sense presumption that digital approaches to schooling are better than non-digital alternatives. At the broadest level, widespread computer use in education has been found to be associated with lower student achievement."

Fit for Purpose? How Today’s Commercial Digital Platforms Subvert Key Goals of Public Education

Digital educational platforms have become ubiquitous in American classrooms, with tools like Google Workspace for Education, Kahoot!, Zearn, Khan Academy, and many others now structuring curriculum, i...

nepc.colorado.edu

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Jake Scott, MD @jakescottmd.bsky.social · 14d

Japan tried this. They suspended MMR in 1993 and used monovalent vaccines.

Result: coverage plummeted, measles and rubella cases shot up, they had multiple measles outbreaks (one with >100k cases), and they then switched back to MMR.

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Jake Scott, MD @jakescottmd.bsky.social · 14d

From an immunological standpoint, giving vaccines together makes sense. The immune system is designed to handle multiple challenges simultaneously and that's what happens in real life.

The idea that we need to 'space things out' reflects a misunderstanding of how immunity works.

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BK. Titanji @boghuma.bsky.social · 17d

👉 Natural infection = immunity + risk of hospitalization, complications, long-term sequelae, or death.
👉 Vaccination = immunity + short-lived side effects.
The outcome (immune memory) may look the same, but the cost is worlds apart.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics @ameracadpeds.bsky.social · 17d

Decades of research have found that acetaminophen is safe for children when administered as recommended. Misleading claims link the medicine to autism. These false claims send a dangerous message to parents and does a disservice to autistic individuals. www.aap.org/en/news-room...

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ACOG @acog.org · 18d

ACOG reaffirms that acetaminophen is safe for managing pain and fever during pregnancy. No reputable studies support suggestions like those in HHS’s recent announcement linking acetaminophen use in pregnancy to autism; in fact, high-quality studies show no such risk. https://bit.ly/47Wxc59

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Maggie Astor @maggieastor.bsky.social · 21d

Okay. ACIP meeting is over. Here are the four things they voted on with regard to Covid vaccines. Votes 1, 3 and 4 passed. Vote 2 (the call for a prescription requirement) did NOT pass.

The language is so unclear that two legal experts I've consulted so far don't know what this means for access.

Covid-19 Vaccines — Vote #1

It is the sense of the committee that the CDC engages in an effort to promote more consistent and comprehensive informed consent processes, and as part of that considers adding language accessible to patients and medical providers to describe at least the six risks and uncertainties included in the WG chair presentation.

Covid-19 vaccines — vote #2

It is the sense of the committee that state and local jurisdictions should require a prescription for the administration of a Covid-19 vaccination.

Covid-19 vaccines — vote #3

It is the sense of the committee that in conversations with patients before Covid-19 vaccination, authorized healthcare providers discuss the risks and benefits of the vaccination for the individual patient. The discussion should consider known risk factors for severe outcomes from Covid-19, such as age, prior infections, immunosuppression, and certain comorbidities identified by the CDC, and include a discussion of the potential benefits and risks of vaccination and related uncertainties, especially those outlined in the vaccine information statement, as part of informed consent.

Covid-19 vaccines — vote #4

The pediatric and adult immunization schedules for administration of FDA-approved Covid-19 vaccines should be updated as follows:

Adults 65 and older: Vaccination based on individual-based decision-making, also known as shared clinical decision making

Individuals 6 months to 64 years: Vaccination based on individual-based decision-making — with an emphasis that the risk-benefit of vaccination is most favorable for individuals who are at an increased risk for severe Covid-19 disease and lowest for individuals who are not at an increased risk, according to the CDC list of Covid-19 risk factors.

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Katy Stephenson @kstephensonmd.bsky.social · 21d

Listening to ACIP meeting which is a catastrophe, as predicted. I’d like emphasize in all this that the CDC subject matter experts and leads have been tremendous and continue to represent good science on our behalf. I am very grateful for their dedication, despite internal and external pressure.

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Alicia Ault @aliciaault.bsky.social · 22d

CDC official giving ACIP and update on COVID epidemiology. As has been seen over the years, the very youngest and very oldest are most likely to be hospitalized due to COVID.

#Medsky #IDsky #infectiousdisease

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Alicia Ault @aliciaault.bsky.social · 21d

AMA and NFID liaison reps to ACIP are now pointing out what the data has shown: that babies too young to be vaccinated are at highest risk for hospitalization and death from COVID. Maternal vaccination is the best way to protect them, they said.

#Medsky #IDsky #vaccines #pediatrics #obgyn

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Jessica Malaty Rivera, MS @jessicamalaty.bsky.social · 21d

We vaccinate to *reduce harm.* Vaccines are not immunity passports with absolute guarantees of no infection. What drives me crazy is that these people know that. By repeating these claims, they validate and endorse vaccine refusal.

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Jessica Malaty Rivera, MS @jessicamalaty.bsky.social · 21d

Has everyone forgotten the endpoints of the original COVID-19 vaccine clinical trials? They were designed to prevent hospitalizations & deaths. Transmission reduction was observed, but total transmission prevention was never promised.
This is a bad-faith argument against vaccine effectiveness.

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Jason L. Schwartz @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social · 21d

Yes! Exactly the types of affordability/access divides that VFC was created in ‘94 to address. (And it’s done so!) The immediate issue here is a pretty niche one—15% of families who opted for a non-preferred option for 1 dose of 1 vaccine—but likely a harbinger of more consequential changes to come.

Rachel Sachs @rachelsachs.bsky.social · 21d

Thread. ACIP's reversal this morning imposes new financial barriers to accessing the MMRV vaccine for VFC-eligible families, while AHIP's public statements mean that privately insured families will continue to have access with no cost-sharing, at least for now.

Jason L. Schwartz @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social · 22d

They reversed the confusing VFC vote that would have preserved MMRV coverage for kids <4. But contrary to how the chair described the effect of this new vote, it really just means that VFC-eligible families of <4 kids won’t have free access to MMRV (which they no longer recommend) even if desired.

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Jason L. Schwartz @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social · 22d

It’s no longer required that private insurers cover this vaccine for this age group either (per yesterday’s other vote), but AHIP’s recent announcement suggests that their coverage won’t change, ensuring that financial barriers to that parental choice won’t exist (for those with private ins only).

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Jason L. Schwartz @jasonlschwartz.bsky.social · 22d

They reversed the confusing VFC vote that would have preserved MMRV coverage for kids <4. But contrary to how the chair described the effect of this new vote, it really just means that VFC-eligible families of <4 kids won’t have free access to MMRV (which they no longer recommend) even if desired.

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