Medical

Former Little Mix singer offers £10,000 reward for information about Land Rover taken from Essex drivewayThe musician Jesy Nelson, a former member of the band Little Mix, has pleaded for help after her car, which contained essential medical equipment for her children, was stolen from her driveway in Essex.The black Land Rover is believed to have been taken at about 3am on Sunday in Brentwood. Continue reading...

• President Donald Trump announced Dr. Jennifer Shuford, Texas' top public health official and infectious disease physician, as his nominee for CDC chief medical officer on Thursday via Truth Social. • Shuford oversaw the country's largest measles outbreak in 30 years; other nominees include Dr. Erica Schwartz as CDC director, Sean Slovenski as deputy director and COO, and Dr. Sara Brenner as senior counselor to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. • The appointments aim to reshape CDC leadership amid ongoing public health challenges in the US.

Health secretary says NHS is ‘failing women’ and pledges to end ‘gaslighting’ by doctorsWes Streeting has vowed to stop women being “gaslit” by doctors as he relaunches the women’s health strategy for England.Speaking before the publication of the renewed strategy on Wednesday, Streeting said the NHS was “failing women” and set out measures to help them access the healthcare they need. Continue reading...

• The US administration reports that the Iran war is rattling the medical supply chain, affecting essentials from gloves to helium used in MRIs. • Shortages threaten hospitals nationwide as key imports from affected regions halt abruptly amid escalating conflict. • Medical leaders warn this could delay treatments and surgeries, exacerbating existing vulnerabilities in US healthcare logistics.

• Rates of US adults skipping needed care due to unaffordable costs rose to 12.4% in 2024, up from declines seen 2019-2021. • Forgone care varies by state, insurance type, and chronic disease status, exacerbating health disparities nationwide. • Gallup polls identify healthcare costs as the top health issue, surpassing access and obesity concerns for Americans.

Union rejected 4.9% pay rise for resident doctors, who are on six-day strike, but its own staff were offered 2.75%The British Medical Association has been accused of the “height of hypocrisy” for offering its own staff below-inflation pay rises while demanding a 26% increase for resident doctors.Tens of thousands of medics walked out of the NHS in England on Tuesday, the 15th time they have staged industrial action since March 2023 in their campaign for “full pay restoration”. Continue reading...

• The FDA has awarded breakthrough device designation to more than 1,200 experimental devices, including AI innovations, since 2016. • Evolving FDA criteria reflect accelerating AI integration in US health tech approvals. • Program speeds market access for transformative devices addressing unmet medical needs.

• A stepwise hypertension medication algorithm, the UC Way, adopted across University of California's six academic medical centers, boosted blood pressure control from 68.5% to nearly 74% among 90,000 patients. • Among 11,500 UCSF patients, the improvement averted 72 strokes, 48 heart attacks, and 38 deaths, according to a two-year study ending mid-2025. • Developed by multidisciplinary UC Health experts and integrated into electronic health records since 2023, the tool allows customized treatment adjustments.

• Perplexity announced b.well as the infrastructure partner behind its health data integration, enabling citation-backed AI search capabilities for actual patient records and medical information retrieval. • The partnership aligns with broader industry trends toward integrating large language models with electronic health record systems, following OpenAI's ChatGPT Health launch and other healthcare AI initiatives. • b.well has emerged as a significant health AI infrastructure company, having also launched bailey (a white-label health assistant) and expanded partnerships with Samsung to transform Galaxy phones into portable health records with point-of-care data sharing.

Levi Vargas, 30, was competing in Baker to Vegas race through Mojave desert as US south-west faces extreme heatLos Angeles county sheriff’s deputy Levi Vargas died on Saturday after a medical emergency while participating in an annual relay race through the Mojave desert. He was 30 years old.Vargas had been competing at the Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup relay race, which follows a 120-mile (193km) course from Baker, California, to Las Vegas, Nevada, through the Mojave desert. Several law enforcement agencies send 20-runner teams annually to compete in the race. Continue reading...

• The Iran-supporting group Handala claimed responsibility for hacking Stryker, a Michigan-based medical technology company, in retaliation for US strikes killing Iranian schoolchildren. • DigiCert tracked nearly 5,800 cyberattacks by nearly 50 Iran-tied groups, primarily targeting US and Israeli companies. • Attacks included spyware via fake bomb shelter apps on Android devices during Iranian missile strikes in Israel, accessing cameras, locations, and data.

• A new analysis identifies Louisiana and Kentucky as among the most stressed US states in 2026, with stress levels significantly influenced by geographic factors. • Rising healthcare costs are forcing residents to skip medical care, contributing to elevated stress levels across affected regions. • The stress disparities highlight how healthcare affordability challenges vary by state, with geographic and economic factors playing key roles in residents' wellbeing and access to care.

Protesters decried Trump administration healthcare policies and direction of HHS under leadership of RFK JrAs tens of thousands of people assembled across the US and around the world for No Kings protests, about a thousand people gathered outside the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, on Saturday morning to protest cuts to medical research and the Trump’s administration’s policies on health.The rally follows a tumultuous year for the research agency, with devastating cuts to multi-year funding and outright terminations of grants, especially to research related to gender and race. The White House is now poised to cut the NIH’s budget by 20%, according to reporting by Roll Call on Friday, nearly one year after mass layoffs at health agencies. Continue reading...

• The leading U.S. medical school accreditation body, LCME, removed language from its 2027-2028 standards requiring schools to teach about health inequities and disparities. • The previous standards mandated instruction on "health care disparities" and "approaches to reduce health care inequities," which were replaced with language on self-directed learning skills. • The change comes as the Trump Department of Justice probes three medical schools, amid growing political pressure on diversity and equity initiatives in medical education.

• Stryker, a major US medical device manufacturer, suffered a cyberattack causing widespread business disruption, reported on March 27, 2026. • The company stated operations are steadily improving toward full capacity after the incident. • This incident highlights ongoing cybersecurity vulnerabilities in US healthcare tech supply chains.

• Congress rejected Trump administration's $18 billion NIH budget cut proposal, providing stability for 2026 grantees at institutions like University of Wisconsin-Madison. • Delays in grant reviews and dispersal have stalled projects, hiring, and caused anxiety, with NIH months behind schedule as of March 26, 2026. • Vice Chancellor Dorota Brzezinska noted core funding protection but ongoing uncertainty impacts lab operations and future awards before September 30 deadline.

Health department says ‘too many’ doctors have been using racist and antisemitic language, particularly on social media, without rebukeAn overhaul of the General Medical Council is expected to lead to more doctors that face accusations of racism and antisemitism on social media being struck off.The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has launched a consultation on changes to the legislation governing the regulation of doctors, saying the move will lead to the biggest reform of the medical regulator, the GMC, in four decades. Continue reading...

Medics and officials say there is systematic use of double-tap strikes in campaign to make the south uninhabitableLebanese healthcare workers and officials say Israeli bombings have deliberately targeted medical workers and facilities in south Lebanon, including through the use of double-tap strikes, in what they describe as a systematic effort to make the area unlivable.Since the war began on 2 March, Israel has struck at least 128 medical facilities and ambulances across south Lebanon, killing 40 healthcare workers and wounding 107, according to the Lebanese ministry of health. The war started when Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel, triggering an Israeli military campaign. Continue reading...

• The California Medical Association strongly opposes a proposed statewide ballot initiative that would strip billions of dollars from vital community health centers. • The measure threatens funding for essential services provided by health clinics serving underserved populations across California. • CMA urges physicians and stakeholders to mobilize against the 'dangerous' proposal to protect community health infrastructure.

• On March 13, 2026, the EPA proposed repealing a 2024 Biden administration rule limiting ethylene oxide emissions from commercial sterilizer facilities, which sterilize about half of U.S. medical devices like heart valves and pacemakers. • The rule aimed to reduce cancer risks to nearby communities but is criticized for threatening domestic supply chains and relying on flawed risk models, per the Trump administration. • Ethylene oxide debate pits public health protections against medical supply reliability, with evidence suggesting alternative risk assessments like Texas models better match human data.

• Scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute developed TLPath, a new computational tool that infers telomere length—repeating DNA sections at chromosome ends that shorten with age—by detecting structural changes in cells captured in routine biopsy images. • The model successfully predicted telomere length more accurately than using patient age alone and could identify telomere length differences between individuals of the same chronological age, potentially transforming large-scale aging research. • Published in Cell Reports Methods, the findings enable researchers to measure an important aging metric quickly and cheaply without costly traditional tests, opening new opportunities to study telomere biology and human aging.

• Cosmo Technologies is presenting its technical session 'Engineering Medical Grade Platforms for Real Time AI' at the NVIDIA GTC 2026 conference in San Jose, California, running from March 16 to 19. • The session, scheduled for Thursday, March 19 from 10:00 to 10:50 CET, explores engineering challenges for building AI platforms that operate in real time during medical procedures to assist physicians. • This highlights Cosmo's commitment to advancing AI in healthcare, positioning it at the intersection of medical technology and AI amid growing demand for clinical-grade systems.

The Environmental Protection Agency proposed Friday to relax air pollution limits on ethylene oxide, a chemical classified as a human carcinogen since 2016 and used to sterilize medical equipment including catheters and syringes. The EPA stated that current Biden-era standards "actively threaten" manufacturers' abilities to sterilize equipment and jeopardize domestic medical device supply chains. Public health advocates, including the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, warned that people living near commercial sterilization facilities face elevated lifetime cancer risks, while medical device manufacturers argue the standards could disrupt critical supplies. The proposal marks the latest EPA action under President Donald Trump to relax pollution limits and reduce costs for industry.

The EPA proposed on March 13, 2026, to relax air pollution standards for ethylene oxide used in sterilizing medical devices like catheters and syringes, reversing Biden-era cancer risk findings. The agency cites threats to domestic supply chains for essential equipment. Industry leaders like Scott Whitaker of the Advanced Medical Technology Association praised the move for ensuring uninterrupted sterile supplies while protecting communities. The change aligns with broader Trump EPA efforts to cut industry costs, with public comments expected next.

The EPA proposed on March 13 to relax air pollution standards for ethylene oxide (EtO), a carcinogen used to sterilize medical devices like catheters and syringes, reversing Biden-era rules citing supply chain risks. The agency claims current limits threaten domestic production of essential equipment. Industry groups praise the move for ensuring sterile supplies without interruptions. Critics worry about cancer risks to nearby communities, as seen in past closures like Sterigenics in Illinois.

The EPA proposed weakening pollution standards for ethylene oxide, a carcinogen used to sterilize medical devices like catheters and syringes, reversing Biden-era rules citing threats to domestic supply chains. The move addresses concerns over manufacturing disruptions but draws criticism for elevating cancer risks near 23 U.S. facilities. Classified as a human carcinogen since 2016, the chemical poses lifetime cancer risks to nearby residents, per health advocates. Public comments are expected before finalization amid industry and environmental tensions.

Microsoft launched Copilot Health on March 13, 2026, an AI tool designed to organize users' medical records, health histories, and fitness tracker data into coherent summaries for doctor consultations. The product integrates data from wearables and electronic health records to provide personalized health insights ahead of appointments. This move highlights Big Tech's aggressive expansion into the $4 trillion US healthcare market, emphasizing AI's role in sensitive consumer domains. Industry analysts predict it could streamline patient-doctor interactions, though privacy concerns remain prominent.

The American Council on Science and Health lists 16 landmark public health achievements, including George Washington's 1777 order for Continental Army smallpox inoculations that saved forces from a disease killing 10 soldiers per battle death. Polio cases sharply declined after Jonas Salk's 1955 vaccine was deemed safe, with Albert Sabin's 1960s oral version enabling community-wide protection. CDC identified initial AIDS clusters in 1981 among young men; by 1996, NIH-supported combination antiretroviral therapy turned HIV into a manageable condition, bolstered by US companies like Gilead and PEPFAR in 2003. These advances revolutionized medicine from antibiotics to organ transplants and birth control.