Happy New Year!

From Washington, DC

• OPM Director Scott Kupor added a post to his Secrets of OPM blog about return to office policies.

• Federal News Network reports,
  • “The specifics of a larger federal pay raise for law enforcement officers are coming into view, following President Donald Trump’s directive to offer a 3.8% salary increase for certain positions.
  • “In a memo Wednesday, the Office of Personnel Management established new “special salary rates” for federal law enforcement personnel [December 31], as a way to implement the bigger raise for 2026.”

• MedPage Today tells us,
  • “The FDA approved tradipitant (Nereus), an oral neurokinin-1 (NK-1) receptor antagonist, to prevent vomiting induced by motion in adults, Vanda Pharmaceuticals announcedopens in a new tab or window Tuesday.
  • “The approval marks the first new drug treatment for motion sickness in over four decades and signifies an advancement in understanding motion sickness mechanisms, the company said.”

From the judicial front,

• Federal News Network reports,
  • “The Trump administration is facing a new legal complaint from a group of government employees who are affected by a new policy going into effect Thursday that eliminates coverage for gender-affirming care in federal health insurance programs.
  • “The complaint, filed Thursday [with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] on the employees’ behalf by the Human Rights Campaign, is in response to an August announcement from the Office of Personnel Management that it would no longer cover “chemical and surgical modification of an individual’s sex traits through medical interventions” in health insurance programs for federal employees and U.S. Postal Service workers.
  • “The complaint argues that denying coverage of gender-affirming care is sex-based discrimination and asks the personnel office to rescind the policy.” * * *

• Bloomberg Law informs us,
  • “Drugmakers Eli Lilly & Co., Novo Nordisk Inc., and Sanofi-Aventis US LLC and pharmacy benefit managers such as Express Scripts won’t face certain civil fraud claims in connection with alleged price-fixing of diabetes treatment drugs.
  • “The plaintiff health benefit managers and trusts were barred from asserting civil claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act because they didn’t directly purchase the drugs, but rather reimbursed their members for the cost, the US District Court for the District of New Jersey said Tuesday.
  • “The “indirect purchaser rule” developed by the US Supreme Court in the antitrust context holds that Clayton Act plaintiffs may not demonstrate injury by providing evidence only of indirect purchases.
  • “Judge Brian Martinotti said the rule also applies in RICO cases, citing recent decisions from the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit applying it in factual situations similar to that alleged here because RICO’s private cause of action was modeled on the Clayton Act.”

From the public health and medical / Rx research front,

• Due to New Years Day falling on a Thursday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released their respiratory news update last Tuesday, December 30.
  • “As of December 30, 2025, the amount of acute respiratory illness causing people to seek health care is at a high level for the first time in the current 2025-2026 season.
  • “Seasonal influenza activity is elevated and continues to increase across the country.
  • “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country with emergency department visits and hospitalizations increasing among children 0-4 years old.
  • “COVID-19 activity is low but increasing nationally.”

• STAT News relates,
  • “Babies who don’t get their first round of vaccines on time at 2 months of age are much less likely to get vaccinated against measles, mumps, and rubella by age 2, according to a new study that suggests pediatricians may have a narrow window in which to persuade parents to follow the recommended childhood vaccination schedule. 
  • “The study, published Friday in JAMA Network Open, reports that in the post-Covid-19 pandemic period, babies who didn’t get their shots on time at 2 months — the age at which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends babies get vaccines against a host of diseases — were more than seven times more likely not to receive their first measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) shot by age 2, which is months later than when that shot is supposed to be given. Babies are supposed to get their first MMR shot between 12 months and 15 months of age, with a second sometime between the ages of 4 and 6.
  • “There’s evidence from this study that very early vaccination delays lead to later vaccination delays and even missed vaccination for measles,” said Nina Masters, an epidemiologist who is the lead author of the paper. “This shows that hesitancy is really starting early and has a long arc.”
  • “And as we look at a really bad measles year, it’s really important to do whatever we can to try to increase measles vaccination coverage.” 

• Healio tells us,
  • “Early-onset preeclampsia was associated with increased risk for delayed early-childhood development in the domain of problem-solving among preterm children, researchers reported.
  • “Although other domains of child development were affected by hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) and its subtypes, the relationships were not statistically significant, according to data published in JAMA Network Open.

• MedPage Today recounts what happened with bird flu in 2025.

• The Wall Street Journal lets us know,
  • “Move over weight loss and dry January. There’s a new popular New Year’s resolution in town: Enter the digital detox.
  • “Some people are aiming to reduce overall screen-time or social-media use (including yours truly). Others want to carve out regular no-screen days—OK, maybe more like time periods—or days or retreats.
  • “A survey by the digital-wellness app Opal (granted, a bit of a biased audience) found that 33% of 1,306 users said reducing screen times and being more present was their top New Year’s resolution, compared with 28% who aimed to lose weight. 
  • “Even teens are voicing a desire to reduce screen time. A Boston Children’s Digital Wellness Lab report cited results from a survey of more than 1,500 teens and found that 63% said they use their phones too much and 47% said they used apps or tools to manage phone use. 
  • “It’s high time we all cut down. There are growing signals it’s bad for our mental health—especially among adolescents and young adults.
  • “A recent study in JAMA Network Open found that when young adults did a social-media detox for a week they had a reduction in anxiety and depression symptoms, as well as less insomnia.”

• The Washington Post points out,
  • A fatty particle can clog arteries just as surely as cholesterol but often goes undetected, striking seemingly healthy people unaware of the danger. Though tests are widely available, they aren’t routinely ordered — in part because there are no approved treatments for the genetic disorder.
  • Now, cardiologists waging a campaign against lipoprotein(a) say they are reaching a turning point. Five experimental drugs are in late stages of development and aim to prove that lowering levels of Lp(a) — pronounced “L-P-little-A” — reduces heart attacks and strokes. Results from the most advanced clinical trial are expected in the first half of 2026.
  • “Cardiologists, drugmakers and Wall Street analysts are optimistic that these new drugs can effectively treat a disorder that is estimated to affect about 20 percent of the world’s population. Even if they prove effective, the cost of a novel drug — as well as the scant public awareness of Lp(a) — could be a barrier to treating patients who might benefit.
  • “There are over a billion people on our planet that have elevated lipoprotein levels and that are at increased risk,” said Steve Nissen, a cardiologist at Cleveland Clinic whose team is leading trials on four drugs targeting Lp(a). “We will have a massive educational job to do.”

From the U.S. healthcare business front,

• Fierce Healthcare reports,
  • “Hartford HealthCare closed its $86.1 million purchase of two Connecticut cate care hospitals, the 249-bed Manchester Memorial and its 109-bed Rockville campus, plus their related assets, from bankrupt Prospect Medical Holdings on Jan. 1.
  • “The transaction comes after the system spent months securing regulatory and state approvals, which involved commitments to maintain certain services and limit its rate negotiations with payers during the next few years. The most recent of these, an agreement with Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, came on Dec. 29
  • “Hartford HealthCare said it also plans to invest $225.7 million over three years into the hospitals and their communities. These efforts, as highlighted in this week’s announcement, include additional hiring, stronger outpatient and ambulatory care services, 24/7 virtual primary care offerings and the reopening of a 30-bed behavioral care unit at Rockville.”

• Reuters relates,
  • “Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 350 branded medications including vaccines against COVID, RSV and shingles and blockbuster cancer treatment Ibrance, even as the Trump administration pressures them for cuts, according to data provided exclusively by healthcare research firm 3 Axis Advisors.
  • “The number of price increases for 2026 is up from the same point last year, when drugmakers unveiled plans for raises on more than 250 drugs. The median of this year’s price hikes is around 4% – in line with 2025.

• Genetic Engineering and BioTechnology News calls attention to “Seven Biopharma Trends to Watch in 2026.”

• Beckers Clinical Leadership tells us
  • “Of the 650 U.S. hospitals designated as “Magnet” hospitals for nursing excellence, about 5% have earned the recognition more than six times. 
  • “The American Nurses Credentialing Center awards Magnet recognition to hospitals based on their quality of patient care and nursing excellence. As of Dec. 31, 33 hospitals have received six or more Magnet designations — representing just 0.54% of the nation’s 6,093 hospitals.”
  • The article lists those 33 hospitals by State.