Reuters Health News Summary
Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
Judge temporarily exempts women with complicated pregnancies from Texas abortion ban
Women in Texas with complicated pregnancies are exempted from a state abortion ban under a temporary injunction issued on Friday, with the judge citing a lack of clarity on the ban's medical exemptions. Travis County District Court Judge Jessica Mangrum in her ruling sided with women and doctors who sued Texas over the abortion ban.
Purdue asks Supreme Court not to block opioid settlement during US appeal
Oxycontin maker Purdue Pharma on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject the U.S. Department of Justice's request to delay its multi-billion-dollar bankruptcy settlement resolving thousands of lawsuits against it over the opioid epidemic. The department's bankruptcy watchdog last week asked the Supreme Court to pause the settlement, which would shield the company's Sackler family owners from opioid lawsuits in exchange for a $6 billion contribution to a broader settlement with states, local governments and victims of addiction.
Connecticut law ending religious vaccine exemptions for children is upheld
A divided federal appeals court on Friday rejected a challenge to a Connecticut law that ended the state's decades-old religious exemptions from immunization requirements for children in schools, colleges and day care. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said ending religious exemptions, while still allowing medical exemptions, was a rational means to promote health and safety by reducing the potential spread of vaccine-preventable diseases.
US FDA approves Biogen-Sage Therapeutics pill for postpartum depression
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday approved Biogen and Sage Therapeutics' oral pill to treat postpartum depression (PPD) in adults. The companies had sought the FDA's approval for the drug, Zurzuvae, to treat major depressive disorder (MDD), or clinical depression, as well as postpartum depression, which affect millions of people.
Bangladesh grapples with record deadly outbreak of dengue fever
Bangladesh is grappling with a record deadly outbreak of dengue fever, with hospitals struggling to make space for patients as the disease spreads rapidly in the densely-populated country. At least 293 people have died so far in 2023 and nearly 61,500 infected, according to official figures, making this the deadliest year since the first recorded epidemic in 2000.
Soccer-Chile's Jara leads campaign for prostate testing eight years after "finger of god"
Chilean defender Gonzalo Jara, widely remembered for sticking his finger up Uruguay's Edinson Cavani's backside at the 2015 Copa America, has become the face of a campaign to promote prostate testing for cancer prevention in his country. Images of the center-back went viral eight years ago as he grabbed Cavani's backside and stuck his finger up it during the Copa America's quarter-final clash between Chile and Uruguay.
