Anna Edney

US Will Test Infant Formula to See If Botulism Is a Wider Risk US health officials plan to test certain dairy-based ingredients used in a wide variety of baby formulas for spores that can cause infant botulism, in the wake of the ByHeart recall last year that was...

US health officials plan to test infant formula ingredients used in a wide variety of brands to see whether contamination that causes botulism is a greater risk than previously thought, Kyle Diamantas, FDA's deputy commissioner for human foods, told me
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Babies Are Getting Sick From Formula That Mimics Mother’s Milk A widening recall shows that as the infant food gets more nutritionally complex, the systems designed to keep it safe are struggling to keep pace.

High-profile baby formula recalls rocking companies in Europe and the US have exposed a weakness in an industry that has been increasingly trying to fashion itself as more and more like breast milk:
The more sophisticated it becomes, the harder it is to keep safe

www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

Senators Bash RFK Jr. on Changes to Vaccine Injury Committee Four Senate Democrats are pushing US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to detail his plans for revamping how the federal government compensates people who are harmed by vaccine...

Exclusive with @annaedney.bsky.social ! Four democratic senators sent a letter to RFK Jr. demanding answers for his changes to vaccine court and outlining ways he and his allies have the potential to benefit. Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Infant Botulism Linked to ByHeart Formula Ingredient Supplier Health officials found spores that can cause infant botulism at a supplier for formula-maker ByHeart Inc. as part of their investigation into an outbreak that sickened dozens of babies in the US, acco...

Scoop with @jessicanix.bsky.social
Health officials found spores that can cause infant botulism at a supplier for formula-maker ByHeart as part of their investigation into an outbreak that sickened dozens of babies, according to a document viewed by Bloomberg.
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

New Year, Same Health Fight - KFF Health News Congress returned from its break facing a familiar question: whether to extend the expanded subsidies for Affordable Care Act health plans that expired at the end of 2025. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Rob...

our first #WTHealth podcast of 2026 now up! @alicemiranda.bsky.social, @laurenweberhp.bsky.social and @sarahkarlin-smith.bsky.social join me to break down the latest on the ACA fight, changes to the vaccine schedule and food pyramid, and more.
kffhealthnews.org/news/podcast...

"While children in California, which does not allow for nonmedical vaccine exemptions, are vaccinated against measles at 96 percent, there is not a single county in Idaho, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah or Wisconsin whose kindergarten rates meet herd immunity protection."

Target, Walmart Get FDA Warning for Selling Recalled Baby Formula Target Corp., Walmart Inc. and other large grocery chains were warned by US regulators for continuing to offer ByHeart infant formula for sale that’s been recalled because it’s potentially contaminate...

Target & Walmart received warnings from the FDA after regulators found recalled ByHeart formula on store shelves. Target even had ByHeart formula on sale for $2 off more than a week after all of the formula was recalled for being linked to a baby botulism outbreak

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

- And the NIH quickly convened a panel to write a report on NEC that ended up leaning in Abbott's favor but I learned that report was actually ghostwritten by consultants who work at a company that also lists Abbott as a client

There's a lot to unpack here but some highlights are:
- Abbott has hired numerous lobbyists in hopes of securing congressional immunity against hundreds of lawsuits
- The lawsuits question whether Abbott should have warned about potential risks related to its formula and a deadly disease called NEC

Abbott Fired a Warning Shot on Baby Formula — Then Launched a Lobbying Blitz Litigation that could cost the company billions has it on the offensive — and asking for the government to intervene.

Abbott said it might have to stop selling certain types of its Similac baby formula. That was just the beginning. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

ByHeart Botulism Outbreak Expands to Cases From 2023, CDC Says An outbreak of infant botulism linked to ByHeart’s baby formula is much wider than initially thought, potentially dating back two years, US health agencies said Wednesday.

An outbreak of infant botulism linked to ByHeart’s baby formula is much wider than initially thought, potentially dating back two years

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

California Probing Baby Botulism Cases Prior to Current Outbreak The California Department of Public Health is investigating six additional cases of botulism in the state in infants who were given ByHeart formula before the start of the current outbreak in August, ...

California is investigating 6 cases if infant botulism that occurred before the current outbreak linked to ByHeart

The CA Dept of Public Health told me it first tested a can of ByHeart in the spring. It didn't find contamination but it can be hard to detect
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

China’s Grip on American Medicine Cabinets Grows More Entrenched A US congressional commission is ringing alarm bells about China’s growing dominance over America’s drug supply, saying it is putting the country’s health in the hands of an adversarial nation.

If China can restrict rare earth minerals, can it also restrict our drug supply? It's hard to predict but the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission reports today that the consequences could mean lost lives and rationed care in the US.

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

ByHeart Infant Formula Recall Expands After 15 Babies Sickened US regulators are urging parents to stop using all ByHeart infant formula products after more than a dozen babies became seriously ill, setting off a recall of all the company’s products.

ByHeart is recalling all of its infant formula after 15 babies who drank it came down with botulism. ByHeart is a very small company and this shouldn't create shortages but it certainly is scary for parents
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Walgreens Cuts Pay for Hourly Store Workers After $10 Billion Buyout Walgreens will no longer give many of its retail workers paid vacation time for Thanksgiving, Christmas and other major holidays, as the company looks to cut costs under new owners.

Just in time for the holidays

"Walgreens will no longer give many of its retail workers paid vacation time for Thanksgiving, Christmas and other major holidays, as the company looks to cut costs under new owners."

(Scoop from @ikeswetlitz.bsky.social ) www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

This Closed Factory Shows How Hard Reviving Drug Manufacturing Will Be

Great story from Rebecca Robbins highlighting how the generic drug industry is left behind in Trump's proclamations about bringing pharmaceutical manufacturing back to the US www.nytimes.com/2025/11/04/h...

Schrödinger’s Government Shutdown - KFF Health News Democrats and Republicans remain stalled over funding the federal government as Republicans launch a new attack on the Affordable Care Act. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is taking advantage of t...

new #WTHealth up! @laurenweberhp.bsky.social, @annaedney.bsky.social, @joannekenen.bsky.social and I on shutdown latest, another Rx deal for Trump, and layoffs at HHS. Plus @louisenorris.bsky.social on Medicare Open Enrollment for 2026.
kffhealthnews.org/news/podcast...

Trump's new $100K visa fee could pummel red state hospitals Rural areas that overwhelmingly voted for the president employ a high concentration of doctors on H-1B visas.

The administration's new immigrant visa rules are set to hit hospitals in 3 states hardest. All 3 voted for Trump. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Multi-generational vulture nests hold 700 years of human artifacts Crossbow bolts, sandals, slingshots, and more.

Multi-generational vulture nests hold 700 years of human artifacts www.popsci.com/environment/...

Trump administration set to tie Tylenol to autism risk, officials say The Trump administration plans to tie Tylenol to autism risk while touting another drug, leucovorin, as a potential autism treatment.

New: inside Trump’s “very important” autism announcement for Monday

— new warnings on tylenol’s risk for pregnant women

— new endorsement of leucovorin’s potential as autism treatment

— new NIH data science initiatives underway

Trump officials to link child deaths to covid shots, alarming career scientists The move to link coronavirus vaccines to 25 child deaths alarms career scientists who say the shots have been extensively studied.

SCOOP: Trump health officials plan to link covid vaccines to the deaths of 25 children as they consider limiting which Americans should get the shots, per sources. W @rachelroubein.bsky.social @ddiamond.bsky.social
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

CDC Intends to Fund Investigation Into Vaccines and Autism The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention intends to fund a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute study examining links between vaccines and autism — a widely debunked theory that Health and Human ...

SCOOP: The CDC intends to fund a study on the links between vaccines and autism, a disproven theory. More here for @bloomberg.com :

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Countdown to Government Shutdown - KFF Health News With less than three weeks before the deadline to pass legislation to keep the federal government running, lawmakers are still far apart on a strategy. Democrats hope Republicans will agree to extend ...

new #WTHealth podcast up! Join me, @annaedney.bsky.social, @sandhyawrites.bsky.social, and @laurenweberhp.bsky.social to discuss the latest health budget news, the MAHA report, and banning drug ads on TV?
kffhealthnews.org/news/podcast...

States Want to Ban ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Cookware. These Chefs Say Don’t Do It.

Seems like some celebrity chefs would rather sacrifice everyone's health than learn to cook differently (or lose revenue on the environmentally harmful crap they sell). Manufacturing with forever chemicals is widely harmful to so many communities.
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/c...

My daughter (5 years old) yesterday: "It's great we have newspapers now and don't have to get news off our phones."

I've been making a point to read the physical paper at breakfast since she was tiny so she sees it and internalizes it. Subscribe, the kids notice!

10 times STAT coverage reverberated through health and medicine In its first decade, STAT has led the way in charting seismic events in health and medicine. To mark our 10-year anniversary, take a look back at 10 of our most impactful stories.

This is an impressive list @statnews.com -- full of impactful journalism worth revisiting
www.statnews.com/2025/09/09/s...

Thank you!

Trump Is Accusing Foes With Multiple Mortgages of Fraud. Records Show 3 of His Cabinet Members Have Them. The White House has targeted opponents, including a Fed governor, for having more than one primary residence on their loan papers. ProPublica found that, in one case, a Trump cabinet secretary got two...

SCOOP: Three Trump Cabinet Members Have Multiple Primary-Residence Mortgages @robert-faturechi.bsky.social @justinelliott.bsky.social @amierjeski.bsky.social

Pus, Pain and Infections: A Faulty Implant Tormented Cancer Patients for Years BioZorb was marketed to help breast cancer patients, but the company behind it kept complaints from regulators and the public.

Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/features/202...

Mary Munney Griffiths' breast surgeon pulled 24 shards of plastic out of her chest after the device broke apart, leaving her in constant pain