Planned Parenthood took $1.8B in taxpayer money in 3 years, $90M from COVID loans: feds

 Planned Parenthood received $1.78 billion in taxpayer funds between fiscal years 2019 and 2021 — including $90 million in small-business loans during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new government report.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America — the nation’s largest abortion provider — received $1.54 billion in direct payments from Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Tuesday.

The abortion giant also got $148 million through Department of Health and Human Services grants or agreements and $90 million through Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.

The report alarmed congressional Republicans who noted the PPP loans had been designed to help small businesses with fewer than 500 employees — and alleged Planned Parenthood “illegally” applied for the financial assistance.

“It is appalling that big abortion providers are continuing to receive billions of dollars in federal taxpayer funding,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said in a statement.

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Planned Parenthood took $1.78 billion in taxpayers’ money between fiscal years 2019 and 2021.AP

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At least $90 million was taken in small-business loans during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new government report.REUTERS

“While small businesses struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic, Planned Parenthood illegally siphoned over $90 million from the Paycheck Protection Program, specifically designed to help our mom and pop shops keep their doors open.”

Planned Parenthood is a nonprofit organization with around 600 centers nationwide. In fiscal year 2020, the group performed 383,460 abortions, according to its annual report — its highest reported figure.

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“It is appalling that big abortion providers are continuing to receive billions of dollars in federal taxpayer funding,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said in a statement.Annabelle Gordon – CNP / MEGA

Pro-life members of Congress had warned the Small Business Administration that Planned Parenthood was ineligible for PPP loans, given that it helps to employ more than 16,000 people at its affiliates by providing funding.

“Federal taxpayer dollars should not be funneled to big abortion corporations like Planned Parenthood, which has killed over 9.3 million unborn children since 1970, including 1.11 million between 2019-2021,” said Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who co-chairs the House Pro-Life Caucus.

“This money would have been better spent helping the businesses that were forced to close or providing comprehensive medical support for both women and children.”

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Planned Parenthood is a nonprofit organization with around 600 centers nationwide. In fiscal year 2020, the group performed 383,460 abortions, according to its annual report — its highest figure ever reported.Getty Images
Around $3.4 million in funds from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) also went to International Planned Parenthood Federation, MSI Reproductive Choices and four regional abortion providers, the report shows.

According to a January Marist/Knights of Columbus poll, 78% of Americans oppose federal funds being used for abortion services overseas and 60% oppose US tax dollars being used to pay for abortions at home.

https://nypost.com/2023/12/12/news/planned-parenthood-took-1-8b-in-taxpayer-money-with-90m-from-covid-loans-feds/

'Has the ‘100-day cough’ come to the US?'

 Give your loved ones a gift they’ll really enjoy this holiday season: your elbow.

Amid rising cases of the “100-day cough,” health experts in the UK are asking people to forget about shaking hands and try bumping elbows when greeting friends and family.

The suggestion comes as global rates of respiratory illnesses rise, including whooping cough — also known as pertussis — which causes a severe, long-lasting illness with a cough harsh enough to break a person’s ribs.

Between July and November, there were 716 reported cases of pertussis, which is three times higher than the same period in 2022, the UK’s Independent reported, citing the UK Health Security Agency. 

Though whooping cough cases have not been rising in the US, it’s always a good idea to practice good hygiene and minimize contact with others during the winter season, according to Dr. Bruce Hirsch — especially as COVID cases have risen nearly 30% recently.

“The holidays are a great time to get infected,” Hirsch, infectious disease specialist at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y., told The Post.

“If your cousin is coughing his head off at the dinner table, I would avoid that person,” Hirsch said.

“It’s a good idea to touch elbows instead of shaking hands,” he added, noting that extra precautions are in order “if there’s someone who is frail, elderly or on medication to suppress their immune systems.”

Hirsch warns that “pertussis is one of the more dangerous conditions that can be fatal in a newborn,” though “it causes a miserable infection at any age.”

Elbow bumps can help prevent the spread of infectious disease, say health experts.Getty Images

Global cases of whooping cough and other respiratory illnesses are likely to rise even further as people gather to socialize over the holiday season, Professor Richard Tedder, former head of the Department of Virology at the University College London, told The US Sun.

“People should ensure they are vaccinated and consider using masks to help prevent the spread [of whooping cough],” Tedder said.

“They could also adopt the ‘no hugging or kissing’ rule and use their elbows to greet people,” Tedder added.

Other respiratory illnesses are also likely to spread during the holiday season, Hirsch noted: “Right now in our area, there’s been a rise in flu cases, [and] I’ve been seeing a lot of COVID in my practice,” as well as “a significant amount of RSV.”

Health experts are warning that holiday gatherings can spread infectious diseases such as pertussis, or whooping cough.Getty Images

And even though those viruses are airborne, Hirsch warns that “hand contact is surprisingly good at transmitting infections, including respiratory infection. We touch our face, eyes, nose and mouth on a regular basis. That’s part of the reason these infections and these pathogens are so successful.”

Medical experts note that even though an effective vaccine for pertussis exists, “it doesn’t last forever, and it tends to wane years after it was given.

“Every pregnant women is asked to take a pertussis vaccine, even if she recently had a pertussis vaccine, to build up her antibody levels and provide her newborn with that protection,” Hirsch said.

His final advice: “Bump elbows with grandma, and don’t let her kiss the new babies.”

https://nypost.com/2023/12/12/lifestyle/has-100-day-cough-come-to-us-how-to-stay-safe-this-holiday-season/

BMS, 2seventy bio Present Abecma Survival Data at ASH Ahead of Adcomm

 The FDA’s November decision to delay Abecma (idecabtagene vicleucel) for earlier line treatment in multiple myeloma is starting to become clearer. New trial data from Bristol Myers Squibb and 2seventy bio were presented at the American Society of Hematology meeting on Monday and it looks like overall survival data is potentially concerning. 

In the Phase III KarMMa-3 study for multiple myeloma, the partner’s CAR-T cell therapy appeared to cut patient’s risk of death by 31% compared to those on standard of care. However, this result was from a statistical adjustment accounting for over half of patients from the standard of care arm crossing over to the Abecma arm after cancer progression. 

The unadjusted study results showed no significant advantage for extending patients’ lives when compared to the standard of care arm, according to Monday’s updated interim analysis. Median overall survival (OS) was longer in the Abecma arm—41.4 months versus 37.9 months in the control arm. 

Patients receiving the CAR-T cell therapy did see a significant improvement in progression-free survival (PFS) compared to standard treatment. Abecma treatment resulted in a 51% reduction in the risk of progression or death after a longer follow-up. PFS came in at 13.8 months in the treatment arm versus 4.4 months in the control.  

In April 2023, BMS and 2seventy bio’s application to push the CAR-T therapy up earlier in the treatment line was accepted. However, the FDA decided last month that it would convene its Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee to discuss the application before making a decision. 

The agency was initially expected to make a decision on Abecma’s most recent BLA by December 16. But with the FDA yet to set a date for the advisory committee to convene, a delay is inevitable and a decision on the application will not be made by the PDUFA target action date.  

In the companies' announcement last month, BMS and 2seventy bio noted that the advisory committee is likely to focus on OS, a key secondary outcome of KarMMa-3. 

During a presentation at the American Society of Hematology meeting on Monday, Paula Rodríguez Otero from Clínica Universidad de Navarra in Spain suggested some explanations for the OS results. Seventeen patients who were supposed to be in the Abecma arm died before receiving the therapy compared to zero in the control. Excluding those patients, the Abecma arm had a 17% reduction in the risk of death, according to Fierce Pharma.  

Abecma was originally approved in March 2021 as the first cell-based gene therapy for the treatment of adults with multiple myeloma. Its current label is limited to patients with at least four prior lines of therapy, including a proteasome inhibitor, an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody and an immunomodulatory agent. 

CAR-T therapies like Abecma, J&J’s Carvykti, Novartis’ Kymriah and others have recently come under scrutiny with the FDA. Last month, the agency launched an investigation into the risk of malignancies in patients who received BCMA- or CD19-directed CAR-T cell therapies. While acknowledging the overall benefits of these treatments outweigh their potential risks, the FDA is “evaluating the need for regulatory action.” 

https://www.biospace.com/article/bms-2seventy-bio-present-troubling-abecma-survival-data-at-ash-ahead-of-adcomm-/

Help at Home Owners Weigh Sale of $3 Billion Health-Care Firm

 

• Centerbridge, Vistria working with advisers to explore sale
• Help at Home could be valued at $3 billion or more in any deal

Help at Home’s private equity owners are weighing options including a potential sale of the at-home care provider, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Centerbridge Partners and Vistria Group are working with advisers to gauge interest in Chicago-based Help at Home, which could be valued at $3 billion or more, according to the people. A formal sale process may begin as soon as the first quarter of 2024, they said.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-12/help-at-home-owners-said-to-weigh-sale-of-health-care-firm

Pentagon Has a Workaround to Send Ukraine Arms Despite Aid Stalemate

 

• Stockpiles could continue to be drawn down, replenished later
• ‘We can make it work until next month,’ Senator Wicker says

The White House warns it will run out of money by the end of the year to keep sending Ukraine military aid unless Congress breaks a funding deadlock. But analysts and lawmakers say there’s a workaround that means the deadline isn’t quite so tight.

The tactic: Continue to provide arms from US stockpiles in hopes of waiting until later for the money to replace them. According to Pentagon estimates, the US can still send Ukraine military hardware valued at $4.6 billion under what’s called Presidential Drawdown Authority. Yet it only has $1 billion to buy new equipment to replace the old.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-12/pentagon-has-a-workaround-to-send-ukraine-arms-despite-stalemate

Centene raises 2024 profit forecast

 Health insurer Centene Corp raised its 2024 adjusted profit forecast on Tuesday, bringing it broadly in line with Wall Street expectations.

In November, rival UnitedHealth Group also forecast its 2024 profit in line with market estimates, indicating that medical costs are likely to remain elevated for the health insurance giant.

The healthcare sector has seen a recovery in demand this year, especially among older patients who started returning to clinics and hospitals for procedures they had delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Centene expects 2024 medical loss ratio, or the percentage of premiums paid out for medical services, between 87.3% and 87.9%, compared with LSEG estimates of 87.81%.

The company now expects full-year adjusted profit of greater than $6.70 per share compared with its previous projection of greater than $6.60 per share.

Analysts on average expected 2024 profit at $6.77 per share, according to LSEG data.

The health insurer forecast 2024 revenue in the range of $142.5 billion to $145.5 billion, higher than analysts' estimate of $142.1 billion.

The company's board also authorized a $4 billion increase to stock repurchase program, which is an addition to about $1.2 billion remaining under the previously announced program.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-health-insurer-centene-raises-112836242.html