7 days in healthcare (June 12th-18th, 2023)

 

Summary

From the point of view of Biomedicine, to point out that human embryos have been produced without eggs or sperm, using stem cells, which raises far-reaching ethical questions. Joseph Alpert, editor of the American Journal of Medicine, recounts the 10 advances in clinical medicine he has seen since he was an intern in 1969-70. A whole different world, from the mortality of myocardial infarction, the evolution of HIV, the approach to leukemia, the possibilities offered by ICUs, the treatment of tuberculosis, etc. From that point of view, there is no doubt that the world is better than fifty years ago.

As regards Global Health, an unexplained increase in the incidence of cancer has been detected in people under 50 years of age, with this trend particularly affecting the population between 25-29 years of age. The Lancet denounces what it considers pressure from the pharmaceutical industry in the pandemic treaty, currently under discussion at the initiative of the WHO, according to a draft that was leaked on May 22 and published. It would be good if this treaty corrected the major failures that occurred during the covid pandemic in access to vaccines in developing countries, particularly in Africa.

Regarding International Health Policy, according to the weekly WHO report, covid is declining in both the number of cases and deaths in all regions of the world. Forecasts of health spending in the USA are published. Although growth will be moderate in the coming years, it will reach 20% of GDP in 2023, more than any country in the world. The National Oncology Plan in Italy is published. The European Monitoring Center for Drugs publishes its report for 2023. Cannabis, followed by cocaine, are the most widely used illegal drugs in Europe.

If we talk about National Health Policy (Spain), the incidence of covid is decreasing, which makes the government consider removing the mandatory use of masks in pharmacies and health centers. Madrid, the autonomous community with the shortest waiting list for non-urgent surgery. Although our country has a low birth rate, the use of in vitro fertilization is skyrocketing.

At the Business level, internationally, Philips has serious problems with faulty respirators. A collective accuses this company of involuntary manslaughter. The 10 largest pharmaceutical companies have more than 110,000 million dollars available for operations to purchase other companies, a move that is undoubtedly spurred on by the loss of patents in many of them. Lobbyists linked to tobacco companies are accused of advertising vaping online, against the recommendations of the WHO, with many reservations about this practice, considering it harmful to health. On a national level, Quirón presents its new hospital project in Badalona. Grifols will refinance its debt after divesting from its business in China. Asterion, the largest Spanish fund, breaks into health, by buying a health transport company.

Biomedicine

• They generate human embryos without eggs or sperm, using stem cells, the scientific milestone raises ethical questions. The technique had been published in mice, but is now extended to humans (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/jun/14/synthetic-human-embryos-created-in-groundbreaking-advance)
• A new 14-day embryo model clarifies one of the biggest enigmas in the formation of a human being (https://elpais.com/ciencia/2023-06-15/un-nuevo-modelo-de-embrion-de-14-days-clarifies-the-biggest-enigma-of-the-formation-of-a-human-being.html?autoplay=1?event_log=oklogin)
• Joseph Alpert, editor of the American Journal of Medicine, reviews the 10 most notable advances in clinical medicine since he was an intern in 1969-70: 1. Much less mortality in heart attack; 2. HIV has become a tolerable chronic disease; 3. Development of ICUs; 4. Understanding and treatment of patients with inflammatory bowel disease; 5. Much better prognosis for leukemias; 6. Expansion of geriatric patients; 7. Development of hemodialysis for chronic renal failure; 8. Tuberculosis, the tuberculosis sanatoriums, now superseded; 9. Sudden deaths in the community, today with possibilities of resuscitation; 10. Start of public health programs and preventive protocols (https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(23)00034-7/fulltext)

Global Health

• Unexpected increase in cancer cases among people under 50 years of age. in the last three decades cancer between 25-29 years has increased more than in any other age group. There is no clear explanation (https://www.ft.com/content/90d5f2e3-d539-4149-a503-2114ac3ef355)
• New approaches to refugees are needed. Migration has been a feature of human existence for millennia. The UN approved the extension of the WHO action plan on refugees beyond 2030 (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)01239-4/fulltext)
• What could be the next pandemic? The WHO has a list of pathogens with pandemic potential, which should be prioritized: coronavirus, Zika, hemorrhagic fever, influenza, “disease X” (some kind of disease that experts don’t expect) (https://www.bmj.com/content/381/bmj.p909)
• Bases of the future agreement on pandemics, proposed by the WHO. A draft dated May 22 was leaked. This draft poses many problems, since pressure from the pharmaceutical industry is detected, which reduces the ambitions of respect for human rights and equity, according to The Lancet (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)01118-2/fulltext)

International Health Policy

• COVID19
  • Weekly covid report published by WHO, June 15, 2023. The six WHO regions showed a drop in both new cases and deaths (https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/369375 )

• USA
  • Moderate growth in healthcare spending in the USA in the 2022-2031 period, with a rise of 5.4% in those years, with 92% of the population covered in 2023 and reaching 20% of American GDP in that year (https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.2023.00403#:~:text=National%20health%20expenditures%20are%20projected,the%20end%20of%20that%20period.)
  • The FDA panel recommends that the covid vaccine be targeted only against the XBB variant (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/15/health/fda-covid-vaccine-boosters-xbb.html#:~:text=Vaccine%20makers%20should%20target%20the,Drug%20Administration%20agreed%20on%20Thursday.)
  • The moral crisis of American doctors (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/15/magazine/doctors-moral-crises.html)

• United Kingdom and National Health Service
  • The needs of health managers, more than 10,000 are needed (https://www.com/content/381/bmj.p1313)

• France
  • Every year 8,000 cancers induced by human papillomavirus could be prevented (https://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2023/06/15/sante-tous-les-ans-8-000-cancers-induits-par-les-infections-a-papillomavirus-humain-pourraient-etre-evites_6177796_3232.html#:~:text=Tous%20les%20ans%2C%2030%20000,la%20population%20ciblée%20dépassait%2080%2)
  • Macron wants to relocate the production of 50 priority medicines to France (https://www.lemonde.fr/sante/article/2023/06/13/emmanuel-macron-en-ardeche-pour-presenter-un-plan-de-relocation-of-the-production-of-medicaments_6177410_1651302.html)

• Italy
  • The National Oncology Plan 2023-2027 is published. Strong emphasis on lifestyles: tobacco, alcohol, physical exercise, and eating habits (https://eurohealthobservatory.who.int/monitors/health-systems-monitor/analyses/hspm/italy-2023/the-national-oncology-plan-2023-2027)

• Europe
  • The European Monitoring Center for Drugs publishes the report on Drugs 2023: Trends and development. Cannabis (marijuana or hashish) is the most widely used illicit drug in Europe, followed by cocaine. Heroin is the most widely used opioid and the one that causes the most health problems (https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/european-drug-report/2023_en)

National Health Policy

• COVID19
  • Accumulated incidence at 14 days: 66.52, a notable drop from the last report on June 2, which was 97.97. 57 deaths since the last report (two weeks ago). There are currently 1,749 hospitalized patients, of whom 98 are in ICU beds (https://www.consalud.es/pacientes/especial-coronavirus/covid-19-espana-14493-casos-57-muertes-ia-alcanza-6652-points_131203_102.html#). To access the official report from the Ministry of Health: https://www.sanidad.gob.es/areas/alertasEmergenciasSanitarias/alertasActuales/nCov/documentos/Actualizacion_671_COVID-19.pdf
  • The waste of vaccines, the government keeps a stock of vaccines that cost 634 million euros (https://www.vozpopuli.com/espana/despilfarro-vacunas-gobierno-guarda-stock-dosis-sin-usar-costaron-634-million-euros.html#:~:text=More%20of%20600%20million%20of,vaccines%20for%20the%20covid%2D19.)
  • The maintenance of the use of masks in pharmacies and health centers will be discussed at the Interterritorial Council at the end of this month (https://www.consalud.es/politica/ministerio-sanidad/uso-mascarilla-centros-sanitarios-debatira-inter-territorial-end-month_131165_102.html#)

• Public healthcare system
  • Madrid, with the shortest waiting list for non-urgent surgery (https://www.consalud.es/autonomias/c-madrid/madrid-registra-menores-tiempos-espera-pais-operarse-cirugia-no-urgent_131145_102.html)
  • Minimum prison health: 525 positions for doctors and 328 vacancies (https://www.epe.es/es/sanidad/20230612/sanidad-penitenciaria-minimos-525-plazas-88411245)
  • The Community of Madrid Hospital Efficiency Monitor analyzes the efficiency of highly complex hospitals in Madrid (https://www.plantadoce.com/entorno/mas-inversion-mas-pacientes-y-mas-personal-radiografia-of-expenditure-in-madrid-hospitals.html)

• In vitro fertilization
  • This technique skyrockets, growing by 27% since 2014, according to data from the Spanish Fertility Society (https://www.elespanol.com/ciencia/salud/20230617/radiografia-fecundacion-in-vitro-espana-tecnica-shoots/771922909_0.html#:~:text=The%20FIV%2C%20alises%20&text=This%2C%20if%20in%202014%20on%20948.913%20%20%20of%20FIVcycles.)

• Health employers
  • Farmaindustria claims incremental innovation (https://diariofarma.com/2023/06/13/la-innovacion-incremental-en-busca-de-un-reconocimiento-incentivador). Access to the original document: https://www.farmaindustria.es/web/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/Informe-valor-innovacion-incremental.pdf
  • FENIN requests reduced VAT for sanitary products (https://diariofarma.com/2023/06/14/fenin-pide-a-los-partidos-colocar-en-la-agenda-del-23j-el-iva-reduced-to-sanitary-products)

• Satisfaction survey with healthcare systems at European level
  • The IDIS Foundation has published a survey that assesses satisfaction with healthcare systems in four European countries (France, Germany, Spain and Portugal). France and Germany surpass Spain and Portugal in satisfaction with their healthcare systems (https://www.consalud.es/industria/sanidad-privada/encuesta-idis-sistemas-sanitarios-europeos-necesidad-reconstruccion_131027_102.html)

• Other issues
  • Gyms rebound in 2022 and reach pre-pandemic figures (https://theobjective.com/sociedad/2023-06-12/gimnasios-recuperacion-pandemia-cifras/#)

Companies

• International News
  • Defective Philips respirators: complaints from more than 200 people for involuntary manslaughter (https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2023/06/16/respirateurs-philips-defectueux-plus-de-200-personnes-portent-plainte-dont-trois-pour-homicides-involontaires_6177883_3224.html)
  • The 10 largest pharmaceutical companies have more than 110,000 million to address purchases, since many are exposed to the loss of patents, especially BMS, GSK and Amgen (https://cincodias.elpais.com/companias/2023-06-14/the-10-largest-pharmacies-have-more-than-110000-millions-of-ammunition-to-address-purchases.html)
  • Lobbyists linked to large tobacco companies, behind Facebook campaigns in favor of vaping and against WHO policies on this issue, considering this practice harmful to health (https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/jun/18/lobbyists-with-links-to-big-tobacco-fund-pro-vaping-facebook-campaigns)

• National News
  • Quirón presents its new hospital project in Badalona, with 35 specialties (https://www.plantadoce.com/empresa/quironsalud-presenta-su-nuevo-proyecto-hospitalario-en-badalona-con-35-especialidades.html#:~:text=Quirónsalud%20expands%20its%20hospital%20network,ICU%20and%20emergencies%2024%20hours.)
  • Atrys and Hospitales MAC sign an agreement to reinforce oncology in Mexico (https://www.plantadoce.com/empresa/atrys-health-y-hospitales-mac-firman-un-acuerdo-para-reforzar-la-oncologia-in-mexico.html)
  • Asisa invoices 1,679 million euros in 2022, 7% more than in 2021 (https://www.plantadoce.com/empresa/asisa-factura-1679-millones-de-euros-en-2022-un-7-more-than-2021.html)
  • Grifols will refinance the debt in 2024, after selling its Chinese business (https://cincodias.elpais.com/companias/2023-06-16/grifols-refinanciara-la-deuda-en-2024-tras-vender-su-chinese-business.html#)
  • Asterion, the largest Spanish fund, breaks into health by buying the health transport company SSG, with a fleet of more than 1,000 ambulances (https://www.eleconomista.es/capital-riesgo/noticias/12326848/06/23/asterion-disembarks-in-the-medical-transportation-sector-with-the-purchase-of-group-ssg.html)

This post is also available in: Spanish