CNN (2/22, Goldman ) reports, “Pharmacies across the United States are reporting that they are having difficulty getting prescriptions to patients because of a cyberattack on a unit of UnitedHealth.” On Thursday, “the company said in a regulatory filing…its Change Healthcare business, which processes prescriptions to insurance for tens of thousands of pharmacies nationwide, was compromised by hackers who gained access to some of its systems.” The company found out about “the cyberattack Wednesday, and, in a separate statement, said it expected the attack to last at least throughout the day Thursday.” The cyberattack blocked “some pharmacies from processing prescriptions to insurance companies to receive payment.”

The Wall Street Journal reports the American Hospital Association called on medical facilities to disconnect from Optum following the cyberattack. Change Healthcare offers prescription processing services through Optum.

Related Links:

— “Pharmacies across America are having trouble processing some prescriptions because of a cyberattack,” David Goldman , CNN, February 22, 2024

CNN (2/21, Christensen ) reports that research published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research found that “menthol cigarette bans are effective at getting people to quit smoking.” Investigators looked at data from “studies on tobacco use that were published through November 2022.” CNN adds, “The pooled results show that about a quarter of menthol smokers quit within a year or two when the substance is banned from cigarettes.” The researchers “found that of the menthol smokers who did not quit after bans were put into place, about half switched to non-menthol cigarettes, 12% switched to other flavored tobacco products, and another quarter found a way to continue smoking menthols.”

Related Links:

— “A quarter of smokers quit within a year or two of menthol bans, researchers find,”Jen Christensen, CNN, February 21, 2024

CNN (2/21, Howard ) reports, “Almost half – about 42% – of adults in the United States say they personally know at least one person who died from a drug overdose, according to survey findings.” The survey “found that among adults who reported knowing someone who died by overdose, the average number of lives lost whom they knew was two – which illustrates the ‘far-reaching consequences’ of the nation’s overdose crisis.” When asked “how many people throughout their lives they knew personally who died by overdose,” roughly “58% of survey respondents said zero, 19% said one person, and another 19% said about two to five people.” About “4% said at least six people.” The findings were published in the American Journal of Public Health.

Related Links:

— “About 42% of US adults know someone who died by overdose, new survey finds,”Jacqueline Howard, CNN, February 21, 2024

MedPage Today (2/21, DePeau-Wilson ) reports, “Approximately 20% of people who attempted suicide did not meet criteria for a psychiatric disorder, challenging clinical consensus on who is at risk for suicidal behavior, according to a cross-sectional study.” Using data from almost “1,950 respondents to a nationally representative survey, 6.2% had no apparent lifetime psychiatric diagnoses when surveyed, and 13.4% made their first suicide attempt prior to psychiatric disorder onset, reported” the researchers. The findings were published in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

CNN (2/21, Cheng) reports, “Maternal mental illness is the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths in the US, according to a new evidence review, but national initiatives developed to combat the issue often fail to prioritize mental health.” The “maternal mortality rate in the US is two- to threefold greater than in other high-income countries, and it has only increased in recent years, according to the review.” The research, published in JAMA Psychiatry, “examined 30 recent studies and 15 historical references to highlight the underrecognized contribution of mental illness to maternal mortality.”

Related Links:

— “Maternal mental health conditions drive climbing death rate in US, research says,”Mira Cheng, CNN, February 21, 2024