Facebook rolls out a new vaccine misinformation policy — with some gaps

Facebook rolled out a new policy yesterday aimed at eliminating vaccine falsehoods on its site. The new policy prohibits formal ads that discourage people from getting vaccinated and will include promoting public health messages from the WHO and other groups. But the policy does not address falsehoods on pages and groups, which are among the most virulent sources of health-related misinformation on the site. The approaching flu season in the Northern Hemisphere and a possible Covid-19 vaccine rollout make the issue of misinformation all the more pressing. Facebook also recently came under fire for not removing posts that contain false claims about Covid-19 vaccines in development.

As expected, lawmakers question SCOTUS nominee on the ACA, abortion rights

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee grilled SCOTUS nominee Amy Coney Barrett yesterday on her stances on the Affordable Care Act and the Roe v. Wade decision on abortion during the second day of confirmation hearings that will continue through tomorrow. Here are some highlights:

ACA: The 2010 law is going to be back in front of SCOTUS a week after Election Day, prompting concerns from Democratic senators about how Barrett may rule in the case. But Barrett dodged questions from lawmakers, not saying if she would recuse herself from that case if there's a legal dispute over the outcome of the presidential election. Barrett, who could not answer specific questions about the law including how many people were covered by it, said, “I am not hostile to the ACA.”
Roe v. Wade: Barrett said the 1973 Supreme Court decision was not what she called a "super-precedent" and therefore not immune to being overruled unlike other Supreme Court cases. At the same time, she said that she wasn't going to comment on issues that may come back in front of the court.

1 in 7 youth have obesity, new report finds

Nearly 16% of U.S. youth have obesity, according to a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Here's more from the report, which looked at 2018-2019 data in youth ages 10-17:

Overall trends: 1 in 7 youth — or 15.5% — had obesity last year, compared to 16.1% in 2016. Kentucky had the highest youth obesity rate, of nearly 24%, while Utah had the lowest, at 9.6%.
Racial disparities: Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic, and Black youth had significantly higher rates of obesity than white and Asian youth.
Economic disparities: Around 1 in 5 youth in households making less than the federal poverty level had obesity, compared to fewer than 1 in 10 youth in households making 400% the federal poverty level.

Inside STAT: For Black women, the isolation of infertility is compounded by barriers to treatment

L’OREAL THOMPSON PAYTON AND HER HUSBAND, JEFF PAYTON. (OLIVIA OBINEME FOR STAT)

L’Oreal Thompson Payton, a Chicago-area communications manager, is one of the 12% of women in the U.S. who is dealing with impaired fertility. But Thompson Payton thought she was alone — infertility services have long been directed toward white women and infertility can be a taboo topic in the Black community. Research suggests that Black women may be twice as likely as white women to have fertility problems but also less likely to seek or receive treatment. The challenges faced by Black women trying to get pregnant range from a lack of Black egg and sperm donors to prejudice from physicians. And those who seek care, like Thompson Payton, find themselves in majority white spaces. “It takes this already isolating experience and makes it so much worse,” she tells STAT's Usha Lee McFarling. Read more here.

New health equity center launched at NewYork-Presbyterian

NewYork-Presbyterian just established the Dalio Center for Health Justice, which is dedicated to understanding and promoting health justice, reducing health disparities, and improving equitable health outcomes. The center, which was established through a $50 million grant from Dalio Philanthropies, will promote health justice and equity issues within the NewYork-Presbyterian community — employees and patients — through research grants, educational programs, and other initiatives. The center will launch, for instance, a Diversity, Inclusion and Health Equity symposium to highlight faculty research in this area as well as offer career development opportunities for underrepresented fellows and residents.

Using e-cigarettes may not be associated with a higher wheezing risk

With the rising rates of youth e-cigarette use, scientists have sought to understand the effect of these products on the respiratory system. A new study finds that e-cigarettes may not be responsible for increased rates of wheezing among youth. The study pulled from data from more than 7,000 youth ages 12-17 who didn't have asthma. Experts found that although the odds of wheezing were higher among those who reported using an e-cigarette in the year prior to being surveyed, that risk was not significant after controlling for other factors including race and ethnicity. Most notably, the study found that close contact with a cigarette smoker in the week prior to being surveyed had an association with wheezing than e-cigarette use.

Correction: Yesterday's item incorrectly stated the Covid-19 situation in Iowa. On Monday, the state saw 463 hospitalizations due to the illness.

What to read around the web today

NIH paused Eli Lilly Covid-19 antibody trial because of safety concerns. STAT
Since summer, Massachusetts has had more deaths per capita than nearby states, and it’s not clear why. The Boston Globe
College says students may have sought Covid-19 infection to boost plasma donor payout. NPR
‘Very disappointed.’ Trump’s science adviser has left U.S. researchers wanting more. Science