- 1 in 5 adults say they have received an unexpected medical bill this year, even though surprise billing has been illegal since January.
- Pregnant woman ticketed for driving alone in an HOV lane claims her fetus was the second passenger.
- Two more studies find that giving people money doesn’t work: “getting the money reminded recipients that they were poor, without doing much to change that long-term condition, which in turn led to worse psychological health and lower happiness among recipients.”
- Arnold Kling on the studies: “There are even worse results than that. It turns out that getting a windfall and ending up back where you started makes you feel worse than you did before getting the windfall.”
- Did the Black Plague have beneficial economic effects? Tyler Cowen reviews James Belich’s The World the Plague Made.
- Circadian medicine: “There’s a skin clock and a liver clock and an immune system clock; there’s a clock for the kidney, heart, lungs, muscles and reproductive system.”
Pfizer’s View of its Own Vaccine
Turns out, it is very positive. But in a review of Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla’s book, Moonshot, Robert Kaplan asks:
How transparent has Pfizer been? In the book’s more than 200 pages, one topic is not explored in any real depth—side effects. Although the vaccine is generally regarded as safe, side effects do appear to be more common—and perhaps more severe—than for other widely used vaccines. In the 2020 clinical trial that provided the basis for FDA emergency-use authorization, more than 83% of 18- to 55-year-old participants (in comparison with 14% of those injected with a placebo) reported arm pain after their first shot, and approximately a third had a fever in reaction to their second (in contrast to less than 1% for a placebo).
Medicare Advantage: Lawmakers Say it’s Pretty Good but Could be Improved
Energy and Commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations met on Tuesday to beat up on Medicare Advantage plans. Chairwoman Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) claimed seniors are “required to jump through numerous hoops” to get the care they need.
FDA Looking to Modify Covid Vaccine for Omicron (Only a Year too Late)
On Tuesday, the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration met to discuss the Covid-19 vaccine booster. The advisory committee was tasked to decide whether to recommend updating the Covid vaccine to contain an Omicron component for booster vaccines in the United States. Public health officials are concerned that the arrival of colder weather than keeps people indoors along with emerging variants could result in a sharp rise in Covid cases.