Health News Roundup: For many weary Chinese, lockdown dread trumps fear of COVID; FDA receives reports of cancer linked to breast implants and more

Airlines accepting government assistance that funded payroll costs were prohibited from furloughs or firing workers and faced limits on executive compensation and bans on stock buybacks and dividends. FDA receives reports of cancer linked to breast implants The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received several reports of certain types of cancers in the scar tissue that forms around breast implants, the agency said in a safety notice on Thursday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

For many weary Chinese, lockdown dread trumps fear of COVID

When COVID-19 case numbers started ticking up in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen last week, Robin Chen got in his car and fled to nearby Huizhou. It wasn't because he feared the virus - many of his friends overseas had caught it and recovered - but he didn't want to lose his freedom again as speculation swirled that Shenzhen was headed for its second lockdown in six months.

New York to ramp up polio vaccinations after virus found in wastewater

New York Governor Kathy Hochul declared a disaster emergency on Friday in a bid to accelerate efforts to vaccinate residents against polio after the virus was detected in wastewater samples taken in four counties. Hochul's executive order followed the discovery of the virus last month in samples from Long Island's Nassau County, bordering the New York City borough of Queens. Earlier this year the virus was found in samples from Rockland, Orange and Sullivan counties, all north of the city.

Lawmakers seek U.S. probe on airline handling of COVID funds

The leaders of two congressional committees want a federal probe into whether airlines used government pandemic money to fund pilot buyouts and early retirements that may have fueled current pilot shortages, according to a letter released on Friday. Congress approved $54 billion in three rounds covering much of U.S. airline payroll costs for 18 months that ended in September 2021. Airlines accepting government assistance that funded payroll costs were prohibited from furloughs or firing workers and faced limits on executive compensation and bans on stock buybacks and dividends.

FDA receives reports of cancer linked to breast implants

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received several reports of certain types of cancers in the scar tissue that forms around breast implants, the agency said in a safety notice on Thursday. As of Sept. 1, 2022, the FDA had received 10 reports about squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer, and 12 reports about various lymphomas related to breast implants.

U.S. starts enrollment in trial testing Siga's antiviral for monkeypox

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on Friday it had started enrolling monkeypox patients in a late-stage study testing Siga Technologies Inc's antiviral pill Tpoxx against the disease. The oral and intravenous formulations of Tpoxx are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of smallpox, but does not yet have clearance to treat monkeypox.

Long COVID's link to suicide: scientists warn of hidden crisis

Scott Taylor never got to move on from COVID-19. The 56-year-old, who caught the disease in spring 2020, still had not recovered about 18 months later when he killed himself at his home near Dallas, having lost his health, memory and money.

Kim Jong Un suggests N.Korea may begin COVID vaccinations

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has suggested that the isolated country could begin COVID-19 vaccinations in November, state media reported on Friday. In a speech on Thursday to the North Korean national assembly, Kim cited World Health Organization warnings that the winter could see a resurgence in coronavirus infections.

U.S. orders 100 million COVID tests, White House says more needed

The United States will boost its stockpile of at-home COVID-19 tests, ordering more than 100 million tests from domestic manufacturers, the White House said on Thursday, but warned it was a short-term solution. President Joe Biden's administration has repeatedly and unsuccessfully asked Congress for more pandemic money. It said last week it would request $22.4 billion in emergency funding for COVID-19 relief ahead of a potential case surge in autumn.

China's financial hub Shanghai to extend free COVID testing services

China's financial hub Shanghai will extend free regular COVID-19 testing services to Oct. 31 to further consolidate the results of their epidemic prevention efforts, the city government said on Friday. Citizens are required to take at least one PCR test each week until the end of October, the city government said on its Wechat account.

South Carolina Senate moves to further restrict access to abortions

The South Carolina Senate on Thursday approved a bill tightening an abortion ban that is blocked by the state's highest court, following two days of fierce debate between anti-abortion Republicans and more moderate lawmakers from both parties. The bill the Senate approved would cut exceptions for rape and incest to the first trimester of pregnancy, not 20 weeks as the existing law provides. Like the existing ban, the bill would also permit abortions if the fetus receives a fatal diagnosis, but it would require diagnoses from two doctors, not one, as the blocked law requires.

(With inputs from agencies.)