Health News Roundup: Exclusive-China out of UN's wildlife survey for pandemic controls - source; Pfizer signs strategic cooperation pact with China's Sinopharm and more

China's hesitancy to join the UN project involving other Asian nations may compound frustration by global researchers who have been pressing Beijing to share information about the origins of COVID-19, as they seek to prevent future pandemics due to zoonotic, or animal-to-human, disease transmission. New Biden rule seeks to protect women crossing state lines for abortions The Biden administration on Wednesday proposed new privacy protections to prevent women's health information from being used to investigate or sue people who obtain or facilitate abortions.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Exclusive-China out of UN's wildlife survey for pandemic controls - source

China is not participating in a United Nations project to survey Asian wet markets and other facilities at high risk of spreading infectious diseases from wild animals to humans, despite long-running talks with Beijing, a UN official told Reuters. China's hesitancy to join the UN project involving other Asian nations may compound frustration by global researchers who have been pressing Beijing to share information about the origins of COVID-19, as they seek to prevent future pandemics due to zoonotic, or animal-to-human, disease transmission.

Pfizer signs strategic cooperation pact with China's Sinopharm

Pfizer said on Thursday it has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China's Sinopharm Group, and plans to seek approval to market 12 innovative drugs in China through 2025. Sinopharm's president Liu Yong said during the signing event in Shanghai on Wednesday that the cooperation will involve accelerating the delivery of Pfizer's new drugs to patients, according to a statement from Pfizer.

New Biden rule seeks to protect women crossing state lines for abortions

The Biden administration on Wednesday proposed new privacy protections to prevent women's health information from being used to investigate or sue people who obtain or facilitate abortions. The proposal by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is aimed at protecting women living in states where abortion is illegal who travel out of state to have the procedure done - something thousands of women are already doing, research shows. The rule would also protect healthcare providers, insurers, or other entities which perform or pay for abortions.

Half of Republicans say politics drove US abortion pill court ruling - Reuters/Ipsos

Half of U.S. Republicans think a federal court was motivated by politics when it ordered the suspension of government approval for a widely used abortion pill, a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Wednesday found. Fifty-one percent of self-identified Republicans in the poll said they agreed that the ruling last week - which would essentially make sales of the abortion pill mifepristone illegal - was politically motivated. Only 28% of Republicans disagreed, and the rest said they weren't sure.

Novavax cut $50 million in costs, plans to slash more, CEO says

Novavax Inc cut about $50 million in costs in the first quarter of 2023 and plans to slash more, Chief Executive John Jacobs said in an interview on Wednesday. “We’re looking at everything from buildings, leases, land, headcount, and contractors, every aspect of our company and the way we work,” he told Reuters.

Juul to pay $462 million to six US states, D.C. over youth addiction claims

E-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc agreed on Wednesday to pay $462 million over eight years to settle claims by six U.S. states including New York and California, along with the District of Columbia, that it unlawfully marketed its addictive products to minors. The deal, which also included Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts and New Mexico, means that San Francisco-based Juul has now settled with 45 states for more than $1 billion, putting most of the long-running litigation over its business practices to rest. The company did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement.

US appeals court preserves limited access to abortion pill

The abortion pill mifepristone will remain available in the United States for now but with significant restrictions, including a requirement for in-person doctor visits to obtain the drug, a federal appeals court ruled late on Wednesday. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals put on hold part of last Friday's order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas, that had suspended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the drug while he hears a lawsuit by anti-abortion groups seeking to ban it.

Abortion pill access may continue even if FDA loses US court battle

The U.S. Justice Department is racing this week to convince a federal appeals court, or possibly the U.S. Supreme Court, to put on hold a judge's order suspending the government's approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, which is used in more than half of all abortions in the country. But even if those legal efforts fail and last Friday's order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas goes into effect, essentially rendering the drug unapproved, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration could nonetheless continue to allow access to the drug, legal experts say.

Novo Nordisk hikes full-year forecast on GLP-1 drug sales

Diabetes and obesity drug developer Novo Nordisk on Thursday significantly raised its full-year operating profit and sales expectations on the back of strong demand for its highly popular Wegovy obesity drug. "The sales outlook for 2023 is raised, primarily reflecting Wegovy prescription trends in the first quarter and higher full-year expectations for sales of Wegovy in the U.S.," Novo Nordisk said in a statement.

Ghana first to approve Oxford's malaria vaccine

Ghana has become the first country in the world to approve a new malaria vaccine from Oxford University, with children under the age of three-years-old in line to benefit. The mosquito-borne disease kills more than 600,000 people each year, most of them children in Africa, and scientists have been trying for years to develop vaccines.