Health News Roundup: WHO says 23 deaths from Legionnaires' disease reported in Poland; EU regulatory panel backs Moderna's updated COVID shot and more

The government health agency also said it expects flu and RSV infections to increase over the fall and winter seasons. US FDA to seek public opinion before banning popular cough syrup ingredient The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday it would seek public opinion before finalizing its decision to remove a decongestant widely used in cough syrups from the agency's list of ingredients for over-the-counter (OTC) use.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

India's Nipah virus trackers gather samples from bats, fruit

Experts have fanned out in India's southern state of Kerala to collect samples of fluid from bats and fruit trees in a region where the deadly Nipah virus has killed two people and three more have tested positive. The state is battling its fourth outbreak since 2018 of a virus for which there is no vaccine, and which spreads through contact with the body fluids of infected bats, pigs or people, killing up to 75% of those infected.

Bristol Myers plans to double experimental treatments to expand research pipeline

Bristol Myers Squibb said on Thursday it plans to double the number of treatments it is testing in clinical trials, with a focus on cell therapies, over the next 18 months, as it contends with increasing generic competition for two of its top-selling drugs. The drugmaker, which currently has six candidates in trials, will advance six more in its research pipeline - including three cell therapies that target immune system disorders and different types of cancer.

US CDC expects 'tripledemic' hospitalizations to remain high this year vs pre-pandemic levels

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Thursday it expects the total number of hospitalizations from COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus infections and flu this year to be similar to last year, higher than pre-pandemic levels. The government health agency also said it expects flu and RSV infections to increase over the fall and winter seasons.

US FDA to seek public opinion before banning popular cough syrup ingredient

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday it would seek public opinion before finalizing its decision to remove a decongestant widely used in cough syrups from the agency's list of ingredients for over-the-counter (OTC) use. The FDA's clarification follows a unanimous vote by its panel of outside experts on Tuesday against the effectiveness of oral OTC medicines made with phenylephrine, an ingredient widely used in cold and cough syrups.

Planned Parenthood to resume abortions in Wisconsin for first time since 2022

Planned Parenthood will resume abortion care at two facilities in Wisconsin for the first time in more than a year, it said on Thursday following a county court ruling that an 1849 state law did not apply to most consensual abortions. Legal abortion care largely ended in Wisconsin as a result of the 19th-century law after the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2022 reversed the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that granted a nationwide right to abortion, subsequently giving individual states the authority to ban abortion.

WHO says 23 deaths from Legionnaires' disease reported in Poland

A total of 23 deaths linked to Legionnaires' disease have been reported from Poland as of Sept. 11, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. A total of 166 cases of the disease have been reported, WHO said, adding that no new cases have been reported since Sept. 7.

J&J, P&G, Walgreens sued after FDA panel ruling on cold medicine decongestant

Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble and Walgreens are among several companies accused in lawsuits of deceiving consumers about cold medicines containing an ingredient that a unanimous U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel declared ineffective. Proposed class actions were filed on Wednesday and Thursday, after the panel reviewed several studies and concluded this week that the ingredient phenylephrine marketed as a decongestant was essentially no better than a placebo.

Goa state warns Abbott India on antacid Digene licence suspension

India's Goa state has warned the local unit of Abbott Laboratories it plans to suspend the manufacturing licence of its antacid medicine after inspectors flagged contamination risks and sanitization issues at its factory, government documents show. The U.S. based drugmaker is locked in a tussle with drug regulators in the tourist state of Goa in western India after the company, starting in August, voluntarily recalled many batches of its Digene Gel syrup produced there after it received customer complaints on taste and odor.

EU regulatory panel backs Moderna's updated COVID shot

The European regulator's advisory panel on Thursday recommended authorising an updated COVID-19 vaccine from Moderna, putting it on track to become the second shot to be used in the EU countries' vaccination campaign this autumn. The updated shot, branded Spikevax, to target the dominant XBB.1.5 variant of Omicron was recommended for use in adults and children aged 6 months and above.

US FTC warns drugmakers over patent listings -statement

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Thursday warned brand-name drugmakers they could face legal action if they improperly list patents with federal health regulators and said it will scrutinize any improper listings. "Improperly listing patents in the Orange Book may harm competition from less expensive generic alternatives and keep prices artificially high," the FTC said in a policy statement to pharmaceutical companies that it said was also backed by the Food and Drug Administration.

(With inputs from agencies.)