Health News Roundup: Pfizer says its RSV shot is protective through a second year; WeightWatchers shares tumble as Oprah decides to exit board and more

The company said in a press release that the vaccine's efficacy against RSV-associated lower respiratory tract disease with three or more symptoms was 77.8% through season two, compared with efficacy of 88.9% after the first RSV season, which led to the shot's U.S. approval. Republican-controlled Alabama House passes bill to protect IVF Alabama's Republican-led House on Thursday voted to advance a bill aimed at protecting the IVF industry after the state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children, prompting at least three Alabama providers to halt the fertility procedure.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Ironwood's bowel disease drug meets main goal of late-stage study

Ironwood Pharmaceuticals said on Thursday that its drug for a bowel disease that causes intestinal failure met the main goal of a late-stage trial, but shares dropped more than 40% as the treatment failed to meaningfully help a subset of patients. The drug, called apraglutide, was being tested in patients with short bowel syndrome who are chronically dependent on nutrients given to them through IVs or catheters since their digestive system is faulty.

UK almost doubled health and care worker visas last year

Britain almost doubled the number of visas given to foreign health and care workers last year, government data showed, adding to pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak over immigration ahead of an election expected later this year. Trailing the opposition Labour party in the polls, Sunak has vowed to bring down immigration, a major concern for voters.

Pfizer says its RSV shot is protective through a second year

Pfizer on Thursday said a single dose of its new respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine Abrysvo maintained its ability to protect against the illness through a second year of respiratory disease season. The company said in a press release that the vaccine's efficacy against RSV-associated lower respiratory tract disease with three or more symptoms was 77.8% through season two, compared with efficacy of 88.9% after the first RSV season, which led to the shot's U.S. approval.

Republican-controlled Alabama House passes bill to protect IVF

Alabama's Republican-led House on Thursday voted to advance a bill aimed at protecting the IVF industry after the state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children, prompting at least three Alabama providers to halt the fertility procedure. The bill passed the House by a vote of 94-6. Three members abstained. An identical bill filed by a Republican state senator awaits a vote in the Senate, which is also Republican-controlled and could take up the measure on Thursday.

Missouri accuses Planned Parenthood of 'trafficking' minors to get abortions

Missouri's Republican attorney general on Thursday sued a Planned Parenthood affiliate, accusing it of helping minors travel to Kansas to get abortions without notifying their parents in violation of state law. The lawsuit by Attorney General Andrew Bailey cites undercover footage released by the conservative Project Veritas last year purporting to show a Planned Parenthood Great Plains employee offer to arrange an abortion for a 13-year-old in Kansas. Missouri law bans nearly all abortions, as well as helping a minor get an abortion out of state without parental consent.

India's Suven Pharma, Cohance merge to boost contract drug manufacturing services

Indian contract drug manufacturer Suven Pharmaceuticals said on Thursday it will merge with Cohance Lifesciences in an all-share deal, as it looks to further scale up its contract and development manufacturing services (CDMO) business. The company, however, did not mention the deal value.

Healthcare providers hit by frozen payments in ransomware outage

Healthcare providers across the United States are struggling to get paid following the week-long ransomware outage at a key tech unit of UnitedHealth Group, with some smaller providers saying they are already running low on cash. Large hospital chains are also locked out of processing payments with some absorbing the upfront costs of being unable to collect, according to the American Hospital Association (AHA), which represents nearly 5,000 hospitals, healthcare systems, networks and other providers.

Exclusive-Musk's Neuralink brain implant company cited by FDA over animal lab issues

U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspectors found problems with record keeping and quality controls for animal experiments at Elon Musk's Neuralink, less than a month after the startup said it was cleared to test its brain implants in humans, according to an agency report reviewed by Reuters. The inspectors identified quality control lapses at the company's California animal research facility. A similar inspection at Neuralink's Texas facility did not find problems, according to agency records.

WeightWatchers shares tumble as Oprah decides to exit board

Shares of WW International, also known as WeightWatchers, took a pounding on Thursday as the company disclosed that celebrity shareholder Oprah Winfrey would exit its board later this year and donate her stock in the weight management firm. The exit of the media icon, who has been a board member since 2015, comes at a time when WW is struggling to turn a profit. The stock fell 24.5% to $2.88 and has lost more than half its value so far this year.

Most South Korea trainee doctors defying pressure to end walkout

Thousands of South Korean trainee doctors are refusing to return to work on Thursday, the day the government set as a deadline to end a mass walkout, warning that the young physicians' medical licences could be suspended if they do not return to hospitals. Two-thirds of the country's residents and intern doctors have walked off the job to protest a plan to raise the number of students admitted to medical school each year by 2,000 in a bid to address what the government says is a shortage of doctors.