Health News Roundup: US substance abuse helpline largely unknown; Lung cancer screening complications may be higher than expected

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

U.S. judge partially blocks Trump administration birth control rules

A judge in California on Sunday partially blocked a set of Trump administration rules that allow employers to opt out of providing health insurance that covers women's birth control from taking effect. U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam in Oakland granted a request by 14 Democratic attorneys general for a preliminary injunction. The rules, which are set to go into effect Jan. 14, allow businesses or nonprofits to obtain exemptions to an Obamacare requirement for contraceptive coverage on moral or religious grounds.

U.S. lawmaker launches investigation into pharma drug pricing

A top U.S. lawmaker launched an investigation into pharmaceutical industry pricing practices on Monday, less than a week after he and fellow Democrats introduced legislation aimed at lowering medicine prices. Representative Elijah Cummings, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, sent letters to 12 drugmakers seeking information on price increases, investment in research and development, and corporate strategies to preserve market share and pricing power, his office said in a statement.

Parents often don't know when teens have suicidal thoughts

Three in four parents are unaware when their teens have recurrent thoughts about suicide, and a big part of the problem may be that adolescents often deny feeling this way, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers interviewed 5,137 adolescents, ages 11 to 17, along with one parent or stepparent. Most teens in the study didn't report suicidal thoughts.

Second U.S. judge blocks Trump administration birth control rules

A federal judge in Pennsylvania on Monday blocked the Trump administration from enforcing new rules allowing employers to obtain exemptions from an Obamacare requirement that they provide health insurance that covers women's birth control. U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone in Philadelphia issued a nationwide injunction preventing the rules from taking effect, a day after another judge issued a more limited ruling blocking their enforcement in 13 states and the District of Columbia.

U.S. substance abuse helpline largely unknown

The U.S. government's toll-free substance abuse helpline, which provides free referral services to those looking for treatment, gets little publicity, a new study finds. By contrast, suicide helplines are regularly publicized, the research team points out.

Public mistrust after Congo election raises Ebola epidemic anxiety

Global health teams battling the world's second largest Ebola epidemic in Democratic Republic of Congo fear an election dispute may deepen public mistrust and allow the epidemic to run out of control. Fostering confidence in health authorities is essential when fighting a disease that can spread furiously through communities where local services are scant and patients are often scared to come forward to government or international response teams.

Chinese police begin new probe into expired vaccines

Police in China's eastern province of Jiangsu have begun an investigation after at least 145 children received expired polio vaccines, the Global Times said on Monday, a new blow to a sector hit by a series of scandals last year. Residents, including the children's parents, blocked traffic and disrupted public order as they gathered outside Jinhu county offices on Friday, said the paper, which is published by the ruling Communist Party's People's Daily.

Lung cancer screening complications may be higher than expected

Invasive follow-up tests to examine abnormalities found with lung cancer screening may lead to more complications and extra healthcare costs than doctors previously thought, a U.S. study suggests. Many doctors advise older adults who are current or former smokers to get annual lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) based on a pivotal 2011 trial reporting 20 percent lower lung cancer mortality rates than when screening was done with chest x-rays. With LDCT, however, more than one in four patients get so-called false-positive results, when they're told they have potentially malignant abnormalities that turn out to be benign.

Medicare changes could have some patients paying more for drugs

A proposed shift in Medicare coverage for medicines administered by doctors may help reduce total drug spending, but a new study suggests it may also lead to higher out-of-pocket costs for some patients. Right now, drugs given by infusion or injection in outpatient settings like doctors' offices are covered by Medicare Part B, which is part of the original Medicare program. In a push to curb health spending, the Trump administration has proposed moving coverage for many of these physician-administered medicines to standalone drug plans known as Medicare Part D, which typically contract with pharmacies to fill prescriptions for consumers.

France to cull wild boar at Belgium border in swine fever alert

France will cull all wild boar in a zone along the Belgian border to try and avoid an outbreak of a deadly swine disease after new cases were discovered nearby in Belgium, the French agriculture ministry said on Monday. France has been on alert for African swine fever since the virus was confirmed in September among wild boar in Belgium, not far from the French border. African swine fever, harmless for humans, is often deadly for pigs, and outbreaks in eastern Europe and China have disrupted the pork industry there.

(With inputs from agencies.)