Reuters Health News Summary

By 2020, the prevalence had increased to more than 6.2% of children and adolescents under age 19, affecting 114 million young people around the world, according to a report in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. Trump plans more steps to cut healthcare costs in coming weeks, senior White House official says U.S. President Donald Trump will travel domestically before year-end to tout his economic agenda and highlight efforts to improve affordability, and he could make new announcements on lowering health costs in coming days and weeks, a senior White House official said on Monday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Health Rounds: High blood pressure among children doubles; obesity may be driving trend

The worldwide prevalence of high blood pressure in children and adolescents nearly doubled between 2000 and 2020, new research shows, with obesity potentially driving the increase. In 2000, about 3.2% of children had hypertension. By 2020, the prevalence had increased to more than 6.2% of children and adolescents under age 19, affecting 114 million young people around the world, according to a report in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health.

Trump plans more steps to cut healthcare costs in coming weeks, senior White House official says

U.S. President Donald Trump will travel domestically before year-end to tout his economic agenda and highlight efforts to improve affordability, and he could make new announcements on lowering health costs in coming days and weeks, a senior White House official said on Monday. Trump is expected to ramp up his domestic travel schedule at the start of 2026 as he continues his drive to combat inflation and higher prices that are frustrating Americans and have undermined his approval ratings in recent months.

Trump says he would only support healthcare plan that would send money 'directly back to people'

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would only support a healthcare plan that would send money "directly back to the people" and one where they can negotiate their own insurance. "THE PEOPLE WILL BE ALLOWED TO NEGOTIATE AND BUY THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, INSURANCE. POWER TO THE PEOPLE! Congress, do not waste your time and energy on anything else," he said in a post on Truth Social.

UltraGreen.ai aims to raise $400 million in Singapore IPO, term sheet shows

UltraGreen.ai Ltd, a medical imaging and fluorescence-guided surgery company, is aiming to raise about $400 million in a Singapore initial public offering at $1.45 per share, according to a term sheet reviewed by Reuters on Wednesday. The company, which develops fluorescence-guided surgery technology and supplies indocyanine green (ICG) dyes, plans to list on the Singapore Exchange Mainboard on Dec. 3. It will report in U.S. dollars.

New Zealand halts new puberty blockers for young transgender people

New Zealand said on Wednesday it was banning new prescriptions of puberty blocking drugs for young transgender people, in a move that critics warned could worsen the mental health of those affected. The step comes amid growing global debate about the number of adolescents seeking to change gender, dividing those concerned about hastiness in prescribing such medications and those worried about access to remedies they deem life-saving.

UnitedHealth names former US FDA chief Scott Gottlieb to its board

UnitedHealth Group said on Tuesday it had named former U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner Scott Gottlieb to its board, effective immediately. Gottlieb, who had served as the FDA chief from 2017 to 2019, stepped down abruptly in 2019 and joined the board of U.S. drugmaker Pfizer later that year.

Celltrion to invest up to $478 million to expand US factory in response to tariffs

South Korean pharmaceutical company Celltrion said on Wednesday that it plans to invest up to 700 billion Korean won ($478.17 million) to expand capacity at its U.S. factory in response to U.S. tariffs and rising demand. ($1 = 1,463.9000 won)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)