• District of Columbia: The Biden administration has invoked the Defense Production Act to speed up the rebuilding of a Baxter International manufacturing facility in North Carolina that produced around 60% of the country's IV fluids. Following Hurricane Helene, the facility was damaged, which contributed to a nationwide shortage of IV fluids. This shortage has led hospitals to postpone surgeries and other procedures. "Ensuring people have medical supplies they need is a top priority of the Administration," said an HHS official. "It's exactly why we are working closely with Baxter to support cleanup and restoration of the facility, including invoking the Defense Production Act to help production resume as quickly as possible." While the North Carolina facility is offline, FDA is allowing Baxter to import IV fluids from its other plants around the world. (Tin, CBS News, 10/15)
• District of Columbia: The World Health Organization (WHO) recently authorized Abbott Laboratories' mpox diagnostic test for emergency use, making it the first test for the virus to receive authorization. The PCR test, which is called Alinity m MPXV assay, detects mpox virus DNA from human skin lesions and is designed to be used by trained clinical laboratory personnel. "This first mpox diagnostic test listed under the Emergency Use Listing (EUL) procedure represents a significant milestone in expanding testing availability in affected countries," said Yukiko Nakatani, WHO's assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products. Currently, WHO is evaluating three other mpox diagnostic tests for emergency use and is in discussions with other manufacturers to expand the availability of diagnostic tools for the virus. (Reuters, 10/4)
• Illinois: According to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, weight loss from GLP-1 drugs in real-world settings was much less robust than weight loss observed in clinical trials. In the study, researchers analyzed real-world data from over 3,000 patients to measure their weight loss over the course of a year using GLP-1 drugs. Overall, patients achieved a statistically significant degree of weight loss at an average of 3.7% one year after starting the medications. However, the magnitude of weight loss was less than in reported clinical trials. "[P]atients have high expectations to achieve substantial weight reductions with GLP-1 medications," the researchers wrote. "Our clinical findings suggest that this was not the case for most patients in our cohort; however, those who persisted with the medication coverage experienced weight losses comparable with those shown in corresponding clinical trials." Notably, other research has also found that real-world patient persistence with GLP-1 drugs can be difficult. For example, a study conducted by Prime Therapeutics found that discontinuation of GLP-1 drugs can be as high as 85% after two years. (Cohen, Forbes, 10/2)

Damage from Hurricane Helene forced one of the biggest producers of IV fluids in the United States to temporarily shut down, leading to a nationwide shortage of the lifesaving products. Here's how hospitals are responding.