What We’re Reading: Merger Complete; Monkeypox Vaccine Efficacy Questioned; COVID-19 Travel Advisories Change

Optum, Change Healthcare Complete Merger

Optum and Change Healthcare completed their $13 billion merger that was initiated in 2021, UnitedHealth Group announced in a press release, touting the companies’ shared hope for a “simpler, more intelligent and adaptive health system for patients, payers and care providers” by streamlining core processes that will reduce costs and benefit the entire health system. The Department of Justice previously sued to block the acquisition over data mining allegations, but last month Judge Carl Nichols deemed this as speculation and ruled in favor of UnitedHealth Group.

Study Raises Questions of Monkeypox Vaccine Efficacy

A study published in JAMA Network found 90 cases of monkeypox among 7339 individuals in Chicago who received at least 1 dose of the Jynneos vaccine. Of this group, 69 (77%) people contracted monkeypox within 14 days of receiving the first dose, another 21 contracted it after 14 days, and 8 contracted it after 28 days. As reported by CIDRAP, the study was conducted over the summer and did not specify how many individuals received 2 doses of the vaccine, but noted 6 of the 8 individuals who contracted monkeypox after 28 days had received a second dose. Of these 90 individuals, the median age was 33 years, 91% were cisgender men, and 36.8% were living with HIV. The study did not address other risk factors.

CDC Ends Foreign COVID-19 Travel Advisories

The CDC has announced it will no longer maintain a list of country-by-country COVID-19 travel advisories, The New York Times reported. According to the CDC, this is due to fewer countries testing or reporting COVID-19 cases, which limits the agency’s ability to assess travel risk. Alternatively, the CDC will now issue travel health notices in the cases of “concerning” COVID-19 variants or other situations that would change travel recommendations for a certain country, similar to how the agency created advisories regarding diseases such as monkeypox, polio, and yellow fever.