MEASLES UP AS VAX DIPS — Measles cases are rising worldwide and killing mostly children, according to a new report by the World Health Organization and the CDC, Chelsea reports. In 2022, an estimated 9 million measles cases and 136,000 deaths, primarily among children, were reported globally. That’s an 18 percentage point increase in cases from 2021 to 2022 and a 43 percent increase in deaths. The rise in cases comes after years of declines in measles vaccination rates. In 2022, 33 million children missed a dose of the two-dose vaccine, putting the global vaccination rate at 83 percent for the first dose and 74 percent for the second, well below the 95 percent coverage rate needed to protect communities from outbreaks. Why it matters: “The increase in measles outbreaks and deaths is staggering, but unfortunately, not unexpected given the declining vaccination rates we’ve seen in the past few years,” John Vertefeuille, director of the CDC’s Global Immunization Division, said in a statement. Reported measles cases in the U.S. remain low, with 41 reported so far this year, according to the CDC. What’s next? The two health agencies are part of an initiative to provide vaccines against measles to children worldwide. WOODCOCK SET TO RETIRE — Longtime FDA regulator Janet Woodcock, who has worked at the agency since 1986, plans to retire in early 2024, FDA Commissioner Robert Califf told agency staff Thursday. Califf’s all-hands email to FDA staff came hours after POLITICO first reported the news of Woodcock’s retirement plans. The regulator — who close watchers of the agency describe as a tour de force — most recently has served as principal deputy commissioner. "A legend in every sense of the word, Janet has made an indelible mark on so many of us, and on public health," Califf said in the email. During the pandemic, Woodcock helped spearhead the government’s work on Covid-19 therapeutics — a role she stepped into after leading the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research for the second time. “No part of the agency is untouched by her energy, determination and vision,” Steven Grossman, executive director of the advocacy group Alliance for a Stronger FDA, said. Near the end of the Obama administration, Woodcock faced criticism for her support of Sarepta Therapeutics’ drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, which was approved despite opposition from FDA staff reviewers.
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