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NEW VACCINES FOR ALL — The FDA’s expert panel on vaccines recommends that all future Covid vaccines be the new bivalent formulation, POLITICO’s Katherine Ellen Foley reports.

The latest version of the shot was released in the fall to better protect against BA.4/BA.5 Omicron subvariants, which were widely circulating at the time and capable of infecting those who had received the original vaccine series and booster.

But it was given only as a booster; those who got their first shots received the original version, which hadn’t been updated to better protect against new variants.

That left the overwhelming majority of Americans — about 85 percent — without the newest version of the vaccine.

The vote — 21-0 — is an important first step in a process that could mean Americans would get an annual Covid booster, similar to the yearly flu vaccine. Any such changes still require more discussion and decisions, but the FDA appears to be pivoting from responding to the acute phase of the pandemic to a longer-term norm.

It would also be a step toward trying to continue tailoring public health tools to recent variants of the virus.

But don’t expect updated vaccines to fully address the risk, health experts say. Shots tailored to a Covid variant take significant time and money to develop — and by the time they’re released, a new variant will likely be on the horizon.

That’s the case for those who get the BA.4/5 booster now, well after a new variant, XBB.1.5, has taken hold.

But getting the shot still has big advantages. A CDC study released Wednesday found the Covid bivalent booster reduces the risk of symptomatic infection from XBB.1.5 by about half.

Those protections are being passed up, whether partly or entirely, by many Americans — about 20 percent haven’t yet gotten a single shot.

WELCOME TO FRIDAY PULSE. The DNA case we wrote about Monday — about a 10-year-old who sent a half-eaten cookie and gnawed carrots to Rhode Island police — has a miraculous update: A partial match linked to a 1947 New York City case centered on 34th Street and reindeer DNA on the carrots.

What other important stories should we be following for updates? Let us know at [email protected] and [email protected].

TODAY ON OUR PULSE CHECK PODCAST, Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with Ruth Reader about Amazon's new $5-a-month generic prescription service for Prime members called RxPass.

WYDEN LOOKS TO EXPAND CHRONIC CARE — Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) hopes to expand on his earlier legislation that allowed Medicare plans to pay for nonmedical services for people with chronic conditions, POLITICO’s Ben Leonard reports.

That change affected most Medicare beneficiaries, two-thirds of whom have at least one such condition.

If Wyden introduces new legislation to further expand chronic care offerings, it could be a major win for telehealth and at-home care advocates.

And Wyden is eyeing some other issues, too, including reigning in pharmacy benefit managers and ensuring payment parity for mental health services, he told reporters Wednesday.

BUCHANAN TO CHAIR WAYS AND MEANS HEALTH SUBCOMMITTEE — Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) will serve as the chair of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee and vice chair of the full panel, Ben reports.

That subcommittee has significant jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid, government payments for health care, health delivery systems, health research and health care tax law.

One potential clue about what’s to come: Earlier work from Republicans’ Healthy Future Task Force, which Buchanan chairs with Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), looked to address the opioid crisis, modernize health care and reduce costs.

LONG COVID RATES DECLINE, STILL SIGNIFICANT — The rate of long Covid seems to be declining since last summer, according to a new analysis from KFF.

The report, using data from the federal government’s Household Pulse Survey, found that, among those who have ever had Covid, the number who said they have ever had long Covid declined — from 35 percent last June to 28 percent this month.

Still, a significant number of people — about 11 percent of people who have ever been infected — said they currently have long Covid, according to this month’s data.

About 15 percent of all U.S. adults reported having long Covid at some point, with about 6 percent saying they have symptoms now.

KAINE AND HHS HOST LONG-COVID SUMMIT — Today, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and HHS officials, including assistant secretary of health Rachel Levine, will host a summit to bring together patient and provider experiences with the syndrome.

The summit will also highlight a partnership between HHS’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and Kaine.

MAPPING COVID RISK — New congressional district-level data developed by the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provides a better idea of the geography of Covid risk, Ben reports.

A POLITICO analysis of the data found that the districts with the highest local Covid risk tended to be in the Southeast, Southwest and Appalachia.

The top-ranking areas weren’t particularly partisan, either, with 22 of the highest-risk districts held by Democrats and 22 by Republicans, according to the POLITICO analysis.

CBD NOT A SUPPLEMENT, FDA SAYS — The FDA won’t regulate CBD as a dietary supplement despite calls from the hemp industry and legislation introduced by multiple members of Congress, POLITICO’s Natalie Fertig and Paul Demko report.

“Given the available evidence, it is not apparent how CBD products could meet safety standards for dietary supplements or food additives. … Therefore, we do not intend to pursue rulemaking allowing the use of CBD in dietary supplements or conventional foods,” the agency stated in a statement.

Instead, the agency is looking for a “new regulatory pathway” needed to regulate CBD, saying it’s ready to work with lawmakers to develop a cross-agency strategy.

DEATHS OF DESPAIR GROWING AMONG NATIVE AMERICANS — A new study from UCLA researchers found that deaths from suicide, drug overdose or alcoholic liver disease — frequently thought of as primarily affecting middle-aged white people — are spiking most in Native American communities.

The new analysis, published in The Lancet, argues that previous literature misunderstands the communities most affected — and, therefore, some key factors believed to be causing the rise in deaths of despair.

Vibrant Emotional Health, nonprofit administrator of the national 988 crisis lifeline, appointed Tia Dole as chief 988 suicide and crisis lifeline officer.

The Healthcare Distribution Alliance announced three staff moves: Amelia Allert, who previously worked for Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.), was named new director of policy; Kristen Freitas was named SVP of federal government affairs and alliance development; and Leah Lindahl was named vice president, state government affairs.

The Washington Post reports on the impact of Tennessee rejecting millions in federal money to stop HIV.

The New York Times Magazine goes inside the “hospital-at-home” movement looking to create inpatient care anywhere.

Kaiser Health News releases details of 90 previously secret government audits of Medicare Advantage plans.