News from the USA, United States of America

[Yann04]

I wonder how much money patients have wasted on magnetic hats, doodads, and probiotics Putrino had touted as effective over the years

I wonder how much more financially secure the average “online” pwLC would be and how much more would have been raised via donations for research if the emphasis wasn’t on spending all money trying random supplements but on donating it to find a real treatment.

 

[ChronicallyOverIt]

I wonder how much more financially secure the average “online” pwLC would be and how much more would have been raised via donations for research if the emphasis wasn’t on spending all money trying random supplements but on donating it to find a real treatment.

I know of some chronic disease platforms (not cfs) that have out right banned discussion of any supplement unproven treatment. This lead to unmoderated private chats which are easily manipulated as they are controlled by singular entities and everything is blocked from public view.

This is to say it’s a hard line to draw, people (including myself) are desperate

 

[Yann04]

I know of some chronic disease platforms (not cfs) that have out right banned discussion of any supplement unproven treatment. This lead to unmoderated private chats which are easily manipulated as they are controlled by singular entities and everything is blocked from public view.

This is to say it’s a hard line to draw, people (including myself) are desperate

Oh yeah I wouldn’t advocate for an outright ban more a culture change.

 

[Chandelier]

Bluesky Post by Ralf Wittenbrink.
Machine Translation:

USA: Continued Significant Increase in the Number of People with Disabilities

In July 2026, there were 37.029 million people (aged 16 and over). This represents an increase of more than 8 million since July 2020.

Source: FEDERAL RESERVE BANK of ST. LOUIS (FRED), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Population - With a Disability, 16 Years and over

Graph and download economic data for Population - With a Disability, 16 Years and over (LNU00074597) from Jun 2008 to Jul 2026 about disability, civilian, 16 years +, population, and USA.

fred.stlouisfed.org

Some comments from that thread:

What I find interesting is the drop in 2020.

For quite some time now, my hypothesis has been that prevention also protects against disability (even before the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2).

This raises the question for me of whether there is an overview or statistic showing which countries have relatively few people with disabilities, or where the trend remains relatively stable, and which countries have seen a drastic increase in the number of people with disabilities.

As I understand it, in countries where wearing masks is, for example, well established (such as Japan), the numbers should then be lower and more stable.

Do you know more about this?

Australia also comes to mind. First, there was a strict lockdown, followed by testing for quite some time.
Vaccinations were proactively recommended, including for young people (and were also offered by employers).
Far-UVC is available for purchase, and there is at least some Asian influence in the major cities, so masks were not demonized.

in any case, life expectancy has increased:

https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/disability/people-with-disability-2026/related-material

There also seems to be an increase in sickness absence rates in the NHS beginning at the start of the pandemic:

Post in thread 'United Kingdom News (including UK wide, England, NI and Wales - see separate thread for news from Scotland)'

Aug 1, 2026

Tern on Twitter:

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Just the sickness absence rate of the biggest employer in Europe.

• Chandelier

• 

 

[Sean]

Australia also comes to mind. ​

​

...so masks were not demonized.​

Well, not as much as elsewhere. We have a fair share of effwits and sovcit types, including one in parliament, though they don't have the same following and clout here as in some countries. Not so far, at least.

 

[Chandelier]

Long Covid Bias Cases Fight Long Odds Even Before Reaching Court

Federal courts have rarely ruled on whether long Covid qualifies as a disability afforded protections under workplace anti-bias law, even as the condition remains more prevalent in the population than is commonly understood.

news.bloomberglaw.com

 

[Chandelier]

Long COVID Prevalence: Current Evidence - August 20, 2026 - USC Schaeffer

About 10 million Americans have experienced severe limitations in daily activities due to long COVID, underscoring the need for effective therapies and continued surveillance. - August 20, 2026

schaeffer.usc.edu

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Summary​

Long COVID remains a substantial public health challenge. Using nationally representative longitudinal data from the Understanding America Study, we estimate that by spring 2023 approximately 52 million U.S. adults had experienced at least one long COVID symptom, primarily affecting working-age adults. Among those affected, more than one-third experienced symptoms for over one year, and nearly 70% reported that their symptoms limited their usual daily activities. These estimates closely align with recent artificial intelligence-based studies using multiple sources of health data, indicating that independent approaches are converging on a similar estimate of the burden of long COVID. Together, these findings underscore the growing need for effective therapies and continued surveillance to address the long-term health and economic consequences of long COVID.​

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[ahimsa]

"Trump 2.0 has deleted or altered nearly 400 US datasets, endangering public health, education and more"

Trump 2.0 has deleted or altered nearly 400 US datasets, endangering public health, education and more

Health data appears to be most affected by administration’s attempt to wipe findings that don’t align with its priorities, tracker shows

www.theguardian.com

 

[Sean]

This is a worst case scenario for health research and policy, the literal deleting and destruction of hard earned, critical, and especially irreplaceable historical data, and the associated info (e.g. protocols).

I regard this kind of blatant vandalism as a major crime against humanity.

I can only hope that responsible scientists and administrators stashed copies of it offshore for safekeeping before the Trump 2.0 admin took office. They certainly had plenty of warning from his first term about him and his apparatchiks attitude to info that contradicted their wishes, and previously from other countries* about this huge danger.

(*e.g. Canada, under Harper, who threw out historical fisheries data to avoid having to take it into account when setting fishing quotas, IIRC.)

 

[Yann04]

US Survey for people in LA by the Los Angeles department of public health.

C.H. Romatowski (@chromatowski.bsky.social)

This author has chosen to make their posts visible only to people who are signed in.

bsky.app

(oh looks like the bsky post is only visible logged in.)

Here’s the url to the survey then.

Qualtrics Survey | Qualtrics Experience Management

The most powerful, simple and trusted way to gather experience data. Start your journey to experience management and try a free account today.

usc.qualtrics.com

Edit: For Long COVID

 

[Chandelier]

Baxter Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall for Two Lots of 0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection Due to Potential Presence of Particulate Matter

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – AUG. 25, 2026 – DEERFIELD, Ill., Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) is voluntarily recalling two lots of 0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection due to the potential presence of particulate matter identified as fiberglass in the solution.

www.fda.gov

Glassfibre in IV saline bags:

Baxter Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall for Two Lots of 0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection Due to Potential Presence of Particulate Matter​

Affected Product:

2B1323Q​	0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection, USP, 500 mL VIAFLEX Plastic Container​	Y495523​	31-Oct-2027​	0338-0049-03​
Y495523A​

​

The affected lots can be identified by locating the lot number and expiration date on the individual product and shipping carton, as shown in the images below.
The impacted product was distributed from 7/31/2026 to 8/3/2026 to healthcare providers and distributors to select states in the United States, including Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

 

[rvallee]

For Many Americans, Covid Is Still a Chronic, Disabling Disease. These Scientists Are Working Tirelessly to Bring Them Relief

Long Covid saps the strength and vitality of patients, who have little recourse to fight it. A team of specialists—including an afflicted researcher working mostly from her bed—is looking for answers

For Many Americans, Covid Is Still a Chronic, Disabling Disease. These Scientists Are Working Tirelessly to Bring Them Relief

Long Covid saps the strength and vitality of patients, who have little recourse to fight it. A team of specialists—including an afflicted researcher working mostly from her bed—is looking for answers

www.smithsonianmag.com

 

[Chandelier]

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/04/us/politics/military-covid-vaccine-deaths.html

Login required.

Spoiler: So Stupid & so depressing

Kennedy Hires Covid Vaccine Skeptic to Look at Dubious Claims of Military Deaths​

In a legal deposition, the doctor, Theresa Long, compared immunizing service members against Covid to Nazi doctors experimenting on concentration camp prisoners.

 

[Laurie P]

Revealed: inside the US military's plan to tap huge sums from the NIH
An agreement paves the way for hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of projects to be transferred from the NIH’s institute for infectious diseases to the Department of Defense.
www.nature.com

How do I make my quote box blue like the other ones on this thread?

 

[Chandelier]

How do I make my quote box blue like the other ones on this thread?

I presume you are talking about the links, like this:

For Many Americans, Covid Is Still a Chronic, Disabling Disease. These Scientists Are Working Tirelessly to Bring Them Relief

Long Covid saps the strength and vitality of patients, who have little recourse to fight it. A team of specialists—including an afflicted researcher working mostly from her bed—is looking for answers

www.smithsonianmag.com

These are created automatically when you paste a link, given that the website that you link to supports it.

But maybe you are talking about the spoilers, like this:

Spoiler: Don‘t click me

Hidden text

 

[Laurie P]

Thank you, @Chandelier. When I previewed my post it wasn't in a blue box. I didn't mean the spoiler box.

 

[Chandelier]

https://www.science.org/content/article/outrage-greets-nih-pact-could-funnel-biodefense-research-funds-pentagon

Outrage greets NIH pact that could funnel biodefense research funds to Pentagon​

NIH director defends interagency plan as “100% aligned with our public health mission”​

5 SEP 2026 BY PHIE JACOBS

“This could be an honest attempt at trying an innovative approach of coordination between federal agencies, or this could be viewed as a money grab from one agency to another. And I don’t think there’s anything in this document that gives us clarity as to which one it would be.”

Some Democrats have accused the Pentagon, which is facing a severe budget crisis after months of war with Iran, of circumventing Congress by pilfering money lawmakers appropriated for biomedical research. “This secretive attempt to siphon research funds away from NIH is outrageous,” Rosa DeLauro (CT), the senior Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement released Thursday that first brought attention to the agreement.

NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya defended the agreement yesterday on social media. “Far from siphoning money away from research,” he wrote, it is a “partnership” between NIH and DoD and “100% aligned with our public health mission.” The agreement was signed by Bhattacharya and Robert Kadlec, who serves as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear Deterrence, Chemical, and Biological Defense Policy and Programs. On social media, Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, denied that NIH funds were being transferred wholesale to the Pentagon, saying, “This is a project-by-project research partnership.”

Even if the agreement does end up supporting biodefense research at DoD, Gronvall cautions that the Pentagon may not be up to the challenge. She notes that while NIH has a responsibility to protect the entire American population, DoD’s efforts are more narrowly focused on military preparedness. “The problem is DoD is not set up to do the kind of work that NIH has done,” she argues. Pentagon research is often classified, she adds, raising concerns about transparency.

“It’s a disservice to the American people,” Gronvall said of the agreement, “and it’s a disservice to the future of scientific progress in the United States.”