Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Department Prepares Payouts Over Havana Syndrome
Top Biden administration officials told senators Thursday that the government will soon release its plan to issue payments to U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers who suffered mysterious injuries abroad known as “Havana Syndrome,” four people with knowledge of the matter told NBC News. In a classified briefing, Deputy CIA Director David Cohen and Assistant FBI Director Alan Kohler updated a group of senators on the latest on the yearslong investigation into the injuries, which the administration calls “anomalous health incidents.” (Lederman, 6/23)
The State Department is preparing to compensate victims of mysterious brain injuries colloquially known as “Havana Syndrome” with six-figure payments, according to officials and a congressional aide. Current and former State Department staff and their families who suffered from “qualifying injuries” since cases were first reported among U.S. embassy personnel in Cuba in 2016 will receive payments of between roughly $100,000 and $200,000 each, the officials and aide said. (Lee and Merchant, 6/23)
In other global news —
A new study by an international team of scientists reveals a new understanding of how antibiotic-resistant strains of typhoid fever have quickly emerged and spread from South Asia to other parts of the world. The authors of the study, published this week in The Lancet Microbe, say the findings highlight the need to consider drug-resistant typhoid fever as a global—rather than a local—problem, and to rapidly expand prevention measures. (Dall, 6/23)
Burundi has the lowest income per capita of any country measured by the World Bank. But according to a rights measurement tracker, it’s doing its best to meet its population’s health needs. Burundi scored 100% in ensuring its people’s right to health in the Human Rights Measurement Initiative’s latest update to its Rights Tracker, launched Wednesday. It’s the only country out of 144 to achieve this perfect score, despite having one of the lowest per capita incomes globally. Its 2020 per capita income was $731, measured in 2017 dollars with adjustments for inflation and purchasing power. (Ravelo, 6/23)
