Multiple antiseptics, cleansers, and hand soaps have been voluntarily recalled over bacteria that could cause &#8220;life-threatening sepsis.&#8221;
DermaRite Industries is recalling DermaKleen antiseptic lotion with Vitamin E in 1,000- and 800- milliliter sizes, KleenFoam antimicrobial foam soap in 1,000-milliliter sizes, DermaSerra external analgesic in 7.5-ounce sizes, and PeriGiene antiseptic cleanser in 7.5-ounce sizes.
The products have expiration dates ranging from July 2025 to February 2027, the company <a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/dermarite-industries-issues-voluntary-nationwide-recall-dermakleen-dermasarra-kleenfoam-and">said</a> in a press release. They were distributed in the United States and in Puerto Rico.
The company recalled the products, which were intended to &#8220;decrease bacteria,&#8221; because of a bacterial &#8220;contamination identified as Burkholderia cepacia.&#8221;
&#8220;The contaminated products may be used by immunosuppressed individuals or by people attending to immunosuppressed individuals,&#8221; the press realease said. &#8220;In healthy individuals with minor skin lesions the use of the product will more likely result in local infections, whereas in immunocompromised individuals the infection is more likely to spread into blood stream leading to life-threatening sepsis.&#8221;
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=summer&amp;utm_content=editorialsummersale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">End of Summer Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
The company told distributors and customers &#8220;to immediately examine available inventory and destroy all affected products.&#8221;
DermaRite said it &#8220;has not received any reports of adverse events.&#8221;
Burkholderia cepacia complex, also called B. cepacia or Bcc, is a bacteria group often found in soil and water, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It is dangerous for people with compromised immune systems or chronic lung diseases, especially cystic fibrosis. It poses little risk to healthy individuals.
The CDC said B. cepacia can cause serious respiratory infections, as well as fever and fatigue. Individuals may also experience no symptoms. The bacteria&#8217;s resistance to antibiotics can make it difficult to treat.

Wash your hands

Hand Soaps, Antiseptics Recalled Over Bacteria That Could Cause ‘Life-Threatening Sepsis’

Business

Disease

Economy

Health

U.S.

The U.S. Senate confirmed President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday.
Susan Monarez was the president’s second pick to head the agency after the White House pulled Dave Weldon’s nomination, which Weldon said was due to a lack of Senate support for his nomination. Monarez is the first CDC head to be confirmed by the Senate, a move necessitated under a 2023 law.
The Senate confirmed Monarez, who already heads the agency as acting director, in a 51 to 47 vote. Monarez now stands to head up an agency in the middle of an overhaul led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The Trump administration is reportedly <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/04/16/hhs-budget-cut-trump/">seeking</a> to slash the CDC’s budget by over 40% after the health agency has received heavy <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/cdc-admission-of-dysfunction-misses-the-big-problems/">criticism</a> in recent years, especially for its handling of the COVID pandemic. During the outbreak of the disease and, at times, for years after, the CDC recommended actions that had little basis in scientific evidence.
For instance, the agency issued its six-feet separation guidance in March 2020 based on no discernible evidence, according to the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, which issued a <a href="https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/2024.12.04-SSCP-FINAL-REPORT-ANS.pdf">final report</a> on the pandemic in December. Despite the lack of a scientific foundation, the guidance went unrevised until August 2022.
“There were no scientific trials or studies conducted before this policy was implemented, there appeared to be no pushback or internal discussion amongst the highest level of leadership, and more importantly there appears to be no acceptance of responsibility,” the 557-page report states. “That is an unacceptable answer from public health leadership. Decisions of this magnitude must have scientific backing that can be explained to the American public.”
The CDC’s guidance on mask-wearing and school closures was also compromised, according to the House report.
The CDC presented 15 studies on mask-wearing that it said support its guidance to require masks in public spaces, including on public transit and in schools. Each study was significantly flawed, however, and none of them were randomized controlled trials, considered the “gold standard” of such evidence.
“The trajectories of the rate of COVID-19 infections for states with mask mandates and states without is virtually identical,” the House report notes. “It is apparent that the CDC and the Biden Administration cherry-picked observational data to fit their narrative that masks are fully effective.”
The report notes that CDC “caused quantifiable harm” in its recommendation for universal masking inside primary schools. The recommendation remained in place for nearly two years, from April 2020 to late February 2022, with a brief break from May to July 2021.
The CDC’s choice to recommend universal masking was more onerous than the World Health Organization’s guidance. The WHO declined to recommend masking for children ages five and under, and said children ages six to 11 should not routinely wear masks because of “potential adverse impact to psychosocial and learning development,” according to the House report.
Isolation and forced masking appears to have <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/07/01/upshot/pandemic-children-school-performance.html">slowed</a> development for many children.
“Ignoring the science and facts of COVID-19 and the harms of masking young children was profoundly immoral on behalf of the leadership of the country’s public health officials. The future consequences of these types of draconian policies are not yet known, but public health leaders in the future should remember that all policy must be decided in a balanced manner,” the report notes.

Susan Monarez

Senate Confirms Trump’s Pick To Head CDC As Agency Battles Criticism Over Pandemic Response

Congress

COVID-19

Donald Trump

Politics

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Monday that he’s gutting the panel that advises on vaccination safety and efficacy, arguing that it’s another step toward restoring public trust.
Kennedy, whose department has already made <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cdc-stops-pushing-covid-shots-for-healthy-pregnant-women-children-common-sense">several moves</a> to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hhs-investing-500-million-to-develop-universal-vaccines?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=HHS+Investing+%24500+Million+To+Develop+Universal+Vaccines">shake up</a> vaccination research and recommendations, said he’s “retiring” all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, known as ACIP.
“Today, we are taking a bold step in restoring public trust by totally reconstituting the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP),” RFK <a href="https://www.wsj.com/opinion/rfk-jr-hhs-moves-to-restore-public-trust-in-vaccines-45495112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal. “We are retiring the 17 current members of the committee, some of whom were last-minute appointees of the Biden administration.”
Kennedy said he had to remove these panel members or the Trump administration wouldn&#8217;t be able to appoint a majority of new members until 2028.
RFK Jr. suggested the panel effectively works as a rubber-stamp and is plagued with conflicts of interest.
ACIP, he highlighted, has never recommended against a vaccination it’s been asked to advise on, even vaccines that were later withdrawn for safety reasons. “It has failed to scrutinize vaccine products given to babies and pregnant women,” he wrote.
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“To make matters worse, the groups that inform ACIP meet behind closed doors, violating the legal and ethical principle of transparency crucial to maintaining public trust,” RFK said.
Kennedy cited a 2000 investigation that found enforcement of ACIP conflict-of-interest rules were “weak to nonexistent.”
“Committee members regularly participated in deliberations and advocated products in which they had a financial stake,” he wrote. “The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) issued conflict-of-interest waivers to every committee member.”
Citing a 2009 HHS inspector general report, Kennedy added that not all committee members completed full conflict-of-interest forms, and of the ones who did, it was found that 97% of the forms had omissions. Additionally, the CDC – which is the agency ACIP passes along its recommendations to – “took no significant action to remedy the omissions.”
“The public must know that unbiased science guides the recommendations from our health agencies,” Kennedy said. “This will ensure the American people receive the safest vaccines possible.&#8221;
As previously reported by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hhs-investing-500-million-to-develop-universal-vaccines?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=HHS+Investing+%24500+Million+To+Develop+Universal+Vaccines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a>, HHS, under Kennedy&#8217;s leadership, is investing half a billion dollars into a project that seeks to develop universal vaccinations for numerous viruses, called &#8220;Generation Gold Standard.&#8221;
Moreover, the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kennedys-cdc-to-reportedly-study-potential-link-between-vaccines-and-autism?author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Kennedy’s+CDC+To+Reportedly+Study+Potential+Link+Between+Vaccines+And+Autism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CDC is studying the sharp rise in autism rates</a>, which reportedly includes research on whether there&#8217;s any link between vaccinations and the rise in autism.
And, last month, the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cdc-stops-pushing-covid-shots-for-healthy-pregnant-women-children-common-sense">CDC rescinded guidance</a> that pregnant women and children should receive a vaccine against COVID. “I couldn’t be more pleased to announce that, as of today, the COVID vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from the CDC recommended immunization schedule,” RFK said at the time.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cdc-stops-pushing-covid-shots-for-healthy-pregnant-women-children-common-sense" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CDC Stops Pushing COVID Shots For Healthy Pregnant Women, Children: ‘Common Sense’</a>

RFK Jr

RFK Jr. Guts CDC Vaccine Panel, ‘Retiring’ All 17 Members

COVID

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Vaccines

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has rescinded guidance that pregnant women and children should receive a vaccine against COVID.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced the change in guidance on Tuesday. Kennedy in a video statement was flanked by National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary.
“I couldn&#8217;t be more pleased to announce that, as of today, the COVID vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from the CDC recommended immunization schedule,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy then slammed the Biden administration for pushing COVID shots and boosters on healthy children “despite the lack of any clinical data to support the repeat booster strategy in children.”
Bhattacharya jumped in: “That ends today. It&#8217;s common sense and it&#8217;s good science.”
Makary added: “There&#8217;s no evidence healthy kids need it today, and most countries have stopped recommending it for children.”
“We&#8217;re now one step closer to realizing President Trump&#8217;s promise to ‘Make America Healthy Again,’”  Kennedy finished.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Today, the COVID vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from <a href="https://twitter.com/CDCgov?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CDCgov</a> recommended immunization schedule. Bottom line: it’s common sense and it’s good science. We are now one step closer to realizing <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>’s promise to Make America Healthy Again. <a href="https://t.co/Ytch2afCLP">pic.twitter.com/Ytch2afCLP</a>
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecKennedy/status/1927368440811008138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
The announcement follows the release of a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bombshell-biden-admin-covered-up-adverse-covid-vaccine-reactions-including-myocarditis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> earlier this month from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations on the potentially deadly side effects associated with COVID vaccines and the Biden administration’s lack of action to notify the American people.
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The report is titled: “Failure to Warn: How Federal Health Agencies Downplayed the Risk of Myocarditis and Other Adverse Events Following COVID-19 Vaccination.” The investigation into the Biden administration’s handling of COVID vaccines found that officials “knew about the risks of myocarditis,” “downplayed the health concern,” and deliberately “delayed informing the public about the risk.”
Committee chair Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) said that the Biden administration covered up vaccine side effects to prevent “vaccine hesitancy,” but “in being concerned about that, they violated the inviolable principle of informed consent.”
Amanda Prestigiacomo contributed to this report.

CDC Stops Pushing COVID Shots For Healthy Pregnant Women, Children: ‘Common Sense’

COVID-19 Vaccine

Jay Bhattacharya

President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he has selected Susan Monarez, the current acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to be the agency&#8217;s permanent head.
&#8220;I am proud to announce that Dr. Susan Monarez is my Nominee to serve as the next Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),&#8221; Trump wrote on social media. &#8220;Dr. Monarez brings decades of experience championing Innovation, Transparency, and strong Public Health Systems.&#8221;
The news comes after Trump withdrew his first nominee for the role, Dr. Dave Weldon, just hours before his Senate confirmation hearing that was scheduled earlier this month.
&#8220;As an incredible mother and dedicated public servant, Dr. Monarez understands the importance of protecting our children, our communities, and our future,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;Americans have lost confidence in the CDC due to political bias and disastrous mismanagement.&#8221;
Monarez — who has a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin and Postdoctoral training in Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University School of Medicine — will work &#8220;closely with our GREAT Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert Kennedy Jr,&#8221; Trump added.
&#8220;Together, they will prioritize Accountability, High Standards, and Disease Prevention to finally address the Chronic Disease Epidemic and, MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN!&#8221; he said.
Trump had tapped Weldon, a former Republican congressman from Florida, to lead the agency in November, but ended up <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-names-former-florida-congressman-cdc-director" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pulling</a> his nomination on March 13th because it was not clear that he was going to have enough Republican support to make it through the confirmation process.
In a lengthy statement, Weldon blamed the pharmaceutical industry for his nomination being tanked, saying that he was viewed &#8220;very negatively by the industry&#8221; despite using pharmaceuticals &#8220;on a daily basis to help my patients.&#8221;

President Trump Holds Cabinet Meeting

Trump Taps New Nominee For CDC Director After Pulling First Choice

Executive

Trump Administration

The White House on Thursday withdrew the nomination of former Florida congressman Dr. David Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) mere hours before Weldon was slated to appear before the Senate for a confirmation hearing.
Reports indicate that Weldon was pulled just before the now-canceled hearing because he didn&#8217;t have the votes to be confirmed. A Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/white-house-to-withdraw-weldon-as-cdc-nominee-31df5b8f?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> noted that Weldon was unaware of the withdrawal until 9 a.m. Thursday morning, when a Journal reporter contacted him.
Weldon, a physician who served in Congress from 1995 to 2009, has routinely expressed skepticism about the safety of vaccinations, not unlike Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
In 2007, Weldon proposed a bill that would have transferred vaccine safety oversight from the CDC to an independent agency within HHS. He also <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/13/dave-weldon-cdc-nomination-withdrawn?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggested</a> that there could be a link between vaccinations and the rise in autism, which is reportedly set to be <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kennedys-cdc-to-reportedly-study-potential-link-between-vaccines-and-autism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">studied</a> by the CDC under RFK.
The withdrawal comes amid the ongoing measles outbreak in Texas, which has put a spotlight on vaccines under Kennedy&#8217;s leadership and possibly added scrutiny to Weldon&#8217;s confirmation chances. The former congressman reportedly softened his take on vaccine safety during private conversations with senators, though he still apparently couldn&#8217;t muster up enough support.
There have been a total of 223 confirmed cases of measles in Texas since late January. Twenty-nine people have been hospitalized, with <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/texas-measles-outbreak-fueled-distrust-public-health-personal-119419119">one death</a> of a school-aged child. Most infections have impacted children in the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/27/health/mennonite-texas-measles/index.html">Mennonite population</a>.
Kennedy has said the <a href="https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/measles/cdc-team-assisting-texas-measles-outbreak-case-total-rises">outbreak</a> must elicit a “<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/robert-f-kennedy-jr-measles-outbreak-call-action-all-us">call to action</a>” from all to affirm our &#8220;commitment to public health.&#8221; He&#8217;s reportedly sent thousands of doses of the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine to Texas while educating parents on treatments post-infection and nutrition. 
&#8220;What we’re trying to do is really to restore faith in government, and to make sure that we are there to help them with their needs and not particularly to dictate what they ought to be doing,&#8221; RFK <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6369595673112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on Fox News. 
Despite the extra attention on vaccines, Kennedy has already made several changes. For example, he&#8217;s <a href="https://apnews.com/article/childhood-vaccines-schedule-kennedy-trump-hhs-4d5e6c52c602f5edbcd837748605e9d0">indicated</a> that he’ll effectively review the childhood vaccination schedule by investigating vaccines — as well as pesticides, food additives, microplastics, and antidepressants — to see if they have contributed to a rise in chronic illness.
He&#8217;s also halted the CDC’s “<a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/02/19/nx-s1-5302906/cdc-flu-vaccine-campaign-terminated">Wild to Mild</a>” campaign <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2025/02/26/rfk-jr-vaccines-informed-consent-cdc-messaging-vaccinations/#:~:text=Health%20and%20Human%20Services%20Secretary,campaign%20promoting%20the%20flu%20vaccine.">promoting</a> the flu vaccine and has indicated that he wants advertisements going forward to promote the idea of “informed consent” in vaccine decision-making, which would include giving people <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2025/02/26/rfk-jr-vaccines-informed-consent-cdc-messaging-vaccinations/#:~:text=Health%20and%20Human%20Services%20Secretary,campaign%20promoting%20the%20flu%20vaccine.">information</a> about the adverse events associated with vaccines. 
Additionally, citing conflicts of interest, Kennedy is preparing to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/joshuacohen/2025/03/01/rfk-jr-readies-cdc-for-changes-in-vaccine-policies/">remove</a> several members of the external committee that advises the FDA and CDC on vaccine approvals and other key public health decisions. Recommendations from that committee, known as ACIP, are almost always followed by HHS and could further impact the childhood vaccination schedule. RFK has also <a href="https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/adult-non-flu-vaccines/scheduled-meeting-cdc-vaccine-advisers-postponed#:~:text=The%20postponing%20of%20the%20ACIP,committees%20likely%20to%20be%20targeted." target="_blank" rel="noopener">postponed</a> ACIP’s first panel to “accommodate public comment in advance of the meeting.”
Just this past week, it was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/03/10/vaccines-nih-rfk-research-canceled/">announced</a> that the National Institutes of Health will stop spending money to find out why Americans are hesitant to take vaccines. The NIH, which is part of HHS, is terminating or scaling back more than 40 related grants and has said that such spending no longer aligns with NIH priorities.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mahas-latest-wins-on-fluoride-food-and-vaccines?topStoryPosition=undefined" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MAHA’s Latest Wins On Fluoride, Food, And Vaccines</a>

CDC headquarters in Atlanta

White House Withdraws Nominee For CDC Director Hours Before Confirmation Hearing

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is reportedly studying if there is any link between vaccinations and the rise in autism.
Sources told Reuters that the CDC, which is under the purview of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is planning a large study into vaccines and autism. A CDC study from 2020 found that 1 in 36 children in the United States have been diagnosed with autism.
The Daily Wire reached out to HHS about the report, but has yet to receive a reply.
Over the weekend, HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-cdc-plans-study-into-vaccines-autism-sources-say-2025-03-07/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the department will leave &#8220;no stone unturned&#8221; while studying the rise in autism.
“As President Trump said in his Joint Address to Congress, the rate of autism in American children has skyrocketed,&#8221; he said. &#8220;CDC will leave no stone unturned in its mission to figure out what exactly is happening. The American people expect high quality research and transparency and that is what CDC is delivering.&#8221;
National Institutes of Health (NIH) director nominee Dr. Jay Bhattacharya has said he doesn&#8217;t believe there is a link between vaccines and the rise in autism, but would back &#8220;a broad scientific agenda&#8221; looking into the matter.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t generally believe there is a link, based on my reading of the literature. But we do have a sharp rise in autism rates, and I don&#8217;t think any scientist really knows the cause of it,&#8221; Bhattacharya said during a confirmation hearing. &#8220;I would support a broad scientific agenda based on data to get an answer to that.&#8221;
Kennedy is currently tackling a measles outbreak in Texas, where 198 cases have been identified since late January, largely among the Mennonite population. In an op-ed published this month, RFK said the <a href="https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/measles/cdc-team-assisting-texas-measles-outbreak-case-total-rises">outbreak</a> must elicit a “<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/robert-f-kennedy-jr-measles-outbreak-call-action-all-us">call to action</a>” for all of us to affirm our commitment to public health.
The secretary said he’s harnessing HHS to support Texas communities and the state&#8217;s health department by making the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine readily available. HHS has sent 2,000 doses of the vaccine to West Texas. Kennedy also said he’s focusing on educating parents on post-infection treatments and nutrition. 
&#8220;What we’re trying to do is really to restore faith in government, and to make sure that we are there to help them with their needs and not particularly to dictate what they ought to be doing,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6369595673112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/maha-update-here-are-rfks-latest-moves-on-big-food-and-big-pharma" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘MAHA’ Update: Here Are RFK’s Latest Moves On Big Food And Big Pharma</a>

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Visits “The Faulkner Focus”

Kennedy’s CDC To Reportedly Study Potential Link Between Vaccines And Autism

Canada is a cold place, and to get around my home of Ontario comfortably during the winter I’m lucky to have a top-shelf pair of American premium leather cowboy boots by Durango. They’re perfect, except for the part where they supposedly can increase my risk of cancer.
Yes, because my boots comply with California’s Proposition 65, they came with a Cancer and Reproductive Harm <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-07-23/prop-65-product-warnings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warning label</a> in the event I were to excessively lick or dine upon my footwear. Everything from DVD players to couches now carry these labels if they’re sold in California, in case a consumer were to ingest them instead of watch a movie or take a nap. Considering the earth’s sun is a well-known carcinogen, it’s a wonder California hasn’t legislated some kind of labeling on the menacing gaseous ball elevating the cancer risk of everyone beneath its rays.
Perhaps the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy will take action after he’s done frightening consumers about alcohol. Murthy’s latest <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/priorities/alcohol-cancer/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advisory report</a> on “the causal link between alcohol consumption and increased risk for at least seven different types of cancer” <a href="https://www.today.com/health/diet-fitness/alcohol-cancer-risk-rcna186367" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has America spooked</a>. We experienced the same tactics in Canada.
The political collapse of Prime Minster Justin Trudeau in Canada temporarily killed a <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tasker-canada-alcohol-problem-health-warning-labels-1.6850180" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bill</a> that would have had Canada <a href="https://www.medcentral.com/biz-policy/should-alcohol-labels-have-a-cancer-warning" target="_blank" rel="noopener">follow Ireland</a> in slapping cancer warnings on all alcoholic beverages. It’s part of a movement within the public health establishment via the <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol">World Health Organization</a>, to shift world governments away from the message of “drink responsibly” and toward “<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/tasker-canada-alcohol-problem-health-warning-labels-1.6850180" target="_blank" rel="noopener">no amount is safe</a>”.
Consumers should know the risks associated with alcohol consumption, but what exactly are those risks?
First, Dr. Murthy’s report is what’s known as an observational study, which means conclusions are drawn without experiments featuring variables and controls. These reports study large pre-existing data sets and can show correlation, not causation, of illness associated with certain products like alcohol. It is literally not possible for observational studies to demonstrate cause and effect.
Second, the data sets informing the research are biased toward <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24825591/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">respondents underreporting</a> their level of drinking. It is to be expected then that the data for moderate drinkers is systematically enmeshed with that of heavy drinkers who underestimate their weekly intake.
The result is that moderate drinking ends up looking more risky than it might otherwise be on a chart illustrating a correlation between alcohol consumption and certain cancers.
The Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) <a href="https://www.ccsa.ca/canadas-guidance-alcohol-and-health" target="_blank" rel="noopener">led</a> the charge for warning labels in Canada, and their own findings illustrated the same kind of disproportionate response being mimicked by Dr. Murthy in the US. The CCSA’s report argued that a male who consumes 2 drinks per day may increase their <a href="https://financialpost.com/opinion/david-clement-happy-festivus-earful-for-you" target="_blank" rel="noopener">absolute</a> colorectal cancer risk by 0.0028 percent. If you add the increased risk for all cancers measured by the CCSA (liver, colorectal, esophagus, larynx, and oral/pharynx) related to alcohol consumption, the total absolute increase in cancer risk for a male drinking 2 drinks per day is 0.0099, or 9.9 one-hundredths of a percent.
These are not the kind of numbers you’d take seriously if they were on the warning label, and it’s not especially helpful to slap tobacco-style cancer warnings on products that are exponentially less harmful. The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/lung-cancer/risk-factors/?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/lung/basic_info/risk_factors.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CDC</a> estimates that smoking increases cancer risk by 15-30 times when compared to non-smokers.
Smoking comes with an increased cancer risk that is more than 1,000%. Two alcoholic drinks per day, however, is only an increase of 0.0099% in risk. These things are not the same.
A <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2839311">2016 paper</a> from Harvard Kennedy School laid out the best case against an overzealous warning label regime like California’s Prop 65 and the movement to associate alcohol with the hazards of cigarettes. Harvard said of Prop 65 that it “fails miserably at distinguishing between large and small risks; that is to say between wolves and puppies.” The cancer warning label movement “cries wolf” over statistically insignificant risks and deters consumers from taking labels seriously when a genuinely dangerous product comes to market in the future.
It is not good for consumers when warning labels are a <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAnAmerican/comments/lvkiys/proposition_65_should_i_worry/">punchline</a>, but that’s precisely what happens when cancer warnings are on cigarettes and <a href="https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/GettyImages-171179611.jpg">Starbucks self-serve</a> sugar stations.
The connection between heavy drinking and certain cancers of the mouth and throat is generally accepted by researchers, including the most recent report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) about the health impacts of alcohol. NASEM <a href="https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/28582/review-of-evidence-on-alcohol-and-health">showed the same</a> uptick in the risk for breast cancer with moderate drinking but did not replicate a connection between moderate drinking and the rest of the other afflictions.
Any consumer should scratch their head when the Surgeon General’s alcohol warning is that “evidence shows that this risk may start to increase around one or fewer drinks per day.”
May start? Fewer than one drink per day? This barely clever wording means Dr. Murthy cannot demonstrate total sobriety as having a 0.0 correlation with developing cancer.
This strategic uncertainty should tell you something about the claims being made by Vivek Murthy and public health authorities in places like Canada. The conclusions don’t make that much sense. For example, Dr. Joseph Sparano, deputy director of the Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, <a href="https://www.today.com/health/diet-fitness/alcohol-cancer-risk-rcna186367">told NBC’s Today</a> “Drinking may explain some of the increased cancer risk we are seeing in young people – Cancers in people under the age of 50 have been increasing at a rate of 1-2% per year over the last 15 years.”
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But nothing is said about the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/claraludmir/2023/06/27/why-genz-is-drinking-less-and-what-this-means-for-the-alcohol-industry/">years</a> of <a href="https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220920-why-gen-zers-are-growing-up-sober-curious">coverage</a> on reliable trendlines <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/509690/young-adults-drinking-less-prior-decades.aspx">showing</a> adults under 35 drink less frequently and in lower quantities than any prior generation. Older cohorts are <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/30/health/seniors-alcohol-consumption.html">driving</a> the majority of alcohol consumption, and recent Center for Disease Control <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db374.htm">data</a> shows us that 5.1% of American adults are heavy drinkers, meaning a man who consumes more than 14 drinks per week and a woman who has more than seven. That slim cohort represents 75% of the cancer cases related to alcohol consumption.
If public health authorities are going to increase their focus on alcohol, it should be on heavy drinkers and tested messages of moderation and responsible drinking. 
Comparing the risks of moderate drinking to smoking is statistically false and misleading for consumers. The U.S. Surgeon General’s words carry incredible weight throughout the world, and like with California’s overzealous risk labeling system, Murthy risks squandering even more public trust in a public health advisory that can’t prove its own claims.
* * *
David Clement is the North American Affairs Director for the Consumer Choice Center. Follow him on X: <a href="https://x.com/ClementLiberty">@ClementLiberty</a>
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Close up of young Asian woman walking through supermarket aisle and choosing a bottle of red wine from the shelf in a supermarket

Why Cancer Warnings On Alcohol Dilute The Meaning Of Risk

Alcohol

California

Canada

Cancer

Surgeon General

Tobacco

Vivek Murthy

President-elect <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> announced late this week that he has tapped former Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) to be the next Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
&#8220;In addition to being a Medical Doctor for 40 years, and an Army Veteran, Dave has been a respected conservative leader on fiscal and social issues, and served on the Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, working for Accountability on HHS and CDC Policy and Budgeting,&#8221; Trump said.
&#8220;Dave also served in a leading role in Government Oversight and Reform Committee Hearings, addressing issues within HHS and CDC,&#8221; Trump continued. &#8220;Dave has successfully worked with the CDC to enact a ban on patents for human embryos.&#8221;
The president-elect said that it was important for Americans to regain their trust in federal health agencies after years of &#8220;censorship, data manipulation, and misinformation.&#8221;
He said that Weldon will prioritize &#8220;Transparency, Competence, and High Standards&#8221; as the director of the CDC.
He said that the CDC in his administration will &#8220;play a big role in helping to ensure Americans have the tools and resources they need to understand the underlying causes of disease, and the solutions to cure these diseases.&#8221;
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump&#8217;s pick to be the Secretary of Health and Human Services, praised the selection in a statement posted to X.
&#8220;Congratulations Dr. Dave Weldon on your nomination as Director of CDC,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Dr. Weldon is a 40-year medical doctor, Congressman, and Army veteran.&#8221;
&#8220;Dave&#8217;s leadership at CDC will bring the truth and transparency needed to restore the public&#8217;s confidence in this institution,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Welcome aboard.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Congratulations Dr. Dave Weldon on your nomination as Director of CDC. Dr. Weldon is a 40-year medical doctor, Congressman, and Army veteran. Dave&#8217;s leadership at CDC will bring the truth and transparency needed to restore the public&#8217;s confidence in this institution. Welcome… <a href="https://t.co/hu8bHdSqKa">pic.twitter.com/hu8bHdSqKa</a>
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/1860373104515526975?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2024</a></blockquote>

US-CLONING-WELDON

Trump Names Former Florida Congressman CDC Director

Florida

Vice President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/kamala-harris">Kamala Harris&#8217;</a> presidential campaign is mandating the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/covid-19-vaccine">COVID-19 vaccine</a> for those interested in working for her.
On the official presidential <a href="https://kamalaharris.com/work-with-us/">website</a> for Harris and her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, under the option “work for us,” is a list of job opportunities with the campaign.
The individual <a href="https://jobs.lever.co/BFP/a3db8c48-0d22-4863-8ee1-b43b8d0d1a95">jobs</a> pages contain a list of responsibilities and qualifications and underneath those is a paragraph about being vaccinated.
“Harris for President requires all employees to be ‘up to date’ on COVID-19 vaccination status as prescribed by the CDC as a condition of employment, unless otherwise prohibited by applicable law,” the statement read.
“If you seek a reasonable accommodation in relation to the campaign&#8217;s COVID-19 policy, you should speak to the HR Department prior to reporting to an office location,” the statement added.
A message on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/covid/vaccines/stay-up-to-date.html">website</a> reads, “CDC recommends the 2023–2024 updated COVID-19 vaccines—Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Novavax—to protect against serious illness from COVID-19.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
A vote for Kamala Harris = a vote for endless vaccine mandates. Guys come on, don’t do this. <a href="https://t.co/P36uxxJLtR">https://t.co/P36uxxJLtR</a> <a href="https://t.co/g06kLPVl84">pic.twitter.com/g06kLPVl84</a>
— Kristen Mag (@kristenmag) <a href="https://twitter.com/kristenmag/status/1824308411997327434?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 16, 2024</a></blockquote>
As the campaign stated, “up to date” per the CDC means, “People aged 5 – 64 years. You are up to date when you get 1 age-appropriate updated COVID-19 vaccine.”
And for people aged 65 years and older, it said, “You are up to date when you have received 2 updated 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine doses.”
The Daily Wire has reached out to the Harris campaign for information about its vaccine mandate.
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1723831707612000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0pyrv88A5nsmWM2F2Wr9As">Tickets for “Am I Racist?” are on sale NOW! Buy here for a theater near you.</a>
In February, the largest global study to date looked at medical issues among nearly 100 million people who received the COVID vaccine and found a higher-than-expected increase in neurological- and heart-related problems following the shot, as previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/largest-covid-vax-study-to-date-finds-higher-than-expected-increase-in-heart-and-brain-issues-following-jab">reported</a>.
As the Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/legacy-media-acknowledges-possible-injury-from-covid-vaccine">previously reported</a>, there have been nearly 13,000 claims filed with the vaccine compensation program alleging harm caused by the pandemic response, with more than 10,000 of those claims citing the vaccine as causing injury or death.
In May 2023, the Biden-Harris administration announced an end to the “COVID-19 vaccine requirements for Federal employees, Federal contractors, and international air travelers at the end of the day on May 11, the same day that the COVID-19 public health emergency ends…” a White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/05/01/the-biden-administration-will-end-covid-19-vaccination-requirements-for-federal-employees-contractors-international-travelers-head-start-educators-and-cms-certified-facilities/">press release</a> read.
Zach Jewell contributed to this piece.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/legacy-media-acknowledges-possible-injury-from-covid-vaccine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Legacy Media Acknowledges Possible Injury From COVID Vaccine</a>

Kamala Harris And Tim Walz Campaign In Michigan

Harris Campaign Mandating COVID Vaccine To Work For Her

Elections

Kamala Harris

News

Tim Walz

vaccine

Former President Donald Trump&#8217;s CDC Director warned during an interview over the weekend that he is becoming increasingly concerned about a deadly bird flu pandemic erupting that will likely have a high mortality rate.
Dr. Robert Redfield said during an interview with NewsNation that he believes it&#8217;s a matter of &#8220;when&#8221; and not &#8220;if&#8221; there will be a bird flu pandemic in humans.
&#8220;Unfortunately, bird flu, when it does enter humans, has a significant mortality, probably somewhere between 25%-50% mortality,&#8221; he said. &#8220;So it&#8217;s going to be quite complicated. Since 2019, we&#8217;ve had a progressive increase in bird flu in chickens and ducks and turkeys in our country. And since then, you&#8217;ve seen it now go into a number of mammals. It&#8217;s now in 27 mammals in the United States.&#8221;
Addressing why it&#8217;s important to note the the disease is spreading to other mammals, he said: &#8220;We know exactly what has to happen for bird flu to be infectious for humans and go human-to-human. Scientists in 2012 actually did experiments in the lab using gain of function research, which I&#8217;m not in favor of, but the scientists did it. And they figured the five amino acids that have to change in the key receptor in order for bird flu, to gain a propensity to bind to the human receptor, and then be able to go human-to-human, something that obviously happened with COVID, where COVID, obviously, learned how to use the H2 receptor in humans and of course, became a very infectious virus.&#8221;
He said that bird flu will be transmitted from person to person &#8220;through aerosols and droplets&#8221;. He said that he is worried that a pandemic will happen because the virus will become contagious because of lab experiments.
&#8220;Normally, the five amino acid changes is a huge, huge species barrier,&#8221; he said. &#8220;So who knows how long that will take but as it goes into more and more different mammals, it&#8217;s changing, its use of receptors, it&#8217;s changing, it&#8217;s learning to how to use different receptors for dolphins and seals. And it&#8217;s learning how to use receptors in bears and polar bears and foxes and raccoons and cats. So it&#8217;s going through a lot of changes and it&#8217;s, as it picks up some of these new receptors, it can get closer and closer to humans.&#8221;
He said that he was concerned about the virus spreading to cattle because cattle are often in close proximity to pigs and viruses jump easily from pigs to humans.
&#8220;I&#8217;m less concerned, though, that this will happen through spillover and evolution in animals,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I&#8217;m much more concerned that this will happen in the laboratory, through gain of functional research. I can create this virus, literally in weeks to months by using gain of function research. I know exactly what amino acids I have to change because in 2012, against my recommendation, the scientists that did these experiments actually published them. So the recipe for how to make bird flu highly infectious for humans is already out there. All you have to do is look at it.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Dr. Redfield: &#039;We will have a bird flu pandemic&#039; | Cuomo" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QGsM9IgVAJo?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

House Oversight And Reform Committee Holds Hearing On Government’s Preparedness And Response To Coronavirus

Trump’s CDC Director: Gain Of Function Research Will Cause Bird Flu Pandemic With 25-50% Mortality Rate

Pandemic

Robert Redfield

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/drugs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drug</a> overdoses topped records again in 2022, new government data show.
Nearly 108,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2022, according to <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db491.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
A total of 107,941 people died from drug overdoses that year, about 1,200 more or 1% higher than those who died in 2021.
The number of overdose deaths has been rising for two decades, hitting new records nearly every year.
The overdose death rate for teens and adults younger than 35 decreased slightly, while rates increased for adults age 35 and older.
Men consistently make up the vast majority of overdose deaths by far, about 70% of all deaths. In 2022, the female overdose death rate declined for the first time in five years, but the male rate continued to climb.
American Indian and Alaska Native people continued to have the highest overdose death rate, which spiked 15% in 2022. Black, Hispanic, and Asian people also saw their overdose death rates rise, while rates decreased among white Americans.
Powerful synthetic opioids such as fentanyl continue to drive the death rate up precipitously.
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Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/portland-sees-biggest-fentanyl-bust-in-sheriffs-office-history">about</a> 50 times more potent than heroin, has been on the rise in the U.S. for years. The deadly synthetic opioid is inexpensive to make, easily transported, and has been increasingly smuggled over the southern border by Mexican cartels.
As little as two milligrams of fentanyl weighing the same as a few grains of salt can cause a fatal overdose, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/portland-sees-biggest-fentanyl-bust-in-sheriffs-office-history">according</a> to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). Because it is frequently cut with other drugs, users may often be unaware that they are consuming the powerful substance, which can be deadly even in small doses.
Synthetic opioids caused about 23 deaths for every 100,000 people in 2022, 4% higher than in 2021. Meanwhile, deaths due to natural opioids such as heroin decreased.
Deaths involving cocaine also spiked 12% in 2022. Deaths involving psychostimulants such as methamphetamine also increased 4%.
Overdose death numbers for 2023 have not yet been reported.
The new data also showed that overall life expectancy increased for Americans by more than a year up to 77.5 years.
This is partially due to the COVID death rate declining, but it does not quite make up for the 2.4 years of life expectancy lost since the pandemic. Life expectancy remains lower than it has been in about two decades.
The death rates for infants and children up to 14 jumped between 2021 and 2022 while the death rate for age groups above 14 decreased.
Heart disease remained the leading cause of death, with cancer in second place.
Those conditions cause about two out of very five deaths in the country, although the death rates for both decreased 4% and 3%, respectively, in 2022.

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