-
Aug 7, 2025, 10:04 AM
FTC Invites Public Comment on Gender-Affirming Care
On July 28, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it is inviting public comment to “better understand how consumers may have been exposed to false or unsupported claims about ‘gender-affirming care’ (GAC), especially as it relates to minors, and to gauge the harms consumers may be experiencing.” The 60-day comment period runs through September 26, 2025.
-
Aug 7, 2025, 08:33 AM
FDA Requires Major Changes to Opioid Pain Medication Labeling to Emphasize Risks
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is requiring safety labeling changes to all opioid pain medications to better emphasize and explain the risks associated with their long-term use.
-
Aug 6, 2025, 10:08 AM
Requested Malpractice Insurance Rate Increases Shared by JUA
Recently, the Joint Underwriting Association (JUA), Pennsylvania’s medical liability insurer of last resort, generously shared with PAMED requested premium increased from select insurance providers. It is important to remember that these are requested increases, not approved increases. The Pennsylvania Insurance Department has yet to respond to any of these requested increases.
-
Aug 6, 2025, 09:37 AM
Pennsylvania Court Upholds Bucks County Venue in Medical Malpractice Suit
On July 30, 2025, the Pennsylvania Superior Court issued an encouraging venue-related ruling in Somerlot v. Jung. The court upheld a contractual forum selection clause that limited any lawsuit to the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, thereby thwarting the Plaintiffs’ effort to have the case heard in uber-plaintiff-friendly Philadelphia.
-
Aug 6, 2025, 09:33 AM
PAMED and AMA Argue for Enforcement of Certificate of Merit
The AMA, joined by PAMED and the Delaware and New Jersey medical societies, filed an amici curiae brief with the U.S. Supreme Court on August 4, 2025 in the case of Berk v. Choy. Whether a state law providing that a complaint must be dismissed unless it is accompanied by an expert affidavit may be applied in federal court is the question before the court. Our brief argues that the state affidavit requirement should be applied in federal court.
-
Aug 6, 2025, 08:33 AM
PAMED Announces Exciting Partnership with Saint Joseph’s University
PAMED is proud to announce a new partnership with Saint Joseph’s University. The agreement is twofold, including a tuition discount and the ability to earn CME credits through PAMED.
-
Aug 6, 2025, 08:08 AM
Increased Volume of Calls Related to Kratom/Mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) to Pennsylvania's Poison Centers
Pennsylvania Poison Centers are seeing increased call volume around both kratom and 7-OH consumption. Unregulated products marketed as “Kratom” and “7-hydroxymitragynine” (aka 7-OH) are increasingly sold online, in smoke shops, and at gas stations.
-
Aug 1, 2025, 10:26 AM
Harmful Algal Bloom Exposures in Recreational Waterbodies in Pennsylvania
Exposure to harmful algal blooms (HABs) can cause sickness in humans and animals
-
Jul 31, 2025, 07:35 AM
Department of Health Temporary Scheduling of Substance; Nitazene Class of Compounds
The Secretary of Health (Secretary) of the Department of Health is issuing this final order to temporarily schedule any material, compound, mixture or preparation which contains any quantity of the following Nitazene substances, their salts, isomers and salts of isomers.
-
Jul 31, 2025, 07:10 AM
Comprehensive Healthcare Workforce Development Training
The PA Department of Health’s (DOH) Comprehensive Healthcare Workforce Development Training Initiative (previously known as Implicit Bias Training) is launching the second phase of training.
-
Jul 30, 2025, 14:10 PM
Continuous Glucose Monitor Receiver Recall
Dexcom, Inc. is recalling certain Dexcom G6, G7, ONE, and ONE+ glucose monitoring receivers because a problem with the speaker may cause it to fail to make an alert sound when blood sugar is dangerously low or high.
-
Jul 28, 2025, 10:46 AM
HHS Adopts ACIP Recommendation to Remove Thimerosal from All U.S. Influenza Vaccines
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. took action July 23, 2025, signing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommendations to remove the mercury-based preservative thimerosal from all influenza vaccines distributed in the United States.
-
Jul 24, 2025, 12:01 PM
PAMPAC’s Mid-Year Update
As we head into the dog days of summer, PAMPAC continues working to increase physician engagement in the political process. As we have discussed previously, PAMED’s legislative advocacy efforts rely on the “behind the scenes” work PAMPAC does in the “political advocacy” space. Without a strong political voice, working to achieve legislative goals becomes increasingly more difficult.
-
Jul 24, 2025, 09:36 AM
PHC4’s Cardiac Procedures Report
PHC4’s Cardiac Procedures Report, released today, displays results for six cardiac procedures performed in Pennsylvania acute care hospitals from January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2023. This report displays hospital-specific ratings for in-hospital mortality, readmissions, extended postoperative length of stay, volume of cases, and average hospital charges.
-
Jul 24, 2025, 09:24 AM
Proposed Medicare Rule Will Impact Payment Amounts
On July 16, 2025, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) offered a proposed rule concerning the physician fee schedule and other Medicare payment policies. The rule, if adopted, will take effect January 1, 2026.
-
Jul 23, 2025, 11:12 AM
PAMED Joins Health Care Leaders on Statement Responding to Superior Court Ruling
Leaders from associations representing Pennsylvania health care providers and businesses released the following statement about implications that the Pennsylvania Superior Court’s ruling.
-
Jul 22, 2025, 13:10 PM
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF) and Spotted Fever Rickettsiosis (SFR) in Pennsylvania
Spotted fever rickettsioses (SFR), including Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), are tickborne diseases commonly seen in PA in May through August.
-
Jul 21, 2025, 11:51 AM
Nationwide Pfizer Recall and Subsequent Stockout of Penicillin G Benzathine
The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) was notified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals that there is a nationwide voluntary recall and subsequent near-term stockout of Benzathine Penicillin G (Bicillin L-A®)
-
Jul 17, 2025, 14:35 PM
Superior Court Rules Unfavorably in Dajah Hagans v. Hospital
The Superior Court recently ruled unfavorably in Dajah Hagans v. Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, et al., a case in which PAMED and the AMA partnered on an amici curiae (“friends of the court”) brief. The case concerns the treatment that J.H., a now-seven-year-old boy, received at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (“HUP”) at the time of his birth. Specifically, the plaintiff, J.H.’s mother, alleged that a delayed C-section and late administration of antibiotics caused major negative health consequences for J.H.
-
Jul 17, 2025, 08:22 AM
Shaping Policy, Championing Voices: A Reference Committee Insider’s Take on HOD Resolutions
With the completion of his psychiatry residency at Thomas Jefferson University, Nathan Hoff, MD, MPH is not just looking ahead to his new role in adult outpatient psychiatry, he’s also reflecting on his journey on the Pennsylvania Medical Society’s (PAMED) Reference Committee.