This year has been a roller coaster ride for public health, with historic firsts, unfortunate setbacks and glimmers of hope. Here’s a look back at some of the important public health topics we covered in 2024.
The Usual Suspects: COVID and Flu
In our 2023 public health highlightswe found that experts predicted 2024 as “concerning the year” in terms of numerous viruses circulating, and they were not wrong: thanks to suboptimal vaccination ratesshow CDC estimates for 2023-2024 flu season an increase in the number of illnesses and deaths compared to the previous season, and US pediatric deaths for this season (200) have already surpassed the previous reported high for a non-pandemic flu season.
In March, for the first time since 2021, the CDC updated its COVID isolation guidelinesjust a few months before the rise of “FLiRT variants“KP.2 and his relative JN.1, who were driving a summer surge. The latest COVID vaccines, released at the end of Augustincluded mRNA vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer and a protein-based vaccine from Novavax. But as with flu vaccines, uptake has been low so far.
H5N1 bird flu has spread its wings
H5N1 has been circulating in wild birds and poultry farms for years, but it received more attention when it was discovered. found in dairy cows in March 2024. As of December 18, the virus has been reported in 123,689,426 poultry and on 860 dairy farms.
More than 50 human cases were confirmed in the United States, and in October, the virus was found in a pig– raising concerns about its ability to jump between species and mutate.
“For now, the good news” Andrew PekoszPhD, professor in Molecular microbiology and immunology, said in November, “is that no clear person-to-person transmission of any significant nature has been documented or detected.”
Emerging consequences of abortion bans
Since 2022 Dobbs decision, women’s health care in the United States faced a new set of challenges. Abortion bans are change where future doctors study and workfor example, and risk exacerbating healthcare shortages and disparities.
In January, an analysis of national survey data found an increase in self-reported anxiety and depression symptoms among those surveyed in states that banned abortion after 2022 Dobbs decision, while a study published in June found that infant deaths in Texas increased more than expected in the year following the state’s ban on early pregnancy abortion in 2021.
A resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases
In November, the WHO announced that measles outbreaks were occurring in all regions of the world. In the United States, the CDC reported 16 measles outbreaks (so far) in 2024, up from four in 2023. This outbreak is believed to be caused by insufficient vaccination coveragepowered by the anti-vaccination movement.
Whooping cough has also made a comeback: more than six times more cases of highly contagious bacterial infection had been reported in November compared to the same period in 2023. The total number of cases this year is also higher than those reported during the same period in 2019, pre-COVID-19.
“We have been remarkably successful in preventing vaccine-preventable diseases and achieving high vaccination coverage in America. But there are communities in the United States where vaccination coverage is lower than it should be. » said William MossMD, MPH, Executive Director of International Vaccine Access Center and professor in Epidemiology.
Mpox has become a global concern, once again
On August 14, the WHO declared that the outbreaks of mpox (particularly clade Ib) in the Democratic Republic of Congo and several other African countries constituted a public health emergency.
“Cases have also been identified outside the African continent, for example in Sweden,” Moss said in November. “It’s only a matter of time before we see this clade I of the mpox virus here in the United States” (Note: mpox clade II circulates in the United States since the 2022 outbreak.)
THE The JYNNEOS mpox vaccine is now available in emergency areas, but efforts are still underway to distribute vaccines to those who need them.
Gun violence: a crisis and a conviction
On July 25, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, MD, declared gun violence is a public health crisis. The weapons also remained the leading cause of death among children and adolescents.
This year, however, was marked by something unprecedented: the manslaughter convictions of James and Jennifer Crumbleywhose son shot and killed four students at his school. The conviction “showed a new path, a different treatment toward school shootings and accountability,” said Tim CareyJD, legal and political advisor at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions.
Decrease in overdose deaths and STIs
CDC data December releases show nearly 17% drop in drug prices overdose death from 2023. This is believed to be due in part to the OTC availability of naloxoneas well as increased access to drug treatment medications and harm reduction services.
The STI epidemic will run out of steam in 2023, according to CDC data— with an increase in syphilis of only 1% after years of double-digit growthand gonorrhea cases fell 7%, falling below pre-COVID-19 levels.
What is behind this improvement? Experts emphasize increasing use of the antibiotic doxycycline as a “morning after pill” to reduce the risk of bacterial STIs, as well as changes in sexual behavior and testing habits among high-risk populations after the 2022 mpox epidemic.
The EPA said no to PFAS
In April, the EPA required water suppliers to reduce per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)– also known as “forever chemicals” – at near-zero levels.
“There is growing evidence that there are toxic effects (of PFAS) at various levels,” said Carsten PrassePhD, MSc, assistant professor in Environmental Health and Engineering. We hope the mandate “will lead to more research into the presence of these compounds in the environment,” he said.
However, from the Good Neighbor Plan At Chevron deferenceSCOTUS continues to disempower the agency at a time when the United States desperately needs better, more informed environmental protections.
Extreme heat and weather disasters
Communities in the United States and abroad continued to suffer the effects of the escalating climate crisis, including living with extreme heat and suffering the impact of disasters like Hurricane Helene.
A special issue of Public Health Hopkins Bloomberg review explored the Earth’s crisis and the role we all play in solving it: “Our only path forward requires deep, rapid structural change in the way we live and a global commitment to protect and regenerate natural life systems. the Earth. » wrote Samuel MyersMD, MPH, director of Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health.
Life expectancy in the United States is insufficient
A new report of the Bloomberg American Health Initiative found that heart disease, overdoses, gun violence, and motor vehicle accidents, in that order, are responsible for a 2.7 years difference in life expectancy in the United States compared to England and Wales.
“There is simply no good reason why Americans should expect to die nearly three years earlier than their counterparts across the Atlantic. » said Josh SharfsteinMD, director of the Initiative and associate dean for public health practice and community engagement. “If we choose evidence-based programmatic and policy solutions, we will close this gap. »
Looking towards 2025
We are already asking ourselves some tough questions: What powers do states have to determine and take action based on their own public health priorities?? And how election result factor in major health sectors? What future for environmental protection in the next administration?
The public health landscape is constantly evolving. But those who work in the field are no strangers to emergencies and surprises. determined to keep moving forward.
Morgan Coulson is an editorial associate in the Office of External Affairs at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.