Health Highlights: July 20, 2020

FDA Sends Warning Letters to 10 Companies for Illegal Sales of Vape ProductsOlder Children Spread New Coronavirus as Easily as Adults: StudyPooled Sampling Approved for COVID-19 Test

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

FDA Sends Warning Letters to 10 Companies for Illegal Sales of Vape Products

Ten companies have been ordered to remove their flavored disposable e-cigarettes and e-liquid products from the market, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says.

The products, which appeal to youth, don't have required premarket authorization. Warning letters were sent to the companies after ongoing internet monitoring for violations of tobacco laws and regulations, according to the FDA.

"We are concerned about the popularity of these products among youth and want to make clear to all tobacco product manufacturers and retailers that, even during the ongoing pandemic, the FDA is keeping a close watch on the marketplace and will hold companies accountable," FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said in an agency news release.

Three firms -- Puff Bar, HQD Tech USA LLC and Myle Vape Inc. -- received warning letters for illegally marketing disposable e-cigarettes.

Seven other companies -- Eleaf USA, Vape Deal LLC, Majestic Vapor LLC, E Cigarette Empire LLC, Ohm City Vapes Inc., Breazy Inc. and Hina Singh Enterprises (doing business as Just Eliquids Distro Inc.) -- were sent warning letters about selling unauthorized e-liquids that imitate packaging for food products that often are marketed and appeal to youth, such as Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, Twinkies, Cherry Coke and popcorn, or feature cartoon characters, the FDA said.

The 10 companies have 15 working days to respond to the FDA about correcting the violations, and face a variety of penalties if they don't take action.

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Older Children Spread New Coronavirus as Easily as Adults: Study

Children older than 10 can spread the new coronavirus as readily as adults do, according to a South Korean study that included nearly 65,000 people.

It also found that children younger than 10 are about half as likely as adults to spread the virus, The New York Times reported.

The findings, published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, come as debate about reopening schools in the fall rages across the United States

"I fear that there has been this sense that kids just won't get infected or don't get infected in the same way as adults and that, therefore, they're almost like a bubbled population," Michael Osterholm, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Minnesota, told The Times.

"There will be transmission," Osterholm said. "What we have to do is accept that now and include that in our plans."

Along with physical distancing, hand hygiene and masks, Osterholm and other experts say schools have to decide when and how to test students and staff, when and how long people need to quarantine, and when schools should be closed and reopened, the Times reported.

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Pooled Sampling Approved for COVID-19 Test

An emergency use authorization has been issued for the Quest Diagnostics' Quest SARS-CoV-2 rRT-PCR test for use with pooled samples containing up to four individual swab specimens collected under observation, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Saturday.

The test is the first COVID-19 diagnostic test to be authorized for use with pooled samples.

Sample pooling is an important public health tool because it allows for more people to be tested quickly using fewer testing resources, according to the FDA.

"This EUA for sample pooling is an important step forward in getting more COVID-19 tests to more Americans more quickly while preserving testing supplies," FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn said in an agency news release. "Sample pooling becomes especially important as infection rates decline and we begin testing larger portions of the population."

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