Smoking, recent substance use and metastatic complications are significant predictors of ICU admission and poor outcomes in individuals who have Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteremia, according to a study presented at IDWeek 2025. The study highlights the protective effect of pneumococcal vaccination, with only 43% of patients up to date on their immunizations.

A study in Clinical Infectious Diseases found Pfizer's RSV vaccine RSVpreF was 92% effective among adults ages 60 and older, including those with severe disease and underlying conditions. The CDC recommends the vaccine for adults 75 and older and those 50 to 74 at increased risk. "Reassuringly, our study similarly found a VE (vaccine effectiveness) of 90% against critical outcomes (ie, ICU admission or mechanical ventilation), similar to the VISION study's results: 81% VE against RSV-related critical illness (ie, ICU admission or in-hospital death)," researchers wrote.

A study in the journal Pediatrics linked multiple patient factors such as age to pediatric care quality in emergency medical services. For most measures, higher performance was seen with older patient ages. Children with trauma who were from Hispanic, Latino and Black families were less likely to see improvements in pain, researchers found.

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The CMS debuted a beta version of the national provider directory at the Health Tech Ecosystem Connectathon in Washington, D.C. This directory aims to help beneficiaries locate providers that accept Medicare, marking a significant step in the CMS' interoperability initiative, launched in collaboration with the White House. This initiative focuses on voluntary industry standards to improve health care data transfer and patient access.

Utah, Virginia and New Jersey had the highest percentages of hospitals earning "A" grades for safety in the Leapfrog Group's latest report. Ninety-four percent of the hospitals with "A" grades are part of larger health systems. Five hospitals that received failing grades have filed a lawsuit against Leapfrog.

The COVID-19 pandemic period saw significant wage increases for some health care workers, according to a report in Health Affairs. Aides and assistants experienced the biggest gains with a 13.6% increase. Registered nurses saw an increase of 3.8%, technicians 1.1% and advanced practice providers 8.3%.

The US received a D+ for its 10.4% preterm birth rate for the fourth consecutive year, according to a March of Dimes report. The report highlighted significant disparities, with a 9.5% preterm birth rate for babies born to white mothers, compared with 14.7% for babies born to Black mothers. Data showed improved preterm birth rate percentages in 19 states, while the numbers worsened in 21 states, according to the CDC.