Free Republic

An urgent health alert has been issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as the United States witnesses a sharp increase in the incidence of invasive meningococcal disease. According to CDC, meningococcal disease “refers to any illness caused by bacteria called Neisseria meningitidis. These illnesses are often severe, can be deadly, and include infections of the lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis) and bloodstream.” Transmission occurs through close contact, prompting urgent calls for individuals with symptoms to seek care promptly to improve outcomes with timely antibiotic treatment. With 422 cases recorded last year, this figure...

hey’re not escargot-ing anywhere. State officials placed part of a Florida city under quarantine Tuesday as they race to eradicate the invasive, parasite-carrying invasive giant African snail. The 3.5-mile section of Miramar in Broward County — located just 11 miles west of Hollywood — will be covered in a metaldehyde-based molluscicide to exterminate the insects after a giant African snail was found in the area earlier this month. Residents will be able to move out of the treatment area freely but are prevented from moving any plant-based supplies that could harbor the mammoth mollusk’s eggs. “Under the quarantine, it is...

A 'beautiful' mum who was planning her wedding and had 'so many plans' died after feeling unwell on her return from a family holiday. Ashleigh de Andrade had returned home to Southport, Merseyside, from a getaway at a Haven holiday park in North Wales when she began feeling poorly. The mum-of-three woke up in a sweat and had a high temperature after going for a lie down on April 26. The mental health nursing student was rushed to hospital and suffered several seizures before being put into an induced coma. She sadly died later that day. Ashleigh is survived by...

This week, a high school in the Denver area was forced to close after the death of three teachers, USA Today reported. After the deaths of 24-year-old Madelaine Michelle Schmidt and 63-year-old Judith Briere Geoffroy, authorities at Eaglecrest High School in Aurora canceled all after-school events and classes for Wednesday. “It is with great sadness that we share with you that Judith Geoffroy, ILC para, and Maddie Schmidt, ILC teacher, both passed away in the last 24 hours,” the district released in a statement. “These tragic deaths appear to be of natural causes and are unrelated. We have shared these...

To date, health authorities in Mexico’s largely rural Durango state have documented 79 meningitis cases over the past few months. Meningitis is typically associated with painful inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, often caused by a virus or in some cases bacteria or a fungal infection. The first case of meningitis in Durango was confirmed late last year when doctors diagnosed several cases of aseptic meningitis, an especially harmful inflammation of the brain. The infected patients in Durango had all been subjected to surgeries that used spinal anesthesia in private hospitals in the sprawling state’s capital...

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week reported at least seven deaths among gay and bisexual men from the serious meningococcal disease outbreak in Florida and at least 24 cases of the disease. The agency described the situation in a news release as "one of the worst outbreaks of meningococcal disease among gay and bisexual men in U.S. history." While the CDC referenced those figures last Wednesday, data from the Florida Department of Health showed 44 cases of the disease in 16 counties in Florida as of Wednesday.

Health officials on Wednesday recommended that men in Florida who have sex with other men get a meningococcal vaccine following what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called "one of the worst outbreaks of meningococcal disease among gay and bisexual men in U.S. history." The CDC said in a statement that there have been at least 24 cases and seven deaths among gay and bisexual men caused by the bacteria in Florida recently. The CDC also recommended that gay and bisexual men traveling to Florida should ask their health care provider about getting the vaccine. "Because of the outbreak...

The CDC's been trying to warn men in Florida or traveling to Florida, particularly those who identify as gay, bisexual, queer or trans, that they need to get a vaccine that can prevent them from getting meningococcal disease. Meningococcal disease, including meningitis, is a bacterial infection in the lining of the brain and spinal cord. As of Friday, there have been 26 cases and seven deaths with 24 of these cases among men who have sex with men. Six of the deaths were also a part of the LGBTQ community. Half of the cases have been in men who identify...

Escar-whoa! The alarming discovery of giant African snails — which can stretch up to 8 inches long — has sparked concern and quarantines in a Florida county. The state’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs confirmed the presence of the mammoth mollusks in Pasco County this week and warned residents to keep their distance. The snails carry the frightfully named rat lungworm parasite that can induce meningitis in humans, officials cautioned. The invasive snails are also capable of ravaging vegetation and are known to dine on more than 500 types of plants. “These snails could be devastating to Florida agriculture...

Florida’s Department of Health (FDOH) said on Thursday that the number of cases identified so far in 2022 surpasses the five-year average of meningococcal disease cases in the state. FDOH said its epidemiologists are investigating each case as well as contacting people with potential or direct exposure to known cases to provide them with information and treatment options. It urged college and university students, immunocompromised individuals, people living with HIV and men who have sex with men to get vaccinated against the disease immediately.

15 giant land snails have been captured at a Houston airport, officials said The snails, 0.25 pounds of dried beef and fresh leaves were seized at George Bush Intercontinental Airport They were seized by US Customs and Border Protection and eventually turned over to the US Department of Agriculture They were first spotted in southern Florida in the 1960s and it took nearly 10 years and $1 million to get rid of them...

Carbon County School District No. 2 canceled classes Thursday at the elementary schools in Hanna, Elk Mountain and Medicine Bow, as well as the high school in Hanna. Superintendent Jim Copeland says in a letter to parents Thursday that the one confirmed meningitis case is from Hanna Elementary. He says the other schools were closed as a precaution. He says the student's family initially thought the child had the flu.

Jack Burkman tweets the following – “The sudden death of my friend 26 year old Bre Payton is beyond strange. She dies just after breaking the story of DOJ wiping the Page-Strozek emails. The Profiling Project may open a major investigation.” 8:22 AM – 2 Jan 2019 twitter.com/Jack_Burkman/status/1080499698744680448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1080499698744680448&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fnewspunch.com%2Fjournalist-exposed-mueller-wiping-anti-trump-texts-dead%2F I am not accusing anyone of taking the life of this excellent reporter. Some say she died of the flu, but some do not believe the flu took her life. She had just broken a story on Mueller allegedly wiping messages between disgraced former FBI agent Peter Strzok and his lover Lisa...

Conservative writer for the Federalist and frequent guest on Fox News has passed away at 26 from the Swine Flu.

Injustice abounds in this life. This is the primary reason the front page of a newspaper, or website exists: to remind any and all that the more sage, wise, and good we think we have become in our own eyes—is meaningless until tested. More often than not mankind fails that test. Mankind has failed from the beginning, and apart from some significant intervention will fail to the end of time. The front page may have lies written on it, sometimes it doesn’t, but it will always report the truth: that humanity is unjust to one another. Sometimes even gleeful in...

I hired Bre Payton right out of college. She was green. She was unknown. She had never done TV. But she had worked through her last year of college, and I respected that. I interviewed a half-dozen people for the position. We met in the coffee shop I liked that had no seats, so we were by ourselves in crappy plastic chairs in the back. From the moment we started talking I realized she was a potential star. She was raw, yes, but that could be honed. She was eager to learn, to write, and to go places—not because of...

Around 8:30 this morning, December 27th, Bre's friend went into her room and found her unresponsive and barely breathing. She immediately called 911 and Bre was taken to the hospital where she was admitted to the ICU, sedated & intubated, and doctors began working up a diagnosis. After a CT scan and hours of testing, they have determined she has the H1N1 flu and possibly meningitis. The doctors are concerned that her neurological signs are not great at this point and have informed us the next 24-48 hours are going to be critical for her. George is in the hospital...

Cortney wrote about the sudden passing of Bre Payton, who was a regular fixture on Fox News and a staff writer for The Federalist. She was only 26. According to reports, she succumbed to the flu (H1N1) and possibly meningitis. Her friend Morgan Murtaugh found her unresponsive last Thursday in San Diego; Payton was in California guest hosting a show on One America News Network.I only met Bre a couple of times, but she was always a class act, very kind, and respected by many. She was talented, smart, and the Federalist was lucky to have her. She was prolific...

Bre Payton, a writer for The Federalist, was a longtime collaborator with and friend of The Daily Signal. Bre, who died Friday, was in and out of the Daily Signal offices on a near-weekly basis, as the co-host of “Problematic Women” podcast, which she worked on with our Kelsey Harkness, Lauren Evans, and more recently, Ginny Montalbano. I knew it was “Problematic Women” day because I’d often see Kelsey, Bre, and Lauren huddled up in Kelsey’s office, discussing what stories to cover. They had fun, too; when they came out of the podcast studio, they’d often be all smiles. They...

Bre Payton, a-year-old political writer and TV commentator, died suddenly on Friday, a day after being hospitalized with H1N1 swine flu, her friends and employer said. A staff writer at The Federalist and frequent guest on Fox News, Payton was found “unresponsive and barely breathing” Thursday morning by a friend and was rushed to a San Diego hospital, according to a CaringBridge fundraising page set up for her. If Payton died from meningitis, which can cause sudden death, she likely had a weakened immune system, which could have been caused by influenza. It is unclear whether Payton received the flu...