First Edition: Dec. 14, 2022

KHN: What Germany’s Coal Miners Can Teach America About Medical Debt 
Almost every day, Dr. Eckart Rolshoven sees the long shadow of coal mining in his clinic near the big brownstone church that dominates this small town in Germany’s Saarland. The region’s last-operating coal shaft, just a few miles away, closed a decade ago, ending centuries of mining in the Saarland, a mostly rural state tucked between the Rhine River and the French border. But the mines left a difficult legacy, as they have in coal regions in the United States, including West Virginia. (Levey, 12/14)

KHN: States Challenge Biden To Lower Drug Prices By Allowing Imports From Canada
The Biden administration is facing mounting pressure from states to let them import medicine from Canada to help lower prescription drug costs. Colorado on Dec. 5 became at least the fourth state to seek federal permission to use the strategy, following Florida, New Hampshire, and New Mexico. President Joe Biden has endorsed the approach, but his administration has yet to greenlight a state plan. (Galewitz, 12/14)

The Washington Post: Experimental Skin Cancer Vaccine Shows Promising Early Results 
For the first time, messenger RNA technology — the advance that undergirds the most commonly used coronavirus vaccines — has been shown effective against a deadly form of skin cancer, when used in conjunction with a second cancer drug, according to preliminary study results released Tuesday. The experimental cancer vaccine from Moderna that uses mRNA, combined with Merck’s cancer immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab, marketed as Keytruda, performed well in mid-stage testing in patients battling melanoma, the two companies announced Tuesday. (Bernstein, 12/13)

Stat: Moderna Cancer Vaccine Reduces Melanoma’s Return By 44%
The 157 patients in the Phase 2 study had stage 3 or stage 4 melanoma that could be surgically removed so that there was no visible disease. Then Moderna scanned samples of their tumors using genetic sequencing and artificial intelligence to look for mutations that are likely to make the cancer come back. A personalized mRNA vaccine was made containing mRNA code for up to 34 proteins found in this sample. Patients received the resulting vaccine at a dose of one milligram once every three weeks for nine months. (Herper, 12/13)

Axios: Biden Admin Extends Pandemic-Era Flexibilities On Opioid Use Treatments
The Biden administration is moving to make permanent the pandemic rules that allowed take-home drugs to help fight opioid addiction. The proposed rule from HHS would make it easier for patients with opioid use disorder to access drugs like methadone for home use and for providers to prescribe them via telehealth for patients with opioid use disorder. (Moreno and Reed, 12/14)

Stat: Addiction Treatment Would Stay Easier To Get Under New Rule 
Addiction treatment got easier during the Covid-19 pandemic — and the Biden administration wants to keep it that way. Federal regulators on Tuesday announced a proposal to take the emergency policies enacted in 2020, in response to the emerging pandemic, and make them permanent. (Facher, 12/13)

The New York Times: Long Covid Has Played Role In More Than 3,500 Deaths In US, CDC Says 
Long Covid has caused or contributed to at least 3,500 deaths in the United States, an analysis of death certificates by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. The study, published on Wednesday, is believed to be the first nationwide examination of whether long Covid or related terms appear in official American death records. While it found that such phrases were recorded in only a tiny proportion of the more than a million deaths tied to infection with the coronavirus, the researchers and other experts said the results added to growing recognition of how serious long-term post-Covid medical problems can be. (Belluck, 12/14)

Stat: Long Covid Death Certificate Records Are A ‘Floor Of An Estimate’
Long Covid has begun appearing on death certificates for a small percentage of people who have died during the pandemic, but that tiny fraction of records only hints at the whole story, two experts told STAT, while another has doubts about drawing any conclusions from it at all. (Cooney, 12/14)

Stat: Lawmakers Tell Pfizer CEO To 'Back Off' On Covid Vaccine Price Hike
A pair of U.S. lawmakers wrote Pfizer chief executive officer Albert Bourla that he should “back off” from plans to charge Americans up to $130 for the company’s Covid-19 vaccine, a move they described as “pure and deadly greed.” (Silverman, 12/13)

The Boston Globe: Paxlovid Lowered COVID Hospitalizations, Deaths In Vaccinated Adults Over 50, Mass General Brigham Study Says
Paxlovid, the drug used to treat COVID-19 infections, reduced hospitalizations and death in a vaccinated population of adults over the age of 50 by 44 percent, according to a new study from Mass General Brigham researchers. (Andersen, 12/13)

San Francisco Chronicle: New COVID Infections Among US Veterans Have Doubled In 1 Month
New COVID-19 cases in the Veterans Affairs health system have nearly doubled in the past month, according to data from the Department of Veterans Affairs and Military Times. More than 12,156 patients had active cases of COVID-19 as of Tuesday, nearly double the 6,425 on Nov. 1. There have been 267 deaths reported in that time. (Vaziri and Beamish, 12/13)

NPR: How COVID Warped Our Time Perception
The pandemic did something strange to our sense of time. For Ruth Ogden, lockdown spent confined to her 3-bedroom duplex in Manchester, England, with a newborn and two boys home from school, "was like climbing a mountain that never ended." Time stood still, she says, filled with children moaning of boredom, and her yearning for bedtime. (Noguchi, 12/14)

CIDRAP: Studies Show Mpox Viral Clearance Time, Impact Of Pre-Exposure Vaccination 
A new study based on 77 mpox patients from Spain shows that the time from symptom onset to viral clearance for 90% of cases was likely 41 days in skin lesions and 39 days in semen. The study was published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. In the first study, participants had the most viral DNA in skin lesion swabs, followed by rectal swabs, whole blood, oropharyngeal swabs, and semen samples. And different body parts had detectable DNA for a range of durations, with blood containing detectable virus DNA for 5 days, compared to 25 days for skin lesions. (Soucheray, 12/13)

The New York Times: Biden Signs Bill To Protect Same-Sex Marriage Rights
President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law on Tuesday, mandating federal recognition for same-sex marriages and capping his own personal evolution toward embracing gay rights over the course of a four-decade political career. In an elaborate signing ceremony on the South Lawn, complete with musical performances from Cyndi Lauper and Sam Smith, Mr. Biden told thousands of supporters and lawmakers that the new law represents a rare moment of bipartisanship when Democrats and Republicans came together. (Shear, 12/13)

Salt Lake Tribune: LDS Leaders At Biden Signing Event For Respect For Marriage Act
Even as representatives of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joined others in celebrating President Joe Biden’s signing Tuesday of a measure codifying same-sex marriage, the Utah-based faith reaffirmed its belief in male-female marriage while praising the new law’s religious exemptions. (Fletcher Stack, 12/13)

AP: Vermont Governor Signs Amendment Protecting Abortion Rights
Republican Gov. Phil Scott on Tuesday signed the document inscribing the Reproductive Liberty Amendment into the Vermont Constitution, formally changing the state’s founding document to protect reproductive rights including abortion. Scott also signed a second constitutional amendment stating that slavery and indentured servitude are prohibited in the state. (Ring, 12/13)

Reuters: Full 7th Circuit Urged To Strike Down Indiana Fetal Burial Law 
Abortion patients and doctors are urging a federal appeals court to overrule a three-judge panel's order last month upholding a 2016 Indiana law that requires healthcare providers to bury or cremate fetal remains, rather than incinerate them with medical waste. (Pierson, 12/13)

AP: Indiana Appealing 2nd Court Decision Blocking Abortion Ban
A second legal challenge that has blocked Indiana’s abortion ban from being enforced could also be headed to the state Supreme Court. The Indiana attorney general’s office asked the state’s highest court to review a county judge’s Dec. 2 ruling that the abortion ban adopted in August by the Republican-dominated Legislature violates the state’s 2015 religious freedom law signed by GOP then-Gov. Mike Pence. (Davies, 12/13)

NBC News: Abortion Restrictions Linked To Higher Maternal And Infant Mortality, Report Finds
According to the report, states that heavily restricted abortion access in 2020 had maternal death rates that were 62% higher than they were in states where abortion was more easily accessible. The disparity may be aggravated by state-level changes after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, the report says. (Madani, 12/14)

AP: US Study: Over Half Of Car Crash Victims Had Drugs In System
A large study by U.S. highway safety regulators found that more than half the people injured or killed in traffic crashes had one or more drugs, or alcohol, in their bloodstreams. Also, just over 54% of injured drivers had drugs or alcohol in their systems, with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an active ingredient in marijuana, the most prevalent, followed by alcohol, the study published Tuesday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found. (Krisher, 12/13)

The Boston Globe: ‘No One Really Wants To Talk About Alcohol’: Alcohol Abuse Costs Mass. More Than $5 Billion Yearly, New Analysis Finds
Alcohol abuse costs Massachusetts at least $5.6 billion annually, while causing thousands of deaths and illnesses, according to a new analysis from Boston University researchers. (Lazar, 12/13)

Stat: New Changes To Obamacare Generics Coverage Splits Industry
The Biden administration signaled Monday that it will require health plans on federal exchanges to cover more of the costs of generic drugs, a small tweak that nevertheless has industry groups divided on how best to manage drug costs. (Owermohle, 12/13)

USA Today: Ambulance Rides Yield Surprise Medical Bills: What's Being Done?
When people dial 911, perhaps the last thing they think about is how much the ambulance ride will cost. But a report released Tuesday by U.S. PIRG Education Trust shows ambulance companies routinely bill out-of-network charges. This happens when an insurance plan's network doesn't include the public or private ambulance company. (Alltucker, 12/13)

Stat: 9 In 10 Health Companies With Financial Stress Are Owned By Private Equity
Almost 90% of the health care companies deemed to be under financial stress by a leading credit rating agency are owned by private equity, a stark indicator of the toll financial investors have taken on a vital sector. (Bannow, 12/14)

AP: Study: Medicaid Providers Mostly Can't Be Reached By Phone 
A “secret shopper” accountability study shows that medical patients can’t readily schedule appointments by phone through Medicaid providers in New Mexico, even as the state and federal government spend $8.8 billion annually on the health care program that serves nearly half of state residents. The budget and accountability office of the Legislature presented its findings Tuesday to a panel of lawmakers as evidence of an inadequate network of health care providers. (Lee, 12/14)

Stat: Telehealth Startups Sent Sensitive Health Data To Big Tech Companies
Open the website of Workit Health, and the path to treatment starts with a simple intake form: Are you in danger of harming yourself or others? If not, what’s your current opioid and alcohol use? How much methadone do you use? Within minutes, patients looking for online treatment for opioid use and other addictions can complete the assessment and book a video visit with a provider licensed to prescribe suboxone and other drugs. (Palmer, Feathers and Fondrie-Teitler, 12/13)

San Francisco Chronicle: Nurses At Alta Bates Summit Plan To Strike, Sutter Officials Say
“The nurses’ union at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center has called a 9-day strike from December 24 - January 2, its third strike of the year,” according to a Sutter, which released a statement on Tuesday night. Alta Bates Summit has hospitals in Oakland and Berkeley. (Parker, 12/13)

The Washington Post: From Heart Disease To IUDs: How Doctors Dismiss Women’s Pain
One woman was told she was being “dramatic” when she pleaded for a brain scan after suffering months of headaches and pounding in her ears. It turned out she had a brain tumor. Another was ignored as she cried out in pain during a 33-hour labor. She was supposed to be getting pain medication through her epidural, but it had fallen out. Dozens of women complained of torturous pain as their vaginal walls were punctured during an egg retrieval process. They were told their pain was normal, but, in actuality, they were getting saline instead of anesthesia. (Bever, 12/13)

The Washington Post: Women Can Develop High Blood Pressure Up To A Year After Giving Birth 
For up to a year after giving birth, more than 1 in 10 women (12 percent) who did not have high blood pressure before or during pregnancy develop the condition, according to research published in the journal Hypertension. The study found that, in nearly a fourth of those cases, hypertension developed six weeks or more after childbirth, and 17 percent of the women had what was considered a severe case. The researchers analyzed blood pressure measurements from the prenatal period through 12 months after delivery for the 3,925 study participants, including 2,465 women with no history of chronic or pregnancy-related hypertension. (Searing, 12/13)

Stat: Study Finds Why Some Drugs May Trigger Lethal Brain Disease 
Medicines that reshape or tamp down immune responses may be life-changing for patients with cancer and autoimmune disorders, but in some cases they can awaken a dormant virus and unleash a deadly brain disease. A new study suggests that the root of the problem is buried in our genetic code. (Wosen, 12/14)

The New York Times: Brain Implants Have Begun To Restore Functions, But Advances Are Slow
A jumble of cords and two devices the size of soda cans protrude from Austin Beggin’s head when he undergoes testing with a team of researchers studying brain implants that are meant to restore function to those who are paralyzed. Despite the cumbersome equipment, it is also when Mr. Beggin feels the most free. He was paralyzed from the shoulders down after a diving accident eight years ago, and the brain device picks up the electrical surges that his brain generates as he envisions moving his arm. It converts those signals to cuffs on the major nerves in his arm. They allow him to do things he had not done on his own since the accident, like lift a pretzel to his mouth. (Jewett and Metz, 12/13)

Reuters: Ex-Employee Of Pharmacy In Deadly 2012 Meningitis Outbreak Gets Prison
A former employee of a Massachusetts compounding pharmacy whose mold-tainted drugs sparked a deadly nationwide fungal meningitis outbreak in 2012 was sentenced on Tuesday to five months in prison for deceiving regulators about its operations before the tragedy. (Raymond, 12/13)

Reuters: WHO Appoints Jeremy Farrar As Chief Scientist
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that Jeremy Farrar will become its new chief scientist as the agency prepares to cope with post-pandemic health challenges. He will join the WHO in the second quarter of 2023, replacing Soumya Swaminathan, who departed in November ahead of a broader shakeup at the health agency. (12/13)

Axios: Report Details Online Harassment Of Trans Health Care Providers
Anti-transgender campaigns resulted in the online harassment of 24 different hospitals and health care providers in 21 states over a recent four-month period, according to a report from Human Rights Campaign shared first with Axios. (Fried, 12/13)

The Colorado Sun: To Access Care, Many Older LGBTQIA+ Adults Go Back Into Closet
After living in the closet for more than 40 years, ​Cynthia Johnson left her marriage with her high school sweetheart and embarked on a new life. She started dating women, continued to pursue a career in ministry and learned to be on her own for the first time. Now, she’s 86 and largely back in the closet, “because I don’t trust how people are going to respond,” she said, “and they don’t need to know.” (Cleveland, 12/13)

WMFE: AdventHealth Orchestra Made Up Of Doctors And Nurses Who Use Music To Heal 
In Central Florida, AdventHealth is known for, well, health care. But the organization is made up of people – individuals who have put everything they have into caring for the community. And now, they say they have a new way to help – and to heal: the AdventHealth Orchestra. (Creston, 12/13)