First Edition: June 1, 2017
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
Senators’ Dueling Web Shoutouts Echo Nation’s Partisan Divide On Obamacare
Politically, Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) are not all that far apart. Both are moderates who rejected proposed cuts in Medicaid funds. And yet, in the highly polarized atmosphere of Washington, D.C., they find themselves rallying constituents along diametrically opposed positions. The dialogue has become President Obama’s Affordable Care Act versus a new GOP bill, called (for now) the American Health Care Act. A love-it-or-leave-it mentality pervades both sides. As angry voters at town halls express their concerns about the state of American health care, the senators are reaching out for patient stories to prove their respective viewpoints. (Bluth, 6/1)
Kaiser Health News:
Putting In Place An A-Team Of Allies
Earlier this year, 30 senior citizens convened in a living room to talk about growing older and needing more help.Who will be my allies as I go through this process, they asked. Many were unmarried, without children, living alone. Some had adult children living elsewhere, with demanding jobs and busy lives. Others had spouses who were ill or temperamentally unsuited to the task. (Graham, 6/1)
The Associated Press:
GOP Health Plan Could Be Costly For Those With Coverage Gaps
As a thyroid cancer survivor battling nerve damage and other complications, Lisa Dammert was in such dire financial straits in 2014 that she and her husband did the unthinkable: They let their health insurance lapse for a while. If the Dammerts and some of the millions of other Americans like them do that under the Republican health care plan now making its way through Congress, they could end up paying a heavy price. (5/31)
The Associated Press:
Sen. Cassidy's Health Care Alternative Jeered At Town Hall
Skeptics of Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy's alternative to the Affordable Care Act moaned and jeered at him during a town hall in Louisiana Wednesday, and when he said he's "neutral" on the Paris Accords to combat climate change, members of the audience groaned. One shouted, "Take a stand." The Republican senator had his supporters among the more than 200 people who jammed a meeting hall in Covington, north of New Orleans. They applauded loudly when he said insurance premiums and deductibles for health insurance have skyrocketed for some under President Barack Obama's health care law. (5/31)
Los Angeles Times:
In Washington State, A Healthcare Repeal Lesson Learned The Hard Way
Republicans in the state of Washington didn’t wait long in the spring of 1995 to fulfill their pledge to roll back a sweeping law expanding health coverage in the state. Coming off historic electoral gains, the GOP legislators scrapped much of the law while pledging to make health insurance affordable and to free state residents from onerous government mandates. It didn’t work out that way: The repeal left the state’s insurance market in shambles, sent premiums skyrocketing and drove health insurers from the state. It took nearly five years to repair the damage. (Levey, 5/31)
USA Today:
Iowa Teen’s $1 Million-Per-Month Illness No Longer A Secret
Somewhere in Iowa, a teenager with a severe bleeding disorder holds the answer to a nationally debated riddle: How could anyone rack up more than $1 million per month in medical bills? Iowa’s largest health insurer, Wellmark Blue Cross & Blue Shield, has cited the case as an extreme example of exploding health care costs. Wellmark has said the single member’s bills amplified fast-rising premiums among tens of thousands of other Iowans who buy their own insurance. (Leys, 5/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
How The Molina Brothers Got Bounced From The Family Health-Care Firm
On May 2, J. Mario Molina walked into the boardroom of Molina Healthcare Inc., the company founded by his father, which he had run for more than two decades, ready for a routine meeting. The first shock came quickly. A board member made a motion to remove Dr. Molina as chairman. The rest of the board, except Dr. Molina and his brother, John Molina, agreed, and the vote passed. They weren’t finished. Next came a motion to fire Dr. Molina as CEO of the health insurer, one of the country’s biggest players on the ACA marketplaces. And then, to dump John Molina as CFO. Both motions carried, with only the Molinas opposed. (Wilde Mathews, 5/31)
USA Today:
Having A Hard Time Sleeping? So Is President Trump And It May Affect His Performance.
The tweet came, as they often do, when many others on the East Coast are sleeping. But when President Trump complained to the twitterverse about all the "negative press covfefe," just after midnight Wednesday, sleep experts saw it as more than just a laughable lapse. "Cognitive tasks like spelling are impaired by poor sleep," says neurologist Chris Winter, author of the new book The Sleep Solution. "I would think something’s up, to put it mildly." (O'Donnell, 5/31)
Los Angeles Times:
All Jokes Aside, Trump's 'Covfefe' Tweet Sparks Questions Too
Trump’s tweet did raise concerns about the health of a president who is 70 years old, overweight and just returned from a jam-packed eight-day trip across the Middle East and Europe. Conservative writer David Frum, a former aide to President George W. Bush, tweeted his speculation that Trump may have experienced a spasm while his Twitter feed was live, and lost consciousness. “Because typos are rapidly fixed. This looks as if the president spasmed, passed out — and nobody on staff noticed,” wrote Frum, who has been a frequent critic of Trump. However innocent the truth of this matter, speculation about Trump’s mental and physical health follows a long history of presidents hiding the facts about troubling medical conditions from the public. (Bennett, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
Study: New Taxes Could Fund Universal California Health Care
A longshot California proposal to replace insurance companies with government-funded health care for all of the state's residents could be paid for with a sales tax hike and a new tax on business revenue, according to a report released Wednesday. (Bollag and Cooper, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
How Plan For California Gov't Health Care Might Be Funded
A pending state Senate bill would provide government-funded universal health care for California's 39 million residents. The bill faces a Friday deadline for passage out of the Senate if it is to be considered by the state Assembly. Here's how University of Massachusetts-Amherst researchers, in a study commissioned by the influential California Nurses Association, suggest the state pay for it. (5/31)
Los Angeles Times:
Antonio Villaraigosa Questions Whether A State Single-Payer Healthcare System Is Affordable In California
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa said he supports universal healthcare but advocates for a state-sponsored single-payer system may be “creating false expectations” given the enormous costs involved. (Willon, 5/31)
Los Angeles Times:
What Would California's Proposed Single-Payer Healthcare System Mean For Me?
The prospect of a universal single-payer healthcare system in California — in which the state covers all residents’ healthcare costs — has enthralled liberal activists, exasperated business interests and upended the political landscape in the state Capitol. But some are still trying to sort out what exactly all the fuss is about. (Mason, 6/1)
Reuters:
Mylan May Have Overcharged U.S. For EpiPen By $1.27 Billion: HHS
The U.S. government may have overpaid drugmaker Mylan N.V. by as much as $1.27 billion between 2006 and 2016 for its EpiPen emergency allergy treatment, the Department of Health and Human Services said on Wednesday. The amount is nearly three times a proposed settlement that the company announced in October. (Erman, 5/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
Medicaid Was Overcharged $1.3 Billion For Mylan’s EpiPen, Watchdog Says
Mylan said in October it had agreed to pay $465 million to resolve the allegations by the Justice Department that the company wrongly classified the EpiPen as a generic product and thereby didn’t have to provide as much of a rebate to Medicaid as it would have for a branded drug. The Department of Health and Human Services, however, said in January that it “has not agreed to any settlement.” HHS’s watchdog, the Office of Inspector General, said in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that it estimated Mylan owes the much larger sum. (Rockoff, 5/31)
The New York Times:
Express Scripts Sues Maker Of Overdose Drug, Intensifying Feud
A company that manages prescription drug plans for tens of millions of Americans has sued a tiny drug maker that makes an emergency treatment for heroin and painkiller overdoses, increasing the tension between the companies that make drugs and those that decide whether they should be covered. Express Scripts, the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits manager, is suing Kaléo, the manufacturer of Evzio, the injectable overdose treatment whose price quintupled last year, drawing widespread outrage and inquiries from members of Congress. Express Scripts claims it is owed more than $14.5 million in fees and rebates related to Evzio, and it has dropped the drug from its preferred list. (Thomas and Ornstein, 5/31)
The New York Times:
Ohio Sues Drug Makers, Saying They Aided Opioid Epidemic
The State of Ohio filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the pharmaceutical industry over the opioid epidemic, accusing several drug companies of conducting marketing campaigns that misled doctors and patients about the danger of addiction and overdose. Ohio’s attorney general, Mike DeWine, sued the drug makers in a case similar to one that was filed by Mississippi in 2015 and is still pending. In another case, West Virginia went after major drug distributors and has reached settlements that will pay the state tens of millions of dollars. The City of Chicago, and counties in New York, California and West Virginia, have all started litigation. (Perez-Pena, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
Ohio Attorney General Sues 5 Drugmakers Over Opiate Crisis
Attorney General Mike DeWine said the companies created a deadly mess in Ohio that they now need to pay to clean up. “This lawsuit is about justice, it’s about fairness, it’s about what is right,” DeWine said in announcing the complaint filed in Ross County, a southern Ohio community slammed by fatal drug overdoses from painkillers and heroin. (Smyth, 5/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
Ohio Sues Five Drug Firms, Saying They Fueled Opioid Crisis
The complaint, filed in state court in Ross County on Wednesday, targets parent companies and various subsidiaries, including Purdue Pharma L.P.; Johnson & Johnson; Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.; Allergan PLC; and Endo International PLC’s Endo Health Solutions unit. Johnson & Johnson denied the allegations. The other companies either declined to comment or said officials were reviewing the allegations. (Whalen, 5/31)
The Washington Post:
Health Officials Vow To Develop Drugs To Curb The Opioid Epidemic
Top federal health officials said Wednesday that they will launch a joint effort with pharmaceuticals companies to accelerate the development of drugs aimed at helping to curb the U.S. opioid epidemic. Francis S. Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Nora D. Volkow, who heads one its components, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), announced a public-private partnership aimed at cutting in half the time ordinarily needed to develop new therapies. (Bernstein, 5/31)
Los Angeles Times:
How A 5-Sentence Letter Helped Fuel The Opioid Addiction Crisis
Close to 200,000 Americans have died by overdosing on prescription painkillers, and a new report traces some of the blame to five simple sentences written nearly 40 years ago. The sentences, containing just 101 words, appeared in a 1980 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. They formed a letter to the editor that described a rudimentary analysis of 11,822 hospital patients who took a narcotic painkiller at least once. The vast majority of those patients tolerated the drugs without incident, according to Jane Porter and Dr. Hershel Jick of the Boston Collaborative Drug Surveillance Program. (Kaplan, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
Baltimore Officials To Make Opioid Antidote Easily Available
Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen will sign a new standing order making an antidote that reverses the effects of opioids available over the counter. Wen will sign the order on Thursday at 9 a.m. at Fibus Drug Store. The order will make the medication, called naloxone, readily available to residents. Previously, a training session was required to receive a naloxone prescription. (6/1)
The Associated Press:
A Tool To Protect Police Dogs In Drug Raids From Overdosing
Police dogs simply follow their noses to sniff out narcotics. But inhaling powerful opioids can be deadly, so officers have a new tool to protect their four-legged partners: naloxone, a drug that has already been used for years to reverse overdoses in humans. Law enforcement officers have started carrying naloxone with them on drug raids, when K-9s are often sent into houses or cars to find narcotics. Three police dogs in Florida were rushed to an animal hospital last year when they ingested fentanyl, a powerful painkiller that is often mixed with street heroin but 50 times more potent. (Lavoie, 6/1)
Reuters:
VA Chief Presses Congress To Make It Easier To Fire Workers For Misconduct
Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin urged Congress on Wednesday to pass a law that would let him respond more quickly to employee misconduct, such as the case of a psychiatrist who was caught watching pornography on an iPad while seeing a patient. Shulkin, in a briefing on the state of the department, said that veterans' access to medical care had improved significantly since a scandal over wait times three years ago prompted the resignation of a VA secretary and forced major reforms. (Alexander, 5/31)
The Wall Street Journal:
Veterans Affairs Chief Says Medical Marijuana Drawing Interest As Potential Treatment
Dr. David Shulkin, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said Wednesday that medical marijuana may benefit veterans dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder, and encouraged lawmakers to debate the issue. “There may be some evidence that this is beginning to be helpful, and we’re interested in looking at that,” Dr. Shulkin told reporters at the White House when asked about medical marijuana. (Bender, 5/31)
The Washington Post:
More Than A Third Of Teenage Girls Experience Depression, New Study Says
Depression is usually considered an issue parents have to watch out for starting in the turbulent teenage years. The CW channel, full of characters with existential angst about school, friends and young love, tells us so, as do the countless parenting books about the adolescent years in every guidance counselor's office. But what if by that time it's already too late? (5/31)
NPR:
Using Music To Boost Hearing In Noisy Environments
Trying to make out what someone is saying in a noisy environment is a problem most people can relate to, and one that gets worse with age. At 77, Linda White hears all right in one-on-one settings but has problems in noisier situations. "Mostly in an informal gathering where people are all talking at once," she says. "The person could be right beside you, but you still don't hear them." (Siegel and Hsu, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
Group: 504 Californians Got Life-Ending Prescriptions
At least 504 terminally ill Californians have requested a prescription for life-ending drugs since a state law allowing physician-assisted deaths went into effect in June 2016, marking the first publicly released data on how the practice is playing out in the nation's most populous state. The number represents only those who have contacted Compassion & Choices, an advocacy group that provides information on the process. The organization believes the overall figure to be much higher. (6/1)
Los Angeles Times:
Knowingly Exposing Others To HIV Should No Longer Be A Felony, State Senate Says
The state Senate on Wednesday voted to no longer make it a felony for someone infected with HIV to knowingly expose others to the disease by having unprotected sex without telling his or her partner about the infection. (McGreevy, 5/31)
The Associated Press:
Health Records Vendor Settles False-Claims Lawsuit For $155M
One of the country's largest vendors of electronic health records will pay a $155 million settlement to resolve allegations it caused health care providers to submit false claims to the federal government, the U.S. Department of Justice and federal prosecutors in Vermont announced Wednesday. The acting U.S. attorney for Vermont said eClinicalWorks, of Westborough, Massachusetts, and three executives will pay the settlement to resolve allegations the company misrepresented the abilities of its software and paid kickbacks to some customers in exchange for promoting its products. (5/31)
Reuters:
NYC Rehab Chain Narco Freedom Pleads Guilty To Corruption
A trustee for a Bronx-based chain of drug and alcohol rehabilitation clinics pleaded guilty on its behalf to stealing millions of dollars from Medicaid, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said on Wednesday.The plea came 2-1/2 years after the attorney general accused Narco Freedom and some of its officials of trying to plunder the nonprofit and defraud Medicaid of at least $27 million. (Stempel, 5/31)