Viewpoints: Criminalizing Relapses During Opioid Epidemic Is Absurd; Chipping Away At ACA Threatens Mental Health Care

The New York Times: If Addiction Is A Disease, Why Is Relapsing A Crime?
When Julie Eldred tested positive for fentanyl in 2016, 11 days into her probation for a larceny charge, she was sent to jail. Such outcomes are typical in the American criminal justice system, even though, as Ms. Eldred’s lawyer has argued, ordering a drug addict to abstain from drug use is tantamount to mandating a medical outcome — because addiction is a brain disease, and relapsing is a symptom of it. Ms. Eldred’s case, now before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, has the potential to usher in a welcome change to drug control policies across the country. The case challenges the practice of requiring people with substance abuse disorders to remain drug-free as a condition of probation for drug-related offenses, and of sending offenders to jail when they relapse. (5/29)

The Hill: If You Care About Mental Health, Then Make Sure You Vote
A few weeks ago, I wrote a deeply personal essay about my battle with anxiety and mental illness. Thank you, dearly, for everyone who voiced their support and shared their own stories — they were brave, heart-wrenching, and unbelievably powerful. Together, we are demanding our lawmakers defend — not sabotage — our access to mental health services. And together, I am asking us to bring our voices to the ballot box in November. I am one of the over 40 million Americans across the country who lives with a mental illness. (Alyssa Milano, 5/29)

The New York Times: The Largest Health Disparity We Don’t Talk About
I didn’t think our relationship would last, but neither did I think it would end so soon. My patient had struggled with bipolar disorder his entire life, and his illness dominated our years together. He had, in a fit of hopelessness, tried to take his life with a fistful of pills. He had, in an episode of mania, driven his car into a tree. But the reason I now held his death certificate — his sister and mother in tears by his bed — was more pedestrian: a ruptured plaque in his coronary artery. A heart attack. (Dhruv Khullar, 5/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Why CVS Loves ObamaCare
Big business feasts on big government, and ObamaCare has been a bonanza for companies that have figured out how to exploit it. Witness how CVS Health is dining out on Ohio’s Medicaid expansion.In addition to retail pharmacies, CVS operates a pharmaceutical benefit manager (PBM) that acts as a middleman between insurers, pharmacies and drug manufacturers. PBMs decide which drugs are listed on a formulary, how much pharmacies are reimbursed and how much insurers pay. Ohio contracts with five managed-care organizations (MCOs) to administer Medicaid benefits, four of which outsource their drug benefits management to CVS Caremark, the CVS PBM. The state uses drug claims data to set its annual drug budget. So if claims increase, the state will allocate more Medicaid funds for drugs the following year. (5/29)

The Hill: The Medical And Scientific Communities Stand For Abortion Access
Last week the Trump administration rolled out a new, deeply concerning proposal designed to cut off access to federal family planning funds for facilities where abortion is performed or where patients may receive referrals to abortion services. This decision has nothing to do with improving health and safety; it is a purely political attack designed to limit access to abortion care. The consensus within the medical and scientific community is that abortion is safe, according to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM). Importantly, the report finds that medically unnecessary regulations, such as the Trump administration’s proposed “domestic gag rule,” negatively impact the quality of abortion care and harm women. (Stephanie Teal, 5/29)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: 'Right-To-Try' Means Right To Be Harmed By Unproven Treatments
Almost 40 states have passed “right-to-try” laws that allow patients to request experimental drugs directly from manufacturers. ...Many drugs that fail the testing process turn out to be not just ineffective but also dangerous. (Robert Field, 5/30)

Stat: DNA Donors Must Demand Stronger Protection For Genetic Privacy
The National Institutes of Health wants your DNA, and the DNA of 1 million other Americans, for an ambitious project called All of Us. Its goal — to “uncover paths toward delivering precision medicine” — is a good one. But until it can safeguard participants’ genetic privacy, you should decline the invitation to join unless you fully understand and accept the risks. DNA databases like All of Us could provide valuable medical breakthroughs such as identifying new disease risk factors and potential drug targets. But these benefits could come with a high price: increased risk to individuals’ genetic data privacy, something that current U.S. laws do not adequately protect. (Mason Marks and Tiffany Li May, 5/30)

Los Angeles Times: Say What? How An $800 Charge For Hearing Aids Soared To A $3,600 Healthcare Bill
There are a few things to unpack here. First, how an anticipated $800 out-of-pocket cost skyrocketed to $3,600. Second, the challenge all consumers face in finding out the actual cost of healthcare. Finally, this is a growing problem. Hearing aids are fast becoming a concern for millions of Americans as our aging society places new strains on healthcare. (David Lazarus, 5/29)

The New York Times: The Problem With Body Positivity
Everything I thought I knew about body positivity had somehow become wrong. One morning last year, I logged into my teenage daughter’s student profile to add lunch money to her account. I was surprised to find only a few dollars missing. We were driving when I confronted her. I could tell she was having difficulty putting her thoughts into words. “Mom,” she blurted out, “I want to lose weight.” (Kelly deVos, 5/29)

Los Angeles Times: Paint Companies Poisoned People With Lead Additives. Now They Want A Billion-Dollar Bailout
On the surface, the initiative sounds virtuous. ... But the real purpose is buried in legalese. The initiative would declare that lead paint is not a public nuisance, even though the court found that it was. That declaration would effectively reverse the court decision that put the paint companies on the hook, eliminating their obligation to pay for lead paint removal. It would also prevent other communities in California from suing paint companies in the future. (5/29)

Orlando Sentinel: Unfilled Nursing Jobs Could Cripple Health Care
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there will be more than 1 million vacancies for registered nurses by 2024. This is twice as bad as the worst previous nursing shortage. If there is no national and international strategy to build a work force of nurses, we will witness — very soon — crippled health-care systems across the world. (Christie Watson, 5/29)

The Hill: Young Adults With Cancer Are Seemingly Invisible
Approximately 70,000 adolescents and young adults are diagnosed with cancer each year in the United States. In fact, I’m one of them. Imagine my shock when I read through the Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer released last week and found no mention of young adults. Literally nothing about patients between the ages of 15 and 39 in the annual benchmark report on cancer put together by federal agencies and national advocacy groups. Not even a footnote. Frankly it should have been titled the “Annual Report to the Nation on the State of (Non-Millennial) Cancer.” (Kate Yglesias Houghton, 5/29)

The Washington Post: ‘Is This Normal?’ Carpal Tunnel, Hair Loss, Kidney Stones And Other Pregnancy Issues.
There’s a common refrain among women who are pregnant: “Is this normal?” Another one: “Why didn’t anyone tell me this could happen?!” And then we move on, plow forward, toughen up, ride it out and wait for that sweet little person to finally join us, not just so we can meet our baby, but so we can rid ourselves of pretty some debilitating, strange, awful, awkward symptoms. (Amy Joyce, 5/29)

Texas Tribune: After Santa Fe School Shooting, A Texas Governor’s Call To Arms
Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to move past thoughts and prayers after this month’s shooting at Santa Fe High School — even without knowing what actions he will propose — is in and of itself a break from the norm. ...Almost anything would be a break from the normal post-shooting political back-and-forth, and will be tested both practically and politically. (Ross Ramsey, 5/30)