Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Americans Say Pharma Deserves More Credit Than CDC For Covid Drugs, Vaccines
Stat: Despite Anger Over Drug Prices, Americans Credit Pharma On Covid-19
A new survey, conducted by the Harris Poll for STAT, asked more than 4,000 people what industries they credit for helping contain the coronavirus, and 71% of those surveyed said that the pharmaceutical industry deserves credit — more than the number who gave credit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, or the White House. The only entities that received a statistically significant amount more credit were hospitals, makers of protective equipment, scientists, doctors, and nurses. (Florko, 7/26)
In news on other health industry matters —
Houston Chronicle: MD Anderson, Houston Methodist Ranked Among Top Hospitals
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has once again been named the top cancer hospital in the nation in this year’s U.S. News & World Report rankings, which also recognize Houston Methodist as one of the overall best hospitals in the country. (MacDonald, 7/25)
Stat: Cerner's VA Rollout Offers Rare Look Into Hidden Harms Of Health Records
The rollout of Cerner’s electronic health record in Veterans Affairs hospitals has been a high-profile struggle: outages, training troubles, and now, an alarming report showing it directly harmed scores of patients. And while the system’s stumbles are noteworthy, they’re far from rare. Health informatics and patient safety experts acknowledge that electronic health records regularly break, in ways big and small — and largely, those problems and the harms they cause go unrecorded. (Palmer, 7/25)
KHN: Even Well-Intended Laws Can’t Protect Us From Inaccurate Provider Directories
If you have medical insurance, chances are you’ve been utterly exasperated at some point while trying to find an available doctor or mental health practitioner in your health plan’s network. It goes like this: You find multiple providers in your plan’s directory, and you call them. All of them. Alas, the number is wrong; or the doctor has moved, or retired, or isn’t accepting new patients; or the next available appointment is three months away. Or perhaps the provider simply is not in your network. (Wolfson, 7/26)
KHN: A Sexual Assault And Years Of Calls From Debt Collectors
Edy Adams had just graduated from college when she was sexually assaulted in 2013. After getting examined at an ER, she received calls from debt collectors for years over a $131 bill. “I was being haunted by this zombie bill.” (Levey, 7/25)
On racial disparities in health care —
Axios: Health Disparities Percolate Into Work-Based Coverage
The more than 150 million Americans who get their health coverage through work face significant inequities by race and ethnicity while managing complex health conditions, a new analysis from Morgan Health and NORC at the University of Chicago finds. Why it matters: While there's a perception employer-sponsored insurance delivers robust coverage, researchers found major gaps in how certain socioeconomic groups in plans managed chronic disease, accessed care and dealt with behavioral and substance use issues. (Bettelheim, 7/25)
KHN: ‘American Diagnosis’: Two Indigenous Students Share Their Path To Medicine
A lack of Native physicians means many tribal communities rely on doctors who don’t share their lived experience, culture, or spiritual beliefs. In Episode 9, meet two medical students working to join the ranks of Indigenous physicians. (7/26)
