Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As More Physicians Speak Out On Gun Control, Study Finds Doctor-Affiliated PACs Give To Candidates Against Tougher Restrictions
The Wall Street Journal: Doctors’ PACs Favored Candidates Opposing Gun Background Checks
Political-action committees affiliated with doctors’ organizations donated more money to congressional candidates who opposed tighter gun laws than to those supporting them, according to a new study that has revived a debate over what role physicians should play in the issue. The study, released in late February on the JAMA Network Open, which is published by the American Medical Association, highlighted the political contributions during the 2016 election cycle to House and Senate lawmakers who opposed an expansion of background checks for gun sales, despite some physicians’ groups’ endorsement of the policy. (Peterson, 3/3)
San Francisco Chronicle: California Backlog Of Prohibited Gun Owners Drops A Bit But Still Tops 9,000
The state Justice Department reported Friday that at the end of 2018, its gun confiscation program had 9,404 active cases, a drop of about 820 from the previous year. The cases included 538 people who have been on the list since at least 2013, when lawmakers provided funding to boost enforcement. (Koseff, 3/1)
In other news about Congress and Capitol Hill —
The Wall Street Journal: Medicare For All Loses Momentum Among Democrats
Democratic support for Medicare for All is slipping from the high levels seen around the November midterm elections as voters worry about its price tag and the toll it would take on both private and employer health coverage. The proposal seeks to provide everyone in the U.S. with access to health coverage under a federal system that would replace Medicaid, Medicare, most private insurance and employer coverage. Progressive candidates issued full-throated endorsements during campaigns for congressional and state-level elections last November. As the message resonated among voters, even some centrist candidates joined as well. (Armour and Peterson, 3/1)
Modern Healthcare: Economists Send Healthcare Cost Control Ideas To Senate
Eight prominent health economists—including moderate liberals and moderate conservatives—have offered a key Senate chairman 13 recommendations for government actions to reduce the growth of healthcare costs. But one of those economists conceded that the chances of federal or state action on most of these proposals is dim due to partisan deadlock in Congress and opposition from stakeholder groups. The economists from the Brookings Institution and the American Enterprise Institute sent the suggestions Friday to Sen. Lamar Alexander, chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, at his request. (Meyer, 3/1)
