Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Data Says Autism Affects 1 In Every 44 US Kids
AP: New Data Suggests 1 In 44 US Children Affected By Autism
New autism numbers released Thursday suggest more U.S. children are being diagnosed with the developmental condition and at younger ages. In an analysis of 2018 data from nearly a dozen states, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that among 8-year-olds, 1 in 44 had been diagnosed with autism. That rate compares with 1 in 54 identified with autism in 2016. U.S. autism numbers have been on the rise for several years, but experts believe that reflects more awareness and wider availability of services to treat the condition rather than a true increase in the number of affected children. (Tanner, 12/2)
The Hill: Adams: Maternal Health Is In 'A Crisis Within A Crisis'
Rep. Alma Adams (D-N.C.) raised alarm Thursday about the quality of maternal health around the country, saying American women are dying in childbirth more than other wealthy countries — and are now dealing with an additional public health crisis. “The state of maternal health is still in crisis,” Adams, the co-chair of the Black Maternal Health Caucus, said at The Hill’s Investing in Maternal and Infant Health event. (Schonfield, 12/2)
Modern Healthcare: 13M People Delayed Or Didn't Fill Prescription Drugs Pre-Pandemic
An estimated 13 million adults delayed getting or didn't fill prescription drugs prior to the COVID-19 pandemic due to cost, according to a new survey. More than one-quarter of Medicare beneficiaries and 5.3% of privately insured adults spent more than 1% of their household income on their out-of-pocket prescription drug costs, according to the Urban Institute's estimated annual averages of 2018 and 2019 Medicare Expenditure Panel Survey data from nearly 30,000 Americans. More than 3% of Medicare beneficiaries—and nearly 7% of beneficiaries with unmet prescription drug needs—spent more than 10% of their household income on prescription drugs. (Kacik, 12/2)
AP: US Jobless Claims Rise By 28,000, But Still Low At 222,000
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week even though the U.S. job market has been rebounding from last year's coronavirus recession. Jobless claims climbed by 28,000 to 222,000 from the previous week's 52-year low 194,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week ups and downs, fell below 239,000, a pandemic low. (Wiseman, 12/2)
Public Health Watch: Cancer Cases In Kids Are Rising. Some Experts Blame Toxic Chemicals
In April 2008, Jonathan Agin’s 27-month-old daughter, Alexis, was diagnosed with DIPG, a rare brain tumor. Agin, then a civil defense lawyer in Washington, D.C., was dislodged from his comfortable life and dragged into the surreal world of a young cancer victim’s parent: the sleepless nights in the din of a hospital, the grueling clinical trials. “I always had hope,” Agin said in a recent interview, though he knew most DIPG patients survive no more than two years after diagnosis. Alexis lived for 33 months after her tumor was found. Toward the end of her life, she was unable to walk or speak. She died at 3:03 p.m. on Jan. 14, 2011. (Morris and Berryman, 12/3)
In public health news related to covid —
The Wall Street Journal: Antonio Brown, Two Other NFL Players Suspended For Misrepresenting Vaccine Status
The NFL suspended Tampa Bay Buccaneers star wide receiver Antonio Brown for three games after he “misrepresented” his vaccination status, two weeks after he was accused by his former chef of procuring a fake vaccination card. Teammate Mike Edwards and free agent John Franklin III, a former Buccaneer, were also suspended by the league for misrepresenting their vaccination status and violating the league’s pandemic protocols. The Buccaneers, the reigning Super Bowl champions, had previously said that every player was fully vaccinated against Covid-19. (Beaton and Radnofsky, 12/2)
The Wall Street Journal: LeBron James Cleared To Return By NBA After New Round Of Covid Tests
Two days after LeBron James was sidelined by the league’s health and safety protocols because he registered conflicting Covid-19 results, the NBA’s biggest star is back after the league said that subsequent testing determined that he was not a positive case. James, who is vaccinated, was ruled out indefinitely on Tuesday after he tested positive for Covid in a sample collected on Monday, according to the NBA, which issued a statement outlining his testing results in unusual detail on Thursday night. (Cohen, 12/2)
CBS News: Small Percentage Of Migrants Processed By U.S. In 2021 Had Access To COVID-19 Vaccines
Just a small percentage of the hundreds of thousands of migrants processed by the U.S. this year have received COVID-19 vaccinations while in federal custody, and half of them are unaccompanied children, according to unpublished government data obtained by CBS News. Collectively, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have administered vaccine doses to more than 90,000 immigrants in deportation proceedings, the statistics show. (Montoya-Galvez, 12/2)
CIDRAP: CDC: Homeless Americans Have Low COVID-19 Vaccination Rates
Today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that just 19% to 45% of the homeless population in six metropolitan areas were fully vaccinated against COVID-19. To assess coverage levels, the CDC tracked vaccination coverage from Dec 13, 2020, to Aug 31, 2021, in six US metro areas: Chicago; Minneapolis; Los Angeles; Detroit; Washington, DC; and Fairfax, Virginia. (12/2)
On an aid-in-dying law —
KHN: New California Law Eases Aid-In-Dying Process
During her three-year battle with breast cancer, my wife, Leslie, graciously endured multiple rounds of horrifically toxic treatment to eke out more time with our two young children. But after 18 cancer-free months, the disease returned with a vengeance in June 2003. It fractured her bones and invaded her spinal canal, bathing her brain in malignancy. During the final six months, as she lay on her home hospice bed in constant pain, attached to a morphine drip around-the-clock while losing her eyesight and withering to a skeleton, the idea of ending her suffering by ending her life didn’t even enter into our conversations. (Bernard J. Wolfson, 12/3)
