Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Cluster Of Candida Auris Superbug Reported In Kids In Las Vegas Hospital
Las Vegas Review-Journal: First “Superbug” Candida Auris Cluster In Children Identified At Las Vegas Hospital
Three cases of once-rare Candida auris, a drug-resistant “superbug,” were reported in infants with heart defects at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report obtained through a public records request. (Hynes, 10/22)
AP: Dems Push Medicaid Expansion For Left-Behind Rural Georgia
Nine years after the hospital closed in the southwest Georgia town of Arlington, the worry about health care lurks. Health insurance premiums are high, many residents report poor health and there’s no guarantee Calhoun County’s sole ambulance will arrive promptly if it’s taking a patient to a distant hospital. “If it’s out on a call, you might as well throw them in the truck then and try to get somewhere,” said resident Sam Robinson. (Amy, 10/22)
San Diego Union-Tribune: San Diego Jails' Medically Vulnerable Get Health Monitoring
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department is launching a pilot program that will outfit 10 of the downtown Central Jail’s most medically at-risk people with a health-monitoring device. (Davis, 10/22)
KHN: For The Houma People, Displacement Looms With Every Storm
For generations, Thomas Dardar Jr.’s family has lived on a small bayou island off the coast of Louisiana called Isle de Jean Charles. Environmental changes, rising seawaters, and storms have dramatically changed the island. Home to members of the United Houma Nation, the island is now about 320 acres, a sliver of the more than 22,000 acres it was in the mid-20th century. Massive hurricanes, including Katrina and Ida, have raked the area. Relief efforts struggled to meet the devastation caused in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina, which killed more than 1,800 people along the Gulf Coast, swept away coastal land, and caused more than $100 billion in damage. The island’s only road to the mainland is often impassable because of strong winds and rising water. Encroaching water has made growing food difficult. (Huetteman, 10/24)
