Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Different Takes: Mark Cuban Is Shaking Up The Drug Industry; CRISPR Still Has Some Bugs To Work Out
Dallas Morning News: Mark Cuban And Medicare: A Drug Hookup America Needs Now
Mark Cuban has been absolutely clear about his intentions in starting a direct-to-consumer, low-cost online pharmacy. “The goal is to [expletive] up the pharmacy industry,” he told The Wall Street Journal earlier this year. (6/29)
Bloomberg: As Crispr Turns 10, Its Medical Promise Comes Into Focus
Ten years ago this week, a report of new research quietly appeared on an academic journal’s website — and caused a seismic shift in science. Biochemists Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier adapted a tool called Crispr-Cas9 to snip genes from bacteria. When Feng Zhang, another biochemist, and others later showed that the same tool could be used to edit human cells, the magnitude of Crisper’s potential became clear: It could one day be used to create treatments — perhaps even cures — for a range of genetic diseases. (Lisa Jarvis, 6/28)
Miami Herald: It’s Up To The States To Implement 988 Mental-Health Hotline
The 911 system is taken for granted. Anyone, virtually anywhere in the United States, should be able to dial three digits during a physical health emergency and expect a fast, local response — sometimes making the difference between life and death. On July 16, “988” will become the equivalent hotline for mental-health emergencies. The launch will come two years after Congress passed the National Suicide Designation Act of 2020, leaving the particulars of implementation to individual states. But the change will be a missed opportunity if states can’t clear significant hurdles: funding the expanded crisis response system, and making sure people know it’s available. (Ryan K, McBain and Stephanie Brooks Holliday, 6/28)
Scientific American: Gunshot Survivors And Trauma Surgeons Welcome The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act
Recently, I was standing inside the Dirksen Senate Office Building, waiting to be ushered into the Senate gallery to witness the voting on and passage of the first piece of commonsense gun legislation in nearly 30 years. The committee room buzzed with energy, and as I looked around, I came to realize that it was full of gunshot survivors who are fierce advocates of responsible gun ownership. Some of them had been trying to end gun violence for decades. Those survivors include myself, a trauma surgeon. I was nearly killed after being shot in the throat at age 17 after a high-school football game. A stray bullet fired during a fight that had nothing to do with me ruptured my trachea and injured my carotid artery. Over the past decade, I have seen another vantage point of this uniquely American problem by treating hundreds of gunshot wound victims. (Joseph V. Sakran, 6/28)
Stat: Medicare Policies Should Cover Wheelchair Safety Outside The Home
My daughter, Katherine, is 21 years old. She has cerebral palsy and has relied on a power wheelchair to move around the world since she was 5 years old. With summer in full swing, she likes to roll down the sidewalks in our neighborhood and look at the flowers in bloom. She enjoys popping into her neighborhood therapy clinic to visit friends. And she loves to be the center of attention. Earlier this summer, she participated in a two-night stage performance of “Shrek,” starring adults with disabilities. She played the Fairy Godmother, and she nailed it. These activities all take place outside our home so, according to the outdated policies used by Medicare to determine which mobility devices to cover, none of them are considered essential to Katherine’s life. I know that just the opposite is true: These activities mean more to Katherine than anything else. (Barry Dean, 6/29)
The Washington Post: Virginia’s Top Health Official Needs An Education On Racism
Racism is a public health crisis. Virginia State Health Commissioner Colin Greene said recently that he associates the word “racism” with “fire hoses, police dogs and Alabama sheriffs.” Greene misunderstands the issue. Those are overt symptoms of racism. Such overt symptoms are only the tip of the iceberg of symptoms of racism — and other forms of oppression, including sexism, classism, ableism and oppressions based on sexual orientation and gender/gender identity. (Stephen A. Haering and Charles Konigsberg, 6/27)
Los Angeles Times: Drastically Reducing Nicotine Levels Will Save A Lot Of Lives
Nicotine kills. Oh, not directly, for the most part. It’s just so addictive that cigarette smokers find it nearly impossible to quit a product that subtracts years off their lives, causes cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, strokes and heart disease, along with worsening Type 2 diabetes. In 2018, more than half of the smokers in this country tried to stop; only 8% did. (6/29)
