Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Different Takes: Nurses Deserve More Money; How To Lower US Drug Overdose Rates
Stat: The Solution To The Wave Of Nurse Resignations? Cold, Hard Cash
It’s been said so often it’s almost trite: Burnout among nurses drags down hospitals’ quality of care, hollows out the ranks of nurses, and smashes to smithereens any resilience they might have built. But just as plain as the human tragedy of burnout and attrition in this group of health care workers is the frankness of its remedy: What ails our nation’s nurses can be solved with changes in how they are paid, an infusion of cash to support them, and policies that link nurse burnout and attrition rates to hospitals’ bottom lines. (K. Jane Muir, 1/13)
Chicago Tribune: The Other Deadly Plague Is Only Getting Worse
Long before the arrival of COVID-19, America was being ravaged by a deadly epidemic. Unlike the coronavirus, though, the drug overdose plague didn’t elicit a massive response from public officials. And the epidemic has not only continued but gotten worse. In 2020, more than 93,000 people died of drug overdoses, most of them after ingesting fentanyl or similar synthetic opioids. That’s double the death toll in 2014, and the number continues to rise. (Steve Chapman, 1/12)
Stat: Is It Time To Start Routine Covid Testing For Health Care Workers?
“Have they stopped caring about our health?” reads a text from my friend and fellow surgical resident. With it comes a link to a New York Times article displaying the headline “C.D.C. Shortens Covid Isolation Period for Health Care Workers.” I opened the article while waiting in line to get a Covid test at the first appointment I could snag four days after caring for a patient recovering from surgery who became Covid positive in the hospital. In those few days, I had taken care of more than 40 other patients and interacted with a dozen or so nurses, physicians, and cafeteria workers. (Orly Nadell Farber, 1/11)
The Washington Post: Texas Abortion Law Resurrects Jim Crow Tactic Used For Fort Bend's White Primary
Texas has a legal fantasy that it can evade Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion case. State officials claim that its new abortion law — which took effect in September and bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy — is constitutional because the law is enforced only by private citizens, not the state. But such an argument is not new. In fact, it was the same legal justification used by states trying to preserve Jim Crow. The Supreme Court consistently rejected the ploy. The court was not fooled then, offering a road map for handling the current case. (Orville Vernon Burton and Armand Derfner, 1/12)
Modern Healthcare: The Connection Between Credentialing And Physician Mental Health: A Call To Action
As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, the mental health of the healthcare workforce is widely reported as worsening. Despite increased attention, barriers to seeking mental health care remain high. Physicians, for example, are often required to divulge details about their mental health history on medical license applications ostensibly in service of patient safety. While there is no published evidence that these questions improve patient safety, there is ample evidence that asking such questions on medical license applications can deter physicians from seeking care due to risks to their privacy, reputation and employment. (Drs. Saranya Loehrer, Joshua Allen-Dicker and Eileen Barrett, 1/12)
The Tennessean: Expanding Telehealth Access Is A Lifesaver For Vulnerable Patients
It's hard to find a silver lining in a pandemic. But COVID-19 has convinced the medical and policymaking establishments, perhaps unwittingly, that high-quality care can be delivered remotely. The telehealth revolution is upon us. Lawmakers waived numerous arcane and outdated regulations governing the use of telemedicine to make the service more available for everyday patients. Onerous restrictions that required patients to receive telehealth care in medical facilities and barred doctors from conducting appointments across state lines were as nonsensical before the pandemic as they are now. (Sally C. Pipes, 1/13)
Stat: Accommodating People With Disability Still Befuddles Many Doctors
Shortly after one of my younger sisters was diagnosed with breast cancer in her early 50s, I scheduled a routine check-up with my new primary care physician. I use a wheelchair because of multiple sclerosis and so I’m typically hypervigilant about accessibility. But I was so relieved to have this new physician, who came highly recommended both for clinical skills and kind demeanor, that I let my guard down and didn’t visit the practice beforehand. That was a mistake. (Lisa I. Iezzoni, 1/13)
