Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Federal Bureau Of Prisons Settles Insulin Access Lawsuit
Colorado Sun: Bureau Of Prisons To Pay $300,000 To Settle Lawsuit After Prisoner Was Allegedly Deprived Of Insulin At Supermax Facility
The federal Bureau of Prisons will pay $300,000 to a diabetic prisoner who alleged he did not receive his required insulin while he was incarcerated at a federal supermax prison in Colorado. The prison’s medical staff failed to provide Seifullah Chapman, who has a severe form of Type 1 diabetes, the adequate amount of insulin while incarcerated at ADX Florence, putting him at risk for severe medical complications including coma and death, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Colorado. Both sides agreed June 1 to dismiss the lawsuit after agreeing on the financial award, court records show. (Prentzel, 6/7)
The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Indian Health Service Leaders Failed To Intervene In Abuse Allegation At Teen Center, Report Found
The U.S. Indian Health Service botched its response to allegations that a government worker sexually abused a teenage patient at the agency’s addiction-treatment center in North Carolina, according to a newly disclosed report. The IHS, a federal agency that provides healthcare services to roughly 2.6 million Native Americans, hired an outside consultant to investigate the agency’s response to the allegations after The Wall Street Journal in 2019 detailed missteps at the treatment facility, called Unity Healing Center, in Cherokee, N.C. (Weaver, 6/7)
Billings Gazette: Voters Want To Keep Recreational Pot, According To Early Returns
Yellowstone County voters want to keep their access to local recreational marijuana dispensaries. In the first batch of results from Tuesday's election, 21,903 voters opted to keep recreational marijuana sales legal in Yellowstone County compared to 15,869 who voted to ban sales. Voters were asked whether to overturn legalized recreational marijuana sales in Yellowstone County following a move in December by Yellowstone County commissioners to place the question on the June ballot. It's the third time since November 2020 that Billings voters have cast a ballot asking about recreational marijuana. Montana voters in 2020 overwhelmingly approved legalizing recreational marijuana; in Yellowstone County the vote was more narrow, 50.7% to 49.3% in favor, a difference of roughly 1,100 votes. (Rogers, 6/7)
AP: Police: DNA Technology Connects Man To Florida Serial Rapes
Advanced DNA technology helped detectives link the cases of six women to a man accused of being the “pillowcase rapist” for a string of rapes back in the 1980s.Robert Koehler is currently jailed in neighboring Miami-Dade County, where he faces charges for assaulting a woman in the early '80s as well, Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony said in a Tuesday morning news conference. Authorities believe Koehler, 62, may have committed 40 to 45 rapes, terrifying victims by breaking into their homes at night, the sheriff said. (Frisaro, 6/7)
Oklahoman: Oklahoma City-County Health Department To Offer Free Mammograms On June 10
The Oklahoma City-County Health Department will be offering free mammograms on Friday, June 10. The event is in partnership with OU Health, Stephenson Cancer Center and The Market at Eastpoint, 1708 NE 23. The mobile mammography unit will be at The Market to screen women over the age of 40. All services are free, and if any abnormalities are found, diagnostic testing and follow-up will also be offered at no cost. (6/7)
In obituaries —
AP: Former Longtime Illinois US Rep. John E. Porter Dies At 87
John E. Porter, who represented Chicago’s northern suburbs for two decades in Congress and helped increase funding for biomedical research has died, his family announced. He was 87. ... Porter, a Republican, represented Illinois’ 10th District in Congress from 1980 to 2001. A staunch fiscal conservative, Porter also held moderate social views, backing abortion rights and gun control — positions that are almost unheard of in today’s Republican Party. (6/7)
