First Edition: December 7, 2018
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
More Than Half Of California Nursing Homes Balk At Stricter Staffing Rules
More than half of California’s nursing homes are asking to be exempted from new state regulations that would require them to spend more time directly caring for their patients. The state’s new staffing requirements for nursing homes, quietly passed in last year’s budget bill, seem universally unpopular. Patient advocates say the new regulations don’t go far enough and that residents remain at risk in poorly staffed homes. Nursing home operators say they can’t hire enough staff to comply. (Feder Ostrov, 12/7)
The Associated Press:
Report: US Health Spending Hits $3.5T But Growth Slows
The nation’s health care tab hit $3.5 trillion last year, or $10,739 per person, the government reported Thursday. But behind those staggering figures was some fairly good news: The rate of growth slowed for the second year in a row, according to economic experts at the federal Health and Human Services department. Health care spending increased by 3.9 percent in 2017, following a 4.8 percent increase in 2016. Private insurance spending grew more slowly in 2017, and so did Medicaid, while Medicare costs grew at about the same rate. The overall economy grew faster than health spending. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/6)
The New York Times:
Growth Of Health Care Spending Slowed Last Year
But the rate of increase for the major categories — drugs, doctors and hospitals — was more modest than in recent years. For the first time in several years, health spending grew at about the same rate as the economy as a whole in 2017. So the share of the economy devoted to health care stabilized. By contrast, over the past few decades, health spending has generally grown faster than the economy. (Pear, 12/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Growth In U.S. Health-Care Spending Slows
The report, published in the journal Health Affairs, said the slowdown may be linked, in part, to the lack of growth in health insurance enrollment. The insured rate of the population edged down to 90.9% last year from 91.1% in 2016. The report also pointed to changes in various health sectors, including a shift to lower-priced generic drugs and less use of high-price specialty medications. ... The new spending data are likely to fuel further discussions in Congress, where lawmakers have been wrapping up hearings on the high cost of health care. Health care was a central issue in the midterm elections, with polls showing many Americans worried about the price of care and the potential for losing benefits. (Armour, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
Obama Health Law Sign-Ups Lagging For 2019
With open enrollment ending next week, the government says sign-ups for coverage under former President Barack Obama’s health care law are lagging when compared with last year. Figures released Thursday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services show that about 3.2 million people have signed up so far for subsidized private insurance, compared with about 3.6 million at the same time last year. Open enrollment ends Dec. 15. Health law supporters are concerned. The number of new customers is down nearly 18 percent. (12/6)
The New York Times:
Why Is Obamacare Enrollment Down?
More than halfway through the sign-up period for Obamacare health plans, fewer people have enrolled in coverage than during the same stretch last year. Enrollment through the federal website Healthcare.gov, which manages insurance marketplaces in 39 states, is down 11 percent compared to 2017, according to government figures released Thursday. Given President Trump’s assault on the law, many people are watching this year’s enrollment closely for clues to its durability. While it is too soon to draw any firm conclusions, there are several reasons sign-ups could be lower — and not all of them spell trouble for the landmark legislation. (Abelson and Sanger-Katz, 12/6)
The Hill:
Maine Judge Denies GOP Governor's Request To Stay Medicaid Expansion Order
The court on Thursday delayed a previous deadline it had set for enrollments in Medicaid expansion to begin from Dec. 5 to Feb. 1, meaning the new administration will be in place when enrollments start. “This is good news in that the court is denying the request for a stay, at the same time the court is extending the deadline for rulemaking and enrollment to February 1st,” said Robyn Merrill, executive director of Maine Equal Justice Partners, the advocacy group suing in favor of implementing Medicaid expansion. (Sullivan, 12/6)
The New York Times:
Trump Rule Would Limit E.P.A.’s Control Over Water Pollution
The Trump administration is expected to put forth a proposal on Tuesday that would significantly weaken a major Obama-era regulation on clean water, according to a talking points memo from the Environmental Protection Agency that was distributed to White House allies this week. The Obama rule was designed to limit pollution in about 60 percent of the nation’s bodies of water, protecting sources of drinking water for about a third of the United States. It extended existing federal authority to limit pollution in large bodies of water, like the Chesapeake Bay and Puget Sound, to smaller bodies that drain into them, such as tributaries, streams and wetlands. (Davenport, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
Trump EPA Acts To Roll Back Control On Climate-Changing Coal
The Environmental Protection Agency acted again Thursday to ease rules on the sagging U.S. coal industry, this time scaling back what would have been a tough control on climate-changing emissions from any new coal plants. The latest Trump administration targeting of legacy Obama administration efforts to slow climate change comes in the wake of multiplying warnings from the agency’s scientists and others about the accelerating pace of global warming. (Knickmeyer, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
Groups Sue To Block Medical Marijuana Compromise In Utah
A pair of advocacy groups in Utah sued Thursday to block a compromise agreement legalizing medical marijuana, accusing the Mormon church of unconstitutional domination and interference in a process that led to the gutting of a measure approved by voters. The lawsuit alleges the revised initiative creates overwhelming obstacles for suffering patients who want to obtain the drug. It also asks a judge to set aside the revision passed by lawmakers and keep the original version that won with 53 percent of the vote in November. (McCombs and Whitehurst, 12/6)
USA Today and Sioux Falls Argus Leader:
Violated: How The Indian Health Service Betrays Patient Trust And Treaties In The Great Plains
Dozens of patients have died needlessly due to errors made in IHS hospitals in South Dakota alone. Thousands more in the state’s rural Indian reservations face limited access to primary care providers, long wait times for basic medical treatments and outstanding medical debt for necessary care sought outside the federally-funded facilities. The federal government has largely ignored the deplorable conditions. Even well-intentioned lawmakers representing states with significant Native American populations have failed to make meaningful change, including South Dakota’s Congressional delegation. Meanwhile, the U.S. government remains in violation of its treaty promise to provide health care to Native Americans. (Ferguson, 12/6)
Reuters:
Special Report: After A Child's Dire Diagnosis, Hope And Uncertainty At The Frontiers Of Medicine
Natan was days away from a delicate surgery to remove part of the tumor that doctors had eventually found growing, weed-like, from his spinal cord. ... But even if successful, the surgery would be only a stop-gap measure, a starting point in a process that would propel our family to the forward edges of medical science. There, the genomics revolution, as it’s known, has made it possible to understand and confront what drives some cancers and other diseases. With tissue taken from the tumor, doctors told us, they would determine whether it was caused by a rare genetic mutation, which could radically change the course of his treatment. ... there was a slim chance Natan could beat back the tumor by merely swallowing a pill twice a day, with few, if any, side effects. (Gershberg, 12/6)
Reuters:
Special Report: Learning About Targeted-Therapy Options
When we were told our son had a potentially life-threatening brain tumor, our family was lucky to have world-class doctors and hospitals close to home and health insurance that covered nearly all his medical expenses and prescription drug costs. These resources helped us make a difficult decision regarding treatment, a scenario many more families may face as modern medicine evolves. Here are some questions they may want to consider, based on our experience and interviews with cancer experts. (Gershberg, 12/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Congress To Drug Makers: Why Stock Buybacks Over Lowered Drug Prices?
Critics of high drug prices are launching a new line of attack against manufacturers of the medicines, faulting the firms for using savings from the tax overhaul to buy back shares rather than lower prices. The attacks began in October, when more than a dozen Democrats in the House of Representatives sent letters to five big pharmaceutical companies saying they had benefited from recent tax cuts but kept charging high prices. The letters singled out certain drugs whose list prices had increased and asked their manufacturers for details about price changes and the costs of research and advertising. (Loftus, 12/6)
Stat:
Democrats Are Eyeing A Valuable Pharma Asset: Its Patents
Democrats, newly empowered in D.C. and on the hunt for bigger and bolder ways to lower drug prices, are suddenly taking aim at a far more central part of pharma’s monopoly power: the patents the industry holds on its drugs. For years, lawmakers from both parties have shied away to address the industry’s intellectual property. Muck with a drug company’s government-granted monopoly, the thinking goes, and investments in research and development will disappear. Pharma even helped to scuttle a broad, bipartisan patent reform effort in 2015, in part because the industry worried that even small changes focused on bad actors would open the door to bigger ones. (Facher, 12/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
Solving China’s Drugs-Price Problem Is Hurting Drugmakers
China’s cure for its health-care problems is causing plenty of pain for drugmakers. Just as in the U.S., expensive prescription drugs have long been a headache in China. Government insurance usually doesn’t cover the full price of drugs for patients, so many have to pay a hefty portion out of their own pockets, especially those with serious diseases. In its latest bid to lower medicine costs, the Chinese government recently asked drugmakers to bid for the right to supply hospitals in 11 major cities, including Shanghai and Beijing. The winners will be those willing to accept the lowest prices. Hospitals are the biggest buyers of drugs in China, accounting for 68% of the $200 billion market, according to health-data company Iqvia. (Wong, 12/7)
The Associated Press:
Generic Drugmaker To Sell Alternative To EpiPen Injectors
Generic drugmaker Sandoz announced plans Thursday to start selling an alternative to the EpiPen in the U.S. early next year. The EpiPen injector is used to halt life-threatening allergic reactions to insect bites, nuts and other foods. Brand-name EpiPen, which dominates the market, has been in short supply since spring because of production problems. (Johnson, 12/6)
USA Today:
Walgreens Launching Next-Day Prescription Delivery Service With FedEx
Walgreens is launching a next-day prescription delivery service as pharmacies brace for the possibility of Amazon's entry into their world. The drugstore chain announced Thursday that it is partnering with FedEx to offer drug delivery throughout the nation in a new program called Walgreens Express. The company's move comes after archrival CVS Health recently a very similar delivery service. (Bomey, 12/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Walgreens Launches Next-Day Prescription Home Delivery With FedEx
Under the delivery service called Walgreens Express, patients enrolled in text alerts will receive text notification when qualifying prescriptions are ready, Walgreens said Thursday. For a $4.99 fee, patients can have their prescriptions delivered by FedEx to their home as early as the next day. Same-day delivery is currently available in Dallas, Chicago, New York City, and Florida cities Miami, Gainesville, Tampa, and Fort Lauderdale. The company said it will expand the option to additional locations in 2019. (Al-Muslim, 12/6)
The New York Times:
Drug Maker Pays $360 Million To Settle Investigation Into Charity Kickbacks
The drug maker Actelion Pharmaceuticals has agreed to a $360 million settlement stemming from an investigation into whether the company illegally funneled kickbacks through a patient-assistance charity, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Actelion, which was acquired by Johnson & Johnson in 2017 and makes expensive drugs to treat a rare lung condition, is the latest pharmaceutical company to settle federal inquiries into their ties to patient-assistance groups, including whether companies have used the patient programs to increase the price of their drugs. (Thomas, 12/6)
Reuters:
J&J Unit To Pay $360 Million To U.S. To Resolve Charity Kickback Probe
Drug companies are prohibited from subsidizing co-payments for patients enrolled in the Medicare government healthcare program for the elderly. But companies may donate to non-profits providing co-pay assistance as long as they are independent. Amid increased attention on rising drug prices in the United States, there has been concern that donations from drugmakers to patient-assistance groups may be contributing to price inflation. (Raymond, 12/6)
Reuters:
Roche's Lung Cancer Combo Treatment Wins FDA Approval
Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG said on Thursday that its Tecentriq immunotherapy in combination with Avastin and chemotherapy won U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval as a first-line treatment for a type of lung cancer. ... The drug on Wednesday had also won priority review from the U.S. regulator for treating patients with untreated extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. (12/6)
Politico:
Amazon Push Into Health Data Analytics Inspires Awe — And Skepticism
Amazon’s announcement that it can mine the data of health care providers for clinical and research benefits shows the tech giant’s power to move quickly into new health arenas, but the natural language processing service it's offering isn’t new. Amazon worked for a year with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center — a five-minute walk from Amazon’s Seattle headquarters — to train its software to extract vital information about each patient’s condition, symptoms, medications and traits. (Allen, 12/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Hacking Health Care: How Tech Will Drive Down Costs
Human beings are safer today than at any time in history. We live more than twice as long as we did in 1900 thanks, in large part, to advances in technology. But our increased lifespan comes at a price. The U.S. spends $3.5 trillion each year on health care, and the federal government shoulders more than 28% of that cost. The Census Bureau projects that 20.6% of Americans will be over the age of 65 by 2030, compared to 15.24% in 2016. The U.S. is facing a retirement wave that will strain our health-care system. As head of CTA for three decades, I’ve watched the medical community use new technology to make advances in everything from diet science to disease detection. Much of this technology has not been widely tested, and some of it raises difficult questions about privacy and cybersecurity. But AI, sensors and even digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa could help keep costs down and improve care. Here’s how. (Gary Shapiro, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
Nobel Laureates: Despite Progress, Cancer Won't Be Wiped Out
The winners of this year’s Nobel Prize for Medicine say they expect substantial advances toward treating cancer in the next several decades, although it is unlikely the disease could be eradicated. “Soon we’ll get close with some cancers,” [James] Allison said, citing progress against some forms including melanoma. But, he said, “the world will never be cancer-free.” (Bzganovic, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
School Lunch Rules OK Refined Grains, Low-Fat Chocolate Milk
The U.S. school lunch program is making room on menus again for noodles, biscuits, tortillas and other foods made mostly of refined grains. The Trump administration is scaling back contested school lunch standards implemented under the Obama administration including one that required only whole grains be served. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday only half the grains served will need to be whole grains, a change it said will do away with the current bureaucracy of requiring schools to obtain special waivers to serve select refined grains foods. (Choi, 12/6)
USA Today:
Romaine Lettuce E. Coli Outbreak: Nine More Sickened, CDC Says
Nine more people have become sick after eating romaine lettuce amid an E. coli outbreak, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The total of people infected is now 52 across 15 states, the CDC said Thursday. The highest number of cases have been reported in California and New Jersey, each reporting 11 people sick. Seven people in Michigan, and six each in New Hampshire and New York were reported. Other states affected include: Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin. (May, 12/7)
The New York Times:
Getting Past The Barriers: When A Mother Is In Prison
Currently, over 200,000 women are imprisoned in the United States, the majority for nonviolent drug or property offenses, which have recently skyrocketed in connection with the opioid crisis. The number of children in foster care or living with relatives has soared as well. According to the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit research organization, women are the country’s fastest-growing prison population, and 80 percent of them are mothers. The overwhelming majority were the primary caregivers of their children. (Valencia, 12/6)
NPR:
Programs Help Incarcerated Moms Bond With Their Babies In Prison
Sonya Alley is the Correctional Unit Supervisor overseeing the Residential Parenting Program at WCCW. She says the program gives women a tangible way to turn their lives around. "It gets them out of their addictive past and co-dependency on drugs, or alcohol or relationships," she says. "It seems oxymoronic but there's some clarity when forced to do a prison sentence and forced to be a parent. It starts to shift the way the women think about themselves, their environments and wanting the best for themselves and their child." (Corley, 12/6)
The New York Times:
‘A Witness That They Were Here’: Los Angeles Honors 1,457 Of Its Unclaimed Dead
They are the forgotten people of Los Angeles — 1,457 people, to be exact. Old, poor, homeless, babies born premature and abandoned. They may have died alone, but they were buried together, in a mass grave, and were honored together this week in an interfaith ceremony that has been an annual ritual in Los Angeles for more than a century. (Arango, 12/7)
USA Today:
Suicide Survivor Answers Questions On How She Prevents Another Attempt
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new numbers last week showing that the nation's suicide rate is up 33% in less than 20 years. Suicide is a growing problem, yet stigma often prevents people from talking openly about it. Shelby Rowe attempted to take her own life almost 10 years ago, but she survived. She is one one of millions of Americans who survive suicide attempts and go on to live full, healthy lives. USA TODAY enterprise reporter Alia Dastagir interviewed Rowe, a leader in the field of suicide prevention, for USA TODAY's Surviving Suicide project. Rowe and Dastagir answered questions about suicide during a Reddit AMA Monday. (Dastagir, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
EKG, Other Heart Health Features Come To Apple Watch
Apple Watch is now fulfilling its promise to let people take EKGs of their heart and notify them of any irregular heartbeat. Apple announced the heart features in September, but didn’t make them available until Thursday. The new features have been given clearance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and are for U.S. customers only. (12/6)
The Washington Post:
Apple Now Says Its Smartwatch Tech To Detect Atrial Fibrillation Is Not For Those With Atrial Fibrillation
The fine print on Apple’s latest foray into health care carries a seemingly strange caveat: its new Apple Watch technology to detect atrial fibrillation is not intended for people who have atrial fibrillation. The contradiction sums up the deeper questions raised by the introduction of a mass-market monitoring tool for the heart. Apple’s products are designed to inspire, with clean designs and seamless operation. But health care is messy and unpredictable. (Rowland, 12/6)
The Associated Press:
Study That Took Aim At 'Joy Of Cooking' Is Retracted
More work by a prominent food researcher, including a study that took aim at the “Joy of Cooking,” has been retracted because of problems with the data. The Annals of Internal Medicine retracted a study that said the book’s recipes changed with updated editions to include more calories and bigger portions. It said a reanalysis by co-author Brian Wansink resulted in numbers that differed — “many substantially so” — from the published versions. ... The retraction is the latest for Wansink, who resigned from Cornell University in September after a school investigation found he engaged in academic misconduct, including misreporting of data. (12/6)
NPR:
Robot Punctures Can Of Bear Repellent At Amazon Warehouse, Sickening Workers
Twenty-four workers at an Amazon warehouse in New Jersey were taken to area hospitals after being exposed to bear repellent on Wednesday morning, when a robot punctured a can of the aerosol spray. One woman was reported to have been critically injured in the incident, which caused at least 54 workers to have difficulty breathing, and burning throats and eyes, NJ.com reports. The warehouse, which is ventilated, measures about 1.3 million square feet. (Wamsley, 12/6)