First Edition: June 5, 2019

Kaiser Health News: Dropped From Health Insurance Without Warning: Was It Legal?
Caitlin and Corey Gaffer know they made a mistake. Anyone could have done the same thing, the Minneapolis couple says. Still, they can’t believe it cost them their health insurance coverage just as Caitlin was in the middle of pregnancy with their first child. “I was like ‘What?’ There’s no way that’s possible,” said Caitlin, 31, of her reaction to the letter she opened in early October telling them the coverage they had for nearly two years had been canceled. It cited nonpayment of their premium as the reason. (Appleby, 6/5)

Kaiser Health News: ‘An Arm And A Leg’: They Thought They Had ‘Adulted’ Properly
Find out what happened to the Minneapolis couple in the first episode of “An Arm and a Leg” Season 2, a co-production of Kaiser Health News and Public Road Productions. (Weissmann, 6/4)

The Hill: 'Medicare For All' Gets New Boost From High-Ranking House Dem
Assistant House Speaker Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) on Tuesday announced his support for "Medicare for All" legislation, becoming the highest-ranking Democrat to co-sponsor the bill. The bill from Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) now has 112 co-sponsors in the House. (Weixel, 6/4)

The Hill: House Panel Sets Medicare For All Hearing For Next Week 
The House Ways & Means Committee will hold a hearing next week on "Medicare for all," the proposal that would shift the U.S. to a single-payer health care system. The June 12 hearing will mark the first time the proposal is considered by a committee that has jurisdiction over health care issues.A spokeswoman for committee Democrats said the hearing would cover Medicare for all and "other potential pathways to universal coverage." (Hellmann, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Hearing To Consider Fate Of Lone Missouri Abortion Clinic
The fate of Missouri's only abortion clinic is at stake in a hearing scheduled for Wednesday in St. Louis. Circuit Judge Michael Stelzer will hear testimony in a hearing on Planned Parenthood's request for a preliminary injunction that would keep open its abortion clinic in St. Louis. Missouri's health department last week declined to renew the clinic's license to perform abortion procedures, citing concerns about patient safety, including allegations of "failed abortions" and legal violations. Clinic leaders say the allegations are part of an effort by an anti-abortion administration to eliminate the procedure in the state. (Salter, 6/5)

CNN: Missouri Abortion Case: A Judge Could Soon Decide If State Will Have No Abortion Clinics
Outside the St. Louis courthouse, a group of anti-abortion activists silently protested Tuesday, with "LIFE" written on tape covering their mouths. If the Planned Parenthood clinic is forced to stop providing abortions, Missouri would be the first state in the nation to block the procedure in more than 45 years. (Yan, 6/4)

The Hill: Missouri Judge Throws Out State Subpoenas In Planned Parenthood Case 
A judge in St. Louis ruled Tuesday that four doctors who trained at Missouri's only abortion clinic will not have to testify in an ongoing case that will determine if the facility can continue providing abortions. Circuit Court Judge Michael Stelzer ruled Tuesday that complying with the subpoenas to testify filed by the state would cause an undue burden for the doctors. (Hellmann, 6/4)

The Hill: Democrats, Republicans In Congress Spar Over State Abortion Laws 
The fight over state abortion bans moved to Congress on Tuesday with Democrats holding a hearing to declare an ongoing “crisis” in states across the country. “This country has reached a crisis point for women’s constitutional rights to control their own bodies and their own reproductive choices,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) said at a hearing Tuesday. (Hellmann, 6/4)

The Washington Post: As States Try To Restrict Abortion, Access Is Expanding In Some Parts Of The South
For nearly three years, Jill Dinwiddie worked quietly. She talked to potential donors about how desperately Planned Parenthood needed a new health center, one large enough to add abortion to the clinic’s services for the first time in three decades. She needed to raise $10 million, find a building in the city’s competitive real estate market and renovate it — all without media outlets or protesters finding out. Dinwiddie and her co-chairs of the capital campaign committee, Crandall Bowles and Linda Hudson, conducted an under-the-radar search for a real estate agent, purchased a building with a limited-liability company set up to mask the buyer and built a password-protected donation website. (Valade, 6/4)

The Washington Post: Stacey Abrams Urges Hollywood To ‘#StayAndFight’ In Georgia Instead Of Boycotting Over Abortion Law
Stacey Abrams, the Democrat from Georgia who earned national attention after narrowly losing her bid for governor last year, is urging Hollywood not to abandon the state over its new and more restrictive abortion law. Some of the biggest names in film and television — including Walt Disney and WarnerMedia — have suggested they might boycott Georgia if the legislation survives court challenges. But Abrams, political allies and business leaders contend an economic boycott would serve to only deprive working-class people of jobs with no guarantee it would reverse a law that is being teed up to challenge Roe v. Wade. (Shaban, 6/4)

The Hill: Louisiana State Democrat: Abortion Is 'Modern-Day Genocide'
Democratic Louisiana State Rep. Katrina Jackson appeared in a series of interviews over the last few days defending her state's new anti-abortion law, saying she thinks of the procedure as "modern-day genocide." Louisiana last month became the sixth state to recently pass a ban on abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which is usually at about six weeks of pregnancy. (Rodrigo, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Former Head Of The CDC Pleads Guilty To Violation
The former head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct violation related to his arrest last year for alleged sexual misconduct. Dr. Thomas Frieden appeared Tuesday in Brooklyn Criminal Court. Frieden is also a former New York City health commissioner. Frieden was arrested in August. (6/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Ex-CDC Chief Pleads Guilty To Lesser Charge In Groping Case
After turning himself in to the New York Police Department in August last year, Dr. Frieden was charged with forcible touching, third-degree sexual abuse and second-degree harassment. The alleged victim told a detective that on Oct. 20, 2017, in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood, Dr. Frieden touched and squeezed her buttocks without her consent, according to a criminal complaint. The complaint, which didn’t name the victim, said she told the detective she was “alarmed and annoyed.” A lawyer for Dr. Frieden declined to comment on Tuesday. (Gravely and Ramey, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Immigration Official Looks To Step Up Family Deportations
The new top immigration official signaled Tuesday his agency is looking to step up deportations of families who are in the United States illegally, actions that would likely run into logistical hurdles and face strong public opposition. Mark Morgan, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the agency would continue to prioritize deportations of people who have criminal histories, but that no one should be exempt from enforcement. (6/4)

The Washington Post: Medicaid Expanders In Virginia Mostly Escape Primary Challenges
When nearly two dozen Republican legislators voted last year to expand Medicaid in Virginia — a stunning flip on a marquee pledge to resist “Obamacare” — outraged conservatives vowed to oust them in party primaries. The conservative powerhouse Americans for Prosperity targeted them with radio and Facebook ads, organized “Stop Obamacare” meetings across the state and warned through a spokesman, “Politicians usually pay a price when they ignore their constituents.” (Vozzella, 6/4)

The New York Times: After Another Mass Shooting, Another Virginia Governor Tries To Change Gun Laws
After a gunman killed 32 people at Virginia Tech in 2007, a bill to require mandatory background checks for arms purchases at gun shows failed to make it out of committee in the Virginia State Senate. It was blocked by all of the Republicans on the committee and two Democrats, who controlled the chamber at the time. Now, more than a decade later, and after a gunman killed 12 people in Virginia Beach last week, a similar background check bill is being proposed as part of a package of legislation to be considered in a special session, which Gov. Ralph Northam called for on Tuesday. (Robertson, 6/4)

NPR: Ban On Genetically Modified Babies Upheld By Congressional Committee
A congressional committee voted Tuesday to continue a federal ban on creating genetically modified babies in the United States. The House Appropriations Committee voted to retain the ban after the prohibition had been lifted last month by a subcommittee. The vote was part of debate over routine funding legislation for the Food and Drug Administration. "This is a prohibition that is accepted by nearly every nation in the world due to the unknown risks," said Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., during a hearing where the ban was restored. "The risks of harm are real." (Stein, 6/4)

Politico Pro: House Sends Trump Pandemic Preparedness Bill
The House today sent to President Donald Trump a bill to reauthorize HHS efforts to respond to disasters and threats from emerging infectious diseases and chemical or biological agents. The Senate passed the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act, S. 1379 (116), in May. Today's voice vote in the House capped repeated efforts to renew the health agency's pandemic response unit dating to the last session. (Owermohle, 6/4)

Reuters: CVS To Expand Health Hubs To 1,500 Stores By End Of 2021
CVS Health Corp said it would offer expanded health services such as nutrition counseling and blood pressure screenings in 1,500 stores by the end of 2021, following through on plans announced during the pharmacy chain's 2018 acquisition of health insurer Aetna. The company plans to convert a total of 50 stores this year in Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Tampa, representing about 15% of the stores in each of the markets, it said ahead of a meeting on Tuesday with Wall Street analysts and investors in New York. The bulk of the expansion will be split between 2020 and 2021. (6/4)

The Wall Street Journal: CVS, Under Pressure After Aetna Deal, Sets Long-Term Profit Goals
CVS Health Corp., under pressure to reassure skeptical investors after its merger with Aetna Inc., said it would return to profit growth next year and detailed a vision for a health-care behemoth that drives down medical costs. After warning earlier this year that 2019 profits would decline, CVS gave longer-term projections for the first time since the Aetna merger. The company said Tuesday it expects adjusted earnings per share of at least $7 in 2020, growing by a mid-single-digit percentage in 2021 and larger increases the years following. (Terlep, 6/4)

Colorado Sun: How Summit County Residents, Fed Up With High Health Care Prices, Banded Together And Negotiated A Better Deal
Monthly health insurance premiums in Summit County were higher than mortgage payments. Residents were toughing out illnesses and injuries at home rather than going to the doctor. Families were packing up and moving to find more affordable coverage. But now, [Tamara Drangstveit] and other Summit County leaders have led a first-of-its-kind effort in Colorado that is poised to lower health insurance prices for many in the county — and could become a model for communities across the state to gain leverage over a health care system that often feels suffocating. (Ingold, 6/4)

The New York Times: Who Can Adopt These Navajo Children? A Tale Of Two Mothers And A Bitter Constitutional Fight
The 3-year-old boy who could upend a 40-year-old law aimed at protecting Native American children barreled into the suburban living room, merrily defying his parents’ prediction that he might be shy. He had a thatch of night-black hair and dark eyes that glowed with mischievous curiosity. As he pumped a stranger’s hand and scampered off to bounce on an indoor trampoline, his Superman cape floated behind him, as if trying to catch up. Zachary, or A.L.M. as he is called in legal papers, has a Navajo birth mother, a Cherokee birth father and adoptive parents, Jennifer and Chad Brackeen, neither of whom is Native American. (Hoffman, 6/5)

The Washington Post: Why Pfizer Didn’t Report That Its Rheumatoid Arthritis Medication Might Prevent Alzheimer’s
A team of researchers inside Pfizer made a startling find in 2015: The company’s blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis therapy Enbrel, a powerful anti-inflammatory drug, appeared to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease by 64 percent. The results were from an analysis of hundreds of thousands of insurance claims. Verifying that the drug would actually have that effect in people would require a costly clinical trial — and after several years of internal discussion, Pfizer opted against further investigation and chose not to make the data public, the company confirmed. (Rowland, 6/4)

The New York Times: Deadly Falls In Older Americans Are Rising. Here’s How To Prevent Them.
As the population ages, the number of older Americans who die following a fall is rising. A study published Tuesday in the medical journal JAMA found that for people over 75, the rate of mortality from falls more than doubled from 2000 to 2016. Researchers analyzed information obtained from death certificates maintained by the federal government’s National Center for Health Statistics. In 2016, the rate of death from falls for people 75 and older was 111 per 100,000 people, they found. In 2000, that rate was 52 per 100,000 people. (Hafner, 6/4)

The New York Times: Even One Extra Walk A Day May Make A Big Difference
How many steps should people take every day for good health? A new study of activity and mortality in older women finds that the total could be lower than many of us expect and that even small increases in steps can be meaningful. The study also side-eyes the validity, utility and origin of the common 10,000-step-a-day exercise goals built into so many of our phones and activity monitors and suggests, instead, that any moving, whether or not it counts as exercise, may help to extend people’s lives. (Reynolds, 6/5)

The New York Times: Becoming A Digital Grandparent
Emerging from a theater on a recent Sunday, I turned on my phone and found a flurry of texts from my daughter. My 2-year-old granddaughter had just smashed her thumb in a closing restaurant door. Wincing, I read on: They were headed for an urgent care clinic. They were waiting for X-rays.The thumb was broken and needed a splint. (Span, 6/5)

The Wall Street Journal: What Foods Can Disturb Your Sleep?
Most people know that caffeine close to bedtime can interfere with sleep and that tossing back cocktails in the evening can cause a person to wake up a few hours later when the alcohol is metabolized. But less research has been done to understand the effects of food on sleep. One expert, Marie-Pierre St-Onge, an associate professor of nutritional medicine at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York—and director of the university’s Sleep Center of Excellence—explains the sleep-diet relationship and what foods may disturb your slumber. (Mitchell, 6/4)

NPR: Kids With Obesity Need Support, Not Judgment, From Doctors
Kids with obesity face a host of health problems related to their weight, like high blood pressure, diabetes, and joint problems. Research points to another way heavier children and teens are at risk: their own doctors' bias. This prejudice has real health consequences for kids, making families less likely to show up for appointments or get recommended vaccines. (Gordon, 6/5)

The New York Times: ‘Love Island’ Returns Amid Debate About Contestants’ Mental Health
It seemed like business as usual when a new season of “Love Island” aired here Monday night. All the familiar elements of the cult reality show were there, with the luxury villa in Spain and the skimpy swimsuits. But as the credits rolled, the sunny atmosphere darkened and a black screen appeared with a photograph of Michael Thalassitis, a former contestant who killed himself in March. The episode had been dedicated to his memory. (Codrea-Rado, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Bill To Legalize Assisted Suicide In Maine Goes To Governor 
The Maine Legislature voted Tuesday to legalize assisted suicide, with supporters declaring it in line with the state's tradition of individualism and opponents insisting the practice tempts fate. The bill now goes to Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who has 10 days to act on the bill and has not indicated whether she will let it become law. Her office said she has not yet taken a position. (6/4)

The Associated Press: Where Things Stand In The Flint Water Crisis Investigation
Questions abound after Michigan authorities executed search warrants in recent weeks to seize from government storage the state-owned mobile devices of former Gov. Rick Snyder, top aides and other government employees in a long-running criminal investigation of Flint's water crisis. The three-year probe of lead contamination in the city's water supply and a deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak has led to charges against 15 people, including two members of Snyder's Cabinet along with two state-appointed emergency managers effectively ran Flint due its financial troubles. (6/4)

ProPublica/Anchorage Daily News: “No More Silence”: Her Kidnapping, Sexual Assault And Murder Stunned A Town, And Started A Movement
Nine months and a long Arctic winter have come and gone since the abduction, sexual assault and murder of 10-year-old Ashley Johnson-Barr in the northwest Alaska hub community of Kotzebue. Signs of Ashley can be found everywhere in this town of 3,200. At the cemetery, groups of kids gather at the purple-painted wooden cross marking her grave. They leave trinkets, teddy bears, necklaces, even sports medals. People slip bouquets of artificial flowers through the chain link fence at Rainbow Park, where the fifth grader was last seen playing on a Thursday evening in September. (Theriault Boots, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Beverly Hills Becomes The First U.S. City To End Most Tobacco Sales
Beverly Hills has become the first U.S. city to end most tobacco sales. The City Council on Tuesday unanimously voted to snuff out sales of cigarettes, cigars, e-cigarettes and other tobacco products beginning in 2021. The ban covers sales at gas stations and pharmacies as well as convenience and grocery stores. But it exempts hotels and three plush cigar lounges in the wealthy and glamorous Los Angeles suburb. (6/4)

The Associated Press: Homelessness Rises 12% In Los Angeles County, Study Finds
The number of homeless people counted across Los Angeles County jumped 12% over the past year to nearly 59,000, with more young and old residents and families on the streets, officials said Tuesday. The majority of the homeless were found within the city of Los Angeles, which saw a 16% increase to 36,300, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority said in presenting January's annual count to the county Board of Supervisors. (6/4)

The Associated Press: San Francisco To Force Treatment On Mentally Ill Drug Users
San Francisco officials decided Tuesday to force some people with serious mental illness and drug addiction into treatment, even if it goes against the spirit of a city known for its fierce protection of civil rights. Several members of the Board of Supervisors voiced deep concerns Tuesday about the possibility of taking away a person’s civil liberties, but the proposal for a pilot program passed 10-1. Mayor London Breed and other supporters say the move — known as conservatorship — is necessary to help people who are often homeless, addicted to drugs and have a mental illness, making them a danger to themselves. (Har, 6/4)

The Associated Press: Oakland Becomes 2nd US City To Legalize Magic Mushrooms
Oakland on Tuesday became the second U.S. city to decriminalize magic mushrooms after a string of speakers testified that psychedelics helped them overcome depression, drug addiction and post-traumatic stress disorder. The City Council voted unanimously to decriminalize the adult use and possession of magic mushrooms and other entheogenic, or psychoactive, plants and fungi. Denver voters in May approved a similar measure for people 21 and older. (Maldonado, 6/5)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. County To Pay $3 Million To Family Who Says Failed 911 Calls Led To Girl's Death
Ashley Flores was at home on Christmas Eve 2017, anticipating the gifts she and her siblings would soon open, when she began having difficulty breathing. The 11-year-old’s older sister dialed 911 and was put on hold by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy, her relatives said. The next four times her sister and other family members called, the same deputy failed to properly transfer the emergency calls and eventually routed them to an empty fire station where no one picked up, the family alleged in a lawsuit. (Lau, 6/4)

The Associated Press: More Patients Diagnosed Amid Legionnaires' Outbreak
Health officials in Ohio say 10 people have now been diagnosed with Legionnaires' disease amid an outbreak at a recently opened hospital near Columbus. Franklin County's health department said Tuesday that's up from seven. One of those patients died Sunday. (6/4)

The Washington Post: Baltimore’s Nightclub For Disabled Adults Fosters Love, Friendship And Inclusion
By the time the doors open 15 minutes early this Saturday night, dozens are lined up to get inside. Women wear wedges and bodysuits that hug their curves. Men sport collared shirts and their favorite sneakers. Some have caregivers guiding them; others need wheelchairs. Many wear the signature T-shirts stamped with the logo, Club 1111. It’s the long-awaited evening when the League for People with Disabilities transforms into a glittering nightclub for disabled adults. The classrooms become dance floors, with DJs playing pounding club music. Merchandise, such as sunglasses and blinking rings, is stacked up and ready to be sold, and volunteers wait in a makeshift spa to do fingernails and apply temporary tattoos. A lounge with dim lights is set up for chilling. (Wenger, 6/4)