First Edition: March 11, 2016

Kaiser Health News: Back From The Brink, A Rural Texas Hospital Shines
Brad and Sheryl Kott didn’t think much of it seven years ago when their 13-year-old son, Quinn, complained his arm felt tingly. But later that day, Mr. Kott found Quinn — a friendly, energetic athlete — on the bathroom floor. His speech was garbled. ... After the family arrived at Hill Country Memorial, the local hospital in Fredericksburg, the Kotts say Quinn’s medical care went terribly wrong. ... It wasn’t until the next morning that a pediatrician finally examined Quinn. He was rushed to a hospital in San Antonio, about 70 miles south, and died soon after. He had suffered a massive stroke. For Dr. Michael Williams, then Hill Country Memorial’s chief executive officer, Quinn Kott’s death in 2009 was a crucible moment. (Varney, 3/11)

Kaiser Health News: Prevention Experts, Eye Doctors Disagree On Vision Tests For Seniors
Some doctors and a key group of preventive care experts are not seeing eye to eye on seniors’ need for vision screening during primary care visits. There’s not enough evidence to know whether giving seniors a vision test when they visit their primary care doctor will lead to earlier detection and treatment of cataracts, age-related macular degeneration or refractive problems that could require corrective glasses and contacts, according to guidelines published by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association. (Andrews, 3/11)

Kaiser Health News: Cigna Profits As Medicare Softens Penalty Policy
Cigna will get to keep hundreds of millions of dollars in bonus payments for some of its Medicare Advantage plans, despite recently imposed sanctions for mismanaging those plans in ways that federal officials said threatened seniors’ health and safety. Securities analysts are raising their 2017 earnings estimates for Cigna in reaction to a broad policy change that Medicare quietly released in a memo Tuesday. At the same time, consumer advocates are raising concerns that the Obama administration’s move will hurt efforts to keep pressure on the private insurance plans, which are an alternative to traditional Medicare. The federal government pays the plans to handle beneficiaries’ care. (Galewitz, 3/11)

The New York Times: Senate Passes Broad Bill To Combat Drug Abuse
Responding to a drug crisis that has contributed to more American deaths than car crashes, the Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a broad drug treatment and prevention bill, the largest of its kind since a law in 2008 that mandated insurance coverage for addiction treatment. “This is big and significant,” said Marvin Ventrell, the executive director of the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers. “It had legs and interest because of the opioid crisis that has hit Middle America.” The bill, which passed 94 to 1, is a boon for Republican senators in swing states, which have been hit particularly hard by the drug crisis. Senators Rob Portman of Ohio and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, both Republicans, spent weeks promoting the measure on the floor after seeing opioid-related crime and addiction soar in their states. (Steinhauer, 3/10)

USA Today: Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill To Combat Painkiller Abuse, Heroin Addiction
The legislation authorizes $725 million for federal grants but does not allocate any actual funds, which would have to be approved as part of legislation to fund federal agencies for the 2017 fiscal year. Senate Republicans last week blocked an effort by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., to add $600 million in emergency money to the bill. "Let's not pretend that there is new money for this," [Sen. Sheldon] Whitehouse said. "The sooner we can get this funded, the sooner we can save lives." (Kelly, 3/10)

The Washington Post: Senate Passes Bill To Combat Heroin, Painkiller Abuse
Drug abuse has been in the spotlight this political season, with presidential candidates recalling personal stories about relatives and friends who struggled with addiction and lawmakers from states dealing with the crisis highlighting their efforts to address the problem legislatively. Many of the Republican senators who have most vocally backed the bill face tough re-election battles. (Demirjian, 3/10)

The Wall Street Journal: Senate Passes Bill To Fight U.S. Opioid Epidemic
The Senate bill authorizes funding for state and local governments, as well as schools and nonprofits, to prevent and treat prescription drug and heroin abuse. It also would expand the availability of naloxone, a drug that can counter the effects of an overdose, and it makes special provisions to help prisoners, veterans, pregnant women and mothers fighting addiction. The lone senator to oppose the bill was Sen. Ben Sasse (R., Neb.). “I’m not convinced fighting addiction—as opposed to stopping drug traffickers—is best addressed at the federal level,” Mr. Sasse said in a statement. (O'Keeffe, 3/10)

The Washington Post: Hogan Proposes Additional Spending On Education, Drug Treatment
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced new spending proposals Thursday that would boost funding for K-12 education and drug addiction treatment and pay for new construction at five of the state’s universities. The $77 million plan is the latest addition to the $42 billion budget Hogan (R) pitched to the state legislature in January. The Senate Budget and Taxation Committee is expected to approve the original budget with minor tweaks before next week, sending it to the full Senate for ­consideration. (Hicks, 3/10)

The Associated Press: Top Republican Unveils $98B In Cuts To Social Programs
A senior House Republican on Thursday reprised a proposal to cut child tax credits for immigrants working in the U.S. illegally. Powerful Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, also wants tougher rules to reclaim overpayments of health insurance tax subsidies under the new health care law as part of package to cut spending by $98 billion over 10 years. The move is part of an effort designed to help GOP leaders make progress in passing the House's annual budget blueprint. (Taylor, 3/10)

The Associated Press: Ill Californians May Take Life-Ending Drugs Starting In June
Terminally ill California residents will be able to legally end their lives with medication prescribed by a doctor beginning June 9. State lawmakers adjourned a special session on health care Thursday, starting the 90-day countdown to physician-assisted suicide. The law approved last year made California the fifth state to adopt the practice, but patients were left in limbo until the session ended. The bill passed following the heavily publicized case of Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old California woman with brain cancer who moved to Oregon to legally end her life in 2014. (3/10)

Los Angeles Times: Aid-In-Dying Law To Take Effect June 9 In California
Senate leader Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) said on the Senate floor just before the adjournment vote Thursday that the law “ensures Californians have access to humane and compassionate options to limit suffering at the end of life.” The bill had failed to win needed support during the regular session, so supporters introduced it in special session, allowing it to bypass committees where opposition was strong. The approval of the law through “controversial legislative tactics” was denounced again Thursday by Tim Rosales of Californians Against Assisted Suicide. (McGreevy, 3/10)

NPR/KQED: California To Permit Medically Assisted Suicide As Of June 9
As written, the law requires two doctors to agree, before prescribing the drugs, that a patient has six months or less to live. Patients must be able to swallow the medication themselves and must affirm in writing, 48 hours before taking the medication, that they will do so. California is the fifth state to permit this option at the end of life. It joins Vermont, Oregon, Washington and Montana. (Aliferis, 3/10)

The Associated Press: California Lawmakers Vote To Raise Smoking, Vaping Age To 21
California lawmakers voted Thursday to raise the legal age for purchasing and using tobacco and e-cigarettes from 18 to 21, putting the nation's most populous state on the brink of becoming only the second after Hawaii to bar teenagers from lighting up, dipping or vaping. Before it can become law, Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown must sign the legislation, which has already passed the state Assembly. His spokesman said the governor generally does not comment on pending legislation. (3/10)

NPR: Split Views On Health Overhaul In Ohio
Adults in Ohio are divided when it comes to whether they believe the Affordable Care Act has been good or bad for them. And while most rate their own health care positively, far more Ohioans rate the state's overall health care system as fair or poor than rate it as excellent. Those are some of the findings in a series of recent polls by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (Tribble, 3/11)

The Associated Press: A Look At Indiana Bill Banning Abortions For Fetal Defects
A measure that would make Indiana only the second state to ban abortions sought because a fetus has a genetic abnormality, such as Down syndrome, is heading to Gov. Mike Pence for possible approval. The conservative Republican is a strong opponent of abortion and a spokeswoman said he would give it "thoughtful consideration." Here's a look at the measure how it was approved by state lawmakers. (3/10)

The Associated Press: West Virginia: Veto On Abortion Curb Overridden
Overriding the governor’s veto for the fourth time this year, West Virginia lawmakers put a ban on a common second-trimester abortion method into law on Thursday. Lawmakers voted to override a veto by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, a Democrat, of a bill outlawing the dilation and evacuation procedure, considered the safest second-trimester abortion method. (3/10)

USA Today: Rape-Kit Reforms Flood State Legislatures
At least 20 states are pursuing reforms to the inconsistent ways rape kits are handled by law enforcement agencies after a USA TODAY NETWORK investigation last year revealed tens of thousands of rape evidence kits went untested nationwide. Legislatures have been flooded with a total of about 50 different bills in recent months — most introduced since the beginning of this year as lawmakers returned to statehouses for 2016 sessions — dealing with various aspects of how rape kits are handled by the criminal justice system. (Reilly, 3/10)

NPR: Hospitals Adapt ERs To Meet Patient Demand For Routine Care
When it's time for medical care, where do you go? The doctor's office? An urgent care clinic? Or the nearest hospital? As many as 1 in 3 Americans sought care in an ER in the past two years, according to a recent poll by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. That relatively high frequency may be a matter of convenience, even though many in the poll also report frustration with the cost and quality of care they received in an ER. (Aboraya, 3/10)

The Washington Post's Wonkblog: What Happens When It’s Easier To Visit The Doctor: We Do
The "minute clinic" has efficiency built into its name, a quick, easy way for people who feel sick -- but not that sick -- to seek medical treatment without the hassle of making a doctor's appointment. Early evidence showed that visits to retail clinics embedded in grocery stores, big box stores and pharmacies cost much less than traditional health care, suggesting they could be a way to cut overall spending. But a new analysis shows that, paradoxically, the rise of the retail clinic has meant a small but significant rise in health care spending. Retail clinics accounted for an additional $14 per person per year, according to a Health Affairs study that examined how people insured by Aetna in 22 cities between 2010 and 2012 used health care. That's because more than half of the visits to retail clinics for sinus infections or other relatively minor illnesses were driven new utilization -- in other words, visits that wouldn't have happened if the clinics didn't exist. (Johnson, 3/10)

NPR: How Best To Test For Zika Virus?
Let's say you're a pregnant woman who recently traveled to Latin America or the Caribbean. You got a little sick shortly after the trip, with some combination of mild fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis. The big question now is: Did you have Zika virus? And, if so, is your fetus still healthy? "Probably every day, patients come in questioning whether or not they would qualify for testing," says Dr. Christine Curry, an obstetrician-gynecologist at the University of Miami, and Jackson Memorial Hospital. (Bichell, 3/10)

NPR: Youngest Kids In Class At Higher Risk Of ADHD Diagnosis
By the time they're in elementary school, some kids prove to be more troublesome than others. They can't sit still or they're not socializing or they can't focus enough to complete tasks that the other kids are handling well. Sounds like ADHD. But it might be that they're just a little young for their grade. Studies done in several countries including Iceland, Canada, Israel, Sweden and Taiwan show children who are at the young end of their grade cohort are more likely to get an ADHD diagnosis than their older classmates. (Chen, 3/10)

NPR: He Rescued A Dog. Then The Dog Rescued Him
Eric O'Grey knew he was in trouble. His weight had ballooned to 320 pounds, and he was spending more than $1,000 a month on medications for high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol. In 2010, a physician told him to buy a funeral plot, because he would need it in five years. He was 51 years old. So he went to talk with a naturopathic doctor about losing weight. She said: Get a shelter dog. O'Grey was surprised, but he took that advice, heading to the Humane Society Silicon Valley near his home in San Jose, Calif. He told the shelter, "I want an obese middle-aged dog, like me." That's how he met Peety. (Shute, 3/10)

The Associated Press: Rallies To Seek Wage Help For New York Direct Care Providers
Agencies serving people with developmental disabilities are urging New York state to help them cover the costs of a rising minimum wage. Rallies planned for Friday in Rochester, Long Island, Buffalo and New York City are meant to convince state lawmakers to include funding in the 2016-17 state budget to allow the agencies to increase pay without having to cut people or services. (3/11)