First Edition: March 6, 2019
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
Patients Experiment With Prescription Drugs To Fight Aging
Dr. Alan Green’s patients travel from around the country to his tiny practice in Queens, N.Y., lured by the prospect of longer lives. Over the past two years, more than 200 patients have flocked to see Green after learning that two drugs he prescribes could possibly stave off aging. One 95-year-old was so intent on keeping her appointment that she asked her son to drive her from Maryland after a snowstorm had closed the schools. (Taylor, 3/6)
Kaiser Health News:
Cities And Counties Unlikely To Heed FDA Warning On Importing Foreign Drugs
Cities and local governments in several states said they will continue to use a Canadian company to offer employees prescription drugs at a highly reduced price, even though federal officials raised safety concerns about the practice last week. The municipalities use CanaRx, which connects their employees with brick-and-mortar pharmacies in Canada, Great Britain and Australia to fill prescriptions. (Galewitz, 3/6)
California Healthline:
California Looks To Lead Nation In Unraveling Childhood Trauma
Imagine identifying a toxin so potent it could rewire a child’s brain and erode his immune system. A substance that, in high doses, tripled the risk of heart disease and lung cancer and reduced life expectancy by 20 years. And then realizing that tens of millions of American children had been exposed. Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, California’s newly appointed surgeon general, will tell you this is not a hypothetical scenario. She is a leading voice in a movement trying to transform our understanding of how the traumatic experiences that affect so many American children can trigger serious physical and mental illness. (Barry-Jester, 3/5)
The New York Times:
F.D.A. Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, Who Fought Teenage Vaping, Resigns
Scott Gottlieb, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, known for his aggressive efforts to regulate the tobacco and e-cigarette industries, said on Tuesday that he would resign at the end of the month. The reason he gave was family and his weariness with commuting to see his wife and three children, who have remained in their Westport, Conn. home since he took office. But his announcement caught many in Washington and the industries he regulates by surprise and raised questions about whether his push to reduce teenage vaping and lower nicotine levels and ban menthol in cigarettes will continue in an administration that generally has a hands-off approach to business. (Kaplan and Hoffman, 3/5)
Reuters:
U.S. FDA Chief Tough On E-Cigs Steps Down In Surprise Resignation
Gottlieb was well regarded by public health advocates and won bipartisan support for his efforts to curb use of flavored e-cigarettes by youths, speed approval times for cheap generic medicines to increase competition and bring down drug prices, and boost the use of cheaper versions of expensive biotech medicines called biosimilars. Unlike his predecessors, who said drug pricing was not the purview of the FDA, Gottlieb waded into the intensifying debate about the high cost of medicines for U.S. consumers and had the agency actively looking into possible solutions. (Abutaleb, 3/6)
The Washington Post:
FDA Commissioner Gottlieb, Who Raised Alarms About Teen Vaping, Resigns
“It was a very hard decision,” Gottlieb said in an interview. “This is the best job I will ever have. I’m leaving because I need to spend time with my family. I get home late Friday, work on weekends and come back to Washington on Sunday. I did the job 100 percent." The resignation was not sought by the White House. A senior White House official said Gottlieb had spoken to President Trump, and that the president liked the FDA chief and did not want him to leave. (McGinley, Bernstein and Dawsey, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
FDA Chief Scott Gottlieb Steps Down After Nearly 2 Years
President Donald Trump tapped Gottlieb in 2017 to “cut red tape” at the FDA. But Gottlieb bucked expectations by pushing the agency to expand its authorities in several key ways, including an unprecedented effort to make cigarettes less addictive by requiring lower nicotine levels. The 46-year-old physician and former conservative pundit advanced his agenda while managing to maintain the support of the president, Republicans and key Democrats in Congress. (Perrone, 3/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
FDA Chief Scott Gottlieb To Leave Agency
A 46-year-old physician, Dr. Gottlieb joins a long list of other senior Trump administration officials who have left their roles. Dr. Gottlieb, who has been commuting to Washington from Connecticut during the workweek, has told those close to him he is resigning to reduce the strain on his wife and three young children. His exit will take effect sometime over the next month, after which he is likely to seek a post in the private sector, according to people familiar with his plans. “All of us at HHS are proud of the remarkable work Commissioner Gottlieb has done at the FDA,” Mr. Azar said. “He has been an exemplary public-health leader, aggressive advocate for American patients and passionate promoter of innovation.” (Burton and Maloney, 3/5)
Politico:
‘Something Very Rare’: FDA’s Gottlieb Aggressively Tackled Difficult Issues
FDA leaders have typically focused much of their attention on a handful of medical topics, but Gottlieb has been active and aggressive on many issues as commissioner without hewing to a strictly conservative or liberal ideology. It’s an approach that’s won him praise from many in the health sector, while garnering criticism from several of the targeted businesses like tobacco companies and the fast-growing e-cigarette industries. “He was able to do something very rare: He never got embroiled in a scandal, never got labeled with a toxic administration brush and had a great relationship with the President all at the same time,” said one former White House official. (Owermohle, Karlin-Smith and Bottemiller Evich, 3/5)
NPR:
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Announces He Will Resign
Gottlieb was not without his critics. Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy organization, disapproved of his recent decision to approve Dsuvia, a powerful opioid painkiller. Despite Warnings, FDA Approves Potent New Opioid Painkiller"[H]is tenure as commissioner was marked by regulatory decision making regarding medications and medical devices that tilted further in favor of industry's financial interests rather than the interests of public health," Dr. Michael Carome, Director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, said in a statement. (Wamsley and Wroth, 3/5)
Stat:
On Twitter, Praise For Scott Gottlieb Sprinkled With Dissenting Views
Scott Gottlieb is stepping down as leader of the FDA — and many in health and medicine quickly turned to Twitter to express their displeasure. Gottlieb, who has served as the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration since May 2017, announced on Tuesday that he plans to leave his post in one month. During his tenure, the FDA broke annual records for generic drug approvals, cracked down on unproven stem cell treatments, and took new steps to curb youth e-cigarette use. (Thielking, 3/5)
Stat:
Scott Gottlieb’s Sudden Resignation Will Give Biotech A Panic Attack
Scott Gottlieb, the highly effective and well-liked commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, announced Tuesday that he would quit, leaving himself only a month to wrap up his plans like spurring the development of new drugs and regulating electronic cigarettes. That news is likely to leave biotech and pharma executives, who largely adored Gottlieb, nervous at best and frightened at worst. Likewise, health care investors. (Herper and Feuerstein, 3/5)
The Hill:
Dem Campaign Chief: Medicare For All Price Tag 'a Little Scary'
The House Democrats’ new campaign chief on Tuesday poured cold water on the progressive Medicare for All plan, dismissing it as just “one idea” out there and warning that its estimated $33 trillion price tag was “a little scary.” “The ‘Green New Deal’ is an idea. ‘Medicare for all’ is an idea. But there are many others that are out there,” Rep. Cheri Bustos (Ill.), the chairwoman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), said in an interview with The Hill. (Wong and Lillis, 3/6)
The Hill:
Turning The Tables On Health Care
Ever since ObamaCare passed in 2010, Republicans have sought to weaponize it against Democrats, and Brad Woodhouse has been ready to turn the tables. Woodhouse, a veteran Democratic operative, works as executive director of Protect Our Care, where he helped to bring health care to the forefront of the 2018 midterm elections. (Weixel, 3/5)
Modern Healthcare:
Mental Health Coverage Case Lost By UnitedHealth Unit For Denying Claims
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that United Behavioral Health breached its fiduciary duty to patients by using unreasonable and overly restrictive guidelines to make coverage decisions for tens of thousands of mental health and substance abuse patients. The decision, if upheld on appeal, could have wide ramifications of what insurers must cover in the fast-growing behavioral healthcare sector.The case stems from two consolidated class-action lawsuits filed in 2014 against UnitedHealth Group's United Behavioral Health, the nation's largest behavioral health insurer. (Meyer, 3/5)
The New York Times:
Mental Health Treatment Denied To Customers By Giant Insurer’s Policies, Judge Rules
U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero found that United Behavioral Health, the insurer’s unit that administers treatments for mental illness and addiction in private health plans, had violated its fiduciary duty under federal law. In his 106-page decision, Judge Spero described the company’s guidelines as “unreasonable and an abuse of discretion” and having been “infected” by financial incentives meant to restrict access to care. “There is an excessive emphasis on addressing acute symptoms and stabilizing crises while ignoring the effective treatment of members’ underlying conditions,” he said. He dismissed much of the testimony by UnitedHealth’s experts as “evasive — and even deceptive.” (Abelson, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
FDA Allows Treatment Of Depression With Club Drug's Cousin
A mind-altering medication related to the club drug Special K won U.S. approval Tuesday for patients with hard-to-treat depression, the first in a series of long-overlooked substances being reconsidered for severe forms of mental illness. The nasal spray from Johnson & Johnson is a chemical cousin of ketamine, which has been used for decades as a powerful anesthetic to prepare patients for surgery. (3/5)
The New York Times:
Fast-Acting Depression Drug, Newly Approved, Could Help Millions
The move heralds a shift from the Prozac era of antidepressant drugs. The newly approved treatment, called esketamine, is a nasal spray developed by Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., a branch of Johnson & Johnson, that will be marketed under the name Spravato. It contains an active portion of the ketamine molecule, whose antidepressant properties are not well understood yet. “Thank goodness we now have something with a different mechanism of action than previous antidepressants,” said Dr. Erick Turner, a former F.D.A. reviewer and an associate professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University. “But I’m skeptical of the hype, because in this world it’s like Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown: Each time we get our hopes up, the football gets pulled away.” (Carey, 3/5)
The Washington Post:
Esketamine: FDA Approves New Antidepressant To Treat Most Debilitating Cases
The label for the drug will carry a black box warning – the most serious safety warning issued by the FDA. It will caution users they could experience sedation and problems with attention, judgment and thinking, and that there’s potential for abuse and suicidal thoughts. People who take esketamine will have to be monitored for at least two hours after receiving a dose to guard against some of these side effects. (Johnson and McGinley, 3/5)
NPR:
Ketamine-Derived Drug Spravato For Major Depression Gets FDA Approval
But esketamine presents some challenges because of its similarities to ketamine. In high doses, both drugs can cause sedation and out-of-body experiences. And ketamine, often called Special K in its illicit form, has become a popular party drug. So Johnson & Johnson is taking steps to make sure esketamine will be used only as intended, Billington said. "Spravato will not be dispensed directly to a patient to take at home," he said. "It will only be available in approved and certified treatment centers." (Hamilton, 3/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
FDA Approves Controversial Drug For Depression
The discovery that ketamine can help ease symptoms of depression—and within hours, rather than the weeks required for antidepressants such as Prozac or Zoloft—has shaken up the field of psychiatry. Ketamine targets a different receptor in the brain and appears to have a more direct effect than those drugs. “It really has opened up a whole new way of thinking about depression,” Gerard Sanacora, professor of psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine and director of the Yale Depression Research Program, said of ketamine. Dr. Sanacora was an investigator on some of J&J’s clinical trials of Spravato. (McKay and Loftus, 3/5)
The New York Times:
How To Quit Antidepressants: Very Slowly, Doctors Say
Thousands, perhaps millions, of people who try to quit antidepressant drugs experience stinging withdrawal symptoms that last for months to years: insomnia, surges of anxiety, even so-called brain zaps, sensations of electric shock in the brain. But doctors have dismissed or downplayed such symptoms, often attributing them to the recurrence of underlying mood problems. The striking contrast between the patients’ experience and their doctors’ judgment has stirred heated debate in Britain, where last year the president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists publicly denied claims of lasting withdrawal in “the vast majority of patients.” (Carey, 3/5)
The Washington Post:
Planned Parenthood, American Medical Association Sue Trump Administration Over Abortion ‘Gag Rule’
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the American Medical Association have filed a lawsuit to block a new federal rule that would prohibit clinics participating in a program for low-income women from referring them for abortions. The groups argued in a filing in U.S. District Court in Oregon on Tuesday that the requirement would violate patients’ rights, force doctors to withhold information and harm the 4 million patients who rely on the Title X program for their health care. (Cha, 3/5)
The Hill:
Planned Parenthood, Doctors Group Sue Trump Over Family Planning Program Changes
“Because of the administration’s overreach and interference in health care decision making, physicians will be prohibited from having open, frank conversations with their patients about all their healthcare options. This blatant violation of patients’ rights under the Code of Medical Ethics is untenable,” said AMA President Barbara McAneny. (Hellmann, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
Trump Aims To Stem Vet Suicide With Outreach, Local Grants
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday aimed at stemming a persistently high number of veteran suicides, urging expanded outreach by awarding grants to community programs. The order creates a Cabinet-level task force that will seek to develop a national roadmap for suicide prevention, bringing in state and local organizations to raise awareness among the high-risk group. It directs the task force led by Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie to finalize a plan in 12 months. (Yen, 3/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump Orders Creation Of Task Force Addressing Veteran Suicide
The task force will be designed to coordinate federal and state resources and will incorporate private and not-for-profit institutions to provide technical assistance and grants aimed at prevention efforts. “Veteran suicide is a tragedy of staggering proportions,” Mr. Trump said at a White House event Tuesday where he signed the executive order. Citing statistics on the number of veterans who commit suicides, the president asked: “Who would believe that’s possible?” The task force will likely require a new budget appropriation, according to an administration official. (Kesling, 3/5)
The Washington Post:
Measles Outbreak: Washington Health Secretary Calls For National Campaign To Combat Anti-Vaxxers
A Senate panel warned lawmakers Tuesday about the dangers of false information about vaccines and called for a national campaign, similar to the one against smoking, to counter the public health threat posed by anti-vaccine groups. Virtually all the witnesses and members of the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, which held the hearing, endorsed the safety and importance of vaccines. But one senator, Rand Paul, (R-Ky.), struck a defiant note. (Sun, 3/5)
The Hill:
Paul Says Forced Vaccinations Is 'Giving Up On Liberty For A False Sense Of Security'
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said Tuesday the government should not force parents to vaccinate their children. "I believe that the benefits of vaccines greatly outweigh the risks, but I still do not favor giving up on liberty for a false sense of security," Paul said during a Senate hearing focused on the rise in preventable disease outbreaks. (Hellmann, 3/5)
Politico:
Rand Paul Condemns Mandatory Vaccines Amid Measles Outbreak
Paul's comments were quickly rebuked by his Republican colleague and a fellow doctor, Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who said he knew patients who needed liver transplants because they avoided vaccinations. He and other witnesses pointed out that communities become vulnerable to preventable infections when not enough people have been vaccinated, a concept known as herd immunity. "If you're such a believer in liberty that you should not be vaccinated, there should be consequences if you infect others," Cassidy said. (Ehley, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
Teen Tells Senate Why He Defied His Mom To Get Vaccinated
An Ohio teen defied his mother's anti-vaccine beliefs and started getting his shots when he turned 18 — and told Congress on Tuesday that it's crucial to counter fraudulent claims on social media that scare parents. Ethan Lindenberger of Norwalk, Ohio, said his mother's "love, affection and care is apparent," but that she was steeped in online conspiracies that make him and his siblings vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases like the ongoing measles outbreaks. (3/5)
The Washington Post:
Ethan Lindenberger: Facebook’s Anti-Vax Problem Intensified In Congressional Testimony
Most importantly, Lindenberger said, was the impact Facebook’s anti-vax communities had on his family. “I feel like if my mom didn’t interact with that information, and she wasn’t swayed by those arguments and stories, it could’ve potentially changed everything,” he said. “My entire family could’ve been vaccinated.” Lindenberger said that he believed his older siblings, who predate Facebook, had been vaccinated. He said his younger siblings have not. (Brice-Saddler, 3/5)
The New York Times:
What Really Makes A Difference In Vaccination Rates?
Social media companies face increasing scrutiny for amplifying fringe anti-vaccine sentiment amid measles outbreaks in several states like Washington. In response, Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest recently made headlines by announcing initiatives to reduce vaccine misinformation on their platforms. But the focus on anti-vaccine content on social media can obscure the most important factor in whether children get vaccinated: the rules in their home states, which are being revisited in legislative debates across the country that have received far less attention. (Nyhan, 3/6)
Los Angeles Times:
When Measles Struck, Investigators Wanted Answers. Instead, Some Parents Lied
As a measles outbreak spread in Northern California last spring, public health workers called the family of a young boy who they feared had been exposed to the disease. The boy’s mother, however, said her 7-year-old already had his shots, so they need not worry. A month later, health investigators found out she had lied. The boy, who had since caught measles, spread it to his brother and uncle, said Dr. George Han, deputy health officer in Santa Clara County. (Karlamangla, 3/5)
The New York Times:
Border At ‘Breaking Point’ As More Than 76,000 Migrants Cross In A Month
The number of migrant families crossing the southwest border has once again broken records, with unauthorized entries nearly doubling what they were a year ago, suggesting that the Trump administration’s aggressive policies have not discouraged new migration to the United States. More than 76,000 migrants crossed the border without authorization in February, an 11-year high and a strong sign that stepped-up prosecutions, new controls on asylum and harsher detention policies have not reversed what remains a powerful lure for thousands of families fleeing violence and poverty. (Dickerson, 3/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Record Immigration Surge At The Border
“This situation is not sustainable,” Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said while releasing the numbers Tuesday. “The system is well beyond capacity and remains at the breaking point.” On Tuesday afternoon, the White House highlighted the new numbers, saying they “reflect an ever-worsening crisis on our southern border.” Mr. McAleenan said his agency was taking steps to establish a center near El Paso, Texas, specifically to process families and children, and in particular, to conduct medical assessments. (Caldwell and Radnofsky, 3/5)
The New York Times:
More Migrants Are Crossing The Border This Year. What’s Changed?
President Trump has tried to halt the arrival of undocumented migrants by beefing up border security, limiting who qualifies for asylum and, for a while, separating migrant children from their parents at the border. However, figures released on Tuesday suggest that those measures are failing to deter tens of thousands of migrants from journeying over land to the United States. Indeed, after shriveling to the smallest total in five decades, the number of migrants intercepted at the southern border — the best indicator of how many undocumented people are entering the United States — is soaring again. (Jordan, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
Company Behind Florida Migrant Children Camp Drops IPO Plans
The corporation behind a Florida detention camp for migrant children abandoned its plans to go public Tuesday as controversy grows around policies that lock up children crossing the Mexico border. The chairman of Caliburn International Corp., Thomas J. Campbell, sent a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission saying it no longer wishes to conduct a public offering. (Gomez Licon, 3/5)
The New York Times:
A Mother And Daughter Both Have H.I.V. The U.S. Lets In Only One.
Even after more than six months, Kirad wasn’t used to sharing a bed with her mother. She was now 17, and ever since they arrived in New York after fleeing Honduras, they were stuck in the same room. They were staying in a tiny bungalow in Far Rockaway, Queens, that belonged to Kirad’s aunt. The only common space was a kitchen just big enough to squeeze in a love seat and a small table. Every surface was covered with pots and pans, cereal boxes and bags of food. “We fight sometimes over the TV,” Kirad said, “because my mom wants to watch something and I want to watch something different so I go to my aunt’s room.” (Fertig, 3/6)
The Associated Press:
First Lady Prods Media To Cover Opioids As Much As 'Gossip'
First lady Melania Trump prodded the news media on Tuesday to spend as much time highlighting the opioid epidemic at it devotes to "idle gossip or trivial stories." Mrs. Trump said she wished the media would talk about the epidemic more "and educate more children, also adults, parents, about the opioid crisis that we have in United States." She spoke during a town hall-style discussion in Las Vegas about the epidemic that claimed nearly 48,000 American lives in 2017. "They do it already, but I think not enough." (3/5)
The Wall Street Journal:
Health-Care Industry Debates Hospital Accreditation Rules
Companies and organizations tied to health-care accreditation have offered differing views on whether the Trump administration should establish new rules or guidance to curb potential conflicts of interest in the industry, ahead of a possible action later this year. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, has received more than 120 comments over several months on actions it may take to rein in financial arrangements in the accreditation market. The comments come as the Trump administration has been weighing whether to continue approving accreditation groups that also have consulting arms, after articles in The Wall Street Journal raised concerns about possible conflicts of interest and patient safety. (Armour, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
Doc Denies Ordering Outsize Painkiller To End Patient's Life
A critical-care doctor accused of ordering excessive painkiller doses for dozens of Ohio hospital patients who died is denying he negligently or intentionally prescribed drugs to end a woman's life. The response is part of a court filing seeking dismissal of a lawsuit against Dr. William Husel (HYOO'-suhl) over the September death of 64-year-old Bonnie Austin. Among others defenses, his lawyer argues Husel is immune to the suit under state law. (3/5)
The New York Times:
Here’s How Strokes Happen When You’re As Young As Luke Perry
Luke Perry’s death, following a massive stroke, is both a tragedy and a bit of a mystery. The actor was just 52 years old, and the vast majority of strokes occur in much older people. Mr. Perry’s family has not offered details about the medical findings, but deaths from stroke in younger age groups are rare. About seven in one million Americans under age 50 die annually from strokes caused by a blocked blood vessel, and nine per million die from a brain hemorrhage, the two main types of strokes. (Kolata, 3/5)
The New York Times:
An H.I.V. Cure: Answers To 4 Key Questions
At a scientific conference in Seattle on Tuesday, researchers reckoned with a day that many thought might never arrive. A patient appears to have been cured of H.I.V., the virus that causes AIDS, for only the second time since the epidemic began. A sort of electric hope hangs in the air, said Dr. Steve Deeks, an AIDS specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, who is attending the gathering: “The whole approach to a cure is shifting more from aspiration to something that people are realizing could be feasible.” It is a hope that must be tempered with realism: H.I.V. is a wily adversary, and scientists and patients living with the virus are all too well acquainted with past failures in the fight against the epidemic. (Mandavilli, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
Advice On Salt, Hidden In An Array Of Foods, Gets Specific
It can be hidden in bread, pizza, soup and other packaged foods and restaurant meals. Now, advice to watch out for salt is coming with a more specific reason. A report released Tuesday by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine ties the recommended limit on sodium to a reduced risk of chronic disease. The report, which is expected to serve as a guide for policymakers, says the updated guidance is meant to also convey that cutting back on salt can reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, even if people are still above the recommended limit of 2,300 mg a day for most adults. (3/5)
The New York Times:
Another Obstacle For Women In Science: Men Get More Federal Grant Money
For ambitious young scientists trying to start their own research labs, winning a prestigious grant from the National Institutes of Health can be career making. But when it comes to the size of those awards, men are often rewarded with bigger grants than women, according to a study published Tuesday in JAMA, which found that men who were the principal investigators on research projects received $41,000 more than women. (Jacobs, 3/5)
The Associated Press:
FDA Warns Of Asbestos In Claire's Makeup; Company Disputes
U.S. regulators on Tuesday warned people not to use certain Claire's makeup products after samples tested positive for asbestos, but the retailer disputed the findings. The Food and Drug Administration said it issued the warning because it said Claire's refused to comply with its request for a recall, and that the agency doesn't have the power to force one. (3/5)
The New York Times:
How Breast Size Affects How Women Exercise
Breast size can affect how women exercise and whether they decide to work out at all, according to a large-scale new study of the exercise habits of women of all ages. The study suggests that physical concerns, including breast size and bra fit, should be openly and frankly discussed during considerations of what keeps people from being active. Nobody doubts at this point that exercise can improve our health, happiness and longevity. But a hefty percentage of adults across the globe rarely if ever move. (Reynolds, 3/6)
Stateline:
Why Eating Roadkill Makes Roads Safer For People And Animals
Between 1 million and 2 million large animals are hit by vehicles every year in the United States in accidents that kill 200 people and cost nearly $8.4 billion in damages, according to estimates from the Federal Highway Administration. Instead of wasting roadkill or mocking it as hillbilly cuisine, Idaho is tracking the carnage and allowing residents to salvage the carcasses to reduce the number of vehicle-animal collisions and feed hungry people. (Vasilogambros, 3/6)
The Associated Press:
Hawaii Opens Medical Marijuana Registration To Visitors
Hawaii is allowing visitors who are qualified to receive medical marijuana elsewhere in the U.S. to register and buy it from dispensaries in the state. The state Department of Health announced Tuesday that it is also rolling out an online registration system for medical marijuana, allowing qualified patients to quickly obtain an electronic registration card. (3/6)