Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
First Edition: May 16, 2017
Kaiser Health News: Overwrought Marketing? Ads, Not Research, Create Some Pharma Best-Sellers
An overhead light drawing attention to his face, actor Danny Glover starts to cry, dropping his head into one hand — then, he abruptly switches over to deep belly laughs, before resuming a straight face. “When I act, if I do this it’s totally in my control,” he says, getting to the point: “But for someone with pseudobulbar affect, choosing to cry or laugh may not be your decision. ”The 60-second TV advertisement, which ran widely late last year, concerns a neurological condition known by the acronym PBA, characterized by inappropriate, uncontrolled outbursts of laughing or crying. (Appleby, 5/16)
Kaiser Health News: Preexisting Conditions And Continuous Coverage: Key Elements Of GOP Bill
Before he was diagnosed with head and neck cancer in 2015, Anthony Kinsey often went without health insurance. He is a contract lawyer working for staffing agencies on short-term projects in the Washington, D.C., area, and sometimes the 90-day waiting period for coverage through a staffing agency proved longer than the duration of his project, if coverage was offered at all. When Kinsey, now 57, learned he had cancer, he was able to sign up for a plan with a $629 monthly premium because the agency he was working for offered group coverage that became effective almost immediately. (Andrews, 5/16)
Kaiser Health News: Segregated Living Linked To Higher Blood Pressure Among Blacks
For African-Americans, the isolation of living in a racially segregated neighborhood may lead to an important health issue: higher blood pressure. A study published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine suggested blacks living in such areas experienced higher blood pressure than those living in more diverse communities. Moving to integrated areas was associated with a decrease in blood pressure, and those who permanently stayed in localities with low segregation saw their pressure fall on average nearly 6 points. (Heredia Rodriguez, 5/15)
California Healthline: California Bill Would Protect Patients’ Access To Their Chosen Family Planning Providers
As national Republican leaders continue to try to defund Planned Parenthood, California and other states are considering steps to protect access to family planning services. California legislators have introduced a bill that would lock into state law a federal rule that allows Medicaid patients to see family planning providers of their choice. The bill is designed to preserve Californians’ access to Planned Parenthood and other reproductive health clinics should federal officials drop the rule. (5/16)
The New York Times: Medicaid Expansion, Reversed By House, Is Back On Table In Senate
Senate negotiators, meeting stiff resistance to the House’s plans to sharply reduce the scope and reach of Medicaid, are discussing a compromise that would maintain the program’s expansion under the Affordable Care Act but subject that larger version of Medicaid to new spending limits. With 62 senators, including 20 Republicans, coming from states that have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, the House’s American Health Care Act almost certainly cannot pass the Senate. (Pear, 5/15)
Politico: Cruz, Paul Want To Go ‘Nuclear’ On Obamacare Repeal
Conservative GOP Sens. Ted Cruz and Rand Paul are pushing to test the limits of how much of Obamacare can be repealed under Senate rules, setting up a potential “nuclear” showdown. The firebrands want to overturn long-standing precedent for what can be done under reconciliation, the fast-track budget process the GOP is using to dismantle the Affordable Care Act. They argue Republicans are allowing stale Senate norms to tie their hands and are forfeiting a chance to completely abolish the law. (Haberkorn and Kim, 5/16)
The Associated Press: Senate Moderates Hold Bipartisan Health Care Talks
Moderate senators from both parties met Monday to explore whether they can work on bipartisan legislation overhauling the nation's health care system. The evening session came as Republican senators have begun closed-door meetings aimed at crafting a GOP bill scuttling much of President Barack Obama's health care law. (5/15)
The Associated Press: Gov't Report: Efforts To Reduce US Uninsured Stalled In 2016
After five consecutive years of coverage gains, progress toward reducing the number of uninsured Americans stalled in 2016, according to a government report that underscores the stakes as Republicans try to roll back Barack Obama's law. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 28.6 million people were uninsured last year, unchanged from 2015. The uninsured rate was 9 percent, an insignificant difference from 9.1 percent in 2015. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 5/16)
The Washington Post: Trump Administration To Dismantle Small-Business Part Of ACA Marketplaces
The Trump administration said Monday that it will dismantle part of the Affordable Care Act that created online insurance marketplaces for small businesses and tried to foster a greater choice of health plans for their workers. Moving to end the ACA’s small-business enrollment system by 2018 represents the first public step by the Health and Human Services Department to implement an executive order President Trump signed his first night in office, directing agencies to ease regulatory burdens of the health-care law. (Goldstein, 5/15)
The Wall Street Journal: White House Closes A Health-Care Enrollment Option
Under the ACA, employers with as many as 50 workers could sign up for small-group plans through the Small Business Health Options Program, often called SHOP, where some employers could qualify for tax credits to lower premiums. As the exchange was originally envisioned, small employers could use the platform to make contributions to their employees’ health coverage, allowing workers to pick which plans they preferred. But the health law’s small-business tax credits proved insufficient to attract a large number of employers to the SHOP exchange, and most small-business owners shunned the federally run marketplaces in favor of working with private brokers. (Hackman, 5/15)
Politico: Reckless Stock Trading Leaves Congress Rife With Conflicts
Even a looming scandal wouldn’t deter some of Congress’ most eager stock traders. Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), President Donald Trump’s nominee to be Health and Human Services secretary, was under siege, the harsh lights of a Senate hearing upon him. News reports showed he had bought shares in a tiny biotechnology company while sitting on committees that could influence the firm’s prospects. A colleague, Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), had tipped him off to the investment. (Severns, 5/14)
The New York Times: Trump To Expand Funding Ban Tied To Abortion Overseas
The Trump administration said on Monday it would vastly expand the so-called global gag rule that withholds American aid from health organizations worldwide that provide or even discuss abortion in family planning. The new policy could disrupt hundreds of clinics in Africa and around the world that fight AIDS and malaria. It affects about $8.8 billion in global health funding, up from about $600 million during the administration of President George W. Bush. (Harris and Sengupta, 5/15)
The Washington Post: Trump Expansion Of Abortion ‘Gag Rule’ Will Restrict $8.8 Billion In U.S. Aid
Senior administration officials confirmed Monday that Trump’s version will impact $8.8 billion for programs, including those related to AIDS, malaria and child health. About $6 billion of that supports programs for HIV/AIDS services, primarily in Africa, as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief established in 2003. Another program that could be hit hard is the President’s Malaria Initiative, started under George W. Bush and expanded under Barack Obama. Defense Department grants related to global health security will also be impacted. The new policy, which is being called “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance,” affects any organization deemed to promote abortion “as a method of family planning” through abortion counseling, referrals, lobbying or public information campaigns. Trump has said taxpayer dollars should not be used for this purpose. (Cha and Morello, 5/15)
The Wall Street Journal: Health Sector Prepares For Antiabortion Policy’s Impact On HIV/AIDS Fight
How the new policy will affect the U.S. war on HIV/AIDS overseas will depend in part on which foreign nongovernmental organizations sign the new clause to receive PEPFAR funding, a senior State Department official said. The official said that the detailed data PEPFAR regularly collects on the use of its funding would be watched closely for signs that its reach is either being restricted or expanding. “Secretary [Rex] Tillerson wanted to assure that we are carefully following implementation to be able to see if there is an unforeseen impact on our delivery of services,” the senior State Department official said. “These are lifesaving service-delivery programs that need to be performing at the highest level.” (McKay, 5/16)
The New York Times: Texas Seeks Medicaid Money It Gave Up Over Planned Parenthood Ban
Four years after Texas gave up millions of dollars in federal Medicaid funds so it could ban Planned Parenthood from participating in a family planning program for low-income women, the state is asking the Trump administration for the money back. The request presents an important early test for the administration of President Trump, who recently appointed an anti-abortion official to oversee federal family planning programs. Under President Obama, federal health officials would not allow Medicaid funds to flow to the Texas program after it excluded Planned Parenthood, because federal law requires states to give Medicaid beneficiaries their choice of “any willing provider.” (Goodnough, 5/15)
The Associated Press: Texas Tests Trump Administration Over Abortion Providers
The stakes potentially extend far beyond Texas. Abortion-rights groups worry that if Texas succeeds, other conservative states will also cut off Planned Parenthood and put clinics in jeopardy. "There is a new administration, and we're looking at what opportunities may exist for us," said Carrie Williams, a spokeswoman for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. (Weber, 5/15)
The Wall Street Journal: International Cyberattack Affects Some Corners Of U.S. Health Care, Including Medical Devices
The international cyberattack that swept the globe has had some impact on the U.S. health-care system, as hospital systems scramble to prevent its further spread. On a conference call with health-care organizations Monday, U.S. federal officials said several medical devices had been infected with the ransomware that proliferated across dozens of countries, but declined to identify the devices, according to a person on the call. The Department of Health and Human Services, which organized the call, referred questions to Homeland Security, which didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. (Evans, 5/15)
The New York Times: A Whistle-Blower Tells Of Health Insurers Bilking Medicare
When Medicare was facing an impossible $13 trillion funding gap, Congress opted for a bold fix: It handed over part of the program to insurance companies, expecting them to provide better care at a lower cost. The new program was named Medicare Advantage. Nearly 15 years later, a third of all Americans who receive some form of Medicare have chosen the insurer-provided version, which, by most accounts, has been a success. But now a whistle-blower, a former well-placed official at UnitedHealth Group, asserts that the big insurance companies have been systematically bilking Medicare Advantage for years, reaping billions of taxpayer dollars from the program by gaming the payment system. (Walsh, 5/15)
The New York Times: When The Immune System Thwarts Lifesaving Drugs
The miracle treatment that should have saved Becka Boscarino’s baby boy almost killed him. Doctors diagnosed her newborn son, Magglio, with Pompe disease, a rare and deadly genetic disorder that leads to a buildup of glycogen in the body. Left untreated, the baby would probably die before his first birthday. (Kolata, 5/15)
The New York Times: A Strong Case Against A Pesticide Does Not Faze E.P.A. Under Trump
Some of the most compelling evidence linking a widely used pesticide to developmental problems in children stems from what scientists call a “natural” experiment. Though in this case, there was nothing natural about it. (Rabin, 5/15)
Los Angeles Times: WannaCry Cyberattack: When A Hack Shuts Down A Hospital, Who's To Blame?
It's one thing to fall victim to a burglar. It's another to realize the thief got in because you left the front door wide open. The distinction could lead to difficult legal battles for organizations affected by the WannaCry cyberattack, which crippled an estimated 300,000 of the 2 billion Windows computers worldwide in recent days, slowing factories, canceling surgeries, eating homework assignments and shuttering gas stations. (Dave and Peltz, 5/15)
The Associated Press: Spike In Overdose Deaths Prompts Another Warning
A weekend spike in overdose deaths has led to new warnings from western New York health officials. Erie County saw eight suspected fatal overdoses over the weekend. Chautauqua County also is reporting deaths in recent days. (5/16)
The Wall Street Journal: The Bug Problem In Nursing Homes
There’s a bug problem in some nursing homes, and it’s not what you think. Residents of long-term care facilities are vulnerable to drug-resistant infections known as superbugs and can easily spread the deadly germs to others. (Lagnado, 5/15)
The Wall Street Journal: Where Kids Aren’t Allowed To Put On Sunscreen: In School
The Sunbeatables curriculum, designed by specialists MD Anderson Cancer Center, features a cast of superheroes who teach children the basics of sun protection including the obvious: how and when to apply sunscreen. There’s just one wrinkle. Many of the about 1,000 schools where the curriculum is taught are in states that don’t allow students to bring sunscreen to school or apply it without a note from a doctor or parent and trip to the nurse’s office. (Reddy, 5/15)
NPR: Doctors Who Are Mothers Report Workplace Discrimination
"If you become chief resident are you just going to get pregnant and have a baby?" asked the silver-haired male attending physician as I sat interviewing for the prestigious academic position of chief internal medicine resident. "That's what all the female chiefs do, and I'm tired of it," he added, shaking his head in clear disgust. (Sowa, 5/15)
The Washington Post: She Thought She’d Pulled Hip Muscles, But Six Doctors Couldn’t Diagnose Her Pain
As she rose from the dinner table one night in February 2016, Annie Karp winced as she felt a penetrating ache deep in her hips. Unable to straighten up for a minute or two, she took small steps toward the medicine chest in her parents’ Florida home in search of an over-the-counter painkiller. Karp assumed she had pulled several muscles during an overzealous workout earlier in the day. (Boodman, 5/15)
The New York Times: Red Meat Increases Risk Of Dying From 9 Diseases
The more red meat you eat, the greater your risk of dying from one of nine diseases, according to a new report. Researchers studied more than 536,000 men and women ages 50 to 71, tracking their diet and health for an average of 16 years. They recorded intake of total meat, processed and unprocessed red meat (beef, lamb and pork), and white meat (poultry and fish). (Bakalar, 5/15)
