First Edition: November 22, 2019

Kaiser Health News: Drug Deals And Food Gone Bad Plague Corner Stores. How Neighbors Are Fighting Back.
The parking lot was dark when Marie Franklin and her husband, Sam, last stopped at a corner store near their home. The couple didn’t want much from the market that night. But they still strategized before Sam, 49, went inside. “My husband wouldn’t let me go in,” Marie Franklin, 57, recalled. “About four or five guys were hanging around the door.” For her, the scene felt all too familiar in a city where it’s getting harder to find a safe place to buy milk. In some neighborhoods across the country, such corner stores often stock more alcohol than food — and poor-quality groceries at that — amid a minefield of violence just outside their doors. (Anthony, 11/22)

Kaiser Health News: It’s Obamacare Season. Here’s What You Need To Know.
During Wednesday night’s Democratic presidential debate, candidates touched on “Medicare for All,” “Medicare for all who want it” and other ways to reform the American health system.But in the backdrop, it’s once again Obamacare sign-up season. Despite repeated efforts by Republicans in Congress to undo the Affordable Care Act, the controversial law’s seventh open-enrollment period launched this month to relatively little fanfare. It ends Dec. 15. (Luthra, 11/22)

Kaiser Health News: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: The Health Care Campaign
Health care continues to be a top issue for Democratic and Democratic-leaning primary voters, according to recent polls. But the presidential candidates are so busy picking at the details of their opponents’ plans, it’s unclear whether voters are becoming educated or more confused. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is pushing ahead with his health agenda. The latest effort is a series of regulations aimed at making actual prices for hospital and other health care services more available to the public. (11/21)

The Hill: Democrats Press Trump Officials Over Drop In ObamaCare Signups Amid Website Problems
Congressional Democrats are pressing the Trump administration for answers on ObamaCare sign-ups, pointing to a dip in enrollment due to technical problems with the healthcare.gov website. The lawmakers pointed to an analysis from the group Get America Covered, run by former Obama administration health officials, which found that as many as 100,000 fewer people signed up on the first day of ObamaCare enrollment this year due to technical problems with healthcare.gov. (Sullivan, 11/21)

The Washington Post: Canadian Teen May Have Suffered Popcorn Lung After Months Of E-Cigarette Use
A Canadian teenager who used e-cigarettes developed a near-fatal lung condition that does not resemble the vaping-related illnesses that have swept the United States. Doctors say the 17-year-old boy’s case looks more like “popcorn lung,” an injury once seen in factory workers who breathed in a chemical used to create a butter flavor. The previously healthy teen, whose case was reported Wednesday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, had been vaping flavored e-cigarettes “intensively,” adding THC — the main component in marijuana — to his devices. After months of daily use, he was admitted to a London, Ontario, hospital with a fever, persistent cough and difficulty breathing. (Shammas, 11/21)

The Associated Press: Vape Debate: Are E-Cigarettes Wiping Out Teen Smoking?
In almost any other year it would be hailed as a public health victory: The smoking rate among U.S. high schoolers took its biggest hit ever this year, federal figures show, falling to a new low. Instead the milestone was relegated to a lone figure at the bottom of a government press release and went unremarked by anti-tobacco groups that have spent decades working to stamp out youth smoking. (Perrone, 11/21)

The New York Times: After Deaths, Ban On Flavored Vapes To Be Passed By New York City
The New York City Council — in spite of a determined lobbying effort by the vaping industry — agreed on Thursday to ban flavored e-cigarettes amid heightened concerns about the use of such products. The ban, which would cover all flavored e-cigarettes and e-liquid vaping products, including ones that are menthol flavored, would make New York City the most populous jurisdiction in the country to ban flavored e-cigarettes. At least 30 members of the 51-member City Council have signed on as co-sponsors of the legislation. (Mays and Goodman, 11/21)

Reuters: U.S. Vaping-Related Deaths Rise To 47, Cases Of Illness To 2,290
U.S. health officials on Thursday reported 2,290 confirmed and probable cases and 5 more deaths from a mysterious respiratory illness tied to vaping, taking the total death toll to 47 so far this year. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recorded 2,172 cases and 42 deaths from the illness. (11/21)

The Associated Press: Medicare Drug Plan Finder Can Steer Seniors To Higher Costs 
Medicare’s revamped prescription plan finder can steer unwitting seniors to coverage that costs much more than they need to pay, according to people who help with sign-ups as well as program experts. Serving some 60 million Medicare recipients, the plan finder is the most commonly used tool on Medicare.gov and just got its first major update in a decade. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/21)

The Wall Street Journal: Tiny Tax Moves Can Save You Big On Medicare Premiums
Now is a good time for higher-earning Medicare recipients to check whether a small reduction in this year’s income could make a big difference in future premiums. Here’s why. Medicare premiums are based on income, and the formulas have “cliffs” that can raise premiums steeply if income rises by even one dollar. In addition, there’s a new inflation adjustment for 2020 that complicates the situation. These features are producing odd results. (Saunders, 11/22)

The Associated Press: AG Barr To Unveil Plan On Missing, Murdered Native Americans
Attorney General William Barr will announce a nationwide plan on Friday to address the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous people as concerns mount over the level of violence they face. Barr will announce the plan, known as the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Initiative, during a visit with tribal leaders and law enforcement officials on the Flathead Reservation in Montana. Native American women experience some of the nation’s highest rates of murder, sexual violence and domestic abuse. (Balsamo, 11/22)

ProPublica: Under Trump, LGBTQ Progress Is Being Reversed In Plain Sight
When he campaigned for president, Donald Trump posed with the rainbow flag and became the first GOP nominee to mention LGBTQ citizens in his convention speech. In his first month as president, he signed an executive order stating he was “determined to protect the rights of all Americans, including the LGBTQ community.” Yet since taking office, Trump’s administration has acted to dismantle federal protections and resources for LGBTQ Americans, particularly those gained under President Barack Obama. (Berg and Syed, 11/22)

Politico: Trump Pledge To Forgive Disabled Veterans' Student Loans Delayed — At Education Department
The Trump administration suspended the process of forgiving hundreds of millions of dollars in student loans owed by veterans with severe disabilities, despite a pledge by President Donald Trump in August that the debts would be easily erased. The holdup is centered at the Education Department, which in late October stopped processing automatic loan forgiveness for veterans who are "totally and permanently" disabled, according to an internal memo viewed by POLITICO. (Stratford, 11/21)

The Washington Post: Trump’s EPA Scales Back Obama Era Safety Rules Adopted After Deadly Chemical Explosion In West, Texas
The Environmental Protection Agency weakened a rule Thursday governing how companies store dangerous chemicals. The standards were enacted under President Barack Obama in the wake of a 2013 explosion in West, Tex., that killed 15 people, including 12 first responders. Under the new standards, companies will not have to provide public access to information about what kinds of chemicals are stored on their sites. (Eliperin, 11/21)

The Associated Press: EPA Prosecutions Of Polluters Approach Quarter-Century Lows
Justice Department figures show criminal prosecution and convictions of polluters have fallen to quarter-century lows under the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency. The figures Thursday from a Syracuse University records-tracking program show the Justice Department filed 75 prosecutions, and secured 60 convictions, in EPA cases in the fiscal year ended this September. They are the lowest numbers since mid-1990. (Knickmeyer, 11/21)

The Associated Press: Governor Vetoes Bill Outlawing Abortions Over Down Syndrome
A bill that would have prohibited abortions because of a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome was vetoed Thursday by Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor. One day after it passed the Republican-controlled Legislature, Gov. Tom Wolf made good on a promise and rejected the legislation. (11/21)

The Associated Press: Man Admits Attempted Arson At Planned Parenthood Clinic
Federal prosecutors say a man has admitted he tried to burn down a Planned Parenthood clinic in Missouri because it provides reproductive services. Forty-two-year-old Wesley Brian Kaster, of Columbia, pleaded guilty Thursday to maliciously using explosive materials to damage a building owned by an organization that receives federal financial assistance and to violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. (11/21)

The New York Times: The Parents Passed A Drug Test. Should They Get Their Children Back?
Dylan Groves had suffered tremendously long before his tiny body was found in June at the bottom of a 30-foot well, decomposed and wrapped in plastic bags. He had been born a few months earlier with several drugs in his system, and had spent his first days in the care of a foster mother who had cuddled him while he shook and sweated through withdrawal. After 12 days, the foster mother, Andrea Bowling, was ordered to return Dylan to his father. “I begged and pleaded for more time,” she said she told the county’s child welfare agency. (Levin, 11/22)

Reuters: Bankrupt Insys Reaches Deal To Divvy Cash Among Opioid Victims
Drugmaker Insys Therapeutics Inc outlined a deal on Thursday to divide its dwindling cash among governments, insurers, hospitals and individuals who accused the company of fueling the U.S. opioid crisis. The company was largely adopting a plan it had filed in September, which now had the support of numerous groups that initially opposed it, said Brenda Funk, who represents the company, at Thursday's hearing before a U.S. bankruptcy judge Kevin Gross in Delaware. (Hals, 11/21)

The Wall Street Journal: Opioid Maker Insys Struggles To Quell Chapter 11 Plan Objections
The manufacturer, which manufactured an under-the-tongue formulation of the powerful painkiller Fentanyl, filed for chapter 11 protection in June after its former top leaders were convicted of racketeering. (Brickley, 11/21)

Los Angeles Times: Doctors Object To Plan To Help Prisoners Fight Opioid Addiction
A California company seeking to expand its role in battling opioid addiction has come under fire for an aborted plan to recruit prisoners with drug and alcohol problems to be human guinea pigs for its novel addiction recovery program. This week, the watchdog group Public Citizen asked the Food and Drug Administration to investigate the initiative launched by Anaheim-based BioCorRx, Inc. and Louisiana’s Department of Public Safety and Corrections on the grounds that it lacked the ethical, safety and legal protections that are commonplace in medical research studies involving human subjects. (Healy, 11/21)

Stat: Machine Learning Will Yield New Drug Candidates Within Three Years 
An explosion of biological data will lead to the first drug candidates discovered by an artificial intelligence system within the next few years, a feat that promises to change the way pharmaceutical companies conduct research. That was a consensus opinion that emerged among experts in machine learning who spoke at the STAT Summit Thursday about the use of AI in the pharmaceutical industry. (Ross, 11/21)

Stat: Gene Therapy Pioneer: Field Is Behind, And Delivery Tech Is 'Embarrassing'
Gene therapy pioneer Dr. James Wilson is disappointed by the progress in his field — and expects current therapies and technologies to be soon surpassed by new approaches. “In five years, when we look back on the way we’re executing on gene therapy now, we’re going to realize that things are going to be very different,” Wilson said at the STAT Summit on Thursday. “The way in which we’re going to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, potentially cure it, is not the way in which it’s being evaluated in the clinic now.” (Robbins, 11/21)

Stat: Three CEOs Own Up To Biopharma’s Bad Reputation 
Biopharma’s reputation is, objectively speaking, the worst. And on Thursday, several biotech CEOs said in no uncertain terms that they believed that negative reputation was earned — particularly because of some drug pricing decisions. “Unfortunately, I think the industry has earned it. I think there has been and continues to be bad behaviors,” said Nick Leschly, the chief executive of Bluebird Bio, speaking at the STAT Summit on Thursday. (Sheridan, 11/21)

The Washington Post: Javaid Perwaiz: FBI Creates Hotline, Website For Potential Victims Of Needless Surgeries
In the two weeks since authorities accused Virginia gynecologist Javaid Perwaiz of performing unnecessary surgeries on women to collect insurance payments, hundreds of distraught former patients have contacted federal authorities, concerned they might be among the people who allegedly endured invasive procedures they did not want or need. (Mettler and Schmidt, 11/21)

The New York Times: How Churches Fight The Stigma Of H.I.V.
The second Wednesday of the month is always crowded in the parking lot of Bible Way Ministries. That’s the day the church offers its community food bank — and as of this year, it’s also the day when an AIDS Healthcare Foundation mobile testing unit rolls up to provide H.I.V. testing to anyone who wants it. Bible Way had already been offering H.I.V. testing some Sundays and at special events for five years, said the senior pastor, the Rev. Dr. Monte Norwood, his voice barely audible over gospel music blaring from the black testing van. (Keren Landman, 11/21)

The Wall Street Journal: New York City Sees Decline In Number Of New HIV Cases
The number of new HIV diagnoses in New York City declined in 2018 to the lowest level since the city began reporting new cases in 2001, according to a report to be released Friday by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. State and city officials have set a goal to end the HIV epidemic in New York by 2020, which has led to millions being funneled into prevention services and health care. (West, 11/22)

The Wall Street Journal: Dreading The Flu Shot? More Needles Might Help.
Fear of needles has been one of the medical industry’s most intractable problems. David Hoey thinks more needles may be the solution. The difference is that the needles that Mr. Hoey’s company, Vaxxas, are developing are tiny—each a fraction of the width of a human hair. Clustered on one side of a patch, they are invisible to the human eye and barely break the skin when pressed onto the arm—benefits that could lower anxiety levels of patients requiring a seasonal flu jab or other injection. (Winning, 11/21)

The Associated Press: Bacteria-Infected Mosquitoes Take Bite Out Of Deadly Dengue
They still bite, but new research shows lab-grown mosquitoes are fighting dangerous dengue fever that they normally would spread. Dengue infections appear to be dropping fast in communities in Indonesia, Vietnam, Brazil and Australia that are buzzing with the specially bred mosquitoes, an international research team reported Thursday. (11/21)

NPR: How New Cases Of Lung Damage Emerged In The U.S. Countertop Industry
Ublester Rodriguez could not have anticipated that his life would be profoundly changed by kitchen and bathroom countertops. He says that he grew up poor, in a small Mexican town, and came to the United States when he was 14. He spoke no English, but he immediately got a job. "In the beginning I was working in a Chinese restaurant, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. It was all day, so I never had time to go to school," he recalls. "I was a dishwasher." (Greenfieldboyce, 11/21)

The New York Times: Early Menopause Increases Heart Risks
Early menopause, before age 40, may increase the risk for cardiovascular disease. Using a British health database, researchers studied records of 144,260 postmenopausal women, average age around 60. Among them, 4,904, or 3.4 percent, had reached menopause before 40 naturally; 644 had gone into early menopause because they had oophorectomies, or surgical removal of the ovaries. The study is in JAMA. (Bakalar, 11/21)

The Associated Press: Salad Product Recall Over E. Coli Bacteria Impacts 22 States
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says thousands of pounds of salad products are being recalled due to a possible E. coli contamination. The department says Missa Bay, LLC from Swedesboro, New Jersey, is recalling more than 75,000 pounds of salad products that contain meat or poultry because the lettuce may be contaminated with a strain of E. coli. (11/21)

The Associated Press: Ohio State Vows ‘Monetary Resolution’ For Doctor’s Victims
Ohio State University is committed to a “monetary resolution” for men sexually abused decades ago by team doctor Richard Strauss, school leaders said Thursday, though no settlement has been reached in lawsuits alleging school officials ignored complaints and failed to stop him. The university has acknowledged its failure to prevent and investigate the abuse and has repeatedly apologized publicly. But prior to comments Thursday by the chairman of the board of trustees, it hadn’t made any commitments to compensation for those abused by the now-dead physician. (11/21)

The Associated Press: Suspected Norovirus Outbreak Closes 46 Colorado Schools
Thousands of students in Colorado were out of school Thursday because of a suspected outbreak of norovirus. All 46 schools in the district serving Grand Junction and the surrounding area were closed and won’t reopen until after the Thanksgiving break so custodians can disinfect surfaces. (11/21)

The Washington Post: Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh Pleads Guilty To Fraud And Tax-Evasion Conspiracies Over Her Children's Books
Former Baltimore mayor Catherine E. Pugh pleaded guilty Thursday to fraud-and-tax-evasion conspiracies to illegally hide profits from sales of her children’s books to enhance her political and personal fortunes. Pugh’s acknowledgment of guilt came during a court hearing in downtown Baltimore, the city the disgraced 69-year-old once led. Her appearance followed the unsealing by federal prosecutors a day earlier of an indictment against Pugh following a three-year investigation into sales of the “Healthy Holly” book series that began when she was a state senator representing Baltimore in Annapolis. (Hermann and Bui and Marimow, 11/21)

The Washington Post: Fatal Shooting After Patient’s Release, Bacteria In Water System Spark Changes At St. Elizabeths
The District’s mental health agency has made staff changes and created a new patient tracking system and plans to hire a consultant after a discharged psychiatric patient with a homicidal history allegedly killed a neighbor in an unprovoked shooting earlier this year. The changes announced Wednesday are the latest at the city-owned St. Elizabeths Hospital after recent incidents that include a potentially harmful bacteria found in its water supply and allegations of patient abuse. (Moyer, 11/21)

The New York Times: Virus Outbreak Closes Colorado Schools For More Than 20,000 Students
“We are taking this highly unusual action because this virus is extremely contagious and spreading quickly across our schools,” Tanya Marvin, the district’s nursing coordinator, said in the superintendent’s statement. The school district, stretching from the Utah border to Palisade, Colo., is the 14th largest in the state. (Padilla, 11/21)

The Wall Street Journal: Saugus High Shooter Used ‘Ghost Gun’ Built From Parts
The gun used in the Southern California high-school shooting last week was a “ghost gun” with no serial number, law-enforcement officials said Thursday. The .45 caliber handgun used by Nathaniel Berhow to kill two fellow students and wound three others at Saugus High School on Nov. 14 was built from parts that can be easily purchased online, the officials said. The 16-year-old shot himself as well and died the next day. (Elinson, 11/21)

Los Angeles Times: Santa Clarita Shooting: Weapon Used In Saugus High Attack A 'ghost Gun,' Sheriff Says
Sheriff’s homicide detectives are trying to determine who built the .45-caliber handgun, a 1911-model pistol. The weapon included a partially built receiver, meaning it did not contain a serial number. Police and witnesses said 16-year-old Nathan Berhow came to school the morning of Nov. 14, removed the handgun from his backpack and opened fire in the Santa Clarita high school quad. Five students were shot, two of whom later died, before Berhow turned the weapon on himself. He died from his injury a day later. (Winton, 11/21)

The Associated Press: Parents Look For Answers After Autistic Son Chokes At School
A Maryland couple whose autistic teenager died after choking on a latex glove say they have concerns about the way the public school system handles students with special needs. The Capital Gazette reports 17-year-old Bowen Levy died on Nov. 10, five days after he choked on a glove at Central Special School, which serves children with disabilities in Anne Arundel County. (11/21)

NPR: 'Street Medicine' Clinic Brings Health Care To Atlanta's Homeless
Herman Ware sits at a small, wobbly table inside a large van that's been converted into a mobile health clinic. The van is parked on a trash-strewn, dead-end street in downtown Atlanta where homeless residents congregate. Ware is here for a seasonal flu shot. "It might sting," he says, thinking back on past shots. Ware grimaces slightly as the nurse injects his upper arm. (Whitehead, 11/21)

The New York Times: As Rents Outrun Pay, California Families Live On A Knife’s Edge
When Priscilla Fregoso and her family moved into their apartment in Van Nuys, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley, three years ago, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. They had bounced from home to home in Long Beach and Orange County and then in Pacoima, long known as a diverse working-class area of the Valley. But when their rent there increased by $220 a month, they found themselves living in their car. (Cowan and Gebeloff, 11/21)