First Edition: Oct. 27, 2023

KFF Health News: Smaller Employers Weigh A Big-Company Fix For Scarce Primary Care: Their Own Clinics 
With his company’s health costs soaring and his workers struggling with high blood pressure and other medical conditions, Winston Griffin, CEO of Laurel Grocery Co., knew his company had to do something. So the London, Kentucky, wholesaler opened a health clinic. “Our margins are tiny, so every expense is important,” Griffin said. The clinic, he said, has helped lower the company’s health costs and reduce employee sick leave. (Galewitz, 10/27)

KFF Health News: A New Era Of Vaccines Leaves Old Questions About Prices Unanswered 
The world is entering a new era of vaccines. Following the success of covid-19 mRNA shots, scientists have a far greater capacity to tailor shots to a virus’s structure, putting a host of new vaccines on the horizon. The most recent arrivals — as anyone on the airwaves or social media knows — are several new immunizations against respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. (Rosenthal, 10/27)

KFF Health News: Watch: California And Feds Invest In Health Care For Homeless People 
KFF Health News senior correspondent Angela Hart appeared on Spectrum News 1’s “Los Angeles Times Today” on Oct. 24 to discuss her coverage of state and federal efforts to expand street medicine — a growing field that focuses on treating homeless people wherever they are, whether indoors or on the streets. Street medicine is getting a jolt in California, which was the first state to standardize payment for street medicine providers through its Medicaid program, allowing them to be paid more consistently. There are at least 50 street medicine teams in the state, with more in the pipeline as cities grapple with growing homelessness — and the widespread drug use and mental illness that often accompany it. (10/27)

KFF Health News: The New Speaker’s (Limited) Record On Health
After nearly a month of bickering, House Republicans finally elected a new speaker: Louisiana Republican Rep. Mike Johnson, a relative unknown to many. And while Johnson has a long history of opposition to abortion and LGBTQ+ rights, his positions on other health issues are still a bit of a question mark. Meanwhile, a new study found that in the year following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the number of abortions actually rose, particularly in states adjacent to those that now have bans or severe restrictions. (10/26)

The Washington Post: Suspected Maine Gunman Was Hospitalized After Alarming Statements, Official Says
The man police suspect killed 18 people in shootings in Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday night had so alarmed people around him that he was hospitalized and received mental health treatment this summer, according to a person familiar with the investigation. ... Investigators have also been told by people who knew suspect Robert R. Card of Bowdoin, Maine, that in recent months he described hearing disturbing voices, and had increasingly become fixated on the bowling alley and the restaurant where he allegedly opened fire, according to two people familiar with the investigation. (Barrett, Stein and Berman, 10/26)

AP: Maine Passed Law To Try To Prevent Mass Shootings. Some Say More Is Needed
Barely four years before a gunman’s deadly rampage in Maine, a state that is staunchly protective of gun rights, the governor signed a law aimed at preventing a mass shooting like the one Wednesday night that claimed at least 18 lives. It was called a “yellow flag” law, different from the “red flag” laws cropping up in other states to seize weapons from gun owners viewed as a threat. In a sign of the pro-Second Amendment mindset in Maine, a gun-rights group helped write the law, and critics said that, while it was a first step toward stronger gun safety measures, the state could save more lives by doing more — like passing a red flag law. (Whittle, Whitehurst and Levy, 10/26)

The Hill: Maine Democrat Calls For Assault Weapons Ban After Past Opposition
Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) said he would pursue an assault weapons ban after a mass shooting killed at least 18 people in his hometown of Lewiston, Maine, on Wednesday. ... “To the people of Lewiston, my constituents throughout the 2nd District, to those who lost loved ones and to those who have been harmed, I ask for forgiveness and support as I seek to put an end to these terrible shootings,” he said. (Robertson, 10/26)

Maine Public: American Red Cross Blood Donation Appointments Fill Up Quickly In Southern Maine
Many Mainers across the state are seeking to donate blood to help victims in the mass shooting at multiple locations in Lewiston on Wednesday night. The Red Cross Blood Center in Auburn, Maine was closed on Thursday, Oct. 26 due to the incident. (Pratt-Kielley, 10/26)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Gun Industry Insider Talks To Gun Owners About Mental Health, Suicide
At the gun shows, Sodini saw a lot of tough guys, some who he would discover were quietly living with depression and other mental health challenges. Sometimes, one would just disappear and Sodini would later learn the man had ended his life with a gun. Suicide was surprisingly common among gun owners, but no one was talking about it, he said, out of fear it would be used to advance gun restrictions. The issue hit home when someone who worked with Sodini ended his life. ... Sodini sold his share in the family gun business and founded the nonprofit Walk the Talk America, with the goal of closing the gap between gun owners and the mental health world. (Diedrich, 10/26)

AP: The Number Of Military Suicides Dipped In 2022 As The Pentagon Works On New Prevention Programs 
The number of suicides among U.S. military members and their families dipped slightly in 2022, compared with the previous year, as the Defense Department tries to build prevention and treatment programs to address what has been a steadily growing problem over the past decade, The Associated Press has learned. While the total number of deaths decreased overall, suicides among active-duty troops went up slightly, fueled by significant spikes in the Marine Corps and the Air Force. And because the active-duty force is smaller now, the rate of suicides per 100,000 service members inched up, according to U.S. officials. (Baldor, 10/26)

Politico: Newly United House GOP Faces Abortion Policy Divide 
Newly elected speaker Mike Johnson will swiftly face a test of his ability to resolve an intense intra-GOP fight. A majority of the House Republican conference backs a provision in the food and agriculture funding bill that would ban mail delivery of abortion pills nationwide, with some hard-liners even pledging to oppose any version without it. But a handful of Republican centrists who face tough reelection bids next year say federal curbs on mifepristone, a widely used abortion pill, are “a non-starter.” (Ollstein and Hill, 10/26)

Axios: Republicans, Democrats Seek New Abortion Labels Ahead Of 2024 Race
"Pro-life" and "pro-choice" — decades-old labels around abortion in the U.S. — are rapidly losing favor among lawmakers and advocates. Abortion rights are set to remain a major issue in the 2024 election and helped Democrats avoid sizeable losses in last year's midterms. (Daher, 10/27)

Axios: Democratic Lawmakers Push Paid Leave For Pregnancy Loss
Democratic lawmakers on Thursday introduced legislation that would require employers to provide at least seven days of paid time off following a pregnancy loss. Miscarriages are common, occurring in an estimated 10% to 20% of known pregnancies. While more employers are offering paid leave following a pregnancy loss, there's no national paid leave program. (Goldman, 10/26)

The Hill: Bipartisan Lawmaker Duo Introduces Legislation To Support More Funding For Community College Nursing Programs 
Reps. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) and Juan Ciscomani (R-Ariz.) introduced a bipartisan piece of legislation to support additional funding for nursing programs in community colleges. Grants for Resources in Occupational and Workforce Training for Healthcare Act of 2023 — or the Growth Act of 2023 — expands eligibility to the Nurse Education, Practice, Quality, and Retention (NEPQR) — Pathway to Registered Nurse Program (PRNP). (Irwin, 10/26)

The Washington Post: Republicans Delay More Than $1 Billion In PEPFAR Funding 
Republicans have delayed more than $1 billion in funding for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, better known as PEPFAR, the latest complication facing a lifesaving HIV program that has been ensnared in a broader political fight around abortion. (Diamond, 10/26)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Planned Parenthood Offering Two Drugs To Limit Spread Of HIV
Planned Parenthood clinics across Wisconsin now are offering two drugs, commonly known as PrEP and PEP, to those at risk of HIV exposure. ... “Planned Parenthood is focused on meeting the needs of our patients across Wisconsin, and providing essential medications to prevent HIV infection is an essential piece of providing the care our communities need,” said Amy Doczy, vice president of Patient Services at Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin. “Confidential, high-quality, affordable health care is our top priority, and we look forward to welcoming all individuals who need care regardless of their insurance or immigration status, gender and sexual identity.” (Egeren, 10/26)

AP: 2% Of Kids And 7% Of Adults Have Gotten The New COVID Shots, US Data Show 
A month after federal officials recommended new versions of COVID-19 vaccines, 7% of U.S. adults and 2% of children have gotten a shot. One expert called the rates “abysmal.” The numbers, presented Thursday at a meeting held by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, come from a national survey of thousands of Americans, conducted two weeks ago. (Stobbe, 10/26)

Reuters: Pfizer, BioNtech Say Flu-COVID Shot Generates Strong Immune Response In Trial
Pfizer and German partner BioNTech said on Thursday that their vaccine to prevent flu and COVID-19 generated a strong immune response against strains of the viruses in an early- to mid-stage trial. The companies said they plan to start a late-stage trial in the coming months. "This vaccine has the potential to lessen the impact of two respiratory diseases with a single injection and may simplify immunization practices," Annaliesa Anderson, Pfizer's head of vaccine research and development, said in a statement. (10/26)

Politico: Detecting Covid Surges Is Getting Harder, Thanks To A Contract Dispute 
A quarter of the nation’s wastewater testing sites — one of the most dependable ways of tracking Covid surges — are shut down indefinitely over a contract dispute. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants to replace the firm it has worked with since 2020 to test wastewater for Covid in order to better direct public health resources. But that firm, Massachusetts-based Biobot, has filed a protest, stymieing the transition. (Leonard, 10/26)

CIDRAP: Study Finds No Signs Of Ongoing Infection, Brain Damage In Long-COVID Patients
Two new studies spotlight long COVID, with one finding no evidence of ongoing infection or brain damage among patients with persistent symptoms, and the other finding that COVID-19 patients had more than double the risk of shortness of breath and memory loss than uninfected participants more than 3 months after infection. (Van Beusekom, 10/26)

CIDRAP: Study Highlights Potential Role Of Statin Drug In Critical COVID-19 Cases 
Simvastatin, the widely available statin drug used to treat high cholesterol and triglyceride levels, has a 96% probability of improving outcomes for critically ill COVID-19 patients and a 92% chance of improving survival at 3 months, according to new results from the ongoing Randomized Embedded Multifactorial Adaptive Platform for Community Acquired Pneumonia (REMAP-CAP) trial. (Soucheray, 10/26)

AP: FDA Warns About Giving Probiotics To Preterm Babies After Infant Death, Other Injuries
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning health care providers and the public about injuries and at least one death in premature infants who were given probiotic products in the hospital. The products, which supplement regular feeding and contain live organisms such as bacteria or yeast, can lead to invasive, potentially fatal infections or disease, the FDA said Thursday. (Aleccia, 10/26)

Modern Healthcare: 340B Drug Pricing Program Offsite Clinic Policy Reversed By HRSA
Some hospital outpatient clinics are likely to lose 340B drug discount program eligibility under a policy the Health Resources and Services Administration issued Thursday. Hospitals participating in the drug pricing program now must register offsite clinics with HRSA and list them on Medicare cost reports to qualify for 340B, the agency announced in a Federal Register notice. This reverses a 2020 HRSA policy that aimed to streamline 340B certifications during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Kacik, 10/26)

Stat: Hospitals Warn Medicare's Drug Payment Fix Is ‘Unlawful’
Hospitals are telling government officials it would be illegal to claw back $7.8 billion as part of a remedy that is making hospitals whole over underpaid drug discounts — and they may sue if that plan goes into effect. (Herman, 10/26)

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Should Reform Primary Care Physician Pay: AMA
Medical societies and allied healthcare organizations are lobbying policymakers to focus on primary care amid a worsening physician shortage. The American Medical Association and the Primary Care Collaborative are among those urging Congress to pass legislation to increase Medicare reimbursement for physicians and boost graduate medical education funding for primary care providers. (Kacik, 10/26)

Modern Healthcare: Envision Bankruptcy Forces Hospitals To Rethink Physician Costs
Health systems are eyeing high physician staffing fees as an area for improvement as they continue to battle inflated labor costs. Much of the wage inflation centers on such hospital roles as emergency physicians and anesthesiologists, positions often filled by staffing companies. But the failure of staffing companies such as Envision Healthcare and American Physician Partners has forced hospitals to rethink their business model and consider more cost-effective employment options. (Hudson, 10/26)

Reuters: Former HealthSun Exec Accused Of Medicare Fraud Resulting In $53 Mln Overpayment 
A former executive of Florida health insurance company HealthSun Health Plans Inc, which offers privately managed but publicly funded Medicare Advantage plans, has been charged with orchestrating a scheme that resulted in the federal government being overbilled by $53 million, prosecutors announced Thursday. According to an indictment filed in Miami federal court, Kenia Valle Boza, who served as Director of Medicare Risk Adjustment Analytics at HealthSun from 2017 to 2020, fraudulently told the federal government that beneficiaries of HealthSun Medicare Advantage plans had chronic conditions that they did not really have. (Pierson, 10/26)

Modern Healthcare: Blue Cross Antitrust Settlement Upheld By Appeals Court
A federal appeals court has rejected an effort by Home Depot and other employers to revise a $2.67 billion antitrust settlement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield. The plaintiffs argued that the deal, which a district court approved last year, favors fully insured Blue Cross and Blue Shield customers over self-insured employers. In a decision handed down Wednesday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit rejected their plea and ordered the agreement to proceed as the lower court instructed. (Tepper, 10/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Sanofi Plans To Spin Off Consumer-Healthcare, Pharma Businesses 
Sanofi said it plans to spin off its consumer-healthcare business, making it the latest major drugmaker to sharpen its focus on prescription medicines. The French pharmaceutical company outlined the plan on Friday as part of a strategic update that also detailed plans to increase investment in its drug-development pipeline and cut costs. (Calatayud and Hopkins, 10/27)

Modern Healthcare: Medical Debt Forgiveness: How Federal Funds Are Used To Erase Debt
Efforts to erase medical debt are gaining momentum as more healthcare systems and municipalities seek to relieve patients from billions of dollars in bills. Local governments from Los Angeles to Columbus, Ohio, are partnering with providers and others to establish debt relief plans, with some municipalities taking advantage of one-time federal assistance from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. In addition to short-term solutions, they also are looking for ways to prevent future debt and assessing how the programs can maintain momentum once federal dollars run out. (Hudson, 10/26)

WLRN: Ransomware Attack Shuts Down Imaging Center With Dozens Of Florida Locations
A cyberattack has shut down a diagnostic imaging firm based in South Florida, leaving patients unable to get scans and doctors unable to see images for diagnosis. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that the company, Akumin, has been hit with a ransomware attack that's compromised the health information of hundreds of thousands of patients. (DiMattei, 10/26)

Modern Healthcare: What California Minimum Wage Law Means For Non-Union Jobs
California's new law mandating a higher minimum wage for frontline healthcare workers takes effect in June and will have wide-ranging effects on employers and labor markets in and outside of the state. The bill, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Oct. 13, raises the state’s hourly minimum wage for healthcare workers from $15.50 to $25 over the next 10 years. Larger health systems, hospitals and dialysis clinics have until 2026 to implement the new rate. Rural independent hospitals and those with a high mix of Medi-Cal and Medicare patients have until 2033. (Devereaux, 10/26)

Reuters: Santhera's Drug Gets US FDA Nod For Rare Muscular Dystrophy
Catalyst Pharmaceuticals said on Thursday that U.S. health regulators have approved its partner Santhera Pharmaceuticals' drug to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) in patients aged two years and older. (10/26)

Stat: FDA Approves Eli Lilly Ulcerative Colitis Treatment Omvoh
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved an Eli Lilly drug that takes a new approach to treating ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory disease that can cause intense gastrointestinal pain and distress. (Wosen, 10/26)

CIDRAP: ECDC: Chicken Source Suspected In Multicountry Salmonella Outbreak
A multicountry Salmonella enteritidis ST11 outbreak linked to chicken and chicken kebab products since January has sickened at least 335 people from 14 European Union countries, the United Kingdom, and the United States, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) announced today. (Schnirring, 10/26)

Connecticut Public: Can $500 A Month Improve The Health Of Recently Incarcerated CT Residents?
A pilot program in New Haven is testing whether providing formerly incarcerated people direct cash assistance results in better health outcomes. Researchers say it’s one of the first interventions for this demographic in the U.S. looking into health impacts. (Srinivasan, 10/26)

Politico: Massachusetts Cannabis Businesses Challenge Constitutionality Of Federal Drug Laws 
A group of Massachusetts weed businesses have filed a lawsuit seeking to bar the government from enforcing federal drug laws against state-regulated cannabis companies. They’re represented by the powerhouse law firm of David Boies, best known for high-profile litigation seeking the breakup of Microsoft, representing former Vice President Al Gore in the contested 2000 presidential election and defending disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein. (Zhang, 10/26)

The New York Times: Corporal Punishment In Private Schools Is Outlawed In New York
New York has banned the use of corporal punishment in all private schools, making it one of just a handful of states in the nation to bar teachers in all types of schools from hitting students. The law, which was signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday after being unanimously approved by the State Legislature in June, was proposed in response to a New York Times investigation that revealed the use of corporal punishment in many schools in the Hasidic Jewish community. The ban will apply to all private schools. (Rosenthal and Shapiro, 10/26)

The Washington Post: Murder Suspect Who Escaped GWU Hospital Is Taken Back Into Custody 
A murder suspect who escaped from D.C. police custody at George Washington University Hospital last month was captured Thursday in Prince George’s County, ending a seven-week search across portions of the metropolitan area, police and U.S. Marshals Service officials said. No one was injured in the apprehension. (Hermann, Jackman and Davies, 10/26)

Stat: Chimpanzees, Like Humans And Whales, Get Menopause: Study
Chimpanzees — they’re just like us. Female chimps, it turns out, go through menopause, and go on to live long (and, one hopes, fulfilling) lives afterward. A new paper published today in Science describes the discovery of the onset of menopause in a community of wild chimpanzees around the age of 50, with an overall decline in fertility starting at age 30. (Merelli, 10/26)