First Edition: September 6, 2019

Kaiser Health News: Groupons For Medical Treatment? Welcome To Today’s U.S. Health Care
Emory University medical fellow Dr. Nicole Herbst was shocked when she saw three patients who came in with abnormal results from chest CT scans they had bought on Groupon. Yes, Groupon — the online coupon mecca that also sells discounted fitness classes and foosball tables. (Weber, 9/6)

Kaiser Health News: How Political Maneuvering Derailed A Red State’s Path To Medicaid Expansion
This was supposed to be the year Medicaid expansion finally happened in Kansas. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, elected in November, had run on the issue. She triumphed in a state that had gone for Trump in 2016 by more than 20 percentage points and replaced a Republican governor who had vetoed a previous expansion bill. (Weber, 9/6)

California Healthline: Lawmakers Send Contested Vaccine Bill To Governor. But Will He Sign It?
California lawmakers dropped this year’s most controversial public health bill into Gov. Gavin Newsom’s lap on Wednesday, but it’s not clear whether he will sign the measure, which would tighten the rules for exempting children from routine vaccinations. The state Senate voted 28-11 to approve SB-276 by state Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), prompting protesters who were watching from the gallery to chant, “You are not representing California for all!” All Senate Republicans voted against the measure and all Democrats voted in favor, except for one who didn’t vote. (Ibarra, 9/5)

Kaiser Health News: Watch: Five Things To Know About Hunger Among America’s Aging
One out of every 13 seniors in America struggles to get enough food to eat while the federal program intended to help hasn’t kept pace with the graying population. Kaiser Health News Midwest editor/correspondent Laura Ungar explains what you need to know about this largely hidden problem. (9/6)

The New York Times: New York State Suspects Vitamin E May Have Played A Role In Vaping Illnesses
Health officials in New York State said on Thursday that they are investigating a possible cause of a recent surge in severe vaping-related illnesses: a compound called vitamin E acetate. The state Department of Health said in a news release that “very high levels” of the compound had been found in 13 samples from eight of 34 patients who have gotten ill in New York. The samples were analyzed as part of an investigation by the Wadsworth Center, a state laboratory. (Richtel, 9/5)

The Washington Post: Vitamin E Acetate In Marijuana Vaping Products Is Linked To Lung Illness, FDA And State Labs Find
The chemical is an oil derived from vitamin E. Investigators at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found the oil in cannabis products in samples collected from patients who fell ill across the United States. FDA officials shared that information with state health officials during a telephone briefing this week, according to several officials who took part in the call. That same chemical was also found in nearly all cannabis samples from patients who fell ill in New York in recent weeks, a state health department spokeswoman said. (Sun, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: New York Identifies Vitamin E Oil In Vaping Samples
Vitamin E acetate is a common dietary supplement and frequently used in skin creams. It isn’t known to be harmful when used in those ways, but the department and other experts believe that inhaling the oil could be a factor. Previous reports suggested that the patients could be suffering from lipoid pneumonia, a reaction to inhaling fats or oils, or a type of allergic reaction that causes inflammation. “When you inhale it, it gets deep into the lungs,” said Howard Zucker, the commissioner of the health department. “You get an inflammation, and the lungs cannot do their job.” (Abbott, 9/5)

Politico: Vitamin E Named As Primary Culprit In Vaping Illness, But Feds Urge Caution
But CDC Director Robert Redfield said it was "probably important for us to keep an open mind that it may be a cause or may be causes," of the vaping illness outbreak. "People need to realize that it is very probable that there are multiple causes." The FDA also stressed this point. "No one substance, including Vitamin E acetate, has been identified in all of the samples tested," the agency said in a news release. "Importantly, identifying any compounds that are present in the samples will be one piece of the puzzle but will not necessarily answer questions about causality." (Young and Owermohle, 9/5)

NPR: Vitamin E Suspected In Serious Lung Problems Among People Who Vaped Cannabis
Vitamin E is not an approved additive for vape products approved by New York's medical marijuana program, and Zucker says the cartridges they tested appear to be "black-market" products purchased off the street — not in medical dispensaries. "This is a situation of people buying products that have been laced with markedly elevated amounts of vitamin E," Zucker says. (Neel and Aubrey, 9/5)

The Hill: House Dem Accuses Juul Of Illegally Advertising As A Way To Quit Smoking 
A House Democrat accused e-cigarette company Juul of making false and misleading advertising claims, and called on the Food and Drug Administration to investigate. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) said Juul has been marketing itself as a tool to help people quit smoking, claiming its pods are safer and healthier than traditional cigarettes. (Weixel, 9/5)

Politico: Trump Prepares To Pitch Gun Proposals Few Really Want
President Donald Trump is finalizing his proposals designed to curb gun violence. But it's unclear whether anyone really wants what he’ll be offering. Most Democrats consider them too weak. Most Republicans, long resistant to triggering their base or the gun lobby, fear Trump won’t push them forcefully enough — leaving them hanging. (Kumar, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: Trump Meets With Democratic Senator On Gun Legislation
President Trump met with Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin at the White House on Thursday to discuss a policy response to mass shootings that have killed dozens of people over the past several weeks, three people familiar with the matter said. The 30-minute private meeting, which included several White House staffers, touched on a range of possible gun-related policy issues including background checks, the people said. Mr. Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat, and Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) have long urged legislation expanding background checks for gun sales. Their bill failed to pass the Senate in 2013. (Restuccia and Andrews, 9/5)

Reuters: Walgreens, CVS, Wegmans Ask Shoppers To Not Openly Carry Firearms
Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc, CVS Health Corp and supermarket chain Wegmans Food Markets Inc said on Thursday they would start asking customers to not openly carry firearms in their stores, joining Walmart Inc and Kroger Co, in a change of gun policy following several deadly mass shootings in the United States. The retailers are among a growing number of U.S. companies, such as Delta Air Lines and Bank of America, that are responding to calls for action to help curtail the rash of gun violence that has plagued the nation, risking backlash from powerful gun owners' groups as politicians consider options. (Fares, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: Walgreens, CVS Ask Customers To Stop Carrying Guns
“We join a growing chorus of businesses in requesting that our customers, other than authorized law-enforcement personnel, do not bring firearms into our stores,” CVS said. “The sight of someone with a gun can be alarming, and we don’t want anyone to feel that way at Wegmans,” the grocer’s corporate Twitter account said Thursday. The statements come two days after Walmart Inc., the country’s largest retailer, asked shoppers to stop carrying guns openly in stores and said the company will cease sales of ammunition that can be used in semiautomatic rifles and handguns. Last month, 22 people died in a mass shooting in an El Paso, Texas, Walmart, prompting company executives to rethink their policies around gun violence in the U.S. (Nassauer, 9/5)

The Associated Press: O'Rourke Calls For Mandatory Buyback Of AK-47, AR-15 Rifles
Democratic presidential hopeful Beto O'Rourke says a mandatory government buyback program for AK-47 and AR-15 rifles is needed because other gun control measures don't do enough to remove weapons already on the streets. O'Rourke spoke Thursday at Tufts University in his first campaign stop in Massachusetts. He said that while universal background checks and red flag laws that allow guns to be removed from those deemed a danger to themselves or others will save lives, neither will address the millions of assault-style weapons already in private hands. (9/5)

The New York Times: Houston Man Is First To Be Charged Under Bump Stock Ban, Officials Believe
The authorities in Houston said Thursday that they had brought charges in what they believed to be the country’s first prosecution under a new ban on bump stocks, the attachments that enable semiautomatic rifles to fire in sustained, rapid bursts. The ban, which went into effect in March, was ordered last year by the Trump administration following several mass shootings. The suspect in the Houston case, Ajay Dhingra, 43, drew the authorities’ attention in August after he sent an email to the George W. Bush Presidential Center asking the former president to “send one of your boys to come murder me,” according to court records. “I want to die by the hands of a white Christian.” (Zaveri, 9/5)

The Associated Press: Survivors’ Advice For Others Touched By Shootings: Seek Help
It haunts him. The face, its expression blank. No sign of anger, no flicker of excitement or worry. A numbness. The right arm is extended toward him, lining up a target for the gun in hand. “I see him every day,” Jim Meyers said, calmly but emphatically. “Every day. I saw him when I was in the shower this morning. It is burned into my mind.” (Sewell, 9/6)

The Associated Press: Lawsuit Challenges End Of Immigrant Medical Relief Program
Civil rights groups sued President Donald Trump's administration Thursday over its decision to stop considering requests from immigrants seeking to remain in the country for medical treatment and other hardships. The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and Lawyers for Civil Rights filed a lawsuit in Boston federal court challenging the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' decision to end its "deferred action" program as of Aug. 7. (9/5)

Stat: MD Anderson Oncologist Met With Trump About FDA Commissioner Job
Texas oncologist Dr. Stephen Hahn met with President Trump Wednesday about a potential nomination to helm the Food and Drug Administration, according to two Republican policy experts and one without a party affiliation. Hahn is chief medical executive at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, but unlike many of the other men and women who have recently led the FDA, he has no Washington experience. (Florko, 9/5)

The Washington Post: M.D. Anderson Cancer Doctor Stephen Hahn Emerges As A Top Candidate For FDA Job
An administration official said that Trump has not made a decision on the FDA job, but that Hahn “is a strong candidate.” He has emerged as the chief rival to Norman E. “Ned” Sharpless, who was tapped as acting FDA chief after Commissioner Scott Gottlieb resigned in March. Sharpless previously was director of the National Cancer Institute and the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. He can serve as acting commissioner only until Nov. 1. (McGinley, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: Insurers Pitch New Ways To Pay For Million-Dollar Therapies
Insurers are scrambling to blunt the expense of new drugs that can carry prices of more than $2 million per treatment, offering new setups aimed at making the cost of gene therapies more manageable for employers. Cigna Corp. announced Thursday a new program that allows employers and insurers to pay per-month fees for a service that will cover the cost of gene therapies and manage their use. CVS Health Corp. says it plans to offer a new layer of coverage specifically for gene therapies, which would handle employers’ costs above a certain threshold. (Walker and Wilde Mathews, 9/5)

Reuters: Inside Drugmakers' Strategy To Boost Cancer Medicines With 'Lazarus Effect'
In the halls of MD Anderson Cancer Center, the drug Vitrakvi is known for having a "Lazarus effect" in some patients because it can reverse late-stage cancer that has defied all other treatment options. Developed by Eli Lilly and Co's Loxo Oncology and marketed by German drugmaker Bayer, it fights a rare genetic mutation that appears in less than 1% of solid tumors, regardless of where they appear in the body. (9/6)

Reuters: Novartis Joins Pfizer With FDA Fast-Track Tag For Lung Cancer Hopeful
Novartis has nabbed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's breakthrough therapy designation for its experimental medicine capmatinib as it joins Pfizer in the race to treat a tough-to-treat mutated lung cancer type. Novartis aims to file for U.S. approval for oral capmatinib later this year as a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic MET exon14 skipping-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the Basel-based company said on Friday. (9/6)

The Associated Press: Judge Grills US Attorney Who Opposes Injection Site Plan
A federal judge in Philadelphia grilled the city's top federal prosecutor Thursday over his opposition to a plan to open the nation's first supervised injection site to address the opioid crisis. U.S. Attorney William McSwain called the goal of reducing overdose deaths "laudable," but accused organizers of "hubris" for thinking they can ignore the law. (Dale, 9/5)

Stat: Against Doctors' Advice, Some Pregnant Women Refuse Ultrasounds
When Sarah Carter was pregnant with her first child, she started digging into the research on ultrasounds, scouring studies in mice and rats. She couldn’t find any evidence in humans they cause harm — professional groups agree that ultrasounds are helpful and safe to perform during pregnancy. But Carter didn’t see any studies that explicitly showed they were safe. Then, she heard something that compounded her concerns. After an ultrasound, a friend of a friend was told her fetus had a limb malformation. She spent her pregnancy riddled with anxiety, only to find out nothing was wrong after the baby’s birth. (Thielking, 9/6)

The New York Times: The Role Of Nurses When Patients Decide To End Their Lives
When Ben Wald, 75, was dying of cancer in 2012, he wanted to use Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act to receive a prescription for a lethal medication that would end his life. His hospice nurse, Linda, was part of the discussion and provided both information and support, said his wife, Pam Wald, of Kings Valley, Ore. His colon cancer had spread to his lungs, and his weight dropped from 180 to 118 pounds. He struggled to speak or eat. (Lucchesi, 9/6)

NPR: Big Data Biobanks Aren't Equally Open To Researchers
More than a million Americans have donated genetic information and medical data for research projects. But how that information gets used varies a lot, depending on the philosophy of the organizations that have gathered the data. Some hold the data close, while others are working to make the data as widely available to as many researchers as possible — figuring science will progress faster that way. But scientific openness can be constrained b y both practical and commercial considerations. (Harris, 9/6)

NPR: Hurricane Dorian: Elderly Residents Face Evacuation Challenges
The firefighters came on Monday. They went up and down the halls, knocking on every apartment in the six-story Ansonborough House building in downtown Charleston, S.C., and leaving notices on the doors of those who didn't answer: This area is under mandatory evacuation. The manager of the building heeded the warning and left a note on the window in the lobby explaining that the building would not be staffed all week. (Hersher, 9/5)

Los Angeles Times: Why Does So Much News Seem Negative? Blame Human Attention
Ever wonder why there’s so much bad news out there? Maybe it’s because people find bad news more interesting than good news. A new study involving more than 1,000 people across 17 countries spanning every continent but Antarctica concludes that, on average, people pay more attention to negative news than to positive news. The findings, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, hint that this human bias toward negative news might be a large part of what drives negative news coverage. (Khan, 9/5)

The Associated Press: Marijuana Use By US College Students Up, Highest In 35 Years
U.S. college students are using marijuana at the highest rates in 35 years, according to a report released Thursday. About 43% of full-time college students said they used some form of pot at least once in the past year, up from 38%, a University of Michigan survey found. About 25% said they did so in the previous month, up from 21%. The latest figures are the highest levels seen in the annual survey since 1983. (9/5)

The Associated Press: Texas Hoping To Revive Law On Burial Of Fetal Remains
Texas attorneys asked a federal appeals court Thursday to revive the state’s requirement that fetal remains from abortions and miscarriages at health care facilities be buried or cremated. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans gave no indication when it would rule following the arguments. One panel member raised the possibility that a decision could be delayed until after the Supreme Court rules in a pending Louisiana abortion regulation case. No date for consideration has been set in that case. (McGill, 9/5)

Los Angeles Times: California Vaccine Bill: Newsom's Changes To SB 276 Cause Confusion
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s effort to change legislation that would tighten immunization rules for California schoolchildren could prompt a rush for new vaccine exemptions, revisions that go far beyond what his advisors have insisted would be nothing more than a “technical” tweaking of the proposal. The governor’s 11th hour demands — which could reduce or eliminate the number of existing vaccine exemptions that would be scrutinized by state officials — were made just days before the Legislature adjourns for the year, creating confusion and new conflict at the state Capitol. (Gutierrez and Luna, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: Judge Approves Sale Of Hahnemann Resident Program
A coalition of Philadelphia-area health systems led by Thomas Jefferson University Hospital Inc. won bankruptcy court approval Thursday to buy the residency program of Hahnemann University Hospital, effectively killing hopes of reviving the historic institution, which served the city’s poor. (Brickley, 9/5)

The Wall Street Journal: PG&E’s Long Record Of Run-Ins With Regulators: A ‘Cat And Mouse Game’
The company had several warnings. In-house audits at PG&E Corp. as early as 2010 said workers were falsifying records of ground-marking at excavation sites intended to protect buried electricity cables and gas pipelines. The workers made it appear they were keeping up with their workload when they were not. Midlevel managers told higher-ups by 2014 that an ambitious program director was pressuring people to burnish on-time results, according to sworn testimony from utility employees to a California regulator. (Smith, 9/5)

The Associated Press: San Francisco Bay Area Medicare Kickbacks Scheme Charged
Thirty people have been charged with a multimillion-dollar scheme that allegedly bribed doctors and others to steer Medicare patients to the largest home health care provider in the San Francisco Bay Area, federal prosecutors announced Thursday. The criminal complaints name Amity Home Health Care and its CEO along with a related company, hospice service provider Advent Care Inc., along with dozens of doctors, nurses, marketers and a social worker. (9/5)