Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
HIV Rate Among Inmates At Its Lowest Rate In Decades
The Hill: DOJ: Inmate HIV Rate Down
The HIV rate among state and federal inmates is at its lowest point since 1991, the Department of Justice announced Thursday. The agency said the number of prisoners in state and federal facilities who have human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) dropped from 17,680 prisoners in 1991 to 17,150 prisoners by the end of 2015. In 1998, DOJ said, the HIV rate peaked at 25,980 inmates. (Wheeler, 8/24)
In other news related to the administration —
The Hill: National Institutes Of Health Wipes References To Climate 'Change' From Site
References to "climate change" have been wiped from parts of The National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Environmental Health Science division website, according to a report by the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative. In one of the changes, for example, an article formerly titled "Climate Change and Human Health," now reads, "Climate and Human Health." Another drop-down menu now reads "Climate and Children's Health," instead of "Climate Change and Children's Health." (Manchester, 8/24)
The Washington Post: NIH Unit Deletes References To Climate ‘Change’
The changes were revealed in a report by the Environmental Data and Governance Initiative, a group of nonprofits and academics who monitor what they call “potential threats” to federal policy and scientific research on energy and the environment. But Christine Flowers, the NIEHS director of communications, downplayed the changes Wednesday. She said she made them as she added and moved information on the site over a period of months. “It’s a minor change to a title page,” Flowers said of one headline alteration, “but the information we provide remains the same. In fact, it’s been expanded.” (Bernstein, 8/23)
New Hampshire Public Radio: Transgender Military Ban Raises Concern At VA
Officials with the VA hospital in White River Junction are stressing this week that veterans are welcome at the hospital regardless of gender or sexual identity. Details of new White House guidelines for the Pentagon emerged Wednesday and were confirmed by NPR. (Greene, 8/24)
