Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In North Carolina, Elsewhere, GOP Lawmakers Target Trans Health Care
Reuters: U.S. Court Split Over N.C. Health Plan Exclusion For Transgender Workers
A U.S. appeals court panel was sharply divided on Wednesday over whether North Carolina's health insurance plan for state workers can exclude coverage for gender reassignment surgery, hormone therapy and other treatments commonly sought by transgender people. (1/25)
AP: Lawyer Defends North Carolina's Transgender Care Exclusions
A lawyer representing the leaders of North Carolina’s state employee health plan defended its exclusion of gender-affirming treatments on Wednesday before a federal appeals court, facing a barrage of criticisms from its chief judge. State Treasurer Dale Folwell and the State Health Plan’s executive administrator are seeking to overturn a trial court order demanding that the plan pay for “medically necessary services,” including hormone therapy and some surgeries, for transgender employees and their children. The judge had ruled in favor of the employees and their dependents, who said in a 2019 lawsuit that they were denied coverage for gender-affirming care under the plan. (Schoenbaum, 1/25)
The New York Times: G.O.P. State Lawmakers Push A Growing Wave Of Anti-Transgender Bills
Over the past three years, Republican state lawmakers have put forward a barrage of bills to regulate the lives of transgender youths, restricting the sports teams they can play on, bathrooms they can use and medical care they can receive. But even by those standards, the start of the 2023 legislative season stands out for the aggressiveness with which lawmakers are pushing into new territory. (Astor, 1/25)
In other health news from Colorado, Pennsylvania, and California —
The Washington Post: Family Sues Colo. Nursing Home After Woman Walked Out And Froze To Death
Mary Jo Staub screamed last February as she pounded her hands on the glass outside the Colorado assisted-living center where she lived, according to surveillance footage cited in a lawsuit. Standing in freezing temperatures, the 97-year-old banged on the doors, waiting for someone to unlock them. Staub had been in the cold for an hour when she collapsed to the concrete, according to the lawsuit filed last week. By the time an employee at the center spotted her and called police, more than five hours had passed since Staub wandered outside after midnight, the lawsuit says. She was dead. (Somasundaram, 1/26)
AP: Pennsylvania Passes 'Forever Chemicals' Drinking Water Limit
Pennsylvania has enacted a statewide drinking water limit on two forms of highly toxic chemicals, nicknamed “forever chemicals.” The rule, published earlier this month in the official register of state government agency actions, sets a limit of 14 parts per trillion for perfluorooctanoic acid and 18 parts per trillion for perfluorooctane sulfonic acid. (1/25)
Los Angeles Times: Untreated Sewage Closes Three Beaches In Los Angeles County
The release of 64,000 gallons of untreated sewage prompted the closures of several Los Angeles County beaches Wednesday, public health officials said. A blocked main line led to the sewage entering the storm drain system near Admiralty and Palawan ways in Marina del Rey, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a news release. (Martinez, 1/25)
