Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Limited Supply Of Cancer Drug May Force Doctors To Have To Choose Who To Save
Bloomberg: Sophie’s Choice For Oncologists: Who Gets New Life-Saving Drug
It’s a choice no doctor ever wants to make: which patient will get a chance to live, and which will not. That is a decision oncologists may soon confront when the first two products in a revolutionary new way to treat cancer reach the U.S. market this year. (Cortez and Chen, 7/7)
Bloomberg: Rare-Disease Drugmakers Join In Worries Over GOP Health Overhaul
The Republican health-care bill that’s already encountering stiff opposition from hospitals, doctors, and patients now has another group worried: rare-disease drugmakers and the patients who need those high-priced treatments. The proposal, which the Senate could vote on as soon as next week, would give states leeway to allow the return of health coverage caps -- called lifetime limits -- that were banned under Obamacare. That could allow insurers, including those that offer plans through employers, to cut off reimbursements once an insured person spends $1 million to $2 million on prescription drugs. With expensive rare-disease drugs, that can happen quickly. (Bloomfield, 7/6)
Stat: Risk Information Harder To Find In Drug Ads On Smartphones
The next time you view promotional information about a prescription drug on your smartphone, don’t be surprised if the risk information is harder to find than the benefits. (Silverman, 7/6)
The Hill: Conservative Group Prods Walden Over 'Right To Try' Bill
The conservative group FreedomWorks is turning up the heat on a top House Republican to support bipartisan legislation that would allow terminally ill patients unrestricted access to experimental drug treatments. FreedomWorks wants House Energy and Commerce Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) to advance the Right to Try Act (H.R. 878), which was introduced in February but hasn’t moved through the committee. (Weixel, 7/6)
