Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
The Wall Street Journal: Why Americans Aren’t Having Babies
Americans aren’t just waiting longer to have kids and having fewer once they start—they’re less likely to have any at all. The shift means that childlessness may be emerging as the main driver of the country’s record-low birthrate. (Wolfe, 7/20)
Think Global Health: Alcohol Industry Panics As Healthier Habits Cut Sales
Something is rotten in the state of drink. In 2023, Americans consumed less beer than they had in a generation. Wine sales shrank for the third consecutive year. Spirits sales were flat. Prominent observers of the alcohol industry are crying foul. "The U.S. government's coming attack on wine," a public relations consultant wrote earlier this year of updated dietary guidelines that could reduce recommended thresholds of healthy drinking. "The worst thing I have seen in 25 years," a long-time wine industry writer said in late 2023 of the World Health Organization (WHO) report that low levels of alcohol increase the risk of cancer and that "no safe amount of alcohol consumption for cancers and health can be established." (Alcorn, 7/24)
USA Today: 34 Years After Passage Of Americans With Disabilities Act, Data Sheds Light On The Disabled
Thursday marks 34 years since President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act guaranteeing equal protection for people with disabilities. Modeled after the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the ADA provides equal access to government services, schools, buildings, private employers and commercial facilities. But some disability rights activists say the law doesn't go far enough to protect those living with disabilities. "One in four adults in the U.S. report having a disability, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's over 70 million Americans. (Chernikoff, 7/26)
The New York Times: Some Seniors Readily Step Back. Some Never Will
Beth Bergmans liked working as a project manager for an online university based in Minnesota. “We are offering opportunities for people to advance in life — that brought some satisfaction,” she said. “And the people I work with are awesome. ”Ms. Bergmans, 63, planned to stay on the job for two years, until she qualified for Medicare. But in recent months, something had shifted, subtly. In her fast-paced workplace, she began to find it harder to recall the details of recent meetings, to retrieve words and to filter out distractions. She took short breaks at her desk to recharge. “You find ways to adapt,” she said. (Span, 7/20)
The Washington Post: Why Lawsuits Are Mounting Over This Chemical Linked To Cancer
A knock on the door forced Cathy Flint to her feet. It had been five years since her diagnosis of multiple myeloma, a cancer that has left her with bones protruding from her neck and down her spine, bone damage and hunched shoulders. On that day in spring 2023, her neighbor stood in her doorway with a letter. It was a questionnaire from environmental lawyers asking residents in her Charleston, W.Va., neighborhood if they had experienced any injuries or ailments, including cancer, because of exposure to ethylene oxide — a gas, released by nearby chemical manufacturing plants, that federal agencies have said is linked to numerous cancers. (Ajasa, 7/24)
The Hollywood Reporter: New York’s Largest Hospital System Is Setting Its Sights on the Entertainment Business
Northwell Health, New York’s largest health care system, is betting that the entertainment business can bolster its bottom line, and drive health awareness in the process. Northwell says it is launching Northwell Studios, a new production company that is developing scripted and unscripted film and TV content that will leverage its facilities, doctors and patients (with their consent, of course). (Weprin, 7/24)
AP: As Doctors Leave Puerto Rico In Droves, A Rapper Tries To Fill The Gaps
Though a physician, Dr. Pedro Juan Vázquez is better known in Puerto Rico as a rapper who uses the stage name PJ Sin Suela. The 34-year-old is trying to fulfill his passion for music while helping those in need — and raise awareness about a health crisis on the island of 3.2 million residents. The U.S. territory is facing power outages as well as a shortage of medical professionals, with many having fled to the U.S. mainland for better wages. (Marcos, 7/23)
