Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
The New York Times: The U.S. Relies On Family Caregivers. Millions Of Them Are Kids.
The modern health care system requires the work of caregiving to fall to whoever else lives in a household — even if they’re kids. (Ouyang, 8/5)
The Washington Post: Why Doesn’t The U.S. Have Small Elevators Like Europe And China?
When Patrice Bratcher tried to find a new apartment, after five knee surgeries and a back surgery to treat injuries caused by her epileptic seizures, she knew that an elevator was nonnegotiable. But an accessible rental apartment wasn’t easy to find. “I was online, online, online, going nuts,” Bratcher said. (Weil, 8/2)
The New York Times: The Music Festival Trying to Make Drug Use Safer
Most raves turn a blind eye to drugs. At Shambhala, free testing offers peace of mind — but can’t eliminate risk altogether. (Richtel, 8/6)
MedShadow Foundation: Can NAD+ Boosters Keep You Young?
NAD supplements show promise in treating some ailments, but there’s little evidence for claims that they can ward off aging in healthy people. (Miller, 8/3)
The New York Times: Provincetown Bear Week Feels Different In The Age Of GLP-1s
An annual celebration of bears — gay men on the bigger and hairier side — feels different in the age of GLP-1s. (Bernstein, 8/1)
AP: Ancient Mummy DNA Connects Smallpox To European Colonization
Ancient mummy DNA recovered in Chile has yielded the firmest evidence yet that European colonization brought smallpox to the Americas. Smallpox was one of the deadliest diseases in human history before it was eradicated in 1980, largely thanks to vaccination. For centuries, the virus had killed about one-third of the people it infected and left most survivors with deep and sometimes disfiguring scars. (Ramakrishnan, 7/30)
The New York Times: An Invasive Mosquito Is Spreading With Alarming Speed, Threatening Africa’s Cities
The malaria-carrying mosquito is resistant to all insecticides. Scientists are scrambling to find ways to blunt the risk. (Nolen, 8/4)
