Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
The New York Times: Books And Bread: Free Grocery Stores In Libraries Tackle Food Insecurity
Customers are able to choose their own groceries, often in private, instead of visiting a food pantry for whatever is available on a given day. (Burch, 8/10)
CBS News: A Massive Stroke Left A Man Partially Paralyzed. His Wife's Response Led To 'A Miracle' Recovery.
Todd Meiklejohn's day was off to a normal, albeit early, start on Aug. 8, 2025. The teacher, who works in adult education, had risen around 6 a.m. to attend an early morning meeting. His wife, a nurse, had already left to go to the gym. He was going through the steps of his morning routine when he felt a sudden, squeezing pain. From there, his memory is blurry. He could only see out of one eye. He couldn't move his right side. He said he remained conscious but had no idea what was happening. (Breen, 8/8)
The New York Times: Grief, Addiction and a Dizzying Carousel: An Opera Tackles the Opioid Crisis
For the American composer Missy Mazzoli, the opioid crisis isn’t a distant news event. It’s family history. One cousin died, alone, of an OxyContin overdose in 2008. Three years later, another cousin died of an overdose of heroin, a drug she started using after getting hooked on prescription painkillers. “That destroyed my aunt and uncle,” Mazzoli recalled in an interview, “and it destroyed my father, really — the pain of losing someone like that.” (Marshall, 8/10)
The New York Times: Heat Kills Hundreds Of Workers Each Year. A Postal Carrier Was One.
About half a dozen states explicitly protect workers from excessive heat. And some others, like Texas, prevent local governments from passing their own laws. (Lee, 8/12)
AP: Radiation Vest Tested During Artemis I Can Cut Astronauts' Exposure In Solar Storms, Study Suggests
A new study suggests a protective vest tested on a manikin during NASA’s first Artemis moonshot could drastically cut the radiation exposure of lunar astronauts during severe solar storms. Scientists reported Wednesday on the radiation-shielding vest worn around the moon by a female test dummy in 2022. No one was aboard that Artemis I debut flight, which paved the way for humanity’s long-awaited return to the moon in April by a flyby crew of four. (Dunn, 8/12)
AP: AI Companions Vanish Without Goodbyes As China Tightens Rules
Li Linlin cried for days after losing her AI boyfriend. She had exchanged about 700,000 words in messages over two years, and never got to say goodbye. Li, 24, wasn’t the only left mourning the loss of a virtual companion when major Chinese tech companies recently pulled the plug on their popular AI companion services to comply with new government restrictions. “It was like we were forced to be separated by our parents, but I still miss him,” Li said. (Ting, 8/10)
