Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Longer Looks: The Presidential Physical; The Opioid Crisis; And A Junk Food Tax
The New Yorker: Donald Trump’s Physical Exam And The Sorry State Of The American Body Politic
Shortly before Trump was elected President, he appeared on “The Dr. Oz Show” brandishing a letter from his personal physician stating that he was six feet three and weighed two hundred and thirty-six pounds; that put his body-mass index at 29.5, half a point below what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers obese. (There is some indication that he dodged the “obese” category by falsely adding an inch to his height.) Since then, Trump has gained three pounds, bringing him to within a tenth of a point of official obesity, and his cholesterol level is higher than is ideal. (Alan Burdick, 1/16)
FiveThirtyEight: There Is More Than One Opioid Crisis
You may think of politicians, first responders and physicians as the people best-equipped to stop the opioid crisis. And they do have an important role to play. But so do coroners and medical examiners. The government and media generally quantify the nation’s opioid problem on only one dimension: how many people have died. Hargrove and Kentucky are working to provide an additional dimension: exactly which drugs — either prescription opioids or illicit ones like heroin and synthetic fentanyl — led to a death. Armed with even that one extra bit of data, a state can fight its opioid crisis in a new way. (Kathryn Casteel, 1/17)
Harper's Magazine: Within Reach
In the past, someone like Chase — broke, trans, and living in Ohio — had almost no chance of medically transitioning. Even if he had the money for private insurance, he might be rejected on the grounds that being trans was considered a preexisting condition. And if he found a plan that would cover him, it would probably have an exclusion for hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and other transition-related medical care, so he would have to pay out of pocket. He would also have to pay for counseling sessions so that a therapist would recommend he be prescribed hormones. Last but not least, he would have to find a doctor willing to treat him — no small task in the heart of the Midwest. (Nicole Pasulka, 1/16)
Vox: The Case For A Junk Food Tax
Now researchers from New York University and Tufts writing in the American Journal of Public Health are making the case for shifting food prices in ways that steer consumers toward healthier diet choices. More specifically, they argue, a junk food tax — on “non-essential” foods like candy, soda, and potato chips — should be the next frontier in public health. (Julia Belluz, 1/17)
The New Yorker: The Startup Forward Aims To Be The Apple Store Of Doctor’s Offices
Forward, a startup that wants to position itself as the Apple Store of doctors’ offices, opened a new location in Los Angeles in November, in an upscale open-air mall two doors down from an actual Apple Store. On a recent morning, in Forward’s reception lounge (sharp angles, blond-wood walls, soothing blue chairs), devices for at-home monitoring of vital signs were arrayed in a glass case. A body scanner reminiscent of the “Star Trek” transporter stood in a corner. Visitors were greeted by a smiling receptionist’s query: “Flat or sparkling?” (Sheila Marikar, 1/16)
Daily Intelligencer: Is The Opioid Crisis Driven By Supply Or Demand?
Between 1999 and 2013, the death rate for white, middle-aged, working-class Americans increased by 22 percent. This explosion in premature deaths was driven by a surge in opioid overdoses, alcohol-related fatalities, and suicides. Meanwhile, over the same period, medical advances pushed down the death rates of college-educated whites, and the working-class members of other racial groups. (Eric Levitz, 1/16)
The Nation: The Health-Care Industry Is Sick
I have ALS, a deadly, incurable neurological disease that is paralyzing my whole body, including my diaphragm. This makes it difficult for me to breathe while lying flat in bed. This month, my doctor prescribed me a Trilogy breathing-assistance machine, which would solve the problem (at least for now). Yet my insurance, Health Net, denied coverage, calling it “experimental.”But Trilogy is normal standard of care. (Ady Barkan, 1/16)
