Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Lurie Children's Hospital In Chicago Halts Even More Trans Care For Minors
Chicago Tribune: Lurie Children’s Hospital Scales Back Gender-Affirming Care
Lurie Children’s Hospital is scaling back its gender-affirming care for minors, the hospital said Tuesday, days after a top federal official called for an investigation into the hospital. The hospital will no longer offer gender-affirming medications for patients younger than 18 who have not previously been treated with the medications at Lurie, the hospital said in a statement. (Schencker, 1/20)
More health industry news —
Chicago Tribune: Lawsuits Allege Shell Corporations Worsen Nursing Home Negligence
Two recent deaths at Chicago-area nursing homes highlight a growing problem not just of poor care, nursing home advocates say, but of difficulty in holding those responsible accountable. (McCoppin, 1/20)
Becker's Hospital Review: Medical Groups To CMS: Clarify EMTALA Rules, Anti-Violence ED Signs
In a Jan. 20 letter to CMS, 10 national healthcare organizations asked the federal agency to issue clear guidance on emergency department signage that discourages violence against healthcare workers. Hospital surveyors have questioned and cited workplace violence signs as potential violations of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, claiming the signs could dissuade patients from continuing care, the letter said. (Twenter, 1/20)
Modern Healthcare: Why 'Shadow AI' Is Becoming A Growing Issue At Health Systems
Clinicians are using artificial intelligence on the job, whether the tools are endorsed by their employers or not, creating a challenge for health systems trying to oversee its implementation. Despite an abundance of vendor solutions, health systems are not adopting and investing in AI solutions fast enough for a clinician workforce eager to use the tools. As a result, some clinicians are using AI in an unauthorized manner, which has sped up the need for more comprehensive governance. (Perna, 1/20)
Updates on the New York nurses' strike —
AP: Mayor Mamdani And Sen. Sanders Join Nurses' Strike In Manhattan
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders rallied with nurses Tuesday in Manhattan during the ninth day of the largest strike of its kind that the city has seen in decades. The democratic socialists, speaking to a boisterous crowd of nurses in front of Mount Sinai West on the Upper West Side, called on hospital executives to return to the negotiating table to resolve the contract impasse that prompted some 15,000 nurses to walk off the job last week. (Marcelo, 1/20)
Inquirer.net: Pregnant Nurse Loses Health Insurance After Joining New York Strike
Thirty-eight weeks pregnant and bracing for labor, Filipino American emergency room nurse Kaye Tamayao-Miane and her husband, Jo, are walking the picket line instead of walking into a hospital as patients. They have lost the health insurance they were counting on for their baby’s birth. The couple, both nurses at Mount Sinai Presbyterian in Manhattan, said they feared exactly this scenario when a strike vote was called but ultimately joined colleagues in what has become the largest nurses’ strike in New York City, now on its ninth day. (Lugay, 1/20)
Gothamist: What Happens When NY Nurses Strike? Short-Term Pain And Some Gains, Too, Researchers Say.
Strikes cause mortality rates at hospitals to go up by 19.4%, according to a 20-year study. “ Nurses matter,” Jonathan Gruber, an MIT economist and coauthor of the study, told Gothamist. “And nurses that know the system and know the patients matter, and the displacement that happens when nurses go on strike, it's consequential for patient health.” (Venugopal, 1/18)
West Side Rag: ‘We All Work As A Team’: A Glimpse Inside The Largest Nurses Strike In NYC History
As they marched back and forth in front of the hospital doors on Amsterdam between West 114th and 113th streets, they shook noisemakers and shouted “Safe staffing saves lives!” Some held signs saying “Mount Sinai Unfair!” and “Don’t Mess With Our Benefits.” Many wore bright red beanies, scarves, and headband ear warmers with the New York State Nurses Association logo on them. (Gohn, 1/19)
