Medical Examiners in Mass. Often Use Photos, Not Bodies, To Do Autopsies

The Boston Globe: State Medical Examiners Cut Autopsy Rates To Among Lowest In Nation
Facing an escalating caseload, the state’s chief medical examiner’s office has sharply reduced how often it conducts autopsies in recent years, opting instead for faster, less-intensive examinations and driving autopsy rates here to one of the nation’s lowest levels among similar offices. As part of that shift, its medical examiners are increasingly turning to yet another method in its investigations, new data show: viewing photos in lieu of the actual body. Nearly 1,200 times last fiscal year — or in roughly one of every seven cases the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner investigated — a medical examiner did not examine a body in person before identifying a cause and manner of death, instead relying on medical records and photographs taken by staff, according to a newly released report. It nearly doubled the number of so-called chart reviews from the previous year, and it was an eight-fold increase from just four years earlier, a Globe review found. (Stout, 3/6)

In other news from Massachusetts —

The Boston Globe: Cape Cod Doctor’s Quest To Legalize Medically Assisted Death Goes Before SJC
Two years ago, Dr. Roger Kligler needed a walker to travel a short distance from his Falmouth home. Then a loop or two around his cul-de-sac expanded to three or four. Eventually, Kliger was trekking to another neighborhood. Nowadays, the 70-year-old physician, who was diagnosed with cancer 20 years ago, finds clarity with a meditative two-hour evening walk near a pond and bird sanctuary. Like so many times since Kligler became ill, his health has declined — only to remarkably rebound. “I should be long dead,” Kligler, who has stage 4 prostate cancer, said Thursday via Zoom. (Alanez, 3/5)

In news from New York —

Crain's New York Business: Despite HIV Cases Falling, Black Residents In NYC Still See Higher Rates Than Other Groups
Even with new HIV cases falling in New York City each year, the proportion taking root in Black populations has steadily risen. From 2003 to 2020, new HIV diagnoses in the city fell to 1,396 from 2,832, according to data from the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The proportion of new cases in Black populations, however, rose to 47% from 42% during that time. Cases among Latinos and Asian-Pacific Islanders stayed at roughly the same levels, 34% and 5% in 2020, respectively, from 2013. Only white populations saw a drop, from 18% to 13%. (Sim, 3/4)

Politico: Eric Adams Is After Your Child's Chocolate Milk
Eric Adams has a problem with chocolate milk. New York’s first self-professed vegan mayor was at the forefront of a movement to ban chocolate milk from public schools before his time in City Hall. Now, equipped with the power to set policies for the nation’s largest school system, the evangelist for healthy living has again turned his attention to the lunch-room staple — and registered concern with the state’s powerful dairy industry. (Bocanegra and Toure, 3/6)

In other news from Maine, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Georgia —

AP: Effort To Provide Free Dental Care To Veterans In Maine 
The state is partnering with dental clinics provide dental hygiene services to Maine veterans who are unable to afford them. The Maine Bureau of Veterans’ Service said it’s working with eight clinics, including the UMA Dental Hygiene Clinic in Bangor, to provide the service. The Maine Veterans’ Dental Network, which the veterans bureau oversees, received a $35,000 grant from Northeast Delta Dental to provide the care to veterans. (3/6)

The CT Mirror: Lamont's Health Care Bills Draw Criticism From Advocates
A set of bills designed to reduce the cost of health care and divert more spending to primary care has spurred opposition from advocates who say the measures will harm access to necessary treatment, particularly for people with disabilities. House Bill 5042 gives the Office of Health Strategy the power to set annual benchmarks for health care costs. If costs rise above those benchmarks, the state would talk with providers and insurers about what’s driving the increase. Those meetings would be public, said Vicki Veltri, the office’s executive director. (Monk, 3/4)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Delaware County Health Department Launching April 2
The Delaware County Health Department is set to launch April 2, director Melissa Lyon announced, after the commonwealth approved its plans this week. The county of nearly 600,000 people has long been the most populous in Pennsylvania without a health department and the only one without one in the Philadelphia region. County officials had considered creating a health department for decades, but the idea never gained enough traction until 2019. The pandemic further delayed those plans. The health department in neighboring Chester County stepped in to help manage Delaware County’s COVID-19 response for more than a year. (McCarthy, 3/4)

AP: Health Agency Wants Dead Birds To Check For West Nile Virus | AP News
South Carolina’s health agency is again asking people to bring certain types of dead birds to their offices so they can test them for West Nile virus. Starting March 15, officials are looking for the bodies of crows, blue jays, house finches, and house sparrows that don’t appear to be injured and haven’t started decaying, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control said in a news release. (3/6)

Macon Telegraph: Dublin VA Reports No New Infections After Veterans Were Potentially Exposed To Diseases 
A month after warning more than 4,600 veterans they might have been exposed to HIV, Hepatitis B and C, a Middle Georgia VA medical center says it has not identified any new infections. The Carl Vinson VA Medical Center in Dublin paused medical procedures for two days in January after an internal review found issues with the staff’s procedures for sterilizing equipment between patients. (Baxley, 3/4)