Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Mississippi Begins Allowing Religious Exemptions To Child Vaccines
AP: Mississippi, Under Judge's Order, Starts Allowing Religious Exemptions For Childhood Vaccinations
Mississippi is starting the court-ordered process of letting people cite religious beliefs to seek exemptions from state-mandated vaccinations that children must receive before attending day care or school. Mississippi is one of the poorest states and has high rates of health problems such as obesity and heart disease. But it has received praise from public health officials for years because it has some of the highest rates of childhood vaccination against diseases such as polio, measles and mumps. (Wagster Pettus, 7/14)
In other news from across the country —
Houston Chronicle: Texas The Worst State To Live In, CNBC Ranking Says
If your ZIP code falls in between 73301 to 88595, congratulations: you live in the worst state in the country, according to a new ranking from CNBC. Texas has spent the last decade at the top of the list for business but the bottom half for quality of life. This year brought two firsts: Texas dropped out of the top five states for business, placing 6th, and ranked dead last as a place to live. The state's newest laws prohibiting the use of diversity equity and inclusion in state-funded higher education, banning transgender healthcare for minors and severely restricting access to abortions were all labeled as reasons for the state's decline. (Fan Munce, 7/16)
Stat: Whistleblower: Blue Cross Blue Shield Evaded $170 Million In Taxes
Two dominant Blue Cross Blue Shield companies in California intentionally underreported premiums of certain health plans so they could avoid paying Affordable Care Act taxes, according to new federal whistleblower complaints. These claims renew concerns about whether health insurance companies have skirted the tax code and to what extent tax fraud could exist in the industry. (Herman, 7/17)
Oklahoman: Oklahoma Suit Integris Health, Claims Meta, Google Had Access To Health Info
A Bethany man is suing Integris Health, alleging that the largest Oklahoma-owned health system violated privacy laws by allowing third parties to harvest personal health care information for advertising purposes. Filed this week under John Doe, the class-action lawsuit in Oklahoma County District Court claims companies including Meta, Google, Microsoft and Reddit gained personal information from patients who used Integris Health’s website to learn about physicians, health conditions and treatment options, among other services. (Dulaney, 7/14)
Oklahoman: Oklahoma Ranks 4th In Teen Pregnancy. Here's A Look At The Numbers
In a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found that maternal deaths across the U.S. more than doubled in the last two decades, with the highest rates among Black patients and the largest increases among Native American and Native Alaskan women. Here's a look at how Oklahoma compares to the U.S. when it comes to pregnant mothers and birth health. (Pendleton, 7/15)
Columbus Dispatch: $30 Million In Ohio's Budget Will Go To New Hospital In Southeast Ohio
At a time when many Ohio maternity wards are closing, one southeast Ohio health system has been making strides to open a new one, thanks in part to $30 million in state funding. Memorial Health System, headquartered in Marietta, Ohio, will soon build southeast Ohio’s only women and children’s hospital, thanks to $30 million allocated to the project in the state budget, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine on July 5. (King, 7/14)
WUSF Public Media: A Look Inside One County's Mosquito Management Efforts To Control Malaria Spread
Hillsborough County has seen four travel-related malaria cases this year, but none acquired locally. Still, things are busy for employees working to prevent mosquito-borne diseases this rainy season. (Colombini, 7/14)
AP: Washington Legal Pot Farms Get Back To Work After Pesticide Concerns Halted Operations
A big mound of fresh dirt sits at Terry Taylor’s marijuana farm in the high desert of north-central Washington state. Each hole for a new plant gets filled with the clean soil. Large swaths of recently installed landscape fabric cover the ground, and soon the dirt roads on his property will be covered in crushed rock to keep contaminated dust from covering the crops. (Johnson, 7/16)
The Washington Post: Car Crashes Into Hospital, Disrupts ICU
A car crashed into a hospital in Prince George’s County on Sunday, disrupting its intensive care unit and forcing some ICU patients to be transferred elsewhere, according to authorities. No injuries were reported in the crash at the Adventist HealthCare Fort Washington Medical Center, police and a hospital spokeswoman said. (Weil, 7/17)
AP: Residents Of PFAS-Polluted Island File $42.4 Million In Claims Against Wisconsin City
Residents of an island polluted with PFAS chemicals have filed claims demanding more than $40 million from a western Wisconsin city they say is responsible for the contamination. (7/14)
AP: Indiana Police Ask State To Revoke License Of Treatment Center Where 3 Patients Died Within A Week
Northern Indiana police have asked state officials to revoke the license of an addiction treatment center where three patients recently died within a week, saying that the less than year-old center is endangering its residents and placing a strain on law enforcement. (7/14)
Also —
KFF Health News: Readers And Tweeters See Ways To Shore Up Primary Care
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories. (7/17)
