Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
NY Health Officials Move To Halt Use Of Key Antibiotic Against Meningitis
CIDRAP: NY Officials Tell Providers To Stop Using Ciprofloxacin To Prevent Bacterial Meningitis
The New York State Department of Health (NYSDH) is telling healthcare providers to discontinue the use of ciprofloxacin in people who've had contact with patients diagnosed as having bacterial meningitis. Ciprofloxacin is among the antibiotics that have been recommended for post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) to prevent illness in contacts of people with invasive meningococcal disease, a rare but severe infection caused by Neisseria meningitidis. But in a health advisory notification yesterday, department officials said they've been finding an increase in ciprofloxacin-resistant strains of N meningitidis over the past 18 months. (Dall, 8/15)
Military.com: A Patient Died At Colorado VA Hospital After Staffer Turned Off Their Notification Device
A patient at the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center in Aurora died last year after a hospital staff member turned off their notification device alerting them to the veteran’s rapidly declining condition. An investigation by the VA’s Office of Inspector General found, in spring 2023, a telemetry medical instrument technician missed several red alarms concerning the patient’s oxygenation levels. By the time clinicians arrived, the individual was “unresponsive and pulseless,” inspectors found. (Tabachnik, 8/15)
The Washington Post: D.C.’s 911 Call Center Has Had Tech Problems Eight Times In 2024
D.C.’s beleaguered 911 center has experienced outages and connection issues eight times this year, ranging in duration from 20 minutes to five hours, with the most recent glitch occurring Friday, according to D.C.’s deputy mayor for public safety and justice. Officials acknowledged the challenges following a rough stretch with two outages in the past two weeks, including one on Aug. 2 where call center workers lost access to key location-tracking software for hours. While the problems did not prevent people from being able to call 911, they did open the door for mistakes by reducing dispatchers’ ability to assess the availability of first responders. (Gathright, 8/15)
KFF Health News: Amid Medicaid ‘Unwinding,’ Many States Wind Up Expansions
Trisha Byers left behind one crucial item when she moved to North Carolina last year to be closer to her family after suffering a brain injury: health insurance. In Massachusetts, Byers, 39, was enrolled in Medicaid, the government health program that covers low-income people. But she was ineligible in North Carolina, which had not yet expanded Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act. She said she racked up thousands of dollars in unpaid emergency room bills while uninsured for several months after her move. (Galewitz, 8/16)
On extreme heat in California and Nevada —
Los Angeles Times: As Heat Rises, California Reduces Farmworker Oversite
California has sharply cut its enforcement of heat-protection laws for outdoor laborers while extreme heat has intensified in recent years — endangering farmworkers, construction workers and others who toil in scorching temperatures — an investigation by the Los Angeles Times and Capital & Main has found. From 2017 to 2023, the number of field inspections conducted by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA, dropped by nearly 30%, according to agency data. The number of violations issued to employers in that period fell by more than 40%. (Lopez, 8/15)
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Las Vegas’ Heat Has Killed More Than 100 This Year, Coroner’s Office Says
Southern Nevada’s brutal summer has killed 123 people this year, according to the most recent numbers released by the Clark County coroner’s office. That marks a significant increase in the summer death toll, which was last released at the end of July. At that time, 63 heat-related deaths were reported. (Halaly, 8/15)
From Massachusetts and New Hampshire —
The Boston Globe: Maternal Health Bill Passes Mass. Legislature
Expectant parents in Massachusetts are likely to have more freedom choosing where and how they give birth following the passage Thursday of a sweeping maternal health bill that expands access to midwives in the state. If the measure gets the governor’s signature, certified professional midwives would be licensed, regulated, and covered by Medicaid in Massachusetts and would be able to write prescriptions. Massachusetts is one of just 12 states without licensed midwives. (Laughlin, 8/15)
AP: Massachusetts Governor Signs Law Phasing Out Toxic PFAS In Firefighters' Gear
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed into law Thursday a bill that would phase out the use of PFAS, a group of toxic industrial compounds, in firefighters’ protective gear. The chemicals — associated with health problems including several types of cancer, such as breast, kidney and testicular cancer — are used in gear to repel water and other substances when fighting a fire. Connecticut is the only other state with a similar law regarding firefighters’ protective gear. (LeBlanc, 8/15)
The Boston Globe: N.H. Sends AFFF Firefighting Foam With PFAS To Be Destroyed
Thousands of gallons of unused liquid concentrate intended for use in firefighting foam had been sitting in storage for about two decades at various sites across New Hampshire. Even as the environmental and health risks associated with aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) became clear, what remained unclear was what firefighting agencies both in the state and nationwide should do with their unwanted inventory. (Porter, 8/14)
On transgender health in Texas and elsewhere —
The Texas Tribune: Texas Sues Biden Again To Block Protections For Transgender Workers
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton returned to court on Thursday to press his case against the Biden administration’s workforce protections for transgender employees. Texas’s lawsuit, filed in federal court on Thursday against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the U.S. Justice Department, argued that the agency’s guidelines were unlawful and asked that the court permanently block them. (Guo, 8/15)
Roll Call: Trans Care Debate Influenced By Misinformation, Doctors Say
Doctors and advocates say efforts to ban gender-affirming care and the often inaccurate language lawmakers use to do it exploits most Americans’ relative unfamiliarity with transgender people to push a political agenda. As those efforts have grown — nearly exclusively led by Republicans — they have superseded both abortion rights and same-sex marriage as the go-to social issue among conservatives in the lead-up to the November elections. (Heller, 8/15)
