Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives: Psychedelics Are Effective Medicine; Insurance Compounds Mental Health Struggles
Los Angeles Daily News: Bringing Down Legal Barriers To Psychedelic Research, Experimentation
On Thursday, the House of Representatives approved amendments expanding research into the potential benefits of psychedelic drugs. (Sal Rodriguez, 7/17)
The Star Tribune: Hurdles Galore Hamper Health Care
I left semiretirement in December 2019 to assist in addressing the adolescent suicide crisis, only to be faced with the pandemic. Surprisingly, I found returning to practice in Minnesota akin to practicing in a Third World country, with unacceptable shortages and delays. Not due to lack of financial resources or infrastructure flaws, but rather due to corporate greed and corrupted politicians. (Richard O. Walker, Jr., 7/18)
San Francisco Chronicle: My Aging Mom Fell. If I Weren’t A Doctor, Our Health Care System Wouldn’t Have Helped Her Up
The Season of Parental Falling is here. I didn’t realize how quickly it would arrive. But the price Mom and Dad pay to get to live another day — their deal with the devil that is chemotherapy — is numb hands and feet. No matter how many rugs and mats, flip flops and open-heeled sandals I disappear out of their home, or the type and variety of trekking poles, canes, tripod canes with seats, straight walkers, wheeled walkers or other assistive devices they have, my parents keep falling. (Dipti S. Barot, 7/17)
Stat: It's Time To Get Medical Device Identifiers Over The Finish Line
This week, an under-the-radar U.S. government advisory group called the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS) can vastly improve medical device safety. (Kushal T. Kadakia, Sanket S. Dhruva and Harlan M. Krumholz, 7/18)
Stat: Keep Equity In Mind When Moving To Value-Based Payment
Value-based care champions health and justice by focusing on outcomes rather than on units of service. As this type of payment reform expands, implementing the necessary changes to enable it must operate from a frame of equity rather than equality. (Lora Council, 7/19)
Newsweek: The Diversity Delusion Comes To Health Care
Follow the evidence. It's a foundational tenet of health care, as it is of all scientific inquiry. Yet today's medical establishment is unwilling to confront the consequences of its attempts to maximize diversity. After years of lowering standards for applicants, medical schools are more diverse than ever before. Yet new studies show that many students are struggling, putting their future patients and careers at risk. (Stanley Goldfarb, 7/19)
