Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Potentially Deadly Error: NH Hospital Loses 7 Gallons Of Fentanyl Solution
AP: Investigations, Suspensions Over Hospital's Missing Fentanyl
More than seven gallons (31.8 liters) of fentanyl solution have been reported missing over several months at a New Hampshire medical center, prompting an investigation by state officials and the license suspensions of several staffers. The New Hampshire Board of Pharmacy will consider whether to suspend or revoke Cheshire Medical Center’s pharmacy permit on June 29. (6/8)
On the drug crisis in Massachusetts —
The Boston Globe: ‘It’s Pretty Terrifying’: Mass. Opioid-Related Overdose Deaths Surged To An All-Time High Last Year
More people died of opioid-related overdoses in Massachusetts last year than in any previous year, according to a grim new report out Wednesday that reflects both the mental health toll of the pandemic and the pervasiveness of fentanyl-contaminated drugs. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s twice-yearly opioid report showed that opioid-related deaths surged by 9 percent in 2021, to an all-time high of 2,290 lives lost. That is lower than the 15 percent increase seen nationally. But Massachusetts continues to have a high rate of overdose deaths compared to other states, the 17th highest in 2020, the most recent year for which state-by-state comparisons are available. (Freyer, 6/8)
In other health news from across the U.S. —
AP: Maine Invests $230M In Suicide Prevention After Gun Deaths
Maine will invest $230 million in statewide suicide prevention and mental health awareness after a report found that more than 85% of gun deaths in 2020 were suicides. The state report released this week concluded that 132 of the 154 people killed by guns in 2020 died by suicide. According to the report, 118 of the suicides affected men, The Portland Press Herald reported Wednesday. (6/8)
Anchorage Daily News: Alaska Commission Asks Court To Stop Certification Of U.S. House Primary Election, Alleging Failure To Accommodate Visually Impaired Voters
The Alaska State Commission for Human Rights is suing the lieutenant governor and the Division of Elections over what it says is a lack of sufficient accommodations for visually impaired voters in the U.S. House primary race — the state’s first all-mail election. In a complaint filed Wednesday in state Superior Court in Anchorage, plaintiff Robert Corbisier, executive director of the Alaska State Commission for Human Rights, alleges that the ballots that were mailed to every registered voter in the state for the special primary election “do not provide an opportunity to visually impaired voters to vote privately, secretly and independently.” (Samuels, 6/8)
AP: NC Treasurer Pushes For Patient Charity Care In Legislation
Passing legislation to require North Carolina hospitals to provide minimum levels of free or discounted care to low- and middle-income residents not covered by insurance and offer generous repayment options is the “moral thing to do,” State Treasurer Dale Folwell said Tuesday. A bipartisan measure, which was discussed but not voted on by the House Banking Committee, is in part a response to a 2021 study for the state employee health plan that Folwell’s agency oversees on charity care. (Robertson, 6/8)
AP: Rhode Island Casino Workers Urge Lawmakers To Ban Smoking
Smoking was prohibited inside Rhode Island’s two casinos for most of the pandemic, and now casino workers want state lawmakers to make the ban permanent. A bill is pending in the legislature to repeal the exemption granted to casinos in the state law that prohibits smoking in public places. Casino workers from Bally’s Twin River Lincoln Casino and Bally’s Tiverton Casino and Hotel planned to go to the State House on Wednesday to urge lawmakers to advance the bill, which has been held for further study. (McDermott, 6/8)
NBC News: Denver's Mental Health Approach To Low-Level 911 Calls Helped Reduce Minor Crimes, Researchers Find
Dispatching mental health specialists instead of police officers to substance abuse and nonviolent emergencies sharply lowered low-level crime in Denver, according to a study published Wednesday in Science Advances. The Support Team Assistance Response, or STAR, program, which uses a mental health crisis interventionist and a paramedic to respond to nonviolent 911 calls, showed a 34 percent reduction in crime for offenses such as trespassing and public disorder, according to the study conducted by a Stanford University professor and researcher. (Hampton, 6/8)
San Francisco Chronicle: Oakland Declares Racism A Public Health Crisis
The Oakland City Council unanimously voted on Tuesday to declare racism a public health crisis. The vote sets aside $350,000 to fund two new positions in the city Department of Race and Equity. The ordinance was introduced by the city attorney, Barbara Parker, City Administrator Ed Reiskin,and Darlene Flynn, the director of the department of race and equity. It was also cosponsored by Council Members Sheng Thao, Loren Taylor and Treva Reid — all of whom are running for mayor. (Ravani, 6/8)
St. Louis Public Radio: The Caregiver Club Helps St. Louis Families Deal With Dementia
When Alicia Christopher’s father began to show signs of cognitive impairment in 2019, she didn’t have to look far to find someone who knew what she was going through: Christopher’s cousin Jodie Finney was already helping a parent with dementia. Finney’s mom has lived with Alzheimer’s disease since 2017. Christopher’s father was officially diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia just this month. “Our families are extremely close and always have been,” Christopher explained on Tuesday’s St. Louis on the Air. “So when [Finney’s mom] was going through that, we were all there with them on that journey. And then as we went through a similar but different journey with frontotemporal dementia, it was great and also hard to realize we're both going through a similar journey — but different at the same time.” (Fenske, 6/8)
