Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Robotic Surgery Is Widely Used For Cancer Patients, Yet Health Benefits Are Unproven, FDA Warns
The New York Times: Cancer Patients Are Getting Robotic Surgery. There’s No Evidence It’s Better.
Robotic surgery was never approved for mastectomy or any other cancer-related treatment, but that has hardly deterred doctors in the operating suite. The equipment is widely used to operate on patients with various malignancies, from breast cancer to prostate cancer. Yet there have long been questions about how well doctors are trained on the machines, and whether the devices are better for patients than traditional methods. (Rabin, 3/11)
The New York Times: Doctor On Video Screen Told A Man He Was Near Death, Leaving Relatives Aghast
Catherine Quintana’s father had been in and out of a hospital for weeks, and the family understood that his time was running out. Her 78-year-old father, Ernest Quintana, had lung disease and was struggling to breathe on his own. On March 3, he was admitted to a Kaiser Permanente hospital in Fremont, Calif., for the third time in 15 days, Ms. Quintana said. He had his wife of nearly six decades and other members of his family at his side. (Jacobs, 3/9)
The New York Times: How Artificial Intelligence Could Transform Medicine
Last month, President Trump signed an executive order making the development and regulation of artificial intelligence a federal priority. But one area where artificial intelligence is already taking hold is health care. Doctors are already using A.I. to spot potentially lethal lesions on mammograms. Scientists are also developing A.I. systems that can diagnose common childhood conditions, predict whether a person will develop Alzheimer’s disease and monitor people with conditions like multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. (O'Connor, 3/11)
Chicago Tribune: Hospitals Have 'Holy Grail Of Personal Data,' Yet Their Spending Lags On Digital Security
When most people go to the hospital, data security is the last thing on their minds. They’re in pain, anxious and unsure. They want to be treated and return to their lives. Yet sometimes patients still have cause to worry months after they leave the hospital. They’re discovering that data they gave to health systems — Social Security numbers, birth dates, health insurance information, medical information and credit card numbers — have been compromised in breaches. (Schencker, 3/8)
Modern Healthcare: Columbia Surgical Specialists Pay $14K In Ransomware Attack
Physician owners at Columbia Surgical Specialists paid hackers more than $14,000 to regain access to patient data in January, according to a notice the medical practice posted Thursday. Spokane, Wash.-based Columbia Surgical Specialists said it learned of the ransomware attack Jan. 9, a few hours before several patients were scheduled for surgery. Ransomware is a type of malicious software that encrypts a victim's computer files, which hackers offer to decrypt in exchange for a ransom payment. (Cohen, 3/8)
