Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: First 'Compassionate Parole' Hearing Goes In Front Of South Dakota Pardons Board; UCSF To Pay $150K To Settle Suit Involving Tobacco Researcher
The Associated Press: South Dakota Board To Hear First 'Compassionate Parole' Case
A South Dakota man sentenced in 1999 to nearly 60 years in prison for molesting boys while working as a counselor at a juvenile correctional center will be the first person to have a hearing after the state, facing rising prison health care costs, launched a new "compassionate parole" system for seriously ill and elderly inmates earlier this year. (10/15)
Stat: UCSF Settles Sexual Harassment Suit Involving Star Researcher For $150,000
The University of California, San Francisco, has agreed to pay a former postdoc $150,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit involving a prominent tobacco researcher on its faculty. In the settlement, dated last month, Stanton Glantz, director of the UCSF Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, and UCSF “deny and dispute” the allegations by the former postdoc, Dr. Eunice Neeley, who now is a resident in family medicine at Emory University in Atlanta. (Oransky and Marcus, 10/16)
Iowa Public Radio: Candidates For Governor Discuss Iowa's Mental Health System
The three major-party candidates for Iowa governor gathered at a forum in Des Moines Sunday to discuss how the state can improve its capacity to care for people with mental health issues. (Sostaric, 10/15)
KQED: 6 Things To Know About Covered California Open Enrollment For 2019
Last summer, Trump and congressional Republicans failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but a few months later, they were able to repeal the ACA's individual mandate as part of their tax bill, meaning that individuals will no longer face a penalty if they choose not to buy health insurance. Since then, the Trump administration has also announced that it would again decrease the amount it spends on marketing to encourage people to sign up for insurance, and that it would not defend the ACA in a lawsuit arguing much of the health care law to be unconstitutional. (Levi, 10/15)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Walker Campaigns With Tommy Thompson, Evers With Kathleen Sebelius
GOP Gov. Scott Walker pledged Monday to make sure people with preexisting conditions have insurance coverage — a claim Democratic challenger Tony Evers called hollow because Walker authorized a lawsuit to end such coverage. The two staked out their stances as they campaigned with rival health officials —Walker with Tommy Thompson, the four-time Wisconsin governor and health and human services secretary under President George W. Bush, and Evers with Kathleen Sebelius, the former Kansas governor and health and human services secretary under President Barack Obama. (Marley and Spicuzza, 10/15)
The CT Mirror: Housing Inequality Can Be Both Cause And Effect Of Poverty In Wealthy CT
Representing both the disparities between housing quality and the availability of affordable shelter, housing inequality stems both from market forces as well as discrimination and segregation. It can be both the cause and the effect of poverty. (Silber, 10/16)
The Associated Press: Jurors: Don't Throw Out $289M Weed Killer Cancer Verdict
Jurors who found that agribusiness giant Monsanto's Roundup weed killer contributed to a school groundskeeper's cancer are urging a San Francisco judge not to throw out the bulk of their $289 million award in his favor, a newspaper reported Monday. Juror Gary Kitahata told Judge Suzanne Bolanos in a letter that the jury was convinced by the evidence, the San Francisco Chronicle said. (10/15)
San Francisco Chronicle: Monsanto Case: Jurors Urge Judge Not To Overturn $289 Million Award
Jurors who awarded $289 million to a former school groundskeeper who is dying of cancer are imploring a San Francisco judge to reconsider her tentative decision to overturn most of the damages against Monsanto Co., manufacturer of the weed killer that they found to be the cause of the man’s illness. (Egelko, 10/15)
Kansas City Star: More Doctors Take Medicare In Missouri Than Kansas
About 86 percent of Missouri doctors accept all Medicare plans, one of the highest rates in the nation. But across the state line, Kansans face one of the lowest rates of acceptance, according to a new survey. With open enrollment for Medicare plans starting this week, the survey provides a strong reminder that people need to check what plans their doctors participate in before they sign up. (Marso, 10/15)
KCUR: Four Transgender People Sue Kansas For The Right To Change Their Birth Certificates
Four transgender residents of Kansas sued the state on Monday, challenging its refusal to allow them to change the sex listed on their birth certificates. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Kansas City, Kansas, argues that Kansas’ policy violates the due process and equal protection clauses of the Constitution. It also argues that it violates the plaintiffs’ free speech rights under the First Amendment. (Margolies, 10/15)
The Associated Press: Supreme Court Won't Take Up Lead Paint Issue From California
The Supreme Court is leaving in place a decision that required paint companies to fund the removal of lead paint from California homes. The Supreme Court on Monday said it wouldn't take up the issue. Courts previously ruled in favor of 10 California cities and counties that argued ConAgra, NL Industries and Sherwin-Williams knowingly endangered public health by advertising and selling lead paint. (10/15)
New Hampshire Union Leader: ‘Unorthodox’ Pain Doctor Fined For His Record-Keeping
A Nashua pain doctor whose practice involved poor record-keeping, a reluctance to drug test patients, and an insistence that gainful employment is the best weapon to battle addiction will pay a $2,000 fine but remain in practice, the Board of Medicine has decided. The board issued the ruling last week against Dr. Aaron Geller, who operates Nashua Pain Management. It came 22 months after a full-blown, three-day, contested hearing into his practice. (Hayward, 10/15)
The Star Tribune: Medtronic Cuts Cyber Access To Vulnerable Devices
Medtronic has shut off the ability to remotely update the software on two machines that are used in doctor’s offices to program the settings on implanted pacemakers and defibrillators, expanding cybersecurity precautions that were announced earlier this year. The Irish medical device company, operated from offices in Fridley, announced that it was shutting down the ability of its CareLink 2090 and CareLink Encore 29901 device programmers to download new software updates remotely. (Carlson, 10/15)
New Hampshire Public Radio: State Seeks Citizen Input On PFAS Science Ahead Of New Water Standards
The state begins work this week on writing new limits for potentially toxic PFAS chemicals in drinking water -- and they want the public's input. The limits, known as maximum contaminant levels or MCLs, are due out in January. (Ropeik, 10/15)
The Associated Press: Firefighters Sue California Gas Company Over Massive Leak
Firefighters who worked in and around the site of a massive natural gas leak sued the Southern California Gas Co. on Monday, saying the utility knowingly let them be exposed to dangerous levels of toxic chemicals. A blowout in a well at the underground Aliso Canyon storage field about 40 miles north of Los Angeles was discovered on Oct. 23, 2015, and took nearly four months to cap after spewing immense amounts of methane into the air. It was the largest known natural gas leak in United States history. (10/15)
Kaiser Health News: Listen: Health Care Issues Reverberate In The States
Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for Kaiser Health News, joined “1A” host Joshua Johnson, Scott Greenberger, the executive editor of Stateline, and Reid Wilson, national correspondent for The Hill, to discuss health policy initiatives in the states. (10/15)
New Hampshire Public Radio: DHHS Holds Listening Sessions Before N.H.'s Next "Plan On Aging"
New Hampshire's Department of Health and Human Services is preparing its next four-year State Plan on Aging and wants to hear from older residents. The Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services will hold 13 listening sessions across the state. It's also asking seniors to complete an online survey. (Garova, 10/15)
