Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: Indiana, Texas Governors Sign First Laws Making Fertility Fraud Illegal; New Law In Oregon Upholds Medical Decision Process For Vulnerable Adults
Stateline: Fighting Fertility Fraud: New State Laws Go After Misuse Of Sperm
Now, new instances of fertility fraud in Indiana — and Texas — can be prosecuted under laws recently signed by the governors of both states. But they are the only states that make fertility fraud specifically illegal. Experts expect other states to follow suit. ...The Indiana law makes it a crime to misrepresent a medical procedure, device or drug, and specifically covers human reproductive material. Violations are a felony, and courts may award damages to a plaintiff. Gov. Eric Holcomb, a Republican, signed the bill in May. It took effect July 1. (Povich, 7/3)
The Oregonian: New Oregon Law Ensures Medical Decisions Can Be Made For Adults With Developmental Disabilities
A new law unanimously approved during Oregon’s combative 2019 legislation session will keep in place the state’s process for delegating medical decisions for hundreds of adults with developmental disabilities. The legislation came in response to an investigation by The Oregonian/OregonLive that revealed deep flaws within the state’s system for appointing medical decision-makers, including the case of a man diagnosed with a tumor who didn’t immediately see a cancer specialist. (Schmidt, 7/2)
North Carolina Health News: Some Managed Care Groups Wanted To Get A Piece Of N.C.'s Medicaid Pie, But A Judge Is Saying 'No'
A North Carolina administrative law judge shot down requests last week from a trio of organizations that wanted to hit the pause button on the state’s ongoing transition of its Medicaid system to a managed care system. Judge Tenisha Jacobs recently ruled in favor of the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services to deny preliminary injunction requests from Aetna Better Health, a commercial health care company; Optima, a health care group connected to Virginia’s Sentara health care system; and My Health by Health Providers, a provider-led coalition of a dozen hospitals around the state. (Ovaska-Few, 7/3)
Arizona Republic: Hacienda HealthCare Struggling To Fill Vacancies On Board Of Directors
Three people remain on the board of directors at embattled Hacienda HealthCare, and the nonprofit is struggling to fill vacancies. The board previously had as many as eight members, the company confirmed Monday. The current three remaining members are Phoenix-area business professionals Gary Orman, Thom Niemiec and Mike Wade. (Innes, 7/2)
Arizona Republic: Outpatient Clinics Operated By Hacienda HealthCare Lacked Licenses
Hacienda HealthCare confirmed this week that it unknowingly operated seasonal vaccine clinics for infants without the required state licensing. Two of Hacienda's five Los Niños Synagis Clinics have since licensed as outpatient clinics, and the remaining three clinics are scheduled to be surveyed in July and would be licensed upon completion of a successful survey, Chris Minnick, an Arizona Department of Health Services spokesman, wrote in an email. (Innes, 7/2)
The Associated Press: Republican Who Voted For Medicaid Expansion Concedes
A Virginia Republican lawmaker who voted to expand Medicaid is conceding a heated nomination battle to a conservative challenger. GOP Del. Chris Peace announced Monday that he would not try and litigate a dispute over who should be the Republican nominee for a Richmond-area House of Delegates seat. Peace previously claimed he was the nominee after winning a modified primary. But challenger Scott Wyatt said his victory in a local party convention made him the GOP’s pick. (7/2)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Cigna To Cut Ties To Doctor Group May Lead To More Surprise Bills
A contract rift between a major health insurance company and independent doctors has put thousands of Georgia patients in danger of big surprise bills from hospital visits, starting Sept. 1. Many doctors who work in hospitals are independent contractors, but patients often don’t know that. (Hart, 7/2)
KQED: Meth Is Making A Comeback In California – And It’s Hitting The San Joaquin Valley Hard
Domestic meth production has dropped in recent years, and most trafficked in the U.S. is manufactured in Mexico and smuggled across the southern border. From there, Interstate 5 and State Route 99 are two of the most common corridors used to distribute the drug to the rest of the country. Although Drug Enforcement Agency data shows the purity of meth has been rising in recent years, an increase in production has brought street prices down considerably. (Klein, 7/2)
The Star Tribune: UnitedHealth Group Helps Launch Data Science Program At Black Colleges In Atlanta
UnitedHealth Group is helping a group of historically black colleges and universities in Atlanta expand the teaching of data science, one of the fastest-growing segments of technology study and employment. The Minnetonka-based company will spend about $1.6 million annually over the next five years for a data-science initiative that will be offered to students at Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine and Spelman College. (Ramstad, 7/2)
Modern Healthcare: HCA Buys Two Dozen Urgent-Care Centers From Fresenius
HCA Healthcare purchased 24 MedSpring urgent-care centers from Fresenius Medical Care, the investor-owned hospital chain announced Tuesday. The urgent-care centers will operate under HCA's Medical City Healthcare division and be rebranded as CareNow Urgent Care. The acquisition adds eight centers to CareNow's 37 North Texas locations. In 2018, CareNow and Medical City Children's Urgent Care clinics served about 10% of the Dallas-Fort Worth population, with more than 770,000 patient visits, HCA said. (Kacik, 7/2)
Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio Bill: Porn Is A Public Health Crisis
Republican lawmakers in Ohio say a public health crisis must be declared to warn residents about the dangers of pornography. House Resolution 180, introduced by Rep. Jena Powell, R-Arcanum in Darke County, would declare that pornography is a public health hazard "leading to a broad spectrum of individual and societal harms." (Balmert, 7/2)
Arizona Republic: 17 Kids Have Died In Hot Cars Nationwide In 2019; 2 Were From Arizona
Of the 17 children who have died in hot cars so far during 2019, two have been from Arizona, according to a national nonprofit. In Arizona this year, an 18-month-old girl died on April 22 in Glendale, and an infant girl died May 11 in Lake Havasu City, according to data from KidsAndCars.org. (Cruz, 7/2)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Nonprofit Discloses False Billing To Medicare, Medicaid
Wisconsin Community Services will reimburse federal and state funding sources after voluntarily disclosing overbilling practices by one of its pharmacists. The Milwaukee-based nonprofit social service agency will pay $537,904.33 to resolve false claims for prescription medications submitted to Medicare and Medicaid, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. (Garza, 7/2)
NPR: 'I Don't Feel Safe': Puerto Rico Preps For Next Storm Without Enough Government Help
Before Maria, people had to travel an hour or more for healthcare, even for minor issues. The storm made healthcare even more critical but Noelia Rivera, a 27 yr-old nurse, says it took weeks for outside help to arrive. (Allen and Peñaloza, 7/3)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Ga. State Patrol: 25K Distracted Driving Tickets In Law's First Year
Georgia’s newest distracted driving law – which prohibits motorists from handling their phones while driving – celebrated its first birthday Monday. So on Monday the Georgia State Patrol provided The Atlanta Journal-Constitution a report showing the number of distracted-driving tickets it wrote from July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2019. The final total: 24,862. (Wickert, 7/2)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Detainee Describes Horrid Conditions For Women At Georgia Jail
For months, the 39-year-old woman with bipolar disorder sat alone staring at the four walls of her cell at the south Fulton County jail that houses mentally ill female inmates. From May 2018 to September 2018, the woman lived in isolation 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with few exceptions. (Rankin, 7/2)
Tampa Bay Times: Flesh-Eating Bacteria In Florida Waters: Three Things You Need To Know.
After two more cases of flesh-eating bacteria infections were reported from Florida waters recently, Tampa Bay area physicians are warning residents and visitors to be careful swimming in brackish water or eating uncooked seafood. A 77-year-old woman from Ellenton was infected by flesh-eating bacteria and died nearly two weeks after she fell and scraped her leg while walking on Anna Maria Island. The case came just weeks after the mother of a 12-year-old Indiana girl wrote on Facebook that she believes her daughter contracted the same infection during a trip to Destin in early June. (Griffin, 7/2)
The CT Mirror: One Year After DOC Took Over Inmate Health Care, Troubles Persist
A year has passed since lofty promises were made to repair the financially struggling and volatile health care system that serves inmates at Connecticut’s 14 prisons, but Department of Correction staff say little has improved. Records show medical employees are working shifts that have stretched as long as 24 hours. State lawmakers recently pumped an extra $22 million into the system. And DOC leaders can’t say how services compare to the care offered in the private sector. (Carlesso and Lyons, 7/2)
The Associated Press: Medical Marijuana May Be More Accessible In New Jersey
New Jersey expanded its medical marijuana program, including increasing the number of illnesses eligible for cannabis use, boosting the amount that can be dispensed and raising the number of cultivator permits, under a broad new law. Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, signed the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act on Tuesday at a tavern in Freehold known for holding charitable fundraisers. (7/2)
WBUR: Bill Filed To Legalize CBD Products Made From Hemp In Mass.
Some Massachusetts lawmakers want to legalize food and other products made with hemp-derived cannabidiol, more commonly known as CBD. The bill was filed in the Massachusetts House of Representatives late last week, after state regulators banned the sale of some hemp products — including CBD-infused foods and dietary supplements. (Enwemeka, 7/3)
