Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: Nev. Gov. Vetoes Controversial Bill Aiming To Contain Diabetes Drug Costs; Texas Lawmakers Make Little Progress In Effort To Address State's High Maternal Mortality Rate
Stat: Nevada Governor Vetoes Bill That Targeted Diabetes Drug Costs
A controversial bill to lower costs of diabetes drugs was vetoed on Friday by the Nevada governor, the latest of many efforts by state legislators to fail to contain rising medicine prices. The bill would have required drug makers to report pricing histories, disclose costs, notify state officials and insurers in advance of price hikes above inflation, and report rebates paid to pharmacy benefit managers, the middlemen that negotiate favorable insurance coverage. (Silverman, 6/3)
The Associated Press: Texas Lawmakers Make Few Moves To Address Pregnancy Deaths
Lawmakers in Texas largely failed to take any significant action to address the state’s skyrocketing rate of pregnancy-related deaths just months after researchers found it to be the highest in not only the U.S., but the developed world. Legislators introduced proposals to address the issue after a University of Maryland-led study found that the state’s maternal mortality rate doubled between 2010 and 2012. But several key measures didn’t even make it to a vote, falling victim to Republican infighting over other issues. (Hoffman, 6/4)
NPR: Teen Pregnancy Rates Remain Stubbornly High In Some Parts Of Texas
To understand why teen pregnancy rates are so high in Texas, meet Jessica Chester. When Chester was at in high school in Garland, she decided to attend the University of Texas at Dallas. She wanted to become a doctor. "I was top of the class," she says. "I had a GPA of 4.5, a full-tuition scholarship to UTD. I was not the stereotypical girl someone would look at and say, 'Oh, she's going to get pregnant and drop out of school.'" (Silverman, 6/5)
San Jose Mercury News: Right To Die Law: Patients Struggle To Find Doctors Who Will Help
It’s been nearly a year since California began allowing terminally ill residents to end their lives with the help of a physician. And for Ray Perman, the right-to-die law worked exactly as lawmakers intended. On Feb. 4, as his family gathered around his bed, the 64-year-old Piedmont resident ingested a lethal dose of sedatives and passed away peacefully — in his own home, on his own terms — after years of battling cancer. Other terminal patients have been known to add a flourish to their final moments of life: a last cigarette, a shot of vodka, a favorite pet curled up with them in bed. (Seipel, 6/3)
The Washington Post: Watchdog Group Reports Seven Deaths From ‘Preventable’ Infections At State Facility
More than a half-dozen people died at a state-run residential facility in Virginia from infections that typically are easy to treat with antibiotics. The state has acknowledged the deaths, which first were identified by a nonprofit watchdog organization that advocates for people with disabilities. Several of the residents who died, state officials also noted, had other medical issues. Six deaths connected to urinary tract infections occurred within a 14-month period, part of a pattern documented by the Richmond-based DisAbility Law Center of Virginia, which monitors state institutions. (Marimow, 6/2)
Chicago Tribune: Blue Cross Customer Treatment Examined, 27 Years After Last Report Released
Illinois is conducting a broad review of how Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois treats consumers — 27 years after regulators last released such a report on the state's dominant health insurer. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois confirmed the review this week, in response to questions from the Tribune about why it had been nearly three decades since the state publicly released a wide-ranging examination of the insurer's compliance with laws and regulations meant to protect consumers. Such reviews, conducted by states across the country, often look at how insurance companies advertise, enroll customers, pay medical claims and handle complaints. They're separate from rate reviews. (Schencker, 6/2)
Health News Florida: Prison Agency Asks Judge To Reject Hepatitis Arguments
The Florida Department of Corrections this week asked a federal judge to reject arguments that it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by not providing “cutting edge” drugs to prisoners with hepatitis C. Three inmates filed a class-action lawsuit in May alleging that the department is failing to provide proper care to thousands of prisoners with liver-damaging hepatitis C. (6/2)
WBUR: Patients Wait Hours, Days As Demand For ER Psychiatric Beds Grows
For five straight days this spring, Patty — who doesn't want her last name used to protect her son's privacy — sought refuge in the chapel at Heywood Hospital in Gardner. That's where her 28-year-old son Eric had been waiting for a psychiatric treatment bed. "The person that's having that breakdown is not the son that I know," Patty says. "I don't want him to see me crying over it, so sometimes I walk to the chapel and just be quiet in here." (6/5)
The CT Mirror: Fertility Preservation Bill Goes To Governor's Desk
The State Senate has given unanimous approval to a bill that would ensure fertility coverage for those facing chemotherapy or some other medically necessary treatment that threatens their ability to have children. The measure, approved late Friday, was passed unanimously by the House on May 25 and now heads to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s desk. (Phaneuf, 6/3)
California Healthline: A Community Seeks Answers, Assurances About Health Care — In 10 Languages
Ten years ago, Mary Thach unexpectedly needed throat surgery to improve her breathing and spent two weeks in the hospital. Her bill: $69,000.Her first reaction was panic, said Thach, speaking through a Vietnamese interpreter. Uninsured at the time, she had no idea how to come up with the money. Then she learned from the hospital staff that as a low-income legal resident, she qualified for Medicaid, which ultimately paid the bill. (Ibarra and Browning, 6/2)
Health News Florida: Children’s Hospital Challenges Trauma Center Denial
A Jacksonville children's hospital is challenging a decision by the Florida Department of Health that prevented the hospital from opening a trauma center. Wolfson Children's Hospital wants an administrative law judge to back arguments that it should be allowed to open what is known as a “provisional” pediatric trauma center, according to documents posted Thursday on the state Division of Administrative Hearings website. (6/2)
San Jose Mercury News: In California Battles Over Product Labels, Industry Usually Wins
Nail polish and hair dye. Cleaning products. Plants and flowers for the garden. California lawmakers have been considering new labels for them, triggering an annual conflict in the Capitol over how much to tell people about what they buy at the store or use at work. The bills reflect a recurring tension in the statehouse: Environmentalists and consumer advocates argue that people have a right to know what’s in everyday products, while industry lobbyists say putting too much information on a label could harm sales by creating unfounded fear. In most cases, industry wins. (Rosenhall, 6/5)
