Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: R.I. Lawmakers To Fund 911 Call Takers For CPR Training Following Deaths; Southern States Grapple With Threat Of Increased Tobacco Restrictions
ProPublica: After Serious 911 Mishaps, Rhode Island Will Now Pay For Better Training
Rhode Island lawmakers are moving forward on a spending plan that includes money to train all 911 call takers to respond to cardiac arrests and other medical emergencies. The $220,000 earmarked in the budget for the 2020 fiscal year, which begins July 1, follows an investigation by The Public’s Radio and ProPublica that raised questions about whether the lack of training for the state’s 911 call takers is costing lives. (Arditi and McKeon, 6/17)
Stateline: Southern Farmers Reckon With Push To Raise Tobacco-Buying Age
Last month, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican who co-sponsored a bill to raise the purchasing age limit for traditional and e-cigarettes from 18 to 21, said the changes were “not a zero-sum choice” between health and agriculture. [Paul] Hornback, who serves as a Republican state lawmaker in Kentucky, agrees. “I believe public health can win — and farmers can win,” Hornback said. He thinks tobacco growers could diversify their crops, improving their long-term economic outlook, while seeing a potential improvement in teen health. (Blau, 6/17)
Iowa Public Radio: Iowa Human Services Director Resigns At Governor's Request
Iowa Department of Human Services Director Jerry Foxhoven resigned Monday at the request of Gov. Kim Reynolds. Reynolds’ office did not say why she asked for Foxhoven's resignation two years after she appointed him to the position. (Sostaric, 6/17)
Des Moines Register: Iowa Department Of Human Services Director Jerry Foxhoven Resigns At Kim Reynolds' Request
Gov. Kim Reynolds pushed out the leader of Iowa's Department of Human Services on Monday without explaining why. Leaders of the agency, the state's largest, are often the target of criticism — and Jerry Foxhoven was no exception. But he was an upbeat champion of the department's work, and he had repeatedly drawn public praise from the governor. Reynolds announced Foxhoven's departure early Monday afternoon in a news release announcing a new interim department director, Gerd Clabaugh. The release ended with, "Clabaugh replaces Jerry Foxhoven, who resigned effective today." (Leys, 6/17)
Modern Healthcare: Texas Hospitals Get Boost For Trauma Care Funding
A new Texas law signed on Friday will increase a state fund subsidizing unreimbursed trauma care by $31 million and repeal a controversial program that previously benefited hospitals. The legislation repealed the Drivers' Responsibility Program, under which people were hit with hefty surcharges in addition to fines for traffic violations. Drivers saw their licenses suspended or even faced jail time for outstanding fees. (Luthi, 6/17)
Arizona Republic: Hacienda Working On Licensing Issues After Maggots Found On Patient
Officials at embattled Hacienda HealthCare say they are trying to figure out the "best path forward" for residents of the company's intermediate-care facility after maggots were discovered near a patient's incision. The Arizona Department of Health Services late Friday issued a Notice of Intent to Revoke the license of Hacienda HealthCare's 60-bed facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities. (Innes, 6/17)
MPR: UnitedHealth Rejects Some Demands In Mental Health Coverage Lawsuit
UnitedHealth Group is rejecting some demands of the plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of being too stingy in its coverage of mental health care. Earlier this year, a judge in California ruled in favor of the patients who filed a class-action lawsuit, saying the company put profits over patients. (Roth, 6/17)
The Advocate: Five Louisiana Nursing Homes Appear On List Of Poorly Performing Facilities
Failure to provide basic life support when a patient was found unresponsive, poor nutrition resulting in rapid weight loss and grimy living conditions are just a few of the problems that have landed five Louisiana nursing homes on a list of facilities targeted for increased government scrutiny. The list identified over 400 nursing homes across the U.S. that failed to meet certain health and safety requirements, making them eligible for a program that requires more frequent inspections. (Woodruff, 6/17)
Kaiser Health News: Texas Is Latest State To Attack Surprise Medical Bills
Texas is now among more than a dozen states that have cracked down on the practice of surprise medical billing. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed legislation Friday shielding patients from getting a huge bill when their insurance company and medical provider can’t agree on payment.The bipartisan legislation removes patients from the middle of price disputes between a health insurance company and a hospital or other medical provider. (Lopez, 6/18)
Boston Globe: Walsh Announces Program To Provide Free Menstrual Products In Boston Schools, But Some Say It Doesn’t Go Far Enough
Mayor Martin J. Walsh has taken a stance in the fight for accessible menstrual products, rolling out a pilot program providing free tampons and pads to all 77 Boston Public Schools serving students in grades 6 through 12. While touted as a step forward by Walsh and Interim Boston Public School Superintendent Laura Perille, some have already criticized the attempt as inadequate. (Kempe, 6/17)
The Associated Press: San Francisco Weighs 1st US City Ban On E-Cigarette Sales
San Francisco supervisors are considering whether to move the city toward becoming the first in the United States to ban all sales of electronic cigarettes. It's part of an effort to crack down on youth vaping. The supervisors will vote Tuesday on measures to ban the sale and distribution of e-cigarettes in San Francisco until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration completes a public health review of the devices. The plan would also ban manufacturing e-cigarettes on city property. (6/18)
Miami Herald: Florida, CDC Partner Up To End HIV Epidemic
As home to one of the nation’s highest rates of new HIV diagnoses, South Florida will receive help from the federal government to raise awareness of the virus that causes AIDS and to ultimately reduce new infections as part of President Donald Trump’s national plan to end the epidemic. Meeting with local researchers, doctors, healthcare system executives and elected officials at Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital on Monday, Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the federal government wants to emphasize innovation and combat stigma about HIV. (Chang, 6/17)
Modern Healthcare: Kaiser Permanente To Build New Oakland Headquarters
Kaiser Permanente plans to consolidate its Oakland, Calif., headquarters from seven locations into one to reduce overhead costs and provide what Chairman and CEO Bernard Tyson described as a "community benefit" to the city. The health system announced Monday it will break ground on the new Kaiser Permanente Thrive Center in 2020, a 1.6 million-square-foot building that will accommodate its more than 7,000 national and Northern California regional administrative employees. (Facher, 6/17)
Nashville Tennessean: Family And Children's Service Opens Honey Alexander Center
Longtime Nashville nonprofit Family and Children's Service celebrated the Monday opening of their new facility, named in honor of former Tennessee First Lady Honey Alexander, wife of U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander. Founded in 1943, FCS is one of Music City's oldest nonprofits and works to "fill the gaps" in social services by connecting children and families to resources they need. (Wigdor, 6/17)
Modern Healthcare: McLaren Asks For Administrative Hearing On State Order To Improve Legionnaires' Protection Measures
McLaren Health Care Corp. is fighting back against a state order that it take further measures to reduce potential patient exposure to the bacteria that causes Legionnaires' disease. McLaren, a 14-hospital not-for-profit system based in Grand Blanc, Mich., responded forcefully late Friday to an order by the state of Michigan that it take the additional measures at its 378-bed hospital in Flint by asking for a state administrative hearing on the issue and seeking to subpoena numerous state officials. (Greene, 6/17)
The Washington Post: Ex-Federal Contractor Pleads Guilty To Taking Cash To Change Drug Test Results
A former federal contract employee who administered drug tests to people on federal probation pleaded guilty to bribery Monday after admitting to falsifying test results in exchange for money, federal prosecutors said. Michael A. Brown, 47, of Waldorf, Md., pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge as a part of a plea agreement, according to a statement released by U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur’s office. (Williams, 6/17)
