Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In Landmark Move, NC To Reopen Martin General As Rural Emergency Hospital
North Carolina Health News: State Budget Advances Plan To Reopen Martin General
During the prayer that opened last week’s meeting of the Martin County Board of Commissioners, chairman Joe Ayers thanked God for guiding local leaders “through the process of trying to reopen health care” in the community. (Baxley, 7/13)
Cardinal News: Legislators Again Pause Plan To Close State-Run Medical Center, Citing Concerns Over Moving At-Risk Residents
Virginia lawmakers have again delayed a vote on a plan to close Hiram Davis Medical Center, a state-run long-term care and skilled nursing facility in Petersburg, citing concerns about where residents with some of the state’s most complex medical and behavioral needs would receive care. (Schabacker, 7/13)
WUSF: How Property Tax Cuts Could Reshape Public Hospital Funding
In November, Florida voters will decide whether to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would reduce property taxes for homeowners across the state. If approved, the measure would increase the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes to $250,000. (Lizama, 7/13)
On Medicaid cuts and Obamacare costs —
Stat: Family Caregivers Face Financial Ruin As States Absorb Medicaid Funding Cuts
In 2018, Kristine Fifer was lucky to avoid bankruptcy. Her son, Eddie, had lost the nurse provided to him by the state after he turned 22. Maryland health officials told Fifer that he didn’t qualify for nursing care, even though Eddie’s cerebral palsy, feeding tube, and other complex medical conditions require around-the-clock care. (Broderick, 7/13)
KFF Health News: As GOP Cries Fraud, Newsom Backs Medicaid Spending On Housing And Food
Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana is taking aim at California’s Medicaid program for providing housing assistance, food, and other social services to high-need, low-income patients who tend to rack up big healthcare costs and, he argued, strain taxpayer funds. The Republican blasted California during back-to-back political attacks in May, saying the heavily Democratic state is committing “outrageous fraud” and “stealing” by spending state and federal Medicaid money meant for basic medical treatment on unconventional services such as housing and nutrition assistance, gym memberships, and even tribal prayers and, he claimed, exorcisms. (Hart, 7/13)
MPR News: MNsure Enrollment Drops As 17,000 Minnesotans Lose Tax Credit Help
Faced with sharply rising premiums and the loss of key tax credit that helped many afford the coverage, about 17,000 Minnesotans this year have dropped the MNsure health insurance coverage they had previously purchased through the state’s Affordable Care Act marketplace. (Work, 7/12)
In other health news from across the U.S. —
Bridge Michigan: Michigan Releases Prison Autopsy, Transfers Inmate Who Alleged Mold Sickness
A woman at the center of a controversy over allegations of toxic mold in Michigan’s only women’s prison has been transferred to another facility after seeking relief in federal court, state officials confirmed. Krystal Clark is now at Duane Waters Health Center in Jackson, which houses inmates with unique medical needs. Her family filed an emergency petition this week that alleged serious medical issues stemming from toxic mold at Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti. (James, 7/10)
AP: Executions Set In Florida Highlight The Nation's Aging Death Row Population
The last prisoner strapped to a table in Florida’s death chamber was 74 years old — the oldest the state has executed in modern times. The next two set to die are older still. The series of executions, due to be carried out by the end of this month, highlights the nation’s aging death-row population. One of Florida’s prisoners scheduled to die in July, a man convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents in 1986, is 80 years old and would be only the second known octogenarian to be executed in the U.S. (Fischer, 7/13)
The New York Times: Shooting In Southern Illinois Leaves 5 Family Members Dead
Two teenagers were arrested on Sunday in connection with a targeted shooting in southern Illinois that left five members of the same family dead and two other relatives seriously injured, the Illinois State Police said at a news conference on Sunday. The suspects, ages 15 and 16, had not been formally charged as of Sunday evening, and police investigators declined to discuss a possible motive for the shootings. The attacks occurred at three locations in East St. Louis. (Morales and Petri, 7/12)
The Washington Post: They Met While Being Treated For Brain Injuries. Now They’re Getting Married
Zachary Zarembinski jogged onto the sideline at his high school football game and abruptly collapsed. Doctors at a Minnesota hospital diagnosed him with a traumatic brain injury and put him into a coma to help his recovery, but they were concerned he might not wake up. But nine days later, Zarembinski did wake up — about the same time a teenage girl was taken to the same hospital with a similar injury. (Melnick, 7/10)
