Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Tackling Utah Doctor Shortage A Goal For $110 Million Med School Donation
Salt Lake Tribune: Here’s What The University Of Utah’s Medical School Will Do With A Historic $110 Million Donation — And How It Could Help Patients Across The State
A new $110 million donation to the University of Utah’s medical school will help it address one of the state’s biggest roadblocks for people trying to get the health care they need: a serious shortage of doctors. The problem is the most acute in Utah’s rural and remote areas, where patients have to drive more than three hours to get to a hospital. Others, especially in impoverished communities, are waiting months to get an appointment with their family physician or forgoing regular treatments for things like cancer and kidney failure. The historic gift to the U. comes from the prominent Eccles family, who are longtime philanthropists and hope now to help solve these issues. (Tanner, 6/9)
The New York Times: Health Care Workers Deserve Fashion, Too
One of the more unexpected side effects of the pandemic was to forever alter our relationships with personal protective equipment; to make medical garments, at least in the mask sense, a new accessory of self-expression and a part of almost every wardrobe. And every designer’s arsenal. Now that relationship is entering a new phase. Josie Natori, a designer known for her loungewear and lingerie, is joining forces with Care+Wear, the “healthwear” company known for its fashion approach to PICC line covers and clothing with port access, to introduce a line of scrubs modeled on her best-selling pajamas. (Friedman, 6/9)
Houston Chronicle: Teens Find Allies In Houston 'Unicorn Doctors' Who Give Them Control Over Their Health
There are some things that 16-year-old Jean-Paul “JP” Durand can’t talk about with his mom. And that’s OK because he has a doctor who is trained to deal with every part of his health care — from bumps on the head to depression and anxiety. Legacy Community Health has ramped up TeenWell, a program specifically designed to help teenagers and young adults manage their health through one-on-one doctors’ appointments, online resources and answers to tough, and sometimes awkward, questions. (Garcia, 6/8)
KHN: Can A Subscription Model Fix Primary Care In The US?
In April, San Francisco-based primary care company One Medical revealed an eye-popping compensation package for its chief executive and chairman, Amir Dan Rubin. His $199 million payday, particularly noteworthy at a company that has yet to turn a profit, made Rubin the second-highest-paid CEO in the United States last year — but only on paper. About $197.5 million of his pay is in stock options. For Rubin to get all that cash, the stock of One Medical, traded as 1Life Healthcare, must rise sharply over the next seven years, to nearly triple its current price. (Wolfson, 6/10)
AP: Mormon Sex Therapist's Ouster Stirs Worries Of Shame Culture
Sex therapist Lisa Butterworth has long been willing to delve into sensitive sexuality questions with clients who belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They seek her out to have open and frank conversations about the faith’s strict rules. But after seeing another prominent sex therapist she considers a close friend and colleague recently kicked out of the church, Butterworth is worried fewer church members will seek help in fear of being reprimanded. (Eppolito, 6/9)
The Baltimore Sun: Baltimore County Doctor Pleads Guilty To Taking Kickbacks To Prescribe Pain Medication
A Baltimore County doctor has pleaded guilty to taking kickbacks to prescribe highly addictive pain medication, part of the fallout of a racketeering case and civil penalties levied against executives of an Arizona-based pharmaceutical company who prosecutors said helped fuel the opioid crisis. Howard J. Hoffberg, 65, who was associate medical director and part-owner of Rosen-Hoffberg Rehabilitation and Pain Management, pleaded guilty Wednesday afternoon to conspiracy to violate anti-kickback statutes for taking money from Insys between 2012 to 2018 to prescribe a fentanyl spray called Subsys. (Fenton, 6/9)
In obituaries —
The Washington Post: Richard Ernst, Nobel Laureate Whose Research Made MRI Possible, Dies At 87
Richard R. Ernst, a chemist who won a Nobel Prize for devising precise techniques to analyze the chemical properties of atoms, helping create the foundation of magnetic resonance imaging, which has had far-reaching applications in science and medicine, died June 4 in Winterthur, Switzerland. He was 87.His death was announced by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (often called ETH Zurich), where he had been a student and professor. The cause was not disclosed. (Schudel, 6/9)
