Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Texas Doctor Gives Up License After Being Sued For Providing Gender Care
The Texas Tribune: Dallas Doctor Sued Over Transgender Care Surrenders License
A Dallas pediatrician has surrendered her medical license, a year after becoming the first target of a law that banned providing gender-transitioning hormones to minors. Last October, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against adolescent medicine physician May Lau for prescribing testosterone to at least 21 patients. Her license was cancelled by her request early this month, according to the Texas Medical Board. (Byman, 10/24)
AP: Trans Rights Are Flashpoint In Virginia Gubernatorial Election
René Harvey and her wife arrived at a Roanoke Valley pride celebration in October carrying deep-seated worries about all that could go wrong. The couple had been to the region’s annual pride festival before, but this year felt different. Harvey keeps up with the news, and the headlines describing political violence and LGBTQ+ hate linger with her. She’s been following Virginia’s statewide elections, including a race for governor that has heavily focused on trans youth. “It’s scary, the way things are heading,” said Harvey, sitting at a booth for her LGBTQ-friendly parish. “We had a fear coming here today.” (Diaz, 10/26)
More health news from across the U.S. —
San Francisco Chronicle: Medicaid Cuts Put California Disability Care At Risk
Luca-Amine Hadir was 4 days old when his parents raced him to the ER. His mother, Jill McDonald, had wanted her child to have a gentle transition into the world, and Luca’s first four days were just that. He was born at home in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights neighborhood, in spring 2020 — Jill, now 46, described his birth as “unremarkable.” She and Luca’s father, Najib Hadir, basked in the glow of newfound parenthood, imagining his first words and first steps, high school graduation and world travels. (Allday and Connors, 10/26)
AP: Blood Tests Turn Up Forever Chemicals Near New Mexico Base
It’s a name many people have trouble pronouncing, but these synthetic chemicals have been used in everything from fast-food packaging to nonstick cookware, clothing, household cleaning products and even firefighting foam. PFAS — or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances — resist breaking down and as a result have found their way into drinking water, soil, air and the bloodstreams of 99% of Americans. This is certainly true for people who live or work near a plume of contamination that has seeped beyond the boundaries of Cannon Air Force Base, where PFAS-laden firefighting foam was used for years. (Montoya Bryan, 10/24)
The Baltimore Sun: Marijuana Use Doubles On Maryland Roads After Legalization, Study Says
A sedan drifts past. The driver’s window rolls down, unleashing a billowing plume of white smoke into the chill air as they light up, driving with one hand on the wheel. It’s not tobacco, said Bob Reilly, a rideshare driver from Laurel, who described his daily experience working on Maryland’s highways and neighborhood roads. “You see it all the time,” Reilly said. “They just got off work and they’re lighting up for the ride home.” (Hille, 10/27)
ProPublica: Phoenix Mail Room For Homeless People Loses Funding
Carl Steiner walked to the window of a small gray building near downtown Phoenix and gave a worker his name. He stepped away with a box and a cellphone bill. The box is what Steiner had come for: It contained black and red Reebok sneakers to use in his new warehouse job. Steiner doesn’t have a permanent address. His letters and packages are delivered to a mail room for homeless people in the building at the Keys to Change campus, a collaborative of 15 nonprofit organizations that serve those like him. (Santa Cruz, 10/27)
AP: South Carolina Jury Awards $18M In Concussion Case Against NCAA
The NCAA owes a former college football player and his wife $18 million, a South Carolina jury decided while finding college sports’ major governing body negligent in failing to warn the player about the long-term effects of concussions. Following a civil trial that wrapped up late last week, Orangeburg County jurors awarded $10 million to 68-year-old Robert Geathers, who played at South Carolina State University from 1977 to 1980 as a defensive end. His wife, Debra, was awarded $8 million, according to a court document. (10/27)
KFF Health News: As Sports Betting Explodes, States Try To Set Limits To Stop Gambling Addiction
It isn’t easy to promote moderation and financial discipline from the bowels of a casino. But that’s what Massachusetts state workers try to do every day, amid the clanging bells and flashing lights of the slot machines. At the MGM Springfield in western Massachusetts, workers wearing green polos stand outside their small office, right off the casino floor. Above them, a sign reads “GameSense,” the state’s signature program to curb problem gambling. A mounted screen cycles through messages such as “Keep sports betting fun. Set a budget and stick to it.” (Brown, 10/27)
On the spread of mpox, measles, covid, and flu —
The Hill: New Mpox Cases In California Raise Concerns Among Experts
More than two years after the mpox outbreak in the U.S. was declared over, a new crop of cases in California has infectious disease experts on edge. The mpox outbreak that spread through men who have sex with men was declared over at the start of 2023, though low-level transmission has persisted since then. A collection of three unrelated mpox cases recently detected in California is raising concerns, as they were caused by a more infectious, more dangerous strain of the virus called clade I mpox. (Choi, 10/26)
Bloomberg: Measles Outbreaks In Utah, Arizona Spread As US Vaccination Rates Fall
Measles outbreaks have spread across the US to reach 41 states. The largest ongoing cluster in Utah and Arizona has now grown into the second-biggest outbreak of the year. Utah reported a total of 58 infections Thursday, bringing the tally for Utah and Arizona to 142 so far this year. The Arizona Department of Health has reported 84 cases and three hospitalizations. A total of 1,618 infections have been reported nationwide by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this year, the largest outbreak in three decades. (Nix, 10/24)
KFF Health News: Doctors Muffled As Florida Moves To End Decades Of Childhood Vaccination Mandates
Florida plans to end nearly a half-century of required childhood immunizations against diseases that have killed and maimed millions of children. Many critics of the decision, including doctors, are afraid to speak up against it. With the support of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo on Sept. 3 announced his plan to end all school-age vaccination mandates in the state. (Allen, 10/27)
NBC News: Is It Time For Your Flu Shot? What To Know About Effectiveness And How Long It Lasts
Jeb Teichman’s phone rang just before midnight. As a pediatrician, he has received many late-night emergency calls. This time, the call was about his 29-year-old son. Brent Teichman had been suffering from the flu for five days. After he began to recover, his symptoms returned with a vengeance, making it difficult to breathe. Teichman, who was out of town, suggested his son visit an urgent care facility. Brent Teichman returned home from the clinic with a prescription for antibiotics and collapsed in bed. When his roommate checked on him a few hours later, Brent Teichman was unconscious. (Szabo, 10/25)
