Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: 9/11 First Responders Still Grapple With The Aftereffects; Small Businesses Face Dire Healthcare Costs
Stat: The Ongoing Crisis Of Sept. 11-Related Cancers And Other Illnesses
Retired New York City police officer John Aris sat in my office recently waiting for the results of his latest CT scan. Seven years earlier, I had removed part of his right lung because of cancer. Since then, every follow-up appointment has carried the same anxiety. Before I had even closed the examination room door behind me, I offered the words he had hoped to hear: “No cancer.” (Raja Flores, 9/11)
Bloomberg: Healthcare Costs Have Small Businesses In An Impossible Bind
The healthcare affordability crisis is crushing everyone, but it has become downright calamitous for small businesses. Survey after survey after survey shows that employers expect healthcare costs to rise nearly 10% on average in 2027, a figure that could be twice as high for small firms. (Lisa Jarvis, 9/11)
The Washington Post: What Health Officials Should Learn From Pennsylvania’s Measles Fracas
States will need to be better prepared to defend their determinations of measles deaths. (Amesh Adalja, 9/11)
Stat: Pro-Vaccine Advocacy Should Be Celebratory And Joyful
On April 12, 1955, America threw a vaccine party. That morning, Thomas Francis Jr. — who had overseen trials of polio vaccines developed by Jonas Salk — held a press conference to announce the results. Only it wasn’t a press conference. It was an event. (Adam Zimmerman, 9/11)
Bloomberg: China Can Invent New Drugs. Paying For Them Is Harder
China now rivals the US as a global center for pharmaceutical innovation. But its health insurance system struggles to keep pace with the cost of breakthroughs, leaving many patients unable to access top new drugs. (Juliana Liu, 9/10)
