Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Current Method For Helping Struggling Teens Is Backfiring; Why Is Organ Donation So Difficult?
The New York Times: This Is Not The Way To Help Depressed Teenagers
Ever since the pandemic, when rates of teenage suicide, anxiety and depression spiked, policymakers around the world have pushed to make mental-health resources more broadly available to young people through programming in schools and on social media platforms. (Darby Saxbe, 11/18)
USA Today: Organ Donation Is Too Tough On Donors. Transplant System Must Fix It
For many years I debated: Should I be an organ donor? As a faith leader who regularly speaks about the value of life, and as a healthy individual with an interest in organ donation, I was genuinely excited about the possibility to save another person. Nonetheless, it was a very big decision and one I did not take lightly. (Shmuly Yanklowitz, 11/20)
Modern Healthcare: Technology Can’t Replace The Patient-Provider Relationship
While booking a medical appointment for our dog recently at a large veterinary practice, I held out for a time with a doctor who’d seen the dog before, reasoning that the vet knew her background and my dog might recognize the doctor. The two had, I guessed, a relationship. (Mary Ellen Podmolik, 11/20)
Scientific American: Transgender People's Neurological Needs Are Being Overlooked
As a transgender neurologist, I advocate for the improved health care of other transgender people. I present my research findings to professional organizations and medical colleges throughout the U.S. While doing so, the most frequent criticism I receive from neurologists is: “What does being transgender have to do with neurology, the branch of medicine focused on the nervous system?” (Z Paige L'erario, 11/17)
The Baltimore Sun: Pediatrician: Gun Safety Laws Save The Lives Of Children And Teens
As a pediatrician, I am well aware of the toll that gun violence is taking on the youth of America. The statistics are frightening. According to provisional 2022 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, guns remain the leading cause of death for children and teens ages 1 to 19, climbing 87% in the decade from 2013 to 2022 and accounting for 4,590 deaths in 2022. Gun violence continues to have a disproportionate impact on Black children and teens, who have a gun homicide rate 20 times higher than their white counterparts. (Beryl Rosenstein, 11/20)
The New York Times: The Big #MeToo Moment For Doctors Is Finally Here
In January of 2016, Aja Newman went to the emergency room at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City for discomfort in her right shoulder. What should’ve been a routine visit instead unfolded as a harrowing, grotesque distortion of the doctor-patient interaction. (Helen Ouyang, 11/20)
The Atlantic: The Other Ozempic Revolution
Ever since a series of studies showed semaglutide’s effectiveness for weight loss, Novo Nordisk has developed a problem. The Danish company simply cannot make enough Ozempic and Wegovy—its other brand name for the drug. In September, Novo Nordisk overtook the luxury-goods retailer LVMH to become Europe’s most valuable company. Its market capitalization—an estimated $450 billion as of Friday—was higher than Denmark’s annual GDP. (Helen Lewis, 11/19)
Stat: The FDA Is Not Keeping Pace With Cell And Gene Therapies
Cell and gene therapies are the next frontier in medicine and promise long-sought hope for people living with incurable and fatal conditions. As their promise increasingly becomes reality, the FDA’s gatekeeping role is important. To truly serve the people who need these medications, the FDA must be a good-faith partner and deploy the tools my fellow congressional lawmakers and I helped secure. (Richard Burr, 11/20)
