Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Prostate Cancer Screening; Another Abortion Review; Successful Ebola Vaccine
The New York Times: A Better Way To Screen For Prostate Cancer
With prostate cancer, as with other diseases, there has been a vigorous debate about who should be tested. Screening too many people leads to unnecessary treatment, too few and you miss cancers that could have been stopped. A new study points to what may be a better approach: “screen smarter.” (11/25)
USA Today: The Supremes Take Up Abortion Rights, Again
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review the most significant case on abortion access in more than two decades. In doing so, it has set the stage for a decisive clash between two disparate conversations about abortion in America that have been on a collision course since Roe v. Wade settled the issue as a matter of law nearly 43 years ago. (Nancy Northup, 11/25)
The New York Times: Amid Failure And Chaos, An Ebola Vaccine
Ebola lingers. A 15-year-old boy in Monrovia, Liberia, his father and his brother are sick with the disease, the first cases in Liberia since June. How the boy caught Ebola is a mystery, but it is likely he had contact with an Ebola survivor. The virus also lingers in the body — and can sicken its host and infect others — even months after recovery. There will most likely be more cases in this epidemic. But now, greater awareness and new tools are in place to contain them better, including a tool we have never had before: an effective vaccine. (Tina Rosenberg, 11/24)
The Wall Street Journal: A Cure For ‘Antibiotic’ Confusion?
Last week the World Health Organization organized the first World Antibiotic Awareness Week with a campaign warning about the perils of antibiotic resistance—when germs become immune to standard treatments, sometimes through misuse of the drugs. Confronting dangerous misconceptions about antibiotics is noble, but could part of the problem be with the word “antibiotic” itself? (Ben Zimmer, 11/24)
The Washington Post: Talking To Dad About Moving From His Home Went Badly, But I’ll Keep Talking
While Dad was in Washington to celebrate his 91st birthday a few weeks ago, my sister Marilyn and I decided to show him an independent-living facility. I thought the tour went well. But at a restaurant for lunch afterward, I realized too late that Dad had been unnerved by the experience. Asked to be more specific about his plans for downsizing, he exploded. “I’ve had enough of this,” he said, rising abruptly from his seat. He paid the tab and exited the restaurant so fast that his walking cane barely touched the floor. (Courtland Milloy, 11/24)
The New York Times: Why Punish Drug Users At All?
This interview, the latest in a series on political topics, discusses philosophical issues concerning the criminalization of drug use. My interviewee is Douglas Husak, professor of philosophy at Rutgers University. He is the author of “Overcriminalization: The Limits of the Criminal Law.” (Gary Gutting, 11/24)
