Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Schools Can't Make The Same Covid Mistakes With H5N1; Diversity Still Lacking In Clinical Trials
Stat: Preparing Schools For The H5N1 Bird Flu They’re Likely To Face
As Covid-19 swept across the United States, schools were among the most highly affected public spaces. To prepare for a potential H5N1 avian influenza jump to humans, schools need to be preparing for the scenario now before a sustained transmission event occurs. (Mario Ramirez, 7/11)
Stat: Expand Community-Based Research To Make Clinical Trials More Diverse
Innovations in clinical trial designs and tools have the potential to unlock a new era of research that is more convenient for patients, more reflective of real-world treatment conditions, and more likely to enable participation of a diverse set of individuals. But a recent study reveals how far the U.S. is from realizing this potential: regions of the country with the worst social drivers of health are the least likely to host clinical trials. (Robert Metcalf and Jeffrey Francer, 7/10)
Also —
The Baltimore Sun: Expand Access To Life-Saving Overdose Reversal Agents
More people know the cost of losing someone to a drug overdose than you might realize. More than 40 percent of Americans say they know someone who died from an overdose, and 13 percent say such deaths have disrupted their lives, according to a study this year from the RAND Corporation. This research lays to rest the misconception that there’s anything rare or isolated about the impact of the opioid overdose crisis. As CEO of the nonprofit Caregiver Action Network, I know all too well that the opioid overdose crisis fueling so much of this grief impacts everyone it touches. Those trying to help or left to pick up the pieces suffer, too. (Marvell Adams Jr., 7/10)
Stat: Doctors 'Overprescribing' Opioids Didn't Cause Overdose Epidemic
A key part of the federal government’s narrative about the epidemic of addiction and overdose deaths in the U.S. has been that it is driven by doctors and other clinicians overprescribing opioid painkillers. That story line is false — and was never true. (Richard A. "Red" Lawhern, 7/11)
Stat: Everyone Deserves Addiction Treatment That Works-Including Those In Jail
The overdose crisis is claiming lives across the United States, but it reaches new depths of despair in the criminal justice system. Overdose is the leading cause of death among people returning to their communities after being in jail or prison. Providing addiction treatment in these settings could change that. (Nora D. Volkow and Tisha Wiley, 7/9)
