Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Time To End Sexual Assaults On Patients; Where Is Funding For Community Health Centers?
Stat: The Medical Profession Needs To Do More To Stop Sexual Abuse Of Patients
Physicians, hospitals, and state medical boards can and should do more to protect patients from sexual assault. On a daily basis, patients allow doctors to invade their privacy, whether by placing a stethoscope on a naked chest, palpating a mass on a breast, or conducting a testicular exam. This should come with awareness of our privileged role and the incredible responsibility we have to uphold our pledge to “do no harm.” (Altaf Saadi, 2/5)
Huffington Post: Congress Left Health Care For Millions Of Poor People In The Lurch
The stakes here are substantial. If the [federal funding for community health centers] were to stop completely, as many as 9 million low-income people would lose their source of care, according to federal estimates. They’d have a hard time finding alternatives, even if they managed to hold onto their insurance, because they live in places that don’t have a lot of doctors and facilities with capacity ― or a willingness ― to see them. (Jonathan Cohn, 2/4)
The New York Times: What It’s Like To Be A Patient With The N.H.S.
Britain’s National Health Service turns 70 this year, amid warnings of an existential crisis. At the end of last year, we interviewed several staff members to ask them what they hoped and feared for the system’s future. Now, readers tell us about their and their families’ experiences with the N.H.S. Here are their stories, edited for length and clarity. (2/6)
The New York Times: Medicaid Work Requirements Are Yet Another Burden For Trans Workers
The overlapping issues of health care and employment discrimination remain pivotal ones for transgender communities. They became more so last month, when the Trump administration decided to allow states to institute work requirements for Medicaid. The unemployment rate for trans people is three times higher than the national average, according to a 2015 survey produced by the National Center for Transgender Equality — a rate that results, in many cases, from anti-trans job discrimination. (Cyree Jarelle Johnson, 2/5)
Lexington Herald Leader: Kentucky Medicaid Changes Will Worsen Opioid Catastrophe As Drug Abusers, Who Desperately Need Treatment And Preventive Care, Won't Be Able To Comply With Requirements
Since the Affordable Care Act, Kentucky has expanded Medicaid to include more Kentuckians and included provisions that required health insurance plans to cover substance abuse treatment. In April of 2017, Kentucky even received $10.5 million in federal funding for drug addiction treatment and support. So why would Kentucky lawmakers create new obstacles to Medicaid coverage that may make the drug addiction catastrophe in Kentucky much worse? (Karen Tran-Harding, 2/2)
Des Moines Register: GOP Helping Iowa Women Get Pregnant
When Republicans took control of the Iowa Legislature 13 months ago, they immediately embarked on a mission to "defund" Planned Parenthood. ...They have made it more difficult for Iowa women to obtain birth control and more likely women will seek abortions and give birth to unwanted children. They have helped Iowa become a contraceptive desert. (2/5)
