Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: We Must Protect Workers From Dangerous Heat; Family Caregivers Need More Support
Miami Herald: Extreme Heat Will Not Let Up While We Wait For Negotiations
CDC data indicate a tripling of heat-related work deaths in some Southwestern states, and annual work-related injuries because of heat may be undercounted by 20,000 people a year. While record-breaking temperatures sear much of the United States, the people who feed, transport and house us — and who have no choice but to work outside — increasingly are paying the ultimate price. (Susan L. Marquis, 8/17)
Chicago Tribune: We Need More Resources For Caregivers, Especially Those From Immigrant Families
I was only 28 when I joined an unexpectedly popular club. Together, with more than 53 million Americans (and 1.5 million Illinoisans), I became a family caregiver when my father was diagnosed with early onset dementia. A few years later, our situation escalated when my mother’s cancer reemerged, and her cardiac and lung conditions worsened. (Paurvi Bhatt, 8/17)
The Boston Globe: How Medicare Can Save $500 Billion
In 2021, the United States settled a lawsuit against California health care provider Sutter Health for $90 million. According to the lawsuit, Sutter siphoned government money by falsely labeling temporary conditions as chronic, pressuring physicians to add unnecessary conditions to charts, and even revising patient records behind doctors’ backs. (Andrew Ryan and David Meyers, 8/18)
CNN: My Wife Died Of Cancer. Now I Ask Myself ‘What If’
My family’s world changed on July 6, 2020. My wife, Lori, had become increasingly tired, lethargic, weak and confused over the previous few days. If you didn’t know better, you’d think she had been taking some kind of illicit drug. She hadn’t. So, it was clear she needed to go to the emergency room. (Ric Ward, 8/17)
Stat: The Pain Doctors Face In Trying To Build Their Families
The Retrievals,” a disturbing podcast from Serial and the New York Times released this summer, painstakingly tells the stories of women who sought fertility treatments at the Yale Fertility Center in 2020. Over the course of five months, women underwent egg retrievals without any pain medication. Although this procedure is typically done under heavy sedation, a nurse at the clinic had replaced fentanyl with saline. (Morgan S. Levy, Vineet Arora and Arghavan Salles, 8/18)
The Boston Globe: Address Both Health And Safety At Mass. And Cass
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has taken a compassionate, public health approach to Mass. and Cass, focusing on connecting people with housing and substance use treatment. This housing-first approach is valuable and needs to be expanded. But it is not sufficient. (8/17)
