Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Why Is the Insulin Market So Baffling In The US?; OhioRISE Will Help Provide Mental Health Care
Modern Healthcare: Insulin Has Been Around For 100 Years, So Why Is It Still So Expensive?
The high cost of insulin in the U.S., where some people with diabetes pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars for a month's supply, has long been a symbol of our broken healthcare system. Too many people with diabetes have been forced to ration their insulin—taking dangerously low doses to make the drug last, while driving themselves into poorer health, and in some cases, poverty. (Dan Liljenquist and Martin VanTrieste, 4/1)
Columbus Dispatch: What Does The Mental Health Crisis Mean For Ohio Children?
Our children are not okay. The pandemic highlighted a childhood mental health crisis that has led national organizations to call for an emergency declaration and led the U.S. Surgeon General to issue an advisory citing alarming increases in youth mental health challenges. In February, the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee held a special hearing on “America’s Mental Health Crisis,” where I had the honor to provide testimony on its impact on children and the workforce. (Angela Sausser, 4/1)
Los Angeles Times: Why Won't UC Clinics Serve Patients With Medi-Cal?
One in three Californians are insured through Medi-Cal — the state’s health insurance program for low-income residents. Yet very few of these patients are able to get care through the University of California’s health systems. Only a tiny fraction of primary care patients seen at UC clinics have Medi-Cal coverage. In some sites, it’s as little as 1% — even in areas with high numbers of Medi-Cal enrollees. The reason for this lack of access, according to UC administrators, is because state reimbursements for Medi-Cal patients don’t cover the cost of treating them. (Michael Wilkes and David Schriger, 4/4)
The Star Tribune: End The 'Ceiling.' Make Expanded Health Insurance Aid Permanent.
Allen Zutz has seen firsthand how much more affordable health insurance has become for many northern Minnesotans after what he calls "the ceiling" was lifted. Zutz is a health insurance broker based in Bemidji. What he's referring to is the upper limit on income eligibility to qualify for Affordable Care Act financial assistance that instantly discounts monthly premium costs for those who buy health insurance on their own. In 2021, Congress temporarily lifted that eligibility cap. (4/3)
The Star Tribune: How To Make Medicaid Racially Equitable
The term "Minnesota paradox," coined by Samuel Myers at the University of Minnesota, describes how Minnesota can have one of the highest qualities of life for white residents, while Black residents fare worse in nearly every measurable category than in virtually every other state. For Black Minnesotans, the consistent denial of equal opportunities in housing, education, nutrition, healthy neighborhoods and justice under the law makes the racial health disparities here less surprising. (Nathan Chomilo, 4/3)
The New York Times: ‘Trump Is Gone, And We Still Have The Problems’: Michael Lewis Makes Sense Of Our Bungled Covid Response
Dr. Anthony Fauci has been the face of America’s Covid response and has been praised and vilified for his expertise. But who are all the other people who have worked behind the scenes at agencies like the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to guide America through the pandemic? This is a question Michael Lewis tackles in his book “The Premonition,” which was published in May 2021. He talks about how getting to know these public health experts gave him a completely different understanding of the country’s public health system — and the systemic challenges institutions like the C.D.C. face when pandemics and other crises strike. (4/4)
