Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Warren Hopes Opioid Message Will Reach Through Partisan Hostility In Ohio And West Virginia, Both Hit Hard By Crisis
The Associated Press: Warren Bringing Opioids Message To Hard-Hit W.Va., Ohio
Elizabeth Warren is set to visit a state that hasn’t been friendly to Democrats lately to pitch her plan to combat the opioid addiction crisis by boosting taxes on the wealthy. The Massachusetts senator and Democratic presidential candidate will travel to Kermit, West Virginia, on Friday before moving on to Chillicothe and Columbus, Ohio. By starting in West Virginia, she’ll be in a place that President Donald Trump carried by 42 points in 2016, but one that is suffering from the nation’s highest death rate from prescription drugs. (Raby, 5/10)
CQ: Trump Aide Sees Room For Talks On Democrats' Opioid Bill
Democrats got a surprising compliment from the Trump administration’s top drug control official at a Thursday hearing as they discussed boosting opioid addiction treatment funding, while Republicans promoted efforts to stem illegal drugs through securing the southern border. House Oversight and Reform Government Operations Subcommittee Chairman Gerald E. Connolly, D-Va., who presided at the full committee hearing, touted a bill (HR 2569) that Chairman Elijah E. Cummings of Maryland released withMassachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday that would authorize $100 billion over 10 years to address the crisis. The bill, which is supported by all of the committee’s Democrats, faces a tough path to becoming law without Republican support. (Raman, 5/9)
Bloomberg: Prescription Opioid Use Plummeted Most On Record Last Year
The volume of opioids prescribed in the U.S. fell 17% last year, the most in more than a quarter-century, as doctors have become increasingly cautious about giving out large amounts of the drugs amid an epidemic of abuse. Opioid prescriptions are down 43% overall since their 2011 peak, according to a broad report published Thursday by IQVIA Holdings Inc., a health research firm that sells its services to drug companies. The report looks at the active opioid ingredient dispensed, after adjusting for how potent the various drugs are. (Langreth, 5/9)
The Washington Post: As Spending On Opioid Epidemic Soars, Md. Officials Say Death Rate Is ‘Starting To Plateau’
Opioids again killed a record number of people in Maryland last year, but state officials said Thursday the unprecedented epidemic now fueled by fentanyl deaths is starting to show signs of slowing. Preliminary data found 2,114 opioid-related deaths in Maryland in 2018, a 5.2 percent increase from the year before. (Cox, 5/9)
Dallas Morning News: North Texas Doctor Who Prescribed Fatal Painkillers Gets 20-Year Prison Sentence
A former North Texas doctor whose unnecessary prescriptions for powerful painkillers reportedly contributed to at least seven deaths has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. Howard Gregg Diamond, 58, pleaded guilty in October to charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and health care fraud and aiding and abetting. He had faced up to life in prison but reached a plea agreement for 20 years, which a judge approved Thursday morning. (Steele, 5/9)
