Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Woman Mistakenly Declared Dead, Found Alive At Funeral Home
The New York Times: A Michigan Woman Was Declared Dead, Then Woke Up At A Funeral Home
A Michigan woman who was declared dead by paramedics on Sunday was discovered alive hours later by a funeral home worker who was preparing to embalm her body, a lawyer for her family said. The lawyer, Geoffrey Fieger, said the woman, Timesha Beauchamp, was born with cerebral palsy. “She requires constant care since birth,” he said Tuesday. “I believe her relative fragile condition contributed to the false belief by the authorities” that she had died. (Waller and Bryson Taylor, 8/25)
AP: Attorney: Woman Was In Body Bag 2 Hours Before Found Alive
An attorney for the family of a young woman found breathing at a Detroit funeral home after being declared dead said Tuesday the 20-year-old was in a body bag for some two hours before it was opened and she was discovered to be alive, with her eyes open. Geoffrey Fieger, who was hired by Timesha Beauchamp’s family, said she remains in critical condition at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit, where she is on a respirator and her heart is beating on its own. (Callahan, 8/26)
In other news —
The Washington Post: With Hurricane Laura Threatening Gulf Coast, Southeast Texas And Southwest Louisiana Officials Urge Residents To Flee
Officials across eastern Texas and western Louisiana issued mandatory evacuation orders Tuesday as Hurricane Laura strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico and threatened to pummel the U.S. coastline, perhaps as the strongest storm to take aim at the region since 2005. ... Though evacuations were mandatory, not everyone planned to leave, part of a complex web of decisions that face people of all kinds during the coronavirus pandemic. Some have concerns about the virus and its potential spread in shelters, while others simply don’t want to leave their homes behind.(Martin and Cusick, 8/25)
The Hill: Positive Drug Tests For Employees Hit 16-Year High As Marijuana Legalization Expands: Report
As recreational marijuana legalization has expanded to 11 states plus the District of Columbia, positive workplace drug tests have reportedly climbed to a 16-year high. Positive test rates rose nearly 4.5 percent for the U.S. workforce in 2019, according to one of the largest drug-testing laboratories Quest Diagnostics, which sampled 9 million tests last year for employers, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. (Deese, 8/25)
