The New York Times: Trump Administration Says Obamacare Lawsuit Can Wait Until After The Election
The Trump administration came into office with its top legislative priority clear: Repeal the Affordable Care Act. It failed. Then, when a group of Republican states tried to throw out Obamacare through a lawsuit, the administration agreed that a key part of the law was unconstitutional. But now that defenders of the law have asked the Supreme Court to settle the case quickly, the president’s lawyers say they are in no particular hurry. The case, which seeks to invalidate the entire health care law, can wait for the lower courts to consider certain questions more carefully, they said in a filing to the Supreme Court on Friday. (Sanger-Katz, 1/10)

The Washington Post: Trump Administration Tells Supreme Court No Need To Rush An Obamacare Ruling
They said the court should not grant a motion by the House of Representatives and Democratic-led states to expedite review of a decision by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit last month. The panel struck down the law’s mandate that individuals buy health insurance but sent back to a lower court the question of whether the rest of the statute can stand without it. (Barnes, 1/10)

Modern Healthcare: Trump Administration, Red States Urge Supreme Court To Deny Quick Review Of Obamacare Case
Should the Supreme Court take up the issue now, "it would have to confront the severability of statutory provisions spanning 900 pages without the benefit of any decision from the court of appeals on that question, or of a decision from the district court applying the more granular analysis that the court of appeals prescribed." The Republican states challenging the ACA likewise argued that review of the case is premature. They wrote in a brief Friday that Democrats would have filed a petition earlier if there were a true emergency requiring expedited consideration. They further said that undecided issues must be resolved before heading to the Supreme Court. (Livingston, 1/10)

The Hill: Trump Administration Wants Supreme Court To Delay Hearing On ObamaCare Case
“As the case comes to this Court, no lower-court ruling exists on severability or the appropriate remedy. Far from being urgently needed, this Court’s review thus would be premature,” Francisco wrote. “Absent any operative ruling invalidating the ACA’s other provisions in the interim, the accelerated review petitioners seek is unnecessary,” Francisco wrote of the Affordable Care Act. (Weixel, 1/10)

Politico: Trump, Red States Ask Supreme Court To Refuse Obamacare Case Before Election
It takes five Supreme Court justices to expedite review. Legal observers believe the court’s four liberal justices would support Democrats’ request to fast-track the case, meaning just one conservative justice would need to agree. Some think that Chief Justice John Roberts, who has previously authored two decisions upholding Obamacare, would provide that vote. Though the Supreme Court rarely intervenes in a dispute before it's been fully resolved in the lower courts, observers posit that the Obamacare case's high stakes could move them to step in, rather than prolong uncertainty for the health system and millions of people with Obamacare coverage. (Luthi, 1/10)

Vox: Trump Administration Wants The Supreme Court To Wait On Obamacare Ruling
The case carries heavy implications for the US health care system, and for the 2020 elections as well. Should the Republican plaintiffs succeed in getting the ACA struck down, the Urban Institute estimates that about 20 million people in the US will lose their health insurance. And the result of a Supreme Court ruling could have stark effects on both Democratic and Republican pitches to voters ahead of November’s elections. (Burns, 1/11)

In other health law news —

Modern Healthcare: Next Generation ACO Model Hasn't Saved Money, Study Finds
The experimental Next Generation Accountable Care Organization model didn't save Medicare money during the first two performance years, according to an analysis released Friday from the agency. Rather than reducing Medicare spending, the Next Generation ACO model, which is now in its fifth and final year, added $93.9 million to net Medicare spending during 2016 and 2017, the first two years of the program, the analysis found. The study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of Chicago and commissioned by the CMS, said the increase wasn't statistically significant although at first glance it appears to be a blow for supporters of the model who claimed its been saving Medicare money. (Castellucci, 1/10)

The Hill: Lawsuit Alleges Child Abuse And Neglect After Trump Administration Family Separation
Two fathers who were separated from their children at the U.S.-Mexico border as a result of the Trump administration’s policies are suing the government for $12 million, claiming the children were subject to abuse and neglect while in federal custody. The lawsuit, filed Friday in U.S. District Court of Arizona, argues that the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy was “cruel and unconstitutional.” “The United States government tore these families apart pursuant to a cruel and unconstitutional policy: The government intended to inflict terror and harm on these small children and their fathers, as a means of deterring others from seeking to enter the United States,” the lawsuit said. (Weixel, 1/10)

CNN: Fathers Say Their Children Were Abused At Foster Homes After Being Separated At US-Mexico Border
The fathers also allege in the lawsuit that their children were abused by other children while in government custody. In a statement released by the Southern Poverty Law Center, one of the fathers described the pain he said he and his family endured. "He was taken from me and I had no idea what was happening to him. When I learned that he was abused by other boys, I was sick with grief," said the father, who's identified in the lawsuit by his initials, A.P.F. "No one deserves this cruelty." (Shoichet, 1/10)

The Associated Press: Suit Over Border Patrol Detention Conditions Goes To Trial
A years-old lawsuit challenging detention conditions in several of the Border Patrol’s Arizona stations will go to trial Monday as the agency as a whole has come under fire following several migrant deaths. The lawsuit filed in 2015 applies to eight Border Patrol facilities in Arizona where attorneys say migrants are held in unsafe and inhumane conditions. (Galvan, 1/12)

The Associated Press: Ruling Barring Discharge Of HIV-Positive Airmen Upheld
An injunction barring the Trump administration from discharging two Air Force members who are HIV-positive was upheld Friday by a federal appeals court panel that called the military's rationale for prohibiting deployment of service members living with HIV “outmoded and at odds with current science." (Lavoie, 1/10)

The Washington Post: Appeals Court Upholds Temporary Ruling Barring Discharge Of HIV-Positive Service Members
Writing for the panel, U.S. Circuit Judge James A. Wynn Jr. said plaintiffs were likely to show the military acted “arbitrarily or capriciously” in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act by discharging service members without an individualized fitness assessment. “A ban on deployment may have been justified at a time when HIV treatment was less effective at managing the virus and reducing transmission risks,” Wynn wrote in the 46-page opinion. “But any understanding of HIV that could justify this ban is outmoded and at odds with current science. Such obsolete understandings cannot justify a ban, even under a deferential standard of review and even according appropriate deference to the military’s professional judgments.” (Hus, 1/10)

The Hill: Federal Court Upholds Block Keeping Air Force From Discharging HIV-Positive Service Members
The lawsuit was first filed by the two airmen in December 2018, accusing the Pentagon of discriminating against service members under a longstanding policy that stipulates that they cannot deploy outside of the country if they test positive for HIV. The Trump administration put forth the new rule in February 2018 that states that those who cannot be deployed outside of the U.S. for a continuous year should be discharged. (Axelrod, 1/10)

The Wall Street Journal: Trump Administration Weighs Tighter Requirements For Disability Payments
The Trump administration is working on a plan to tighten eligibility requirements for disability benefits, especially for older Americans, the latest step in a broader White House effort to shrink federal safety-net programs. The proposal being prepared by the Social Security Administration would revise eligibility for disability benefits based on age, education and work experience, according to a draft viewed by The Wall Street Journal. Those factors determined the eligibility of about 500,000 people in 2017, according to the latest available data. More than eight million people currently receive disability payments. (Davidson, 1/10)

The New York Times: Tighter Food Stamp Rules Crowded Soup Kitchens, Not Job Rosters
In the early mornings, Chastity and Paul Peyton walk from their small and barely heated apartment to Taco Bell to clean fryers and take orders for as many work hours as they can get. It rarely adds up to full-time week’s worth, often not even close. With this income and whatever cash Mr. Peyton can scrape up doing odd jobs — which are hard to come by in a small town in winter, for someone without a car — the couple pays rent, utilities and his child support payments. Then there is the matter of food. “We can barely eat,” Ms. Peyton said. She was told she would be getting food stamps again soon — a little over two dollars’ worth a day — but the couple was without them for months. (Robertson, 1/13)

The Wall Street Journal: Plan To Revamp Medicaid-Eligibility Checks Draws Criticism
A push by the Trump administration and states to overhaul Medicaid-eligibility regulations is alarming critics who say stiffer verification measures are already creating procedural hurdles that depress enrollment. The Trump administration says a lack of oversight on Medicaid, a federal-state program for low-income and disabled people, threatens its future by allowing people to get health coverage even though they earn too much to qualify. (Armour, 1/12)

The Washington Post: Medicaid Expansion May Have Saved Thousands From Drug Overdose Deaths
Expanding Medicaid rolls under the Affordable Care Act may have saved as many as 8,132 people from fatal opioid overdoses, virtually all involving heroin and fentanyl, a study released Friday suggests. The research is the latest evidence that allowing more people to enroll in Medicaid has saved lives and improved health. (Bernstein, 1/10)

The Hill: Study: Medicaid Expansion Linked To 6 Percent Decline In Opioid Overdose Deaths
“These findings add to the emerging body of evidence that Medicaid expansion under the ACA may be a critical component of state efforts to address the continuing opioid overdose epidemic in the United States,” the study states. The study could provide fodder for Democrats pushing for more states to accept the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. (Sullivan, 1/10)

Modern Healthcare: Medicaid Expansion Linked To Fewer Opioid Deaths
Study co-lead author Dr. Magdalena Cerdá, director of the Center for Opioid Epidemiology and Policy at NYU Langone Health, said the reduction in opioid-related mortality observed in Medicaid-expansion states was likely the result of the Affordable Care Act's inclusion of mental health and substance use disorder treatment services as part of the law's essential health benefits that insurers—including Medicaid—must cover. Cerdá credits the lower mortality rate on increased treatment and access to naloxone. (Johnson, 1/10)

Vox: Medicaid Expansion Linked To 6% Reduction In Opioid Overdose Deaths
The study helps put to rest claims by some Republican lawmakers, particularly Sen. Ron Johnson (WI), that the Medicaid expansion made the opioid crisis worse by expanding access to painkillers. The new study, echoing others before it, suggests the Medicaid expansion had the opposite effect, and that there wasn’t a link between the expansion and more deaths caused by painkillers, with the possible — and relatively uncommon — exception of methadone used in pain treatment. (Lopez, 1/10)

US News: Heroin, Fentanyl Deaths Drop In Medicaid Expansion States
Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia had expanded their Medicaid coverage as of December 2017, the end of the observed period, according to the study. Since then, four more states – Virginia, Maine, Idaho and Utah – have extended their public health insurance coverage, and Nebraska has adopted, but not yet implemented, an expansion measure, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. (Newman, 1/10)

In other Medicaid news —

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: How To Tell Feds What You Think About Georgia Plan To Change Medicaid
If you’ve got something to say about Gov. Brian Kemp’s Medicaid waiver proposal, the federal government is listening. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it received Kemp’s proposal to partially expand Medicaid in Georgia, and it now must accept public comments for 30 days. Comment closes Feb. 7. (Hart, 1/10)

North Carolina Health News: Medicaid Questions At NCGA This Week 
Wondering when North Carolina will actually shift its massive Medicaid program, which provides health care for more than 2 million North Carolinians to managed care? So is everyone else, including the people whose day-to-day jobs are running Medicaid. “We have not set a date and honestly we’re waiting like everyone else to see what the legislature” does this week, said Dave Richard, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary in charge of Medicaid and N.C. Health Choice. “We don’t want to put something out without having certainty around the budget.” (Ovaska, Hoban, 1/13)

Stat: Supreme Court Will Review Arkansas Law Governing PBMs
In a move with the potential to affect health care costs, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review a case that will determine the extent to which the states can regulate pharmacy benefit managers, the controversial middlemen in the pharmaceutical supply chain. At issue is an Arkansas law that governs the reimbursements rates that pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, must pay to pharmacies. Specifically, the law requires PBMs to reimburse pharmacies at or above their wholesale costs paid for generic drugs. (Silverman, 1/11)

Politico Pro: Supreme Court To Review States' Ability To Regulate PBMs
The Supreme Court will hear a case that could determine the extent states can regulate pharmacy benefit managers, a prominent target of federal and state attempts to control drug costs. Justices today accepted Arkansas' request to review an appeals court ruling that blocked the state from regulating the companies that administer drug benefits for health plans on the grounds such activity is preempted by the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act. (Karlin-Smith, 1/10)

The Wall Street Journal: Geneticists Call On Myriad To Share Proprietary Data To Aid Gene Tests
A leading medical society is calling on Myriad Genetics Inc. and other lab companies to share proprietary data from their genetic testing in a public database, to help the scientific community better assess the disease-causing risk of mutations. The call by the board of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics, a professional organization that also publishes influential guidelines on classifying genetic variants, came in response to a Dec. 20 article in The Wall Street Journal. (Marcus, 1/12)

Modern Healthcare: Government Watchdog Finds Lax Oversight Of 340B Discounts
A government watchdog found that deficiencies in federal oversight of the 340B drug discount program may have allowed some nongovernmental hospitals that do not meet eligibility requirements to participate anyway.Hospital participation in the 340B discount program has tripled since 2009, and as of January 2019, 67% of those hospitals are private, not-for-profit hospitals. To participate in the 340B discount program, these hospitals have to prove that they have a contract with state or local governments to provide healthcare services to low-income individuals who are not eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, but the Government Accountability Office found several weaknesses in how the Health Resources & Services Administration oversaw these contracts. (Cohrs, 1/10)

The Wall Street Journal: High Drug Prices? Pharma Startup Thinks It Has The Right Medicine
A startup pharmaceuticals company wants to capitalize on the backlash against high drug prices by developing slightly different versions of expensive brand-name drugs and selling them at a significantly lower price than competitors. The new company, EQRx Inc., aims to bring 10 drugs to market over the next decade and sell them for perhaps as little as one-third to one-fifth of rivals’ prices, the company’s co-founder and Chief Executive Alexis Borisy said. (Walker, 1/12)

Stat: Agios CEO Forecasts 'Line Of Sight' To More Approved Drugs And Profits
Agios Pharmaceuticals intends to double the number of approved medicines it sells from two to four within the next six years, while also expanding into new indications and deepening its pipeline by another two programs. The new Agios (AGIO) strategic plan — including a mandate to trim financial losses and become cash-flow positive — was announced Sunday ahead of a presentation by CEO Jackie Fouse on Monday morning at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference. (Feuerstein, 1/12)

Stat: Lilly To Acquire Dermira For $1.1 Billion, Adding Eczema Drug To Its Pipeline
Eli Lilly said Friday that it will acquire Dermira, a small biotech developing drugs for chronic skin conditions, for $1.1 billion. The centerpiece of the deal is the Dermira drug called lebrikizumab that aims to treat people suffering from moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema, a disease characterized by inflamed, itchy, and scaly skin. (Feuerstein, 1/10)

Boston Globe: Cambridge Startup Debuts With A Bold Promise: To Make Drugs With Dramatically Lower Prices
Countless biotechs are launched with promises of “game-changing” medicines. But a Cambridge startup that debuted Sunday is pledging something seldom heard from drug makers: dramatically lower prices. With $200 million in venture capital at their disposal, the leaders of EQRx say they plan to create innovative patented prescription medications — not generics — that will be at least as good as those on the market and cost a third of the rival products. (Saltzman, 1/12)

Miami Herald: Epilepsy, Bipolar Drug Recalled After Contamination Found
One lot of epilepsy and bipolar disorder tablets got recalled Friday after someone discovered a cross-contamination with a drug used in heart and blood pressure medication, according to the FDA-posted recall. The epilepsy and bipolar medication is Lamotrigine 100mg. Lamotrigine is also sold under Lamictal brand names. (Neal, 1/11)

The Wall Street Journal: Bristol’s Merger With Celgene Is Already Paying Dividends, CEO Says
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., BMY -0.34% fresh off completing one of the largest drug-industry mergers ever, is counting on the acquisition to pay off quickly with new products and ease Wall Street concerns. Bristol waited nearly 11 months for its controversial $74 billion deal for Celgene to close, in November. During that span, U.S. regulators approved two cancer drugs from Celgene, and a third, for treating multiple sclerosis, could get the go-ahead by March and eventually provide what analysts see as $3 billion in annual sales. (Hopkins, 1/12)

The Hill: Drug Price Outrage Threatens To Be Liability For GOP
The GOP’s reluctance to challenge rising prescription drug costs could be a political liability for the party in 2020. Outrage over increasing prices has propelled the issue to the top of voters’ minds heading into the November elections, when Republicans hope to keep control of the Senate and retake the House. But proposals that would limit what drug companies can charge for their products face opposition from Republicans, presenting an obstacle to congressional passage. (Hellmann, 1/10)

Meanwhile —

The Hill: Democratic Groups Launch Ad Campaign Attacking Trump, GOP On Drug Pricing
A new advertising campaign spearheaded by Democratic strategists aims to excoriate congressional Republicans and the Trump administration for opposing Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) drug pricing legislation. The Patients Over Pharma campaign is run by Accountable.US, an umbrella organization of progressive watchdog groups that attacks the Trump administration’s apparent conflicts of interest and ties to industry groups. (Weixel, 1/10)

The Washington Post: Five Years After An Abortion, Most Women Say They Made The Right Decision
There’s been quite a lot of research about women’s emotions immediately following an abortion. Some experience sadness, guilt and anger; others feel relief. For many, it’s a mix of all of these and more. But what about in the long term? Researchers from the University of California at San Francisco delved into this question in an analysis of 667 women recruited from 30 sites across the country as part of the Turnaway Study — a landmark body of research about how abortion affects women physically, socially, emotionally and economically. (Cha, 1/12)

CNN: The Majority Of Women Feel Relief, Not Regret, After An Abortion, Study Says
Researchers found that at five years after having an abortion, only 6% expressed primarily negative emotions. The overwhelming majority of women surveyed -- 84% -- had positive emotions or no emotions whatsoever about their abortion decision, even if they hadn't felt that way when they were making the decision to have an abortion. Just over half the women in this survey said the decision to terminate the pregnancy was very difficult and 27% characterized it as "somewhat difficult." About 46% said it wasn't a difficult decision at all. Nearly 70% said they felt they would be stigmatized if people knew they had an abortion. (Christensen, 1/12)

In other news on abortion —

The Associated Press: Kansas GOP To Stymie Ban In Reversing Abortion-Rights Ruling
Top Kansas Republicans want to head off any push for an abortion ban in the state even as they make overturning a Kansas Supreme Court ruling that protects abortion rights a top priority. The GOP-controlled Legislature expects to consider a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution during the annual 90-day lawmaking session set to convene Monday. It's a response to the state high court's ruling in April that the state's Bill of Rights makes access to abortion a fundamental right. (Hanna, 1/13)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Leaders Of Cincinnati’s Only Abortion Clinic Takes Step To Avoid Closure
In late December, Ohio Health Director Amy Acton announced she intended to revoke the clinic’s license for failing to have a written transfer agreement with a local hospital where it could send patients in case of emergency. The facility has remained open pending a hearing on the matter. (Candisky, 1/10)

Chicago Tribune: At Least 1,000 Anti-Abortion Marchers Rally In The Loop
At least 1,000 anti-abortion marchers shut down Loop thoroughfares Saturday afternoon, rallying from the Daley Center to the Congress Plaza Hotel in the annual March For Life Chicago, chanting and carrying signs such as “Abortion isn’t health care." The annual event, billed as “the Midwest’s largest pro-life event," attracted a few dozen counterprotesters as the nation becomes increasingly polarized over Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case that established a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy. (Buckley, 1/11)

The Wall Street Journal: Inside Google’s Quest For Millions Of Medical Records
Roughly a year ago, Google offered health-data company Cerner Corp. an unusually rich proposal. Cerner was interviewing Silicon Valley giants to pick a storage provider for 250 million health records, one of the largest collections of U.S. patient data. Google dispatched former chief executive Eric Schmidt to personally pitch Cerner over several phone calls and offered around $250 million in discounts and incentives, people familiar with the matter say. (Copeland, Mattioli and Evans, 1/11)

Stat: Facebook Can't Tell If Its New Preventive Health Tool Is Working
As Facebook’s newest health tool makes its way to your feed, the company is still trying to figure out how to measure whether or not it is improving health outcomes. Launched in October, the preventive health tool is designed to nudge people toward getting recommended disease screenings and checkups, with the goal of improving users’ health and narrowing the wide gaps in health equity, including disparities in life expectancy from one state to the next. (Thielking and Brodwin, 1/13)

Stat: Apple Barely Discussed Health In First CES Appearance In 28 Years
Breaking a 28-year hiatus, Apple made an appearance this week at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Last year, the iPhone maker’s CEO, Tim Cook, made the bold claim that Apple’s biggest impact on humankind would be in health. But the company did not discuss any health-specific products at the conference this year. (Brodwin, 1/10)

Reuters: U.S. To Probe Fitbit, Garmin, Other Wearable Devices After Philips Complains
U.S. trade regulators said on Friday they will investigate wearable monitoring devices, including those made by Fitbit Inc and Garmin Ltd, following allegations of patent violations by rival Koninklijke Philips and its North America unit. The U.S. International Trade Commission, in a statement, said the probe would also look at devices by made by California-based Ingram Micro Inc as well as China-based Maintek Computer Co Ltd and Inventec Appliances. (1/10)

Los Angeles Times: After Years Of Financial Woes, Los Angeles Hospital Running Out Of Prayers
Many years ago, Gilbert San Juan watched as a wrecking ball demolished the old St. Vincent Medical Center. An elevator operator and painter there at the time, San Juan wanted to fetch some old furniture from the building, but backed down after seeing the massive, threatening ball hanging from a crane. Still, he knew he would enter its doors again, when the new hospital near downtown Los Angeles sprung just yards away from the old. For 47 years, San Juan worked in that facility. (Reyes-Velarde, 1/12)

Modern Healthcare: Dignity Health Loses Out-Of-Network Billing Lawsuit
A California appellate court has rejected Dignity Health's claim that L.A. Care Health Plan, a large Medicaid plan, owes it tens of millions of dollars in out-of-network bills for inpatient care following stabilization of medical emergencies. The Second District Court of Appeal on Thursday upheld a lower court's summary dismissal of Dignity's lawsuit alleging that the health plan owed Dignity's Northridge Hospital Medical Center higher than state-set rates. Northridge is not within the plan's network of contracted providers. (Meyer, 1/10)

Modern Healthcare: How State Groups Are Working To Lower Healthcare Prices
A RAND report on hospital pricing last May pushed many employer purchasing groups into action. The report infuriated self-insured employers who previously didn’t know how much they were paying, at least partly due to gag clauses in contracts between providers and insurers barring disclosure of negotiated rates even to plan sponsors, said Gloria Sachdev, CEO of the Employers’ Forum of Indiana. (Meyer, 1/11)

Boston Globe: Children’s Hospital, Family Of Justina Pelletier Bring Case To Court
Justina Pelletier was 14 in 2013 when she landed in a locked psychiatric unit at Boston Children’s Hospital, temporarily a ward of the state. Her parents stood accused of medical child abuse as they clashed with the hospital’s doctors over her diagnosis and care. Now, nearly seven years after their high-profile standoff, the Pelletiers’ malpractice lawsuit against the Children’s providers who treated their daughter is slated to go on trial Tuesday in Suffolk Superior Court — pending a late appeal by Children’s to delay the proceedings until a judge sorts out questions about alleged civil rights violations involving the hospital. (Lazar, 1/12)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: RSV: Wisconsin Hospitals See High Number Of Children With Severe Respiratory Virus
Colton would join a wave of young patients in the intensive care unit at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, suffering from an illness called respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The virus accounted for roughly one-third of the patients in the hospital's 72-bed ICU, said Michael Meyer, medical director of the pediatric intensive care unit. (Johnson, 1/10)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: After Waiting In Froedtert ER, Milwaukee Woman Leaves And, Later, Dies
Tashonna Ward, a 25-year-old day care teacher from Milwaukee, died Jan. 2 while trying to find a doctor to help her. Ward's family is seeking answers from Froedtert Hospital, where she spent more than two hours in the emergency department before she left to find quicker care and, later, collapsed. She had reported chest pain and tightness of breath. (Linnane, 1/11)

Georgia Health News: Emory, LifePoint Teaming Up To Run Hospital In Columbus
A Columbus hospital is now owned and operated by a new joint venture between Emory Healthcare and Tennessee-based LifePoint Health. With the agreement, announced this week, Emory would extend its affiliation with the 376-bed St. Francis Hospital in the west Georgia city. The joint venture would be a for-profit enterprise, with Emory supplying the clinical expertise, programs and training while LifePoint and St. Francis provide the management skills. (Miller, 1/10)

The Associated Press: Opioid-Dependent Kids' Guardians Seek To Form Class In Suit
Guardians caring for hundreds of thousands of children born dependent on opioids since 2000 should be grouped together as part of the class action lawsuit filed by local governments and others against the manufacturers, distributors and sellers of prescription pain medication, lawyers argued in a motion filed in federal court in Cleveland. (Gillispie, 1/10)

Politico Pro: FDA Defends Opioids For Chronic Pain Ahead Of Advisory Committee
Opioids have a role in treating chronic pain despite the country's struggle with misuse of the drugs when prescribed for this purpose, FDA said Friday in documents prepared for an advisory committee meeting to consider a new drug targeted for long-term back pain. The agency's Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products and Drug Safety and Risk Management advisory committees will debate an application Tuesday for Nektar Therapetuics' oxycodegol. (Karlin-Smith, 1/10)

The Baltimore Sun: Up To A Third Of Opioid Overdose Deaths Might Be Suicides, Johns Hopkins Researcher Concludes
Tens of thousands of people fatally overdose each year on opioids and other drugs. Sometimes medical examiners label them accidents, and sometimes they don’t know what to call them. But where humans waver, a computer program using a kind of artificial intelligence finds that many are likely suicides — possibly a third of them, according to a study by a Johns Hopkins School of Medicine researcher who partnered with a Utah high school student. (Cohn, 1/10)

NH Times Union: 2019 OD Deaths: Nashua, Manchester Buck NH's Downward Trend
For two years in a row, New Hampshire has seen a decrease in drug overdose deaths. But many officials say there is still a long way to go to address the epidemic. The state anticipates a total of 364 drug deaths in 2019 — 107 fewer than the 471 deaths in 2018, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. ... Contrary to the statewide statistics, opioid overdose deaths increased in Manchester and Nashua after 20% decreases in 2018, according to data from American Medical Response (AMR), an ambulance service used by both cities. (Phelps, 1/12)

NPR: Kratom's Benefits And Dangers Debated Amid Marketing Push
Americans know the dangers of drugs such as morphine and heroin. But what about a supplement that acts in the brain a bit like an opiate and is available in many places to kids — even from vending machines. Kratom, an herb that's abundant, legal in most states and potentially dangerous, is the subject of an ongoing debate over its risks and benefits. (McClurg, 1/13)

The Washington Post: CDC Flu Data Shows Child Deaths From Influenza B
An unusual viral strain is dominating flu activity across the United States and may be one reason for the severe infections in children so far, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and this season’s influenza vaccine is not a close match for the virus. There are different types of flu viruses, and the strain causing illnesses in most parts of the country is an influenza B virus. (Sun, 1/10)

CNN: Flu Activity Fell Last Week, But It's Too Early To Say The Worst Is Over
Flu activity in the United States went down last week, but that doesn't mean the season has peaked and the worst is behind us, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday. "Don't make any conclusions about a single dip," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "We've seen dips that go down and then go back up again, and we've seen dips that go down and continue to go down." (Cohen, 1/10)

CNN: Flu Leaves A 4-Year-Old Girl Blind In Iowa
A 4-year-old girl in Iowa nearly died and is now blind because of the flu, and her parents have a message: Get your child vaccinated. "If I can stop one child from getting sick, that's what I want to do," said Amanda Phillips. "It's terrible to see your child suffer like this." (Cohen and Bonifield, 1/11)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Should They Stay Or Should They Go; Kids With Flu Pose Parental Puzzle
While there are ways to try to avoid it, inevitably there will be sick kids and adults at school. The health of the school population in general can be greatly affected by the actions of parents and administrators.The 2019-20 flu season started off aggressively with the number of cases steadily rising. Health officials have reported that flu activity is expected to increase even more after the holiday break. (Smith Broady, 1/10)

The Oregonian: Flu Cases Dip, But Oregon And U.S. Still Grappling With Epidemic
While flu cases in Oregon and nationally appeared to fall last week, that doesn’t mean the flu season is subsiding, federal officials said Friday. It’s simply too early to tell if a dip in flu symptom-inspired ER visits means the flu season is on its way out the door. “It could go up again,” said Delia Hernández, spokeswoman for Oregon’s statewide health agency. About the only thing that’s certain at this point – and you’ve heard this before: People should get vaccinated. (Zarkhin, 1/12)

The Wall Street Journal: Virus In China Is Part Of A Growing Threat
New, more severe human coronaviruses are emerging at an accelerating pace. Since 2002, three new types of coronavirus have emerged: SARS, MERS, and now this new one in Wuhan. SARS changed the game for virologists as the first coronavirus that was deadly to humans. Before that, it was known as a virus causing common colds. MERS is even deadlier. It also infects people on a continuing basis, unlike SARS, which disappeared after causing one epidemic that shook up global public health. The new Wuhan virus appears milder. While some people are severely ill, only one death has been reported. (McKay, 1/10)

Stat: First Death From Wuhan Pneumonia Outbreak Reported
The fatal case involved a 61-year-old man who died on Thursday after he had been admitted to the hospital with respiratory failure and severe pneumonia, according to Wuhan health authorities. He apparently had other health issues, with the statement from the Wuhan Municipal Health Committee noting he had abdominal tumors and chronic liver disease. (Joseph, 1/11)

The New York Times: China Reports First Death From New Virus
Chinese state media on Saturday reported the first known death from a new virus that has infected dozens of people in China and set off worries across Asia. The Xinhua news agency cited the health commission in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, where the illness first appeared, in reporting the death. The health commission said the patient, a 61-year-old man, died on Thursday night. (Qin and Hernandez, 1/10)

Reuters: China Pneumonia Outbreak Not Spreading At Present: WHO
“The evidence is highly suggestive that the outbreak is associated with exposures in one seafood market in Wuhan,” the WHO statement said, adding that the market was closed on Jan. 1. “At this stage, there is no infection among healthcare workers, and no clear evidence of human to human transmission.” The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission said in a separate statement late on Sunday that 4 additional patients have been released and that no new cases have been discovered as of Saturday. Another 717 people deemed to be in close contact with the patients remain under medical observation, the authority said. (1/12)

The Wall Street Journal: China Reports First Death From New Coronavirus
Seven people quarantined in the viral-pneumonia outbreak are in critical condition and eight have been released, the health commission said. Two of those eight people are confirmed to have been infected with the new coronavirus, according to the commission. No new cases have been reported since Jan. 3. (Wang, 1/11)

Stat: 5 Reasons To View Falling Cancer Death Rates With Dash Of Skepticism
Not to be a downer at the start of the new year, but might it be that all the headlines, news reports, and tweets this week about a decline in cancer death rates in 2017 were just a little too exuberant? “U.S. Cancer Death Rate Lowest In Recorded History! A lot of good news coming out of this Administration,” President Trump tweeted Thursday morning after reading the headlines. (Weintraub, 1/10)

PBS NewsHour: The House Just Voted To Regulate PFAS. Here’s What You Need To Know
A class of industrial chemicals linked to a range of health effects, including reproductive and developmental issues, has become a hot-button issue on Capitol Hill, on the presidential campaign trail and in state legislatures across the country. The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill Friday that would set a deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency to implement a national drinking water standard for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS. (Isaacs-Thomas, 1/10)

The New York Times: Race And Medicine: The Harm That Comes From Mistrust
Racial discrimination has shaped so many American institutions that perhaps it should be no surprise that health care is among them. Put simply, people of color receive less care — and often worse care — than white Americans. Reasons includes lower rates of health coverage; communication barriers; and racial stereotyping based on false beliefs. Predictably, their health outcomes are worse than those of whites. (Frakt, 1/13)

The Washington Post: Genetic Sequencing Of Measles Suggests A Much Older History For The Virus
In the 10th century, Persian physician Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi wrote about patients with fever, anxiety and full-body rashes — the first clear medical descriptions of measles. But scientists have never been able to pinpoint when the virus came into being. Now, genetic sequencing of measles found in a pair of ­century-old lungs suggests the virus existed 1,500 years earlier than previously thought. (Blakemore, 1/11)

The New York Times: At 16, She’s A Pioneer In The Fight To Cure Sickle Cell Disease
Helen Obando, a shy slip of a girl, lay curled in a hospital bed in June waiting for a bag of stem cells from her bone marrow, modified by gene therapy, to start dripping into her chest. The hope was that the treatment would cure her of sickle cell disease, an inherited blood disorder that can cause excruciating pain, organ damage and early death. (Kolata, 1/11)

Stateline: Preventable Maternal Deaths Continue To Occur In The U.S.
Pregnancy-related deaths among American women have risen markedly over the past 30 years, despite an overall downward trend worldwide. Many of these deaths are preventable, and the risk remains three to four times higher for black women than white women at all levels of income or education. Maternal mortality—a key measure of health care quality—is typically defined as the death of a woman during or after a pregnancy from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management. Research reveals that more than 60 percent of these deaths are preventable. It also shows that racial disparities exist for multiple reasons, but many of those factors can be addressed if health care systems improve care quality and access and partner with other societal sectors, such as educational and community organizations. (Millett, 1/6)

NPR: Running, Marathon Training Can Improve Heart Health, Study Shows
If you've ever considered training for a marathon, but you're a bit intimidated by the idea of 26.2 miles, here's some motivation. A slow and steady 6-month training program designed to gradually build up endurance and mileage gave a group of novice runners, aged 21 to 69, an impressive boost to their heart health. (Aubrey, 1/12)

The New York Times: Alcohol Deaths Have Risen Sharply, Particularly Among Women
The number of women drinking dangerous amounts of alcohol is rising sharply in the United States. That finding was among several troubling conclusions in an analysis of death certificates published Friday by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The analysis looked at deaths nationwide each year from 1999 through 2017 that were reported as being caused at least partly by alcohol, including acute overdose, its chronic use, or in combination with other drugs. (Richtel, 1/10)

Los Angeles Times: Feeling Distressed About Climate Change? Here's How To Manage It
Climate change is often framed as a scientific or technical issue. But for many, it’s an emotional one too. It can be almost unbearable to witness entire towns obliterated by wildfires and islands leveled by storms. To see photos of koala bears singed by flames and dead seabirds washing ashore by the thousands. Or to read the latest confirmation that nations are woefully underperforming on their pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (Rosen, 1/11)

The New York Times: Drinking Tea Tied To Better Heart Health
Drinking tea may be good for your heart, researchers report. Chinese scientists analyzed data from a continuing health study conducted in 15 provinces since 1998. The data included a wide range of health and behavioral information on 100,109 adults, including self-reports of tea consumption. (Bakalar, 1/13)

ABC News: Your Guide To A Perfect Night's Sleep
Sleep has a public relations problem in the U.S. "We really view it as a luxury; we view people who like to sleep or get a lot of sleep as lazy, and that’s just not true," said ABC News Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton. "We, in fact, can be referred to as a sleep-deprived society." (Smith, 1/13)

Charlotte Observer: How To Get Part Of $6.3 Million Infants’ Tylenol Settlement 
If you purchased Infants’ Tylenol in the last several years, you may be entitled to part of a $6.3 million class action settlement with Johnson & Johnson. The company agreed to the settlement after plaintiffs sued claiming Infants’ Tylenol packaging was misleading, according to a news release from the plaintiffs’ attorneys. Plaintiffs said both the name and image on the packaging — a photo of a mother holding her baby — led consumers to believe the Tylenol was specifically formulated for infants even though the bottle contains the same concentration of liquid acetaminophen as Children’s Tylenol, causing consumers to overpay, the release said. (White, 1/10)

Boston Globe: For Families Of ALS Patients, Providing Home Care Can Be An Infinite Challenge
The Meys face a quandary shared by hundreds of other Massachusetts families whose loved ones suffer from ALS, a fatal disease that gradually destroys the nerve cells that control muscles: It’s hard to find workers able and willing to care for ALS patients at home, and it’s even harder to find a facility willing to take them, especially if they need devices to help them breathe. (Freyer, 1/11)

The Wall Street Journal: The Virtuous Midlife Crisis
Tom Finn, a 57-year-old baby boomer, celebrated his 50th birthday with a raucous trip to Las Vegas: He and his friends went ziplining, nightclubbing and played blackjack at swim-up tables in a pool at Caesars Palace. “I was a frat boy wanting to relive my college youth,” he says. But when his wife, Debbie Finn, a 50-year-old Generation Xer, hit the milestone birthday, she marked it by hiking four to six hours a day in Portugal and Spain. “I knew I wanted to be hiking and to be outside,” she says. “I’m much more aware of my health now.” (Peterson, 1/12)

The Wall Street Journal: California’s Newsom Proposes New Approach To Homeless Spending
California would take new steps to address homelessness, expand government health care to illegal immigrants 65 and over, and enact a tax on vaping products under a budget proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday. Bolstered by a multibillion-dollar surplus amid a booming economy, the Democrat proposed spending $1.4 billion to address homelessness in the fiscal year beginning in July, including $750 million which would be distributed in a manner Mr. Newsom described as a “radical shift.” (Mai-Duc, 1/10)

ProPublica/Sacramento Bee: California Governor’s Budget Makes Stronger Jail Oversight A Priority
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday demanded more accountability from his state community corrections board and called for more frequent jail inspections, tighter oversight and stricter standards for how sheriffs run local lockups. His calls followed a yearlong McClatchy and ProPublica investigation into county jails that showed that there are no limits on how long sheriffs can hold mentally ill inmates in extreme isolation, that violence goes unchecked in many lockups and that state inspectors are powerless to enforce their own standards. (Pohl, 1/10)

CNN: New Jersey Vaccine Bill: Lawmakers To Vote Whether To Eliminate Religious Exemptions
Lawmakers in New Jersey are set to vote Monday on a controversial bill that would eliminate religion as a reason not to vaccinate public schoolchildren. Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, a sponsor of the bill, said vaccinations are a public health issue and pointed to the fatal consequences of infectious disease in a statement to CNN. "Everyone is entitled to express their opinions but we have a responsibility to protect the health and safety of all children, the people in their lives and in their communities," she said. (Haider, 1/13)

The Washington Post: Virginia Legislators Want Schools To Ease The Suffering Of Transgender Students
Near the end of every summer, as other students picked out colorful notebooks or first-day outfits, Kayden Satya Ortiz opened his laptop and typed out the same email. He sent the message to each of his teachers at Robinson Secondary School in Northern Virginia: I am transgender. I use he/him/his pronouns. Please put this in your records now. (Natanson, 1/10)

Health News Florida: Senate Eyes Changes For Disabilities Program
A legislative proposal to overhaul a program that helps Floridians with developmental and intellectual disabilities was released Thursday --- and is quickly sparking fears among people who work with the thousands of residents who rely on assistance from the state. The measure, filed by a top Senate budget writer, would require state officials to competitively bid certain components of the program and set rates that service providers can charge. (Sexton, 1/10)

Health News Florida: House Leader Focuses On Use Of Genetic Information
A powerful House Republican on Thursday filed legislation that would ban insurance companies from using people’s genetic information to cancel, limit or deny life-insurance policies or long-term care coverage. If incoming House Speaker Chris Sprowls is successful, Florida will be the first state in the nation to prohibit life-insurance and long-term care insurance companies from using the information. (Sexton, 1/10)

The Oregonian: Washington Legislature To Tackle Homelessness, Other Issues In 60-Day Session
The 60-day legislative session in Washington state begins Monday, with lawmakers set to adjust the state budget and tackle several policy issues, including how to address homelessness in the state. About 10,000 people in the state are without shelter, and more than 11,000 live in temporary homeless housing, according to the most recent annual report from the state Department of Commerce. Gov. Jay Inslee has proposed spending more than $300 million from Washington’s emergency budget reserve over the next three years to add 2,100 shelter beds and provide other help to combat homelessness. (1/12)

The Oregonian: Unprecedented Wave Of Shootings In Portland Spurs Anti-Violence Campaign: ‘We Are The Caution’ 
As Portland police struggle to keep up with each new shooting call in the city, a group of African American men are using their own skills to try to curb street violence. Ex-gang members Roy Moore, 38, and Lionel “Moe” Irving, 40, said they’re tired of seeing yellow caution tape draped around intersections or apartment complexes when another teenager or young man gets shot. African American men account for a disproportionate number of people killed and wounded in shootings in Portland, police say. (Bernstein, 1/12)

NH Times Union: Dozens Claim Abuse In Lawsuit Filed Against NH Over Youth Detention Facility
Dozens of people are part of a class-action lawsuit against the state of New Hampshire alleging physical, sexual and emotional abuse over decades by staff against minors being held at a state-run juvenile detention facility in Manchester. The lawsuit, filed Saturday in Merrimack County Superior Court, represents men and women who were at the Youth Development Center (YDC), now known as the Sununu Youth Services Center. The YDC is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s office. According to the lawsuit, staff and administrators at YDC were aware of the abuse and attempted to keep it from becoming public. (Alden, 1/12)

The Associated Press: Dozens Allege Abuse At Youth Detention Center
The lawsuit filed Saturday in Merrimack County Superior Court comes six months after two former counselors were charged with repeatedly raping a teenage boy at the Youth Development Center in Manchester, New Hampshire, in the late 1990s. The victim in that case is now the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by attorneys representing 35 others who say they were abused between 1982 and 2014. (1/12)

WBUR: Mass. Court Rules Patients Don't Have A Right To Physician-Assisted Suicide, But Doctors Can Discuss It
Terminally ill patients do not have a constitutional right to physician-assisted suicide, a Massachusetts court has ruled, but their doctors may provide advice and information about medical aid in dying. The ruling comes in a civil case brought by Dr. Roger Kligler, a retired Cape Cod physician who has advanced prostate cancer, and Dr. Alan Steinbach, who treats terminally ill patients. (Bebinger and Goldberg, 1/10)

The Washington Post: No Room On The Street: D.C. Orders Homeless Out Of Underpass In Fast-Developing Neighborhood
The 100 block of K Street NE is a dank and gloomy underpass connecting rapidly growing neighborhoods of high-end condos, gleaming office buildings and trendy restaurants. The rumble of trains pulling in and out of Union Station on the tracks above creates a steady din, and the blare of horns and sirens pierces all hours of the day. It often smells. (Heim and Moyer, 1/10)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: After Jail Deaths, Cobb To Choose New Medical Provider For Inmates
On the heels of several in-custody deaths within a 12-month time span, the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office is searching for a new company to provide medical services for inmates at the Adult Detention Center. WellStar Health System has been providing medical services to inmates at the jail since 1998. However, the company notified the sheriff’s office in 2018 that it wanted to “move away” from this practice, said Sheriff’s Office Commander Robert Quigley. (Dixon, 1/13)

The Associated Press: UVA School Of Nursing Receives Record Gift Of $20 Million
The University of Virginia’s School of Nursing has received a $20 million gift to support the enrollment of more than 1,000 students in its programs over the next decade. UVA said in a news release Thursday that the gift from Joanne and Bill Conway is the largest single gift in the School of Nursing’s history. Bill Conway is the co-founder of The Carlyle Group, a private equity company. (1/10)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: In Philadelphia, Gun Violence, Poverty, And Opioids Are Killing Residents Before Their Time, Report Finds
Smoking and consumption of sugary beverages fell to new lows in Philadelphia in 2018, cancer death rates continued to inch downward, and teen health indicators improved. That’s the good news. But the latest annual Health of the City report also shows heart disease and cancer remain the leading causes of death, with blacks and Hispanics disproportionately affected — a disparity that directly correlates with poverty. Gun violence increased, and the opioid epidemic continued to take a heavy toll. (McCullough, 1/12)

The Advocate: Colfax Waste Complex's Open Burning Of Explosives Could Be Halted After State Says It Will Deny Permit 
State regulators are threatening to deny a vital permit to a company that burns and detonates explosive material in the open air in North Louisiana — unless the company considers other, more environmentally safe ways of doing business. Since 1985, a 43-acre private facility near Colfax, in Grant Parish, has been allowed to burn munitions and explosive chemicals during daylight hours. The burned material includes propellant for car air bags, solid rocket fuel, Claymore mines, 20- and 40-millimeter artillery shells, TNT and black powder, permit records say. (Mitchell, 1/12)

The CT Mirror: Council Gets Input From Incarcerated People About Discrimination
According to a national study, those with criminal records face more than 550 barriers codified in state statute that make their lives harder after they’re released from prison. Thursday’s forum was a part of the council’s research into those forms of discrimination. Members asked those offering testimony to identify themselves by only their first names to ensure anonymity. (Lyons, 1/10)

The Associated Press: Payment Dispute Keeps Vet From Using Prosthetic Legs
An Army veteran in Mississippi who served in Vietnam and Iraq says a dispute over payments has left him unable to use a pair of expensive prosthetic legs. Jerry Holliman, 69, told the Clarion Ledger the Veterans Affairs department wouldn't pay for the legs. And he says he doesn't think he should have to make a Medicare co-payment. (1/10)

California Healthline: Homeless Californians Adapt To Camp Sweeps And ‘The Caltrans Shuffle’
It’s 5 a.m., and the thermostat reads 44 degrees. Cars round the bend of an off-ramp of state Route 24 in northern Oakland, spraying bands of light across Norm Ciha and his neighbors. They wear headlamps so they can see in the dark as they gather their belongings: tents, clothes, cooking gear, carts piled with blankets, children’s shoes and, in one case, a set of golf clubs. Shredder, Ciha’s dog, takes a treat and then lets it fall from his mouth. He whines as Ciha walks away with a camping mattress. “I can leave him all day in the tent and he’s fine, but he freaks out every time we have to move,” Ciha said. (Barry-Jester, 1/10)

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Medtronic Facing Litigation Over Surgical Staplers And Injury Reporting
Three people who say they were seriously injured by Medtronic surgical staplers are suing the company for knowingly selling defective devices and intentionally hiding risks from doctors and patients. An attorney for one of the plaintiffs said the three cases, filed in Minnesota and Texas courts in the waning days of 2019, might signal the beginning of litigation against Medtronic over the way it sells and reports safety information on its now-recalled staplers. (Carlson, 1/10)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: On Surgical Missions Overseas, Philly Team Sees It All — Including Cats In The O.R.
Orthopedic surgeon Robert E. Booth knew the conditions in the Nicaraguan hospital would not be equal to those of the pristine medical facilities he was used to in the United States. So he bit his tongue when he saw the bare wires that ringed the small stucco building, the flies that came and went through the open-louvered windows, the dirt floor of the operating room. (Schaefer, 1/12)

Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Prisons Mishandled Death Data, Sexual Abuse Claims: Audit
Tennessee Department of Correction officials misclassified the deaths of eight Tennessee prison inmates who died from drug overdoses, homicides and suicide, according to a highly critical audit that identified more than a dozen policy breaches at the agency. The audit, overseen by the state comptroller and released Friday, also found Tennessee prisons improperly investigated allegations of sexual abuse and failed to meet required staffing levels. (Ebbert and Tamburin, 1/10)

The Associated Press: Stomach Illness Outbreak At Yosemite Prompts Major Clean-Up
Federal health officials are inspecting Yosemite National Park's food service areas after at least a dozen people have fallen ill with stomach issues. The National Park Service and the U.S. Public Health Service told the San Francisco Chronicle they launched an investigation after employees and visitors reported the problems this month. (1/10)

The New York Times: Progressives Are The Real Pragmatists
When left-wing Democrats push for universal benefits and expansive new policies, they do so with a theory of politics in mind. It goes like this: The reason to fight for debt-free college or Medicare for all isn’t just to improve life for Americans, but to build new ground for progressive political activity. New programs create new constituencies, and new programs with broad benefits can give more Americans a stake in the expansion and preservation of the welfare state. Conservatives know this. That’s why they’ve fought so hard to block or undermine even modest new programs. (Jamelle Bouie, 1/13)

The Washington Post: Congress Needs To Settle Its Differences And Put An End To Surprise Medical Billing
Washington seemed to be working, for once. Last month, key members of the House and Senate — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) — had negotiated legislation that would end so-called surprise medical billing. Example: when you have emergency surgery, then get slammed unexpectedly with a huge bill from an out-of-network anesthesiologist you didn’t choose. The legislation was set to be included last month in a must-pass funding bill. (1/12)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: There Is No Excuse For “Surprise” Medical Billing. Ohio Should Act.
Voters concerned about surprise billing should let those legislators know of their concerns, and share any personal experiences with surprise billing that they’ve had. According to a report by the Commonwealth Fund (a philanthropy founded by the Harkness family, which had Cleveland ties), as of July, 28 states had enacted measures to protect patients against surprise medical billing.Ohio should do the same. (1/10)

The Hill: Where Women's Health Care Is Lacking, Women Are Dying
A woman is more likely to die of cervical cancer in Alabama than in any other state in the country. An African-American woman in the state is twice as likely to die of cervical cancer than a white woman. While these statistics are harrowing, they are not surprising. Alabama’s disproportionately high cervical cancer mortality rate is reflective of a more significant trend: States that limit access to women’s health services tend to have the worst health outcomes for women. (Nakisa B. Sadeghi and Dr. Leana S. Wen, 1/10)

Colorado Sun: We Are Colorado ObGyns. Words Matter On Abortion Rights.
If pregnant people and a medical procedure are going to be used as fodder for a political dispute, we all have an obligation to get the medical science and facts right. That means relying on doctors and medical professionals for their expertise, not politicians who are trying to use stigma, shame and inflammatory language to keep pregnant people from exercising their constitutional rights. Recently, Facebook took down a fact check of an anti-abortion video by three doctors after four male Republican senators objected. That’s not OK. (Dr Emily Schneider and Dr. Kristina Tocce, 1/12)

The Washington Post: I Thought My Second Baby Would Be Easier. And Then I Started Drowning.
After four years, three miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy, the second baby I had yearned for entered the world. Armed with four years of parenting experience, I thought I was better equipped to handle life with a newborn than I had been as a new mom. I had survived the sleepless nights, weathered the scary fevers that precede budding teeth and coached myself through the irrational fears that accompany caring for a completely helpless human. (Danielle Campoamor, 1/10)

Bloomberg: Obamacare Marches On As Republicans Flail
State by state, my prediction that the Medicaid expansion made possible by the Affordable Care Act would eventually be universal is slowly coming true. Most Republican governors had originally rejected expansion and the federal money that finances it, but plenty of them are agreeing to compromises to make it happen. The latest? Kansas. That leaves 14 states to go, although those 14 still include both Texas and Florida, so we’re still talking about a lot of uninsured people. (Jonathan Bernstein, 1/10)

The New York Times: The F.D.A. Is In Trouble. Here’s How To Fix It.
The Food and Drug Administration is in distress. The agency is still the world’s leading regulator of food and medical products, responsible for ensuring the safety of some $2.6 trillion in consumer goods each year. That represents 20 cents of every dollar that Americans spend. But critics both inside and outside the sprawling agency say that the F.D.A.’s standards have been slipping for some time. (1/11)

The Hill: China Has A New SARS-Like Virus — How Serious Is It?
The last several days of infectious disease headlines have been focused on a mysterious outbreak in Wuhan, China, that has many concerning harbingers. This cluster of pneumonia cases —  some of which are severe — involves individuals who had exposure to a, since decontaminated, seafood market that housed many types of animals. (Dr. Amesh Adalja, 1/9)

The Washington Post: Puerto Ricans Should Never Forget How Trump Treated Them
Here's what Puerto Rico has endured over the past two years: a devastating hurricane that killed and displaced thousands of people and plunged the island into months of darkness; an incompetent and corrupt local government; a bungled and halfhearted emergency response from the federal government. Now, even as hurricane recovery remains incomplete, a new natural disaster: a 6.4-magnitude earthquake followed by powerful aftershocks. (1/12)

The Wall Street Journal: ‘Cancel Culture’ Comes To Science
An unhappy side effect of the digital age is “cancel culture.” Anyone with an attitude of moral superiority and a Twitter account can try to shut down an event where opinions he dislikes are likely to be spoken. For several years the National Association of Scholars has inveighed against this infantile form of protest, which undermines free expression of ideas and legitimate debate. Now the cancel caravan has arrived at our door. (Peter W. Wood, 1/12)

The Washington Post: The Crisis In Foster Care
The theory behind foster care is grounded in an assumption of stability — placing children whose parents are absent, dead or deemed unfit with stable families where community, schools and peers are roughly familiar. The reality is increasingly the opposite. An acute shortage of foster parents has produced a cohort of vulnerable children, many with drug-addicted parents, who are sent away, sometimes out of state, to live in juvenile detention centers, shelters and group homes. (1/11)

The New York Times: Trump’s Weakening Of Environmental Rules Would Leave The Public In The Dark 
Fifty years ago this month, President Richard Nixon signed one of the most effective laws ever written to protect the environment and strengthen democracy by ensuring that citizens would have a say over projects like highways and pipelines that directly affect their well-being. Now President Trump is trying to cripple it. (Sharon Buccino, 1/10)

Louisville (Ky.) Courier Journal: We Must Increase Access To Mental Health Care. Too Many People Are Dying
When facing the homicide crisis in the U.S., nearly all of us, citizens and politicians alike, jump to the same questions: What industry is at fault? Who needs tighter regulations? Nobody is asking this about our nation’s mental health. Our healthcare system today clearly is not meeting the needs of Americans suffering from mental illness. Health insurance companies follow vague and unenforceable federal and state regulations that leave enrollees without access to timely mental health care. (Caitlin Liford, 1/10)

Stat: Welcome To The Bioengineering Culture Clash
Bioengineering, once viewed primarily as an academic discipline, is growing up. Our ability to engineer biology is on the verge of changing the landscape of health and health care. Tools and treatments that are engineered, not discovered — CAR-T therapies for cancer, CRISPR for gene editing, stem cell therapies, and more — are now making their way not just into new startups but into established industry. Just look at the first-generation CAR-T companies that have been acquired by major biopharma companies, like Bristol-Myers Squibb/Celgene acquiring Juno or Gilead acquiring Kite. (Vijay Pande, 1/10)

The New York Times: Everyone Knows Memory Fails As You Age. But Everyone Is Wrong.
I’m 62 years old as I write this. Like many of my friends, I forget names that I used to be able to conjure up effortlessly. When packing my suitcase for a trip, I walk to the hall closet and by the time I get there, I don’t remember what I came for. And yet my long-term memories are fully intact. I remember the names of my third-grade classmates, the first record album I bought, my wedding day. (Daniel J. Levitin, 1/10)

The Washington Post: A Psychiatrist Feels Guilt For Making A Homeless Man Leave The ER.
Tonight was yet another night on call in our emergency room — a chilly winter night on which I did a cruel deed: I discharged a homeless man back out into the cold. This is a routine event in the life of psychiatry residents like myself. Normally, no one would bat an eye. It shouldn’t have mattered to me, either — except that the previous night I’d had to walk home from the hospital parking garage in decidedly adverse weather. (Aarya Krishnan Rajalakshmi, 1/12)

The Washington Post: Prince George’s County‘s Mental Health Programs Don’t Work. When Will Someone Listen?
It’s Dec. 29, 1 p.m., and I’m at a hospital in Prince George’s County. The emergency room is packed with people with varying degrees of illnesses. Many have severe colds; others have flu symptoms. Some have broken ribs or fractures and cuts and bruises from domestic violence (and broken hearts). Sadly, some have come here to die, their families clinging to the hope that this talented yet overwhelmed staff can whip up a miracle. (Sharon K. Vollin, 1/10)