The New York Times: Planned Parenthood Ousts President, Seeking A More Political Approach
Planned Parenthood on Tuesday removed its president after less than a year in the job, seeking new leadership at a time when abortion rights have come under increasing attack from statehouses and Republicans in Washington. The sudden ouster reflected a widening disagreement between the president, Leana Wen, and the board of directors over her management style and which direction to steer one of the nation’s leading women’s reproductive rights groups. Her departure followed a series of negotiations that appeared to end acrimoniously on Tuesday. (Goldmacher, 7/16)

The Associated Press: Planned Parenthood President Forced Out After Only 8 Months
Wen, in a Twitter post, said she learned that Planned Parenthood's board "ended my employment at a secret meeting." She indicated the board wanted more emphasis on political advocacy, while she sought to prioritize Planned Parenthood's role as a provider of health care services ranging from birth control to cancer screenings. "We were engaged in good faith negotiations about my departure based on philosophical differences over the direction and future of Planned Parenthood," Wen said. "I am stepping down sooner than I had hoped." (7/16)

The Wall Street Journal: President Of Planned Parenthood Is Ousted
In a statement, Dr. Wen said she had significant philosophical differences with the leaders of the organization’s board. “I believe that the best way to protect abortion care is to be clear that it is not a political issue but a health care one,” she said in the statement. (Hackman, 7/16)

Reuters: Head Of Planned Parenthood Groups Departs, Cites Differences Over Abortion
Dr. Leana Wen, the first physician in nearly 50 years to lead the federation and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said she took the job last September intending to advocate for a broad range of public health policies, not just abortion. The federation's board, however, decided to "double down" on making abortion rights a key priority as the group engages in legal and political battles after some states passed severe restrictions women's ability to terminate pregnancies, Wen said. (7/16)

Politico: Planned Parenthood Ousts Head Amid Heightened Attack On Abortion Rights
Planned Parenthood said in a statement it had named Alexis McGill Johnson acting president and CEO of both the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its political arm, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. She had served on both boards and has long been involved with the organization. Planned Parenthood said it would start searching for a new permanent CEO next year. “Alexis is a renowned social justice leader, lifelong political organizer, and a tireless advocate for reproductive rights and access to quality, affordable health care,” Planned Parenthood board chair Aimee Cunningham and Action Fund chair Jennie Rosenthal said. (Kenen and Ollstein, 7/16)

Bustle: Who Will Be Planned Parenthood's New CEO? Alexis McGill Johnson Is Leading The Organization
"Having been part of the Planned Parenthood family for nearly a decade, and having spent my career working in movements for social justice, I can’t think of a greater honor or more weighty responsibility than leading an organization like Planned Parenthood in this moment," Johnson tweeted. (Darrough, 7/16)

Bloomberg: Planned Parenthood Ousts President After Less Than A Year 
In its statement, the organization said would begin a search for a new leader early next year with hopes of naming a new president by year’s end. Planned Parenthood, which was co-founded in 1916 by the birth control advocate Margaret Sanger, offers a variety of preventive-health and family-planning services. The group has about 600 affiliated health-care centers used by more than 5 million people a year, according to its website. (Dillard, 7/16)

CBS News: Leana Wen, Planned Parenthood President, Removed From Position Today
Dr. Wen's short time at Planned Parenthood was tumultuous, said three sources familiar with the situation who cited leadership and management issues. Four senior leaders at Planned Parenthood, including the group's former Vice President of Public Policy and Government Affairs, departed the organization during her tenure. To fill those roles, these sources said, Dr. Wen brought in former colleagues and friends despite internal objections. (Smith, 7/16)

BuzzFeed News: Planned Parenthood Has Ousted President Leana Wen Amid A Dispute Over The Organization's Direction
As senior political staffers began to depart the organization early this year, Planned Parenthood employees, board members, and supporters were quick to express concern that Wen planned to emphasize the group’s status as a health care provider, shifting away from the political focus Richards instilled during her 10 years as president. Wen "demonstrated a complete lack of leadership capability at a time when this organization requires an extraordinary leader,” a former senior staffer at Planned Parenthood said on Tuesday. “These are the times when people have to look out for what is best for the organization, and this was the best thing for the organization.” (O'Connor and Cramer, 7/16)

The Washington Post: Planned Parenthood Ousts Leader After Less Than A Year 
The ouster occurred at one of the most difficult moments in the group’s history. The organization faces growing financial peril from a Trump administration rule that took effect Monday barring federally funded family planning clinics from providing referrals for abortions. It is also under attack by antiabortion lawmakers at the state and federal level and is threatened by the prospect that the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion could be overturned by the Supreme Court’s new conservative majority. (Bernstein, Cha and Goldstein, 7/16)

The Hill: Planned Parenthood Ousts Leana Wen As President 
Wen’s departure comes as battles over abortion bans heat up at the state and federal levels. Alabama recently passed a de-facto ban on the procedure, which has not taken effect and is being challenged in court. Several other states have passed bans on the procedure after at about six weeks of pregnancy. (Hellmann and Klar, 7/16)

CNN: Planned Parenthood Ousts President After Less Than A Year On The Job
Wen's departure coincides with the Department of Health and Human Services telling Title X recipients that the new regulations prohibiting taxpayer-funded family planning clinics from discussing abortion with patients or offering abortion referrals are now in effect, despite several challenges to the proposed rules from abortion rights supporters currently working their way through the courts. (Feldscher and Kelly, 7/16)

The Associated Press: Planned Parenthood To Defy Trump Abortion Referral Rule
Federally funded family planning clinics, including Planned Parenthood, are defying the Trump administration's ban on referring women for abortions, drawing a line against what they say amounts to keeping patients in the dark about legitimate health care options. "We are not going to comply with a regulation that would require health care providers to not give full information to their patients," Jacqueline Ayers, the group's top lobbyist, said in an interview Tuesday. "We believe as a health care provider it is wrong to withhold health care information from patients." (7/16)

The Washington Post: Family Planning Groups Forgo Federal Money Over Abortion Referral Rule
Two family planning organizations announced Tuesday that they will stop accepting money from the government program that pays for reproductive health services, the first exodus after the Trump administration told health clinics that they can no longer receive the federal funds if they give patients referrals for abortions. The decisions, by Maine Family Planning and Planned Parenthood of Illinois, came less than 24 hours after the Department of Health and Human Services issued a notice late Monday that it was immediately enforcing the contentious new rule for the half-century-old family planning program. (Goldstein, 7/16)

The Hill: New Trump Rules Prompt Planned Parenthood To Forgo Federal Funds 
Planned Parenthood will continue to offer services at hundreds of its sites across the country, saying it will draw on “emergency funds.” And by eschewing the federal funds, known as Title X, the group can still refer women for abortions. “While we are incredibly concerned by this harmful rule, our doors are still open,” Planned Parenthood said in a statement. The organization was joined by a family planning provider in Maine that said it also would go without federal funding. (Hellmann, 7/17)

Politico: Exclusive: Trump To Order Drive For Improved Flu Vaccine
President Donald Trump is readying an executive order that would direct HHS to overhaul the development of flu vaccine and encourage more Americans to get vaccinated, say nine people with knowledge of the plan and according to internal documents reviewed by POLITICO. The move represents a significant reversal from a president who spent years attacking the safety of vaccines prior to taking office. However, it would largely codify work that's already underway at HHS, and budget officials and Congress have yet to sign off on additional funding, said four individuals with knowledge of the strategy. (Diamond, 7/16)

In related news —

The Washington Post: Nurses Are Teaching Doctors How To Treat Anti-Vaccine Fears And Myths
It’s late on a Tuesday night during the worst measles outbreak in decades, and doctors, nurses and other health-care providers are gathered at a medical center to learn better ways of talking to parents who are reluctant to vaccinate their children. Blima Marcus, an oncology nurse, leads the two-hour session on how to do a better job listening to and responding to parents’ questions — and, in the process, cultivating their trust. The key, she says, is hearing people’s questions about the science behind vaccines, and addressing those directly. (Sun, 7/16)

KCUR: Missouri's Low Measles Vaccination Rate Poses Deadly Risks For Already-Sick Children 
Vaccinations not only protect your health, they protect the health of the community by slowing or stopping the spread of illness. But Missouri now has some of the lowest measles vaccination rates in the nation, and that’s especially troubling for families with children who can’t get the shots for medical reasons. ...Only .1% of Missouri Kindergarteners have vaccine exemptions for medical reasons, but for these children, measles, which is highly contagious, can be deadly. The latest survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that in 2017, Missouri had the lowest rate among the 50 states for measles, mumps and rubella vaccinations for children between 19 and 35 months: just 85.8 percent. (Smith, 7/17)

The Wall Street Journal: In Iowa And Beyond, Older Voters Are Key To 2020 Democratic Presidential Nomination
The math is simple: Voters 50 and older are expected to make up more than half of Iowa caucus-goers in 2020, and more than three-quarters of the Democratic field is on hand to court them in the first state on the nomination calendar. AARP, the largest advocacy group in the U.S. for people 50 and older, is flexing its muscles by bringing 19 of the Democratic candidates in front of its members for five different forums this week across the Hawkeye State. Several of the candidates are also pushing out policy proposals on health care, drug prices, Medicare and other issues of special importance to older voters, timed to coincide with the gatherings. (McCormick, 7/16)

Des Moines Register: At Iowa Forum, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Julián Castro Show Contrasting Visions For Future Of Health Care System
U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris said she envisions a "Medicare for All" health care system that does not include private insurance. "There will eventually not be a need for private insurance because there will be full coverage, in terms of most of the services that folks need, in terms of access to health care," Harris said at a forum in Bettendorf on Tuesday sponsored by AARP and the Des Moines Register. The forum, aimed at highlighting the issues facing aging Americans, included appearances by New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro. (Rodriguez, 7/16)

The Associated Press: Biden Plan Seeks To Boost Rural America Through Investments
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Tuesday sought to build on his appeal to rural voters with the release of a broad plan to revitalize rural America through investments in agriculture, rural economies and infrastructure. ... It also includes a $20 billion investment in rural broadband infrastructure, a commitment to prioritize the poorest rural counties for federal investments and a promise to create a federal working group to help rural communities figure out how to apply for federal funds and resources. And it features a raft of policies aimed at bolstering rural health care access, including doubling the funding for community health centers and expanding the use of telehealth services and rural medical residency programs. (7/16)

Des Moines Register: Election 2020: In Iowa, Joe Biden Rolls Out New Plan For Rural America
The rural plan isn't only about agriculture and energy. It additionally addresses issues rural communities face with infrastructure and health care, like access to hospitals. Traveling in Iowa on Tuesday, Biden said: “You want to know why I’m such a strong friend of Obamacare? Because we were able to keep a lot of those hospitals open." He also expanded on his critique of the "Medicare for All" health care plan that several of his Democratic rivals support. (Gruber-Miller and Opsahl, 7/16)

Sioux City Journal: Joe Biden Pitches Rural Health Plan As He Makes His First Campaign Stop In Northwest Iowa
Biden, the front-runner in the 2020 Democratic race for president, discussed rural health care issues at a Le Mars hospital. He started the afternoon by taking a private tour of Floyd Valley Healthcare and then held a roundtable with seven local health care officials, which was observed by 35 local residents and members of the press. "I know there is still a crisis in rural hospitals," Biden said, beginning his remarks for the 35-minute forum. (Hayworth, 7/16)

Meanwhile —

The Washington Post: Sanders Hits Harder At Biden
Bernie Sanders, the self-described political revolutionary who has struggled to expand his support base in a crowded Democratic presidential field, offered his most comprehensive critique yet of rival Joe Biden on Tuesday — a reflection of the candidates’ increasing eagerness to challenge the primacy of the former vice president. The senator from Vermont, in an interview with The Washington Post, criticized Biden on his health-care plan, his foreign policy record and his ability to win crucial voters in the Upper Midwest states that were carried in 2016 by President Trump, calling Biden an enabler of the “deregulation of Wall Street” that led to “incredible pain” for many Americans. (Sullivan and Costa, 7/16)

The Hill: Insurance Lobby Chief Confronts Storm Over Medicare For All 
At the first Democratic presidential debates last month, the threat to private health insurance was stark, with multiple leading  candidates indicating they would eliminate it entirely in their quest to provide universal health care. It’s Matt Eyles’s job to make sure they don’t. As the head of the health insurance lobbying group America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), Eyles is helping lead the industry’s fight against “Medicare for All,” while pushing for more incremental changes, such as lowering prescription drug prices. (Sullivan, 7/16)

The Washington Post: Largest U.S. Drug Companies Flooded Country With 76 Billion Opioid Pills, DEA Data Shows
America’s largest drug companies saturated the country with 76 billion oxycodone and hydrocodone pain pills from 2006 through 2012 as the nation’s deadliest drug epidemic spun out of control, according to previously undisclosed company data released as part of the largest civil action in U.S. history. The information comes from a database maintained by the Drug Enforcement Administration that tracks the path of every single pain pill sold in the United States — from manufacturers and distributors to pharmacies in every town and city. The data provides an unprecedented look at the surge of legal pain pills that fueled the prescription opioid epidemic, which has resulted in nearly 100,000 deaths from 2006 through 2012. (Higham, Horwitz and Rich, 7/16)

The Washington Post: Companies Respond To DEA Opioid Sales Data
A yearlong legal battle waged by The Washington Post and HD Media, publisher of the Charleston Gazette-Mail in West Virginia, resulted in a ruling Monday releasing government data tracking sales of billions of opioid pills in the U.S. from 2006 to 2012. The data in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Drug Automation of Reports and Consolidated Order System, known as ARCOS, reveals what each company knew about the number of pills it was shipping and dispensing and precisely when they were aware of those volumes, year-by-year, town-by-town. (Davis and Abelson, 7/16)

The Washington Post: Takeaways From The DEA's ARCOS Database
Just six companies distributed 75 percent of the pills — oxycodone and hydrocodone — during this period: McKesson Corp., Walgreens, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, CVS and Walmart, according to an analysis of the database by The Washington Post. Three companies manufactured about 88 percent of the opioids: SpecGx, a subsidiary of Mallinckrodt; Actavis Pharma; and Par Pharmaceutical, a subsidiary of Endo Pharmaceuticals. (7/16)

The Associated Press: Federal Data Shows Opioid Shipments Ballooned As Crisis Grew
While OxyContin is the best-known prescription opioid, the Post analysis shows that Purdue accounted for just 3% of pills sold during that time. Three makers of generic drugs accounted for nearly 90% of the sales. The data tracks a dozen different opioids, including oxycodone and hydrocodone, according to the Post. They account for most of the pill shipments to pharmacies. (Gillispie, 7/17)

NPR: Opioid Distribution And Sales Data Release Sheds Light On Opioid Prescribing
"I don't think America truly understands the scope and depth, the level of penetration these pills had in their communities," says Paul Farrell with the firm Greene, Ketchum, Farrell, Bailey & Tweel. "It's going to be an awakening." Farrell is one of three co-lead attorneys suing the pharmaceutical industry as part of the largest consolidated civil lawsuit related to drug industry's role in the opioid epidemic in the U.S., scheduled to go to trial in October. (Mann, 7/16)

The New York Times: States Are Making Progress On Opioids. Now The Money That’s Helping Them May Dry Up
Bryan Garner was homeless and injecting as much fentanyl as he could get his hands on when he found the Missouri Network Outreach Center, a community center in an old brick rowhouse in St. Louis that connects people to addiction treatment. Mr. Garner, 51, accepted the center’s offer of assistance and has not used any illegal drugs since January. “I really feel like, without this place, I wouldn’t be here now,” he said. But how long the center will survive — and how long Mr. Garner will be able to get free treatment — is in question. The center exists thanks to $3.3 billion in opioid crisis grants, approved with strong bipartisan support, that the Trump administration and Congress have allotted to states since 2017, when a record 47,600 Americans died from overdoses involving opioids. The money for treatment, prevention and recovery is the administration’s most tangible contribution to addressing the opioid epidemic, and a rare example of an initiative that has received almost full bipartisan support in Washington during President Trump’s tenure. (Goodnough, 7/16)

Boston Globe: Major Mass. Hospitals Pledge To Train Doctors In Addiction Care
A new consortium of 12 Boston and Cambridge hospitals has pledged to educate their physicians about opioid addiction and to improve support for employees struggling with substance use problems. The hospitals’ commitments were announced Tuesday, simultaneously with the results of a new survey showing that many health-care providers in Massachusetts feel ill-prepared to care for people suffering from addiction and harbor misconceptions about the illness and its treatment. (Freyer, 7/16)

NH Times Union: Hudson Creating Wrap-Around Program To Help Families Affected By Addiction Crisis
Community leaders in Hudson are working to create a new wrap-around program to help kids and relatives impacted by the opioid epidemic, with hopes to launch before the next school year. Selectman David Morin said he brought the group of school and town officials and community volunteers together initially in April to address what he and other town officials saw as a rise in children orphaned by overdoses, or left in the care of relatives because their parents are struggling with a substance use disorder or are incarcerated for drug-related offenses. (Lessard, 7/16)

Concord (N.H.) Monitor: Law Will Require N.H. Pharmacists To Label Opioids, Hand Out Pamphlets Detailing Risks 
Starting next year, pharmacies in New Hampshire will be required to place orange stickers on the cap of opioid prescription bottles that says “OPIOID” and a warning label that says “Risk of addiction and overdose,” and hand out informational flyers warning of the risks of addiction, as a result of legislation that was signed into law by Gov. Chris Sununu last week. It’s a part of an initiative led by advocates and medical professionals to better inform users of opioid painkiller about the long-term harm they can inflict. (Willingham, 7/16)

Kaiser Health News: Listen: Opioid Trial In Oklahoma Wraps Up
Did drugmaker Johnson & Johnson create a “public nuisance” that led to the opioid epidemic? That’s the question a state judge in Oklahoma is weighing after the country’s first trial against opioid manufacturers wrapped up Monday. The state is asking for $17 billion in damages. Jackie Fortier of StateImpact Oklahoma has covered the trial from start to finish for NPR and Kaiser Health News. This account of the seven-week trial’s closing arguments aired on NPR’s “Morning Edition” on Tuesday. (Fortier, 7/17)

Modern Healthcare: House Panel To Vote On Arbitration Backstop For Surprise Medical Bills
The House Energy and Commerce Committee will consider adding an arbitration option to its proposed ban on surprise medical bills above $1,250, congressional sources told Modern Healthcare. The late-breaking amendment follows months of pressure from hospitals and physicians. The amendment from Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.) has been approved by committee leaders even though they originally settled on a cap to out-of-network treatment through payment tied to a median in-network rate. (Luthi, 7/16)

Politico Pro: House Committee Strikes 11th-Hour Deal On Surprise Billing
The House Energy and Commerce Committee is planning a last-minute change to its legislation limiting “surprise” medical bills, after striking a deal to win over skeptical members worried the proposal would be too harsh on providers. The committee Tuesday afternoon privately agreed to alter how the bill governs payment disputes between providers and health plans, four sources briefed on the deal said. The legislation, which sets a benchmark rate for resolving payment disputes, would now let providers appeal to an arbiter in certain cases. (Cancryn and Roubein, 7/16)

CQ: CBO: Senate Health Costs Bill Would Save Billions Over Decade
The Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday said a Senate bill that is designed to prohibit surprise medical bills and lower prescription drug costs would save $7.6 billion over a decade. The measure (S 1895) was approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in June and could get a floor vote as soon as this month, although lawmakers are still discussing potential changes. (McIntire, 7/16)

Bloomberg: Anthem’s Fight With Doctors Shows Risks For Surprise-Billing Fix 
Doctors fighting a reimbursement battle with one of the biggest U.S. health insurers want to make sure that ending surprise medical bills doesn’t come at the expense of their pay. Anthem Inc. cut payments to some California physicians last month as part of what it called a routine adjustment to fees. Physicians say the move was the result of a 2016 state law that keeps patients from being forced to pay the difference when insurance companies and care providers clash over health costs. (Tozzi, 7/16)

Bloomberg: Democrats Spotlight Health Care Tensions In Obamacare Tax Repeal
The House is set to repeal a tax Wednesday intended to fund the Affordable Care Act, a move that will help preserve tax breaks for private insurance favored by large corporations. And this time, it’s Democrats leading the charge. The levy, commonly known as the “Cadillac tax,” is a 40% excise tax on the most generous and expensive employer health-insurance plans. It was included in Obamacare as a measure that economists said would help curb health costs. But Congress kept delaying its implementation so the tax has never actually been collected. The levy, commonly known as the “Cadillac tax,” is a 40% excise tax on the most generous and expensive employer health-insurance plans. It was included in Obamacare as a measure that economists said would help curb health costs. But Congress kept delaying its implementation so the tax has never actually been collected. The vote to repeal the tax highlights the conflicting forces pulling at Democrats when campaigning versus legislating. (Davison, 7/17)

Modern Healthcare: Cadillac Tax Repeal Gets House Vote This Week
For critics of the employer tax exclusion that more or less forged the U.S. insurance system, repeal of the so-called Cadillac tax would kneecap any hope to chip away at the tax break blamed for sacrificing workers' wages for health insurance benefits. The bill from Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) has 367 co-sponsors including progressive Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) who is spearheading the push for single payer. (Luthi, 7/16)

CQ: Grassley: 'Cadillac' Tax Repeal Points Way To Extenders Deal
Senate Finance Chairman Charles E. Grassley sees a “little bit of progress” on the tax extenders front in House Democrats’ decision to push repeal (HR 748) of the "Cadillac" tax on high-cost health insurance plans, without offsets for the lost revenue. The House’s pay-as-you-go rules have been a hindrance for much of the year on moving legislation to extend tax breaks that expired at the end of 2017 and 2018. The most expensive of those is a provision originally authored by Grassley in 2004 (PL 108-357) to provide a $1 per gallon biodiesel blenders tax credit which costs about $3 billion a year. (Sword, 7/16)

The Wall Street Journal: Debt-Limit Talks Hit More Snags: VA Health Care, GOP Demands On Spending
Negotiations to raise the U.S. government’s borrowing limit and set overall federal spending levels face at least two more hurdles: how to pay for an overhaul of veterans’ health care; and Republican demands to offset spending increases. Congress and the Trump administration have days to reach an agreement on the must-pass measures. The House leaves Washington for an August recess at the end of next week, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned last week that the U.S. could breach its debt limit in early September, before lawmakers return to the Capitol. (Duehren, 7/16)

The Hill: Mnuchin Says Debt Ceiling Deal 'Close'
On Saturday night, Pelosi suggested in a letter to Mnuchin that the caps deal should include a budget adjustment for the VA MISSION act. Democrats have fretted over a GOP decision to count the $9 billion in costs associated with the act under the budget cap, which would require offsetting the spending. In her letter, Pelosi reiterated the request that the costs of the program not count toward the cap while maintaining parity in defense and nondefense increases. (Samuels, 7/15)

ProPublica: A Border Patrol Agent Reveals What It’s Really Like To Guard Migrant Children
The Border Patrol agent, a veteran with 13 years on the job, had been assigned to the agency’s detention center in McAllen, Texas, for close to a month when the team of court-appointed lawyers and doctors showed up one day at the end of June. Taking in the squalor, the stench of unwashed bodies, and the poor health and vacant eyes of the hundreds of children held there, the group members appeared stunned. Then, their outrage rolled through the facility like a thunderstorm. One lawyer emerged from a conference room clutching her cellphone to her ear, her voice trembling with urgency and frustration. “There’s a crisis down here,” the agent recalled her shouting. (Thompson, 7/16)

In other news on the immigration crisis —

The Washington Post: CBP Forced A 3-Year-Old To Choose Which Parent Should Stay With Her In The U.S.
Inside a Customs and Border Patrol facility last week, a 3-year-old Honduran girl was reportedly asked to make an unfathomable choice. The girl’s parents, Tania and Joseph, had fled their country with their three children earlier this year, telling NPR they faced violent threats in Honduras from the infamous MS-13 gang. The family was soon moved to Júarez, Mexico, under the Trump administration’s Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) program, which requires asylum seekers to wait outside the United States while their claims are adjudicated by an immigration judge. (Brice-Saddler, 7/16)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Pocan Says Trip To Migrant Facility Left More Questions Than Answers
More than half of the unaccompanied migrant children who were living in a Florida detention center are no longer there — but U.S. officials won't tell members of Congress where the children are now. Democratic U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan told reporters Tuesday that administrators of the 3,200-bed facility wouldn't answer his questions about the children's whereabouts during a visit Monday to the Homestead Temporary Shelter for Unaccompanied Children. (Andrea, 7/16)

The Associated Press: Johnson & Johnson 2Q Profit Jumps 42% Despite Lower Sales
Johnson & Johnson posted slightly lower sales across much of its business in the second quarter, but a big one-time gain and lower spending on marketing and administration boosted its profit a whopping 42 percent. That blew past Wall Street expectations. The maker of baby shampoo and cancer and immune disorder drugs on Tuesday raised its full-year sales forecast, despite sharply lower sales from its medical device business, as well as lower U.S. prescription drug sales and consumer health sales overseas. (7/16)

The Wall Street Journal: Johnson & Johnson Bumps Up Sales Target
Excluding special items, J&J earned $2.58 a share, above the mean estimate of analysts polled by FactSet of $2.46 a share. Sales fell 1.3% to $20.56 billion, but were better than analysts’ expectations. J&J now expects reported sales for the year to be between $80.8 billion and $81.6 billion, up from the $80.4 billion to $81.2 billion previously forecast. (Loftus and Chin, 7/16)

Modern Healthcare: Global Telemedicine Market To Eclipse $130B By 2025
The global telemedicine market is expected to swell to $130.5 billion by 2025 as more clinicians across all ages embrace the technology, a new report found. The projection marks a steep increase from the estimated $38.3 billion valuation last year, with the number of doctors who self-reported telemedicine as a skill doubling from 2015 to 2018, according to Doximity, a professional network for physicians that features more than 70% of all U.S. doctors. While more than half of job-seeking doctors ages 31 to 50 were interested in telemedicine positions, 41% of those over 50 also showed interest. (Kacik, 7/16)

Modern Healthcare: Intermountain Launches Value-Based Care Spinoff
Intermountain Healthcare has spun off a new company that aims to help providers, payers and other stakeholders transition to value-based care, the integrated not-for-profit health system announced Tuesday. The company, known as Castell, is built on Intermountain's preventive primary-care model as well as other best practices. It will provide analytics software and other digital technology to address virtual care, patient experience and social determinants of health; manage affiliated networks; and offer access to Intermountain's latest initiatives. (Kacik, 7/16)

Reuters: Abbott To Hike Production Of Lower-Cost Glucose Monitors As Diabetes Soars
Abbott Laboratories plans to ramp up manufacturing capacity for its lower-cost continuous glucose monitor, the FreeStyle Libre, by three to five times in the next few years, aiming to reach millions more patients worldwide, the company told Reuters. Abbott executives said the increase in manufacturing capacity will begin in the second half of this year and make room for the expected U.S. launch of the FreeStyle Libre 2. This next-generation device has been approved in Europe and is now under U.S. regulatory review. (7/16)

The New York Times: Do Service Dogs Help Treat PTSD? After Years Of Research, The V.A. Still Doesn’t Know
While the V.A. covers the veterinary care and the equipment costs of service dogs for veterans with certain physical disabilities, like blindness or vision impairment, department leaders have long contended that there isn’t enough clinical evidence to prove their benefits for treating mental-health issues. “I would say there are a lot of heartwarming stories that service dogs help, but scientific basis for that claim is lacking,” Dr. Michael Fallon, the V.A.’s chief veterinarian, said during an interview with National Public Radio in 2017. “The V.A. is based on evidence-based medicine. We want people to use therapy that has proven value.” (Craven, 7/17)

In related news —

The Washington Post: Rural Retreats Offer Traumatized Veterans And Their Families Time And Therapy To Heal
The nonprofit, based in Granby, Colo., offers free six-day retreats in bucolic settings for veteran and military families. Participants take a wide range of classes, including on dealing with PTSD, managing household finances and communicating effectively. They also break for recreational activities like rock climbing and fishing. Since its founding in 2007, the nonprofit has hosted 180 retreats in seven states serving about 1,400 families. This month, it held its first retreat in Maryland, attended by the Rogerses and 10 other families. (Natanson, 7/16)

The Associated Press: New Clues On Why Women's Alzheimer's Risk Differs From Men's
New research gives some biological clues to why women may be more likely than men to develop Alzheimer's disease and how this most common form of dementia varies by sex. At the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Los Angeles on Tuesday, scientists offered evidence that the disease may spread differently in the brains of women than in men. Other researchers showed that several newly identified genes seem related to the disease risk by sex. (7/16)

NPR: Why Is Alzheimer's Risk Higher For Women?
Researchers used special brain scans to compare tau in the brains of more than 400 men and women. Some had mild cognitive impairment, a memory problem that often precedes Alzheimer's. And in this group, a person's sex affected where tau appeared in the brain. "We saw a more spread-out pattern in women with mild cognitive impairment than men with mild cognitive impairment," Shokouhi says. (Hamilton, 7/17)

The Washington Post: Women Who Work For A Salary See Slower Memory Decline In Old Age, Reducing Their Risk Of Dementia, A New Study Suggests
Women who engaged in paid employment between ages 16 and 50, whether mothers or non-mothers, had better memories in late life than women who did not work, the study found. The rate of memory deterioration was fastest among women who never earned a wage. Memory loss is one of the first signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers at the University of California at Los Angeles, the University of California at San Francisco and Boston College tracked 6,836 American women born between 1935 and 1956 across about 20 years. Participants were enrollees in the Health and Retirement Study, a federally funded long-term observational study of aging people across the United States. (Natanson, 7/16)

The New York Times: Google Glass Has An Afterlife As A Device To Teach Autistic Children
When Esaïe Prickett sat down in the living room with his mother, father and four older brothers, he was the only one wearing Google Glass. As Esaïe, who was 10 at the time and is 12 now, gazed through the computerized glasses, his family made faces — happy, sad, surprised, angry, bored — and he tried to identify each emotion. In an instant, the glasses told him whether he was right or wrong, flashing tiny digital icons that only he could see. Esaïe was 6 when he and his family learned he had autism. The technology he was using while sitting in the living room was meant to help him learn how to recognize emotions and make eye contact with those around him. The glasses would verify his choices only if he looked directly at a face. (Metz, 7/17)

The New York Times: Red Cross To World’s Cities: Here’s How To Prevent Heat Wave Deaths
One of the largest disaster relief agencies on Tuesday had a message for the world’s mayors: Heat waves are getting more intense on a hotter planet, but they don’t have to be deadly if city officials take simple and often inexpensive steps. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies put out a 96-page guidebook designed to help city officials prepare for heat waves. It repeatedly points out that heat waves are predictable, sometimes days and weeks in advance, and that city officials, and, sometimes private employers, can take steps to save lives. (Sengupta, 7/16)

Stat: Elon Musk's Neuralink Unveils Its Brain-Machine Interface Technology
In front of a crowd of techies packed into a planetarium, Elon Musk strode out on stage, waxed philosophical about achieving symbiosis with artificial intelligence, and made his latest ambitious pronouncement in a career that’s been full of them: His startup Neuralink has developed technology meant to be implanted into the brain that’s designed to allow people to operate computers and smartphones with their thoughts. With some early animal testing under its belt, Neuralink wants to start human testing of its so-called “brain-machine interface” in paralyzed patients by the end of next year. (Robbins, 7/17)

PBS NewsHour: Do Gun Safety Laws Decrease Child Deaths?
A new study says states with universal background checks report fewer children’s deaths due to gun incidents. However, more data is needed to understand the relationship, the study maintains. (Santhanam, 7/16)

The New York Times: A Better Way To Manage Your Period? Try The Menstrual Cup, Scientists Say
Menstrual cups, little-known devices used by women to manage their periods, are safe and as effective as sanitary pads and tampons, as well as less expensive, according to the first comprehensive analysis of the products. Many women have never heard of menstrual cups; some may know them only by brand names like Diva Cups or Moon Cups. They are flexible, bell-shaped devices made of silicone, rubber or latex that are inserted into the vagina to capture menstrual blood. The cups can be left in place for four to 12 hours before being emptied, rinsed and reinserted. (Rabin, 7/16)

The New York Times: High Blood Pressure And High Cholesterol May Pose Special Risks In Young Adults
High blood pressure and high cholesterol in young adults may be particularly dangerous, new research suggests. It increases the risk for cardiovascular disease in later life, whatever risk factors develop in later years. Scientists pooled the results of six studies with data on blood pressure and cholesterol in 36,030 people ages 18 to 84, followed for an average of 17 years. (Bakalar, 7/16)

The Washington Post: Latin America’s War On Obesity Could Be A Model For U.S.
There is something Chilean kids won’t see anymore. As of June 27, cinemas and televisions no longer screen advertisements for foods high in calories, added sugar, sodium and saturated fat between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., under new laws aimed at reducing childhood obesity in Chile. It is one of the most recent efforts in the campaign against obesity that Latin American countries have been fully engaged with — and winning — for some time. (Reiley, 7/16)

The New York Times: To Help Smokers Quit, Pay Them
Paying people to stop smoking is a very effective method of getting them to quit, a large review of studies has found. The meta-analysis, in the Cochrane Reviews, covered 33 trials and included more than 21,000 people. The studies were carried out in various settings — primary care clinics, universities, cancer treatment centers and others. All followed the participants for at least six months, checking breath or body fluids for evidence of smoking. (Bakalar, 7/16)

Cincinnati Enquirer: Early Puberty Appears To Bring On Migraines In Girls, UC Study Finds
Pinney and the researchers found that girls with migraine headaches started developing breasts and having menstrual periods earlier than those who did not have migraines. On average, breast development occurred four months earlier in those with migraine, and menstruation started five months earlier. (Saker, 7/16)

The New York Times: Born To Walk Barefoot
Wearing shoes when we walk changes how our feet interact with the ground below us, according to a novel new study in the journal Nature of shod and unshod walkers, the state of their feet and the extent of the forces they generate with every step. The study, which echoes some of the research that first popularized barefoot running, finds that walkers move differently when they are barefoot or shod and have differing sensitivity to the ground, potentially affecting balance and joint loading. The results intimate that there could be advantages to perambulating with naked feet, not the least of which, surprisingly, involves developing calluses. (Reynolds, 7/17)

Seattle Times: King County’s 2-Day Summit Examines Gun Violence Through A Public-Health Lens 
Doctors and nurses have learned to identify patients at risk of violence — are they depressed? Suffering from dementia? Dealing with substance abuse or in a potential domestic violence situation? But too often, said Dr. Jeff Duchin, health officer for Public Health — Seattle & King County, they fail to then ask one crucial question of their at-risk patients: Do you have access to a firearm? And, if they do ask that question, Duchin said, clinicians are often ill-equipped to know what to do with patients who are at high risk of gun violence. (Gutman, 7/16)

The Wall Street Journal: New York City Hopes To Ease Strain On Its Emergency Rooms
The country’s largest public-hospital system is about to tackle one of health care’s biggest challenges: getting patients out of emergency rooms and into the offices of primary-care doctors. What has been touted by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as “literally universal” health care guaranteed to all New Yorkers is more technically an expanded primary-care system for the most needy. Called NYC Care, it is planned to have the typical perks familiar to people who have insurance: a membership card, 24/7 on-call service, easier access to specialists and ready appointments with the same primary-care physician. (West, 7/16)

Stateline: States Diverge On Transgender Health Care 
States are diverging on whether to provide gender reassignment services, such as hormone treatments and surgery, under their Medicaid programs. Iowa recently enacted a law denying coverage for transition services, and Medicaid policies in eight states exclude sexual reassignment treatment, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a nonprofit based in Colorado. Officials from two of the eight states, Ohio and Wyoming, when contacted by Stateline, said that their policies no longer exclude those services. Twelve states also specifically exclude transition-related services from health benefits for state employees. (Ollove, 7/17)

ProPublica/Sacramento Bee: Deadly Delays In Jail Construction Cost Lives And Dollars Across California
Last June, Fabian Cardoza headed to the shower in the dilapidated Merced County Main Jail. The 20-year-old had spent a month there awaiting trial on a robbery charge. Two cellmates boxed him in. One pinned Cardoza to the floor. The other slipped a braided bedsheet around his neck and tightened it. It was just past noon, but no correctional officers took notice. No one was monitoring the video camera that watched the area and, because the facility was so outdated, officers would have had to stand directly in front of the cell to see anything inside. (Pohl and Gabrielson, 7/17)

NPR: Death Rates Fell After New York Adopted 'Rory's Regulations' For Sepsis Care
An unusual state regulation that dictates how doctors need to treat a specific disease appears to be paying off in New York, according to a study published Tuesday. The disease is sepsis, which is the most common cause of death in hospitals. And the regulations came into being after the story of 12-year-old Rory Staunton became a cause célèbre. As his mother Orlaith Staunton tells it, Rory came home from school one day with a scrape he'd gotten in gym class. It didn't seem like a big deal, but Rory's health quickly took a turn. (Harris, 7/16)

Pioneer Press: Fourth Minnesota DHS Official Resigns With A ‘Heavy (Yet Hopeful) Heart’
The Minnesota Department of Human Services has lost another member of its executive leadership team. Chief of staff Stacie Weeks announced her resignation on Tuesday, according to an email she sent to her colleagues. Her departure follows resignations from the agency’s three top leaders, all of which were announced in the past week. Commissioner Tony Lourey resigned Monday after just six months on the job, and Deputy Commissioners Chuck Johnson and Claire Wilson announced their imminent resignations on Thursday. (Faircloth, 7/16)

NH Times Union: Suicides, Including Highway Suicides, On The Rise In New Hampshire And The Nation 
More people are using highways to harm themselves, including the 40-year-old man who jumped to his death off the South Willow Street bridge over Interstate 293 on Monday, according to a New Hampshire State Police official. Three have done so this year in the Manchester-Nashua area, according to Lt. Bryan Trask. Trask oversees the state police barracks that patrols the highways in the state’s two largest cities. ...[national trends] show an increase in suicide rates. A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the national suicide rate increased 25 percent over a 17-year period ending in 2016. (Hayward, 7/16)

KCUR: Kansas Mom Hopes Her Family's Story Will Help Convince Lawmakers To Expand Medicaid 
Laura Robeson quit her job as a fourth-grade teacher to care for her son, who has cerebral palsy and other health problems. But as politicians considered cuts to various healthcare programs, she felt compelled to become an activist, working with others to speak out for families like hers. That culminated at the State of the Union Address in February. Kansas Congresswoman Sharice Davids chose Robeson to attend as her guest, providing a real-world example of the role federal healthcare policies play in a citizen's life. (Kniggendorf, 7/16)

KCUR: Missouri Mothers Are At Risk For Postpartum Depression, And A New Drug Might Not Be Much Help 
Every woman who gives birth has the possibility of developing postpartum depression. That includes nearly one in seven mothers in Missouri, which ranks 11th in the nation for those who experience the condition, according to the the United Health Foundation. In March, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first drug specifically for postpartum depression, but it's expensive and requires that mothers be away from their babies. That's problematic, says nurse midwife Jessica Cisneros. (Aiken, 7/16)

Los Angeles Times: L.A. Child Welfare Takes Heat For Death Of 4-Year-Old Palmdale Boy
L.A. County’s child welfare chief faced sharp questioning Tuesday over why a 4-year-old Palmdale boy, who died earlier this month under what authorities call suspicious circumstances, wasn’t removed from his parents’ home amid abuse claims — despite a recent court order. “This death happened on my watch,” Bobby Cagle, director of the county Department of Children and Family Services, told the Board of Supervisors. “I fully accept the responsibility for the work that was done. I also fully accept the responsibility for understanding what went wrong, what we can do better, and to implement that as quickly as possible.” (Stiles, 7/16)

Arizona Republic: Is Arizona DCS Banning Criticism Of The Child-Welfare Agency, Courts?
While legislators and policymakers advocate for confidentiality to protect the identities of children and families, they've also pushed for greater transparency. In some cases, parents and officials push for accountability for the system that can take children from their families. In others, lawmakers and the public demand accountability for an agency that failed to remove children from homes where they later died. Despite that push and pull, DCS orders that would ban a parent from informing people about their hearings or would stifle any criticism of DCS and the justice system are striking, even to those within the juvenile justice system. (Náñez, 7/16)

Austin Statesman: Federal, Local Officials Aim To Cut HIV Infections In Austin And U.S.
[Robert] Redfield was one of several federal officials to meet with Austin health workers Tuesday in a roundtable discussion, to get their input on how to achieve that goal and stop the spread of HIV in Central Texas. According to public health officials, about half of all new HIV infections occur in just 48 of roughly 3,000 U.S. jurisdictions, five of which are in Texas, including Austin. Texas is ranked seventh in the nation in the number of new infections. (Huber, 7/16)

The Associated Press: New Delaware Law That Raises Smoking Age To 21 Takes Effect
A law in Delaware that raises the legal age for smoking and buying tobacco products goes into effect Tuesday. Gov. John Carney signed the law in April, which increases the legal smoking age from 18 to 21. The Delaware News Journal reports the state joins 16 others with similar legislation that prohibits retailers from selling and adults from purchasing tobacco for minors. There’s a $1,000 fine for breaking the new law. (7/16)

KCUR: Missouri's Foster Kids Will No Longer Be Doped Up Thanks To A New Legal Settlement 
Thousands of kids in Missouri's foster care system are likely to benefit from a first-of-its-kind legal settlement under which state officials have agreed to strict limits on how and when kids can be given psychotropic drugs. The settlement resolves a class action lawsuit charging that Missouri foster care officials failed to safeguard the conditions under which the powerful medications are dispensed. U.S. District Judge Nanette Laughrey gave preliminary approval to the agreement on Monday. (Margolies, 7/16)

Arizona Republic: Ex-Hacienda Nurse Nathan Sutherland's Trial Expected To Start In 2020
A former Hacienda nurse accused of raping and impregnating an incapacitated patient under his care likely will not go to trial until 2020. Nathan Sutherland, 37, appeared in Maricopa County Superior Court Tuesday for a status conference. His attorney, Edward Molina, told the judge he recently received more than 2,000 pages of evidence and police body-worn camera footage. (Burkitt, 7/16)

Pioneer Press: Mall Of America To Open Walk-In Health Clinic This Fall 
A walk-in clinic will open at the Mall of America in November, offering services for both workers and customers alike. The new clinic was announced Tuesday, and will be part of M Health Fairview, a partnership between Fairview Health Services and the University of Minnesota. To be located on the third floor of the Bloomington mall’s east end, the 2,300-square-foot location will have five examination rooms. There will also be a laboratory space for tests, a radiology room and a pharmacy. (Ross, 7/16)

The Star Tribune: Mall Of America Will Add A Walk-In Clinic 
The Mall of America is adding a walk-in medical clinic that will cater to everyone from workers injured on the job to power-shoppers with tummy troubles to travelers needing quick immunizations. The new clinic, announced Tuesday by M Health Fairview, will be open seven days a week, starting in November, on the Bloomington mall's third floor east wing. (Olson, 7/16)

Kansas City Star: Missouri Medical Marijuana: Most Won’t Get License To Sell
The state won’t start vetting applications to grow, manufacture or sell medical marijuana products until Aug. 3. But for months it has been accepting pre-filed application fees — a non-refundable $6,000 for a dispensary license — to begin funding regulatory operations. (Marso, 7/17)

Stat: How Pharma, Under Attack From All Sides, Keeps Winning In Washington
In the past month alone, drug makers and the army of lobbyists they employ pressured a Republican senator not to push forward a bill that would have limited some of their intellectual property rights, according to lobbyists and industry representatives. They managed to water down another before it was added to a legislative package aimed at lowering health care costs. Lobbyists also convinced yet another GOP lawmaker — once bombastically opposed to the industry’s patent tactics — to publicly commit to softening his own legislation on the topic, as STAT reported last month. (Florko and Facher, 7/15)

Stat: Tracking Washington's Moves On Drug Pricing 
From bombastic White House speeches (and tweets) to a flurry of legislation introduced by lawmakers from both parties, it has been a whirlwind three years for policy impacting the pharmaceutical industry. To keep track of all the fast moving developments, STAT has detailed the major proposals pending before the Trump administration and in Congress that aim to lower prescription drug prices — along with those that have already been abandoned, blocked, or softened. (Florko and Facher)

The Hill: Rick Scott: PhRMA Hasn't Provided 'A Single Answer' On Lower Drug Prices
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) is calling out the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), accusing the nation's top lobby for drugmakers on Monday of failing to provide "a single answer or solution to our questions" on lowering prescription drug prices. Scott's comments are the latest in a fight over how best to lower drug prices for consumers. (Gangitano, 7/15)

The Hill: Advocates Frustrated Over Pace Of Drug Price Reform
Washington has seen a flurry of activity and bipartisan interest in passing drug pricing legislation this year, but with the August recess approaching and the 2020 elections ahead, advocates for reform worry time is running short. Congress has two weeks until the August recess, and lawmakers must handle a number of other pressing issues. And despite early momentum, House Democratic leaders are divided with progressives over their drug pricing bill, while in the upper chamber Republicans are balking at some measures backed by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). (Gangitano, 7/15)

The Hill: Democratic Chair: Medicare Negotiating Drug Prices Not Moving Before August
A measure lawmakers have been working on for months to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices will not move forward before Congress leaves for the August recess, said a key Democrat involved in the legislation. “I really wanted to see that done pre-August, and I don't think that's going to be the case,” said Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), the chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. (Sullivan, 7/16)

CQ: Hill Efforts Now Trump's Best Hope For Drug Pricing Action
An upcoming Senate bill is the Trump administration’s best hope for a significant achievement before next year’s election to lower prescription drug prices, but a lot still needs to go right for anything to become law. Despite the overwhelming desire for action, there are still policy gulfs between Republicans and Democrats in the Senate, and another gap between the Senate and the House. And the politics of the moment might derail potential policy agreements. Some Democrats might balk at settling for a drug pricing compromise that President Donald Trump endorsed. (Siddons and Clason, 7/16)

Stat: Kamala Harris Becomes The Latest Democrat To Zero In On Drug Prices
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) on Tuesday became the second leading Democratic primary candidate in as many days to unveil a comprehensive plan to lower drug prices. Harris’s plan relies on government price-setting, allowing the federal government to cap price levels for drugs that are cheaper in other developed nations or whose prices increase by a rate exceeding inflation. (Facher, 7/16)

Stat: Do Doctors Prescribe More Painkillers Because Of Pharma Money? 
Amid ongoing concern that painkillers other than opioids are being misused, a new analysis suggests industry payments to physicians may cause increased prescribing of a class of drugs known as gabapentinoids, which are used to relieve pain and includes the popular Lyrica pill sold by Pfizer (PFE). After combing through a federal database of payments to doctors and running statistical models, the researchers found that physicians receiving food, gifts, and speaking and consulting fees, among other things, were nearly twice as likely to prescribe these medicines instead of lower-cost generic versions. (Silverman, 7/9)

Stat: GSK Took A Leap Of Faith On PARP Inhibitors In Cancer. It May Pay Off
When GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) purchased Tesaro for $5 billion last December, one of the company’s big arguments in favor of the deal was that Tesaro’s lead drug, Zejula, would be useful in many more cancers than investors expected. Zejula, like Lynparza from AstraZeneca and Merck, inhibits an enzyme called PARP, which is involved in repairing DNA. So far, it has proved useful mainly in cancers that are caused by mutations in the BRCA gene, the same one that causes breast and ovarian cancer. But Glaxo argued that there are cancers where Zejula would work, which also means a larger group of patients. (Herper, 7/16)

Stat: At Gilead, CEO O’Day Starts Putting Stamp On Firm With A $5 Billion Deal
Daniel O’Day was made CEO of Gilead Sciences four-and-a-half months ago, charged with reigniting investor excitement in a company that pioneered HIV medicines. On Sunday, he announced his first big deal: Gilead will spend $5 billion to deepen its relationship with Galapagos NV, a Belgian drug developer. “I’m really happy that this is the first deal that’s [being] announced — it certainly won’t be the only deal — because I think it’s creative,” O’Day said in an interview. “I think it’s innovative. I think it’s focused on science and innovation. And you know, with my background, this is what I’m passionate about. How can we find the most innovative medicines and get them to patients fast?” (Herper, 7/15)

The Wall Street Journal: Gilead To Boost Stake In Belgian Biotech Galapagos As Part Of $5.1 Billion Deal
Gilead Sciences Inc. will pay $5.1 billion to boost its stake in Galapagos NV and gain rights outside Europe to the Belgian biotechnology company’s treatments in development, in a broad research collaboration aimed at increasing growth at the drugmakers. Under the terms of the deal, announced Sunday, Gilead will make a $3.95 billion payment to Galapagos. It also will invest $1.1 billion, or $158.49 a share, to increase its stake in the drugmaker to 22% from 12.3%. That represents a 20% premium to the 30-day weighted average share price of Galapagos, which trades in Amsterdam and on Nasdaq and has a market value of around $7.9 billion. (Rockoff and Lombardo, 7/14)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: GoodRx Lowers Prescription Costs For Some, But Questions Remain On Impact For Others 
There is no doubt that middlemen like GoodRx can help patients save money on prescriptions. That’s especially true for the uninsured or underinsured. There are questions, however, about whether these kinds of companies might overincentivize patients to buy certain drugs, and whether their reliance on referral fees — which some critics call kickbacks — inflate costs for other consumers. (Washington, 7/14)

Stat: Christi Shaw Named CEO Of Kite Pharma, Gilead’s Anti-Cancer Unit
Christi Shaw, until Thursday morning the executive in charge of Eli Lilly’s drug division, will become the CEO of Kite Pharma, the unit of biotechnology giant Gilead that is focused on treatments that genetically engineer patients’ white blood cells to attack cancer. Shaw said she was inspired to take the job because that type of treatment, known as CAR-T, is what she wants to focus on. (Herper, 7/11)

The New York Times: There Is No Single, Best Policy For Drug Prices
A majority of Americans prefer greater regulation of prescription drug prices, meaning government intervention to lower them.But don’t count on a single policy to address a nuanced problem. “All low-priced drugs are alike; all high-priced drugs are high priced in their own way,” Craig Garthwaite, a health economist from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, wrote with a colleague. (Austin Frakt, 7/15)

Los Angeles Times: Ask Whether A Drug Works Before Worrying About What It Costs
Last week was supposed to be a turning point for drug price transparency. The Department of Health and Human Services planned to implement a new rule requiring drug commercials on television to disclose the “list price” of the medication being advertised. According to the HHS press release, this would be the most significant single step any administration has ever taken with regard to drug pricing. But it isn’t going to happen. Three big drug companies, Merck, Eli Lilly and Amgen along with an industry trade group, the Assn. of National Advertisers, filed a successful lawsuit blocking the rule. According to Judge Amit P. Mehta of the United States District Court in the District of Columbia, HHS does not have the authority to mandate price disclosure. (Steven Woloshin, 7/16)

Stat: State Drug Importation Programs Will Work With The FDA
The safety of the supply chain for pharmaceuticals in the United States must be built with solid links. That hasn’t always been the case, which is why the Drug Quality and Security Act (DQSA) was signed into law in 2013. Part of that law (Title II) mandates the development of a national “track-and-trace” electronic system that documents a drug’s distribution path from the manufacturing plant to the pharmacy counter. It facilitates detection and removal of potentially dangerous drugs from the drug supply chain. This system, which will be fully implemented in the next few years, will extend to drugs manufactured outside in the U.S. in FDA-registered facilities. (Jane Horvath, 7/16)

The Detroit News: U.S. Dangerously Dependent On Chinese Drugs
Over the past 30 years, a lot of drug manufacturing has been offshored. With generics comprising 90 percent of the medicines Americans consume, there’s now a growing reliance on China for essential drugs. The U.S. no longer makes penicillin, for example, with the last U.S. penicillin plant closing in 2004.Now, the U.S. has virtually no capacity to make generic antibiotics used to treat ear infections, strep throat, pneumonia, urinary tract infections, sexually transmitted diseases, Lyme disease and other illnesses. And when the U.S. government needed to buy 20 million doses of the antibiotic doxycycline after the 2001 anthrax attacks, it turned to a European supplier that sourced its ingredients from China. (Rosemary Gibson, 7/14)

Stat: State Drug Importation Laws Undermine The Process That Keeps Our Supply Chain Safe
Three states — Vermont, Florida, and Colorado — recently passed laws that legalize the importation of prescription drugs. Other states are considering similar legislation. Legislators in those states believe that drugs can be safely sourced from Canada at costs lower than U.S. prices. These new state laws conflict with and undermine our country’s in-progress national legislative and regulatory system for tracking and tracing drugs. This system was established six years ago to stop counterfeit drugs from entering the U.S. supply chain. We estimate that manufacturers, wholesalers, and pharmacies will ultimately spend billions to build this system, which is scheduled to be fully operational by 2023. (Adam J. Fein and Dirk Rodgers, 7/11)

Los Angeles Times: Drug Companies Say You’d Just Be ‘Confused’ If They Included Prices In TV Ads
Two things became apparent this week after a federal judge blocked President Trump’s requirement that drug prices be disclosed in TV commercials — a move intended to shame pharmaceutical companies into being friendlier to patients. First, the ruling highlighted the limitations of Trump’s I-don’t-need-no-stinking-Congress approach to policy. Once again a court has ruled that Trump exceeded his authority. Second, pharmaceutical companies have no interest in being friendlier to patients. (David Lazarus, 7/12)

Morning Consult: Rare Disease Sufferers Fighting Both Their Condition And Federal Bureaucracy
The Orphan Drug Act was passed by Congress more than 36 years ago, at a time when rare diseases were often shunted by the research and development community. The act designated “rare diseases” as those with fewer than 200,000 patients in the United States and for which there was little or no commercial viability to develop and bring to market a cure. It included tax credit incentives for drug evaluation expenditures, as well as limited-marketing exclusivity. (Robert Desnick and Desiree Lyon, 7/11)

Bloomberg: Joe Biden’s Health Plan Has The Potential To Go Bold
Health care has emerged as a key issue in the 2020 presidential race, and an area where Democrats believe they can gain an advantage with voters. When it comes to policy, though, most of the Democratic field is big on vision, and a bit lighter on particulars. Only a few, like Senator Bernie Sanders and former Congressman Beto O’Rourke, have endorsed specific legislation; most others have endorsed the general idea of universal health care. So it’s a big deal that front runner Joe Biden posted a plan Monday that at least begins to flesh out the details of his preferred approach. Biden, the former vice president, argues that Democrats should start by building on Obamacare, and that “Medicare for All” supporters would erase the law’s achievements. It makes sense that he’s attached to the legislation; it was one of his most significant career accomplishments. But even Biden, the leading moderate in the race, has ideas that move beyond the most ambitious early versions of the law. (Max Nisen, 7/16)

The Wall Street Journal: Public Option Kills Private Insurance
At the center of Joe Biden’s health-care proposal is the “public option”—a government insurance policy that would compete with private plans. Mr. Biden has obviously seen the polling. By 57% to 37%, Americans reject the idea, put forth by some of Mr. Biden’s Democratic rivals, of abolishing private insurance in favor of “Medicare for All.” The public option seems like an attractive alternative—enough so that Mr. Biden, in announcing his plan Monday, revived a discredited Obama slogan: “If you like your health-care plan, your employer-based plan, you can keep it.” (Scott W. Atlas, 7/16)

USA Today: Obamacare Is Constitutional: Ohio's Republican Attorney General
When someone has a tumor, you don’t kill the patient to get rid of it — you cut out the tumor.But in December, when a federal court found the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate was unconstitutional, it killed the whole law instead of cutting out the one part that was malignant. The trial court’s overreach in Texas vs. United States, threatens health care for millions of Ohioans with pre-existing conditions — and millions more across America. That decision has been appealed, and the appeals court heard oral arguments last week. I filed a friend of the court brief on behalf of Ohio, arguing that the trial court went further than the law and binding Supreme Court precedent require, or even allow. Although I’m a Republican and not fond of the ACA, I hate judicial activism — in its liberal and conservative flavors. (Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, 7/17)

The Hill: Pushing The Tobacco Age To 21 Is Good, But It's Not Enough
It is universally acknowledged that smoking leads to premature disease and death. Yet, 1 billion people worldwide, including 38 million adults in the U.S. continue to smoke. It's not because they are oblivious to the dangers of smoking, but because their addiction smothers all prudent consideration of the adverse health effects of tobacco use. Most people become addicted to nicotine when they are teenagers. That's why it's imperative that we do all that we can to deter early nicotine addiction in youth. Initiatives to raise the national sales age for tobacco products to 21 deserve serious consideration by the Congress. "Tobacco 21" proposals are a significant step in the right direction. Nicotine addiction fundamentally threatens the development in young people’s brains that is necessary for executive function, memory and emotional regulation. (Nancy Brown and Aruni Bhatnagar, 7/16)

Tampa Bay Times: Ensuring Safety And Quality In Nursing Homes
In any case, patients and their families and caregivers should have all the support they need to navigate this complex and delicate decision. Most importantly, they should have the security and peace of mind that they will be kept safe from abuse and neglect. Through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — or CMS — the Trump administration is empowering residents and their caregivers with information about nursing home safety and quality, and we’re doubling down on our efforts to keep residents safe. (Seema Verma, 7/16)

Washington Examiner: Planned Parenthood Ousts Leana Wen And Proves That Abortion, Not Healthcare, Is Its Priority
One of the symptoms of uneasiness is the inability to stay still. Leana Wen knows this. She’s a doctor. And she was the president of Planned Parenthood until today, when the abortion organization's board met in secret and pushed her out, after less than nine months on the job, because of “philosophical” differences. They’re uneasy. They can’t stay still.And no wonder: Planned Parenthood is facing more opposition than ever. The Republican in the White House has filled the lower federal courts and two Supreme Court vacancies with conservative justices, potentially (underline that word) endangering Roe v. Wade, the foundational decision upon which Planned Parenthood depends. (Kaylee McGhee, 7/16)

Nashville Tennessean: Lower Health Care Costs Act Aims To End Surprise Billing
One out of five times Americans visit a hospital emergency room, they are surprised several months later to receive a bill that could run into thousands of dollars. Last month, the U.S. Senate health committee by a vote of 20-3 approved legislation to end such surprise billing and to take other steps to reduce the amount of money Americans pay for their health care out of their own pockets. The bipartisan Lower Health Care Costs Act of 2019, which I introduced along with Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state, includes 55 proposals from 65 senators — 29 Republicans and 36 Democrats — that would increase transparency in medical costs for patients and employers and increase prescription drug competition to lower the cost of generic drugs, which make up 90% of all prescriptions written. (U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander, 7/15)

Stat: It's Time To Change The Definition Of 'Health' 
Meet Betty, a typical aging American. At 82, she spends almost as much time with her doctors as she does with her grandchildren. She has to. She takes seven prescription medications to treat her high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and arthritis. Ten years ago, she was treated for breast cancer.Is Betty healthy? According to her, “Absolutely!” She enjoys her spacious apartment, two cats, close friends, and 50-gallon fish tank. But according to the World Health Organization, Betty is mistaken. The WHO defines health as a state of “complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with a range of WHO partners, endorses this definition. (Cara Kiernan Fallon and Jason Karlawish, 7/17)

Stat: I Get Asked A Lot About Longevity. It Helps That I'm 104
When anyone meets me for the first time, they always ask me, what do you attribute your longevity to? And I always say, just don’t tell me to be good, because I want to dance and have fun. Maybe there’s something in my genes: I’m 104 now. My mother lived to be 93, and my dad was 98. And his brothers were all up in way late in their 90s. My sister lived to be 96. (Virginia Leitner, 7/17)

Austin American-Statesman: Texas Lawmakers Should Protect Home Health For Older Americans
Home health care is an essential element to our state’s senior care infrastructure, providing necessary care to those who are not able to leave their homes. However, recent changes to Medicare’s payment system will have a decidedly negative impact on Texas seniors who want to receive skilled care services in the comfort of their own homes. (Rachel Hammon, 7/15)