Weekly Edition: May 28, 2018
Sticker Shock Jolts Oklahoma Patient: $15,076 For Four Tiny Screws
By Liz Szabo
A woman with foot pain was floored by the high cost of titanium screws used in her surgery. “Unless the metal [was] mined on an asteroid, I do not know why it should cost that amount,” she says.
Vermont Legislators Pass A Drug Importation Law. So What?
By Shefali Luthra
The first-in-the-nation measure would empower Vermont to set up a wholesale program to import prescription drugs from Canada. But it still will have to get federal buy-in before it is operational.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Much Ado About Drug Prices
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call discuss President Donald Trump’s proposals to control prescription drug prices and the efforts to sell the plan to lawmakers and the public. Also, Rovner interviews emeritus law professor Timothy Jost about the state of the Affordable Care Act.
What Explains The Rising Overdose Rate Among Latinos?
By Martha Bebinger, WBUR
Opioid addiction is often portrayed as a white problem, but overdose rates are now rising faster among Latinos and blacks. Cultural and linguistic barriers may put Latinos at greater risk.
Reversing An Overdose Isn’t Complicated, But Getting The Antidote Can Be
By Jake Harper, Side Effects Public Media
Last month, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams urged more Americans to carry and learn to use naloxone, which can save someone from an opioid overdose. But the drug, brand-name Narcan, can be difficult to get and expensive.
Choosing Between Death And Deportation
By Dan Gorenstein
What happens when an undocumented immigrant has a life-threatening diagnosis? Much depends on where the person lives. And even in states with generous care for a dire illness, a patient can face difficult life-and-death choices.
California’s Deadly STD Epidemic Sets Record
By Harriet Blair Rowan and Alex Leeds Matthews
Rates of gonorrhea, syphilis and chlamydia in California have shot up 45 percent over five years, resulting in 30 syphilis-related stillbirths in 2017 alone, new state data show.
California Hospital Giant Sutter Health Faces Heavy Backlash On Prices
By Chad Terhune
In a case with possible national repercussions, the state’s attorney general has sued over alleged price gouging, and other legal and legislative challenges are afoot. Sutter is pushing back hard, denying anticompetitive behavior.
Lack Of Insurance Exposes Blind Spots In Vision Care
By Michelle Andrews
As many as 16 million people in the United States have undiagnosed or uncorrected vision problems that could be fixed with eyeglasses, contact lenses or surgery.
Will We Still Be Relevant ‘When We’re 64’?
By Sharon Jayson
Older adults often feel invisible as their interactions with younger people dwindle and hardly anyone seems to seek their advice. To make matters worse, studies link loneliness to weaker immune systems and poorer physical health.
L.A. County Unlawfully Terminated Thousands Of Medi-Cal Recipients, Court Rules
By Anna Gorman
A judge orders the county to fix problem that harmed low-income seniors and people with disabilities, including those with serious health conditions.
First, Marijuana. Are Magic Mushrooms Next?
By Barbara Feder Ostrov
Advocates in Oregon and Denver are pushing ballot measures to allow possession of mushrooms containing the hallucinogenic ingredient psilocybin, as new research shows it may be useful in treating depression and anxiety. Supporters of a measure to decriminalize magic mushrooms in California ended their effort late last month.