Viewpoints: America Has Failed Its Gun-Scarred Youth
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Opinion writers weigh in on the shootings at Michigan State and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High.
Factory Inspection May Be To Blame In Biocon’s Recent FDA Rejection
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Read about the biggest pharmaceutical developments and pricing stories from the past week in KHN’s Prescription Drug Watch roundup.
Morning Briefing for Wednesday, February 15, 2023
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Drug pricing experiments, a drop in medical debt, covid hazard pay, birth control, Medicaid expansion, opioids, and more are in health news.
Study Shows Penis Length Has Increased, But Experts Are Concerned
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
USA Today covers a startling piece of data from a global multi-decade meta study of average erect penis size: It’s grown 24% over 30 years. But experts say the implications for fertility are complex, as are the reasons behind the change. Separately, a study says a pill could “curb” binge drinking.
Centura, One Of Colorado’s Largest Hospital Systems, To Break Up
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Centura Health has long operated as a partnership between CommonSpirit Health and AdventHealth, but an announcement Tuesday said the Catholic- and Seventh-day Adventist-aligned partners would split. Cedars-Sinai, Outcome Health, Ben Taub Hospital, and more are also in the news.
A Novel Male Birth Control Method Shows Promise — In Mice
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
While previous medication-based efforts at developing male birth control sometimes used hormonal methods, the new injection targets sperm motility and rendered mice “temporarily infertile” after one shot. Testing shows it also works on human sperm, in a petri dish — human testing is likely a few years away.
Tennessee Moves To Add Limited Exemptions To Strict Abortion Ban
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Tennessee’s abortion ban, one of the strictest in the country, AP reports, may be slightly loosened thanks to a new bill that adds “narrow” exemptions despite reported “threats” from anti-abortion advocates. Meanwhile, in Utah, abortion clinics would be forced to shut in 2024 if a new bill is passed.
Prison Workers Not Owed Hazard Pay For Being Exposed To Covid: Court
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Federal employees of a Connecticut prison said they deserved hazardous pay because they worked with people who had covid. But the U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 10-2 that the federal Office of Personnel Management does not address extra pay for people who work in contagious situations, and that it was up to Congress to step in.
Some MSU Students Have Now Survived 2 Shootings, Including At Sandy Hook
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Jackie Matthews was in sixth grade at Sandy Hook Elementary when a gunman killed 26 students, teachers, and staff. Now, as a senior at Michigan State University, she was in a building directly across from where some of the shootings occurred Monday night. And several other students at MSU survived a November 2021 mass shooting at Oxford High School that killed four people.
Number Of Americans Carrying Medical Debt Dropped 18% Since 2020
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
A Consumer Financial Protection Bureau report reveals that 8.2 million fewer people in the U.S. had medical debt on their credit report from 2020 to 2022. Despite the progress, such unpaid bills account for over half of all debt in collections. Meanwhile, some localities are using covid relief fund to try to tackle the financial challenge.
Medicare And Medicaid To Pilot 3 Experiments Aimed At Lowering Drug Costs
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
The Biden administration Thursday announced a roadmap to test three drug pricing models. The programs would offer some generic drugs to Medicare beneficiaries for $2 a month, experiment with new ways for Medicaid to pay for expensive cell and gene therapies, and explore ways to pay for drugs approved under accelerated FDA review.
First Edition: Feb. 15, 2023
February 15, 2023
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
As Opioids Mixed With Animal Tranquilizers Arrive in Kensington, So Do Alarming Health Challenges
By Courtenay Harris Bond
February 15, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The veterinary tranquilizer xylazine, the choice du jour of local drug dealers to cut fentanyl, leads to necrotic ulcers and leaves street medics and physicians confused about how best to deal with this wave of the opioid crisis.
Watch: In Insurers’ Eyes, Not All Midwives Are Equal
February 15, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The first installment of InvestigateTV and KHN’s “Costly Care” series explores one California mother’s experience struggling to get reimbursed for midwifery care and the differences between providers that may determine whether insurance covers them.
Armed With Hashtags, These Activists Made Insulin Prices a Presidential Talking Point
By Bram Sable-Smith
February 15, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Twitter has been a hotbed for the burgeoning insulin access movement and activism surrounding other medical conditions. For people with diabetes, the platform has helped propel concern about insulin prices into policy. Can it continue to win with hashtags?
In California, Democrats Propose $25 Minimum Wage for Health Workers
By Samantha Young
February 14, 2023
KFF Health News Original
State Sen. María Elena Durazo and Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West want to give health facility support staffers a raise. Hospitals, nursing homes, and dialysis clinics are expected to resist.
California: proponen salario mínimo de $25 para trabajadores de salud
By Samantha Young
February 14, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Si los legisladores aprueban el proyecto de ley y el gobernador Gavin Newsom lo firma, un líder sindical estimó que 1.5 millones de trabajadores de California podrían obtener un aumento salarial en enero de 2024.
Worries As Nerve Pain Medication Hits Maine’s Illegal Drugs Scene
February 14, 2023
Morning Briefing
Bangor Daily News reports that gabapentin, which is also an anticonvulsant, is now a part of Maine’s illicit drug market, and notes it’s part of a national trend of the drug being found in fatal overdoses. The veterinary drug xylazine, worsening the fentanyl crisis as “Tranq,” is also in the news.