Landmark Change Allowing More Gay Men To Donate Blood Goes Into Effect
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
In other public health news: a remarkable lung transplant in two people with organs flipped left to right compared with normal anatomy; the Air Force and Space Force are offering new mental health referrals; worries over AI influencer trends and mental health; and more.
2021 Data Show Majority With Opioid Use Disorder Didn’t Receive Meds
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
CDC data from 2021 show only around 1 in 5 adults with an opioid use disorder received medications to help treat them, despite the fact that over 80,000 people died from opioid overdoses that year. Experts say that access to the meds is tougher for Black adults and women.
Study Casts Doubt On Breast Cancer Screening For Those Over 70
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
The new study says women 70 and older who underwent mammograms were more likely to be diagnosed with tumors that actually posed no threat to their health, compared to those who were unscreened. Separately, a study found Black men have lower melanoma survival rates.
Shortage Of Black Widow Spider Bite Anti-Venom Ending
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
Merck, which makes the Antivenin medication, only sells between 300 and 800 vials per year, and is saying it’s back in supply. Separately, the WHO warns over a batch of contaminated cold syrup made in India — part of an ongoing problem with manufacturing quality.
Equal Employment Agency Urging Businesses To Back New Pregnancy Law
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
EEOC Chair Charlotte Burrows encouraged feedback on how workplaces would be affected, as well as ways to assist employers and workers in understanding the law. Other reproductive health news is on the postpartum depression pill, the closing of maternity wards, and more.
Morning Briefing for Tuesday, August 8, 2023
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
Medicare drug coverage, maternity care, abortion vote, ‘Eris’ covid variant, surprise medical bills, opioids, and more are in the news.
Billing Arbitration Comes To An End After Changes To No Surprises Act
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
Last week, a court ruling saw parts of the surprise billing law vacated, and this has now resulted in the federal government stopping processing payment disputes between providers and insurers over out-of-network bills, Modern Healthcare reports. Axios notes insurers sometimes pay double for the same procedure versus Medicare Advantage prices.
New Covid Variant EG.5, Or ‘Eris,’ Among Fastest-Spreading So Far
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
News outlets report on the rapid spread of a new covid variant labeled EG.5, unofficially known as “Eris,” which may be among the fastest-spreading yet due to a mutation. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune notes covid cases are ticking up as summer comes to an end, and The Washington Post explains why it may be hard to find covid tests.
Ohioans Decide Today On Referendum That Could Upend Abortion Vote
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
The outcome of today’s election — which will decide whether to raise the threshold for amending the state constitution from 50% to 60% — likely will have broader implications for the 2024 election and beyond. Turnout for the special election has already blown away expectations.
First Edition: Aug. 8, 2023
August 8, 2023
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
What One Lending Company’s Hospital Contracts Reveal About Financing Patient Debt
By Noam N. Levey
August 8, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Within two years of North Carolina’s public university system going into business with AccessOne to finance patients’ payment plans, nearly half of its patients were in loans that charged interest. As federal scrutiny increases on lenders, KFF Health News is sharing that contract and others obtained through public records requests.
Seeking Medicare Coverage for Weight Loss Drugs, Pharma Giant Courts Black Influencers
By Rachana Pradhan
August 8, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Novo Nordisk, the dominant company in the multibillion-dollar market for weight loss drugs, focuses on Black lawmakers and opinion leaders to spread the message that obesity is a chronic disease that needs treatment.
Amid Lack of Accountability for Bias in Maternity Care, a California Family Seeks Justice
By Sarah Kwon
August 8, 2023
KFF Health News Original
April Valentine’s family wants to know whether racism could have played a role in her death. A KFF Health News analysis shows state regulators are ill-equipped to find discrimination in its many forms.
How the Texas Trial Changed the Story of Abortion Rights in America
By Sarah Varney
August 7, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Stark, plaintive testimony from women denied abortion care represents the start of “the 50-year fight to get rid of Dobbs,” one historian says.
Viewpoints: It Won’t Be Long Before AI Replaces Human Doctors; Will Ohio Protect Reproductive Rights?
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
Editorial writers discuss AI in health care, abortion rights, lobotomies and more.
Morning Briefing for Monday, August 7, 2023
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
Postpartum depression, abortion law, hospital cyberattacks, child vaccination rates, antibiotic resistance, cancer, and more are in the news.
Data: Covid Drove Up Antibiotic Use; Worries Over Antibiotic Resistance
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
Even as CIDRAP covers a report on CDC data showing a significant rise in antibiotic use in U.S. hospitals early in the pandemic, Fox news reports on how doctors are warning over rising antibiotic resistance in Americans. Also in the news: how covid tracking has waned, and more.
CDC Confirms Human Swine Flu Cases Linked To Michigan County Fairs
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
The first two human swine flu cases in the U.S. this year were linked to infected pigs at public events, the Detroit Free Press reports. Also in the news: a Bay area spa was ordered closed following two deaths associated with Legionnaires disease; warnings over undercooked seafood risks; and more.
Following Pandemic Screening Delays, Late-Stage Cancers Rise: Study
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
Confirming what many may have suspected, a new study in Lancet Oncology emphasizes how care disruptions during the pandemic have led to more diagnoses, now, of late-stage cancers of nearly all types. Meanwhile, the Hill reports on which of alcohol or cannabis is worse for you.
Childhood Vaccination Rates Slipping, Even As Fall’s Sickly Season Nears
August 7, 2023
Morning Briefing
News outlets cover worries over the rate of childhood vaccination in the U.S., with about 1 in 6 toddlers missing out on some of the necessary doses against measles, mumps, polio, tetanus, and more, even as the typical fall illness season approaches. Assistant Secretary of Health Rachel Levine spoke on the matter of childhood shots.