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The Trump administration could help improve the treatment of substance use disorder by following the recommendations of its own Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis. One recommendation urged federal agencies to analyze the quality of the various types of addiction treatment. This would give patients confidence that they are receiving treatments proven to work. It would also provide a framework for medical providers to turn to when helping their patients decide the best treatment options for their situations. (Sarah Wakeman and Gary Mendell, 1/22)

Falling victim to a terminal disease is one of the ultimate human tragedies in its own terms. But congressional conservatives, egged on by libertarian ideologues and the Koch brothers, are working hard to burden these people with another layer of victimization in their last weeks or months of life. They're doing so by pushing what has aptly been termed "a cruel sham": a federal "right-to-try" law. State versions of such laws, which have been enacted in 38 states, purport to offer a last ounce of hope to the terminally ill, by allowing them to try drugs that have not fully been tested for safety and efficacy. (Michael Hiltzik, 1/22)

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, since 2010, flu has annually caused “between 9.2 million and 35.6 million illnesses, between 140,000 and 710,000 hospitalizations and between 12,000 and 56,000 deaths.” In the 2017-18 season, which began in November and won't end until March, hospital emergency rooms are overflowing, deaths are running ahead of recent years and pharmacies are low on the anti-flu drug Tamiflu and intravenous solutions needed to keep patients hydrated. Vaccination ought to be the key to prevention. According to estimates from the CDC, in six influenza seasons starting in 2005-06, vaccination prevented 13.59 million cases. That looks impressive, but our current vaccines are barely adequate, and the nation's drug regulators and science-funding agencies aren't doing enough about it. (Henry I. Miller, 1/22)

On the 45th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, clinic abortion rates in the United States are plummeting, having decreased by an unprecedented 25% between 2008 and 2014. Some of this decline may be due to improvements in contraceptive use, but it is likely that the hundreds of state-level restrictions that have shuttered abortion clinics and increased the cost of getting an abortion have resulted in many women being unable to get one. (Diana Greene Foster, 1/22)

When courts tear down one barrier, states erect another. Since the Supreme Court rejected Texas-style clinic restrictions, about a half dozen have enacted laws to effectively ban the most common, safest method used in the second trimester, spurring more court showdowns. “These restrictions represent legislative interference at its worst," said the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "Doctors will be forced, by ill-advised, unscientifically motivated policy, to provide lesser care to patients.” (1/22)

Abortion remains as controversial as ever as shown by tens of thousands coming to Washington every year to the March for Life, marchers overwhelmingly young and happy for whom it’s more of a celebration than a political demonstration. Polls have shown a steady rise in “pro-life” sentiment over the past two decades, even while “pro-choice” numbers fall. (Tony Perkins, 1/22)

State lawmakers need to come up with a long-term solution for funding the health costs of Texas’ retired teachers. Tweaks in the last year will keep the TRS-Care solvent through the 2019 fiscal year, but the plan has a projected $400 million shortfall by the end of 2021. (1/22)