Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Rural Health Care Doesn't Need To Keep Getting Worse; Lessons On How Red-Baiting Set The U.S. Behind On Health Care
As former senators from rural states, we鈥檝e seen firsthand the importance of providing affordable, quality care to those living in rural areas. The isolation that exists in some parts of South Dakota and Maine means residents have limited access to care. Many patients must travel great distances to even reach a hospital. Yet more and more rural hospitals are closing around the country. In fact, 106 of them have shut down since 2010. It is staggering to think of these challenges when, compared to people living in urban and suburban areas, rural Americans are generally older and poorer, more uninsured or underinsured, and therefore less healthy. (Former Sens. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), 6/12)
The battle for universal health care has come a long way. Today, the House Ways and Means Committee is holding a hearing on Medicare-for-all, and the plan has recently gained support from high-ranking Democrats, including several presidential contenders. It鈥檚 traction that would have been unimaginable even a decade ago. Even so, the fight for Medicare-for-all will be a war. (Merlin Chowkwanyun, 6/12)
Insulin has become so unaffordable that Type 1 diabetics are pushed to take risks, like rationing and buying from strangers online. The video Op-Ed above reveals the lengths to which they go to get a nearly century-old drug and how Americans are dying from a perfectly manageable autoimmune disease. Patent laws and existing regulations allow the top three manufacturers to continuously increase prices without consequences. (Robin Cressman, Nicole Smith-Holt, Laura Pavlakovich, Paulius Podziunas and Laura Juncadella, 6/13)
Last month, the White House stated that it was time to 鈥渟tart talking about solutions.鈥 I disagree: The time to start doing that was years ago. Fentanyl, which has become a major player in overdoses since Trump took office, is our nation鈥檚 deadliest killer, yet little has been done to combat it. ... Getting our national overdose rate to zero will require comprehensive policy reform. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) are attempting to do just that with the Comprehensive Addiction Resources Emergency (CARE) Act (S. 2700), which would begin treating the opioid crisis like the public health emergency it is. (Ryan Hampton, 6/13)
The occurrence of Alzheimer's disease in African Americans is 64 percent higher than in whites. It is also the 4th leading cause of death among African Americans. This could be attributed to the fact that African Americans are more likely to have the presence of risk factors often associated with increased vulnerability to the disease. These include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, stroke and type 2 diabetes mellitus. (Ishan C. Williams, 6/12)
That this medical rumormongering has begun so early in the race may be a sign of Republican desperation. My fellow pundits are already turning to a favorite phrase and calling this a 鈥渄og whistle,鈥 but that鈥檚 not fair to dogs or whistles. It鈥檚 too generous an assessment, suggesting that Trump鈥檚 meaning will go over many voters鈥 heads. No, it will go straight into their brains, making them wonder if Biden suffers from some medical condition that Trump and other Washington insiders know about but that they don鈥檛. (Frank Bruni, 6/11)
The belief that expanding cannabis access plays a role in mitigating opioid use and abuse came under fire this week after a newly published paper in the journal PLoS ONE failed to replicate observational findings initially documenting this trend. ... But before jumping to any conclusions based upon the findings of any single paper, it is important to acknowledge that dozens of additional peer-reviewed studies exist on this topic. Most, but not all, of this literature supports the cannabis substitution theory. (Paul Armentano, 6/12)
The 2 new USPSTF Recommendation Statements underscore the remarkable progress in preventing and treating HIV infection. Together, the health gains in HIV treatment, the resulting reduction in transmission, and PrEP provide the necessary tools to end the HIV epidemic. Success in the next chapter in confronting this epidemic demands that these tools be widely accessible and used. The USPSTF Recommendation Statements should help make this happen. (Paul A. Volberding, 6/13)
Ra煤l is a happy preschooler, tumbling around among 4- and 5-year-olds, but something is off. It鈥檚 not his behavior, for it鈥檚 the same as that of the other little kids. Rather, it鈥檚 his face. The baby fat is gone, and although he鈥檚 only 3 feet 5 inches tall, the height of an average 5-year-old, an older face seems grafted on. Sure enough, Ra煤l turns out to be 9. Malnutrition has left his body and mind badly stunted. (Nicholas Kristof, 6/12)
When the University of Alabama decided to return a $21.5 million donation to investor Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. and remove his name from its law school, Mr. Culverhouse claimed it was retaliation for his speaking out against Alabama鈥檚 new abortion law. But the university鈥檚 decision had nothing to do with abortion. Mr. Culverhouse made the gift last September, but it ended up being conditional. (Steven J. Arango, 6/12)
