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The Trump administration's latest strike on the Affordable Care Act is to expand the availability of so-called short-term health insurance. Don't be misled by the seeming modesty of this idea. It's an impressive combination of bad policy and bad faith. First, these aren't short-term plans at all. They'd provide coverage for up to a year, much longer than required for the supposed purpose of helping people transition from one insurer to another. Second, the idea will drive up premiums for ordinary health insurance. Third, and most important, it undermines the ACA's worthy ambition to see that all Americans can get decent health insurance. Unfortunately, the administration can make this change without getting a law passed. One hopes, therefore, that the plan will be struck down by the courts or countered by state governments. (2/23)

For months, health-care experts have been warily watching the Department of Health and Human Services, waiting to see whether the Trump administration would accelerate its reckless campaign to dismantle Obamacare. Last week, they got their answer: The department proposed a disastrous rule that would promote even more turmoil in health insurance markets and harm some extremely vulnerable people. (2/25)

The federal government is threatening to limit treatment options for doctors fighting cancer. A regulatory decision due Wednesday from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services could undermine the care delivered to the more than 1.6 million Americans who are diagnosed with cancer each year. At issue is whether reimbursements will be available to most physicians, hospitals and patients for a diagnostic technology known as next-generation sequencing. A cornerstone of the emerging field of precision medicine, NGS tests analyze molecular changes that occur in cancerous tumors and show up in biopsies. (Olivier Elemento, 2/25)

In a medical mecca like Boston, which is home to three medical schools and many world-class hospitals, you’d think that getting a timely appointment with a primary care physician or specialist would be a breeze. It isn’t. Finding a doctor is even harder in rural and underserved areas. Yet the public debate on health care remains focused on insurance and funding, and largely ignores the undersupply of health care professionals. Access to care means more than adequate insurance. (Jeffrey S. Flier, 2/26)

As I read about Gov. Matt Bevin’s proposal to end state funding for 70 programs because they “weren’t vital or haven’t provided a good return on investment,” I realized that Professional Education Preparation within the Council on Postsecondary Education — better known as PEPP — was on this list. Bevin must not realize what a gem this program is to our state or what purpose it serves, and what a grave mistake it would be to cut it. Since 1982, PEPP has been providing students from rural counties with a head start in the pre-medical and pre-dental fields. The goal is to better prepare students from rural areas to enter a professional field, and increase the number of physicians and dentists later practicing in underserved areas. (Emily Nichols, 2/23)

Hospitals are disappearing. While they may never completely go away, they will continue to shrink in number and importance. That is inevitable and good. The reputation of hospitals has had its ups and downs. Benjamin Rush, a surgeon general of the Continental Army, called the hospitals of his day the “sinks of human life.” Through the 19th century, most Americans were treated in their homes. Hospitals were a last resort, places only the very poor or those with no family went. And they went mainly to die. (Ezekiel J. Emanuel, 2/25)

Among opioid-addicted women, nearly nine out of 10 pregnancies are unplanned. This staggering number is less surprising given that more than 19 million American women live in contraceptive deserts--meaning they lack reasonable access to public clinics offering contraceptive methods. In addition, many women are not aware of all the birth control methods available. (Deborah Pryce, 2/25)

The United States is in the midst of at least two plagues with much in common. One is gun-fueled mass murder; the other is addiction to opioids — pain pills, heroin, fentanyl. Both are uniquely American afflictions, killing in alarming numbers. Both are revved in part by commercial interests and in part by the collapse of community in American culture. Both persist because of the erroneous belief that there’s an easy answer to these complicated problems. (Sam Guinone, 2/24)

An overdose is often a lonely way to die. Overdoses happen when a toxic amount of a drug, or a combination of drugs, overwhelms the body’s basic functions, first slowing and eventually stopping the brain’s drive to breathe. If someone notices the signs of an overdose — lips turning blue, restricted pupils, unresponsiveness, a loss of consciousness, among others — it can generally be reversed with drugs like naloxone, which saves thousands of lives a year. But someone must be there to notice. (2/24)

Elderly Kansans who are so poor as to be eligible for Medicaid already face innumerable challenges. Now, The Star reports, changes the state has made to its Medicaid application and renewal process have only added another brick to their load. The changes have created a virtual maze for destitute seniors seeking medical help. (2/25)

I remember the first time my daughter discovered her hand. The look of amazement on her face was priceless. It wasn’t long before she was putting that discovery to use, trying to put everything she could find into her mouth. Babies want to feed themselves. It sometimes feels as if parents spend more time trying to stop them than encouraging them. Over the last few years, however, some people have begun to ask if we are doing the right thing. (Aaron E. Carroll, 2/26)

The 96-year-old patient with pneumonia in Bed 11 was angry. “Do you really need to check my vital signs every four hours?” he asked. ...Treating and healing are both necessary, but modern health care too often disregards the latter.Few understand this better than the patient in Bed 11. He turned out to be Bernard Lown, emeritus professor of cardiology at Harvard, a senior physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and the founder of the Lown Cardiovascular Group. (Rich Joseph, 2/24)