First Edition: December 16, 2014
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
USA Today:
Call Center Wait Won't Stop Jan. 1 Insurance Coverage
Insurance agents and consumers faced longer than usual wait times on the federal HealthCare.gov call center's lines Monday, the deadline for insurance that takes effect Jan. 1 — and many were told they would get a returned call up to a week after the deadline, associations representing agents said late Monday. Consumers phone the call center when they have questions or issues with the site or to reset their passwords. (O'Donnell, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Healthcare.gov Holds Up Amid Enrollment Surge
Consumers rushed to meet a Monday deadline for picking or changing Affordable Care Act health plans for the new year, creating a surge of visitors to HealthCare.gov that tested the revamped site. The federal enrollment portal, which was hobbled by technical problems last year, appeared to hold up well despite a swell in volume, according to people familiar with its operation. Some state-run insurance sites extended enrollment deadlines and in-person sign-up hours due to heavy last-minute demand. (Armour and Radnofsky, 12/15)
Los Angeles Times:
Covered California Extends Deadline To Sign Up For Obamacare
California's health insurance exchange extended its deadline for consumers who want Obamacare coverage in effect beginning Jan. 1. Uninsured rates fell under Obamacare, but who's reaping the benefit? Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California, said people who start the application process or made some "good faith effort" by Monday will have until Dec. 21 to finish signing up. Monday at midnight was the original deadline. (Terhune, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Tennessee Moves To Expand Medicaid
The news comes after months of wrestling between Mr. Haslam and the Obama administration. If finalized, it would make Tennessee the 28th state to expand Medicaid, the federal-state insurance program for the poor, to residents with incomes near the federal poverty level. The expansion must be approved by the state’s GOP-controlled legislature, and requires a final signoff by the Obama administration. (Radnofsky, 12/15)
The New York Times:
With Hospitals Under Stress, Tennessee’s Governor Pursues Medicaid Expansion
Under mounting pressure from financially strapped hospitals, Gov. Bill Haslam of Tennessee proposed on Monday an alternative plan for expanding Medicaid that he said would bring health coverage to tens of thousands more poor residents of his state without following traditional Medicaid rules. (Goodnough, 12/15)
The Washington Post:
Virginia Gov. McAuliffe To Renew Push To Expand Medicaid
Gov. Terry McAuliffe will make a renewed push to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act this week when he presents legislators with a budget plan that calls for extending the government health-care program to 400,000 uninsured Virginians. (Vozzella, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Republican Governors Push To Reshape Welfare Programs
Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, fresh off his re-election, said he would propose his state join several others in mandating drug screening for people seeking nutrition or cash assistance. Utah Republicans want to require that certain residents allow the state to assist them in finding a job if they want to collect benefits through Medicaid, the health-care program for low-income and disabled Americans. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence is proposing Medicaid recipients kick in at least a few dollars a month as a condition for receiving benefits. Critics say the new welfare requirements, particularly drug screening, unfairly target low-income people and are aimed at cutting recipients off the benefit rolls. (Paletta and Peters, 12/15)
The Washington Post:
Surgeon General Nominee Vivek Murthy, Opposed By Gun Lobby, Confirmed
Senators voted 51 to 43 to confirm Vivek Murthy, a Harvard and Yale-educated doctor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, whose nomination had been in limbo amid concerns about his experience, and opposition from the gun lobby. (O'Keefe and Dennis, 12/15)
Los Angeles Times:
Senate Confirms Obama's Surgeon General Despite Gun-Control Views
The Senate confirmed President Obama's controversial choice for surgeon general Monday, a victory for the administration after Republican infighting gave Democrats the upper hand in the final stretch of the lame-duck Congress. The 51-43 vote followed a drama-filled weekend session in which Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) forced senators to cancel plans and file into work as he tried to use a government funding bill as leverage to stop the president's immigration policy. (Mascaro, 12/15)
NPR:
The U.S. Has A Surgeon General, For The First Time In 17 Months
A job that's been open in President Obama's administration since July of 2013 was finally filled Monday, as the Senate voted to confirm Vivek Murthy as America's new surgeon general. The tally was 51-43, ending a confirmation process that began after Obama nominated Murthy to the post in November of 2013 — yes, that's one year ago. (Chapell, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Senate Confirms Vivek Murthy As U.S. Surgeon General
Dr. Murthy’s nomination was opposed by both Republicans and some Democrats over the gun issue, opposition that stalled his confirmation vote for months, leaving the public-health post unfilled while the U.S. government wrestled with issues such as the global Ebola outbreak. His critics said the 37-year-old Dr. Murthy, who was born to Indian immigrant parents and is an associate physician at Brigham and Women’s Physicians Organization in Boston, has been too politically outspoken. In addition to his comments on gun control, which drew the opposition of the National Rifle Association, he also co-founded a group of doctors that advocates in support of the federal health-care law. (Crittenden and Radnofsky, 12/15)
Politico:
Ted Cruz Trolled Over Surgeon General Vote
The Senate’s confirmation of Vivek Murthy to surgeon general on Monday gave Democrats a chance to troll GOP firebrand Ted Cruz on twitter. (12/15)
Los Angeles Times:
Unequal Treatment: Where Employers Use Quality Control To Shape Healthcare
Forty miles north of Seattle, in the largest building in the world, Boeing assembles its biggest commercial airliners. Thousands of workers on a 98-acre factory floor piece together hulking wings and fuselage pieces, miles of electrical wiring and millions of rivets on a production line so precisely choreographed that Boeing can roll out a new jet every other day. The largest plane built here, the 747, has some 6 million parts. With similar attention to detail, Boeing has helped shape medical care in and around Seattle, one of the healthiest regions of the country. ... Boeing and other major employers here, including Starbucks and Costco, have aggressively pushed local hospitals and doctors to meet the kinds of rigorous standards they use to build airplanes or brew coffee. (Levey, 12/15)
ProPublica/USA Today:
Doctors Prescribing Most Potent Painkillers Face Scrutiny
Doctors who are the most prolific prescribers of powerful narcotic painkillers and stimulants often have worrisome records, a ProPublica analysis of Medicare data shows. In 2012, 12 of Medicare's top 20 prescribers of drugs such as oxycodone, fentanyl, morphine and Ritalin have faced disciplinary actions by their state medical boards or criminal charges related to their medical practices, and another had documents seized from his office by federal agents. These drugs have a high potential for abuse and are classified as Schedule 2 controlled substances by the Drug Enforcement Administration. (Ornstein and Grochowski Jones, 12/15)
The New York Times:
The Odd Math Of Medical Tests: One Scan, Two Prices, Both High
Testing has become to the United States’ medical system what liquor is to the hospitality industry: a profit center with large and often arbitrary markups. From a medical perspective, blood work, tests and scans are tools to help physicians diagnose and monitor disease. But from a business perspective, they are opportunities to bring in revenue — especially because the equipment to perform them has generally become far cheaper, smaller and more highly mechanized in the past two decades. (Rosenthal, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Court Rules On Alzheimer’s Drug
A federal court judge issued an injunction Monday that prevents Actavis PLC from pulling an older version of its Namenda medication for Alzheimer’s disease from pharmacy shelves in favor of a newer version of the drug. The case involves a controversial tactic in the pharmaceutical industry to manage a product’s life cycle. (Silverman, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Funding The Next Alzheimer’s Fight
Daniel S. Loeb is making an investment into Alzheimer’s research that he hopes will have maximum impact. On Tuesday, Mount Sinai Hospital and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai will announce a $15 million gift from Mr. Loeb—founder and chief executive of hedge fund firm Third Point LLC—to fund the Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer’s disease. (West, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
How FDA Approved Hysterectomy Tools It Now Disfavors
The Food and Drug Administration’s warning last month was unusual: Doctors shouldn’t use a common surgical tool on most women because it can spread hidden uterine cancer. A year earlier, the FDA had no official concerns about laparoscopic power morcellators, which it began approving in 1991. (Kamp and Burton, 12/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
WellCare Names Operating Chief Burdick As CEO
WellCare Health Plans Inc. has appointed Chief Operating Officer Kenneth A. Burdick as its new chief executive, a year after firing Alec Cunningham over differing perspectives. Mr. Burdick, who was 55 years old as of April’s proxy filing, replaces Chairman David J. Gallitano, who has served as interim CEO since November 2013. ...Tampa, Florida-based WellCare focuses on government-backed health-care programs, expanding its business with several acquisitions of Medicaid-focused plans in recent years. Drug costs have weighed on health insurers’ results, in general, particularly with expensive hepatitis C treatments hitting the market. (Chen, 12/15)
Los Angeles Times:
Supreme Court Turns Down Arizona Appeal To Limit Abortion Drugs
The Supreme Court on Monday turned down Arizona's bid to limit how doctors prescribe drugs that are commonly used in early abortions. The justices in an unsigned order dismissed an appeal from Arizona state lawyers and let stand a lower court ruling that blocked the abortion regulation from taking effect. (Savage, 12/15)
The Washington Post:
Supreme Court Declines To Review Appellate Decision Blocking Arizona Abortion Law
Arizona said the new restrictions in the law were meant to protect women’s health. But the groups challenging the law said it would make it extremely difficult for some women to obtain medical abortions, which are used in the earliest stages of pregnancy. (Barnes, 12/15)
NPR:
Supreme Court Refuses To Limit Abortion Drug's Use
The U.S. Supreme Court has blocked enforcement of an Arizona law aimed at limiting use of the increasingly popular abortion pill. In 2012 nearly half of the abortions in the state were via the pill, known as RU-486. The pill was approved by the FDA in 2000 for the first seven weeks of pregnancy. Since then, scientists have developed safer and smaller doses that allow the drug to be used through the ninth week. (Totenberg, 12/15)
The Washington Post:
Defense Spending Bill Would Put Mental-Health Experts On Discharge Boards
Military personnel facing less-than-honorable discharge would have their cases reviewed by at least one mental-health professional under the defense-spending bill that Congress sent to President Obama late last week. The requirement, attached to this year’s National Defense Authorization Act, was inspired by war veteran Kristofer Goldsmith, who says he was removed from service without a proper diagnosis. (Hicks, 12/15)
The New York Times:
Death In Bronx Shows Vulnerability Of State’s Nursing Home Residents
The death, which was ruled a homicide by the medical examiner, underscores the vulnerability of frail nursing home residents in New York State, where rates of substandard care, neglect and abuse are high, according to national studies. Advocates for elderly and disabled residents complain that state enforcement has dwindled in recent years, even as private companies have been on a buying spree, acquiring nonprofit facilities and often cutting staff to enhance profit margins. (Schlossberg and Bernstein, 12/15)