First Edition: February 16, 2016
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
In Freddie Gray’s Neighborhood, The Best Medical Care Is Close But Elusive
Pushed by once-unthinkable shifts in how they are reimbursed, Baltimore’s famous medical institutions say they are trying harder than ever to improve the health of their lower-income neighbors in West Baltimore. But dozens of interviews with patients, doctors and local leaders show multiple barriers between the community and the glassy hospital towers a few blocks away. (Hancock, 2/16)
Capital News Service:
Hospital Trying To Win Community’s Trust
Dr. Samuel Ross had been CEO of Bon Secours Health System for three months when he went to a dinner party in 2006 and first heard the name some Baltimoreans use for the hospital. They called it “Bon Se-Killer.” Ross says the reputation is based partially on urban myth, spread largely by people who’ve never walked through the hospital’s doors. ... But Joyce Smith, who has been an activist in West Baltimore for 30 years, said the nickname reflects larger problems with medical services in her neighborhood." (Bluth and Greenwald, 2/16)
Capital News Service:
At Clinic, Poverty Magnifies Health Problems
In Baltimore’s poorer neighborhoods, where problems are plentiful and solutions scarce, Total Health Care strives to correct disparities in access and treatment long faced by people who struggle to get by. Total Health Care is the result of the 1989 merger of West Baltimore Community Health Care Corporation and Constant Care Community Health Center, Inc. Its mission is to provide comprehensive, quality care to the low-income, medically underserved population. (Burns, 2/16)
Capital News Service:
Quest For Blood Pressure Cuff Highlights Inequality
The doctor told Sharlene Adams to get a blood pressure cuff, so Adams set out to buy one. For Adams, who lives in West Baltimore, that meant four bus rides, a stop for a doctor’s signature, two visits to a downtown pharmacy for other medical supplies, a detour to borrow money for a copay, a delay when a bus broke down, and, at last, a purchase at a pharmacy on the east side of town. The one-way, 7-mile trip took 5 1/2 hours. Then she had to get back home. (Bluth, 2/16)
Kaiser Health News:
Delay Of New Health Law Forms May Confuse Some Taxpayers
As the 2015 tax filing season gets underway, tax preparers said a delay in new health law tax forms is causing confusion for some consumers, while others want details about exemptions from increasingly stiff penalties for not having insurance. ... This is the first year that employers, insurers and government programs are required to send consumers tax forms that report whether they offered or provided health insurance that was considered affordable and adequate under the law. (Andrews, 2/16)
The Associated Press:
Obama Faces Political Puzzle In Naming Scalia Successor
For most presidents, choosing a Supreme Court nominee is a puzzle. For President Barack Obama, the chance to pick a successor to Justice Antonin Scalia is more like a Gordian Knot. ... His nominee would almost certainly support abortion rights, consideration of race in college admissions and other areas of public life, limits on campaign contributions and stronger rights of labor unions — all issues that have divided the court's liberal and conservative justices on a 5-4 margin. (2/15)
The New York Times:
Scalia’s Absence Is Likely To Alter Court’s Major Decisions This Term
Justice Antonin Scalia’s death will complicate the work of the Supreme Court’s eight remaining justices for the rest of the court’s term, probably change the outcomes of some major cases and, for the most part, amplify the power of its four-member liberal wing. ... In the major abortion case the court will hear next month, Justice Scalia’s absence may have no consequence. Abortion rights groups already had reason to think, based on an earlier vote on a stay application in the case, that there are five votes to strike down some of the law’s restrictions. A 4-to-4 split in the case, Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, No. 15-274, would be a loss for those groups, as the restrictions in Texas would then go into place. But Justice Scalia’s death seems to make a more restrictive revision of the constitutional standards nationwide quite unlikely, as the court’s four liberals would not go along. (Liptak, 2/14)
NPR:
Scalia's Death May Mean Texas Abortion Case Won't Set U.S. Precedent
The U.S. Supreme Court next month is scheduled to hear its biggest abortion case in at least a decade, and the reach of that decision will likely be impacted by the absence of Justice Antonin Scalia, who died over the weekend. A Texas law requires that doctors have local admitting privileges, and that clinics make costly building upgrades to operate like out-patient surgical centers. Numerous other states have passed similar laws, and Scalia was widely expected to provide a fifth vote to uphold such restrictions. Without him, it may not change much for Texas. A 4-4 split in the court would leave in place the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that upheld these provisions. (Ludden, 2/15)
The Associated Press:
Results In Key Cases Could Change With Scalia's Death
The Supreme Court abhors even numbers. But that's just what the court will have to deal with, perhaps for many months, after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia. Eight justices will decide what to do, creating the prospect of 4-4 ties. ... The Supreme Court will be looking at the health care law for the fourth time since its 2010 enactment. ... A tie vote here would sow rather than alleviate confusion because the appellate courts that have looked at the issue have not all come out the same way. That prospect suggests that Justice Anthony Kennedy will join the court's four liberal justices to uphold the arrangement, Supreme Court lawyer Thomas Goldstein said. (2/15)
The Washington Post:
These Are The Key Cases Facing The Supreme Court After Scalia’s Death
The death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia casts a cloud of uncertainty over a Supreme Court term filled with some of the most controversial issues facing the nation: abortion, affirmative action, the rights of religious objectors to the contraceptive mandate in the Affordable Care Act, and the president’s powers on immigration and deportation. ... Before the court is another challenge to the Affordable Care Act, this time over whether religiously affiliated organizations such as universities, hospitals and charities can be free from playing any role in providing their employees with contraceptive coverage. Most appeals courts that have decided the controversy found in favor of the Obama administration. But one did not. Presumably, a split court would mean the law is interpreted differently depending on the region of the country. (Barnes, 2/14)
The Associated Press:
Major Cases Heard By Or Scheduled For The Supreme Court
Some of the major cases heard or scheduled to be heard this term by the Supreme Court. Justice Antonin Scalia's death casts uncertainty on the court's term. No rulings have been issued in any of these cases. ... In a case argued in November, faith-based hospitals, colleges and charities objected to the process the Obama administration had devised to spare them from paying for contraceptives for women covered under their health plans while ensuring that those women can obtain birth control at no extra cost. The groups complain that they remain complicit in making available the contraceptives in violation of their religious beliefs. (2/14)
Los Angeles Times:
What Happens With A Divided Supreme Court? A Look At The Key Cases
The sudden death of Justice Antonin Scalia will have an immediate impact on numerous cases now pending before the Supreme Court, including several that were expected to split along ideological or political lines with 5-4 votes. Instead, some of those votes now could deadlock, 4 to 4, meaning a lower court’s last ruling on the issue will stand. ... The court in early March is set to hear a case testing whether conservative states such as Texas can adopt stringent medical regulations that would force many abortion clinics to close down. A U.S. appeals court upheld the state’s regulations, but then the justices blocked them from taking effect by a 5-4 vote, with Justice Anthony M. Kennedy in the majority and Scalia in dissent. If Kennedy joins with the four liberals, the court could strike down the Texas regulations by a 5-3 vote. But if he joins with the conservatives to rule for Texas, the court would be split 4 to 4 and unable to issue a ruling. (Savage, 2/13)
The Washington Post:
Scalia Battle Reflects Politicization Of Court’s Role
The rancorous debate over picking a replacement for Justice Antonin Scalia reflects in many ways a growing public skepticism toward the U.S. Supreme Court itself, as its image has evolved from impartial arbiter of the laws to yet another politicized institution. ... In part, the Republicans’ determination to block President Obama’s chance at a nomination that could leave a lasting mark on the court reflects their fury over how its current conservative majority has allowed same-sex marriage to become the law of the land and has refused to gut the health-care law that is Obama’s signature domestic achievement. (Tumulty, 2/15)
The New York Times:
More Republicans Say They’ll Block Supreme Court Nominee
Senate Republicans on Monday began to close ranks behind a vow by Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, to block consideration of any nominee to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, who died over the weekend, for the remainder of President Obama’s term. ... The coming clash on Capitol Hill is a testament to the stakes: A president has a chance to establish a clear liberal majority on the Supreme Court. That could shift the direction of legal thought on a wide variety of issues like climate change, gay rights, affirmative action, abortion, immigration, gun control, campaign finance and labor unions. (Shear and Steinhauer, 2/15)
The New York Times:
Republican Debate Takeaways: Saturday Night Fighting
The Republican candidates debated on Saturday night as if it were one last chance to break through and take down their opponents — and for a few of them, it probably was. ... [Donald Trump] ridiculed Lindsey Graham, South Carolina’s senior senator, and described Planned Parenthood as a group that provides important health services to women. (He said he disapproved of its role performing abortions.) ... Mr. Kasich continued to call for a lower-key and more genial race, defended his decision to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act and said that government has a compassionate role to play in people’s lives, arguing, “Economic growth is not an end unto itself.” (Burns, 2/14)
The Wall Street Journal:
GOP Hopefuls Take Gloves Off At South Carolina Debate
Donald Trump, facing his toughest scrutiny to date, made his biggest gamble yet in a campaign defined by his convention-busting tactics: trying to win the Republican nomination by attacking the last GOP president. During a heated exchange with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Mr. Trump blamed Mr. Bush’s brother for not stopping the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. ... The ninth Republican presidential debate Saturday in Greenville, S.C., was the most personal, with the candidates frequently shouting over each other and calling each other liars. Mr. Bush locked horns with Ohio Gov. John Kasich over the latter’s decision to expand Medicaid in his state. (O'Connor, Reinhard and Hook, 2/13)
The New York Times:
Left-Leaning Economists Question Cost Of Bernie Sanders’s Plans
With his expansive plans to increase the size and role of government, Senator Bernie Sanders has provoked a debate not only with his Democratic rival for president, Hillary Clinton, but also with liberal-leaning economists who share his goals but question his numbers and political realism. The reviews of some of these economists, especially on Mr. Sanders’s health care plans, suggest that Mrs. Clinton could have been too conservative in their debate last week when she said his agenda in total would increase the size of the federal government by 40 percent. That level would surpass any government expansion since the buildup in World War II. (Calmes, 2/15)
The Washington Post:
Clinton: Under Sanders, ‘You Would Have To Give Up The Insurance You Have Now’
Hillary Clinton stepped up a criticism of her Democratic presidential opponent, Bernie Sanders, on Sunday night, telling supporters at a rally in the Las Vegas suburbs that the senator from Vermont would replace their insurance plans with something more expensive. "We both share the goal of universal health-care coverage, but he wants to start all over again," Clinton said. "And he wants to have a new system that would be quite challenging because you would have to give up the insurance you have now, and it would cost a lot of money." (Weigel, 2/14)
The New York Times:
Surge In Medicare Advantage Sign-Ups Confounds Expectations
Five years into Medicare spending cuts that were supposed to devastate private Medicare options for older Americans, enrollment in private insurance plans through Medicare has shot up by more than 50 percent, confounding experts and partisans alike and providing possible lessons for the Affordable Care Act’s insurance exchanges. When Congress passed President Obama’s signature health law nearly six years ago, it helped offset the cost by cutting payments to Medicare Advantage plans, offered by private insurers operating under contract with the government. Insurers and Republicans said the cuts — about $150 billion over 10 years — would “gut” the program, a major theme in the 2010 and 2012 elections. The Congressional Budget Office predicted that enrollment would fall about 30 percent. (Pear, 2/12)
USA Today:
Costs, Changes Led Obamacare Enrollment To Fall Far Short Of Estimates
The number of people who signed up for health insurance for 2016 on the state and federal exchanges was up to 40% lower than earlier government and private estimates, which some say is evidence that the plans are too expensive and that people would rather pay a penalty than buy them. Just 12.7 million signed up for plans by the end of open enrollment Jan. 31 and about 1 million people are expected to drop their plans — or be dropped when they don't pay their premiums. (O'Donnell, 2/15)
The Washington Post:
Mysterious And Fast-Moving, Zika Virus Has World’s Health Leaders Scrambling
Global health authorities and government officials are mobilizing to battle the fast-spreading Zika virus, sending rapid-response teams to affected regions, issuing travel warnings for pregnant women, accelerating vaccine trials and even deploying mosquito-fighting troops to hard-hit areas in Brazil. Stung by criticism that the world’s response to the Ebola epidemic was halting and disjointed, officials in Latin America, the United States and Europe say they are determined to do better against a new foe that, in some ways, is more daunting than the hemorrhagic virus that killed 11,000 people in West Africa. (Sun and Dennis, 2/13)
The Washington Post:
Venezuela Faces ‘Worst-Case Scenario’ As Zika Outbreak Expands
In the crowded waiting room of the Vargas de Caracas hospital, the walls are decorated with peppy pro-government slogans: “It’s only possible with socialism.” But the Zika epidemic has struck as the socialist-ruled country is spiraling into economic chaos and the public health system has been stripped of many basic tools of modern medicine. Hospital patients get wheeled past closets overflowing with trash. Stray dogs wander the hospital grounds. Doctors perform surgery without sutures and gauze. (Partlow, 2/15)
The New York Times:
Catholic Leaders Say Zika Doesn’t Change Ban On Contraception
As the Zika virus spreads in Latin America, Catholic leaders are warning women against using contraceptives or having abortions, even as health officials in some countries are advising women not to get pregnant because of the risk of birth defects. The challenge posed by Zika for the Roman Catholic Church comes as Pope Francis is making his first trip to Mexico, where the virus appears to be spreading. After a period of saying little, bishops in Latin America are beginning to speak up and reassert the church’s opposition to birth control and abortion — positions that in Latin America are unpopular and often disregarded, even among Catholics. (Goldstein, 2/13)
The New York Times:
Zika Virus Test Is ‘Weeks, Not Years’ Away, W.H.O. Says
Scientists are “weeks, not years” from developing a test for the fast-spreading Zika virus, but large-scale clinical trials for a potential vaccine are at least 18 months away, the World Health Organization announced on Friday. The W.H.O. declared Zika a global public health emergency on Feb. 1, only the fourth time it had raised such an alert. (Chan, 2/12)
NPR:
American Samoa Says It Has 205 Suspected Cases Of Zika
There are currently more than 200 suspected cases of Zika virus in American Samoa, local officials say, announcing that the U.S. territory has at least four confirmed cases — including one patient who is pregnant. The territory's acting governor, Lt. Gov. Lemanu Peleti Mauga, "declared a Zika epidemic for American Samoa" after consulting with health officials at the end of last week, Samoa News reports. (Chappell, 2/15)
The New York Times:
Can Health Care Providers Afford To Be Ready For Disaster?
More than 200 people died in hospitals and nursing homes in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, leading to widespread agreement that health care preparedness in the United States needed dramatic improvement. The chaotic evacuations of more than 6,400 hospital and nursing-home patients in New York City after Hurricane Sandy in 2012 reinforced concern about the readiness of health care providers during emergencies. Despite repeated calls for change, however, and billions of dollars in disaster-related costs for health care providers, federal rules do not require that critical medical institutions make even minimal preparations for major emergencies, from hurricanes, earthquakes and tornadoes to bioterrorist attacks and infectious epidemics such as Ebola and Zika. (Fink, 2/13)
The Wall Street Journal:
Florida Insurance Regulator Approves Aetna’s Acquisition Of Humana
Florida’s insurance regulator approved Aetna Inc.’s acquisition of Humana Inc., and required no divestitures, an important win for the companies from a state that is a key market. The $34 billion deal still needs to win approval from the federal Justice Department’s antitrust officials, likely the most important hurdle, as well as other states. But Florida is a cornerstone of Humana’s Medicare franchise, so its review was closely watched. (Wilde Mathews, 2/15)
The Washington Post:
Dozens Of Groups Subpoenaed As House Fetal Tissue Probe Accelerates
A special House committee formed amid the debate over Planned Parenthood’s handling of fetal tissue has launched a broad investigation into the matter, requesting documents from more than 30 agencies and organizations, including some of the nation’s most prominent research institutions. Critics have raised concerns about the breadth of the Republican-led inquiry and are worried about the privacy implications of the wide-ranging requests. (DeBonis, 2/15)
Politico:
Gene Editing: The Next Frontier In America’s Abortion Wars
Activists on both sides of the abortion debate now have a common enemy — the use of a powerful new gene editing technology to tinker with the human race. That may seem like an idea from a sci-fi flick, but it’s already here. The gene-editing technique is already used in research and has the potential to modify human DNA with unprecedented ease in the not-too-distant future. British regulators approved limited experiments in human embryos earlier this month. The technology holds promise to cure diseases like cystic fibrosis or sickle cell and even revive extinct species. But critics fear it could also be harnessed to craft “designer babies,” who are more intelligent, beautiful or athletic and to “edit” embryonic cells to change an inherited trait forever. (Karlin, 2/16)
The Wall Street Journal:
Pop-Up Health Clinics Fill A Void In Care
Nicole Lamoureux needs about 1,200 volunteers to help complete her mission: transforming a Dallas convention center into what she calls “the largest doctor’s office in the world—for the one day it’s open.” This temporary mega-doctor’s office—a pop-up clinic, if you will—is part of a growing trend representing an increasingly important piece of the medical safety net in the U.S. Such clinics, staged by nonprofits and funded mostly by individual donors, are an opportunity for doctors to care for patients without worrying about insurance, and for those patients to see a doctor they wouldn’t otherwise get to see. (Simon, 2/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
The High Cost Of Cancer Care May Take Physical And Emotional Toll On Patients
Doctors who supervise cancer treatments have long been concerned about side effects, including fatigue, hair loss and depression. To that list, some now add the potentially harmful effects of costly treatments. Researchers call it “financial toxicity.” The financial burdens that some patients suffer as a result of the cost of their treatments can cause damage to their physical and emotional well-being. Repercussions can include delaying or forgoing the treatment and only partly filling or even avoiding taking prescribed medication. (Ward, 2/15)
The Associated Press:
Cancer Patients Snagged In Health Law's Tangled Paperwork
Walt Whitlow was under treatment for cancer when he got an unwelcome surprise. His financial assistance under President Barack Obama's health care law got slashed. That meant his premium quadrupled and his deductible went from $900 to $4,600. Hundreds of thousands of people lose financial help and even their policies under the health law, because they get tangled in a web of paperwork problems involving income, citizenship and taxes. Some are dealing with serious illnesses like cancer. (2/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Researchers Take Aim At Metastatic Breast Cancer
Scientists and doctors seeking to unravel some of the mysteries behind the deadliest form of breast cancer have put out a call to patients diagnosed with the disease: Please send us your DNA. These researchers are creating a national database of patients’ blood and tumor samples, along with their medical records, to better understand what triggers metastatic, or stage IV, breast cancer and how it might be stopped. (Westervelt, 2/15)
The New York Times:
In Palliative Care, Comfort Is The Top Priority
Perhaps it’s not surprising that many families know little about palliative care; it only became an approved medical specialty in 2007. It has grown rapidly in hospitals: More than 70 percent now offer palliative care services, including 90 percent of those with more than 300 beds. But most ailing patients aren’t in hospitals, and don’t want to be. (Span, 2/12)
The New York Times:
Disparity In Life Spans Of The Rich And The Poor Is Growing
Experts have long known that rich people generally live longer than poor people. But a growing body of data shows a more disturbing pattern: Despite big advances in medicine, technology and education, the longevity gap between high-income and low-income Americans has been widening sharply. The poor are losing ground not only in income, but also in years of life, the most basic measure of well-being. (Tavernise, 2/12)
The Washington Post:
What Do You Do When You Have One Of The Rarest Diseases Around?
Next-generation sequencing technology became commercially available only recently, after the first test was given approval by the Food and Drug Administration in 2013. But scientists and clinicians say it has already identified multiple cases where a patient’s puzzling symptoms turned out to be signs of a rare disease. As this technology gets cheaper and faster, experts say more patients will get tested and find they have rare diseases. They will have the satisfaction of finding out what is causing their symptoms but then will often face a frustrating question: What do you do when diagnosed with a rare disease that has been studied little and has no known treatment, and few other patients to turn to for support? (Mullin, 2/15)
The Associated Press:
Gov. Snyder Seeks More Medicaid Coverage for Flint Residents
Gov. Rick Snyder is asking the federal government to expand Medicaid coverage to people under 21 and pregnant women who have been exposed to Flint's lead-contaminated water. In a statement released Sunday, Snyder says about 15,000 more Flint residents would benefit if the government approves the request. The governor says the state would help by lining up doctors and behavioral health specialists and providing other services. (2/14)
Reuters:
Kentucky Lawmaker Takes Aim At Anti-Abortion Law With 'Viagra' Bill
A Kentucky lawmaker fed up with anti-abortion laws in her state has introduced a bill that would require men seeking erectile dysfunction drugs to visit a doctor twice, get a note from their wives and swear on the Bible to be faithful. Representative Mary Lou Marzian, a Democrat from Louisville who has been a lawmaker for 22 years, told Reuters on Monday the bill is symbolic but she is glad that it has gotten attention because she is trying to make a point about government intrusion. (Ortiz, 2/15)
Los Angeles Times:
Birth Control Pills Without Prescriptions, Coming Soon To California Under New Law
Under a law expected to go into effect by April, women in California will be able to stop by their neighborhood pharmacy and buy birth control pills without a prescription. Proponents argue that easing women's access to birth control will reduce unintended pregnancies, which make up as many as half of all pregnancies nationwide. (Karlamangla, 2/14)
NPR:
Popular Heartburn Pills Can Be Hard To Stop, And May Be Risky
When Marcella Lafayette started having really bad heartburn, she went to her doctor to see if there was anything that might help. Her doctor diagnosed her with gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, and prescribed a drug called a proton pump inhibitor, or PPI. The drug worked, but Lafayette soon started having other problems, such as muscle weakness and severe leg cramping. ... Many people have trouble discontinuing PPIs because the amount of acid in their digestive systems surges when they stop taking the drug. (Stein, 2/15)