First Edition: July 3, 2018
NOTE TO READERS: KHN's First Edition will not be published July 4. Look for it again in your inbox July 5. Here's today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
Out-Of-Pocket Costs Put HIV Prevention Drug Out Of Reach For Many At Risk
Public health officials are expanding efforts to get the HIV prevention pill into the hands of those at risk, in a nationwide effort to curb infections. But the officials are hitting roadblocks — the drug’s price tag, which has surged in recent years, and changes in insurance coverage that put a heftier financial burden on patients. Since brand-name Truvada was approved for HIV prevention six years ago, its average wholesale price has increased by about 45 percent. Now, the drug — which rakes in billions of dollars in annual global revenue for its manufacturer, Gilead Sciences — carries a list price of close to $2,000 for a 30-day supply. (Luthra and Gorman, 7/3)
Kaiser Health News:
Despite U.S. Court’s Ruling, Medicaid Work Requirements Advance In Other States
The fallout from Friday’s federal court ruling that struck down the Medicaid work requirement in Kentucky was swift. The decision by Judge James Boasberg immediately blocked Kentucky from enacting the provision in Campbell County, which had been set to start Sunday and roll out statewide later this year. (Galewitz, 7/2)
Kaiser Health News:
Immigrant Families Placed In Detention Centers Face Health Care Challenges
The White House’s plan to indefinitely detain immigrant families together threatens the care of young children, experts worry, by placing them with an agency with little experience in handling such complex needs.Previously, the administration’s “zero-tolerance” immigration stance meant splitting children from parents, including 2,322 children 12 and under, and placing the children in facilities run by the Department of Health and Human Service. (Luthra and Taylor, 7/2)
Kaiser Health News:
More Nurse Practitioners Now Pursue Residency Programs To Hone Skills
The patient at the clinic was in his 40s and had lost both his legs to Type 1 diabetes. He had mental health and substance abuse problems and was taking large amounts of opioids to manage pain. He was assigned to Nichole Mitchell, who in 2014 was a newly minted nurse practitioner in her first week of a one-year postgraduate residency program at the Community Health Center clinic in Middletown, Conn. In a regular clinical appointment, “I would have been given 20 minutes with him, and would have been without the support or knowledge of how to treat pain or Type 1 diabetes,” she said. (Andrews, 7/3)
The Associated Press:
Trump Talks To 4 Possible Court Nominees As Interviews Begin
President Donald Trump has interviewed four prospective Supreme Court justices and had plans to meet with a few more as his White House aggressively mobilizes to select a replacement for retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy. Eager to build suspense, Trump wouldn't divulge whom he's talking to in advance of his big announcement, set for July 9. But he promised that "they are outstanding people. They are really incredible people in so many different ways, academically and in every other way. I had a very, very interesting morning." (7/3)
The Hill:
Collins Voices Skepticism That New Supreme Court Will Overturn Roe V. Wade
GOP Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) is voicing skepticism that the Supreme Court will overturn the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion regardless of who is confirmed to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy. In an interview with "The Daily" podcast that was posted on Monday, Collins said she believes Chief Justice John Roberts could be a vote against overturning the ruling. (Carney, 7/2)
The Hill:
Pro-Abortion Rights Activists Sending Coat Hangers To GOP Senator: Report
Pro-abortion rights activists are reportedly sending Republican Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) wire coat hangers in the mail in an effort to press her to vote against any Supreme Court nominee who would overturn Roe v. Wade. The Cut reported Monday that advocates are sending Collins wire coat hangers as a graphic reminder of some of the steps historically taken when access to abortion has been restricted (Gstalter, 7/2)
Politico:
Liberal Group Launches $5 Million Push Against Trump’s SCOTUS Pick
A new group aiming to serve as a liberal counterweight to the right on judicial nominations plans to spend $5 million opposing President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court pick. Demand Justice will invest in radio, TV, digital and voter mobilization, an official said. The campaign will focus on Maine and Alaska, homes of moderate Senate Republicans Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, respectively, as well as Indiana, North Dakota and West Virginia, where vulnerable Senate Democrats are seeking reelection. (Everett, 7/2)
Politico:
The List Won Trump The White House. Now Democrats Are Using It Against Him.
It’s the list that won him the presidency. President Donald Trump’s widely publicized list of potential Supreme Court nominees brought conservative doubters — including evangelicals — to the highly unconventional Republican nominee’s side. It prevented them from fleeing as the “Access Hollywood” tape threatened to tank Trump’s campaign. And it reassured them throughout Trump’s turbulent presidency, especially when he pulled from it to ensure Justice Neil Gorsuch’s smooth ascent to the high court. (Woellert and Cadelago, 7/2)
Politico:
How Amy Coney Barrett Vaulted Onto Trump’s Supreme Court Shortlist
If nominated to replace Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett may have Sen. Dianne Feinstein to thank. A confrontation with the California senator during her confirmation hearing to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals last October vaulted Barrett, 46, onto the national stage. As Feinstein pressed her on whether she would be able to render judicial rulings faithful to the law given her deeply held religious beliefs, Barrett became a hero to religious conservatives who believe liberal Democrats target them for their faith. (Johnson, 7/2)
The Associated Press:
Things To Know About Abortion And The Supreme Court
Abortion rights is emerging as a litmus test for the next Supreme Court nominee, with Democrats and at least one moderate Republican declaring they wouldn't support a nominee who opposes the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that established a woman's right to abortion. But there's less here than meets the eye. Here's why. (Flaherty, 7/2)
The Wall Street Journal:
Chief Justice Roberts Moves To Man In The Middle On The Supreme Court
Though John Roberts has been chief justice of the United States for 13 years, this fall’s term may see the true birth of the Roberts Court. With the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, Chief Justice Roberts will be the new man in the middle on the Supreme Court. He will have four steadfastly liberal justices on his left and likely four deeply conservative ones to his right, including a second justice appointed by President Donald Trump. (Kendall, 7/2)
The Washington Post:
More Americans Pay For ACA Health Plans, Despite Trump Administration Moves To Undercut Law
The number of Americans who bought and began to pay for Affordable Care Act health plans grew slightly this year, despite repeated efforts by the Trump administration to undermine the insurance marketplaces created under the law, new federal figures show. As of February, a month after the start of 2018 coverage, 10.6 million people had paid premiums for ACA health insurance, about 3 percent more than the year before, according to enrollment analyses released Monday by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). (Goldstein, 7/2)
The New York Times:
When Health Insurance Prices Rose Last Year, Around A Million Americans Dropped Coverage
Last year, as insurance prices rose by an average of just over 20 percent around the country, people who qualified for Obamacare subsidies hung onto their insurance. But the increases appear to have been too much to bear for many customers who earned too much to qualify for financial help. According to a new government report, about a million people appear to have been priced out of the market for health insurance last year. (Sanger-Katz, 7/3)
The Associated Press:
Kentucky Cuts Vision, Dental Care For Up To 460,000 People
Gov. Matt Bevin's administration cut dental and vision coverage for as many as 460,000 Kentuckians after his Medicaid overhaul plan was rejected in court. The state Cabinet for Health and Family Services called the cuts an "unfortunate consequence" of Friday's ruling by a federal judge. Democrats and advocates for the poor condemned the Republican governor's move as rash and possibly illegal. The cuts were announced during the weekend. (Schreiner, 7/2)
The Hill:
Ky. Governor Cancels Medicaid Dental, Vision Benefits After Losing Work Requirement Ruling
Democrats denounced the move and said they did not think Bevin had the legal authority to cancel the benefits. “He said he wants to take dental and vision coverage away,” Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.), said Monday at a press conference. “We don't think that's legal either.” Under Bevin’s Medicaid proposal, along with work requirements, enrollees would have had to earn dental and vision benefits through completing activities like taking classes or searching for a job. (Sullivan, 7/2)
Reuters:
Trump Administration Names New U.S. Drug Enforcement Chief
The Trump administration on Monday named a top White House lawyer as the new head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration after the agency's prior acting administrator announced his retirement last month. Uttam Dhillon, who most recently served as deputy White House counsel, was named as the DEA's acting administrator at a time when the agency is devoting much of its attention to grappling with a national opioid epidemic. (Raymond, 7/2)
The New York Times:
Why Amazon’s Push Into Prescription Drugs Isn’t A Guaranteed Success
When Amazon announced last week that it was buying the online pharmacy PillPack, it sent stocks of drugstore companies like Walgreens and Rite Aid tumbling, as investors worried that the retail behemoth would soon upend the pharmacy market. But even though Amazon has transformed the way Americans buy products as different as books and diapers, it may not have such an easy time with prescription drugs. That’s because to succeed, it will have to do business with powerful entrenched companies who are not necessarily wishing Amazon well. (Thomas and Ballentine, 7/2)
The Wall Street Journal:
Pfizer Raises Prices For Dozens Of Drugs
Pfizer Inc. raised the list prices for more than 40 of its prescription drugs this week, marking a second round of increases this year despite mounting public scrutiny. The increases apply to widely used drugs including lung-cancer treatment Xalkori, Norvasc blood-pressure pills and Lyrica pain capsules, according to drug-pricing data from RELX PLC’s Elsevier information business. Many lift the list prices by 9.4% and by double-digit percentages for the year overall. (Rockoff, 7/2)
The Wall Street Journal:
Why July Is A Risky Month For Drug Price Backlash
Less than two months after its unveiling, President Donald Trump’s plan to lower prescription drug prices is up for a big test. Investors aren’t particularly worried since it stopped short of calling for Medicare to directly negotiate prices with individual drug companies. What is more, the Trump administration has been rolling the plan out at a deliberate pace. (Grant, 7/3)
Stat:
AbbVie And Its Partner Ordered To Pay $448 Million Over Pay-To-Delay Case
In a big win for the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge ordered AbbVie (ABBV) and another company to pay $448 million to consumers for violating antitrust laws and striking deals that delayed lower-cost generic versions of their AndroGel testosterone treatment from reaching the market. The Friday decision comes in response to a lawsuit the FTC filed nearly four years ago in which AbbVie was accused of filing “sham” patent litigation against potential generic rivals, and then entered into an allegedly illegal patent settlement in order to thwart competition. (Silverman, 7/2)
Stat:
Companies Developing Fast-Acting Antidepressants Grapple With Trial Design
As companies race to develop fast-acting antidepressants, they are grappling with how to design clinical trials for a type of drug that doesn’t yet exist. There’s no shortage of interest in the idea: Janssen (JNJ) is testing an esketamine nasal spray, which, when combined with an oral antidepressant, has shown promise in quickly curbing symptoms of serious depression. Allergan (AGN) is developing its own experimental rapid-acting antidepressant, rapastinel, for patients with major depression and those at high risk of suicide. Both act on the brain’s NMDA receptor, which is involved in learning and memory. (Thielking, 7/3)
Stat:
FDA Reprimands Mylan For Shoddy Quality Control At A Key Plant
Several weeks ago, Mylan (MYL) unexpectedly disclosed plans to lay off more than 400 employees at a West Virginia manufacturing plant because the facility needed to be “right-sized and less complex. ”Now we know why. Last Friday, the Food and Drug Administration posted a lengthy inspection report chock-full of troubling manufacturing practices that were observed during an inspection this past March and April. (Silverman, 7/2)
Stat:
Study Find Hierarchies, Gender Dynamics Driving Conflict On Surgical Teams
A team of researchers at Emory University and Kaiser Permanente sat in on 200 surgeries at three different teaching hospitals, and logged each and every social exchange between clinical team members. What they discovered were complicated subcultures in which well-understood hierarchies and gender dynamics contributed to conflict — or helped alleviate it. ... [Laura] Jones and her colleagues found that the gender composition of teams was strongly associated with its level of cooperation. If the attending surgeon was of the opposite gender as that of most other personnel in the OR, cooperation was more common. (Farber, 7/2)
The Washington Post:
Zapping The Brain Appears To Decrease Aggressive Intentions, New Study Says
The possibility of using brain stimulation to help prevent future violence just passed a proof of concept stage, according to new research published Monday in the Journal of Neuroscience. In a double-blind, randomized controlled study, a group of volunteers who received a charge to their dorsolateral prefrontal cortex — the part of the brain that lies directly behind the forehead and is responsible for planning, reasoning and inhibition were — were less likely to say they would consider engaging in aggressive behavior compared to a similar group that received a sham treatment. (Nutt, 7/2)
Stat:
Can Zapping Brains Reduce Violence? Controversial Study Sees Potential
The day before, half of them had had the frontmost region of their brains, responsible for such high-level functions as impulse control and moral judgments, electrically stimulated; the other half had not. The people whose prefrontal cortex was stimulated reported roughly half the likelihood of committing a violent act like the ones they watched, scientists at the University of Pennsylvania reported on Monday; they said they found such physical and sexual violence more morally wrong, compared with the control group. (Begley, 7/2)
The New York Times:
Dead Of AIDS And Forgotten In Potter’s Field
The bodies reached Hart Island on a ferry like all the others, in spare wooden boxes and bound for ignominious mass internment off the coast of the Bronx where New York City buries its unclaimed dead by the hundreds in long, shallow trenches. But when these 17 bodies arrived in 1985, the island’s hardened crews, used to burying dozens of indigent people per week, recoiled. These were different. They had died from a widely feared nascent disease called AIDS, a highly contagious illness with a skyrocketing death toll. (Kilgannon, 7/3)
The New York Times:
The Online Gene Test Finds A Dangerous Mutation. It May Well Be Wrong.
Dr. Joshua Clayton, a 29-year-old radiology resident at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, wanted to learn about his ancestry. So he sent a sample of his saliva to 23andMe, the genetic testing company. His report was pretty mundane — no new revelations. But then he sent the profile created by 23andMe to a separate company called Promethease, which promises to do a more in-depth analysis for genetic mutations that cause disease. The news was not good. Dr. Clayton got back a report with a sinister red box at the top saying he had a mutation linked to Lynch syndrome, a frightening genetic disorder that leads to potentially deadly cancers at an early age. (Kolata, 7/2)
Stat:
Sepsis Is The Third Leading Cause Of Death. Can A Blood Test Change That?
In his spare time, when he feels up to it, Ronnie Roberts walks through hospital parking lots slipping informational flyers onto every windshield.Roberts wants people to know the signs of sepsis, the body’s overwhelming response to a blood infection, which can lead to organ failure and even death. If he had known the signs and insisted that his fiancee was treated appropriately, he believes she’d still be alive. (Weintraub, 7/3)
The New York Times:
How Many Teenage Girls Deliberately Harm Themselves? Nearly 1 In 4, Survey Finds.
Up to 30 percent of teenage girls in some parts of the United States say they have intentionally injured themselves without aiming to commit suicide, researchers have found. About one in four adolescent girls deliberately harmed herself in the previous year, often by cutting or burning, compared to about one in 10 boys. The overall prevalence of self-harm was almost 18 percent. “These numbers are very high for both genders — that surprised me,” said Martin A. Monto, a sociologist at the University of Portland and lead author of the new research. (Baumgaertner, 7/2)
ProPublica:
Documents Raise New Concerns About Lithium Study On Children,
Newly obtained records raise additional concerns about the research and oversight of Dr. Mani Pavuluri, a star pediatric psychiatrist at the University of Illinois at Chicago whose clinical trial studying the effects of the powerful drug lithium on children was shuttered for misconduct. (Cohen, 7/3)
The New York Times:
In Baby Teeth, Links Between Chemical Exposure In Pregnancy And Autism
If you are a parent worrying through pregnancy, or maybe trying to make sense of your child’s neurodevelopmental problems, you aren’t always glad to see another story about a new study looking at possible environmental risk factors. From pesticides in the food to phthalates in the plastics to pollutant particles in the air, so many different exposures have been linked to problems in the developing fetal brain that parents can sometimes feel both bewildered and, inevitably, at fault for failing or having failed to take all possible precautions. (Klass, 7/2)
The New York Times:
Giant Hogweed: A Plant That Can Burn And Blind You. But Don’t Panic.
The nasty effects of touching a giant hogweed — its sap can scar, burn and blind if you come in contact with it — have inspired frightening headlines after the recent discovery of the first confirmed population of the plant in Virginia. The invasive plant’s nefarious reputation is amplified by its size: Giant hogweed can grow to more than 14 feet tall, with leaves five feet wide and stems between two and four inches in diameter. (Zaveri and Hauser, 7/2)
The New York Times:
The Terms On A Food Label To Ignore, And The Ones To Watch For
If your head starts spinning when trying to make healthy and budget-friendly food choices, you’re not alone. Take a look around your local grocery store and you’ll find a slew of confusing terms. Organic. Non-G.M.O. Low-sugar. Superfood. What does it all mean, and how can a normal human shopper possibly make sense of any of it? We asked registered dietitians, food marketers and members of the New York State Agricultural Society for help decoding the labels you see in the grocery store. Let’s break down how to decode the label and get past the marketing into the actual benefits of what we’re buying. (Schumer, 7/3)
The Washington Post:
From Apps To Avatars, New Tools For Taking Control Of Your Mental Health
After a friend's suicide last year, Zach Schleien sought some answers through an online discussion forum. He was riveted by the people who shared their pain, such as the 19-year-old woman who never left her room or the man with schizophrenia trying to manage the warring voices in his head. Schleien started wondering if there was something he could do to help alleviate such suffering. His solution turned out to be simpler than he expected: A Slack channel, a private online community for people in life-or-death struggles reaching out in real time to save one another. (Nutt, 7/2)
The Wall Street Journal:
Do Dietary Supplements Help Or Hurt Children?
More and more children in the U.S. are taking alternative dietary supplements that have scant proven benefits and could pose health risks. According to a recent analysis, the rate of children taking alternative or herbal supplements nearly doubled, to 6.3% from 3.7%, between 2003 and 2014. The increase was fueled by melatonin, a hormone used to aid sleep, and omega-3 fatty acids, or fish-oil supplements, which often are given to children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism despite little evidence that they help. (Reddy, 7/2)
The Associated Press:
Fresh Grounds For Coffee: Study Shows It May Boost Longevity
Go ahead and have that cup of coffee, maybe even several more. New research shows it may boost chances for a longer life, even for those who down at least eight cups daily. In a study of nearly half-a-million British adults, coffee drinkers had a slightly lower risk of death over 10 years than abstainers. The apparent longevity boost was seen with instant, ground and decaffeinated, results that echo U.S. research. It's the first large study to suggest a benefit even in people with genetic glitches affecting how their bodies use caffeine. (7/2)
The New York Times:
Coffee Drinkers May Live Longer
It's not clear exactly how drinking coffee might affect longevity. Lead author Erikka Loftfield, a researcher at the U.S. National Cancer Institute, said coffee contains more than 1,000 chemical compounds including antioxidants, which help protect cells from damage. (Bakalar, 7/2)
The Associated Press:
LA Hospital To Pay $550K In Homeless Patient Dumping Case
A Los Angeles hospital suspected of discharging hundreds of homeless patients and dumping them at bus and train stations instead of shelters or other facilities agreed to pay a $550,000 legal settlement, prosecutors announced Monday. Silver Lake Medical Center, which operates a 118-bed psychiatric facility, agreed to stop the practice and put policies in place to make sure homeless patients are delivered to facilities that can care for them, City Attorney Mike Feuer said. (7/2)
The Associated Press:
Judge Extends Halt To Arkansas Abortion Pills Restriction
A federal judge on Monday extended a halt she had imposed on an Arkansas law that critics say would make the state the first in the nation to effectively ban abortion pills. U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker granted a preliminary injunction preventing Arkansas from enforcing the law, which says doctors who provide the pills must hold a contract with a physician with admitting privileges at a hospital who agrees to handle any complications. (7/2)
Los Angeles Times:
Healthcare Groups Want California Voters To Tax Soda
Soda companies got a respite last week from battling local taxes on sugary beverages, after California lawmakers grudgingly passed a 12-year ban on cities and counties imposing the levies. That reprieve might be short-lived. Major healthcare groups announced Monday that they will pursue a statewide soda tax initiative on the 2020 ballot to pay for public health programs. And in another jab at the beverage industry, the initiative would enshrine in the California Constitution the right of local governments to impose soda taxes. (Mason, 7/2)