First Edition: June 10, 2015
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Kaiser Health News:
Obama, Championing The Health Law, Says It Shows The Country ‘We Want To Be’
Obama’s tone was much more conciliatory than it was the day before, when during a news conference wrapping up the G-7 meeting in Germany he said of the case now before the Supreme Court, “Frankly, it probably shouldn’t even have been taken up.” (Rovner, 6/9)
Kaiser Health News:
Organ Donation: State Efforts Have Done Little To Close The Supply Gap
In the U.S., an average of 21 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant, and the wait times can range from four months for a heart to five years for a kidney, dependent on the how sick the patient is, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) and the Gift of Life Donor Program. But public policies have done little to close this gap between supply and demand, according to a study published earlier this month in JAMA Internal Medicine. (Gillespie, 6/10)
The New York Times:
Before Supreme Court Weighs In, Obama Makes His Case For Health Law
President Obama on Tuesday condemned opponents of his signature health care law as “cynical” partisans seeking to deprive Americans of a benefit that has become an integral part of the country’s social safety net, building a tough political case against Republicans as the Supreme Court weighs whether to strike down a key element of the Affordable Care Act. “This is now part of the fabric of how we care for one another — this is health care in America,” the president said in a speech to the Catholic Health Association, an organization that championed the law and has written a brief asking the high court to uphold it. “It seems so cynical to want to take health care away from millions of people.” (Hirschfeld Davis and Shear, 6/9)
Los Angeles Times:
Obama Gives Sweeping Defense Of Healthcare Law As Supreme Court Ruling Looms
President Obama reentered the political battle over healthcare Tuesday, delivering an extended defense of the Affordable Care Act as the Supreme Court prepares to issue its ruling on a case that could strip away health insurance from millions of Americans. ... Obama’s address, to a gathering of hospital leaders from the Catholic Health Assn., comes at a pivotal moment as his signature domestic achievement faces its gravest threat since being narrowly upheld by the Supreme Court three years ago. (Levey, 6/9)
The Wall Street Journal:
Obama Defends Health-Care Law In Speech
The speech drew criticism from Republican opponents of the health law, which they call “Obamacare.” “The president’s spin doesn’t change the fact Obamacare is a deeply flawed law that no one read before Democrats rammed it through Congress on a highly partisan basis,” said Michael Short, a spokesman for the Republican National Committee. (Radnofsky, 6/9)
NPR:
Obama Defends Health Care Law As Supreme Court Ruling Nears
President Obama defends the health care reform law as the Supreme Court prepares to issue a ruling in a case that could dismantle it. The law still remains controversial politically. (Horsley, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
Ahead Of Court Ruling, Obama Says Health Law Now U.S. Reality
Obama poked fun at opponents who have issued “unending Chicken Little warnings” about what would happen if the law passed. None of those predictions have come true, Obama argued. “The critics stubbornly ignore reality,” he said. Anticipating his speech, however, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., dismissed Obama’s claims as “jousting with reality again.” (6/9)
USA Today:
Obama Defends Health Care Law Amid Supreme Court Case
Despite years of political and legal challenges, President Obama said Tuesday his health care law has insured millions, saved lives, and is a success that is here to stay. "After a century of talk, after decades of trying, after a year of sustained debate, we finally made health care reform a reality here in America," Obama told a supportive crowd with the Catholic Health Association. (Jackson, 6/9)
The Washington Post:
How The Next Few Weeks Could Determine The Fate Of Obama’s Legacy
June is shaping up as a time of reckoning for President Obama — and his legacy. Over the next three weeks, he could record significant wins on three of his most ambitious initiatives. Or have each of them blow up in his face. And those outcomes are largely outside of the president’s control. ... At the Supreme Court, the nine justices will soon rule on a crucial provision in the president’s landmark 2010 health-care law, with the insurance plans of more than 6 million people in the balance. ... White House allies acknowledged that the president and his advisers are acutely aware of the stakes. The health-care law is considered Obama’s signature domestic policy achievement. (Nakamura and Eilperin, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
GOP Ready To Attack Obama Health Law As HHS Chief Testifies
Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell is ready to defend President Barack Obama's health care law before congressional Republicans who consider it a failure and who hope the Supreme Court will void one of its cornerstones — federal subsidies that help millions afford coverage. Burwell was scheduled to testify Wednesday before the GOP-led House Ways and Means Committee as Obama's five-year-old health overhaul remains a partisan flashpoint likely to reverberate through next year's presidential and congressional elections. (Fram, 6/10)
Politico:
Kentucky Election Could Blot An Obamacare Bright Spot
Red-state Kentucky’s broad embrace of Obamacare has been a comforting success story for the White House. But now the Affordable Care Act is the central issue in the state’s off-year governor’s race, and a Republican victory could be a portent for 2016, when GOP presidential contenders will run on a renewed vow to repeal the act. (Cheney, Pradhan and Wheaton, 6/9)
USA Today:
Nation's Sickest Seniors Reshape Health Care
Two-thirds of traditional Medicare beneficiaries older than 65 have multiple chronic conditions, according to a USA TODAY analysis of county-level Medicare data. More than 4 million — about 15% — have at least six long-term ailments. Those sickest seniors account for more than 41% of the $324 billion spent on traditional Medicare. As Baby Boomers begin to move into the Medicare years, they are — by the measure of medical diagnoses — sicker than their predecessors, researchers say. Yet they also are living longer, leaving them to grapple with diseases such as diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart failure, depression and even Alzheimer's for years — sometimes decades. The result: neither the medical system nor most seniors are prepared for the financial and emotional crisis ahead. (Meghan Hoyer, 6/9)
The Washington Post's Wonkblog:
This Image Perfectly Sums Up What’s Wrong With American Health Care, According To The Internet
Breaking Bad's first episodes aired in 2008. Since then Obamacare happened, bringing with it a handful of reforms to the way the nation's healthcare system works. The system may have improved somewhat since 2008 when Walter first got his cancer diagnosis, but there's still no question that the U.S. stands out on both healthcare spending, and on outcomes, as this widely circulated OECD chart shows. (Ingraham, 6/9)
USA Today:
Over-The-Counter Birth Control Gets Boost In Congress
There is growing agreement among senators that women should have over-the-counter access to birth control pills, but that is where the consensus stops and familiar political battle lines over women's health care emerge. A group of Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., unveiled a bill Tuesday that would allow birth control pills approved by the Food and Drug Administration to be sold without a prescription. (Davis, 6/9)
The Washington Post:
With Days To Go Before Funding Runs Out, Will Congress Give VA A Lifeline On Troubled Denver Hospital?
In a few days, the Department of Veterans Affairs will run out of money to keep workers on the job at the over-budget hospital under construction in suburban Denver. And once again, Congress and the agency could be heading toward a showdown over how to fix a boondoggle whose cost is now estimated at three times its original budget. A resolution needs to come very soon, but with little trust left between political leaders and VA officials, it looks like the project is in line to get another Band-Aid rather than an infusion of cash the agency wants to finally finish the hospital. (Rein, 6/10)
The Wall Street Journal:
Hysterectomy Device Will Be Covered By Insurer Despite Danger Of Uterine Cancer’s Spread
Health Care Service Corp., the nation’s fourth-largest health insurer, will continue to cover laparoscopic power morcellators after considering a policy that would have curbed the surgical tools used in hysterectomies, a spokeswoman said Tuesday. (Kamp, 6/9)
USA Today:
FDA Panel Backs New Cholesterol Drug
Food and Drug Administration advisers Tuesday recommended that an injectable cholesterol-lowering drug be approved, but the panel of experts said more data is needed about its ability to reduce heart attacks or strokes in the long run. (Szabo and Winter, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
FDA Panel Backs First-In-Class Cholesterol Drug
Federal health advisers on Tuesday recommended approval for a highly anticipated cholesterol drug from Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, but with the caveat that more data is needed about its long-term ability to reduce heart attacks. The expert panel recommended by a 13-3 vote that the Food and Drug Administration approve the injectable drug, called Praluent. (Perrone, 6/9)
Los Angeles Times:
Controversial Texas Abortion Law Upheld By Federal Appeals Court
U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel struck down the surgical center requirements statewide and the admitting privileges requirement for two facilities last summer, but Texas Atty. Gen. Greg Abbott, who now serves as the state's governor, filed an immediate appeal. In its Tuesday ruling, the 5th Circuit overturned Yeakel's ruling, but made an exception for a facility in McAllen, Texas, on the grounds that is the only abortion facility in the area. (Queally, 6/9)
The Wall Street Journal:
Federal Appeals Court Upholds Strict Texas Abortion Law
A federal appeals court upheld a Texas law that requires abortion clinics to qualify as “ambulatory surgical centers,” a decision opponents say will shut down most clinics in the state. The plaintiffs, a group of abortion clinics and doctors, argued that the 2013 law unconstitutionally restricts the right to obtain an abortion. (Campoy, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
Court Upholds Key Parts Of Texas' Strict Anti-Abortion Law
Owners of traditional abortion clinics, which resemble doctor's offices more than hospitals, say they would be forced to close because the new rules demand millions of dollars in upgrades they can't afford. That would mark the second large wave of closures in as many years in Texas, which had 41 abortion clinics in 2012, before other new restrictions took effect that require doctor admitting privileges. (6/9)
NPR:
U.S. Appeals Court Upholds Texas Abortion Restrictions
A U.S. appeals court upheld sweeping abortion restrictions in Texas on Tuesday, putting many of the state's clinics at risk of closure. (Totenberg, 6/9)
USA Today:
Federal Appeals Court Backs Strict Texas Abortion Law
The ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans came in a lawsuit challenging requirements that clinics providing abortions provide hospital-level operating room standards. The court said clinics failed to show that many women would be unconstitutionally burdened by the law. The Center for Reproductive Rights said it will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The justices had put the 2013 law on hold last year, sending it back to the appeals court for review. (Bacon, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
California Lawmakers Pass Vaccine Bill Amid Emotional Debate
California lawmakers on Tuesday approved a hotly contested bill that would impose one of the strictest vaccination laws in the country, after five hours of highly emotional testimony that brought hundreds of opponents to the Capitol. (Horowitz, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
Casino Union To Icahn: Benefit Elimination 'Not OK'
Casino workers from Atlantic City's Trump Taj Mahal went to billionaire investor Carl Icahn's New York offices, saying the casino's elimination of health insurance and pension plans is "not OK." Icahn is in the process of taking over the casino's parent company, Trump Entertainment Resorts. (6/9)
The Wall Street Journal:
Soda’s New Enemy: San Francisco
Likening the fight against soda to the old public-policy wars over tobacco, San Francisco city officials unanimously voted Tuesday on a package of ordinances that would make it the first in the U.S. to require health warnings on ads for sugary drinks. Before it can be enacted, the proposal first has to pass another vote before the San Francisco Board of Supervisors next week, and then goes before the mayor. Advocates hope the passage will spark similar legislation in cities and states across the country. ()Audi and Esterl, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
San Francisco Approves Health Warning On Sugary Drink Ads
San Francisco supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to approve health warnings on ads for sugary sodas and some other drinks, saying such beverages contribute to obesity, diabetes and other health problems. It’s believed that San Francisco would be the first place in the country to require such a warning on ads for soda if it receives a second approval from the Board of Supervisors next week and the mayor does not veto it. (Har, 6/9)
The Associated Press:
NY Lawmakers Vote For Single-Use Tattoo Needles
New York lawmakers have voted to require single-use needles and inks by tattoo and piercing studios. They would also require customers sign consent forms stating the materials were sterile and unpackaged in front of them. Bill sponsors say there are no current rules holding tattoo and piercing specialists accountable for materials used, while diseases can be easily spread when needles and ink are re-used. (6/10)