General
Medicare for All Is Divisive (in the Democratic Party) Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Robert Pear, The New York Times
No issue animated the Democrats’ 2018 congressional campaigns like health care and the promises to expand access to insurance and to lower costs. But as House Democrats sit down to draft their vision of governance in the coming weeks, lawmakers find themselves badly divided on the issue that delivered their majority.
Methadone Helped Her Quit Heroin. Now She’s Suing U.S. Prisons to Allow the Treatment. Abby Goodnough, The New York Times
About to enter a federal prison, a Massachusetts woman is not permitted to continue taking the opioid as a treatment to block cravings and withdrawal from heroin addiction.
Medicare for America, Beto O’Rourke’s favorite health care plan, explained Dylan Scott, Vox
In his early days as a presidential candidate, Beto O’Rourke has walked away from supporting single-payer Medicare-for-all and into the arms of another health care plan: Medicare for America. That plan, introduced last year by Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), was founded on the previous work of the Center for American Progress and Yale professor Jacob Hacker.
US government uses several clandestine shelters to detain immigrant children Aura Bogado and Patrick Michels, Reveal
The federal government is relying on secret shelters to hold unaccompanied minors, in possible violation of the long-standing rules for the care of immigrant children, a Reveal investigation has found.
The Fertility Doctor’s Secret Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic
The first Facebook message arrived when Heather Woock was packing for vacation, in August 2017. It was from a stranger claiming to be her half sibling.
Stocks Gain as Traders Await Fed; Dollar Steadies: Markets Wrap Samuel Potter, Bloomberg
U.S. equity futures climbed alongside European stocks on Tuesday, while Asian shares drifted as investors marked time ahead of this week’s slew of central bank decisions. The dollar steadied and Treasuries edged higher.
Payers
Some insurer CEOs see bigger paychecks in 2018 Shelby Livingston, Modern Healthcare
Many of the largest publicly traded health insurers saw their bottom lines soar in 2018. Their CEOs’ paychecks were no different.
Medicare wellness visits are supposed to be free — unless you call it a physical. Michelle Andrews, The Washington Post
The appointment seemed like a routine physical, and she was pleased that the doctor spent a lot of time with her. Until she got the bill: $400.
Providers
What Medicare for all means for doctors and hospitals Tami Luhby, CNN
Americans generally don’t like the idea of giving up their private health insurance. Hospitals and doctors don’t want them to, either.
Pharma, Biotech and Devices
Biotech startup raises $68 million to further work on its treatment for schizophrenia Jonathan Saltzman, Boston Globe
Karuna Therapeutics, a Boston-based biotech startup, said Monday it has raised $68 million in venture capital to advance clinical development of a radically different drug for schizophrenia.
Efforts to import drugs from Canada advance at state level, with Florida latest to get in line Ed Silverman, Stat News
Amid the heated debate over the cost of medicines, various state lawmakers are pushing ahead with legislation that would allow Americans to import drugs from Canada.
Group with consumer-friendly vibe pushes drugmakers’ message Richard Lardner, The Associated Press
As ominous music plays in the background, the narrator of a radio ad warns that a Trump administration proposal to apply international pricing to certain Medicare drugs would be a nightmare for seniors. The one-minute spot is the handiwork of the Alliance for Patient Access, a nonprofit group that gives off a consumer-friendly vibe but is bankrolled by the powerful pharmaceutical industry.
Health IT
Bill Gates talked with Google employees about using A.I. to analyze ultrasound images of unborn children Jordan Novet, CNBC
Bill Gates, co-founder and former CEO of Microsoft, says he talked to Google researchers on Monday about the application of artificial-intelligence technology in health care. The intersection of AI and health care is a longtime area of interest for Google.
Why The Promise Of Electronic Health Records Has Gone Unfulfilled Fred Schulte, NPR News
A decade ago, the U.S. government claimed that ditching paper medical charts for electronic records would make health care better, safer and cheaper. Ten years and $36 billion later, the digital revolution has gone awry, an investigation by Kaiser Health News and Fortune magazine has found.
Apple’s groundbreaking heart study signals a new era of medicine, and doctors are debating the results Christina Farr, CNBC
Apple and researchers from Stanford Medicine released some new results from an eight-month study of more than 400,000 participants, who had access to Apple Watches to monitor their heart rhythm for signs of a medical condition known as atrial fibrillation. The watches are not the newest version, which has an electrocardiogram built-in, but are able to detect abnormal heartbeats.
A fertility app bills itself as contraception, raising questions about marketing and efficacy Kate Sheridan, Stat News
A new fertility tracking app, Dot, is billing itself as a form of contraception — and touting the results of a new efficacy study that shows the app may be up to 99 percent effective as a form of birth control. With statistics like that, Dot — part of a surge in fertility and contraception apps — would appear to be one of the most effective birth control tools available.
Opinions, Editorials and Perspectives
Striving for steady progress is key to lasting change in fight for mental health equity Former Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I), The Hill
In both my political career and in my personal life, I have learned that when faced with complex challenges, what matters most is putting one foot in front of the other, steadfast and walking the path to change. There are no quick-fixes to anything, regardless of how much they are needed.
Research Reports
Prices for and Spending on Specialty Drugs in Medicare Part D and Medicaid Congressional Budget Office
In recent years, the prices charged for certain types of drugs—referred to as specialty drugs—have become a source of concern for many policymakers. Such drugs typically treat chronic, complex, or rare conditions, frequently have high prices, and may require special handling or patient monitoring.
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