Monday, August 22, 2022 – Kaiser Health News

Kaiser Health News Original Stories
Abortion Is Shaking Up Attorneys General Races and Exposing Limits to Their Powers
Abortion access is shaping races for legal office across the country, from local district attorneys to attorneys general. But it’s also highlighting the boundaries of their offices. (Lauren Weber and Sam Whitehead, 8/22 )
California Wants to Snip Costs for Vasectomies and Condoms
Most women can already get free birth control. California lawmakers are debating whether to extend that perk to millions of men. (Rachel Bluth, 8/22 )
Grassroots Work Leads to Vaccination Success in Georgia Refugee Community
Public health officials and resettlement groups across the U.S. have used community organizers to encourage newly arrived refugees and other vulnerable people to get vaccinated against covid-19. In a Georgia city that is home to many refugees, the vaccination rate is higher than in the state, county, and surrounding communities of similar socioeconomic status. (Alander Rocha, 8/22 )
Policies to Roll Back Abortion Rights Will Hit Incarcerated People Particularly Hard
People in jails and prisons are particularly vulnerable to the fallout from the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade. (Carly Graf, 8/22 )
Journalists Dig Into Questions About the 988 Hotline and Inflation Reduction Act
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances. ( 8/22 )
Political Cartoon: 'A "Like" Fee?'
Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Political Cartoon: 'A "Like" Fee?'" by Darrin Bell.
Here's today's health policy haiku:
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is a community’s gift —
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– Don Parsons
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Government Policy
Final Rule Issued On How Surprise Bill Disputes Should Be Settled
The Biden administration regulation continues to largely rely on median in-network rates in such dispute settlements, which providers have objected to. But one modification from an earlier plan says other information can shape arbiters' determinations of an out-of-network rate.
Axios: Surprise Billing Rule Gets New Rules For Working Out Disputes
A year and a half after Congress protected patients from surprise medical bills, the Biden administration has finalized the process for deciding who'll actually pick up the tab. Billions of dollars are at stake — either for providers or for insurers and employers. (Reed and Bettelheim, 8/22)
Stat: Biden Admin Stands Firm On Method For Resolving Surprise Billing Disputes
In a final rule published late Friday, the government said the entities that are meant to settle disputes between insurance companies and out-of-network providers must start their considerations with the median in-network payment rate for the service in question. Many providers don’t want the arbiters to rely on the median in-network payment rates, because they’ll get paid less if those in-network charges are taken into account. Already eight provider groups have sued the government on this point. (Bannow, 8/19)
Modern Healthcare: No Surprises Act Dispute Resolution Rule Published
The regulation, which follows a court decision that struck down part of an earlier policy, instructs arbiters to consider both an insurer's median contracted in-network rate and additional information when determining the correct payment for a surprise bill, including for air ambulance services. The Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury departments jointly published the final rule. (Tepper and Goldman, 8/19)
Reproductive Health
Judge: Michigan's 1931 Abortion Ban Can't Be Enforced For Now
In a legal seesaw, county prosecutors in Michigan cannot currently file criminal charges against abortion providers while the preliminary injunction is in place. Abortion news is also reported from Idaho, Arizona, and other states.
The 19th: Michigan Court Extends Block On 1931 Abortion Ban 
A Michigan judge on Friday issued a preliminary injunction that prevents county prosecutors from enforcing the state’s 1931 abortion ban. This means they cannot file criminal charges against abortion providers, as would be permitted by the ban. (Norwood, 8/19)
In other legal news from Arizona, Idaho, North Dakota, and Texas —
AP: 16 More States Hope To Weigh In On Idaho Abortion Lawsuit 
Sixteen more states are asking to weigh in on the U.S. Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Idaho over its strict abortion ban. The Justice Department sued the Republican-led state of Idaho earlier this month, saying the abortion ban set to take effect on Aug. 25 violates a federal law requiring Medicaid-funded hospitals to provide “stabilizing treatment” to patients experiencing medical emergencies. … In court documents filed Friday, Indiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming characterized the federal government’s guidelines as “EMTALA’s grant conditions” and said they do not have the power to preempt state law. (Boone, 8/19)
AP: Arizona Judge Weighs State Request To Enforce Abortion Ban 
An Arizona attorney on Friday urged a judge to allow the state to enforce a near-total ban on abortions under a law that has been blocked for nearly 50 years through a now-overruled U.S. Supreme Court decision. Assistant Attorney General Beau Roysden said the judge’s role is simple: now that the high court has overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion, Pima County Superior Court Judge Kellie Johnson should lift an injunction preventing enforcement of that law. (8/19)
AP: Lawyers Argue To Delay North Dakota Law Banning Abortion
Lawyers for North Dakota’s only abortion clinic asked a judge Friday to delay a trigger law set to ban abortion starting next week, while they pursue a lawsuit challenging the ban on constitutional grounds. The abortion ban is set to go into effect on Aug. 26. The Red River Women’s Clinic in Fargo is seeking a preliminary injunction as part of a lawsuit that says the ban violates the state constitution. Burleigh County District Judge Bruce Romanick said he would make a decision on the motion by the end of [this] week. He did not say how they would proceed with the lawsuit. (MacPherson and Kolpack, 8/19)
Houston Chronicle: Texas Supreme Court Weighs Rule On Minors Seeking Abortions
An advisory committee to the Texas Supreme Court voted unanimously Friday to keep in place a legal procedure that allows minors to get a judge's approval to have an abortion without the legally necessary parental consent. (Goldenstein, 8/19)
Also —
Axios: Louisiana Woman Denied Abortion After Fetus Diagnosed With Fatal Condition
A Louisiana woman says she was denied an abortion after her fetus was diagnosed with a fatal condition that prevented it from developing a skull, according to a statement from her lawyer Ben Crump. (Dam, 8/20)
The New York Times: Is A Fetus A Person? An Anti-Abortion Strategy Says Yes. 
Even as roughly half the states have moved to enact near-total bans on abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, anti-abortion activists are pushing for a long-held and more absolute goal: laws that grant fetuses the same legal rights and protections as any person. So-called fetal personhood laws would make abortion murder, ruling out all or most of the exceptions for abortion allowed in states that already ban it. (Zernike, 8/21)
Recount Affirms Kansas Abortion Vote As Campaign Donors Are Revealed
Fewer than 60 votes were changed in the recount of Kansas' ballot initiative that would have removed abortion rights from the state's constitution. Meanwhile, finance reports show that $22 million was donated to support or oppose the measure.
Kansas City Star: Kansas Abortion Vote Confirmed With Partial Amendment Recount 
Kansas reaffirmed its landslide vote to uphold abortion rights after election officials on Sunday finished a recount that never had any chance of changing the outcome but was sought by an election denier and anti-abortion activist advancing baseless allegations of fraud. (Bernard and Shorman, 8/21)
AP: Spielberg Among Donors In $22M Kansas Campaign On Abortion
Abortion opponents and abortion rights advocates together spent more than $22 million on a ballot question this month in Kansas, and famed film director and producer Steven Spielberg contributed to the successful effort to affirm abortion rights. Finance reports filed by 40 groups and individuals with the state as of this week showed that abortion rights supporters spent $11.3 million on their campaign to defeat a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to allow the Republican-controlled Legislature to further restrict or ban abortion. Abortion opponents who pushed the measure spent nearly $11.1 million. (Hanna and Hollingsworth, 8/19)
In other election news —
Reuters: As U.S. Midterms Loom, New York Race Tests Abortion's Sway With Voters
Democrat Pat Ryan did not mince words in laying out his version of the stakes in Tuesday's New York state special congressional election, telling supporters that Republican attacks on abortion are contributing to an "existential" threat to U.S. democracy. "This is not the country I fought to defend, when the government is telling women what to do with their bodies, and ripping away their rights," Ryan, an Army combat veteran, told several dozen Democratic supporters last week at a Woodstock home overlooking the Catskill Mountains about 100 miles (160 km) north of New York City. (Ax, 8/21)
The Washington Post: In Upstate N.Y., A Test For Democrats Running On Abortion To Stop GOP Wave 
When the Supreme Court’s conservative majority overturned Roe v. Wade, Democrats here quickly mobilized to make the Aug. 23 special election for the U.S. House a referendum on abortion rights. After the decision, Democratic nominee Pat Ryan unveiled new campaign signs, white on pink, that read “CHOICE IS ON THE BALLOT.” The state Democratic Party’s own signs show a red slash over “Roe v. Wade” with the message: “This is what happens when YOU don’t vote! Vote blue in ’22!” To Ryan, the 40-year old Democratic Ulster County executive, the strategy was clear: “We’re going to continue to focus on an issue that affects tens of millions of women and people and families.” (Weigel, 8/22)
KHN: Abortion Is Shaking Up Attorneys General Races And Exposing Limits To Their Powers
As the country grapples with states’ newfound power to regulate abortion in the aftermath of this summer’s U.S. Supreme Court decision, state attorney general candidates are staking claims on what they’ll do to fight or defend access to abortion — and that’s attracting cash and votes. “By pretty much every indicator there is in a campaign, the Dobbs decision has energized and supercharged our race,” said Kris Mayes, a Democrat running for attorney general in Arizona. “People are outraged about this, and you can feel it in the air.” (Weber and Whitehead, 8/19)
In other news about reproductive rights —
AP: Walmart Expands Abortion Coverage For Employees
Walmart, the nation’s largest employer, is expanding its abortion coverage for employees after staying largely mum on the issue following the Supreme Court ruling that scrapped a nationwide right to abortion. In a memo sent to employees on Friday, the company said its health care plans will now cover abortion for employees “when there is a health risk to the mother, rape or incest, ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage or lack of fetal viability.” (Hadero, 8/19)
The Wall Street Journal: Websites Selling Unapproved Abortion Pills Are Booming
A murky online market for abortion pills is thriving as some U.S. states tighten abortion restrictions. Dozens of websites state they ship abortion drugs anywhere in the U.S. without a prescription, which violates Food and Drug Administration rules. Most of the sites don’t clearly state who operates them or where they get the pills. The operator of one website said demand for abortion pills has surged since the Supreme Court removed constitutional protection for abortion in June. (Mosbergen and Agarwal, 8/21)
KHN: Policies To Roll Back Abortion Rights Will Hit Incarcerated People Particularly Hard
Policies governing abortion and reproductive health care services in U.S. prisons and jails were restrictive and often hostile even before the Supreme Court removed Roe v. Wade’s constitutional protections for abortions. After the June ruling, many reproductive services stand to be prohibited altogether, putting the health of incarcerated women who are pregnant at risk. That threat is particularly urgent in states where lawmakers have made clear their intentions to roll back abortion rights. (Graf, 8/22)
To Raise A Child In 2022, It Costs A Hair-Raising $310,605
That's $80,000 more than the estimate released five years ago. The Brookings Institution analysis is based on a middle-income, two-parent, married family with two kids, and it doesn't include the cost of college.
The Wall Street Journal: It Now Costs $300,000 To Raise A Child 
The cost of raising a child through high school has risen to more than $300,000 because of inflation that is running close to a four-decade high, according to a Brookings Institution estimate. It determined that a married, middle-income couple with two children would spend $310,605—or an average of $18,271 a year—to raise their younger child born in 2015 through age 17. The calculation uses an earlier government estimate as a baseline, with adjustments for inflation trends. (Torchinsky, 8/19)
The Hill: New Estimate Projects Cost Of Raising A Child At $310K 
The figure is roughly $80,000 more than the estimate USDA released in 2017, when it calculated the average child-rearing costs for a middle-income, married couple with a child born in the same year. … The new estimate only crunches numbers for middle-income, married parents, and doesn’t include projections for single parent households, or consider how race factors into cost challenges. (Folley, 8/19)
In other news about parenthood and fertility —
AP: DC's Pioneering 'Baby Bonds' Plan Aims To Narrow Wealth Gap 
A landmark social program being pioneered in Washington called “Baby Bonds” will provide children of the city’s poorest families with up to $25,000 when they reach adulthood. The money is to be used for a handful of purposes, including education. (Khalil, 8/21)
CNN: Lengthening Fertility May Extend A Woman's Life 
The age of menopause is tied to longevity. The average age of natural menopause in the United States is 51, according to the North American Menopause Society. (LaMotte, 8/21)
Vaccines
Kids Ages 12-17 Can Now Receive The Novavax Covid Vaccine
The two-dose series uses protein-based technology, not mRNA. Meanwhile, new omicron-specific mRNA booster shots will likely be available within the next three weeks, CNBC reports. In order to get them, you'll have to have already received a primary series of shots.
CNBC: FDA Authorizes Emergency Use For Novavax Covid-19 Vaccine For Ages 12 To 17
Biotechnology company Novavax announced on Friday that its Covid-19 vaccine has been authorized for emergency use by the U.S Food and Drug Administration for adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17. … Having more vaccine options for adults and children will “hopefully help increase vaccination rates, particularly as we prepare for ongoing surges of Covid-19 with the start of fall and the back-to-school season,” Stanley C. Erck, president and CEO of Novavax, said in a statement. (8/20)
CNN: FDA Authorizes Novavax Covid-19 Vaccine For Emergency Use In Ages 12-17
The vaccine was authorized for adults in July. With the latest emergency use authorization, it also will be available as a two-dose primary series for ages 12 to 17. In this age group, “overall, the clinical efficacy of the vaccine is around 80%,” said Silvia Taylor, Novavax’s senior vice president global corporate affairs. The vaccine has shown 90% overall efficacy in adults. (Howard, 8/20)
And omicron-specific booster shots are coming soon —
CNBC: Omicron-Specific Covid Booster Shots Are Just Weeks Away. Here’s Who Will—And Won’t—Be Eligible
Newly updated Covid booster shots designed to target omicron’s BA.5 subvariant should be available within the next three weeks. That begs an important question: Who’s going to be eligible to get them? The short answer: Anyone ages 12 and up who has completed a primary vaccination series, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spokesperson tells CNBC Make It. It’s unlikely to matter whether you’ve received any other booster doses or not before, the spokesperson says — but if you’re unvaccinated, you won’t eligible for the updated formula until you complete a primary series with the existing Covid vaccines. (Constantino, 8/20)
The Wall Street Journal: Variant-Targeted Covid-19 Boosters Test The Promise Of MRNA Technology 
In the U.S., modified Covid-19 booster shots are unlikely to be cleared for several more weeks because health authorities decided in late June they wanted modified vaccines to target different Omicron subvariants than those rolling out in other countries. As a result, the makers of the leading Covid-19 vaccines—Moderna Inc. and Pfizer Inc. with its partner BioNTech SE—got a later start producing the new shots that are planned for the U.S.  (Loftus, 8/21)
Nature: Which COVID Boosters To Take And When: A Guide For The Perplexed
The underwhelming results for the bivalent vaccine are probably due to a phenomenon known as immune imprinting, says microbiologist John Moore at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City. By now, much of the population has either been vaccinated or infected with an earlier variant of SARS-CoV-2. The immune system has been trained to remember this variant — and a dose of vaccine, even one with Omicron-specific components, will tend to boost those earlier immunological memories. The degree of Omicron-specific response will be relatively small, says Moore. (Ledford, 8/19)
More on the covid vaccine rollout —
AP: Judge Throws Out Maine Lawsuit Against COVID Vaccine Mandate
A federal judge has dismissed a complaint from a group of health care workers who said they were unfairly discriminated against by Maine’s COVID-19 vaccine requirement. The plaintiffs sued Democratic Gov. Janet Mills and other Maine officials along with a group of health care organizations in the state. The workers argued that the vaccine mandate violated their right to free exercise of religion because it did not provide an exemption for religious beliefs. (Whittle, 8/19)
KHN: Grassroots Work Leads To Vaccination Success In Georgia Refugee Community
Naw Mu Chaw had questions about the possible side effects of a covid-19 vaccine. Chaw, a recent refugee from Myanmar, received medical care at a community health center near her home in Clarkston, Georgia, a city of about 14,000 people. Her English is limited, but the center has an interpreter to translate health information into her native language, Burmese. (Rocha, 8/22)
Covid-19 Crisis
Even Your Pets Can Get Covid Tests From LA Health Department
The Los Angeles county's Department of Public Health is now offering free testing to pets who may have been exposed to covid. Other pandemic news includes the publishing of a new plan to protect students based on equity, first lady Jill Biden testing negative for covid, and more.
Fox News: Los Angeles County Health Department Offering Free COVID-19 Testing For Pets
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is offering free COVID-19 testing for pets who may have been exposed to the virus. Los Angeles health officials announced the initiative on Aug. 20, stating that it has recently received funding to conduct the free COVIS-19 testing on pets. (Sabes, 8/21)
How exactly do you test a dog for covid? In case you missed it, this story explains how —
Texas Monthly: Your Pets Have Been Getting COVID-19 Too. Here’s Why That Matters.
Brushing a dog’s teeth is hard enough. The dog looks at you plaintively, eyes wide with betrayal, as you insert the toothbrush and perform a quick pantomime of a tooth cleaning in the seconds before it closes its jaws—and heart—to you. Researchers at the lab of Texas A&M veterinary epidemiologist Sarah A. Hamer have a more difficult task: they must get pets to submit to a nasal swab, something which even many humans have to be cajoled into doing. (Larson, 3/21)
More on the spread of covid —
Fortune: The CDC Has Guided The U.S. COVID Epidemic To A Soft Landing—A Manufactured Conclusion That Flies In The Face Of Science, Some Experts Say
Earlier this month the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention introduced new COVID guidelines that brought the country’s COVID epidemic in for a soft landing, of sorts—or tried to, anyway. It dropped the guidance that Americans quarantine if they’ve been in close contact with someone who has the virus, as well as the recommendation to social-distance. … The rules belie the state of things. COVID levels in at least some parts of the U.S. were recently at or around highs seen during the Omicron surge late last year into early this year. We’re talking all-time highs. (Prater, 8/21)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Researchers Release COVID Plan For Schools Based On Equity
A group that includes researchers, a public health department director and a Georgia legislator has released a plan for schools nationwide to respond to COVID-19 with an eye toward minimizing harm to Black and Latino students and other populations most affected by the pandemic. (Pratt, 8/22)
Fox News: Public School Districts Implementing COVID Restrictions Meet Ferocious Community Pushback 
School districts have re-implemented mandates for children for the 2022-2023 academic year, against the wishes of many parents across the U.S., who have been fighting it tooth and nail at board of education meetings. Most recently, a 4-year-old boy in San Francisco, California was kicked out of school for not wearing a mask, Fox News Digital reported Friday. (Grossman, 8/22)
The New York Times: Jill Biden Tests Negative For The Coronavirus
Jill Biden, the first lady, left isolation after testing negative for the coronavirus on Sunday, nearly a week after she tested positive while on vacation in South Carolina. Dr. Biden had been isolating in a private residence there, but joined President Biden in Rehoboth, Del., on Sunday, according to a statement from Elizabeth Alexander, her communications director. (Montague, 8/21)
In related news about the pandemic —
NPR: Released During COVID, Some People Are Sent Back To Prison With Little Or No Warning
More than 11,000 people have been released from federal prison in the last couple of years, to ride out the pandemic at home, often with their families and loved ones. But that situation can be precarious. … The Bureau of Prisons told NPR that 442 people who were released during the pandemic have now returned to prison. Only 17 people out of more than 11,000 who were released committed new crimes, mostly drug related ones, while they were out. More than half, some 230 people including Eva Cardoza, got sent back for alleged alcohol or drug use. Other cases involved technical violations. (Johnson, 8/22)
Fox News: Dr. Birx: CDC At 'Inflection Point,' Expects Real Change Following Watershed Admission
Former White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx praised the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for its rare admission of missteps in how the agency responded to COVID-19. "A lot of directors would have just tried to tweak [it], and tweaking the agency at this point was not going to be successful," Birx said during an appearance on "Face the Nation" on Sunday. "This is an inflection point." (Aitken, 8/21)
Outbreaks and Health Threats
As Monkeypox Cases Double In LA, California Releases Isolation Guide
The rapid growth in Los Angeles county monkeypox cases happened over the last two weeks. California health officials are responding to the crisis by issuing guidance on isolation, including waiting 48 hours at home after symptoms fade. Other reports show the virus can linger on household surfaces.
San Francisco Chronicle: California Issues Its First Monkeypox Isolation Guidance
People recovering from monkeypox should wait at least 48 hours after symptoms subside before resuming activities outside the home and wear condoms during sex for 12 weeks after infection, California health officials said in their first recommendations for monkeypox isolation. (Ho, 8/19)
Los Angeles Times: Monkeypox Cases More Than Double In L.A. County
The number of cumulative monkeypox cases has more than doubled in Los Angeles County in the last two weeks as officials race to better track the virus and more widely vaccinate more vulnerable communities. (Money, Lin II and Toohey, 8/19)
USA Today: Monkeypox State Cases: New York, California Numbers Amid US Emergency
The U.S. had reported 14,115 confirmed monkeypox/orthopoxvirus cases as of Friday, per the CDC. Highly-populated states are leading the numbers – with 2,744 confirmed cases in New York, followed by 2,668 confirmed cases in California. (Grantham-Philips, 8/20)
More on on the spread of monkeypox —
CIDRAP: Evidence Of Monkeypox Virus Found On Household Surfaces 
A study today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report shows multiple surface sites testing positive for monkeypox virus genetic material in a household of two people infected with monkeypox in Utah. … The swabbed areas included those from all three porous items (cloth furniture and blankets), 17 of 25 (68%) nonporous surfaces (handles and switches), and one of two mixed-surface types (chairs). (8/19)
AP: Public Health Emergency Declared Over Monkeypox In WA County 
King County, which includes Seattle, on Friday officially declared the local monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency as infections continue to increase in the city and other parts of the state. “We are fortunate to have one of the best public health organizations in the nation right here in King County, and today’s action ensures they will have all the tools needed to take on the challenge of monkeypox,” King County Executive Dow Constantine said in a written statement. (8/19)
On the monkeypox vaccine rollout —
Oklahoman: Oklahoma Is Expanding Monkeypox Vaccine Eligibility. What To Know
Monkeypox vaccinations will be more widely accessible starting next week in Oklahoma, as federal health authorities have made dosing changes that allow states to stretch their vaccine supplies further. Up until this point, the Oklahoma State Department of Health has reserved vaccinations for people who have been exposed to monkeypox or people who may encounter the virus in their work, like lab technicians and certain health care workers. (Branham, 8/20)
Salt Lake Tribune: Utah Monkeypox Updates: More Counties Open Vaccine Appointments
Health departments for Salt Lake County, Davis County and Weber-Morgan Counties have monkeypox vaccine doses available for designated populations, officials say, as the number of cases statewide reached 85 Friday. (Hufham, 8/20)
The Boston Globe: Monkeypox Vaccine Providers Start New Method Of Injection
Vaccine providers in Massachusetts are starting to employ a new method of administering the monkeypox vaccine, in an effort to stretch the scarce supplies by using smaller doses for each injection. The method, authorized by the federal government on Aug. 9, involves injecting the vaccine at a shallow angle, sliding the needle near the skin’s surface rather than into the fat underneath. (Freyer, 8/21)
Axios: EU Countries May Use Smaller Doses To Increase Supply Of Monkeypox Vaccine, Agency Says
The European Medicines Agency said on Friday that European Union countries may temporarily use smaller doses of the monkeypox vaccine in order to boost supply. (Shapero, 8/19)
Health Industry
Amazon Trying to Expand Its Home Health Reach With Bid For Signify
Media outlets cover prospective buyers circling Signify Health Inc., a home health services provider. Amazon is a notable player, though it was said to be behind UnitedHealth's bid. Other news covers hospitals seeking FEMA covid funding, and more.
The Wall Street Journal: Amazon Among Bidders For Signify Health 
Amazon.com Inc. is among the bidders for healthcare company Signify Health Inc., joining other heavy hitters vying in an auction for the home-health-services provider, according to people familiar with the matter. Signify is for sale in an auction that could value it at more than $8 billion, the people said. Bids are due around Labor Day, according to the people, but it is always possible an eager bidder could strike a deal before then. (Cooper, 8/21)
Bloomberg: UnitedHealth, Amazon Said To Be Among Bidders For Signify
UnitedHealth has submitted the highest bid in excess of $30 a share, while Amazon’s offer is close behind, said the people, asking not be identified as the discussions are private. Signify, a provider of technology and services for home health, is holding a board meeting Monday to discuss the bids, the people said. (Porter and Davis, 8/22)
In other health care industry news —
Stat: Hospitals Wrangle Billions In FEMA Funding To Offset Covid Costs
More hospitals are tapping into billions of dollars from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to offset costs for caring for Covid-19 patients. (Herman, 8/22)
Las Vegas Review-Journal: Nevada Has Highest Percentage Of Low-Ranking Hospitals
Nevada has the highest percentage of one-star acute-care hospitals of any state, the lowest rating given by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The state has a single five-star hospital, Renown South Meadows Medical Center in Reno, placing Nevada 12th worst for percentage of top-rated facilities, according to a data analysis by the Review-Journal. (Hynes and Scott Davidson, 8/20)
Becker's Hospital Review: 6,200 University Of Michigan Nurses To Vote On Possible Strike
Members of the Michigan Nurses Association will vote from Aug. 27 through Sept. 2 on whether to authorize nurse negotiation leaders to call a strike at the University of Michigan. (Gooch, 8/19)
Becker's Hospital Review: Pennsylvania Health System To Lay Off 245 Employees
Commonwealth Health will lay off 245 employees when it closes facilities at the end of October. The health system is closing First Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Kingston, Pa., and its various outpatient centers on Oct. 30. The hospital stopped accepting new admissions at the beginning of August. (Ellison, 8/19)
Becker's Hospital Review: Stop 'Meeting Overload' To Save Money: Physicians Offer 9 Solutions
Meeting with clinicians for one hour may cost up to $1,000 of missed clinical revenue, physicians estimate. OB-GYNs Brian Iriye, MD, and Jim Keller, MD, discussed meeting upticks in an Aug. 4 article for the journal Contemporary OB-GYN. According to the physicians, migration to a virtual sphere has made it easier to create a meeting and invite participants. However, holding a meeting is not always essential, they said, adding that it detracts from valuable time with patients, leading to lost income. (Kayser, 8/19)
From The States
Judge Says Georgia Can Impose Work Requirements For Medicaid
U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood said the Biden administration's revocation of a Trump-era rule limiting Medicaid access shouldn't stand. Also: Stat reports on how North Carolina hospitals justify "thwarting" Medicaid expansion, amid other news.
AP: Judge Reinstates Work Requirement In Georgia Medicaid Plan
In a victory for Georgia’s Republican governor, a federal judge on Friday reinstated a work requirement in the state’s plan to expand Medicaid coverage to more low-income residents. U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood said the Biden administration’s decision to revoke approval of the work requirement and a related Georgia proposal to charge some Medicaid recipients monthly premiums was “arbitrary and capricious on numerous, independent grounds.” (Thanawala, 8/20)
In Medicaid expansion news from North Carolina —
Stat: How North Carolina Hospitals Justify Thwarting Medicaid Expansion
North Carolina hospitals just helped kill a major expansion of the state’s Medicaid program. Both Democrats and Republicans in the state legislature had been working toward expanding the program to another 600,000 low-income people, but the deal fell apart this month. (Herman, 8/22)
In other health news from Tennessee, Utah, Texas, and California —
AP: Tennessee's Covenant Health Settles Disabilities Act Claims 
The United States has reached a settlement with Knoxville, Tennessee,-based Covenant Health over claims that it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. The settlement Friday comes in the case of a deaf man who alleged that he was denied effective communication during emergency department visits and an in-patient admission at Parkwest Medical Center. That’s according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee. (8/22)
The Washington Post: Utah Judge Rules Transgender Girls Allowed To Play Girls’ Sports 
A Salt Lake City judge Friday temporarily halted a Utah law that banned transgender girls from competing in girls’ sports. The decision came as he considered a lawsuit by the families of three transgender students and opened the door for those students to compete in girls’ sports this school year, though a state-created commission will make that determination. (Hill, 8/21)
Texas Tribune: Abbott Joins Key Republicans In Support Of Repealing “Tampon Tax”
On Friday, Gov. Greg Abbott signaled support for a yearslong call by women's health care advocates to remove taxes on menstrual products like like tampons, sanitary pads and pantyliners. His statement comes after Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar and state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, voiced their support from eliminating the "tampon tax" on Thursday. (Melhado, 8/21)
KHN: California Wants To Snip Costs For Vasectomies And Condoms 
California is trying to ease the pain of vasectomies by making them free for millions of residents. Federal law and state law require most health insurers to cover prescription contraceptives at no cost to the patient. But those provisions apply to only 18 FDA-approved birth control options for women, so anyone with testicles is out of luck. (Bluth, 8/22)
San Francisco Chronicle: Mothers Rally To Stop The Fentanyl Deaths Of Their Children
Roman Vardanega has been in county jail for five months, and his mother, Tanya Tilghman stood on the steps of City Hall Sunday to beg that he be left there. “If they release my son, he will die and be one of these pictures on the steps,” Tilghman told a crowd of about 150 gathered on National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day. It also marked the first anniversary of Mothers Against Drug Deaths, a Bay Area coalition formed by women whose children are either on the streets or have died of overdoses. (Whiting, 8/21)
Mental Health
Calls To Missouri Mental Health Centers Rise 30% After 988 Hotline Launch
State officials say more than 4,000 people called the state’s mental health crisis centers in the month after the national mental health line launched. Separately, North Carolina Health News reports "unsustainable" burdens on emergency rooms by people needing mental health support.
St. Louis Public Radio: Missouri Call Centers See Increase In 988 Hotline’s First Month
During the first month of a national mental health crisis line, calls to Missouri mental health centers have gone up 30%, state officials said. (Fentem, 8/19)
KHN: Journalists Dig Into Questions About The 988 Hotline And Inflation Reduction Act 
KHN correspondent Aneri Pattani discussed social media criticism of the new 988 mental health hotline on NPR’s “Weekend Edition Saturday” on Aug. 13 and on WAMU’s “1A” on Aug. 16. … KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner discussed the health policy implications of the Inflation Reduction Act on WAMU’s “1A” on Aug. 16. (8/20)
In related news about the burden on emergency departments —
North Carolina Health News: Mental Health Data Show ‘Unsustainable’ Emergency Department Burden
A 9-year-old girl with mental health issues spent at least four months this spring living in a Novant Health emergency room in Wilmington: sleeping, eating, doing school work. During that time, emergency department staff searched for an available mental health facility that could take a child so young. (Knopf, 8/22)
In other news about mental health —
Stat: FDA Approves Axsome’s Fast-Acting Treatment For Major Depression
After a lengthy review, the Food and Drug Administration approved a fast-acting depression treatment from Axsome Therapeutics on Friday, clearing the way for the first new oral therapy for major depressive disorder in decades. (Garde, 8/19)
Kansas City Star: Psychiatrist Lifts Depression With Brain Stimulation Therapy
Depression sucked the life from Lori Jackson’s time on this earth for nearly 40 years. On her darkest days in college she hung a blanket over her dorm room window to block out the light and slept, skipping classes. (Gutierrez, 8/22)
Chicago Tribune: Why Is It So Hard To Find Therapists Who Take Insurance?
Meena Thiruvengadam faced a choice when her therapist stopped taking health insurance about a year ago. She could try to find someone else who would take her insurance, or she could pay her therapist — whom she trusted and had already been seeing for years — out-of-pocket, without using insurance. (Schencker, 8/21)
Detroit Free Press: Student Mental Health: Schools Take New Approaches To Growing Challenge
The start of a school year can be exciting and full of possibility, from the feel of fresh lined notebook paper to the promise of routine, friendship and belonging. But two years of pandemic-induced stress, anxiety and grief have been heaped atop the overflowing plates of children who were already struggling with the anxiety and depression of living in an unstable and unsafe world. The consequence: a staggering rise in the numbers of kids with poor mental health. (Brookland, 8/22)
USA Today: Public Librarians Say They're Struggling To Serve Patrons Seeking Shelter, Mental Health Care
“Some of my co-workers are very engaged with helping people, and they’re able to do the work,” said Elissa Hardy, a trained social worker who until recently supervised a small team of caseworkers providing services in the Denver Public Library system. Denver boasts some 50 lives have been saved since library staffers five years ago began volunteering for training to respond to drug overdoses. (Scheier, 8/21)
Public Health
Wendy's Withdraws Romaine Lettuce Amid E. Coli Outbreak
The recall affects only some Wendy's restaurants and happened after an E. coli outbreak hospitalized at least 10 people. Separately, a study shows airborne exposure to "red tide" algal blooms may have neurological effects. Also: H1N2v flu, deaths linked to raw oysters, and more.
CBS News: Wendy's Pulls Lettuce From Some Restaurants Amid E. Coli Outbreak That Has Hospitalized At Least 10
The fast food chain Wendy's is pulling the romaine lettuce used in burgers and sandwiches from some of its stores in response to an E. coli outbreak that has hospitalized at least 10 people and sickened dozens more, the CDC said Friday. (Albert, 8/19)
Red tide could have neurological effects —
WUSF Public Media: Sarasota Researchers Find Evidence That Airborne Exposure To Red Tide May Have Neurological Impact 
A Sarasota-based nonprofit organization that works to find treatments for brain disorders has found evidence that airborne exposure to red tide could have neurological impacts. (Carter, 8/19)
In other environmental health news —
CIDRAP: H1N2v Flu Case Detected In Oregon
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) [on Friday] reported a variant H1N2 (H1N2v) case in a patient from Oregon who is younger than 18, according to its latest FluView update. Investigators did not find that the patient had any contact with swine or had attended agricultural fairs. No other respiratory illnesses were found in the individual's household contacts. The patient was not hospitalized and has recovered from his or her illness. (8/19)
The Washington Post: Raw Oysters Linked To Two Deaths — Here's What You To Know About Safety 
A plate of freshly shucked oysters might be a treat for many bivalve fans — but they could be a health risk under the wrong conditions. This summer, two men in Florida died after consuming raw oysters from Louisiana, apparently placing them among the 100 people who die annually from vibriosis, which is caused by vibrio bacteria found in coastal waters where oysters grow (a figure that includes not just food-related illnesses but those who are infected when water enters a their bodies through a wound or cut), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Heil, 8/19)
NBC News: Asthma Deaths Rose During The Pandemic. Climate Change May Make It Worse
Asthma deaths across the country rose by more than 17% from 3,524 in 2019 to 4,145 in 2020 — the first "statistically significant increase" in more than 20 years, according to federal data examined by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, a nonprofit patient organization that tracks hospital visits and asthma-related mortality rates; it plans to include its findings in an annual report this fall. (Ortiz, 8/20)
Bangor Daily News: 3 Coastal Schools With High Levels Of PFAS In Water Will Install Filter Systems
Three Hancock County schools that were found to have high levels of chemicals linked to serious illness in their water should have new filtration systems in place for early in the upcoming school year. Mount Desert Island High School, Brooklin Elementary School and Deer Isle-Stonington High School have some of Maine’s highest levels of PFAS — per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances — found so far in ongoing tests of Maine’s schools and other public water systems. (Genter, 8/22)
Editorials And Opinions
Different Takes: Hearing Aid OTC Availability Will Help Many; Polio Vaccination In Children Is Imperative
Editorial writers delve into these public health topics.
The Washington Post: The FDA Is Finally Shaking Up The Hearing Aid Market
Hearing aids are too expensive, too clunky and too hard to get, which means many Americans go without devices that would substantially improve their quality of life. That is why the Food and Drug Administration’s Tuesday announcement that it is finally shaking up the hearing aid market is such a big deal. (8/21)
The New York Times: Even A Single Case Of Polio Is A Threat
The case of a young adult paralyzed by polio in New York is not simply unexpected. It’s shocking. The last time polio was diagnosed in New York State was in 1990. And yet the virus has now also been found in wastewater samples in Rockland County, Orange County and New York City. (Mary T. Bassett, 8/21)
Los Angeles Times: Polio Is Back — Aided By Global Health Failures That Spread COVID And Monkeypox 
A case of polio in an unvaccinated man was recently announced in New York state, followed by the discovery of polio in wastewater in New York City. That means a vaccine-preventable disease has re-emerged in the United States, one of the world’s most resource-rich countries, more than 40 years after it was eliminated here. (Abraar Karan and Bonnie A. Maldonado, 8/22)
The Star Tribune: Reforms Vital After CDC's Fumbling
A North Dakota native has been named to a new and vital health care post. The nation ought to wish her well because the task before her is daunting: overseeing the overhaul of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) after its frustrating response to the COVID-19 pandemic. (8/21)
The Star Tribune: Health Care Changes Will Hurt Many Americans
U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith and Reps. Angie Craig, Betty McCollum, Ilhan Omar and Dean Phillips are taking credit for helping lower costs for Medicare beneficiaries, which is desirable, but the Minnesota Democrats fail to mention the harm the legislation will do. (Glen Taylor, 8/20)
Houston Chronicle: Texas' Years-Long Medicaid Waiver Waitlists Fail All Texans
Brundidge and her family are one of the untold number of Texas families who have been forced to leave in order to get the disability services they needed to thrive. A Houston Chronicle investigation into the years-long waitlists for these critical services, Medicaid waiver programs funded through a combination of state and federal funds, estimated that there are 200,000 Texans waiting for care. (8/21)
Dallas Morning News: Postpartum Health Care Is At Risk In Texas Thanks To More Partisan Politics
In a state with one of the highest maternal mortality rates, the last thing we need is another foolish political fight getting in the way of health care. But that’s exactly what is happening when it comes to extending Medicaid coverage for postpartum women, including new mothers, from two months to six months in Texas. (8/22)
Viewpoints: Teens Should Be Able To Get Vaccinated If They Choose; Crisis Pregnancy Centers Should Be Illegal
Opinion writers weigh in on vaccines, abortion rights, covid and monkeypox.
Los Angeles Times: Vaccines Are Safe. So Why Shouldn't Teens Be Able To Get Them On Their Own?
Parents rightfully have oversight of most of their children’s healthcare. But as vaccine misinformation has spread in recent years, they don’t always act in their kids’ best interests. False information proliferating on social media has incorrectly linked vaccines to autism, infertility and even death. (8/19)
Stat: The Biden Administration Needs To Curtail Crisis Pregnancy Centers
Thousands of fake abortion clinics, also known as crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs), are operating across the country. These centers divert, delay, and deceive people seeking abortion care, exploiting their personal information while accepting millions of dollars in public funding. (Susannah Baruch, 8/22)
USA Today: Really Florida? A 16-Year-Old Is Mature Enough To Have A Baby But Not An Abortion?
Since the landmark abortion decision Roe v. Wade was overturned on June 24, advocates, pregnant people and health care providers have been scrambling to navigate the legal landscape for abortion care, as nearly two dozen states have severely restricted or outright banned abortion health care. (Carli Pierson, 8/20)
The Washington Post: After Roe V. Wade, Tragic Stories Mount About Those Seeking Abortions 
The human toll of denying abortion to people who want or need one can be, and often is, appalling. The state legislatures racing to impose sweeping abortion bans, enabled by the conservative Supreme Court majority that overturned Roe v. Wade in June, have done so despite abundant research on the devastating impact these policies have on Americans’ well-being and livelihoods. (8/20)
The Washington Post: The World Might Be Done With Covid, But I'm Still Keeping My Distance
This summer, I’ve played a new people-watching game while walking New York’s sweaty streets: What’s the story behind the mask? Who’s still adhering to covid-19 restrictions when we’ve cast off nearly all public health guidelines in this era of pandemic apathy? (Stacy Torres, 8/21)
Los Angeles Times: We're Starting To Understand 'Long COVID.' We Can Fight It 
We’ve been chasing the coronavirus since the pandemic began with vaccines and drugs, never getting ahead of it. In fact, well into its third year, COVID-19 is still causing often disabling symptoms among many people who were infected in early 2020. (Eric J. Topol, 8/21)
Newsweek: Monkeypox Must Not Be Another COVID-19 For Communities Of Color 
Just as we saw at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, monkeypox is a public health emergency disproportionately impacting communities of color. But this time, we must take immediate action on the lessons we learned from COVID-19 and use them to reduce the spread and suffering and make this time different. (Calvin O. Butts III, Al Sharpton, Reed Tuckerson, Donna Christensen and Debra Fraser-Howze, 8/19)
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