Viewpoints: Only Crickets From Trump After Realistic Road Map To Cut Drug Prices Was Released
A selection of opinions on health care developments from around the state.
Los Angeles Times:
Trump Is Mum On Report Showing How We Can Reduce Sky-High Drug Prices
Hard as it may be to believe, there’s a yawning chasm between Trump’s words and deeds when it comes to drug prices. He’s been a consistent critic of the drug industry since before taking office. He declared a year ago: “I’m going to bring down drug prices. I don’t like what’s happened with drug prices.”... To date, he hasn’t announced a single initiative along these lines. But he has nominated a former drug-company executive, Alex Azar, to serve as health secretary. While head of U.S. operations for Eli Lilly & Co., Azar more than doubled the price of insulin, a life-saving medication for millions of people with diabetes (including me). (David Lazarus, 12/8)
Sacramento Bee:
When A Sheriff Is Also Coroner, Bad Cops Can Get Protected, Hands May Get Cut Off Corpses
It should be a relic of California’s provincial past that one person can serve as both sheriff and coroner of a county. But as of this year, at least 41 of the state’s 58 counties still had such a setup – and the result, as we’ve seen in San Joaquin County this week, can be disturbing. Steve Moore, the longtime sheriff-coroner of the Central Valley county, is facing accusations of gross – and we mean gross – malfeasance in the job he’s held for a decade. (12/6)
Los Angeles Times:
The Fight Against The GOP's Unfair Tax Plans Isn't Over Yet
Behind closed doors, Republicans drafted a bill that raises taxes on millions in the middle class and adds at least $1 trillion to our deficit. The bill also renews the GOP attack on the Affordable Care Act, a move that will drive up health insurance premiums in the individual market by 10% each year and will likely result in 13 million more Americans without coverage. (Dianne Feinstein, 12/4)
Los Angeles Times:
A Guide To The Billions In Giveaways To Special Interests Buried In The Senate Tax Bill
The Senate hid billions in giveaways to special interests in its tax measure. We ferret some of them out. (Michael Hiltzik, 12/5)
The Mercury News:
Community Health Centers Abandoned By Congress
On Sept. 30, critical funding for federally qualified community health centers expired. This perceived lack of urgency endangers the health of our nation’s most vulnerable. Now, every community health center in California faces drastic cuts in federal funding that will cause many services to be discontinued, patients to be sent to emergency rooms, clinic staff laid off and some health center doors closed permanently. (Anna Eshoo and Dolores Alvarado, 12/2)
Los Angeles Times:
CVS And Aetna Say Their Huge Merger Will Be Great For Consumers. Here's Why You Should Be Skeptical
The CEOs of drug retailer CVS and health insurer Aetna were marvelously in sync Sunday when they jointly announced their companies’ $69-billion merger deal. (Michael Hiltzik, 12/4)
Los Angeles Times:
Less Choice, Higher Prices Feared In CVS' Takeover Of Health Insurer Aetna
CVS Health says that its $69-billion takeover of insurance giant Aetna will be good for consumers. That, of course, is unlikely. (David Lazarus, 12/4)
Sacramento Bee:
City And County Play Blame Game. Families Live With Lead Contamination.
This is exactly why people don’t trust local government: The city of Sacramento and Sacramento County are fighting over who is to blame for the lead contaminating lawns in Mangan Park near a city-owned gun range. And while the bureaucratic battle plays out, 15 families are left waiting. To do right by them, city and county officials need to figure out how to clean up the lead first and determine who pays later. (12/5)
Sacramento Bee:
A Plea For Clean And Sober Housing For Mothers And Their Children
Drug abuse, lack of education, unstable home environments and more can lead to homelessness. But for the women who wind up on the streets, there’s often the additional element of physical, emotional or sexual abuse. Worse, their children are almost always in harm’s way as well. (Heather Fargo and Roger Niello, 12/7)
Orange County Register:
New Law Gives Domestic Violence Victims A Better Choice
In the time it takes you to read this sentence, a women in the United States will have been assaulted or beaten. That’s because every nine seconds, a woman is victimized by domestic violence — and every minute, nearly 20 people on average are physically abused by an intimate partner. How can we provide lifelines to these more than 10 million women and men annually caught in the cycle of abusive relationships? For most, the solution lies in giving them back economic control of their lives. (Maricela Rios-Faust, 12/6)
The Mercury News:
Sobrato Pavilion Is Spectacular Addition To Valley Medical Center
Valley Medical Center’s new Sobrato Pavilion opens to patients next week, nine years after Santa Clara County voters approved Measure A, a bond measure to pay for seismically retrofitting VMC and keeping its prized burn and trauma centers open. There were significant setbacks along the way, for sure. But the end product is a spectacular addition to the region’s health care assets and to the hospital that is the linchpin of Santa Clara County’s health care system. (12/6)