Happy Friday! The jury is still out whether we’re all growing horns out of the back of our heads because of how much we use smartphones, but apparently humans on the whole are somewhat decent people when it comes to finding wallets with cash in them. Now buckle up, because our cups have runneth over this week in terms of truly excellent health stories.
We’ll start, though, with what to look out for next week: President Donald Trump is expected to issue an executive order that would compel hospitals, insurers and others in the health industry to reveal closely guarded information about the true cost of procedures, according to The Wall Street Journal. This is the order that certain players in the health field have been dreading. It’s unclear how aggressive the administration will be with the rule, considering the rumblings of discontent already rippling through D.C. But a whopping 88% of people in a recent survey said they support such a policy — so the president is not exactly going out on a limb with voters.
The Wall Street Journal: Trump to Issue Executive Order on Health-Care Price Transparency
Speaking of voters, this executive order comes closely on heels of the official kickoff for Trump’s reelection campaign, which took place on Tuesday in Florida. The president has been searching for ways to win back ground against Democrats on the topic of health care — and promised to issue a plan within the next month or two that would counter the buzzy “Medicare for All.”
Many Republicans, though, kind of wish Trump would channel “Frozen” and let it go. With polls showing voters favor Democrats’ stance on health care, Republicans want the president to focus on issues where they think they have an edge, such as immigration.
The New York Times: Trump Wants to Neutralize Democrats on Health Care. Republicans Say Let It Go.
The New York Times: Trump, At Rally in Florida, Kicks Off His 2020 Re-Election Bid
Adding to the prevailing narrative that health care is a winning issue for the Dems, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is using the topic to divert attention away from the more volatile talk of impeachment. “When we won the election in November, it was health care, health care, health care,” Pelosi said earlier in the week. She also promised that Democrats would fight relentlessly against Trump’s attempts to chip away at the health law.
In short, you can pretty much guarantee health care is going to play a central role in the 2020 races.
Bloomberg: Impeach Trump? Pelosi’s Dems Prefer Health Care Focus for 2020
Meanwhile, The New York Times interviewed many of the Democratic candidates about their stances on different issues, including health care. While they all agree something needs to be done about the country’s system, what that looks like becomes a dividing line in a crowded field.
The New York Times: 2020 Democrats on Health Care
A federal appeals court handed the Trump administration a win this week when a panel of three Republican-appointed judges ruled that new rules prohibiting federal family-planning grants to health clinics offering on-site abortions or referrals for the procedure can go into effect. The changes — which are largely thought to be targeting Planned Parenthood and are called a “gag rule” by opponents — have provoked fierce backlash among abortion rights groups that say the implementation of such restrictions will be devastating to women who rely on the clinics for health care. Although the decision isn’t the final say on the matter, the judges predicted the administration will prevail in this case.
The Washington Post: Trump Administration’s Abortion ‘Gag Rule’ Can Take Effect, Court Rules
Meanwhile, a look at two abortion clinics 20 minutes apart highlights the great divide evident around the country as state-level laws stand in stark contrast to one another.
The Wall Street Journal: Two Abortion Clinics, 20 Minutes and a Legal Universe Apart
Politico lifts the curtain on the ever-deepening quarrel between White House aides and HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “Alex is outnumbered and keeps losing,” an individual familiar with the simmering tensions told reporters. With Trump’s focus on health issues as he launches his campaign, the discord threatens to derail progress on key administration agenda items like high drug prices.
Politico: ‘They’re All Fighting Him’: Trump Aides Spar With Health Secretary
Major stakeholders have been anxiously watching congressional action on surprise medical bills — an issue most lawmakers agree needs to be addressed but for which there are several approaches. Industry players each have a preferred strategy (such as independent arbitration), but powerful HELP Committee leaders Sens. Alexander Lamar and Patty Murray hadn’t yet settled on theirs. That changed this week when they announced they back a “benchmark” plan, meaning insurers would pay a provider a rate similar to what the plan pays other doctors in the area for the same procedure. Alexander had “intrinsically” supported a different plan previously but changed his mind after the Congressional Budget Office ruled that this one would garner the most federal savings.
Hospitals were not pleased with the direction this is taking, calling the tactic “unworkable.”
Politico: HELP Committee Leaders Back Benchmark for ‘Surprise’ Billing
One of my favorite stories of the week looks at how those much-hated robocalls, which are mostly just a huge nuisance for most of us, become a life-and-death situation for hospitals. While the rest of us can either block or ignore the calls, hospitals don’t have that option. And when the calls come in waves of thousands, they can jam up emergency lines.
I know a lot of people are creeped out by the privacy issues of having digital ears listening in on your every move, but there could be a flipside. Researchers want to train Alexa et al. to listen for gasping that could signal someone is experiencing cardiac arrest.
Stat: ‘Alexa, Are You Listening?’ A Research Tool Warns of Cardiac Arrest
Arkansas’ implementation of a Medicaid work requirement was closely watched by other conservative states eager to follow its lead. Advocates were appalled by the tens of thousands of people dropped from coverage, while state leaders and the Trump administration insisted that an improving economy was the reason behind the declining enrollment.
But a new study adds another layer to the debate: The work mandate has done nothing to affect the number of people who are unemployed in the state. So, after all of that, fewer people have insurance and fewer people have jobs.
Modern Healthcare: More Arkansans Uninsured, Unemployed Post-Medicaid Work Requirement
In news that surprised zero people, but should be noted anyway: Drugmakers made official their opposition to the new rules requiring them to include prices in TV ads. They say the requirements violate their freedom of speech rights and will be confusing to patients, since the prices aren’t what most people end up paying for the drugs.
Reuters: U.S. Drugmakers File Lawsuit Against Requiring Drug Prices in TV Ads
In the miscellaneous file this week:
• It often seems as if the anti-vaccination movement is this grassroots thing that has bubbled up through social media. But the tried-and-true “follow the money” method paints a more interesting picture, starting with a wealthy Manhattan couple who pumped millions into the cause over the past several years.
The Washington Post: Meet the New York Couple Donating Millions to the Anti-Vax Movement
• Immigrant children in U.S. custody give bleak accounts to lawyers of their experiences — including reports of toddlers without diapers being cared for by 10-year-old girls. The lawyers involved say that during their interviews the “little kids are so tired they have been falling asleep on chairs and at the conference table.”
The Associated Press: Migrant Children Describe Neglect at Texas Border Facility
• The youth suicide rate appears to have reached the highest since the government began collecting such statistics in 1960 — driven, in part, by a sharp increase among older teenage boys.
Los Angeles Times: Suicide Rates for U.S. Teens and Young Adults Are the Highest on Record
• Firefighters who die of cancer outnumber firefighters who die responding to an emergency “at least ten, 20, 30 to one.” Yet the very cities they risk their lives protecting are turning their backs on them once they become sick. “My city’s workers’ comp carrier initially flat-out said, ‘We don’t cover cancer,'” one firefighter recalled.
That was a fairly grim file to end The Friday Breeze with, so make sure to check out Stat’s list of 23 of the best health and science books to read this summer to give yourself a little boost to finish off your week. And have a great weekend!
This story was produced by Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation.