Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
The Healthiest State? Massachusetts, For The Second Year
Massachusetts maintained the number one spot in 2021 for the second year in a row, followed by Hawaii, New Jersey, Maryland, and New York. Mississippi remains at the bottom of the list for the third year running, joined in the bottom five by Arkansas, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Alabama. (Bowker, 8/2)
In news from New York and Florida —
The polio virus was detected in wastewater samples from the suburban county near New York City where an unvaccinated adult recently contracted the life-threatening disease, but health officials said Tuesday they have not identified any additional cases. (Hill, 8/2)
The Florida Department of Health on Jul 29 reported the state's second locally transmitted dengue case, also involving a resident of Miami-Dade County. Spread by Aedes mosquitoes, local cases aren't uncommon in south Florida. (8/2)
The Florida Board of Medicine is slated Friday to consider a proposal by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration to bar physicians from providing treatments such as hormone therapy and puberty-blocking medication to transgender youths. (Saunders, 8/2)
Between 2017 and 2021, there were 993 instances of residents of Florida nursing homes exiting their facility without proper authorization or supervision, according to Florida Agency of Health Care Administration (AHCA) records. (Carnell and Garcia, 8/2)
In news about drug overdoses —
For years, Callie Crow and her charity, Drew’s 27 Chains, have depended on a federally funded state program run out of the UT Health San Antonio School of Nursing for free Narcan. But in January, the program ran out of money for the fiscal year, which began in September. (Barragan, 8/3)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publishes annual data on drug-overdose death rates in every U.S. state. Here is a ranking of every state by overdose-related deaths for 2020, the most recent year available. (Learish, 8/2)
KHN: Music Festivals Embrace Overdose Reversal Drugs, But Fentanyl Testing Kits Remain Taboo
A 26-year-old was found dead at his campsite during the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in 2019. The toxicology report linked his death to a grim trend that has only worsened since. In his system were both ecstasy and fentanyl — a dangerous combination, especially if people don’t know the party drug contains the highly potent synthetic opioid. (Farmer, 8/3)
