Tucked away in this week was the latest reality check-slash-gut punch on the state of spending in our health system. Leon Lederman, aka the man who coined the phrase 鈥淕od particle,鈥� died Wednesday at 96. A few years back, he auctioned off his Nobel Prize medal for $765,000 to help pay for his health care costs. What happens when you don鈥檛 have one of those lying around?
Do you need a mental break from following the play-by-play of the Supreme Court battle? Well here鈥檚 what you may have missed in health care.
If you think you can escape the phrases 鈥淢edicare-for-All鈥� or 鈥減reexisting conditions鈥� over the next few weeks, I鈥檓 sorry to break the bad news. Both sides have homed in on those key talking points, and we鈥檒l be hearing a lot on both topics for the foreseeable future.
On the Republican side: Candidates are urging voters to believe they鈥檒l preserve the popular insurance protections on preexisting conditions, but it鈥檚 difficult to convey that message while there鈥檚 a GOP lawsuit underway that would strip them away. To try to get ahead of the issue, some Republican lawmakers released a (non-binding) resolution vowing to keep the guarantees. But with no details on how they鈥檒l accomplish it (turns out it鈥檚 hard to get insurers to just offer desserts without eating your veggies, too), the topic remains a thorn in their side.
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(Side note: President Donald Trump did offer a way to cover costs for guaranteed preexisting conditions coverage: getting 鈥渁 little more money from China.鈥澛�)
Over to the Dems, who have their own vulnerabilities: 鈥淢edicare-for-All鈥� has become something of a litmus test for Democrats, especially for progressive candidates, but that doesn鈥檛 mean the plan hasn鈥檛 left them open to attack from the right. At the same time, moderates in the party would prefer to focus on shoring up the health law.
And, if you鈥檇 like a blast from the past (or a peek into the future?), check out the preexisting conditions checklist for Iowa Farm Bureau plans (the ones the state can sell that don鈥檛 fall under health law restrictions).
A lot of news coverage these days focuses on the individual marketplace, but a look at shifting costs for people who receive insurance through their employers paints a grim picture of why health care matters to many voters. Not only has the number of workers who face an annual deductible grown, but the average deductible has crept higher and higher for more than a decade.
So, I鈥檓 not a negotiator. But apparently, if you can haggle, there are all sorts of lucrative clauses, side deals and kickbacks baked into the system that you can use to your advantage to get lower costs for care. Good luck! I鈥檒l be over here wondering why we can鈥檛 all get that price.
Hundreds of detained migrant children are being roused in the middle of the night for under-the-cover-of-darkness journeys to a tent city in West Texas. Advocates are alarmed that they鈥檙e being moved from shelters with formal schools and visits from legal representation to a pop-up tent city that has few such regulations in place.
Meanwhile, a disturbing inspector general report found numerous safety violations at an immigration detention center in California, including nooses made from bedsheets in 15 of 20 cells (which were聽鈥渘ot a high priority鈥� to remove, guards said, per LAT鈥檚 coverage); detainees鈥� rotting teeth from delays to see dentists (and suggestions that they use string from their socks to floss); and more.
Pharma failed to attach to the fast-moving opioid legislation its much-desired 鈥渄oughnut hole鈥� change, which would have let companies off the hook for paying to cover more drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries. But the industry is not giving up 鈥� and Congress might be more willing to play ball in the lame-duck session post-midterms.
One street over. That鈥檚 all it took in a Washington state neighborhood for children to have a better chance of being lifted out of poverty. One street. A new, detailed (and very interesting) map looks at how location plays a part in the economic outcomes of children in low-income families. It鈥檚 also leaving advocates and city planners wondering if offering incentives to move into the neighborhoods with better statistics would be enough to change these families鈥� futures.
In the miscellaneous must-read file:
鈥� Missouri is now down to one abortion clinic, and some of its laws are poised to land in the Supreme Court. Understanding the high-stakes legal developments that got the state to where it is a roller-coaster ride.
鈥� Is a little radiation good for you? Like sunlight? That鈥檚 at least what Trump administration officials are betting on.
鈥� The lawsuits against Purdue Pharma have been likened to Big Tobacco鈥檚 reckoning in the 1990s. But experts see a big difference: The painkiller-maker will likely not have to pay nearly as much in the expected settlement.
鈥� Time and again, following the money proves pretty interesting. Here鈥檚 a look at the industry behind 鈥渉ardening鈥� schools for mass shootings, and how it had stalled before the massacre in Parkland, Fla.
鈥� Australia is on track to all but eliminate cervical cancer in the coming decades. How did they do it? (Hint: It has to do with aggressive vaccination policies.)
Speaking of vaccinations, here鈥檚 your reminder to get your flu shot! Winter is coming.
Have a great weekend!