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Three mass shootings in eight days have refocused the nation’s consideration on the issue of gun violence — and restarted the long-running debate over weapons as a public well being challenge.
Although Congress is on its summer time break, earlier than lawmakers left Washington they handed a two-year funds deal to make it simpler to fund well being applications — but it surely additionally cements funding restrictions just like the Hyde Amendment, which bans most federal abortion funding.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News.
Among the takeaways from this week’s podcast:
Mass shootings — just like the weekend current violence in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, and the sooner assault on the Gilroy, Calif., garlic competition — immediate calls from officers for extra screening and remedy choices for psychological sickness. However, consultants — who usually assist extra psychological well being companies — say it’s not clear additional companies would cut back these episodes. Among measures invoked by Republicans in response to the shootings is implementing red-flag legal guidelines, which might permit officers and members of the family to get authorities to quickly take weapons away from folks having a psychological well being disaster. Seventeen states have such legal guidelines, and preliminary analysis suggests they assist cut back suicides. Before leaving city final week for its August recess, the Senate handed a two-year funds deal. It would solidify coverage riders such because the Hyde Amendment, which bans the usage of authorities funds for abortions besides in restricted circumstances, comparable to to save lots of a mom’s life. The new funds would additionally take away spending caps that might have triggered vital cuts in well being applications just like the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Canadian officers have raised considerations in regards to the Trump administration’s announcement that it would approve a pilot program permitting states to import medicine from Canada, the place they’re much cheaper than within the U.S. Canadians say they’re apprehensive in regards to the U.S. draining their drug provide. The administration’s change in guidelines about abortion counseling, as outlined within the federal reproductive well being program, Title X, has left some well being facilities which might be bowing out with an issue: Contraceptive provides they purchased underneath Title X can’t be used. They wish to the federal authorities for steerage on what they need to do with these provides.
Plus, for additional credit score, the panelists advocate their favourite well being coverage tales of the week they assume you must learn too:
Julie Rovner: The Washington Post’s “2020 Democrats Are Fighting Over Universal Health Care Details. Voters May Not Want That,” by Paige Winfield Cunningham
Mary Agnes Carey: The Washington Post’s “Proponents of Stricter Gun Control Face a Reality Check in the Senate,” by Paul Kane
Alice Miranda Ollstein: Governing’s “America Has a Health-Care Crisis — in Prisons,” by Alan Greenblatt
Margot Sanger-Katz: Balloon Juice weblog’s “The Upcoming Strange Politics of the ACA,” by David Anderson
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