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A call Friday night time by a federal appeals court docket not solely has raised new questions in regards to the continued availability of the abortion capsule mifepristone however has additionally thrust the abortion subject again into the highlight. That’s one thing the Trump administration had hoped to keep away from through the midterm elections.
Meanwhile, this week Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, the company’s scientists, and President Donald Trump tussled over whether or not to approve fruit-flavored vapes, which could assist adults stop smoking but additionally may appeal to youths to vaping.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Shefali Luthra of The nineteenth, and Sandhya Raman of Bloomberg Law.
Among the takeaways from this week’s episode:
It is unclear whether or not the abortion capsule mifepristone will proceed to be out there by means of telehealth prescribing — at the moment the way in which greater than 1 / 4 of all abortions within the U.S. are obtained. The Supreme Court this week briefly restored entry after a decrease court docket blocked it, but it surely stays to be seen what the excessive court docket will do subsequent. The justices might determine to listen to the case, probably reviving abortion as a marketing campaign subject within the midterm elections. Regardless, the case has the ability to undermine not solely abortion entry, even in states the place it’s authorized, but additionally the pharmaceutical business’s means to develop new medicine.
Makary’s job as FDA commissioner is reportedly in limbo, now over flavored vape merchandise, after Trump reportedly pressured Makary to clear them by means of company approval. Trump talked on the marketing campaign path about preserving the vapes — thought-about by some a helpful smoking cessation software — but that perspective runs afoul of public well being considerations in regards to the danger to kids of protecting fruit-flavored tobacco merchandise in the marketplace.
Also, the White House pulled Casey Means’ nomination to turn out to be U.S. surgeon basic, changing her with Nicole Saphier, a radiologist and commentator who has criticized Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s insurance policies. Saphier is Trump’s third nominee for the put up.
And the United States, having pulled out of the World Health Organization below Trump’s management, finds itself sidelined as the worldwide physique responds to a cruise ship with a lethal hantavirus outbreak, with probably critical ramifications for public well being.
Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Andrew Jones, who wrote the newest “Bill of the Month” function, about an emergency room invoice for a go to that wasn’t an emergency — however might have been.
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Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists recommend well being coverage tales they learn this week that they assume you must learn, too:
Julie Rovner: KFF Health News’ “HHS’ Healthy Food Agenda Puts Hospitals on Notice About Patients’ Meals,” by Stephanie Armour.
Shefali Luthra: ProPublica’s “Babies Are Bleeding to Death as Parents Reject a Vitamin Shot Given at Birth,” by Duaa Eldeib.
Sandhya Raman: The Cut’s “Pediatricians Didn’t Sign Up for This,” by Juno DeMelo.
Jessie Hellmann: Nature’s “Key US Science Panels Are Being Axed — And Others Are Becoming Less Open,” by Max Kozlov, Alexandra Witze, and Dan Garisto.
Also talked about on this week’s podcast:
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