HEALTH & JUSTICE IN THE NEWS
Date: August 15, 2019
Healthcare
Data shows drop in coverage among people ineligible for ObamaCare subsidies
The Hill, 8/12/19
Health insurance enrollment declined among people who do not qualify for financial help under ObamaCare as premiums rose to make coverage less affordable, new federal data shows. The data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on Monday shows that enrollment declined by 1.2 million people, or 24 percent, between 2017 and 2018 among people with incomes too high to qualify for ObamaCare subsidies. In contrast, in the same period, enrollment ticked up by 300,000 people among those with lower incomes who did qualify for financial help under ObamaCare.
Tracking the Rise in Premium Contributions and Cost-Sharing for Families with Large Employer Coverage
Kaiser Family Foundation, 8/15/19
A new KFF analysis that looked at both premiums and other out-of-pocket costs shows that families with coverage through a large employer paid 67% more for their health benefits and care in 2018 than a decade earlier.
Substance Use, Treatment, & Recovery
The Drop in Drug Overdose Deaths Missed Some States
Route 50, 8/9/19
As the drugs fueling the opioid crisis are shifting-from prescription pain pills to fentanyl-so too is the epidemic's epicenter. Drug overdose deaths are now taking a higher toll in big cities than the rural areas that had been associated with the epidemic in recent years, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It's a trend exemplified in Missouri, where drug overdose deaths increased 16% last year and opioid-related deaths became increasingly concentrated in the St. Louis region. While the number of fatal drug overdoses fell by 5% in the United States last year, Missouri was one of 17 states that bucked the national downward trend.
It's The Go-To Drug To Treat Opioid Addiction. Why Won't More Pharmacies Stock It?
NPR | WHYY, 8/13/19
Buprenorphine is a drug that curbs cravings and treats the symptoms of withdrawal from opioid addiction. One of the common brand name drugs that contains it, Suboxone, combines the buprenorphine with naloxone. Combined with cognitive behavioral therapy, buprenorphine is one of the three FDA-approved medicines considered the gold standard for opioid-addiction treatment. To date, much of the research on barriers to buprenorphine access has focused on the fact that there are too few medical providers available to write the prescriptions. According to federal law, doctors must apply for a special waiver from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to prescribe buprenorphine. To get the waiver, a doctor must undergo eight hours of training - and, initially, can prescribe the drug to only a maximum of 30 patients at any one time. Given these constraints, many doctors don't bother. But, according to people active in addressing the opioid crisis, some pharmacists also prevent many opioid users who need buprenorphine from getting it.
Morning Briefing: U.S. Health Panel Advises Doctors: Ask Adults About Both Prescriptions And Illicit Drug Use In Effort To Help Stem Opioid Crisis
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force says 7.5 million people ages 12 and older in the U.S. have been diagnosed with dependence or abuse of illicit drugs in the past year. The Task Force, in reversing a 2008 decision, is seeking public comments before finalizing the recommendation. Includes articles from The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and more.
Opioid Prescribing Guidelines Are Slowing The Flow Of Pills - But Progress Is Slow
NPR | KHN, 8/14/19
When they started practicing medicine, most surgeons say, there was little or no information about just how many pain pills patients needed after specific procedures. As a result, patients often were sent home with the equivalent of handfuls of powerful and addictive medications. Then the opioid crisis hit, along with studies showing one possible side effect of surgery is long-term dependence on pain pills. These findings prompted some medical centers and groups of physicians to establish surgery-specific guidelines. But questions remained: Would anyone pay attention to the guidelines and would smaller amounts be sufficient to control patients' pain? Yes, appears to be the answer to both - in some measure - according to a study that encompassed nearly 12,000 patients in 43 hospitals across Michigan. The researchers published details of their work in a letter Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Mental Health
New National Center Promotes Mental Health In Rural Schools
Illinois Public Media, 8/15/19
This summer, the National Center for Rural School Mental Health held a kickoff conference in Missouri. It included partners from the University of Virginia and the University of Montana, and officials from rural school districts. Dr. Wendy Reinke, one of the co-directors of the national center, speaks at the kickoff conference in June. Dr. Wendy Reinke, a co-director of the center says one of its main goals is to equip teachers in rural schools, who often end up as the point people for their students' mental health.
Around Illinois
Senators announce over $2 million in opioid, behavioral health services for area health centers
WMBD, 8/13/19
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) on Tuesday announced the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded community health centers across central Illinois a total of $2,169,000 through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Integrated Behavioral Health Services (IBHS) Program and the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program. Community health centers are community-based organizations that improve access to affordable, high-quality health care in underserved urban and rural communities by integrating primary health care with pharmacy, mental health, substance use, and oral health services.
IL Mental Health 1st Aid Law Will Help with Youth Suicide Fight
Springfield Patch, 8/14/19
A new mental health first aid training law for Illinois teachers targeting the warning signs of mental illness in youth, approved by Governor JB Pritzker last week, will help blunt the risk of youth suicide plaguing the state, according to the law's chief proponent. "In Illinois, suicide has been a leading cause of death for youth aged 10-17 from 2007 to 2015," said Illinois Association for Behavioral Health CEO Sara Howe, citing a 2018 Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago report. The new law, Senate Bill 1731, sponsored by State Senator David Koehler (D-Peoria) and State Rep. Maurice West (D-Rockford), authorizes Illinois school districts to utilize the Illinois Mental Health First Aid training program, to provide the in-service training for teachers. In addition, if school personnel or an administrator obtains the mental health first aid training outside of an in-service training program, the school employees may present a certificate of successful completion of the training to the school district to satisfy the requirements of the law.
Illinois' Medical Marijuana Program Is Now Permanent, Expanded
NPR Illinois, 8/12/19
Illinois' medical marijuana program is getting a second wind. Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a pair of bills on Monday expanding who can get a medical card, and when they can use it. The program was initially limited to just six years, but is now permanent. When the law was first signed in 2013, state lawmakers made it a "pilot," in order to test the concept and work out any bugs. But now that recreational marijuana will be legal in January, sponsors say it makes sense to permanently allow medical sales too.
Dixon Fire to leave behind Narcan at overdose calls
WIFR, 8/6/19
The Dixon Fire Department will start leaving behind Narcan for all opioid related drug overdose survivors who refuse medical treatment. Dixon Fire has teamed up with the Safe Passage Initiative to combat drug overdose and opioid related deaths. The change takes effect on Monday, August 12. First responders will start leaving behind Narcan, which can reverse the effects of opioid overdose, for people who refuse medical treatment or transport. In addition to Narcan, the department will leave behind information on the Safe Passage program, along with additional information on treatment for substance use.
Health & Justice in the News
is a summary of recent news stories relating to criminal justice, mental health, addiction, recovery, and related issues. It is compiled and published by TASC each Monday and Thursday.
Some headlines and text have been altered by TASC for clarity or emphasis, or to minimize discriminatory or stigmatizing language. Opinions in the articles and op-eds do not necessarily express the views of TASC or our staff or partners.
