News: Axios Vitals: Medical board tactics

Friday, November 4, 2022

Axios Vitals: Medical board tactics

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Axios Vitals

By Tina Reed · Nov 04, 2022

It's Friday! Hope you all have wonderful weekend plans. Today's newsletter is 1,0643 words or a 4-minute read.

🥱 Fall back time: Just a friendly reminder we'll all be setting our clocks back this weekend so we can turn up exhausted and out of sync on Monday.

ICYMI, the Washington Post explained this week why daylight saving time is terrible for our health.

1 big thing: Politicians turn to medical boards to ban gender-affirming care

Illustration: Allie Carl/Axios

Medical boards appointed by governors in some red states may be opening a new front in the ongoing political battle over government restrictions on gender-affirming care, Axios' Oriana Gonzalez writes.

Driving the news: The Florida Board of Medicine today is set to ban puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgeries for trans minors.

Under a proposed rule, health providers that offer such care would risk disciplinary action, including potentially losing their medical licenses.
It's the latest move by Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration after Florida's health department released guidance in April telling health providers not to assist children and teens seeking gender transitions.
"The Florida medical board has been encouraged by state officials to ban youth access to gender-affirming care," said Lindsey Dawson, director of LGBTQ health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The big picture: Red states have been looking beyond legislation to restrict gender-affirming care, most notably when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a directive to investigate transitioning care for trans kids as child abuse, said Dale Melchert, a staff attorney at the Transgender Law Center.

"When they failed to pass legislation to limit health care for transgender Floridians, they turned to other avenues, namely executive action through regulatory process," Melchert added, noting failed attempts by state lawmakers to enact laws that criminalize trans care.

How it works: State medical boards are appointed bodies that regulate the practice of medicine in a state — including how telemedicine is offered or how opioids are prescribed.

The Florida Board of Medicine is setting a precedent that could extend to other forms of health care, said Cathryn Oakley, senior counsel at the Human Rights Campaign.

What we're watching: In 2023, experts expect more bills to ban gender-affirming care to be introduced and more executive anti-trans action, such as Florida's.

2. Dems' small reason to smile

Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios

Democrats won a consolation prize this week when Medicare administrators added limited dental benefits to next year's coverage, nodding to a priority that got axed in negotiations over the Inflation Reduction Act, Axios' Caitlin Owens writes.

Why it matters: The regulatory change could save some seniors money on dental care in specific situations, but leaves those enrolled in traditional fee-for-service Medicare without coverage in most circumstances.

Driving the news: A payment rule released by CMS this week clarified that Medicare will cover some dental services, but only in those situations when dental care is linked to a covered medical procedure, such as before an organ transplant.

The big picture: The idea of beefing up Medicare benefits to include dental, vision and/or hearing coverage was very much in play when Democrats began to craft the health care portions of their reconciliation bill last year.

But the cost of such coverage expansions led negotiators to drop the idea during the dealmaking and political machinations that followed.

The bottom line: The new policy "does not go nearly as far as having a dental benefit in traditional Medicare," said KFF's Meredith Freed.

3. Alcohol-induced deaths jump in the U.S.

Data: CDC; Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios

Alcohol-induced deaths surged about 26% in the first year of the pandemic after annual increases of about 7%, new CDC data shows.

Why it matters: It's further evidence of excess deaths that can be tied back to behavioral impacts of the crisis — as well as an alarming sign of the perils of increasing alcohol use in the U.S.

It comes on the heels of another study published Tuesday in JAMA Network Open which found 1 in 5 deaths of people ages 20 to 49 were attributable to excessive alcohol use in the U.S., CNN reported.

By the numbers: CDC researchers looked at age-adjusted rates of alcohol-induced deaths and found they increased from 10.4 per 100,000 people in 2019 to 13.1 per 100,000 people in 2020.

The deaths increased with age, peaking for those ages 55 to 65.
From 2019 to 2020, rates of alcohol-induced deaths for females increased across all age groups for those 25 and over.
From 2019 to 2020, deaths from alcohol-induced acute pancreatitis increased 50%, deaths from mental and behavioral disorders tied to alcohol use rose 33% and deaths from alcoholic liver disease rose 23%.
Males accounted for the largest number of alcohol-induced deaths over the study period. But rates of alcohol-induced deaths for females increased, and the differences between men and women decreased in that time from 3.6 times higher for males than females in 2000 to 2.6 times higher in 2020.

A message from PhRMA

Americans want policy reforms that improve their insurance

Did you know 39% of insured Americans say they don't understand what's covered by their insurance? Health insurance coverage should be predictable and transparent, and insured Americans agree.

Learn more from PhRMA's latest Patient Experience Survey report.

4. The worldwide threat of fungi

The dangers posed by growing outbreaks of opportunistic fungi that kill 1.6 million people globally every year require new drugs, diagnostics and surveillance programs, a CDC scientist tells Axios' Eileen Drage O'Reilly.

Driving the news: The pandemic accelerated the rise of drug-resistant fungi in health care settings, and global warming has expanded the range of fungi growth in certain areas. The problems were flagged by the WHO, which recently released its first-ever list of dangerous fungi.

Fungi are "smart, tough organisms that are here to stay" and are evolving to take advantage of a growing immunocompromised population living in a world increasingly hospitable to certain pathogens due to climate change, says Tom Chiller, head of the CDC's Mycotic Disease Branch.

Zoom in: Chiller points to Candida, which is in our mouth, intestines and skin but can sometimes invade the bloodstream and cause sepsis and other complications.

Over the past decade Candida auris has become more drug-resistant and shown new characteristics, Chiller says. "This is a Candida that's actually transmitting, from patient to hospital environment to patient. ... That was really a sea change for us."

Go deeper.

5. Catch up quick

💰 Centene showers politicians with millions as it courts contracts and settles over billing allegations. (KHN)

🏛 The OB-GYN who provided an abortion on a 10-year-old girl from Ohio who was raped filed a lawsuit Thursday against Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita. (Axios)

👀 Why the rollout of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's $350 payments from federal COVID funds to Georgians has been a "mess." (Axios)

💉 A new drug from Sanofi and AstraZeneca to protect infants from RSV was approved in Europe. (Bloomberg)

6. Dog of the week

Milo. Photo: Fatima Montano

Meet Milo, a 12-pound cutie who used to be a New York City dog before he and his humans moved to the beach in Highlands, New Jersey, during the pandemic.

Now a total "beach dog," Milo loves playing fetch in the sand and lounging in the shade, says his human Fatima Montano.
"Milo starts his day by giving us hugs — quite literally — every single morning when we wake up," she said.

A message from PhRMA

How insured Americans navigate unclear insurance coverage

According to new findings, insured Americans favor policy solutions that improve their ability to navigate and access their care while lowering their out-of-pocket costs.

An example: Tackling the barriers introduced by insurers and middlemen like pharmacy benefit managers.