Health Headlines for Tuesday, April 11
Trump Administration to Pay Health Law Subsidies Disputed by House
New York Times
The Trump administration says it is willing to continue paying subsidies to health insurance companies under the Affordable Care Act even though House Republicans say the payments are illegal because Congress never authorized them.
Is Obamacare in a ‘Death Spiral’?
Politico
The Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces have faced a tough year.
$150 million in state budget for new health lab in Albany area
Albany Business Review
The new lab will develop life science research, innovation and infrastructure through a joint effort between Empire State Development and the Department of Health.
How bad is pharmaceutical pollution in the Hudson?
NorthJersey.com
Scientists are taking samples of the Hudson River this month in an ambitious plan to measure how much pharmaceutical pollution gets washed into the waterway during heavy rains and to pinpoint its source.
Addicts Who Can’t Get Opioids Are Overdosing on a Diarrhea Drug
The Atlantic
Opioid painkillers have an inconvenient, lesser-known side effect: terrible constipation.
Nevada advocates try again to ban surprise medical bills
Albany Times Union/AP
Alarmingly expensive medical bills came under fire at the Nevada Legislature on Monday, six years after Gov. Brian Sandoval shot down a proposal that similarly attempted to ban surprise out-of-network costs.
Senate approves high-deductible plans in insurance bill
Albany Times Union/AP
Hawaii lawmakers have approved legislation that would allow employers to offer employees a high-deductible health insurance plan that’s paired with a savings account.
Why Are So Many People Popping Vitamin D?
New York Times
There was no reason for the patients to receive vitamin D tests.
The federal panel that opposed prostate cancer screening just changed its mind
Washington Post
An influential federal task force has dropped its controversial opposition to routine screening for prostate cancer and now says that men between the ages of 55 and 69 should discuss the test’s potential benefits and harms with their doctors and make decisions based on their own “values and preferences.”
Doctors still divided on when women should start mammograms
PIX11
Despite what the American Cancer Society and other health organizations advise, many doctors still recommend routine mammograms to screen for breast cancer in younger and older women, a new paper suggests.