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4. Political Cartoon: 'Immune to Knowledge?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Political Cartoon: 'Immune to Knowledge?'" by Bob Thaves and Tom Thaves.

Here's today's health policy haiku:

Needy Patients 'Caught In The Middle' As Insurance Titan Drops Doctors

Hundreds of docs gone
At the expense of patients.
Shame on UHC.

- Madeline Pucciarello, MPH

If you have a health policy haiku to share, please Contact Us and let us know if you want us to include your name. Keep in mind that we give extra points if you link back to a KHN original story.

Summaries Of The News:

Global Health Watch

5. New California Coronavirus Case May Be First In U.S. Without A Link To Travel Abroad

The patient arrived at UC Davis Medical Center from another hospital on Feb. 19. The staff requested COVID-19 testing by the CDC, but because the patient didn't fit the CDC's existing criteria for the virus, a test wasn't immediately administered. "We have been anticipating the potential for such a case in the U.S., and given our close familial, social and business relationships with China, it is not unexpected that the first case in the U.S. would be in California," said Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health.

The New York Times: C.D.C. Confirms Possible Community Transmission Case
A person in California who was not exposed to anyone known to be infected with the coronavirus, and had not traveled to countries in which the virus is circulating, has tested positive for the infection. It may be the first case of community spread in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday. "At this point, the patient's exposure is unknown," the C.D.C. statement said. "The case was detected through the U.S. public health system and picked up by astute clinicians." (Rabin, 2/26)

The Associated Press: New US Coronavirus Case May Be 1st From Unknown Origin
California officials said the person is a resident of Solano County, northeast of San Francisco, and is getting medical care in Sacramento County. They said they have begun the process of tracking down people who the patient has been in contact with, a process known as contact tracing. The patient was brought to UC Davis Medical Center from another Northern California hospital on Feb. 19 but it was four days before the CDC heeded a request to test the patient for COVID-19, according to an email sent to employees Wednesday by the hospital's interim CEO, Brad Simmons, and David Lubarsky, CEO of UC Davis Health. (Jablon and Stobbe, 2/26)

Los Angeles Times: California Coronavirus Case Could Be First Spread Within U.S. Community, CDC Says
The staff at UC Davis requested COVID-19 testing by the CDC, but because the patient didn't fit the CDC's existing criteria for the virus, a test wasn't immediately administered, according to the email. The CDC then ordered the test Sunday, and results were announced Wednesday. Hospital administrators reportedly said in the email that despite these issues, there has been minimal exposure at the hospital because of safety protocols they have in place. (Karlamangla and Cosgrove, 2/26)

Politico: California Coronavirus Patient Hospitalized At Least A Week Before Diagnosis
California health officials stressed that the health risk to the general public is still low and that COVID-19 has a low mortality rate despite spreading quickly. There have been no deaths in the U.S. "We have been anticipating the potential for such a case in the U.S., and given our close familial, social and business relationships with China, it is not unexpected that the first case in the U.S. would be in California," said Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health and state public health officer. (Colliver, 2/26)

The Washington Post: First Person In U.S. Tests Positive For Coronavirus With No Known Link To Foreign Travel
Community spread would represent a significant turn for the worse in the battle against the virus. To date, the United States has 60 known cases of the infection, with 59 among people who traveled to Asia or were close contacts of people who went there. The vast majority, 42, picked up the virus while quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Japan. (Bernstein, McGinley and Sun, 2/27)

CNN: A California Coronavirus Patient Hospitalized A Week Ago Wasn't Initially Tested
Hospitals receiving patients with flu-like symptoms have been asking people to detail their travel history or exposure to anyone who has recently traveled, Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, the chief clinical officer and executive vice president of Providence St. Joseph Health, told CNN's Don Lemon. "Now we're going to have to be thinking, how do we change that strategy? Who all do we need to be testing for coronavirus? Right now, during flu season, that would be a lot of people and so we need to figure out how we can scale up the testing and the screening," she said. Providence St. Joseph Health operates 51 hospitals and more than 1,000 clinics across the country. (Moon and Maxouris, 2/27)

KQED: CDC Confirms New Case Of Coronavirus In Solano County
State public health officials said in a press release that the health risk to the general public from the novel coronavirus remains low. According to international data, the release said, approximately 80 percent of people who have tested positive for the virus don't have symptoms severe enough to require hospitalization. (Stark, 2/26)

Los Angeles Times: Orange County Declares Emergency Over Coronavirus Outbreak
Orange County has declared a local health emergency in response to the novel coronavirus, which has killed thousands globally, officials announced Wednesday. The move is largely in response to a proposal to move coronavirus patients to a facility in Costa Mesa, which has sparked a bitter court battle, Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Michelle Steel and Vice Chairman Andrew Do said at a news conference. (Shalby, 2/26)

San Francisco Chronicle: What It's Like To Be A Coronavirus Patient In San Francisco
Rick Wright said he feels perfectly fine.That's despite the fact he tested positive for the coronavirus after being evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan and has been in a hospital room for the past week with his vitals checked by medical professionals in hazmat suits. His wife is quarantined at Travis Air Force Base. (Moench, 2/26)

San Francisco Chronicle: Bay Area Hospitals Scramble To Prepare For Coronavirus; 'When Are We Going To Get The Test Kits?'
As the new coronavirus continues to spread in Europe, the Middle East and Asia — and Solano County recorded the first U.S. case unrelated to international travel, raising fears of a local outbreak — Bay Area hospitals are bracing for the possibility of large numbers of coronavirus patients at a time many are already stretched thin because of the flu season. Hospitals are doing practice runs for workers on how to triage and treat coronavirus patients, including putting on and taking off protective gowns, gloves and glasses, and are considering plans to potentially add isolation rooms or isolation wards if the need arises. (Ho, 2/26)

Elsewhere, states brace for potential cases —

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Prepares For Coronavirus Amid Conflicting Directions From Federal Officials And President Trump
As countries across Asia and Europe continue to report new coronavirus cases, and more than four dozen cases are logged in the United States, Maryland officials say they are preparing for what might come. The officials outlined their readiness after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned states and residents to start making plans for inevitable cases, though President Donald Trump denied at a Wednesday news conference that there was much of a threat. He said the risk remains low because of steps taken to close the border to potentially infected visitors. (Cohn, Knezevich and Bowie, 2/27)

The CT Mirror: Five Things To Know About Coronavirus And What State Is Doing To Prepare
With federal officials warning there will be a rapid spread of the coronavirus in the U.S., there were heightened concerns in Connecticut Wednesday about the state's readiness to respond to the virus. Gov. Ned Lamont held a news conference, flanked by state and health care officials, late Wednesday afternoon in an attempt to allay residents' fears about the epidemic. (Thomas and Lyons, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Hollywood Grapples With Impact Of Coronavirus
The coronavirus outbreak has already forced Hollywood studios to postpone several prominent films' release in China. Now the epidemic is starting to disrupt production of the next slate of blockbusters. Practically all movie theaters in the world's second-largest box office market have been closed since late January, an extraordinary measure Chinese health officials took as the number of new coronavirus cases, especially in major cities, grew rapidly. (Watson, 2/27)

Boston Globe: As CDC Warns Of Coronavirus's Spread In US, Officials Reveal That More Than 600 In Mass. Have Been Monitored For Illness
More than 600 Massachusetts residents who traveled to China recently have voluntarily quarantined themselves at home while being monitored for the novel coronavirus, health officials revealed Wednesday. So far, 377 have completed the quarantine without falling ill, and 231 are still being monitored, Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said. Only one Massachusetts resident — a Boston student — contracted the illness, and he is recovering well in isolation at home, Bharel said. (Freyer, 2/26)

State House News Service: DPH Commissioner: Hundreds Have Self-Quarantined, But There's Still Just 1 Confirmed Case Of Coronavirus In Mass.
Stressing that the risk of contracting novel coronavirus remains low in Massachusetts, state public health officials said Tuesday that they are prepared for a potential outbreak. Tens of thousands of cases of the respiratory illness now known as COVID-19, caused by a new coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, China, have been diagnosed worldwide. (Lannan, 2/26)

Boston Globe: Businesses Need To Start Preparing Now For Virus Outbreak
The stark warning, from a federal health official, was a wake-up call for employers in Boston and around the country that hadn't been focused on whether the coronavirus epidemic would make its way from China to the United States. "It's not so much of a question of if this will happen anymore, but rather more of a question of exactly when this will happen," Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said at a news conference Tuesday. (Edelman, 2/26)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: 'Everybody Should Have An Emergency Plan': New Orleans Health Officials Prepare For Coronavirus
There have not been any reported cases of coronavirus in New Orleans or the state of Louisiana, but New Orleans Health Department officials are taking steps to prepare for a possible arrival. New Orleans Department of Health Director Dr. Jennifer Avegno said the city is revisiting emergency plans and communicating with the Louisiana Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Woodruff, 2/26)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia Health Authorities Prepare For Coronavirus
Metro Atlanta hospitals are on high alert and trading information with public health departments. Local schools are using Lysol wipes in classrooms and devising contingency plans if they need to close. Businesses around Georgia are rethinking travel.After weeks of watching the coronavirus mushroom across China, then spread to other parts of Asia and jump to other continents, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now telling Americans they should prepare for potentially major disruptions to their daily lives. (Oliviero, Kempner and Hart, 2/26)

6. Trump Downplays Americans' Coronavirus Risk, Puts Pence In Charge Of Handling Outbreak Response

President Donald Trump's messaging about just how low a risk Americans face was at odds with other top administration officials, who have warned in recent days that the virus is likely to be disruptive to Americans' lives. "We can expect to see more cases in the United States," HHS Secretary Alex Azar was quick to point out at the press conference. Health experts have been critical about the mixed messages. Meanwhile, Vice President Mike Pence said his role would be to work with the task force to bring the "best options for action" to the president and to "see to the safety and well-being and health of the American people."

The Associated Press: Trump Urges Calm Even As US Reports Worrisome New Virus Case
President Donald Trump declared Wednesday that a widespread U.S. outbreak of the new respiratory virus sweeping the globe isn't inevitable even as top health authorities at his side warned Americans that more infections are coming. ... At a White House news conference, Trump sought to minimize fears as he insisted the U.S. is "very, very ready" for whatever the COVID-19 outbreak brings. Under fire about the government's response, he put Vice President Mike Pence in charge of coordinating the efforts. "This will end," Trump said of the outbreak. "You don't want to see panic because there's no reason to be panicked." (Neergaard and Alonso-Zaldivar, 2/27)

The New York Times: Trump Names Mike Pence To Lead Coronavirus Response
The president said he would accept whatever amount of money congressional Democrats wanted to give for the virus response, adding, "We're ready to adapt and we're ready to do whatever we have to as the disease spreads, if it spreads." "We'll spend whatever is appropriate," he said. Several top health care experts at the news conference echoed Mr. Trump's optimism but also offered a more sober assessment of the future risks. Dr. Anne Schuchat, the principal deputy director of the C.D.C., warned Americans that there would be more infections. (Shear, Weiland and Rogers, 2/26)

CIDRAP: Trump Puts VP Pence In Charge Of COVID-19 Response
"The risk to the American people remain very low; we have the greatest experts in the world right here," Trump said in the speech, as Pence stood behind him. Trump was flanked by several public health officials, including Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar, CDC Director Robert Redfield, MD, CDC Principal Deputy Director Anne Schuchat, MD, and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Anthony Fauci, MD. (Soucheray, 2/26)

Roll Call: Trump Open To Higher Price Tag For Emergency Coronavirus Funds
"With respect to the money that's being negotiated, they can do whatever they want," said Trump, flanked by administration health officials and Vice President Mike Pence. "We're requesting $2.5 [billion]. Some Republicans would like us to get $4 [billion], and some Democrats would like us to get $8.5 [billion], and we'll be satisfied whatever it is." (Shutt, 2/26)

USA Today: Schumer Counters Trump, Asks For $8.5 Billion For Coronavirus Response
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., released an $8.5 billion counter-proposal to the Trump administration's request for emergency coronavirus funding. "This proposal brings desperately-needed resources to the global fight against coronavirus," Schumer said in a statement. "Americans need to know that their government is prepared to handle the situation before coronavirus spreads to our communities. I urge the Congress to move quickly on this proposal. Time is of the essence." The Trump administration requested $2.5 billion Monday to tackle the virus, an amount Democrats deemed insufficient. According to Schumer's office, Congress appropriated $6 billion for the 2006 avian flu, and $7 billion for the H1N1 flu in 2009. (Wu, 2/26)

Politico: Coronavirus Gets A Trumpian Response
He cracked wise about his germaphobia, recounted a run-in with a sick friend using a stand-up comedian's patter, waved around colorful graphs showing America's superiority on virus containment and listed facts he had just learned about the flu. It was a performance that had kept White House staffers on edge all day, ever since the president unexpectedly tweeted his plans for a news conference after deplaning at sunrise from Air Force One. Just hours before his appearance was expected to begin, communications staffers were uncertain about how — or where — the news conference would take place, and whether the president or just the coronavirus task force would take questions. (Cook and McGraw, 2/26)

Los Angeles Times: Trump, Seeking To Tamp Down Fears Of Coronavirus, Names Pence To Lead Response
Allies counseled Trump to put his political and economic frustrations aside to focus on the public health threat, arguing that ancillary problems will fix themselves once the public is convinced the administration is prepared for what may prove a significant crisis. "This is not a garden-variety routine event," said Ari Fleischer, former press secretary for President George W. Bush, who saw his popularity plummet after a botched response to Hurricane Katrina's battering of New Orleans in 2005. "This can grow into people being legitimately scared into wondering what to do to protect their health, to protect their family's health." (Bierman, Haberkorn and Levey, 2/26)

NPR: Trump Says Coronavirus Threat To The U.S. Remains Low
Pence praised the president for the current containment strategy, including travel restrictions, quarantine measures and assembling of a coronavirus task force "that has been meeting every day." "As a former governor of the state with the first MERS case, I know full well the importance of presidential leadership and administration leadership and the vital role" of state and local agencies, Pence said, referring to Middle East respiratory syndrome. (Romo, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: President Trump Puts Vice President Pence In Charge Of Virus Response
Officials have also discussed having the Food and Drug Administration grant authorization to state and local health labs to design their own coronavirus tests without going through the current regulatory process, a source of frustration for public-health officials, according to people familiar with the conversations. In the U.S., 15 locally diagnosed cases have been confirmed, including a new one Wednesday in California that involved a person who reportedly didn't have a travel history or exposure to another person known to have the illness. If confirmed, it would be the first case of spread in a community without a clear explanation. (Armour and Restuccia, 2/26)

The Washington Post: Trump Downplays Risk, Places Pence In Charge Of Coronavirus Outbreak Response
Trump's positive message was at odds with the statements by top members of his administration in recent days who have warned of an unpredictable virus that could spread into communities and upend Americans' daily lives. The president was contradicted almost in real time by some of the government experts who flanked him as he stood in the White House press briefing room."We could be just one or two people over the next short period of time," Trump said of the virus's impact in the United States. (Olorunnipa, Dawsey and Abutaleb, 2/26)

NBC News: Trump's Not Worried About Coronavirus. But His Scientists Are.
Then, with subtle grace, the highest-ranking career official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention delivered a slightly different message from the same podium in the White House briefing room: Not so fast. "Our aggressive containment strategy here in the United States has been working," Principal Deputy Director Ann Shuchat said. "However, we do expect more cases, and this is a good time to prepare." Trump, speeding to catch up with his administration's public relations response to evidence of a potential pandemic, had just taken the equivalent of a victory lap in the midst of what experts are warning could be an Iron Man race. (Allen, 2/26)

The Hill: Trump Names Pence To Lead Coronavirus Response
She said now was the perfect time for businesses, universities and schools to "look at their pandemic preparedness plans, dust them off and make sure that they're ready." Pence said his role would be to work with the task force to bring the "best options for action" to the president and to "see to the safety and well-being and health of the American people." (Hellmann and Weixel, 2/26)

CBS News: CDC Says Americans Should Prepare For Coronavirus Spreading In The United States. How?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said it is not a question of if but when the coronavirus outbreak spreads in the United States. CDC officials urged Americans to "prepare in the expectation that this could be bad." But what exactly should you do to prepare? Preparing for the spread of a virus is similar to how you would prepare for a major weather event, said CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus. "We should plan as if a big storm was coming," Agus said. (McNamara, 2/26)

Politico: Trump's Coronavirus Conflict: Science Vs. Politics
The coronavirus battle brewing inside the Trump administration is putting two urgent imperatives in conflict — showing credibility in tackling a global health crisis while calming unsettled investors and voters in an election year. On Monday, one top White House official publicly disputed concerns about a market downturn while President Donald Trump commented directly on it. On Tuesday, health officials broadcast their expertise about the virus while Trump sought to quash such chatter. And on Wednesday, top aides debated publicly whether the administration would need a czar to coordinate a government response as the president announced a rare evening news conference and attacked the media. (McGraw and Cook, 2/26)

The New York Times: Trump Has A Problem As The Coronavirus Threatens The U.S.: His Credibility
When Hurricane Dorian crashed into the Atlantic Coast in September, President Trump assumed a take-charge role in response. But he undermined his own effectiveness after it became apparent that before displaying a map in front of the television cameras in the Oval Office, he had altered it with a Sharpie pen to match his inaccurate forecast of where the storm was headed. For years, experts have warned that Mr. Trump has been squandering the credibility he could need in a moment of national emergency, like a terrorist attack or a public health crisis. (Karni, Crowley and Haberman, 2/26)

7. One Of Indiana's Worst Public Health Crises Happened Under Pence. Critics Ask, Can He Handle A Coronavirus Outbreak?

A spike in HIV cases leading to a state of emergency was attributed to decisions made by then-Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. Now that Pence is tapped by President Donald Trump to lead the federal COVID-19 response, critics wonder if he's up to the task. Meanwhile, CDC Director Robert Redfield fends off a wave of criticism over how the agency handled the early days of the outbreak and a faulty CDC test that has left states unable to detect new cases.

The Washington Post: Vice President Pence, Criticized Over Handling Of Indiana HIV Outbreak, Will Lead U.S. Coronavirus Response
When President Trump announced that Vice President Pence would lead federal efforts against the spread of the coronavirus, he said the Pence was the right person for the task because of his experience. "He's got a certain talent for this," Trump said at a White House briefing about the virus, which has infected nearly five dozen people in the United States so far. The announcement has cast light on Pence's record as a lawmaker and his handling of a major public health crisis during his time as governor of Indiana. The worst HIV outbreak in the state's history happened on his watch in 2015, which critics blamed on Pence's belated response and his opposition to authorizing a needle-exchange program. (Kornfield, 2/27)

The Hill: Trump Passes Pence A Dangerous Buck
Now, Pence faces two potential outcomes: If the virus does not spread within the country, he will win credit for leadership in a time of crisis, Trump's thanks for confronting a threat to the ticket's re-election hopes this year, and potentially a major chit toward his own hopes of running for president in what appears to be an increasingly crowded field of Republicans vying for a post-Trump nomination in 2024. But if the virus does begin spreading widely within the United States, Pence risks taking the blame. Trump has already falsely castigated House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for supposedly raising fears about the virus, and there is little to suggest he would not blame Pence for a widespread outbreak if it meant he perceived avoiding blame himself. (Wilson, 2/26)

Politico: Trump's CDC Chief Faces Increasingly Harsh Scrutiny
Robert Redfield was a well-known AIDS researcher and favorite of Christian conservatives when President Donald Trump picked him to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2018, where he has helped implement sweeping plans to fight HIV and opioids in the United States while pushing to tackle Ebola abroad. But confronted by the increasingly global coronavirus outbreak, CDC and Redfield's actions are now under intense scrutiny — both inside and outside the administration. (Diamond, 2/26)

Politico: U.S. Isn't Ready To Detect Stealth Coronavirus Spread
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention isn't yet ready to detect whether the coronavirus is spreading across the country. Just 12 of more than 100 public health labs in the U.S. are currently able to diagnose the coronavirus because of problems with a test developed by the CDC, potentially slowing the response if the virus starts taking hold here. The faulty test has also delayed a plan to widely screen people with symptoms of respiratory illness who have tested negative for influenza to detect whether the coronavirus may be stealthily spreading. (Lim, 2/26)

NBC News: Trump Cuts To National Security Staff May Hurt Coronavirus Response, Former Officials Say
President Donald Trump's decision to downsize the White House national security staff — and eliminate jobs addressing global pandemics — is likely to hamper the U.S. government's response to the coronavirus, according to veterans of past disease outbreaks and experts who have studied them. "This is why you have a National Security Council," said John Gans, a former Pentagon speechwriter who wrote a book about the NSC, which has long been the principal advisory body inside the White House for national security affairs. "The changes have made it much harder for the NSC to do this." (Strickler and Dilanian, 2/26)

Meanwhile, 2020 candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has been vocal in her criticism of the administration's response —

The New York Times: Democratic Candidates Take Aim At Trump's Coronavirus Effort
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts called Wednesday for the federal government to redirect money from the construction of President Trump's border wall and put it toward the containment of the fast-spreading coronavirus. "I'm going to be introducing a plan tomorrow to take every dime that the president is now taking to spend on his racist wall at the southern border and divert it to the coronavirus," Ms. Warren said on a CNN town hall program from Charleston, S.C., joining her opponents in the Democratic presidential primary in excoriating the Trump administration's response to the threat. (Ruiz, 2/27)

Politico: Warren Calls On Trump Admin To Explain Process For Bringing Back Americans Infected By Coronavirus
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) is calling on Trump administration officials to explain its handling of the evacuation of the Diamond Princess cruise ship, after 14 passengers infected with the coronavirus flew on a plane with other travelers despite a warning from the Centers for Disease Control. The infected passengers were among the 300 Americans evacuated from the cruise ship in Japan and flown home earlier this month. (Levine, 2/26)

8. What Should You Do In The Face Of Potential U.S. Coronavirus Outbreak? Keep Calm And Carry On

"Don't let fear and emotion drive the response to this virus," said Timothy Brewer of UCLA. The Washington Post spoke to epidemiology experts to find out what Americans should be doing as they watch nervously for more coronavirus cases. In other news: the mask industry is booming, but there's no need for one if you're a healthy adult; health workers question safety measures; a look at asymptomatic patients; and what social media sites are doing to combat misinformation.

The Washington Post: How To Prepare For Coronavirus In The United States
There are the exam gloves, the surgical masks, the dubious supplements and the deceptive disinfectants. If unchecked Internet information is any guide, there's an inexhaustible list of products you should buy to prepare for the spread of coronavirus in the United States — which, according to U.S. health officials, now appears inevitable. But here's the thing: The virus may be novel, but you really don't need to buy anything new or special to brace for it. The Washington Post spoke to epidemiology experts, and they said the most important aspect of preparedness costs nothing at all — calm. (Thebault and Horton, 2/26)

The Hill: What To Know About The Coronavirus
Public health officials, experts and members of Congress this week sounded new alarms about the spread of a coronavirus that broke out in China late last year, after hundreds of cases erupted in Italy, Iran and South Korea in recent days. During an extraordinary news conference Tuesday, officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the virus is almost certain to begin spreading in the United States. Asked about the prospects of an outbreak here, several top health experts used the word "inevitable." (Wilson, 2/26)

CBS News: Should You Wear A Face Mask To Protect Against Coronavirus?
New coronavirus cases are continuing to pop up worldwide. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked Americans to be prepared for the illness, known as COVID-19, to spread in the United States, saying it's not a question of if, but when. The face mask industry is booming amid concerns about the outbreak. The nation's largest surgical mask manufacturer is struggling to keep pace with skyrocketing demand for its products. (O'Kane and Baldwin, 2/26)

Boston Globe: Do I Need To Wear A Face Mask To Block Coronavirus?
With concern about coronavirus coming to the United States on the rise, many people may be wondering if they should rush out to buy a face mask to filter out the pernicious germs. But unless you're sick or taking care of someone who is sick, you don't need to wear one, experts say. (Finucane, 2/26)

NPR: U.S. Health Workers Question Safety Measures As Coronavirus Looms
The U.S. health care system is trying to be ready for possible outbreaks, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned communities this week to prepare for the kind of spread now being seen in Iran, Italy, South Korea and other areas outside the virus's epicenter in China. The CDC notes there are only 15 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in the United States, plus 45 more cases among Americans who were brought home from the Diamond Princess cruise ship or via flights from Asia arranged by the U.S. State Department. (Noguchi, 2/26)

WBUR: A Guide: How To Prepare Your Home For Coronavirus
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is telling Americans that they should be prepared for the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak in their community. But what does preparedness look like in practice? The short answer: Don't panic — but do prepare. (Godoy, 2/26)

The New York Times: They Were Infected With The Coronavirus. They Never Showed Signs.
In Anyang, China, five members of a family came down with the coronavirus after hosting a guest from Wuhan in early January. But the visitor, a 20-year-old woman, never got sick herself. Some individuals who are infected with the coronavirus can spread it even though they have no symptoms, studies have shown. Asymptomatic carriers are a well-known phenomenon. But the coronavirus is a new pathogen, and these cases may complicate scientific efforts to detect cases and to curb transmission. (Rabin, 2/26)

The Associated Press: Facebook Bans Ads With False Claims About New Virus
Facebook said Wednesday that it is banning ads that make false claims about products tied to the new coronavirus. The social network said it is removing ads that feature a product and imply a limited supply, seeking create a "sense of urgency" in their mention of coronavirus. Ads that guarantee a cure or prevention are also banned, it said. (2/26)

Boston Globe: Coronavirus Scams Are Infecting The Internet, But Social-Media Sites Are Fighting Back
On Wednesday, the social media giant Facebook said it had banned advertisements for products that claim to cure or prevent the disease. No such treatments currently exist, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nor is there a vaccine or a specific medicine to treat coronavirus. The attorneys general of Michigan and Connecticut have also urged residents to be wary of coronavirus-related scams, such as phony vaccines, which have been promoted online. A spokeswoman for Massachusetts' attorney general, Maura Healey, urged consumers to avoid responding to spam e-mails or social-media postings that offer coronavirus cures. (Bray, 2/26)

9. Are Kids Innocent Bystanders Along With Adults, Or Are They Stealthily Helping Drive The Coronavirus Outbreak?

Though the evidence to date suggests this virus doesn't inflict severe disease on children, there's reason to think kids may be helping to amplify transmission--just like they do during the regular flu season. Experts say that figuring out how the coronavirus interacts with children might be crucial in containing its spread.

Stat: Key Question For Coronavirus Response: What's Kids' Role In Spreading It?
Among the many, many unknowns about the new coronavirus: What role do children play in transmission of the virus that causes Covid-19 disease? It's a question that public health experts would love an answer to. Knowing whether kids are innocent bystanders, getting infected if someone brings the virus into their households, or are in fact a population that is stealthily driving this epidemic, would give response planners critical ammunition to use in the battle against the virus. (Branswell and Thielking, 2/27)

And in other news —

The New York Times: What Would A Coronavirus Outbreak In The U.S. Mean For Schools?
Schools in the United States prepare for all manner of disasters and threats, whether hurricanes, mass shooters, tornadoes, influenza or head lice. But this week, a stark new order came from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Get ready for the coronavirus. Around the nation, school officials and parents were flummoxed by the sudden warning that if a coronavirus epidemic hit the United States, school buildings could be shut down for long periods of time, leaving children sequestered at home and schools scrambling to provide remote instruction. (Goldstein and Bosman, 2/27)

10. 'Things Are Moving So Quickly': Gilead Expands Drug Trials For Promising Antiviral That May Treat COVID-19

There are currently no approved treatments for illnesses caused by coronaviruses, including the new one, known as COVID-19. Meanwhile, top FDA officials warn that potential treatments, like Gilead's drug remdesivir, are going to come long before vaccines make it to market. Meanwhile, concerns about the drug supply into the United States heat up.

Reuters: Gilead Starts Two Late-Stage Studies To Test Drug For Coronavirus
Gilead Sciences Inc said on Wednesday it has started two late-stage studies to test its drug in patients with severe and moderate cases of the illness caused by the coronavirus, sending its shares up 4% in extended trading. Beginning March, the studies will test the experimental antiviral drug, remdesivir, among nearly 1,000 patients at medical centers across Asian countries, as well as in other nations with high numbers of diagnosed cases, the company said. (2/26)

The New York Times: Gilead To Expand Coronavirus Drug Trials To Other Countries
Remdesivir is already being tested in Wuhan, China, the center of the epidemic, and the United States National Institutes of Health announced on Tuesday that the drug would also be studied in some of the patients who contracted the illness overseas and were now being treated in Nebraska. Results from the trials in Wuhan are expected in April, the company said. The drug is still experimental, not yet approved to treat any disease. There are no approved treatments for illnesses caused by coronaviruses, including the new one, known as Covid-19. Studies of infected mice and monkeys have suggested that remdesivir can fight coronaviruses, and it appeared to cause few side effects when it was tested in patients with Ebola, although it did not work well against that virus. (Grady, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Gilead To Kick Off Its Own Studies Of Potential Coronavirus Drug
The studies, if successful, would help contribute to a larger dataset needed to win regulatory approval for the drug. It is too early to say if the two studies alone would be sufficient for regulators, said Diana Brainard, Gilead senior vice president for HIV and emerging viral infections. "Things are moving so quickly, it's hard for us to gauge what the right approval package would look like in the U.S. or abroad," Dr. Brainard said in an interview. "We're in data-collection mode right now." (Walker, 2/26)

Stat: Coronavirus Vaccines Are Far Off, FDA Official Says, But Drugs To Treat Patients Could Come Sooner
New drugs to treat patients already infected with the novel coronavirus, which has sparked outbreaks across multiple continents, will emerge much more quickly than vaccines to prevent infection, a top Food and Drug Administration official said Wednesday. "The development of a vaccine is not going to prevent a pandemic here," Peter Marks, the director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, told STAT at the SVB Leerink Global Healthcare Conference, ahead of a keynote presentation there. And getting a vaccine ready for pivotal testing is going to take more than just a few months, he said. (Herper and Garde, 2/26)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Raises Fears Of U.S. Drug Supply Disruptions
The Food and Drug Administration is stepping up its monitoring of the drug supply for potential shortages, including 20 products that may be at risk due to the coronavirus outbreak that has shut down much of China and is raising concerns about the nation's convoluted and highly outsourced pharmaceutical supply chain. The crisis highlights a growing vulnerability: Not only are many medications used in the United States manufactured overseas, but critical ingredients — and the chemicals used to make them — also are overwhelmingly made in China and other countries. (McGinley and Johnson, 2/26)

ABC News: Coronavirus Could Lead To Drug Shortages In US
As the novel coronavirus paralyzes large chunks of China's economy, another possible result from the outbreak could strike closer to home for many Americans: shortages of lifesaving medication. The U.S. relies on China for electronics, clothes, toys and, increasingly, prescription drugs. About 90% of the active ingredients used by U.S. companies in drug manufacturing come from China, which has prompted politicians and public health experts to express concern over potential shortages of common generics. (Salzman, 2/27)

11. As Mainland China Coronavirus Cases Continue To Climb, One City Offers $1,400 Reward For Patients Who Self-Report

China is continuing to take measures to try to contain the rapidly spreading outbreak after there was a slight uptick in number of cases reported from the previous day.

Reuters: China City Offers $1,400 Reward For Virus Patients Who Report To Authorities
A city in China's Hubei province, the epicenter of the global coronavirus epidemic, will pay residents as much as 10,000 yuan ($1,425.96) if they proactively report symptoms of the illness and it is confirmed after testing. Qianjiang, a city of around one million people located about 150 km (90 miles) from the stricken provincial capital of Wuhan, has reported a total of 197 cases so far and is stepping up efforts to ensure its infected people are confined and treated. (2/27)

Reuters: China Aims To Bar Those Infected With Virus From Crossing Borders - Health Official
China will focus on preventing those infected with coronavirus from crossing borders and work to strengthen international cooperation, a spokesman for the National Health Commission (NHC) said on Thursday. The comments by Mi Feng at a news conference come after the number of new infections overseas exceeded those in China for the first time this week, with Italy and Iran emerging as new epicentres. (2/27)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus: China Not Sharing Data On Medical Personnel Cases, WHO Says
Timely information about the health of medical workers is key to understanding transmission patterns and developing strategies aimed at containing outbreaks. But it was not until Feb. 14 — more than a month into the crisis — that China disclosed that about 1,700 front-line medical workers were infected at the time. The figure, which has since grown, was published in a research paper, not reported directly to the World Health Organization. (Rauhala, 2/26)

The New York Times: As Coronavirus Slams Small Business, A Noodle Shop Fights For Life
The stone counters where customers normally crowd at Pang Mei's Noodle Shop in Beijing have been turned into an assembly line of workers folding dumplings or measuring out noodles, sauces and other ingredients into plastic containers. The restaurant has been closed to the public for more than a month. Its customers, like all Beijingers, have been all but ordered to stay at home and avoid any public gatherings. Its owners are trying to make up for the loss in business with an improvised delivery menu of boil-it-yourself noodles — with only a little success. (Myers, 2/27)

PBS NewsHour: Chinese Activists Confront Censorship, Violence To Expose Truth About Outbreak
The spread of novel coronavirus in China has stabilized, but a battle between the country's people and its government over information continues. In fact, several Chinese activists who raised alarm over the outbreak and the official response to it are now missing. Critics say the Communist Party is seeking to contain not just the virus, but also the details surrounding it. (Schifrin, 2/26)

12. Global Governments Brace For A Pandemic; South Korea Wows With Nimble Testing Response; Outbreak Calls Into Question Europe's Borderless Dream

Media outlets take a look at the global response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Reuters: Governments Ramp Up Preparations For Coronavirus Pandemic
Governments ramped up measures on Thursday to battle a looming global pandemic of the coronavirus as the number of infections outside China, the source of the outbreak, for the first time surpassed those appearing inside the country. Australia initiated emergency measures and Taiwan raised its epidemic response level to its highest, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump put his vice president, Mike Pence, in charge of the U.S. response to the looming global health crisis. (2/27)

ABC News: Massive Coronavirus Testing Program In South Korea Underscores Nimble Public Health Infrastructure
Global health experts say the speed and scope of South Korea's novel coronavirus diagnostic capability exhibit impressive and significant lab capabilities that no other countries, including the U.S., can match at the moment. South Korea had tested a total of 66,652 people for the COVID-19 coronavirus virus as of 4 p.m. local time Thursday, whereas Japan had reported administering roughly 1,890 tests and the U.S. only 445. The huge discrepancy compared to other countries reflects how quickly South Korea's numbers have been rising, experts say. (Cho, 2/27)

CNN: How Coronavirus Spread Through The Shincheonji Religious Group In South Korea
Illness was never accepted as a valid reason to miss services at the Shincheonji religious group, says former member Duhyen Kim. This is an organization that took roll call, he says, and everyone had to physically swipe in and out of services with a special card. Any absence was noted and followed up on. "The culture was, even though you're sick you come in on Sunday. If you're so sick you can't come Sunday, you have to come on Monday or Tuesday -- you have to make up for the time," Kim says. He describes how, when he was a member, followers would sit on the floor during hours-long services "packed together like sardines." (Hancocks and Seo, 2/27)

Reuters: Secretive Church At Center Of South Korea's Explosive Coronavirus Outbreak
An So-young had a gut feeling that the 31st person in South Korea to test positive for the coronavirus might be a member of the controversial religious sect she quit four years ago. The person, dubbed "Patient 31," was the first of an explosive wave of cases that made South Korea's outbreak the largest outside of China. What caught An's attention was how health authorities were struggling to track the woman's movements before she was tested. (2/27)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Live Updates: Fears Grow Of Pandemic, Markets Stumble Again After U.S. Confirms Case Of Unknown Origin
The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus raised the specter of a global pandemic as governments ramped up their emergency responses and financial markets slumped again Thursday, despite signs that the outbreak may be easing in China. Japan on Thursday told all schools to close through the spring break, which for most schools typically ends in early April. Australia's leader warned a pandemic was a matter of when, not if, and an Iranian lawmaker said he had tested positive for the virus, as new infections and deaths emerged from the Middle East to Europe and South Korea. (Taylor, 2/27)

The New York Times: Coronavirus Nightmare Could Be The End For Europe's Borderless Dream
For Europe, the coronavirus could not have arrived at a worse time. This was the year — with Britain out, terrorism waning and the migrant crisis at an ebb — that the European Union had hoped to repair and revive its cherished goal of open internal borders. But cases of the virus have emerged nearly daily in new European countries — in Spain, Greece, Croatia, France, Switzerland and, on Wednesday, in Germany. (Stevis-Gridneff, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Creates Dilemma For Europe's Public Gatherings, Open Borders
The threat of coronavirus spreading across Europe's open borders has put local authorities and others in a bind over whether to call off fashion shows, soccer games and other major gatherings that define everyday life on the continent. Governments across the European Union have so far declined to reinstate border checks and take other measures to isolate Italy, the site of Europe's largest outbreak. That is shifting pressure onto local leaders to ward off infection by putting a stop to events that draw people from across the continent. (Rboinson and Dalton, 2/27)

The New York Times: Hundreds Confined To Tenerife Hotel For 14 Days Over Coronavirus Fears
Hundreds of guests at a resort on Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, were told Wednesday that they would be confined to their hotel for 14 days as the authorities tried to prevent the coronavirus from spreading after infections were discovered there this week. News of a quarantine at the resort, the H10 Costa Adeje Palace, came as officials in Europe scrambled to contain an outbreak that has spread to at least seven nations on the Continent. Spain, of which the Canary Islands are a part, disclosed additional infections on Wednesday, and France reported its second death. (Peltier and Minder, 2/26)

The Washington Post: Italy's Economy Was Scary Enough. Then Came Coronavirus.
On the wall outside Jamaica, a century-old bar-bistro and a Milan institution, a newly hung sign points to the frustration that has accompanied the arrival of coronavirus in northern Italy. "Jamaica did not close under the bombardments, must it close for collective hysteria?" it reads, referring to the cafe's perseverance through the bombings of World War II. Restrictions imposed to control the virus — and public panic — have transformed Italy's commercial and financial capital in a way some Milanese fear will result in a deep and lasting economic blow. (Morris and Harlan, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Coronavirus Spreads Outside Of Italy, Prompting Fresh Restrictions
Italy's coronavirus outbreak has crossed the Alps and is being linked to a growing number of infections around Europe, prompting countries and companies to enact precautionary measures to reduce travel to and from Italy as the number of fatalities clicked higher. None of the European Union's member states are proposing closing off borders, a step that would break with the EU's ideals of open borders and seamless movement. (Sylvers and Legorano, 2/26)

Reuters: Iran Reports 22 Deaths From Coronavirus; 141 Infected-IRNA
Twenty two people have died so far from the new coronavirus in Iran, the official Iranian news agency IRNA reported in a chart it published on Thursday. The number of people diagnosed with the disease is 141, the chart showed. It did not specify whether those who have died were included in the tally of those infected. (2/27)

The Washington Post: Iran Struggles To Contain Coronavirus Outbreak, Putting Middle East Countries At Risk
Iran is emerging as the center of an outbreak of the new coronavirus across the Middle East, where cases in at least five countries have been linked to patients who traveled to Iran in recent weeks, authorities said. In Iran, 139 people have contracted the virus, including the deputy health minister and a prominent member of parliament. Nineteen people have died, according to the Health Ministry — the largest death toll from the virus outside China, where it first appeared. (Cunningham and Loveluck, 2/26)

The Associated Press: Pope Observes Usual Ash Wednesday Customs In Time Of Virus
Pope Francis celebrated the Ash Wednesday ritual that marks the opening of the Catholic Church's Lenten season in traditional fashion while greeting the public in Rome as other Masses were canceled in northern Italy over fears of the coronavirus outbreak. Francis and a long line of priests, bishops and cardinals walked in a procession through Rome's Aventine hill into the 5th-century Santa Sabina basilica for a late-afternoon Mass. Neither the priests nor the faithful wore face masks, but Rome has largely been spared the virus as Italy's national case count grew to more than 440. (2/26)

The Washington Post: Coronavirus Has Some Religious Leaders Tweaking Rituals For Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday is a chance for clergy to remind Christians of their mortality, often with a swipe of thumb-to-forehead ashes. But this year, the holy day came one day after federal health officials said the country should brace for an "inevitable" spread of coronavirus. Pastors and ministers who already were mulling whether to change practices at weekly church services and struggling to reassure nervous worshipers, especially in immigrant-heavy congregations, found themselves asking: Should we tweak our rituals? (Bailey, 2/26)

The Associated Press: New Coronavirus Reaches Latin America, First Case In Brazil
Latin America saw its first confirmed case of the new coronavirus spreading worldwide when Brazil's government announced that a 61-year-old man who traveled to Italy this month had the virus. The Brazilian man had spent two weeks in northern Italy's Lombardy region on a work trip, where he contracted the contagious virus, the Health Ministry said Wednesday. (2/27)

The Hill: World Bank, IMF Considering 'Virtual' Meetings Amid Coronavirus Scare: Report
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are considering either scaling back their Spring Meetings planned for April or holding them via teleconference amid growing concerns of the coronavirus, according to Reuters. The Spring Meetings are planned for April 17 through April 19 and are set to host 10,000 people from across the globe at their headquarters in downtown Washington, D.C. As the virus grows in scope, the global economy has declined, particularly in China, where the virus originated. However, the virus has spread to Europe as well, with 447 cases confirmed in Italy alone as of Wednesday evening. (Moreno, 2/26)

The Associated Press: World Shares Slump After Trump Announcement On Virus Plans
Shares fell in Europe and Asia on Thursday after President Donald Trump announced the U.S. was stepping up its efforts to combat the virus outbreak that began in China, as the number of cases surpassed 81,000. Germany's DAX lost 2.2% to 12,498.88 and the CAC 40 in Paris dropped 2.3% to 5,59.99. In London, the FTSE 100 lost 2.5% to 6,869.80. The future for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5% to 26,779.00 and the future contract for the S&P 500 was 0.6% lower, at 3,092.20. (2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: Stocks Fall As Virus Fears Show No Signs Of Easing
Global stocks slid and U.S. government bonds rallied Thursday as investors braced for a drop in business activity and corporate earnings following the spread of the coronavirus. Futures tied to the S&P 500 index fell 0.6%, pointing to likely declines when U.S. markets open. European indexes dropped, with the Stoxx Europe 600 dropping 2.1%. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 2.1% lower, while South Korea's Kospi declined 1%. (Ping and Ostroff, 2/27)

NBC News: Coronavirus Expected To Slam 2020 Global Car Sales
Global auto sales could dip by as much as 2.5 percent this year, a significantly sharper decline than the 0.9 percent dip previously forecast, with coronavirus taking the blame, according to a newly released report by Moody's. Almost from the moment it became clear a dangerous new virus was spreading in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the auto industry found itself at Ground Zero. An assortment of automakers operating in or near the city — including foreign makers Nissan, Kia, Peugeot and Honda, and Chinese domestics such as Dongfeng — were forced to halt production. Soon, manufacturers in other parts of the country, including China's automotive center, Shanghai, were feeling the impact. (Eisenstein, 2/26)

Elections

13. Biden Says Trump Wants To Fingerprint Food Stamp Recipients. Turns Out It Was Bloomberg Who Touted Such A Plan.

The Washington Post fact checks recent claims former Vice President Joe Biden made about the Trump administration's food stamp policy changes. In other news from the campaign trail: Michael Bloomberg's previous public health policies, the immigrant population's affect on the elections, and "Medicare for All" ads.

The Washington Post Fact Check: Biden Falsely Attacks Trump Over A Food Stamp Policy Supported By Bloomberg
"First of all, what we're doing is immoral. I know that's not a phrase they often use in politics, but it's immoral. Look what he's doing right — look what this president's doing right now. Look what people have done before. They're going to fingerprint food stamp recipients." — Former vice president Joe Biden, in an interview with Benjamin F. Chavis at a National Newspaper Publishers Association session Feb. 20, 2020. These remarks puzzled us, as we were unaware of any Trump administration proposal to fingerprint food-stamp recipients. Biden raised the issue in the context of denouncing the president's budget for "cutting a billion dollars out of the — all the social safety net, this outfit, whether it's Medicare, Medicaid, whether — across the board." (Kessler, 2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: Bloomberg Defends Soda, Smoking Restrictions As Mayor
In the past three months, Michael Bloomberg has apologized for a policing program during his mayoral tenure that was deemed unconstitutional and for sexist comments that female employees of his company have said he made. But he isn't backing down on his past decisions to regulate the health choices of New Yorkers, though he acknowledges he wouldn't necessarily push for those policies on a national level if he wins the White House. The former New York City mayor prohibited smoking in restaurants and bars, blocked the use of artificial trans fat in restaurants and aggressively pushed for a ban on large sugary drinks, among other public-health measures that were seen by his critics as too far-reaching during his three terms. (Parti, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Growing Immigrant Population To Influence 2020 Election, Report Finds
More than 23 million immigrants will be eligible to vote in the 2020 election, making up a historically high 10% of the electorate, according to a new report by the Pew Research Center. The growing number of eligible immigrant voters could play a significant role in picking the Democratic presidential nominee, as 46% of them live in states with primaries or caucuses taking place on or before March 3. Fourteen states will hold voting that day, known as Super Tuesday, on top of the four coming before it. (Lazo, 2/26)

Politico: Anti-Medicare For All Ad Campaign Launches In South Carolina
A healthcare industry alliance has quietly launched a six-figure ad campaign in South Carolina that appears aimed at thwarting Bernie Sanders' momentum ahead of Saturday's primary election. The Partnership for America's Healthcare Future (PAHCF), a consortium of pharmaceutical, hospital and health insurance lobbyists, purchased over $200,000 in TV ads to run in Charleston and Columbia media markets Tuesday through Saturday. (Otterbein and King, 2/26)

Bloomberg: Do Bernie's Numbers Add Up? Bond Market Says They Don't Need To
Democratic presidential front-runner Bernie Sanders is pledging to spend big and fund it all with new taxes, drawing flak from rivals who say his budget numbers don't add up. But bond investors say they don't really need to. And more and more economists are inclined to agree. (Holland and McCormick, 2/26)

Pharmaceuticals

14. One Of Nation's Largest PBMs Express Scripts May Be Hit With Subpoena Over Failing To Provide Insulin Price Info

Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) threaten Cigna Corp.'s Express Scripts with a subpoena after they say the pharmacy benefit manager failed to comply with an investigation of rising insulin costs. Meanwhile, lawmakers seek answers on how unofficial advisers may have influenced President Donald Trump's decision to endorse a risky antidepressant for veterans.

Stat: Senators Threaten To Subpoena Express Scripts For Insulin Documents
The ranking members of the Senate Finance Committee are threatening to issue a subpoena to Express Scripts, one of the largest pharmacy benefit managers in the U.S., for failing to produce documents that were requested nearly a year ago concerning the price of insulin. In a pointed letter sent on Wednesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) blasted the company over its failure to "even attempt to answer many of the questions" that were posed in a previous letter sent last April. At the time, the committee had begun investigating rising drug prices with a particular focus on insulin, and several PBM executives had just testified at a hearing. (Silverman, 2/26)

Bloomberg: Cigna Has Failed To Comply With Insulin-Cost Probe, Senators Say
The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over Medicare and Medicaid, said the letter served as a final notice for the company to provide the requested documents. Failure to comply by March 10 would result in a subpoena, Grassley and Wyden said. "Cigna's unwillingness to provide the documents we requested fits an industry-wide pattern of fighting efforts to shed light on PBMs' practices," Grassley and Wyden wrote in the letter. "Americans are demanding answers from PBMs and pharmaceutical companies, and we expect your company to begin providing them promptly." (Griffin, 2/26)

ProPublica: Trump Endorsed A Risky Antidepressant For Veterans. Lawmakers Want To Know If His Mar-A-Lago Pals Had A Stake In The Drugmaker.
House Democrats are expanding their investigation of outside influence at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, examining whether a push to use a new antidepressant from Johnson & Johnson was advanced by a group of unofficial advisers who convened at Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's private club. The chairmen of the House veterans affairs and oversight committees sent letters last week asking for emails and financial records from the three advisers, Marvel Entertainment chairman Ike Perlmutter, physician Bruce Moskowitz and lawyer Marc Sherman. The Democrats are seeking, among other documents, any communications the men had with Johnson & Johnson and financial records showing whether they had any stake in the company. (Arnsdorf, 2/27)

In other pharmaceutical news —

Stat: Tracking Drugs In The Supply Chain Still Hampered By Poor Paperwork
As Americans debate whether to import prescription drugs from Canada to relieve rising costs, a new government report finds that 16% of medicines examined could not be traced back to their manufacturers, underscoring ongoing concerns about the security of the pharmaceutical supply chain. Specifically, documentation was lacking or mismatched for six of 44 so-called high-risk prescription drugs, although in one instance, a wholesaler refused to provide paperwork, according to the report from the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, which reviewed Medicare Part D claims that were billed between January and May 2018. (Silverman, 2/26)

Stat: Allakos Is Running Trials In Reverse, Critics Say, Raising Questions On Its Drug
Allakos (ALLK) is embroiled in a clinical trial controversy with potentially billions of dollars at stake. The San Francisco Bay Area biotech is using a Phase 1 clinical trial to collect safety and tolerability data on its lead digestive disease drug, called antolimab. The existence of this trial — which Allakos has not told investors about — raises questions about a promise already made to move antolimab into a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial before the end of March. (Feuerstein, 2/26)

Public Health And Education

15. Teaching Police About Autism: Advocacy Groups Hold Seminars In N.J. About Why Some Children Might Run From Law Enforcement

They've trained hundreds of thousands of officers about how to approach people with special needs. Public health news is on pedestrian deaths, widowhood and dementia, migraines, adult obesity, an E. coli outbreak, mental health, and children and nature, as well.

The New York Times: When The Police Stop A Teenager With Special Needs
A man in his mid-20s regularly roams the streets of my small town in the middle of the night. He looks angry and doesn't communicate clearly. Not everyone living in the area knows him. But the police do. "His father reached out to us," said Sgt. Adrian Acevedo of the South Orange, N.J., police department, "to tell us his son is blowing off steam, has special needs, and won't make eye contact or listen to us. If we didn't have this information, we could mistakenly take him for a burglar." (Hollow, 2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: More American Pedestrians Are Dying Than In Past 30 Years
U.S. pedestrian deaths rose in 2019 to their highest level in 30 years, even as the nation's roadway crash fatalities overall have been falling, according to a new report. An estimated 6,590 pedestrians were killed in motor-vehicle crashes last year, a nearly 5% increase from the 6,283 deaths in 2018, according to the report released Thursday by the Governors Highway Safety Association, a nonprofit that represents state highway-safety offices. (Calvert, 2/27)

CNN: Widowhood Increases Risk Of Alzheimer's, Study Says
Losing your spouse or life partner and gaining the designation "widow" or "widower" is one of life's cruelest blows. Now science believes that widowhood may hasten the development of a type of cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's. (LaMotte, 2/26)

The New York Times: The Difference Between Worry, Stress And Anxiety
You probably experience worry, stress or anxiety at least once on any given day. Nearly 40 million people in the U.S. suffer from an anxiety disorder, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Three out of four Americans reported feeling stressed in the last month, a 2017 study found. But in one of these moments, if asked which you were experiencing — worry, stress or anxiety — would you know the difference? (Pattee, 2/26)

CNN: Nature Makes Children Happier, Science Shows
As my wife, daughters and I hiked through the woods at one of the many state parks near our home, I explained to them how we were doing three things that were simultaneously boosting our happiness at that moment. First, we were getting exercise, a proven mood booster. Second, we were spending quality time with loved ones, long associated with life happiness in surveys. And third, we were in nature. A hike in the woods is a trifecta of joy, and all it took was making this modest effort. (Allan and Rogers, 2/26)

Gun Violence

16. 'Unspeakable Tragedy': Milwaukee Shooting At Molson Coors Plant Leaves 6 Dead Including Shooter Who Worked There

Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes said it was Wisconsin's 11th mass shooting since 2004, and he urged residents to "never grow comfortable in the face of these repeated tragedies."

The New York Times: Milwaukee Shooting: Gunman Kills 5 Co-Workers At Molson Coors
In a city renowned for its brewing tradition, the sprawling Molson Coors campus was an icon in itself, a place known for decades to Milwaukee locals as the old Miller Brewery. But on Wednesday afternoon, officials said, a worker still in his uniform stormed the facility and began shooting. He killed five people, all fellow employees. (Bosman, Smith and Vigdor, 2/26)

The Washington Post: Molson Coors Shooting: Five Dead In Shooting At Milwaukee Campus, Police Say
"This is a tragic day for our city, this is a tragic day for our state," Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said at a Wednesday evening news conference. The rampage is the first shooting to kill four or more people in 2020, according to a Washington Post database. The mass shooting adds to a list of victims that continues to grow as gunmen attack schools, houses of worship and workplaces. (Simmons, Berman and Thebault, 2/26)

The Wall Street Journal: Gunman Kills Five At Molson Coors Plant
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett called the shooting an "unspeakable tragedy for our city." "Five families, six families actually, are grieving and will be grieving because of this horrific act," he said at a news conference Wednesday. "This is a time for us to think about those families because there are five individuals who went to work today, just like everybody goes to work, and they thought they were going to go to work, finish their day and return to their families. They didn't, and tragically they never will." (Ailworth and Maloney, 2/27)

Health Care Personnel

17. Critics Assail J&J's Sponsorship Of High-Profile Physician Conference Exploring Conflict Of Interests

Johnson & Johnson is underwriting the conference scheduled for June. "The pharmaceutical sponsorship is a problem for a conference on this topic. We need to extract medical research, education, and practice from the all-pervasive and distorting influence of industry," said Fiona Godlee, the editor-in-chief of BMJ, who rejected an invitation to appear as a panelist. Physician news is also on consolidated practices.

Stat: Health Care Event About Conflicts Of Interest Has Conflict Itself, Critics Say
In an effort to better understand how conflicts of interest may affect health care, the New York Academy of Sciences is hosting a high-profile conference this coming June with panels featuring more than two dozen prominent academics and a smattering of people from industry, government, and the nonprofit world who will be encouraged to think big thoughts and parse nuanced scenarios. But the event is generating something of a dustup as a handful of prospective panelists have declined to participate. In their view, the conference will be sullied by corporate sponsorship — Johnson & Johnson is underwriting the gathering — and there is concern the health care giant has a vested interest in managing and influencing how conflicts in the world of medicine are perceived and handled. (Silverman, 2/27)

Stat: Physician Practice Consolidation: It's Only Just Begun
Disruption has redefined health care in the past decade. For private practice physicians, the biggest disruptor has been consolidation. The trend of local hospitals merging into massive health systems has significantly affected private practices. According to Avalere Health and the Physicians Advisory Institute, between 2016 and 2018 hospitals acquired 8,000 medical practices and 14,000 physicians left private practice to work in hospitals. (Suthrum, 2/27)

State Watch

18. State Highlights: Georgia Health Price Transparency Bill Breezes Through Senate; Texas Governor Explores Options For Expanding Medicaid

Media outlets report on news from Georgia, Texas, Colorado, Mississippi, New York, California, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts.

Georgia Health News: State Senate OKs Transparency Bill On Quality, Costs Of Care
The Georgia Senate approved legislation Tuesday to increase transparency of health care prices for consumers. Senate Bill 303 would give insured Georgians the ability to query their insurer to learn their out-of-pocket costs before getting non-emergency services from a physician or hospital. Consumers could also get data on the medical providers' quality of care. (Miller, 2/26)

Texas Tribune: Texas Medicaid Expansion Would Help Homeless, Advocates Say
When Susan Peake moved to Austin from Denver in 2018, she traded one kind of safety net for another. In Colorado, she'd received state-funded health insurance coverage, which she credits with saving her from financial ruin after she suffered a heart attack requiring double-bypass surgery. In Texas, though she did not qualify for free health insurance, she had a room at her sister's house, where she hoped to save some money while she recovered. But after a disagreement with her brother-in-law, things spiraled out of control for Peake, 52. (Walters, 2/27)

The Associated Press: New Lawsuit: Mississippi Prison Has 'Abhorrent Conditions'
The Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman is a violent, rat-infested place where inmates live in "abhorrent conditions" and their medical needs are routinely ignored, attorneys say in a new lawsuit filed on behalf of 152 prisoners. The suit was filed in federal court Tuesday, and attorneys are asking for class-action status to cover all current and future inmates at Parchman. It eventually could be merged with a similar lawsuit filed in January on behalf of 33 other Parchman inmates. (2/26)

CNN: New York Removed Questions About Mental Health From The Bar So Law Students Will No Longer Suffer In Silence
Questions around mental health will be removed from the application to the New York bar thanks to a proposed legislation approved by the New York State Unified Court System. "Today marks a historic step forward in addressing the ongoing mental health crisis in the legal profession," said New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) President Henry M. Greenberg. "Future generations of New York lawyers no longer need to live in fear that bravely and smartly seeking treatment for mental health issues could one day derail their careers." (Holcombe, 2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: PG&E Judge Skeptical Of Most Government Wildfire Response Claims
The judge overseeing PG&E Corp.'s bankruptcy opened the door to reducing government agency claims against the troubled utility to $290 million, a fraction of the billions federal authorities say they are owed. The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services are seeking $3.9 billion and $2.4 billion, respectively, from San Francisco-based PG&E for services provided in the aftermath of three deadly wildfires linked to the utility's equipment. (Biswas, 2/26)

Houston Chronicle: Pediatric AIDS Chief Doctor Steps Down At Texas Children's Hospital In Houston
Dr. Mark Kline, who founded an international pediatric HIV/AIDS program credited with saving tens of thousands of lives, has abruptly stepped down from leadership posts at that organization and two elite Houston medical institutions. Texas Children's and Baylor College of Medicine Wednesday jointly announced the departures, which come less than a year after the hospital nominated Kline for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative, the world's largest provider of HIV/AIDS care and treatment. Kline was president of the initiative. (Ackerman, 2/26)

San Francisco Chronicle: SF's Scott Wiener Wants To Fund Financial Rewards For Meth Addicts Who Stop Using Drugs
Facing a growing methamphetamine epidemic with few known treatments, a San Francisco state legislator wants to make public funding available for programs that provide financial incentives to participants to stop using drugs. Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener introduced SB888, which would expand the substance abuse treatment options that qualify for Medi-Cal, the state's health care program for the poor, to include contingency management. These programs use vouchers or small cash prizes to motivate people to stay off drugs. (Koseff, 2/26)

North Carolina Health News: Attorney General Josh Stein To HCA: 'I Want Answers'
N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein has told HCA Healthcare that he's heard enough... "The delivery of health care is truly a life-or-death issue," Stein said in a statement issued late Tuesday as his office made public a letter addressed to Greg Lowe, president of the North Carolina division of HCA Healthcare. "This is why my office took so seriously our responsibility to protect Western North Carolinians as we negotiated with HCA over its purchase of Mission. I am deeply concerned about what I've been hearing about HCA – and I want answers." (Cotiaux, 2/27)

Los Angeles Times: Fight Over Homelessness Turns Divisive In L.A. Supervisor Race
With some 19,000 homeless residents living in Los Angeles County's 2nd Supervisorial District, the candidates running to replace Mark Ridley-Thomas on the Board of Supervisors are united in their pledge to ease housing costs and bring people indoors. At debates, they pitch expanded emergency street services, building prefabricated housing, and policies to stop speculative developers from snatching up homes and driving up housing prices. (Smith, 2/26)

Philadelphia Inquirer: Philadelphia Supervised Injection Site Splits Mayor Jim Kenney, City Council
From a democratic socialist state representative to a federal prosecutor appointed by President Donald Trump, Philadelphia officials on Wednesday roundly criticized a plan supported by Mayor Jim Kenney to open the nation's first supervised injection site in South Philadelphia next week. City Council President Darrell L. Clarke went so far as to say he opposes the opening of any injection site in Philadelphia, a position he had not previously taken. (McCrystal and Collins Walsh, 2/26)

WBUR: Philadelphia Nonprofit Opening Nation's First Supervised Injection Site Next Week
After a two-year battle, the Philadelphia nonprofit Safehouse says next week it will open the first space in the U.S. where people struggling with addiction can use opioids and other illegal drugs under the supervision of trained staff. The Wednesday announcement comes one day after a U.S. district judge issued a final ruling declaring the facility does not violate federal drug laws. This solidified an October decision, which was the first time a federal court has weighed in on the legality of a supervised injection facility, or what advocates call an overdose prevention site. (Allyn and Winberg, 2/26)

North Carolina Health News: Flu Cases Subside In NC, But Children Still At Risk
While public health officials issue warnings about a newly emerged strain of coronavirus reaching the United States, the country is still battling with another deadly respiratory virus — influenza. This year's flu season has hit children particularly hard, with the emergence early on of the influenza B strain that tends to affect children at higher rates than adults, said Zack Moore, state epidemiologist for the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services. "When we tend to have a season like this, those tend to hit children and young adults harder," he said. (Ovaska, 2/27)

The Wall Street Journal: A Hospital Grows In Brooklyn: NYU Langone Plans $650 Million Expansion
It has taken three years and more than $350 million for NYU Langone Health to break even with its satellite hospital in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Now, the health system is ready to expand there, with a new, $650 million patient-room tower. Over the past decade and more, New York's larger, elite health systems moved into Brooklyn, Westchester and elsewhere to expand their footprints and attract new patients. Many took on debt, the aging buildings and boilers of the safety-net hospitals some of them absorbed and patients who rely heavily on Medicare and Medicaid. (West, 2/26)

Boston Globe: FBI Investigating State's Licensing Of Massage Therapists With Fake Credentials
The FBI has launched an investigation into how applicants with phony or questionable credentials were able to get Massachusetts massage therapist licenses, according to two people briefed on the probe, bringing upheaval to a board that is supposed to help prevent sex trafficking. Investigators are looking into why employees of the state Board of Registration of Massage Therapy approved the applications of candidates who reported getting their training at Axiom Healthcare Academy in New Jersey, after the school closed in 2014, according to the two people. (Estes, 2/26)

California Healthline: Your School Assignment For The Day: Spelling And Specs
Daisy Leon struggles to sit still and read the letters on the eye chart. Her responses tumble out in a quiet, confused garble. "You know your letters?" asks optometrist Jolly Mamauag-Camat. "Umm, ya," says Daisy, almost inaudibly. The 6-year-old kindergartner had her eyes examined for the first time on a recent Thursday morning. Although she hadn't complained about headaches or blurry vision, her grandmother noticed she'd been inching closer to watch television. (De Marco, 2/26)

Health Care Personnel

19. Research Roundup: Flu Vaccine; Vitamin D And Pregnancy; Medical Student Mistreatment; And More

Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.

CIDRAP: Study Ranks Relative Effectiveness Of Influenza Vaccines In Seniors
A study today in the Journal of Infectious Diseases found that egg-based adjuvanted and high-dose (HD) flu vaccines had slightly higher relative vaccine effectiveness (RVE) than egg-based quadrivalent (four-strain) vaccines in nearly 13 million Medicare beneficiaries 65 and older during the 2018-19 flu season. Led by US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) scientists, the researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study using inverse probability of treatment weighting and Poisson regression to measure RVE in preventing flu-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits. (2/26)

The New York Times: Vitamin D During Pregnancy May Benefit Children's Bones
Most experts recommend that pregnant women take a daily supplement of 400 units of vitamin D. Now a randomized clinical trial suggests that a much larger dose may be beneficial for children's bone health. The study, in JAMA Pediatrics, randomized 517 women to take either a 2,400-unit vitamin D supplement or a placebo from 24 weeks of pregnancy until one week after birth. (Bakalar, 2/25)

CIDRAP: Analysis Links Outpatient Penicillin Prescribing With Sepsis Mortality Rates
A new study by researchers from Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health suggests that outpatient prescribing of penicillins is associated with rates of mortality with sepsis in older US adults. The study, published in BMC Infectious Diseases, used a multivariable mixed-effects model to relate state-specific rates of outpatient prescribing for oral fluoroquinolones, penicillins, macrolides, and cephalosporins in 2014 and 2015 to state-specific rates of mortality with sepsis in different age-groups of US adults in the same years, adjusting for additional covariates and random effects associated with 10 US Department of Health and Human Services regions. (2/24)

The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation: Health Care In The 2020 Election
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide today whether to take up Texas v. United States, which challenges the constitutionality of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA). The February KFF Health Tracking Poll finds attitudes towards the ACA has hit its highest favorability since KFF began tracking opinions nearly ten years ago. The latest KFF poll finds a clear majority of the public viewing the law favorably (55%), while slightly more than one-third (37%) of the public hold unfavorable views. (Kirzinger, Kearney and Brodie, 2/21)

Editorials And Opinions

20. Perspectives: Political Careers At Stake In Age Of Coronavirus; U.S. Testing Is Far Behind On Coronavirus So We Don't Know Where It Is

Editorial pages focus on issues surrounding the spread of coronavirus.

The Wall Street Journal: Trump Versus The Coronavirus
Let us simplify: If anything close to "community spread" occurs in the U.S., two political careers will be at risk—Donald Trump's and Bernie Sanders's, in the middle of a presidential campaign. If the virus expands in the U.S., both the content and the quality of the response will be on President Trump. As such, the coronavirus could be the issue on which Mr. Trump finally blows himself up with Twitter. (Daniel Henninger, 2/26)

The Washington Post: How Trump's Response To Coronavirus Matches Up With What Experts Say Government Should Do
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday that the spread of the novel coronavirus within the United States is "inevitable." On Wednesday evening, amid criticism from Congress and 2020 Democratic candidates, as well as alarm among some conservatives, President Trump held a news conference to try to assure Americans this virus wasn't amounting to much and that the government is doing all it can to stop its spread. So what are the steps the government can take, and why are there bipartisan concerns that the Trump administration is ill-prepared to protect us? Let's walk through this. (Amber Phillips, 2/26)

Fox News: America Is Not Ready For A Coronavirus Outbreak Or Any Major Epidemic
The city of San Francisco has just declared a state of emergency in response to coronavirus, and yet, you'll remember that for a month Western leaders told us that the virus was under control and was unlikely to cause serious problems for anyone in our hemisphere. None of that was true. But saying it was less painful than rethinking the failed theology of globalism, so they went with it. (Tucker Carlson, 2/25)

The New York Times: Let's Call It Trumpvirus
So, our Coronavirus Czar is going to be … Mike Pence. Feeling more secure? "I know full well the importance of presidential leadership," the vice president said as soon as he was introduced in his new role.Totally qualified. First criteria for every job in this administration is capacity for praising the gloriousness of our commander in chief. Yeah, when you think of Mike Pence you maybe don't think about Pandemic Fighter Supreme. But as President Trump pointed out repeatedly, he has already run Indiana. (Gail Collins, 2/26)

Los Angeles Times: If Our Government Were Competent, Would Coronavirus Be So Scary?
Panic and fear over this disease outbreak aren't going to be washed away quickly, even if a vaccine is soon developed or the virus runs its course. Reluctance to travel will persist, and officials may well continue canceling big public events — as Italian authorities cut short the annual Venice Carnival and tightened restrictions on Milan's fashion week in recent days. Businesses will have to learn that as their supply chains become more attenuated and reach into parts of the country where they have little control over events, they'll have to develop Plans B, C and D to cope with the unexpected. The public may learn the dangers of placing people in charge of government who don't project skill at what they're doing or a commitment to the task at hand.COVID-19 may teach us that although we can muddle through good times without sound planning and competent leadership, in bad times nothing is more important. (Michael Hiltzik, 2/26)

CNN: The Best Defense Against Coronavirus
As an infectious disease physician and medical microbiologist who has successfully treated patients with Ebola virus disease in the US, I am being asked a lot of questions about the new coronavirus, Covid-19. One person I spoke with was concerned that the reading glasses she had ordered from China might be contaminated with the virus and dangerous to her health. The short answer: highly unlikely. (Colleen Kraft, 2/26)

The New York Times: Welcome To The Age Of Pandemics
In early 2018, during a meeting at the World Health Organization in Geneva, a group of experts I belong to (the R&D Blueprint) coined the term "Disease X": We were referring to the next pandemic, which would be caused by an unknown, novel pathogen that hadn't yet entered the human population. As the world stands today on the edge of the pandemic precipice, it's worth taking a moment to consider whether Covid-19 is the disease our group was warning about. Disease X, we said back then, would likely result from a virus originating in animals and would emerge somewhere on the planet where economic development drives people and wildlife together. (Daszak, 2/27)

Politico: The White House Shouldn't Downplay The Coronavirus
The White House has been walking into a coronavirus trap. By pooh-poohing worries about the virus and saying everything is under control, it set itself up for the charge, if things get even a little bit bad, that it was self-deluding and overly complacent. It would be accused of making mission-accomplished statements before the mission truly began. The administration is already getting attacked for its cuts to the epidemic teams at the National Security Council and Department of Homeland Security. If the virus spreads significantly in the U.S., it will be attributed entirely to these moves, fairly or not. (Rich Lowry, 2/24)

New England Journal of Medicine: Escaping Pandora's Box — Another Novel Coronavirus
The 1918 influenza pandemic was the deadliest event in human history (50 million or more deaths, equivalent in proportion to 200 million in today's global population). For more than a century, it has stood as a benchmark against which all other pandemics and disease emergences have been measured. We should remember the 1918 pandemic as we deal with yet another infectious-disease emergency: the growing epidemic of novel coronavirus infectious disease (Covid-19), which is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This virus has been spreading throughout China for at least 2 months, has been exported to at least 36 other countries, and has been seeding more than two secondary cases for every primary case. (David M. Morens, M.D., Peter Daszak, Ph.D., and Jeffery K. Taubenberger, M.D., Ph.D., 2/26)

21. Viewpoints: Overlooking Screening For Cognitive Impairment Would Be A Mistake For Some Patients; McConnell Bills On Abortion Aren't About Infanticide

Opinion writers weigh in on these health care topics and others.

JAMA: Issues And Questions Surrounding Screening For Cognitive Impairment In Older Patients
The importance of addressing age-associated cognitive impairment cannot be overstated. The rising prevalence of cognitive impairment such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia, including Alzheimer disease, is becoming a worldwide concern. In this issue of JAMA, the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) concludes that "the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for cognitive impairment in older adults (I statement)." This recommendation is based on an evidence report and systematic review of the literature that assessed the accuracy of cognitive screening instruments and the benefits and harms of interventions to treat cognitive impairment. That report represents an update of the previous report on this topic published in 2014. ...Patients and clinicians might be concerned that an implication of this report is that screening is of no value and therefore the widespread underdiagnosis of MCI and dementia is of no consequence. That would be unfortunate. (Ronald Petersen and Kristin Yaffee, 2/25)

NBC News: Mitch McConnell's Efforts To Restrict Abortion Won't End Until His Control Of The Senate Does
This week the Senate will not be taking up legislation to lower health care or prescription drug costs. Nor will we be allowed to vote on bills to combat the opioid epidemic. Sadly, we also will not address climate change, raising wages or any of the other critical kitchen table issues calling out for our attention. Instead, Republican leader Mitch McConnell prioritized a series of votes (that ultimately failed) aimed at limiting women's access to abortion and jailing doctors who provide constitutionally protected health care services for women around the country. (Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, 2/27)

Houston Chronicle: American Families Need Surprise Medical Billing Reform. Lawmakers Must Break The Gridlock.
At a time when Americans fail to agree on much of anything, it's confounding that lawmakers can't muster enough courage to fix a problem that indiscriminately harms families across the country and unites us all in indignation and disgust. Every day, in cities and towns across the United States, people are getting surgeries, undergoing anesthesia, receiving care in emergency rooms and sometimes being treated by physicians outside their insurance network without knowing it — until they get slapped with exorbitant surprise medical bills weeks and months afterward. (John Arnold, 2/27)

The New York Times: Raising A Glass To Chronic Disease
Bunched on the kitchen counter, the bananas glowered. "Eat me, drink me, suck my juices," they taunted, like the tempting fruit in Christina Rossetti's kinky poem "Goblin Market." I was flummoxed since I loathe the mushy texture of bananas. (Sorry, Chiquita!) But how else could I ingest more of the magnesium I need in order to not get thrown out of my cancer clinical trial? Quite a few years ago, I had to undergo a series of lengthy infusions because chemotherapy produced mineral deficiencies. Now, it appeared that the experimental drug I take in the trial was leaching magnesium from my body. (Susan Gubar, 2/27)

The Baltimore Sun: When Students Aren't Healthy, They Don't Do Well In School
Many provisions of the Kirwan Commission's education reform recommendations — from universal pre-kindergarten to higher teacher salaries — have already been subject to extensive debate. As clinicians, public health professionals and educators, we know that one of the commission's less-discussed recommendations is particularly critical — supplemental funding for children in areas with concentrated poverty to address their unique health and social needs. Maryland's current school funding formulas do not fully recognize the reality that meeting those needs is a prerequisite for students' academic success. The Kirwan Commission plan to invest billions in state education proposes to change that, and that's good for kids. (Beth Marshall, Amanda Inns and Sara Johnson, 2/26)