In May, I wrote here about the new "compassionate release" program in Massachusetts that allows "incarcerated individuals diagnosed with a terminal illness - defined as an incurable condition that will likely cause death within 18 months - or those with 'permanent incapacitation' to request medical release before the end of their sentences. We now know that the first applicant has been denied.
Read moreThe latest strategy to undermine Obamacare: challenge the constitutionality of a mandate that doesn’t exist [from Philly.com]
Can a law be unconstitutional if it doesn’t exist? That may sound like an abstract riddle, like the proverbial tree falling in a forest, but it is central to a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. The suit, brought by 20 Republican attorneys general, seeks to have the entire law thrown out, and the Trump administration recently announced its support.
Read moreSJC Rules in Correa v. Schoeck: Pharmacies Have a (Limited) Duty to Notify Physicians About the Need for Prior Authorization
On June 7, the SJC ruled in the plaintiff's favor, reversing the lower court's order of summary judgment for the defendant pharmacy. The court held that a pharmacy has a "limited legal duty to take reasonable steps to notify both the patient and her prescribing physician of the need for prior authorization each time [she] tried to fill her prescription."
Read moreMotivated by increasing numbers of "deaths of despair," the AMA adopts new policies aimed at reducing gun violence
Earlier this week the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates held their annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois, during which delegates voted to adopt multiple policies related to firearms and gun violence. Some of these policies reinforce and enhance policy positions the AMA has supported for years, while other policies offer specific recommendations for legislation that is currently under consideration at the state and federal levels.
Read more“Right-to-try” Means Right to Be Harmed by Unproven Treatments (from Philly.com)
Imagine that you have a life-threatening disease and have run out of available treatments. You discover that there is a promising new medication that might work, but it is still undergoing testing. Would you want the right to try it?
Read moreMassachusetts Criminal Justice Reform and Public Health: Part 2, Drug Crimes and Mandatory Minimum Sentences
Massachusetts Criminal Justice Reform and Public Health: Part 1, Medical Parole
PHLW will be looking at various provisions of the bill and how they intersect with public health. First, we look at the creation of “medical parole” in the Commonwealth.
Read morePolicy Pathways to Address Provider Workforce Barriers to Buprenorphine Treatment [from American Journal of Preventive Medicine]
George Consortium member Rebecca L. Haffajee has a new article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine focusing on some of the reasons why only 40% of people with opioid use disorder actually receive medication-assisted treatment. One major reason is that so few physicians are licensed to even prescribe buprenorphine (such as Suboxone). Numerous workplace barriers contribute to this lack of licensing, including insufficient training, lack of peer support, inadequate reimbursement, and regulatory hurdles.
Read moreIt's Time for Uncomfortable Solutions to the Opioid Epidemic [from The Fix]
We are thrilled to present some work from brand new George Consortium member Abraham Gutman! This piece from The Fix discusses the fact that we need to get creative, and uncomfortable, in addressing the opioid crisis. Be sure to follow Av's great Twitter feed at @abgutman.
Read moreNew Dangers For Immigrants and the Health Care System [from Health Affairs Blog]
PHLW's Wendy E. Parmet and Elisabeth J. Ryan co-authored an article posted on the Health Affairs Blog about the potential changes to the definition of "public charge" and how that will negatively impact health care and the health care system.
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