Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Medical Research's Future Murky Under Trump, But Many See Newt Gingrich As Beacon Of Hope
Amid anxiety and uncertainty about what President Donald Trump will mean for medical science, researchers are looking to one man for hope: Newt Gingrich.Trump himself has said precious little about medical research. He has flirted with anti-vaccination rhetoric, and he has stated that what he hears about the National Institutes of Health is 鈥渢errible.鈥 But Gingrich, the former House speaker and Trump confidant, is a longtime booster of medical research. (Scott, 11/17)
What could the world of medical research look like under a Trump administration? It's hardly an idle question. The federal government spends more than $30 billion a year to fund the National Institutes of Health. That's the single largest chunk of federal research funding spent outside the Pentagon's sphere of influence. (Harris, 11/15)
There have been a lot of big, somewhat dubious assumptions behind the rise in stocks since the election. Drug stocks offer a prime example. Biotechnology emerged as a major winner. The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index has risen 17% since Nov. 8. Yet the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index with biotech鈥檚 bigger brothers in it is up less than 5% over the same period. (Grant, 11/16)
In other public health news聽鈥
The teen birth rate in America鈥檚 small towns is 63% higher than in its biggest cities, a new government report reveals. In 2015, there were 18.9 births for every 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 19 living in counties with large urban areas, according to a report published Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That compares with 30.9 births per 1,000 women in the same age group who lived in rural counties, the report said. (Kaplan, 11/16)
Flu season is upon us, which means it's time for the wave of advertisements promoting $8 juices or even more expensive supplements to "boost your immunity" or "support immune function." But those are marketing terms, not scientific ones. And there's no proof that those products are going to keep you from getting sick. (Hobson, 11/16)
Popular category of heartburn medications 鈥 including Nexium, Prevacid, Prilosec and Protonix 鈥 may increase your risk of stroke, a new study suggests. Known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), these drugs increased people's overall stroke risk by 21 percent, said study lead author Dr. Thomas Sehested. (Thompson, 11/16)
