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By now, most of us understand that extreme heat is bad for our health, making our hearts, lungs, kidneys and other organs work much harder. But too often we overlook the quieter, less obvious toll heat takes on another vital organ: our brain. (Lisa Jarvis, 7/26)

As more than 7,500 clinicians and researchers converge in Philadelphia for the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, a sharp division is emerging over new treatments for the disease that brings them together each year. This divide is over when to prescribe one of the newer drugs to treat Alzheimer’s disease. (P. Murali Doraiswamy and Lon S. Schneider, 7/28)

On top of dangerous and extreme decisions that overturn settled legal precedents — including Roe v. Wade — the court is mired in a crisis of ethics. Scandals involving several justices have caused the public to question the court’s fairness and independence, which are essential to faithfully carrying out its mission of equal justice under the law. For example, undisclosed gifts to justices from individuals with interests in cases before the court, as well as conflicts of interest connected with Jan. 6 insurrectionists, raise legitimate questions about the court’s impartiality. (President Joe Biden, 7/29)

Let’s get to the most important part first. Somewhere in Milton Keynes, England — or maybe in some remote corner of the globe, should she be seeking an escape — there is a woman in her early 20s who has lived for a decade with a vile, unspeakable crime against her. She was 12 years old. She met a Dutch man online. He flew to meet her. And he raped her. No amount of punishment to her assailant — not the four years he was sentenced to and certainly not the 13 months he served — can change that. (Barry Svrluga, 7/28)

Americans are facing at least two prescription drug crises simultaneously. One is the outrageously high cost of drugs, which runs to more than $500 billion per year. The other relates to extreme drug shortages requiring rationing of lifesaving medications. Crises can generate opportunities. Mark Cuban, the wildly successful entrepreneur and NBA owner, has committed himself to solving these two problems. Through the creation of the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company (MCCPDC), Cuban aims to reduce drug prices and also drug shortages. (Ezekiel J. Emanuel and John Connolly, 7/29)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Why Many Nonprofit (Wink, Wink) Hospitals Are Rolling In Money 

One owns a for-profit insurer, a venture capital company, and for-profit hospitals in Italy and Kazakhstan; it has just acquired its fourth for-profit hospital in Ireland. Another owns one of the largest for-profit hospitals in London, is partnering to build a massive training facility for a professional basketball team, and has launched and financed 80 for-profit start-ups. Another partners with a wellness spa where rooms cost $4,000 a night and co-invests with “leading private equity firms.” Do these sound like charities? These diversified businesses are, in fact, some of the country’s largest nonprofit hospital systems. (Elisabeth Rosenthal, 7/29)