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After decades of limited progress in the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD), both patients and physicians are on the verge of monumental change. On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration approved Vertex/CRISPR Therapeutics’ Casgevy and Bluebird Bio’s Lyfgenia, the first one-time gene therapies that will treat the underlying cause of SCD rather than just the symptoms. They are the first therapeutic treatments using CRISPR gene editing technology approved by the FDA for any medical condition. (Robert Brodsky, 12/12)

Soon after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, horror stories started emerging of women denied medically urgent abortions for pregnancies gone dangerously awry. In response, the anti-abortion movement developed a sort of conspiracy theory to rationalize away the results of their policies. (Michelle Goldberg, 12/11)

Abortion rights activists, medical professionals and ordinary women warned the Supreme Court in advance of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision: Legislatures cannot dictate medical decisions without creating horrendous injustices and medical travesties. (Jennifer Rubin, 12/11)

LGBTQ Americans have long experienced discrimination, stigmas, and exclusion in the health care system. In a survey last year, nearly a quarter (24 percent) said that during a doctor's appointment, they were blamed for their own health problems, compared to only 9 percent of non-LGBTQ respondents. And 16 percent said they were denied medical services; less than half as many non-LGBTQ respondents said the same. (Tayla Mahmud and Mark Westall, 12/8)

Over the past year, I’ve been reporting on how artificial intelligence can improve patient safety, enhance diagnosis and expand access to care. While technological innovations offer great promise in medicine, let’s not forget about low-tech solutions that have been shown again and again to improve health and add years to people’s lives. (Leana S. Wen, 12/12)

In 2011, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services created the annual wellness visit (AWV), a new visit type with no cost to Medicare patients, better reimbursement to primary care practices, and higher assigned credit for clinicians’ work. The visit takes about 30 minutes and includes a questionnaire covering home safety, falls risk, and ability to perform activities of daily living, along with a survey of recommended preventive services and depression and dementia screening. No physical assessment is required beyond vision screening and vital signs. (Jeffrey Millstein, 12/12)

With President Joe Biden stumbling in the polls, the White House is searching for a strategy to stabilize itself leading into the 2024 election. And according to recent reporting, the administration is betting on elevating health care reform as a key campaign platform to shore up support and enthusiasm. (Tom Price and Elaine Parker, 12/11)

Dr. Laurie Glimcher learned early on from her father, a prominent physician-researcher, that success in science was built on a basic principle: Big discoveries require big risks. (Shirley Leung, 12/11)