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This majority has triumphed in securing retrograde positions that include making no exceptions for rape or women’s health in cases of abortion; requiring the Bible to be taught in public high schools; selling coal as a “clean” energy source; demanding a return of federal lands to the states; insisting that legislators use religion as a guide in lawmaking; appointing “family values” judges; barring female soldiers from combat; and rejecting the need for stronger gun controls — despite the mass shootings afflicting the nation every week. (7/19)

The Trump health plan reportedly would make 18 million people uninsured by 2017. But by entirely repealing Obamacare and all its attendant taxes and regulations, the plan also is expected to reduce net federal savings over 10 years of $583 billion and reduce premiums in the non-group market by at least 20%. Progressives surely would be aghast at this prospect and you can be certain that unless Trump modifies the plan’s key features, Hillary Clinton will make it an important campaign issue this fall. But what should the average American think about this trade-off? It all comes down to how much Americans should be forced to pay to prevent each year of being uninsured. (Chris Conover, 7/18)

The Paul Ryan wing of the party mostly carried the day, getting its conservative health policy proposals into the platform. The platform statement, which will be voted on by delegates at the convention, left no trace of presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump's repeated campaign statements about not touching Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security and making sure all Americans have healthcare when they need it. (Harris Meyer, 7/18)

In early May, the BMJ, formerly known as the British Medical Journal, published a study that claimed medical errors led to the death of 251,454 people in the United States every year. The report immediately generated headlines in leading news outlets like the New York Times, NPR, the Washington Post and others. It also led to a tsunami of backlash from doctors and others in the medical community. The study's estimates were inflated, many were quick to argue. Critics targeted everything from the researchers' methodology (flawed, lazy) to their agenda (headline-chasing). They decried the damage it had inflicted on the U.S.' medical reputation and on relationships between doctors and patients. Yet others have said the study ought to instead draw badly needed attention to the subject of medical error and the inconsistent ways in which it's measured. (Elizabeth Whitman, 7/18)

The legal complaint and settlement with Herbalife unveiled Friday by the Federal Trade Commission answers several questions about the Los Angeles-based nutritional supplement marketing company, but leaves the most important question wide open. The answered questions involve Herbalife’s business model. The FTC says in its complaint, filed Friday in Los Angeles Federal Court: Yes, Herbalife’s business model is deceitful. (Michael Hiltzik, 7/18)

No one really knows why these birthrates have dropped. It’s not because teenagers are having more abortions; those have dropped even more precipitously than births. The most important reason appears to be increased contraceptive use, perhaps as a result of comprehensive sex education and fear of H.I.V. Part of the decline may also be credited to “16 and Pregnant.” (Tina Rosenberg, 7/19)

As pediatricians in Chicago, one of America’s most diverse cities, we see children of many races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Pediatricians treat all the usual ailments such as ear infections, asthma, strep throat, and the like. But we are also trying to address another one — the developmental gap — that often goes unnoticed. ... According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, almost half of young children in the United States live in poverty or near poverty. Growing up poor can dramatically influence the physical development of children’s brains, which affects their overall developmental and learning trajectories. (Sarah C. Bauer and Reshma Shah, 7/18)

When I was diagnosed in 1996, very early surgery was the only reliably successful treatment. A more advanced case was essentially a death sentence. Over the past five years, a series of revolutionary drugs have given me and many other people a surprisingly hopeful prospect. Nevertheless, the drugs’ development process has often been excruciating for participants in clinical trials, and the drugs’ remarkably high costs limit their value. (Jonathan Friedlaender, 7/18)

Workplace violence prevention should be addressed aggressively and comprehensively in health care. Safety in health care workplaces relies on leadership enacting appropriate policies; trained employees intervening and reporting; multidisciplinary teams using evidence-based threat assessment and management practices, communicating safety plans, and analyzing the environmental context; and ongoing evaluation of program effectiveness. A workplace violence prevention program should be a required component of the patient safety system of all health care organizations. (Ron Wyatt, Kim Anderson-Drevs and Lynn M. Van Male, 7/18)

Ten years ago, the Florida Legislature authorized creation of a medical school at FIU. In exchange, we promised to change the future of medical education and healthcare in our community. A decade later, we hav ekept our promise. We are training the next generation of physicians who understand the social determinants of health; who understand that your ZIP code is a better predictor of your health than your genetic code. (John Rock, 7/18)

Six years ago, when Philip Morris International took Uruguay to court over the country’s aggressive anti-smoking policies, few people would have bet on the gauchos. After all, Uruguay’s gross domestic product of $53 billion was about two-thirds of the tobacco giant’s yearly sales in 2015, and its newly elected president was a septuagenarian chain smoker. (Max Margolis, 7/18)

Today, more Iowans are covered, and coverage for Iowans is better than before. There are no longer lifetime or annual dollar limits on coverage. Preventive services like flu shots, screening for type 2 diabetes, well-woman visits, and many more are covered at no extra cost. And no one can be denied health insurance because of a pre-existing condition — a protection that helps about 1.3 million Iowans get covered today. These are critical, historic accomplishments. But we have more to do. The Affordable Care Act isn’t just about coverage in the Marketplace. We need to make sure that our health care system works better for every American — whether you get coverage through your job, HealthCare.gov, Medicare, or Medicaid. (HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell, 7/17)

The EPA wants all of the nation's water systems to complete their inventories of properties with lead pipes so the states can post that data online in searchable databases. That will enable homeowners, and prospective buyers, to easily determine which houses have lead service lines that increase the risk of contamination. Some states have complied with the EPA directive, but others, including Iowa, have not. (7/17)