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A federal appeals panel appeared skeptical Monday of the constitutionality of an Affordable Care Act (ACA) provision requiring insurers to cover specific preventive services. Judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans questioned whether the members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) have the legal power to make recommendations, since its members are not appointed by the president or confirmed by the Senate. (Weixel, 3/4)

A Christian business group and its members do not have to offer health insurance coverage to employees for gender transition treatments, a North Dakota federal judge ruled Monday. U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor in Bismarck ruled that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cannot make the Christian Employers Alliance (CEA) comply with rules requiring that coverage. (Pierson, 3/4)

Lifespan Corp., the state’s largest healthcare system, may no longer accept Cigna Healthcare insurance after April 1 as ongoing contract negotiations between the two companies have stalled. Rhode Islanders who pay for Cigna’s commercial plans received letters from Cigna saying that the insurance company has been working to renew its contract with Lifespan over the past few months. ... “Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we haven’t reached an agreement yet.” (Gagosz, 3/4)

Elevance Health will receive higher Medicare Advantage star ratings for 2024 after federal regulators agreed to take another look at the company's scores. Elevance, which manages Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in 14 states, will receive an additional $190 million after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services agreed to revise four of its contract scores, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Monday. (Tepper, 3/4)

The White House plans to announce a new federal task force focused on easing health care costs, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter. The move comes as President Joe Biden seeks new ways to show voters he’s cracking down on the so-called corporate greed that he has increasingly blamed for high prices — a message he is expected to highlight during his State of the Union address on Thursday. (Sisco, Cancryn and Wilson, 3/4)

All of the manufacturers whose drugs were chosen for the federal government’s Medicare price negotiation program have sent back counteroffers for what they consider to be a maximum fair price, the White House said Monday. President Biden confirmed in a statement Monday that all companies are continuing to engage in the negotiation process, despite the host of legal battles to block the program. (Choi, 3/4)

As part of its battle to blunt the growing cost of medicines, the White House on Monday held a so-called listening session in hopes of finding ways to rein in big pharmacy benefit managers, which occupy an opaque but crucial role in pharmaceutical pricing in the U.S. (Silverman, 3/4)

Mark Cuban urged President Joe Biden to go further to rein in prescription drug costs. The billionaire entrepreneur visited the White House on Monday in his role as co-founder of the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. for a roundtable on drug prices. (Wingrove, 3/4)

Joe Biden took office with big challenges in health care, foremost among them ending the pandemic. They only grew after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. On Thursday, Biden could point to the Inflation Reduction Act, which for the first time gave Medicare the power to negotiate prices on drugs, or the American Rescue Plan, which made Obamacare plans more affordable. (3/5)

Hospitals and pharmacy benefit managers who've repeatedly been targeted in congressional debates over health spending appear to have ducked major federal reforms that could have upended how they do business. The big congressional spending deal largely keeps the status quo for the two powerful industries. (Sullivan, 3/5)

The $460 billion legislation would fund a slew of government agencies and programs, including veterans affairs. It must pass in order to avert a partial government shutdown at the end of the week. (Edmondson, 3/4)

The American Hospital Association and the American Medical Association, as well as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) issued public letters calling for the Department of Health and Human Services to step in and address the ongoing disruption. They are pushing for HHS to make accelerated and advanced payments available from federal health programs. (Reed, 3/5)

The American Hospital Association slammed UnitedHealth Group's offer of financial assistance for some healthcare providers in the wake of the cyberattack on Change Healthcare and called on Congress for assistance. AHA President and CEO Richard Pollack said Change Healthcare parent company UnitedHealth Group's temporary loan program misses the mark in a letter sent Monday to UnitedHealth Group President and Chief Operating Officer Dirk McMahon. (Berryman, 3/4)

Bryan Health has received multiple reports of scammers reaching out to patients claiming to be representatives from hospitals across Nebraska and surrounding areas. Scammers are reportedly telling patients they’re entitled to a full refund if they provide them with a credit card number.

Lurie Children's Hospital said late Monday that it was making progress getting systems back online after a widespread hack at the end of January. Its internal health records and phone lines were back up as of Monday night, but the patient portal MyChart is still down. The hospital said teams are working around the clock to get everything restored. A cyberattack led the hospital to take its phone, email, and other systems offline on Jan. 31 – and has caused disruptions to its regular operations since then. (COatar, 3/4)

The first over-the-counter birth control pill will be available in U.S. stores later this month, allowing American women and teens to purchase contraceptive medication as easily as they buy aspirin. Manufacturer Perrigo said Monday it has begun shipping the medication, Opill, to major retailers and pharmacies. A one-month supply will cost about $20 and a three-month supply will cost around $50, according to the company’s suggested retail price. It will also be sold online. (Perrone, 3/4)

Excess weight may increase the risk of miscarriage and pregnancy complications. But little is known about the impact of drugs like Ozempic on a fetus. (Blum, 3/4)

Scientists have created miniorgans from cells floating in the fluid that surrounds a fetus in the womb – an advance they believe could open up new areas of prenatal medicine. Miniorgans, or “ organoids,” are tiny simplified structures that can be used to test new medical treatments or study how the real organs they mimic work, whether they are healthy or diseased. (Ungar, 3/4)

Alabama lawmakers, who face public pressure to get in vitro fertilization services restarted, are nearing approval of immunity legislation to shield providers from the fall out of a court ruling that equated frozen embryos to children. Committees in the Alabama House of Representatives and the Alabama Senate on Tuesday will debate legislation to protect providers from lawsuits and criminal prosecution for the “damage or death of an embryo” during IVF services. Republican Sen. Tim Melson, the sponsor of the Senate bill, said Monday they are hoping to get the proposal approved and to Gov. Kay Ivey on Wednesday. (Chandler, 3/5)

Families considering starting IVF treatments in Alabama still face a host of unknown legal risks despite new protections Gov. Kay Ivey plans to sign into law, experts warn. Courts could ultimately consider new legislation, designed to help protect clinics from civil lawsuits and prosecution, contradictory to the state constitution's provision on the sanctity of unborn life. (Rubin, 3/4)

The Nebraska Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in a lawsuit that aims to overturn the state’s new abortion and transgender care laws. LB574 passed through the Nebraska Legislature and became law last year. It includes a ban on gender-affirming care for minors and an amendment banning abortion after 12 weeks’ gestation. Planned Parenthood of the Heartland v. Hilgers will go before the Nebraska Supreme Court at 9 a.m. Tuesday. (3/4)

Concerns about new restrictions on abortion are motivating voters and candidates alike in North Carolina primary races. It's an issue that the Biden campaign hopes will energize voters not just on Super Tuesday, but also in November's presidential election. (Keith and Han, 3/5)

The Wyoming House and Senate passed a bill on Friday that would significantly regulate surgical and chemical abortions at Casper’s Wellspring Health Access, the last remaining legal clinic in the state. (Neff, 3/4)

Abortion rights opponents in Texas dictated terms and pressured officials in New Mexico municipalities to pass ordinances restricting clinics, according to public records — potentially as part of a bigger legal strategy. (Fisher, 3/4)

California’s efforts to expand access to abortion care are enabling more types of medical practitioners to perform certain abortion procedures. The latest move is a law that enables trained physician assistants, also known as physician associates, to perform first-trimester abortions without a supervising physician present. (Udesky, 3/4)

French lawmakers on Monday overwhelmingly approved a bill to enshrine abortion rights in France’s constitution, making it the only country to explicitly guarantee a woman’s right to voluntarily terminate a pregnancy. The historic vote during a special joint session of France’s parliament drew a long standing ovation among lawmakers. (Surk and Garriga, 3/4)

Americans should expect yet another update of the Covid-19 vaccine this fall at about the same time as flu shots are available, the top US public health official said Monday. Researchers are working on selecting a strain for the upcoming version, and will probably wait until May to pick one to target with vaccines, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Mandy Cohen said in an interview at Bloomberg’s offices in Washington. (Denham and Griffin, 3/4)

A community of "long COVID" patients and activists are planning a march in Washington, D.C., to protest a recent announcement from the CDC. A community called LC/DC, which describes itself as non-partisan, is planning a protest at the Lincoln Memorial on March 15. (Rudy, 3/4)

The federal government’s free at-home COVID-19 test program will be suspended beginning Friday in response to a drop in respiratory diseases. The Biden administration brought back the free test program last year ahead of the respiratory viral season. By going to COVIDtests.gov, households could order a free pack of four at-home COVID-19 tests. This most recent batch of free tests was the sixth round made available. (Choi, 3/4)

Scientists examining SARS-CoV-2 wastewater samples in Southeast Asia have detected a few samples containing the BA.2.87.1 variant, the first known detection outside of South Africa. In mid February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it is closely monitoring BA.2.87.1 because it has more than 30 changes in the spike protein compared to XBB.1.5, the variant covered by the current monovalent (single-strain) vaccines. (Schnirring, 3/4)

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts. renewed calls on Monday for a national day to honor the lives taken by COVID-19. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Warren urged Congress to pass a resolution to designate the first Monday of March as "COVID-19 Victims Memorial Day." "Over a million Americans have died due to COVID-19—including many family members & loved ones," she wrote. "We must honor & remember the lives lost." (Casiano, 3/4)

Across the country, physicians, clinic staff and public health experts say that a treatment shortage is preventing them from reining in a surge of syphilis and that the federal government is downplaying the crisis. State and local public health authorities, which by law are responsible for controlling the spread of infectious diseases, report delays getting medicine to pregnant people with syphilis. This emergency was predictable: There have been shortages of this drug in eight of the last 20 years. Yet federal health authorities have not prevented the drug shortages in the past and aren’t doing much to prevent them in the future. (Barry-Jester, 3/4)

Rates of chlamydia and syphilis dropped dramatically among men who have sex with men and transgender women after San Francisco began offering them prescriptions for antibiotics to take after having unprotected sex, according to a report released Monday. The preliminary report, shared at the international Conference for Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Denver, could have a tremendous impact on how the United States approaches soaring rates of sexually transmitted infections nationwide, researchers said. (Allday, 3/4)

Since its last update on February 23, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week reported 6 more measles cases, raising the nation's total so far this year to 41. Against a backdrop of rising global activity this winter, measles infections in the first months of the year are gaining quickly on the 58 cases the CDC reported for all of 2023. (Schnirring, 3/4)

At least six Brazilian states in addition to the Federal District are facing dengue epidemics and 17 cities have declared a state of emergency as the country has already registered 1 million cases of dengue in the first two months of 2024, more than half the 1.6 million cases confirmed last year — which was already almost 18% higher than in 2022. ... As a result, Brazil's public health-care system, known as SUS, has been grappling to keep up, resorting to field hospitals like the one in Brasília and tents in strategic points around its cities to triage patients with suspected cases of dengue. (Langlois, 3/4)

The mosquito's ability to adapt to changing temperatures may be contributing to the spread of diseases, like dengue fever, Zika virus, and chikungunya virus. “We've been interested in climate change for awhile trying to understand why we get more disease in one location than another. And how these patterns of risk might change, as climate warms,” said Matthew Thomas, the director of the Invasion Science Research Institute within the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Science. (Meszaros, 3/4)

Insurance network coverage dramatically impacts whether a person remains in treatment for opioid use disorder, according to results shared by treatment provider Ophelia. A new study finds that nearly three-quarters (72.3%) of patients receiving opioid treatment through network insurance stayed in treatment for at least six months. Patients received telehealth treatment from Ophelia. (Tong, 3/5)

The opioid overdose epidemic has burned through the U.S. for nearly 30 years. Yet for all that time, the country has had tools that are highly effective at preventing overdose deaths: methadone and buprenorphine. (Facher, 3/5)

In 2003, the year Nora Volkow was appointed director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, roughly 4,000 Americans died of opioid overdose. In the two decades since, the overdose crisis has morphed into a full-fledged public health emergency, with 80,000 Americans dying from opioid overdoses each year. But in that stretch, relatively little has changed about the way the U.S. treats opioid addiction. (Facher, 3/5)

Over 2 million Americans have opioid use disorder, according to some estimates. Illicit opioids such as heroin and fentanyl were responsible for over 80,000 U.S. overdose deaths in 2023. Despite the known risks, these drugs are notoriously hard to stop using — due in large part to how debilitating withdrawal can be. (Hogan, 3/5)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Statistical Models Vs. Front-Line Workers: Who Knows Best How To Spend Opioid Settlement Cash?

In this Gulf Coast city, addiction medicine doctor Stephen Loyd announced at a January event what he called “a game-changer” for state and local governments spending billions of dollars in opioid settlement funds. The money, which comes from companies accused of aggressively marketing and distributing prescription painkillers, is meant to tackle the addiction crisis. But “how do you know that the money you’re spending is going to get you the result that you need?” asked Loyd, who was once hooked on prescription opioids himself. (Pattani, 3/5)

A care home in Jefferson Hills closed after it was forced to shut down due to an unexpected staffing shortage. Many Jefferson Hills Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center employees walked off the job last week after delayed paychecks or none at all. They told KDKA-TV that paychecks have been delayed three times since the start of the new year and employees still haven't been paid for the scheduled Feb. 23 payday. "A lot of us have shut off notices and overdrawn bank accounts," former employee Jenna Smith said.  (Bortz and Borrasso, 3/4)

Kaiser Foundation Hospitals is set to reduce its workforce by more than 70 employees by April, primarily in the East Bay, according to information provided last week to the California Employment Development Department. In regulatory filings, Kaiser’s Human Resources Director Christine Neubauer said the layoffs would affect 49 workers at the company’s Pleasanton location, one in Oakland, two in Stockton, and 20 from elsewhere around the state, mainly in Pasadena. (Vaziri, 3/4)

Nurses at UChicago Medicine announced Monday they will go on a one-day strike March 14 to call attention to staffing concerns amid a breakdown in contract negotiations. (Ahmad, 3/4)

HCA North Florida Hospital removed one of its vice presidents and fired other employees nearly six weeks after nonemergency surgeries abruptly halted with concerns about sterilized operating room equipment. (Sandoval, 3/4)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Whistleblower Accuses Aledade, Largest US Independent Primary Care Network, Of Medicare Fraud

A Maryland firm that oversees the nation’s largest independent network of primary care medical practices is facing a whistleblower lawsuit alleging it cheated Medicare out of millions of dollars using billing software “rigged” to make patients appear sicker than they were. The civil suit alleges that Aledade Inc.’s billing apps and other software and guidance provided to doctors improperly boosted revenues by adding overstated medical diagnoses to patients’ electronic medical records. (Schulte, 3/5)

People with severe mental illness who commit violent crimes could be kept in state mental hospitals longer to allow the state to better plan for continued treatment after their release under a bill by a San Francisco lawmaker. Assembly Member Matt Haney, a Democrat, said he introduced the legislation in response to a Chronicle column published last year that detailed the circumstances leading up to a Chinatown bakery stabbing. (Bollag, 3/4)

Long Island community leaders are demanding an overhaul and oversight to save Nassau University Medical Center, which is in danger of running out of money. Will Foskey-Bey, 73, and his family depend on NUMC for their health care. "It's a cornerstone of this community," said Foskey-Bey. "Serves such a big purpose for helping so many people that's underserved." The safety-net hospital is in imminent fiscal danger of insolvency. It serves the uninsured, underinsured or those on Medicaid. (McLogan, 3/4)

With New Hampshire emergency departments filling up, one hospital is trying to reduce wait times by offering a virtual option. Elliot Hospital in Manchester launched a Virtual ER service at the beginning of this year. It’s staffed by physicians who can see patients remotely, order a test or X-ray, and refer them to urgent care or the actual emergency department if needed. (Cuno-Booth, 3/4)

Next stop: Beacon Hill. Governor Maura Healey’s long-awaited plan to double down on state funding for the biotech and medical technology sector came into focus Thursday with the announcement she’ll seek $1 billion over the next decade to reauthorize the state’s 16-year-old life sciences initiative. (Weisman, 3/4)

The mother watched as her 34-year-old son ingested a lethal medication to end his pain and suffering after a five-year battle against terminal cancer. Naperville native Drew Flack was surrounded by family members and close friends in his California home as he fell asleep on Nov. 16, 2022, taking his final breath a few hours later. His last words were “I’m happy,” according to his mom, 64-year-old Suzy Flack of Naperville. (Lourgos, 3/5)

Researchers may have found a new way to target the sources of certain brain disorders. In a study led by scientists at Mass General Brigham, deep brain stimulation (DBS) was able to pinpoint dysfunctions in the brain that are responsible for four cognitive disorders: Parkinson’s disease, dystonia (a muscle disorder condition that causes repetitive or twisting movements), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette's syndrome. The discovery, published in Nature Neuroscience on Feb. 22, could potentially help doctors determine new treatments for these disorders. (Rudy, 3/5)

As colorectal cancer continues to spike among younger patients, doctors are warning of a little-known but widespread condition that greatly increases the risk. Lynch syndrome is a genetic disorder that makes someone more susceptible to many different kinds of cancer. (Rudy, 3/5)

Drinking two liters or more per week of artificially sweetened beverages — the equivalent of a medium-sized fast-food diet soda a day — raised the risk of an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation by 20% when compared to people who drank none, a new study found. (LaMotte, 3/5)

The mortality rate for U.S. women with breast cancer fell an estimated 58 percent from 1975 to 2019, according to research published in JAMA that credits the decline to advances in screening and treatments. Nearly half (47 percent) of the reduction was attributed to earlier and more effective treatment of those with Stage 1, 2 or 3 breast cancer. (With staging, generally the lower the number, the less the cancer has spread.) (Searing, 3/4)

A new smartphone app developed by researchers at UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh uses artificial intelligence to accurately diagnose ear infections. ... "We accomplished 94% sensitivity specificity and 94% accuracy in diagnosing an ear infection versus not an ear infection in children, which is quite good and better than most physicians are," said Alejandro Hoberman, director of the Division of General Academic Pediatrics at Pitt's School of Medicine and president of UPMC Children's Community Pediatrics. (Guay and Bartos, 3/4)

Abortion opponents have so fetishized embryos and fetuses that even when they support the concept of IVF, they can’t let go of their quest for personhood laws that may end up not just prohibiting abortion but making infeasible the IVF procedure that has been such a lifeline for so many who cannot conceive on their own. (3/4)

A great deal of what we think we know about procreation owes more to ancient religion and philosophy than it does to modern science. The metaphor of the bun in the oven suggests that the pregnant body is passive. Even more troubling is the notion that the womb is a dangerous environment and that fetuses need to be protected from the women who carry them. This too has an ancient pedigree. Writing in the first century CE, the Roman physician Soranus claimed miscarriages were caused by strong emotions, vigorous motion (including jumping, dancing, having sex, coughing, and sneezing), and poor diet. In other words, miscarriages were almost always the fault of the pregnant woman. (Kathleen M. Crowther, 3/5)

As I was getting ready to perform a kidney transplant from a deceased donor on a recent Saturday afternoon, my phone rang. When I saw the ID for the organ allocation coordinator, I knew immediately what she would tell me: The other kidney from the same donor had been declined for transplant because the surgeon didn’t like how it flushed. At this point it had been out of the donor for 24 hours, and it was at a transplant center three hours away. If I wanted it, I could take it for anyone on my medical center’s wait list. (Joshua Mezrich, 3/2)

Lack of health data on LGBTQ+ people has real-world consequences. A participant in a 2020 report from the National LGBT Cancer Network said: “There are no guidelines for cancers that are more prevalent among Trans women. I had to fight like hell to have an anoscopy, and sure enough we found [precancerous lesions]!” (Paul Shay, 3/4)

Like most Americans, I often start my day on my phone, catching up on the major news of the day, reading newsletters, or listening to a podcast. As a psychiatrist and the CEO of Mindful Care, a multistate mental health provider, I pay particularly close attention to how mental health is being discussed among the general public and in media. Lately, I've noticed a new tone to mental health coverage. (Tamir Aldad, 3/1)