Lying in a psychosis ward bed, Amelia Perry couldn’t shake thoughts of suicide. The noise blaring from other patients in the hallway and the bright lights above felt like too much. Perry, a 25-year-old trans person, was in the hospital seeking help.
Days earlier, Perry (who asked at admission to be identified by gender-neutral pronouns ze and hir) had been discharged from another nearby hospital following a week-long stay after attempting suicide. That’s how Perry ende...
Month: May 2018
Global Budgets in Maryland
This Viewpoint discusses the unique approach to health care reform implemented in Maryland, which has a diverse population served by rural, suburban, and urban hospitals including 2 major academic health centers.
Trump’s plan to cut Planned Parenthood funding will do a lot more than target abortion
In a proposed regulation expected to be announced this week, the Trump administration plans to fundamentally change the country’s only federal family planning program dedicated to providing reproductive care to low-income people, by cutting funding for clinics that provide abortions and barring doctors from telling patients where they can obtain the procedure.
The aim is to “defund” Planned Parenthood, a top priority for social conservatives. But the practic...
Congress is hyperfocused on opioids. Is it focusing enough on addiction?
Congress is trying to pass legislation that addresses the opioid crisis in an election year, so they’re moving fast, passing a bill through committee Thursday that would free up Medicaid dollars for opioid addiction treatment in institutionalized care. But it could be more harmful than lawmakers realize.
Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) is aiming for the House to take up legislation in June. So to keep with schedule, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce — on which Walden se...
A 15-week abortion ban is heading to the Louisiana governor’s desk
The Louisiana legislature has sent Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) a bill to ban abortion after 15 weeks, except in the cases of a medical emergency. The governor is expected to sign the measure into law.
If a doctor performs the procedure, they’d be imprisoned for at least one year (and up to ten years) and fined anywhere between $10,000 to $100,000. The state Senate overwhelmingly voted in favor of the bill (24-5) on Wednesday.
Roughly 94 percent of abortions in Louisiana t...
How the Trump administration is reshaping Medicaid
AMERICAN lawmakers are acutely afraid of rewarding the loafing poor. For that reason, Congress has set strict work requirements on federal food assistance and cash welfare. The Trump administration is now steadily doing the same for Medicaid, as America’s health-insurance programme for the poor is know...
The Health 202: There’s a fight brewing between the Trump administration and drugmakers
It involves Medicare's prescription drug programs.
What’s going on with North Korea is a cautionary tale in rushing diplomacy
Amid talks of a historic deal with North Korea and a possible Noble Peace Prize for President Donald Trump (chiefly among his GOP supporters, his aides, and, well, himself), North Korean leader Kim Jong Un seems to be slamming the brakes on the negotiations.
While White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the Trump administration is “still hopeful that the meeting will take place,” signalling that the president is ready for “tough negotiations,” it&...
North Carolina teachers hold massive rally to demand better pay and more education funding
North Carolina teachers on Wednesday joined the fight for funding teachers have been waging across the country. Teachers went the state capital of Raleigh to demand better pay and benefits, annual cost-of-living increases, and more education funding in general.
The rally will be different from some of the longer work stoppages in Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Arizona, since teachers are taking just one personal day to rally at the legislative building in Raleigh. The March for Studen...
Tuesday night was a big night for socialist and progressive women
Tuesday night’s primaries shaped up to be big for socialist and progressive women.
In Pittsburgh, two socialists with the backing of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) beat two different members of the center-left Costa family, a political dynasty in the state. Another DSA-backed candidate in Philadelphia beat three men and secured 51 percent of the vote to win her primary, while two women, one in Pennsylvania and another in Nebraska, running on a platform of Medicare for ...