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States Target School Cell Phone Use At least four states have banned or severely restricted the use of smart phones in schools in the current legislative biennium. Florida became the first state to do...
Compounded Weight-Loss Drugs Creating Headaches for State Regulators With popular weight-loss drugs like Mounjaro, Ozempic and Wegovy in short supply, many doctors, pharmacies and other providers have...
In their seminal book on the American health care system, legendary investigative reporters Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele offered a disturbing metaphor for the illogical nature of medical pricing...
PA Lawmakers Pass Bill Regulating PBMs The Pennsylvania legislature passed a bill ( HB 1993 ) aimed at increasing oversight of pharmacy benefit managers. If signed by Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), the measure...
In a sign of the times, states have begun pursuing bills that require disclosure of the use of artificial intelligence. In March, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) signed SB 149 , making the state the first...
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) announced last week that the state will launch Medicaid expansion on Dec. 1, which will leave just 10 states that haven’t opted to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. North Carolina’s expansion is expected to provide coverage for about 600,000 more residents. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) issued an executive order providing Medicaid coverage to women for up to a year after they’ve given birth, doubling the six months of postpartum coverage provided by legislation enacted in June (LB 227). The state joins a growing list of GOP-led states that have embraced expanded postpartum Medicaid coverage since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. (ASSOCIATED PRESS, OMAHA WORLD-HERALD, STATE NET)
The FDA approved a series of safety-related labeling changes for Novo Nordisk’s diabetes—and now popular weight-loss—drug Ozempic, including a notification that the drug has been associated with reports of ileus, a potentially life-threatening blockage of the intestines. Similar so-called GLP-1 agonist medications Wegovy, also made by Novo Nordisk, and Mounjaro, from Eli Lilly, already acknowledge such reports in their labeling. (CBS NEWS)
Minnesota, Washington, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts and Colorado received top marks in AARP’s 2023 LTSS State Scorecard, which measures the performance of state long-term services and support systems. The states with the lowest performing LTSS systems were Tennessee, Mississippi, South Carolina, Alabama and West Virginia. (AARP)
—Compiled by SNCJ Managing Editor KOREY CLARK