The Illinois Senate passed an abortion rights bill; a new study presented last weekend at ASCO 2019 found the Affordable Care Act (ACA) reduced racial disparites in cancer care; Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay an additional $300 million in NY talcum powder case.
The Illinois Senate passed a bill, called the Reproductive Health Act, by a vote of 34-20 late Friday that would strengthen women’s abortion rights, The Hill reported. The bill would establish a woman’s “fundamental right” to obtain an abortion and declare that a “fertilized egg, embryo, or fetus does not have independent rights.” The legislation would also repeal the Illinois Abortion Law of 1975, ending spousal consent provisions, waiting periods, criminal penalties for physicians that perform abortions, and other restrictions on facilities where abortions are performed.
A study presented this weekend at the 2019 American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting found that Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act nearly eliminated a key disparity in access to cancer care between white and African American patients in states with Medicaid expansion, STAT News reported. White patients in states without Medicaid expansion received chemotherapy within a month of their cancer diagnosis 48.3% of the time, whereas African American patients received it only 43.5% of the time. In states with Medicaid expansion, the 4.8-point difference was reduced to a 0.8-point difference. Medicaid expansion also increased the percentage of white patients who received chemotherapy in a month by 2 points while increasing it 6 points for African Americans.
On Friday, a New York jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $300 million in punitive damages to a woman who claimed her mesothelioma was caused by the company’s talc-based baby powder, alleged to contain traces of asbestos, according to The Hill. The decision elevated the total amount awarded in the case to $325 million after the same jury awarded the plaintiff $25 million earlier in May. The company, which faces thousands of other lawsuits over the product, stated it will appeal the verdict.
"The Barriers Are Real": Antoine Keller, MD, on Geography and Cardiovascular Health
April 18th 2025Health care disparities are often driven by where patients live, explained Antoine Keller, MD, as he discussed the complex, systematic hurdles that influence the health of rural communities.
Read More
Personalized Care Key as Tirzepatide Use Expands Rapidly
April 15th 2025Using commercial insurance claims data and the US launch of tirzepatide as their dividing point, John Ostrominski, MD, Harvard Medical School, and his team studied trends in the use of both glucose-lowering and weight-lowering medications, comparing outcomes between adults with and without type 2 diabetes.
Listen
Empowering Teams Begins With Human Connection: Missy Hopson, PhD
April 16th 2025Missy Hopson, PhD, Ochsner Health, discussed in detail the challenges of strengthening the patient-centered workforce, the power of community reputation for encouraging health care careers, and the influence of empowered workforces on patient outcomes.
Read More