Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Ohio Hospital Acknowledges It Waited Too Long To Remove Doctor Who Ordered Excessive Doses Of Opioids That Were Fatal
A doctor who ordered excessive and possibly fatal doses of pain medicine for dozens of hospital patients kept working for four weeks after concern was raised last fall, an Ohio health care system acknowledged Thursday. Three patients died during those weeks after getting excessive doses ordered by Dr. William Husel, the Columbus-area Mount Carmel Health System said in a statement. The health system noted that it "should have begun a more expedited process to investigate and consider immediate removal" of the since-fired intensive care doctor after a report about him was received Oct. 25. (Franko, 1/24)
Minnesota legislators are reviving a proposal to raise millions of dollars to battle the opioid crisis by increasing fees on the companies that produce and distribute highly addictive prescription drugs. The plan would infuse $20 million into a range of services, including addiction research, treatment and recovery programs and county-level social services for children who are neglected or abused by parents struggling with substance abuse. The increased funding would be paid for by a bump in annual fees on opioid manufacturers and distributors. (Van Oot, 1/24)
Minnesota lawmakers say they will introduce bipartisan legislation that would dedicate $20 million a year to address the opioid overdose epidemic in the state. At least part of the money would be raised by increasing licensing fees on drug companies that manufacture or sell prescription opioid painkillers. (Collins, 1/24)
Hamilton County Public Health noted in an overdose alert that its overdose surveillance indicated a spike beginning on Wednesday. Hospital emergency departments around the county saw 10 suspected overdoses from 6 a.m. Wednesday to 6 a.m. Thursday, the alert states. (DeMio, 1/24)
Reviews of the use of the sedative ketamine by Hennepin Healthcare employees on agitated people being detained by Minneapolis police concluded that those medicated were not endangered by the practice. Hennepin Healthcare released the reviews Thursday. (Cox, 1/25)
Sen. Damon Thayer, R-Georgetown, has introduced a bill that would require needle exchanges to swap one-used for one-sterile syringe. The proposal doesn't sit well with public health authorities facing an increase of HIV cases. (DeMio, 1/25)
