Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Political Ad Targets McConnell's Opposition To Health Law, Hinting At Broader 2020 Strategy From Democrats
A left-leaning outside group on Monday is launching a TV ad knocking Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) over his efforts to repeal ObamaCare. The Ditch Mitch Fund, a group focused on trying to unseat McConnell in 2020, is running the five-figure TV ad in Louisville, Ky., and Lexington, Ky., as well as going up with a statewide digital buy in the Bluegrass State. (Carney, 6/3)
Kentucky Democrats want to make the state’s 2019 gubernatorial race ground zero in the battle over Medicaid expansion and work requirements. Democratic challenger Andy Beshear’s campaign is looking to take a page from his party’s 2018 midterm win, highlighting health care to upset the Republican incumbent Gov. Matt Bevin, who recently polled as the most unpopular governor in the country. (Weixel, 6/4)
[Rep. Tim] Ryan, who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, came up with a surprising way to illustrate racial inequality in the United States. When measuring infant mortality for all races combined, Youngstown has a lower rate than Iran. But when isolating the data for African Americans, the infant mortality rate in Youngstown exceeds the rate in Iran. The disproportionately high mortality rate for African American infants and mothers has raised public-health concerns for decades in the United States, not just in Youngstown or in Ohio. (Rizzo, 6/4)
