It’s always tempting to look back and imagine what-ifs. Had our nation’s leaders acted differently in times of crises past, where might we be today?
Read moreThe false dichotomy of public health vs. the economy: how history shows they’re inseparable
Disease mitigation and economic revival are both, of course, desperately needed, but they are inseparable. Just as a house can’t be solid if the foundation isn’t, an economy can’t be healthy if the population isn’t.
Read moreIf protesters really want to end lockdowns, they should bring their protests to the White House
But for all the political tumult, the time when social distancing can successfully end is no mystery. Public health officials know exactly when it will be - when the country has broadly implemented three crucial steps: testing, more testing, and still more testing.
Read moreThe big winner in Trump’s newest immigration policies: the flu
If you have been rooting for a widespread and virulent flu epidemic this winter, several of the administration’s new immigration policies should give you reason to cheer.
Read moreMedicare-for-All wouldn’t be Medicare if it eliminated private insurance
Should Medicare-for-All replace private insurance?
The question is central to health reform debates among Democratic presidential candidates, but it presents a fundamental contradiction. If Medicare-for-All were to eliminate private coverage, it wouldn’t truly be Medicare as we know it, which has made room for private insurers from the start.
Read moreNew York's newly strengthened vaccine mandate protects all of us
Last week, New York took an important step to increase those numbers by repealing a religious exception to its vaccine mandate for schoolchildren.
Read moreTrump returns Obamacare to the crosshairs and we are all in peril
The Trump administration has returned with renewed vigor to its war against the Affordable Care Act. If the attack succeeds, the damage would touch almost all of us.
Read morePhiladelphia’s City Council could have fought opioids by placing limits on pharma reps
Does over-prescribing of opioids lie at the heart of the addiction crisis? Some members of Philadelphia City Council along with many public health experts think so. Last week, a bill came before City Council to limit the activities of pharmaceutical sales representatives, also known as detailers, who promote prescription drugs to physicians.
Read moreA caravan of migrants carrying smallpox? We’ve seen that before
You’ve heard the warnings. Supporters of President Trump’s strict immigration policies are spreading alarm about a caravan of Spanish-speaking migrants bringing deadly diseases to our borders. There are even claims that some of them are carrying smallpox.
Read moreThe Texas ACA ruling is an assault on logic
ACA opponents have a new approach to attacking the law – incoherence.
On Friday, a federal judge in Texas accepted the argument of 20 Republican attorney generals that the ACA’s mandate requiring everyone to have insurance is unconstitutional because the tax penalty enforcing it has been repealed. In other words, he struck it down because it no longer has any practical effect. Logic was in for a rough ride in this decision.
Read more