Two House lawmakers are asking for more funds for suicide prevention efforts in the wake of a report that showed rising rates across the country. Reps. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and John Katko (R-N.Y.), co-chairs of the bipartisan House Suicide Prevention Task Force, noted Wednesday that funding for suicide prevention programs has remained flat or decreased in recent years. "Congress cannot afford to continue to undercut investments in critical programs that help prevent suicide," the lawmakers wrote in a letter to Reps. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.) and Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), the chairman and ranking member respectively of the House Appropriations Committee. Why it matters: An analysis released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week showed suicide rates have increased in every state except Nevada since 1999 -- with half of those states seeing an increase of 30 percent. More here. The same abortion provider who won a major Supreme Court in 2016 has a new lawsuit. Whole Woman's Health Alliance filed suit Thursday against Texas again, arguing that its abortion restrictions impose "medically unnecessary burdens on patients, require doctors to lie to their patients and have led to clinics being shut down." "For years, Texas politicians have done everything in their power to push abortion out of reach for Texans. Today, we join communities and advocates across the state to send the message that we have had enough," said Amy Hagstrom Miller, President of Whole Woman's Health Alliance. Why it matters: WWHA is challenging two decades worth of abortion restrictions in the state. And the group is represented by the same legal group, the Lawyering Project, that argued the 2016 case. Will this challenge also make it to the highest court in the land? Stay tuned. We've got more on the lawsuit here. Drug pricing bill advances. There was a rare bipartisan win for drug pricing advocates on Thursday. The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced the Creates Act, a bill aimed at lowering drug prices by cracking down on tactics drug companies use to delay competition from cheaper generic drugs. Republicans, though, are split on the measure, meaning it still has a tough road ahead. The vote was 16-5. Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said the bill "saves $3.8 billion in taxpayer dollars and likely far more for consumers and private insurers." "I look forward to getting this important tool passed so we can improve access to lower-cost generic drugs," he added. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning public health officials in six states about an outbreak of Hepatitis A among drug users and the homeless. From January 2017 to April of this year, the CDC has received more than 2,500 reports of infections from California, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Utah and West Virginia. Why it matters: Hepatitis A can be prevented with a vaccine, but people experiencing homelessness and using drugs are hard to reach, the CDC said. In the mid-1980s, drug use was a risk factor for more than 20 percent of cases reported to the CDC, but no large outbreaks have occurred among people who use drugs since 1996. And while outbreaks of Hepatitis A among homeless people have occurred in other countries, it has not previously happened in the U.S. More on the outbreak here. |
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