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What Caught Our Eye 8/4: GOP Governors Look to Cut Medicaid, Young Cancer Survivors Struggle Socially, Right to Try, FDA Funding, & More

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What Caught Our Eye (WCOE), August 4, 2017
What Caught Our Eye is our week-in-review blog series, where we recap the cancer policy articles, studies, and stories that caught our attention.

Affordable Care Act

“Republicans in Congress Bypass Trump to Shore Up Health Law”

Via New York Times — Congressional Republicans moved on Tuesday to defuse President Trump’s threat to cut off critical payments to health insurance companies, maneuvering around the president toward bipartisan legislation to shore up insurance markets under the Affordable Care Act.
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“GOP states move to cut Medicaid”

Via The Hill — At least six states with GOP governors— Arkansas, Kentucky, Arizona, Maine, Wisconsin and Indiana — have already drafted plans meant to introduce new rules people would have to meet to be eligible for Medicaid, which provides healthcare to the poor.
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“Court allows Democratic states to defend Obamacare payments”

Via Reuters — A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday allowed Democratic state attorneys general to defend subsidy payments to insurance companies under the Obamacare healthcare law, a critical part of funding for the statute that President Donald Trump has threatened to cut off.
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Coping With Cancer

“John McCain and I have the same cancer. Here’s what he can expect from now on.”

Op-Ed By Ben Fishman, NCCS Board Member, for Washington Post — Eight years ago when the last national battle around health care was raging, one senator paid tribute to another who had just passed away: “I think we may have made progress on this health-care issue if he had been there. He had this unique capability to sit people down at a table together… and really negotiate, which means concessions.” The senator was John McCain (R-Ariz.), and he was referring to Ted Kennedy. In a cruel twist, McCain now has the same form of brain tumor, glioblastoma (GBM), that afflicted Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass.).
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“Young Cancer Survivors Struggle to Resume Social Activities”

Via Health.com — About 1 in 3 reported low social functioning throughout the study period.
The researchers said the difficulties might stem from the transition from treatment to “off-treatment survivorship, a time fraught with challenges.” Those challenges include the negative impact of their disease and treatment on finances, body image, work plans, relationships with a spouse or significant other and plans for having children.
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“Many Avoid End-Of-Life Care Planning, Study Finds”

Via NPR Health — Even though advance directives have been promoted by health professionals for nearly 50 years, only about a third of U.S. adults have them, according to a recent study.
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Cancer Policy

“Senate passes ‘right to try’ bill to help terminally ill patients get experimental drugs”

Via Washington Post — “The Senate on Thursday passed by unanimous consent a measure designed to make it easier for terminally ill patients to get access to experimental treatments without oversight from the Food and Drug Administration.”
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“Senate passes key FDA funding bill”

Via The Hill — Senators voted overwhelmingly Thursday to pass a key Food and Drug Administration (FDA) funding bill, sending it to President Trump’s desk.The Senate passed a five-year reauthorization of the FDA’s user fees in a 94-1 vote, with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) voting against the measure.
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“The FDA wants to cut cigarettes’ nicotine levels. Will that help people quit?”

Via Stat News — For the first time in history, the Food and Drug Administration plans to regulate the level of nicotine in cigarettes, attempting to bring it down to “non-addictive” levels.
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