public health

Ebola has killed more than 1,000 people 

Prosper Heri Ngorora/AP

More than 1,000 deaths have been confirmed in the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history, according to the African CDC. “These are people dying. They are dying because we don’t have vaccines, we don’t have medicine, we don’t have funding,” Jean Kaseya, director-general of the health agency, said yesterday. Read more from the AP on the situation.

There are no approved vaccines or treatments for this species of ebolavirus, called Bundibugyo. But as STAT’s Helen Branswell reported last night, a growing number of studies have found that a Merck vaccine designed for a different species of the virus may still offer some protection and help contain the spread. Read more on how that work is progressing.

exclusive

Movement on a federal men’s health office

A bipartisan bill to establish an office of men’s health within HHS will be introduced in the Senate today, STAT’s Annalisa Merelli exclusively reports. While several similar attempts have been made in the past, there’s been unprecedented momentum this year. The Senate proposal mirrors one made in the House this year, which was the first to have bipartisan support. Read more from Nalis on the details.

point / counterpoint

Will new obstetrics payment codes help or hurt?

Historically in the U.S., the cost of having a baby — at least when it comes to doctors and hospital fees — has been presented to patients in one big bill after delivery. In March, the American Medical Association announced that this “global” fee model will be replaced at the end of the year with a pay-as-you-go strategy, with separate payment codes for services like prenatal and postpartum visits, fetal monitoring, and more.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists advocated for the change and have celebrated the new billing, which it says will be easier for patients to understand and improve both the care people receive and the way we understand maternal health more broadly. In one new First Opinion essay, two ACOG leaders say “good riddance” to bundled care and explain their rationale for pushing the change.

The AMA says the change will be cost-neutral, but not everyone is so sure. In a counterpoint essay, health policy and management expert Jeff Levin-Scherz argues that the changes are likely to raise maternity care costs, and that employers that sponsor health insurance plans may bear the brunt of it. But he also says there are ways to prepare for these changes. Read more on how.