What We're Reading: California Right-to-Die; Prospects for Bipartisan Health Bill; Shkreli Trial

Physician-Assisted Deaths in California

In the first 6 months since California’s right-to-die law took effect, 111 people took their own lives using lethal prescriptions. According to the Los Angeles Times, in the last 6 months of 2016, 6 out of every 10,000 deaths in the state were physician assisted, and despite 191 prescriptions being written, only 111 patients took the pills at the end of the year. Compared with Oregon’s numbers, California’s are low as patients and physicians still learn about the End of Life Option Act. In Oregon, 37 of every 10,000 deaths were physician assisted during the same time period.

Is McConnell Open to Bipartisanship on Health Bill?

The New York Times is reporting that bipartisanship on a healthcare bill isn’t such a far-fetched idea at this point. The Senate bill is currently in trouble with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) only able to lose 2 votes, but facing resistance from close to 10 Republicans. He has already had to delay the vote until after the July 4 recess, and some Republican senators, like Susan Collins of Maine, have announced they would like to work with members of both parties to “fix” the Affordable Care Act. But before that can happen, the Republican partisan efforts might have to “die a public death,” the Times wrote.

Finding Jurors for Shkreli’s Trial

After Martin Shkreli raised the price of a 62-year-old drug overnight by more than 5000%, he became the face of the worst practices in the pharmaceutical industry. Now, facing 8 charges, the court is having trouble finding jurors who do not already dislike him, reported The Washington Post. During the jury selection process some called him the “most hated man in America” and “the face of corporate greed in America.” More than 250 potential jurors have been interviewed and all have been dismissed.