What We're Reading: Conservatives Push ACA Repeal; ICD-11 Proposed; Asthma Rises in Puerto Rico

Conservatives Push ACA Repeal Plan

A conservative coalition made up of representatives from the Heritage Foundation, American Enterprise Institute, Galen Institute, and Manhattan Institute is pushing a plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but centrist Republicans getting ready for the midterm elections have no interest in it, The Wall Street Journal reported. The plan would end national consumer protections, focus on health savings accounts and block grants, and turn healthcare back to the states. Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of governors from Ohio, Colorado, Alaska, Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Carolina, Montana, Washington, and Maryland issued a joint statement against the Trump administration’s decision to not defend the ACA in federal court, saying it could hurt their residents with pre-existing conditions, the Associated Press reported.

WHO Releases Proposed ICD-11 Codes

The World Health Organization (WHO) has unveiled the 11th version of its International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11); if adopted by members, it will take effect in 2022. Providers use the codes to track injuries, diseases, and causes of death. The codes also are used by health insurers and health researchers. Some of the proposed changes include moving gender incongruence from mental disorders to sexual health conditions, adding video gaming disorder to addictive disorders, and moving stroke from a circulatory disease to a neurological disease.

Asthma Cases Spike in Puerto Rico Post Maria, Doctors Say

Doctors in Puerto Rico are seeing a stunning rise in the number and severity of asthma cases that they attribute to destruction caused by Hurricane Maria last September, The Washington Post reported. The chronic lung disease is caused by factors like pollution, airborne mold, and pollen, all of which have increased post Maria, as mold, cockroaches, rats, mice, and mold invade dwellings. Before the hurricane, 13.3% of the island’s 3.3 million residents had asthma, compared with 8.3% on the mainland.