View this email in your browser<http://mailchi.mp/statnews/isyuoki1g1-577265?e=4aad33fd68> [STAT]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=7a6ac4dbd9&e=4aad33fd68> Wednesday, October 11, 2017 [Morning Rounds by Megan Thielking] Sponsored by [https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f8609630ae206654824f897b6/images/7c3b0aa2-c13c-4fd0-8ea2-6fee456de3fc.png] Welcome to Wednesday, everyone, and welcome to Morning Rounds. And if you're in the Boston area, check out some of STAT's upcoming events at HUBweek<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=50f6e81354&e=4aad33fd68> over the next few days! Here's what Trump's health care order could do President Trump is slated to release an executive order overhauling health care relatively soon, just ahead of open enrollment. It’s expected that the order will expand so-called association health plans, which allow trade and professional associations to buy health insurance for themselves and their employees and which don't have to stick to Obamacare’s essential benefit requirements. There's concern that'll leave insurers for small businesses to cover a disproportionate share of sick people, driving up premiums and destabilizing the markets. President Trump also named a new acting health secretary last night: Eric Hargan, who was just sworn in as deputy secretary last week. Meanwhile, Congress still hasn’t extended CHIP funding, which lapsed at the end of September. Nine million children rely on the program for health insurance. The Kaiser Family Foundation expects 10 states to run out of funding by the end of 2017. A stark look at malnutrition among children worldwide More children worldwide are moderately or severely underweight than are obese — but if trends in childhood obesity continue, that could change in the next five years, according to new research<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=5011f7ff0c&e=4aad33fd68> published in the Lancet<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=10f40641e8&e=4aad33fd68>. Here’s what the study found: § Childhood obesity rates have skyrocketed in recent decades. In 1975, an estimated 11 million adolescents between ages 5 and 19 were obese. In 2016, that number reached 124 million. In wealthy countries, obesity rates have plateaued, but remain high. § An estimated 192 million kids are underweight. The study’s authors say that underscores the urgent need for policies that boost food security in both low-income countries and households. § There are solutions within reach. The World Health Organization released new guidelines urging countries to implement policies that boost physical activity among kids and that cut down on the consumption of nutrient-poor, calorie-dense foods. To prevent malnutrition, that would also mean implementing policies that help families access affordable, healthy options. This flexible heart implant is inspired by finger trap toys Scientists have created<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=2ba96d11fd&e=4aad33fd68> a new, proof-of-concept heart implant that grows with pediatric patients, who often need surgery to repair or replace implants as they develop. The valve is inspired by those finger-trap toys you might’ve played with as a kid: It’s a braided tube that covers a core made of biocompatible polymers. As the polymers degrade, the braided sleeve elongates in response to the growing tissue around it. It’s designed to be more durable than existing options and, in turn, reduce the number of surgeries needed to fix valves. If the device is proven to be safe and effective in patients, the approach could also be used to create other implants. Sponsor content by Takeda Oncology Inspiring women in science: How leaders of today are paying it forward to shape those of tomorrow In honor of HUBweek 2017, fearless female leaders in science share how they define leadership, mentorship, and what they’ve learned over the years. Read here.<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=ed28c496a7&e=4aad33fd68> Inside STAT<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=228a5cf956&e=4aad33fd68>: The pharmacy that hand-delivers drugs to Congress [87396691-e5ca-4560-8a09-e04a5b7a5bdb.png]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=ccd0906bb5&e=4aad33fd68> The relationship between Grubb’s and the Capitol has gone nearly unchanged for decades. (ERIC KRUSZEWSKI FOR STAT) Nearly every day for two decades, pharmaceutical drugs needed by members of Congress are delivered to the Capitol’s secretive Office of the Attending Physician, an elaborate medical clinic that provides basic health care for lawmakers for an annual fee of just over $600. Every prescription comes from Washington’s oldest community pharmacy, Grubb’s. Pharmacist-turned-owner Mike Kim says he's used to knowing the most sensitive details about some of the most famous people in Washington. But when STAT’s Erin Mershon asked some two dozen House and Senate members about Grubb’s, only one knew about the single pharmacy that delivers all their drugs. More about health care on the Hill here<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=6054940821&e=4aad33fd68>. Lab Chat: An ingestible, stomach-powered sensor How your stomach digests this morning’s breakfast this could one day be monitored by an electronic device powered by your stomach itself. Here’s what Dr. Gio Traverso of Brigham and Women’s Hospital told me about the research, published in Nature Biomedical Engineering<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=a5be6559d2&e=4aad33fd68>. How does the device work? We made the system flexible so it can be rolled up into a capsule. It’s a flexible electric system that has the capacity to monitor motility in the stomach, and can also monitor ingestion by measuring the voltages that are generated by the movement of the system. It sticks to the walls of the gastric mucosa and can sense as the stomach is moving and generates a voltage. The movement itself provides the energy for it to perform. How could it be used? There are patients who suffer from motility disorders like gastroparesis. Having the capacity to monitor motility on a long-term basis could inform treatments or interventions. You have food and material that accumulates. It could also be used to create a metric of how much an individual has ingested. Breast reconstruction surgeries are rising A new analysis<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=af17adfc64&e=4aad33fd68> finds outpatient breast reconstructions after mastectomy rose 65 percent between 2009 and 2014, with the steepest increase occurring among women age 65 and older. Inpatient procedures stayed relatively stable. Dr. Heather Faulkner, a surgeon who specializes in breast reconstruction, tells me it's possible that in the past, it might've been less common for women over age 65 to be offered breast reconstruction, though there isn't any hard data on what's driving the trend. Faulkner also says she sees the media coverage of breast reconstruction as playing a role. What to read around the web today § Puerto Rico's health care is in dire condition. New York Times<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=b66cdced26&e=4aad33fd68> § The girl left in heroin's wake. Bangor Daily News<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=5e43800bda&e=4aad33fd68> § Why Chicago’s soda tax fizzled after two months — and what it means for the anti-soda movement. Washington Post<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=5e885d10bf&e=4aad33fd68> More reads from STAT § Ovarian reserve tests aren’t a good predictor of fertility<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=cf286d9045&e=4aad33fd68>, study finds. § These 10 cities had the biggest jumps in hospital jobs<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=f544a3d050&e=4aad33fd68>. The latest from STAT Plus § California bans drug coupons <http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=29f20292bc&e=4aad33fd68> when cheaper alternatives are available. § Genetics research is booming. So why are there so few doctors who specialize<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=24ec5eba64&e=4aad33fd68> in the field? Thanks for reading! More tomorrow, [Megan] [Facebook]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=fc3642ecfc&e=4aad33fd68> [Twitter]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=3bf7ef2b92&e=4aad33fd68> [STAT]<http://statnews.us11.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f8609630ae206654824f897b6&id=96d06ba596&e=4aad33fd68>