Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/312552
The Associated Press EverypersoncoveredbyMedi- care would shell out an additional $3 a month if the government agreedtopaytoscreencertaincur- rent and former smokers for lung cancer, a new study estimates. It would cost Medicare $2 bil- lion a year to follow recent ad- vice to offer these lung scans — and fuel angst about rising health costs that are borne by everyone, not just smokers, the study found. Joshua Roth of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle said the re- searchers merely were tallying the cost of screening, and were not "judging value" or saying whether Medicare should pay it. He led the study, which was re- leased Wednesday and will be pre- sented at an American Society of Clinical Oncology conference later this month. Lung cancer is the world's top cancer killer, mainly because it's usually found too late for treat- ment to do much good. Most deaths involve Medicare-age peo- ple, and most are due to smoking. Recently, a major study found that annual CT scans, a type of X- ray, could cut the chances of dying from lung cancer by up to 20 per- cent in those most at risk — peo- ple ages 55 through 79 who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for 30 years or the equivalent, such as two packs a day for 15 years. Based largely on that, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in December recommended screen- ing that group, about 10 million Americans. The scans cost $100 to as much as $400. Under the new health care law, cancer screenings recommended by the task force are to be covered with no copays. However, Medicare makes its own coverage decisions and is to announce one by November. Researchers took into account the fact more people would get treatmentforearlier-stagecancers, yetthecostsoflate-stagetreatment and end-of-life care would be re- duced. They estimate that over five years,Medicare-coveredscreening would lead to: •11.2millionmorelungscans, in- cluding 2 million false alarms. • 54,900 more lung cancer cases detected. • 32 percent of lung cancers be- ing found at an early stage versus 15 percent now. • $9.3 billion in new costs: $5.6 billion for scans, $1.1 billion for bi- opsies and other tests, and $2.6 bil- lion more for cancer treatments. • $3 more per month on Medi- care premiums. The cancer drug company Ge- nentech paid for the study. Independent experts praised the researchers but said more needs to be known about screen- ing's benefits. "The interesting question is what that three extra dollars per month buys you" in terms of extra healthy years of life, said Dr. Har- old Sox, a Dartmouth professor and former chairman of the gov- ernment task force. The cost "seems like a pretty gooduseofresources"comparedto many other things Medicare pays for, said Dr. Peter Bach, a health policy expert at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and a former adviser to Medi- care.Bach has petitioned Medicare to cover the lung scans. HEALTH Lungcancerscreening may have he y price tag Medicare could face $2 billion annual bill THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A man smokes a Marlboro cigarette in Hialeah, Fla. A new study estimates that screening certain current and former smokers for lung cancer would cost Medicare about $2billion a year, which would add $3a month to Medicare premiums. News feed LONDON U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry worked Wednesday to keep the Pal- estinians committed to his hope of restarting Mideast peace talks despite Palestin- ian President Mahmoud Ab- bas' move to set up an in- terim government with a militant group that refuses to recognize Israel. Kerry met with Abbas in a London hotel for the first time since peace negotia- tions collapsed last month. Kerry, who is in London for talks with international partners about the Syrian civil war and political unrest in Ukraine, said he planned to have an informal meet- ing with Abbas and that he did not plan to offer any pro- posals. The talks fell apart af- ter nine months of discus- sions amid one-sided moves by both the Palestinians and Israelis. Israel promised to, but ul- timately did not, release Pal- estinian prisoners and ap- proved construction of hun- dreds of new homes in Israeli settlements. Kerrymeetswith Abbas to talk peace MINNEAPOLIS A young boy who survived an 11-story fall from a Minneapolis high- rise has been dubbed "the miracle baby" and was re- covering in a hospital Wednesday. Fifteen-month-old Musa Dayib suffered a broken spine and ribs as well as a concussion and a punctured lung. Musa's relatives be- lieve he slipped through the railing of his family's apart- ment balcony Sunday eve- ning. The boy was in critical but stable condition Wednesday, Hennepin County Medical Center spokeswoman Chris- tine Hill said. Dr. Tina Slusher of the hospital's pediatric intensive care unit told the Star Tri- bune that Musa landed on a small patch of mulch. "If you and I fell that far, we would be dead," Slusher said. "He's a kid. So they tend to be more flexible and pliable than you and I would be. Having said that, it's a real gift from God that he made it because this is a huge fall." 'MIRACLE BABY' Boy survives 11-story fall from high-rise PHILADELPHIA A drunken, unruly airline passenger groped three women before air marshals arrested him and the London-bound plane turned back to Philadelphia, according to court docu- ments. Robert John Coppack, 40, of La Verne, California, will remain in custody until a de- tention and probable cause hearing Monday in federal court. According to an FBI af- fidavit, two women sitting with Coppack complained about his behavior on the overnight US Airways flight Tuesday, prompting the crew to steer him toward the back of the plane. Coppack then groped a retired flight attendant as he walked down the aisle, the affidavit said. Coppack, who told his seatmates he had been drinking vodka, was also ag- gressive and verbally abu- sive, the affidavit said. He was detained on board by an air marshal on the flight, and later charged with intimidat- ing the crew and interfering with their work. AIRLINE SECURITY FBI: Drunken passenger gropes 3 on flight NEW YORK The New York Times on Wednesday an- nounced that executive ed- itor Jill Abramson is being replaced by managing editor Dean Baquet after two and a half years on the job. The company didn't give a reason for the change. Abramson and Baquet had both been in their current po- sitions since September 2011. Baquet, 57, who would be the first African-Ameri- can to hold the newspaper's highest editorial position, re- ceived a Pulitzer Prize for in- vestigative reporting in 1988. "It is an honor to be asked to lead the only newsroom in the country that is actually better than it was a genera- tion ago, one that approaches the world with wonder and ambition every day," Baquet said in a statement released by the newspaper. The move comes amid a continued shift in the Times' focus, and that of the newspa- per industry overall, toward digital products and away from traditional print papers as print circulation and ad- vertising revenue declines. JOURNALISM New York Times editor replaced unexpectedly MIDDLETOWN, PA. A south- eastern Pennsylvania man charged with breaking into a neighbor's house says he was only borrowing eggs to make breakfast. The Bucks County Cou- rier Times says Middletown police contend Christopher King didn't have an omelette on his mind when he climbed through the window Tues- day morning. Police who responded to the report of a burglary in progress say they arrived to find him walking out the front door. They say they found dresser and cabi- net drawers and doors open throughout the house. Detective Patrick Nica- stro says King claimed he climbed through his neigh- bor's window because he wanted some eggs for break- fast. The homeowner told po- lice nothing appeared to be missing. King is charged with fel- ony burglary and related charges. Online court docu- ments don't list an attorney for him. BREAKFAST Man says he broke into home next door for eggs The Associated Press WASHINGTON The Pen- tagon is trying to transfer convicted national security leaker Pvt. Chelsea Manning to a civilian prison where she can get treatment for a gen- der-identity condition. But her lawyer said Wednesday that a move from a military prison would make Manning choose between the treat- ment and her safety. Two Pentagon officials told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Defense Secre- tary Chuck Hagel gave the Army approval last month to try to work out a plan to transfer Manning from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to a federal prison. Manning en- tered the Army as a man named Bradley. The officials were not au- thorized to speak on the re- cord and discussed the mat- teronconditionofanonymity. Manning has been diag- nosedwithgenderdysphoria, thesenseofbeingawomanin aman'sbody.Civilianprisons can provide treatment, but theDefenseDepartmentdoes not, and a transfer would al- low her to see if she wants to complete the transformation to being a woman. Transgender people are not allowed to serve in the military. Manning was con- victed of sending classified documents to anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks. The sol- dier has asked for hormone therapy and to be able to live as a woman. The request was the first by a transgender military inmate and set up this di- lemma for the department: how to treat a soldier for a diagnosed disorder without violating long-standing mil- itary policy. The military has also repeatedly argued that it does not have the medical expertise to provide treat- ment for gender dysphoria. GENDER DYSPHORIA Lawyer: Manning should be treated at military facility The Associated Press CHARLESTON, W.VA. Weeks before an underground acci- dent killed two workers, em- ployees at a problem-plagued West Virginia mine were no- tified that they may lose their jobs because the coal was sell- ing for less than the cost of dig- ging it out. Saint Louis-based Patriot Coal told all 450 workers at its Wells mining complex on April 23 that a large-scale layoff or closure of the mine was pos- sible. Mine operators are re- quired to give 60 days' notice before such actions under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, also known as WARN. Miners Eric Legg and Gary Hensley died Monday at Brody Mine No. 1, one of the mines within the Wells complex near Wharton. Legg and Hens- ley were performing a risky method known as retreat min- ing, where the roof is inten- tionally collapsed to retrieve more coal. Retreat mining is considered standard practice in mines where coal reserves are running out. A friend and former boss of Legg's, Barry Brown, has said that Legg was preparing to start a new job in another mine sometime later this week. When the company issued the WARN Act notices, it said the cost of production ex- ceeded the sales price of coal. "These actions are an un- fortunate but necessary step to align Patriot's production with expected sales," Patriot Chief Executive Officer Ben- nett Hatfield said in a state- ment about the potential lay- offs. The company noted that in 2012 it reduced production at its Wells complex due to weak- ened demand for the coal. WEST VIRGINIA Layoff notice preceded accident Mine gave notice to 450 workers in April THE ASSOCIATED PRESS U.S. Army Pfc. Chelsea Manning poses for a photo wearing a wig and lipstick. NEWS » redbluffdailynews.com Thursday, May 15, 2014 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B3