Daily on Healthcare: 2020 candidates are too old, warns Obama’s former doctor: ‘We’re asking for trouble’

2020 CANDIDATES ARE TOO OLD, WARNS OBAMA’S FORMER DOCTOR: ‘WE’RE ASKING FOR TROUBLE’: The entrance of former Vice President Joe Biden into the 2020 White House race adds yet another septuagenarian into the crowded field of contenders.

Of the 20 Democrats and two Republicans who are running for president, six are nearing or over the age of 70.

If Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., wins, he would be 79 by the time he reaches the White House, becoming the oldest president in history; Ronald Reagan was 77 years and 349 days on the day he left office. President Trump, who turns 73 this summer and has long batted back scrutiny about his health, is the oldest president when first sworn in.

The other older Democrats are Biden, who would be 78 when first sworn in, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who would be 71, and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who would turn 70 shortly after being sworn in. Bill Weld, the former Massachusetts governor challenging Trump for the GOP nomination, would be 75.

“I think we’re asking for trouble,” Dr. David Scheiner, who was Barack Obama‘s doctor for more than two decades before Obama became president, said of the number of older candidates in the race. “We don’t know what their health is. They look spry but I don’t think that’s enough. You can’t accept it at face value.”

The obvious problem: As people get older, they face a higher likelihood of illness, disability, and death, as well as cognitive impairment.

Sanders and Biden, who are the oldest candidates, poll at the top of the Democratic field. Christopher Devine, assistant professor of political science at the University of Dayton in Ohio, said that he doesn’t see age as being a deciding factor for voters. “If you’re older you emphasize experience, and if you’re younger you emphasize being a being a fresh face,” he said. “You play to your strengths.”

Sanders enjoys a devoted following among younger voters. When asked about his age during a Fox News town hall, he replied that “my health is good” and “I continue to have my endurance.” He added: “It’s not whether you’re young, it’s not whether you’re old. It is what you believe in.”

But questions about age are unlikely to go away, especially because of the stark contrast between candidates. One of Sanders’ rivals, Pete Buttigieg, the 37-year-old mayor of South Bend, Ind., is less than half his age.

Recent age-related attacks: In the run-up to the 2016 election, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton drew widespread scrutiny after she stumbled at a 9/11 Memorial event. Her staff later said she had pneumonia, but Trump said that she “doesn’t have the stamina” to be president.

Trump has faced his own scrutiny from critics who point to his late-night tweets and an instance in which he slurred his speech, as well as the weight he’s gained since taking office, as signs that he’s too old and is suffering from cognitive decline.

Read more about how age and health has been a weapon in past elections.

Good morning and welcome to the Washington Examiner’s Daily on Healthcare! This newsletter is written by senior healthcare reporter Kimberly Leonard (@LeonardKL) and healthcare reporter Cassidy Morrison (@CassMorrison94). You can reach us with tips, calendar items, or suggestions at [email protected]. If someone forwarded you this email and you’d like to receive it regularly, you can subscribe here.

MEASLES INFECTS NEARLY 700 PEOPLE: At least 695 people have been infected with measles this year as of Wednesday, an alarming number for an infectious disease that was declared eradicated in the U.S. in 2000.

“The longer these outbreaks continue, the greater the chance measles will again get a sustained foothold in the United States,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a release.

CDC said that a leading factor contributing to the outbreak in New York was that people were spreading “inaccurate and misleading” information about the vaccine preventing measles, known as MMR because it also protects against mumps and rubella. People who are skeptical of vaccinations tend to raise a now-debunked study claiming that the MMR vaccine caused autism. Trump spread that same message when he was running for office but has not tweeted about the current outbreak.

Trump’s health and human services secretary, Alex Azar, took a forceful tone: “Vaccines are a safe, highly effective public health solution that can prevent this disease,” he said in a statement. “The measles vaccines are among the most extensively studied medical products we have, and their safety has been firmly established over many years in some of the largest vaccine studies ever undertaken.”

GOP GEARS UP FOR HEARING ON MEDICARE FOR ALL ACT: Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, who is the top Republican in the Rules Committee that will hear the Medicare for All Act next week, said the hearing showed that the Democratic agenda “continues to become more extreme and concerning by the day.”

Republicans have asked Charles Blahous to testify, who wrote the study finding the Medicare for All Act would cost $32 trillion over 10 years for the conservative Mercatus Center at George Mason University. They have also invited Grace-Marie Turner, president and founder of the conservative Galen Institute, which studies healthcare.

MAJORITY OF REPUBLICANS FAVOR MEDICAID OVERHAUL: POLL: Sixty percent of Republicans approve of party leaders’ plans to have the federal government give states a lump sum for Medicaid in exchange for allowing more flexibility about how the money is spent, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Wednesday.

The poll also found most Republicans want Obamacare repealed and replaced: Fifty-two percent of GOP voters believe it should be a top priority for Congress.

And that people would rather lower healthcare prices over ‘Medicare for all:’ Most of those polled — 68% — said they want Congress to prioritize lowering prescription drug prices. Half said they wanted Congress to focus on Congress softening the financial blow of surprise medical bills and 64% said they want Congress to focus on continuing Affordable Care Act protections for people with pre-existing conditions.

E&C CALLS FOR AGENCY BRIEFINGS ON MATERNAL MORTALITY: The House Energy and Commerce Committee has asked six agencies how they are working to fight against the apparent rise in deaths and disability for women during pregnancy and after childbirth. Rates are nearly four times higher among black women than among white women, and experts have been confounded about the cause.

ANTI-DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFICE GETS FUNDING BOOST: The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy announced Wednesday its largest grant funding to date to the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program, which helps jurisdictions fight drug trafficking. More than $264 million will be divided among 29 regional HIDTA areas.

The announcement came the same day that Trump, appearing at the Rx Abuse and Heroin Summit in Atlanta, pledged his administration “will never stop until our job is done” fighting the opioid crisis, which kills nearly 50,00 people a year.

BY 2029 MOST SENIORS WILL HAVE DIFFICULTING MEETING HOUSING, CARE NEEDS: STUDY: Health Affairs published a study Wednesday finding that by 2029, 81% of seniors will have an income of $60,000 or less, making it difficult to access necessary care and housing. The number of middle-income seniors is expected to double by 2029 to 14.4 million. The authors say that as this growing demographic garners more attention, “we expect creative entrepreneurs to pursue other yet-to-be-imagined solutions.”

TRUMP: AOC IS RIGHT ABOUT THE VA NOT BEING BROKEN, AND IT IS BECAUSE OF ME: Trump tweeted on Wednesday that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., was right in saying the Department of Veterans Affairs is not the broken agency it once was. But he said it is “because of the Trump Administration. We got Veterans Choice & Accountability passed.” The tweet comes after AOC defended the VA during a town hall in her district, saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” and criticized those who advocate for privatizing the VA.

E. COLI OUTBREAK LINKED TO TAINTED BEEF SPREADS TO 10 STATES: An E. coli outbreak linked to ground beef has expanded to 10 states and has caused at least 156 people to fall ill, federal officials said Tuesday. So far, 20 people have been hospitalized because of the outbreak, which began in early March, but no deaths have been reported. Officials said they expect the number of people reported to be ill to rise. Georgia meat producer K2D Foods recently announced it is recalling over 100,000 pounds of ground beef in response to the outbreak.

WASHINGTON STATE BILL LIMITS MEASLES VACCINE EXEMPTIONS: The Washington state legislature voted Tuesday to remove personal or philosophical exemptions from vaccinating children for measles, but medical and religious exemptions will stay in place. Unless parents claim an exemption, children are required to be vaccinated for almost a dozen diseases, including polio, whooping cough, and measles. The measure will now go to Inslee who has long supported limiting vaccination exemptions. Washington has seen 74 cases of measles in 2019 so far.

NEW YORK CITY HEALTH DEPARTMENT TICKETS UNVACCINATED PEOPLE: As the number of measles cases continues to rise, the New York City Department of Health has issued civil summonses to 12 people who have refused to follow the department’s mandate that all people in certain Brooklyn neighborhoods must vaccinate. Each will face a fine up to $1,000 if an official deems them non-compliant.

The Rundown

U.S. News & World Report A barren landscape for meth treatment

Kaiser Health News Pain clinics’ doctors needlessly tested hundreds of urine samples, court records show

The Dallas Morning News Texas marijuana bill gets a serious mellow — but high penalties for possession could still come down

The New York Times Scientists create speech from brain signals

The Philadelphia Inquirer A hidden crisis for the severely sick and mentally ill: Pa. has no facilities left for them

Miami Herald Firefighters win cancer coverage benefits in the Florida Legislature

Calendar

THURSDAY | April 25

April 22-25. Atlanta. Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit. Agenda.

House and Senate in recess.

April 25-26. Baltimore. Conference of the National Association of Accountable Care Organizations. Agenda.

MONDAY | April 29

8:30 a.m. 1615 H St NW. Chamber of Commerce event on “”Innovations: Redesigning Wellness.”

TUESDAY | April 30

10:30 a.m. 2322 Rayburn. House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health Subcommittee to hold hearing on the payment of prescription drugs in Medicare Part B and C. Details.

10 a.m. H-313. House Rules Committee hearing on the Medicare for All Act. Details.

WEDNESDAY | May 1

8 a.m. 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. Washington Examiner’s “Examining Healthcare” event with Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Doug Jones, D-Ala. Register.