AI and Medicine; Politics and Health Policy; Science, SCOTUS, and the Future of Legal Abortion

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November 5, 2020


** EVENT
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Can AI Reduce Inequity and Improve Empathy in Medicine? A Conversation Between Eric Topol and Mildred Solomon
Artificial intelligence has the potential to reduce inequities in health care and even help restore empathy to the doctor-patient relationship—if, and only if, key ethical barriers are addressed and opportunities grasped. That was Eric Topol’s overarching message at The Hastings Center’s 50^th anniversary gala, held remotely on October 27. Topol is the founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute and author of Deep Medicine: How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Health Care Human Again. In a conversation with Hastings Center president Mildred Solomon, Topol gave concrete recommendations. For one thing, AI can reduce inequities by making state-of-the-art diagnostic technology available to people who otherwise would not have access to it, including people living in low- and middle-income countries and poor people in wealthy countries. In remote areas of Africa and India, people are using smartphone apps to take ultrasounds of themselves – “medical selfies,” Topol called
them – and transmit them to doctors. Topol said that giving smartphones and data plans to people who could not afford them could be cost-effective, for example, by potentially preventing expensive emergency room visits to treat medical conditions that had long gone undiagnosed. Topol says the greatest promise of AI in medicine is to restore empathy to the doctor-patient relationship by enabling doctors to spend more time with patients. His call to action is for physicians to become advocates for the use of AI in ways that give physicians more time with the patients who need it. “Routine visits that are not essential can be done remotely and rapidly,” he said. “But the critical meetings shouldn’t be rushed. They should go to their natural extent of what it takes to listen and to respond and to have a true, meaningful bonding interaction.” Watch the video of Mildred Solomon’s conversation with Topol ([link removed]) .
See the gala program ([link removed]) .



** Take Politics Out of Health Policy? No Way! They're Entwined
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That was the takeaway from Hastings Center research scholar Michael Gusmano in a recent webinar in Seton Hall University’s Covid Ethics Series. In a discussion that ranged from political divisions over wearing masks and social distancing to reduce the spread of Covid and, more generally, trust in science, Gusmano noted that while people say that it’s important to take politics out of policy issues, “the questions we ask about policy are about politics at the most fundamental level. Politics and ethics are about what kind of society we want to create, about what a good society should look like.” Listen to the webinar ([link removed]) .

Despite ongoing challenges to the Affordable Care Act, it remains largely intact, although the next ACA decision by the Supreme Court could result in its elimination, write Gusmano and co-authors in “Trump v. The ACA,” a new article in Health Economics, Policy, and Law. “The longer term fate of the law, however, is uncertain and the outcome of the 2020 election is likely to have a dramatic effect on the direction of health policy in the U.S.” Read the article ([link removed]) .

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** Commentary: Science, Change on the Supreme Court, and the Future of Legal Abortion
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“Viability—the potential for a fetus to survive outside the womb—is a core dividing line in American law,” writes Josephine Johnston, director of research and a research scholar at The Hastings Center in a commentary in LeapsMag. “For nearly 50 years, the Supreme Court of the United States has struck down laws that ban all or most abortions, ruling that women's constitutional rights include choosing to end pregnancies before the point of viability. Once viability is reached, however, states have a ‘compelling interest’ in protecting fetal life. At that point, states can choose to ban or significantly restrict later-term abortions provided states allow an exception to preserve the life or health of the mother.

“Now, with a new Supreme Court Justice expected to be hostile to abortion rights, advances in the care of preterm babies and ongoing research on artificial wombs suggest that the point of viability is already sooner than many assume and could soon be moved radically earlier in gestation, potentially providing a legal basis for earlier and earlier abortion bans.” The commentary was part of "The Future of Science In America: The Election Issue," co-published by LeapsMag, the Aspen Institute Science & Society Program, and GOOD. Read the commentary ([link removed]) .
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Upcoming Events
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Wednesday, November 18 - Thursday, November 19 - New York Academy of Science: ([link removed])
Synthetic Biology holds tremendous promise to revolutionize our understanding of the origins of life, the mechanisms underlying myriad biological processes, human diseases, and critical environmental issues that threaten the planet. With the advent of 21st century molecular biology techniques, including rapid and inexpensive genomic sequencing as well as methods that allow precise genetic modification, scientists have an unprecedented ability to harness biological processes to efficiently produce a wide variety of desirable chemicals. These include complex drugs, biofuels, biomaterials, and sustainable food products that have the potential to transform our quality of life. Hastings Center research scholar Gregory Kaebnick will moderate a panel to discuss how advances in synthetic biology can positively influence human and environmental health.

Thursday, November 19 - The Hastings Center: ([link removed])
Dr. Anthony Fauci will explore the ethical issues raised by the erosion of trust in science in a new virtual discussion hosted by The Hastings Center. The nation’s top infectious diseases official and Hastings president Mildred Solomon will look at how we can improve public understanding of complex issues in ways particularly suited to problem-solving and respectful dialogue. What is the proper balance between safety and speed when developing new therapeutics and vaccines? And who should decide when scientists and members of the public disagree? The event is part of The Hastings Center’s series, Securing Health in a Troubled Time.

Learn More ([link removed])
The Hastings Center seeks to ensure responsible health and science policy and practice. We work to secure the wisest possible use of emerging technologies and fair, compassionate, and just health care for people across their lifespan.

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