Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Aug 1

Why peer review takes me so long:

Started reviewing a paper citing works I hadn't read. Had to read them to inform my review. Learned of tangential works relevant to my teaching. Had to read them and revise my lectures. Had to get coffee. Finally got back to the peer review.

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JAMA @jama.com · Jul 28

Viewpoint: To effectively reduce drug costs, the US needs its own price negotiation framework rather than relying on international benchmarks, as proposed by the Trump administration.

ja.ma/4o0PF66

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Alex Munter @alexmunter.bsky.social · Mar 14

Elon Musk said #Canada is not a real country. We say X is not a real social media platform any more.

You can follow the @cmadocs.bsky.social here, on other platforms and, best of all, through our own website - www.cma.ca/latest-stori....

#ElbowsUp 🟥🍁🟥

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Justin Wolfers @justinwolfers.bsky.social · Apr 4

Markets are crashing because President Trump has issued punishing sanctions against the American people.

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Dr. Rita McCracken, MD PhD🇨🇦 @ritamc.bsky.social · Jun 19

We need to talk about the (wishful?) thinking driving Cdn health policy:

That changing how & how much we pay MDs will fix the primary care crisis.

New “blended” pymt models, 1st seen in BC, are making this claim.

@ruthlavergne.bsky.social @lindsayhedden.bsky.social
www.cfp.ca/content/71/6...
🧵

Will blended family physician payment models revive primary care in Canada?

Family physicians provide care at most medical visits in Canada.[1][1] However, the rates of burnout among family physicians (FPs) are high[2][2]-[4][3] and recent surveys suggest as many as 6.5 milli...

www.cfp.ca

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Jun 20

💯 Changing payments without changing critical institutions related to delivery, governance, and accountability will not produce long-desired improvements in primary health care. Providers and some patients will be happier but the system will remain a fragmented and underperforming one.

Dr. Rita McCracken, MD PhD🇨🇦 @ritamc.bsky.social · Jun 19

We need to talk about the (wishful?) thinking driving Cdn health policy:

That changing how & how much we pay MDs will fix the primary care crisis.

New “blended” pymt models, 1st seen in BC, are making this claim.

@ruthlavergne.bsky.social @lindsayhedden.bsky.social
www.cfp.ca/content/71/6...
🧵

Will blended family physician payment models revive primary care in Canada?

Family physicians provide care at most medical visits in Canada.[1][1] However, the rates of burnout among family physicians (FPs) are high[2][2]-[4][3] and recent surveys suggest as many as 6.5 milli...

www.cfp.ca

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Jun 17

version française
centreforfuturework.ca/2025/06/17/l...

Lettre ouverte sur les avantages économiques des soins de santé publics du Canada - Centre for Future Work

Signée par des économistes, des experts en politiques de santé et d’autres acteurs œuvrant dans des disciplines connexes

centreforfuturework.ca

Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Jun 17

Canadian “Medicare” is a public good that provides essential services while also creating jobs, economic growth, and competitive advantages for Canada’s economy. Letter reminding our governments of this, signed by 200+ colleagues and me: centreforfuturework.ca/2025/06/17/t...

The Economic Benefits of Canada’s Public Health Care System - Centre for Future Work

Open letter from economists, health policy experts, and experts in related disciplines

centreforfuturework.ca

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Jun 12

Highly recommend.

Book cover. Carol Off, At a Loss for Words: Conversation in an Age of Rage.

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · May 27

The 2025 Speech from the Throne mentions #pharmacare once, and only in a promise to keep what is already in place--which is next to nothing. I think the prospect of a meaningful program in the 2020s is dead. Feels like 2006.

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Apr 28

Get out and vote as though your country depended on it! #Never51

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Apr 17

A lot of national pride tonight.

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Apr 5

A great 10-second summary of the stupidity of the Trump/Musk tariffs.

Justin Wolfers @justinwolfers.bsky.social · Apr 4

Markets are crashing because President Trump has issued punishing sanctions against the American people.

Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Apr 3

Economic historians are going to look back at this era and wonder what the $%@% people were thinking! This isn't Liberation Day in the USA. It's Liquidation Day!

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Sam Stein @samsteindc.bsky.social · Apr 1

Absolute BLOODBATH at HHS/NIH/CDC this morning. Generation of scientists, health care officials being wiped out

t.co/LeABrGqDei

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 26

“Just as strong banking regulations guard against economic catastrophe, comprehensive oversight of our digital landscape is essential to protecting democracy, public safety and national security,” write @petermacleod.bsky.social and @taylorowen.bsky.social

In a changed world, Canada faces an information war. There is an answer

To fight misinformation, we need to re-establish a critical cabinet portfolio for the digital age.

www.thestar.com

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Prof Christina Pagel @chrischirp.bsky.social · Mar 23

It's 5 yrs today since lockdown started in England, but "We must never have lockdown again" is the wrong lesson.

Lockdowns are terrible but so are deadly pandemics.

Our choices 5 years ago were limited - we can & must do better in the future.

Do read my post.

open.substack.com/pub/christin...

We are learning the wrong lessons from lockdown

And unless we learn the right ones, we risk making the same mistakes in a new pandemic

open.substack.com

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 22

Hundreds of unsold Teslas being stored in a rented parking lot outside of Vancouver — a scene playing out across the globe. But, sure, buying shares in the company is a GREAT idea right about now!!!

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Jason Markusoff @markusoff.bsky.social · Mar 18

Danielle Smith & LaGrange say if there was anything amiss about health procurement, it was all internal to Alberta Health Services.
Here's a long look at the UCP government's many interventions into contracting at AHS:
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

ANALYSIS | How province kept rein on health contracting, despite what Danielle Smith says | CBC News

CBC News has obtained documents that lay out extensive government influence over AHS contracts with private surgery clinics and more.

www.cbc.ca

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 18

From the US: maybe not such a good idea having secretive, for-profit financial intermediaries influencing what insurers pay, how pharmacies are reimbursed, and which medications people can access.

What Pharmacy Benefit Managers Do, and How They Contribute to Drug Spending

Policymakers at the federal and state level have considered a number of reforms, many of which have bipartisan support, to regulate pharmacy benefit managers.

www.commonwealthfund.org

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 15

“Canadians are entitled to a comprehensive health-care plan that prioritises access, equity, and sustainability for all.“ www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Health in Canada: a pivotal political moment

As Justin Trudeau steps down after a decade as leader of Canada's ruling Liberal Party, Canadians face a pivotal moment. Although attention is focused on trade tariffs and souring relations with the U...

www.thelancet.com

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 15

More of this please!!!

Alex Munter @alexmunter.bsky.social · Mar 14

Elon Musk said #Canada is not a real country. We say X is not a real social media platform any more.

You can follow the @cmadocs.bsky.social here, on other platforms and, best of all, through our own website - www.cma.ca/latest-stori....

#ElbowsUp 🟥🍁🟥

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 13

This got me.
I love this country.
I love its hope, its compassion, and its humility—that we know we are not perfect and that we believe we can and must always strive to be better. youtu.be/vhiKlhTmwDU?...

Dear Canada

YouTube video by Hockey Films by Tim Thompson

youtu.be

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 11

Now is the time for a united and hopeful Canada, not a divided and hateful one. Be strong and resolute without becoming that which we are defending ourselves against.

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 10

2/2: The second points out the long-term cost to America of this authoritarian tactic. "Trump speaks of putting America First, but his attack on the nation’s great research universities is ensuring that the U.S. comes in second — to China." @rbreich.bsky.social

The universities are next

Friends,

robertreich.substack.com

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 10

Two posts about the authoritarian attack on American universities out today. The first is an excellent review of why any how this happens. 1/2: "Autocracies require ideological control and a single narrative about what is happening within the country." @chrischirp.bsky.social

Censor, purge, defund: how Trump is following the authoritarian playbook on science and universities

I have mapped 35 of the Trump administration's attacks on science and universities to the authoritarian playbook - and consider what it means for attacks still to come

christinapagel.substack.com

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 10

If you run into an American travelling abroad -- even right next door, here in Canada -- treat them with kindness. It is highly unlikely they voted for Trump. And nobody voted for Musk.

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Canadian History Ehx @cdnhistoryehx.bsky.social · Mar 4

In 1890, the Tariff Act came into place in the United States. It placed tariffs on imports of up to 50%.
While touted as a way to build American industry, there was also the hope it would force an annexation of Canada. It backfired.
Let's learn more.

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The image is a black-and-white political cartoon depicting a man in a suit standing behind a counter labeled "Republican Platform." He is holding a bottle labeled "Untaxed Whiskey, 20¢ Gal." in one hand and a piece of cloth labeled "War-Taxed Common Cloth, Tariff 84%" in the other. Above the counter, a sign reads, "If you don’t see what you want, ask for it." The cartoon, signed by W.A. Rogers, appears to satirize the Republican Party's economic policies, highlighting the disparity in taxation between luxury items like whiskey and essential goods like cloth.

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 4

Can Canadian institutions please get the hell off of X now?!?!?

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Steve Morgan @steveubc.bsky.social · Mar 3

There is not a lot of good news out there but I think this is good news. Vancouver Coastal has the lowest levels of COVID in wastewater since the beginning of the pandemic -- especially for February (latest data). I'm glad they keep measuring this and I hope this trend holds.

Plot of COVID viral load in Vancouver Coastal wastewater treatment plans, showing varied but declining trends since 2022, with comparatively low levels in recent months.

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