What We're Reading: Valeant Increases Aid-in-Dying Drug Price Ahead of California's New Law

With legalized assisted suicide ready to take effect in California starting in June, Valeant Pharmaceuticals has increased the cost of the drug used for these instances. According to NPR, the company makes the drug most commonly used for physician-assisted suicide and has decided to double the price of the drug from last year. In 2009, a lethal dose of the drug cost less than $200—now it is $3000.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court, still 1 member short, heard arguments regarding the Affordable Care Act’s contraception coverage requirement. However, it seems like a 4-4 tie may be a real possibility, which would not set a national precedent and would affirm the appeals court decisions, reported The New York Times. The likely swing vote would be Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who seemed to wonder if making religious institutions comply with the law would make them “complicit in the moral wrong.”

Nearly all Americans do not meet the basic qualifications for a “healthy lifestyle.” Just 3% of Americans have a lifestyle that includes moderate or vigorous exercise for at least 150 minutes a week; a diet score in the top 40% of the Healthy Eating Index; no smoking; and a body fat percentage under 20% for me or 30% for women, according to The Atlantic. The toughest qualifications to meet was the body fat percentage (only 9.6% of Americans) while not smoking was the qualification most frequently met (71.5%).