Good Lupus News and VA Discrimination Needs Our Action
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Lupus Update
This note is for anyone who has someone in their sphere with Lupus. For us that is our daughter. Here is some exciting news:
MedPage Today is reporting that a small-molecule oral drug may be a first-in-class to treat various forms of lupus. It has performed well in a phase II trial.
Called enpatoran, the agent targets the Toll-like receptor (TLR) species 7 and 8. Some 50%-60% of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) receiving it at different doses obtained so-called BICLA responses after 24 weeks, compared with 39% of a placebo group, reported Eric Morand, MBBS, PhD, of Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.
"There were no troubling safety signals," Morand said. No one died and only one severe treatment-emergent AE (TEAE) occurred, and that was in the placebo group. Infections and gastrointestinal AEs were seen at similar rates in all groups, as were TEAEs overall.
Good news - more tests to follow.
Trump’s VA Denies Care To Political Opponents
On his inauguration day, Trump signed an Executive Order titled “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which critics have labeled as discriminatory and divisive. According to documents obtained by The Guardian, this order has led to new rules at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals, which are reportedly already in effect in some VA hospitals.
[Under these rules,] Medical staff are still required to treat veterans regardless of race, color, religion and sex, and all veterans remain entitled to treatment. But individual workers are now free to decline to care for patients based on personal characteristics not explicitly prohibited by federal law.
Language requiring healthcare professionals to care for veterans regardless of their politics and marital status has been explicitly eliminated.
Doctors and other medical staff can also be barred from working at VA hospitals based on their marital status, political party affiliation or union activity, documents reviewed by the Guardian show. The changes also affect chiropractors, certified nurse practitioners, optometrists, podiatrists, licensed clinical social workers and speech therapists.
So, individual health care providers at the VA (but not the institution itself) can now legally refuse to treat a patient because of their sexual orientation, marital status or lawful political party affiliation. (Daily KOS)
Language requiring healthcare professionals to care for veterans regardless of their politics and marital status has been explicitly eliminated. (Guardian) (H/T Gary)
ACTION
Trump’s despicable action violates every norm and promise we, as a country, have made to our veterans who chose to put their lives on the line to defend our democracy.
Let’s contact our senators and members of Congress and ask for specific legislation that forbids this kind of discrimination by the VA. You can reach them here or
Text SIGN PCNHGU to 50409 or to or to @Resistbot on Apple Messages, Messenger, Instagram, or Telegram to send this message.
“I am outraged that President Trump’s executive order denying transgender care is now being used at the VA to allow medical providers to deny care to anyone whose personal characteristics offend them as long as those characteristics are not explicitly protected by federal law. Here is a link to the news article for you, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/16/va-doctors-refuse-treat-patients?
I demand that you pass legislation immediately to overturn this egregious rule that the VA has chosen to implement to deny care to vets who chose to donate to all of us to keep our democracy intact. Thank you.”
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Trump to VA - Delete Ethics - No
RESOURCES
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Important Healthcare Resources
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Organizations to Contact
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Reproductive Health
NARAL - Pro Choice America
Charley. chatbot abortion resource - make sure to use a secure incognito browser if you live in a state that has banned abortion
Planned Parenthood
Miscarriage and Abortion Hotline has references about where to procure abortion medications. They also assist women in the process of self managed abortion or miscarriage by phone or text and will respond in an hour. Details and hours of operation at their website.
United State of Women Reproductive health page (bottom of the page) has important resources such as medical support, access to Telehealth, prescriptions by mail, and legal support references.
Practice careful communications - The Digital Defense Fund has a number of tips to keep texts, calls, and internet use private. Here is their site.
If you need financial help with an abortion try abortionfunds.org
Claims Denials and Appeals & What to Do
Appeal a Healthcare Decision, Appeal/Negotiate a Hospital Bill
Disinformation Management
Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency
Library of Advice, Specific Advice
Claims Denied
We can use the tool here to protest.