Newswise — Northwestern Medicine experts are available to comment on a variety of health and medical topics in the news, including:

Affordable Care Act – Dr. Jane Holl, director of the Center for Healthcare Studies at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, is available to comment on the future of the Affordable Care Act and share insights into what the new plan may cut or include.

“An outright repeal of the Affordable Care Act seems less likely today, given public reactions in recent weeks across the nation,” Holl said. “But, we have not been provided any information on how the plan will be paid for nor any estimates of the number of people who would gain or lose insurance under their plan.”

The Opioid Epidemic – Richard J. Miller, professor of pharmacology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, can explain how opioids work and why it is difficult to treat opioid addiction.

“In the brain of someone who is addicted to an opioid, like morphine, there is a rewiring of the parts of the brain that are important for rewarding stimuli,” Miller said. “That is why people will try to seek out drugs, whatever the consequences are, because their brain is telling them they absolutely have to use.”

Miller is the author of “Drugged: The Science and Culture Behind Psychotropic Drugs.”