by Andrew Bucholtz

October 16, 2019

USA Today‘s paid print circulation (including 342,000 in hotel distribution at a reduced price) is down to 520,000, 22 percent of what they had in 2007

The pending New Media Investment Group (parent of GateHouse, which owns 130 daily newspapers, plus other local publications and websites) purchase of Gannett (parent of USA Today and 109 regional papers) could lead to the end of the print version of USA Today. As Poynter’s Rick Edmonds writes, while official comment still supports the print side of the paper, his sources suggest it may be on the way out of this deal closes:

Two knowledgeable sources, talking on background, said a move away from USA Today in print is part of the calculations for the new enterprise. It makes a lot of sense, given the print edition’s deteriorating paid circulation and minimal advertising.  One Gannett editor, speaking on background, told me that new CEO Paul Bascobert streamed an all-hands meeting to regional papers on the day that his hiring and the deal agreement were simultaneously announced.“It ran for an hour and a quarter,” the editor said, “and not once was there a single mention of print.”

The deal won’t close until at least November, and Edmonds notes that any wind-down like this may take years and may not be the first priority for the new company. But it’s certainly interesting to hear of knowledgeable sources there mentioning that exiting print for USA Today is “part of the calculations” here. And the circulation figures Edmonds cites buttress that argument; the current five-days-a-week print edition of USA Today had individually paid circulation of 178,000 and 342,000 in hotel distribution (at a reduced rate) in their latest audited circulation report earlier this year for 520,000 total, 22.7 percent of the 2,289,000 they had in 2007 (when they were close to The Wall Street Journal in top paid circulation), and the 109 regional papers (which share content back and forth with USA Today) have 561,000 combined digital subscriptions as of Gannett’s last earnings report.

So USA Today’s print side is already down significantly. And while they have certain distribution advantages for print over other national outlets (they can print copies of USA Today at regional papers’ plants and use their delivery infrastructure, and that approach could get a further boost if they can tie in the GateHouse papers), they’re still spending a lot in areas where they don’t have regional papers. Edmonds writes that print versions of the paper are still available in all 50 U.S. states. They also ended a standalone print section of USA Today news in larger regional papers (launched in 2014) earlier this year. And plenty of other newspapers are reducing their numbers of print editions each week, whether that’s going to three days a week (Advance Newspapers, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) or dropping Saturday editions (several McClatchy papers).

And while another source told Edmonds USA Today‘s hotel circulation is still profitable, that may not always be the case. Several hotel chains have been moving to provide digital news offerings rather than printed newspapers, and USA Today can’t necessarily depend on being able to keep that hotel subscription revenue model forever. So planning a move away from print may make some sense, especially with any such move likely to take years. And if this does happen, it will be interesting to see what digital strategies they adopt, whether that’s pushing for more local digital subscriptions or changing their current ad-based national digital model. For what it’s worth, though, USA Today publisher Maribel Perez Wadsworth told Edmonds via e-mail they have “no plans” to end the print version.

“Gannett has no plans to discontinue the print edition of USA TODAY, which remains an important part of our business. Gannett remains committed to high-quality journalism for the communities we serve and our ongoing digital transformation, and we are pleased to have found a like-minded partner in New Media. We believe the combination of our two companies will transform the landscape in the print and digital news business and, following the close of the transaction, we look forward to delivering on the compelling benefits for audiences, customers, employees and shareholders.”

It’s perhaps notable that this is a denial from Gannett’s side, and that plans from the GateHouse acquisition can’t be implemented until that deal closes (presuming that it does), so “no plans” could possibly be technically accurate despite those plans actually existing at the new company. It’s also possible that the idea has been discussed and evaluated, but that there aren’t yet firm “plans” to implement it. Of course, though, it’s also possible that the “part of the calculations” involving closing USA Today’s print side won’t actually come to fruition. We’ll have to wait and see, but this certainly adds an interesting layer to the GateHouse-Gannett talk.

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INDIANAPOLIS—Physicians who write few prescriptions or treat kidney dialysis patients should be exempt from a new law requiring that all controlled substances be prescribed electronically by Jan. 1, 2021.

“Our concern is for those practitioners who work in small practices or outside a large health system that have not yet adopted e-prescribing due to financial or technological barriers” Dr. Steve Tharp, of the Indiana State Medical Association, said.

Tharp made his argument Wednesday at the Statehouse before the Interim Study Committee on Public Health, Behavioral Health, and Human Services which was hearing testimony about electronic prescribing. The General Assembly passed Senate Enrolled Act 176 in the 2019 session, which requires e-prescribing for all controlled substances. It is modeled on a federal law that was enacted to combat the opioid and drug addiction crisis.

More than 80 percent of physicians across the state have already begun prescribing medications electronically, Tharp told the committee. But it could be burdensome for some physicians to implement the electronic prescribing system.

It is because of the costs that Tharp proposed an exception for physicians who write no more than 100 prescriptions per year along with several other exceptions including if the doctor is working at a temporary site.

A group of doctors from DaVita Kidney Care who specialize in dialysis for kidney-related illnesses told the committee that their operations need an exception because the medications prescribed to patients can change from session to session depending on lab results. The group represents over 9,800 dialysis patients nationwide and about one-third are Hoosiers.

“It would fundamentally disrupt how we are able to care for each patient from week to week and a day to day basis,” Dr. Adam Weinstein, DaVita’s chief medical officer, said.
Electronic prescribing could be an issue for patients undergoing dialysis because a majority of the patients are disproportionately from minority populations, said Jolene Adams, the regional operations director of DaVita Kidney Care.

“They are dealing with transportation concerns that they have, making sure they are getting to their dialysis on time, they are dealing with a multitude of medications, they have many limitations to their fluid intake, protein, their diet and things like that,” Adams said. “Our ultimate goal is to give them the best quality of life that we can until they hopefully get a kidney transplant.”

Grant Monahan, president of the Indiana Retail Council, agreed that dialysis exceptions is worthy of discussion but are ultimately in support of the bill.

“Electronic prescribing provides new dimensions of safety and security to the prescriptions, prescriptions cannot be altered or copied but they are electronically trackable,” Monahan said.

He argued that electronic prescribing would be less prone to error, allow for better monitoring of controlled substances, reduce the number of lost prescriptions and improve the workflow of physicians and pharmacists.

Sen. Ron Grooms, R-Jeffersonville, who authored the bill, told the committee, “The more pieces of paper that you can keep off the street and out of the homes and hands of those who do not have the right to possess that prescription on a piece of paper the better chance we have at combating opioid abuse and drug addiction in the state of Indiana.”

Changes to the law would have to be enacted by the General Assembly next year.

Brynna Sentel is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.