The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
An ongoing Ńī¹óåś“«Ć½Ņīl Health News series examining the Trump administrationās overhaul of federal health care agencies.
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A growing body of evidence indicates that immigrants in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement face medical consequences because of serious gaps in basic health care services. Itās adding to the political backlash against the Trump administrationās aggressive deportation policies.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has criticized the broadening use of anxiety medications, claiming theyāre harmful. Doctors and researchers say the MAHA movement is misrepresenting drugs that have been proved to safely treat chronic anxiety and point to broader social changes to explain their increased use.
The federal governmentās Vaccine Injury Compensation Program was supposed to help patients with their medical bills while protecting vaccine supply. But allies of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are routinely transferring cases from that program to launch lawsuits against drugmakers.
Measles is at a 30-year high in the U.S., but technicalities may stave off the loss of the nationās measles elimination status.
An internal email claiming covid vaccines killed children triggered a formal response from a dozen past FDA commissioners. The email, sent by the head of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, outlines a framework that could have significant impact on the nationās vaccine policies.
A last-minute push from Democrats and four moderate Republicans will force a House vote on renewing enhanced premium tax credits for Affordable Care Act plans, but not until January. That means millions will have to choose between paying dramatically more or dropping coverage next year. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officially drops the federal recommendation for newborns to receive a hepatitis B shot. Tami Luhby of CNN, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Lizzy Lawrence of Stat join Ńī¹óåś“«Ć½Ņīl Health Newsā Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Tony Leys, who wrote the latest āBill of the Monthā feature, and the panel discusses the yearās biggest developments in health policy.
Dec. 15 is the deadline to sign up for Affordable Care Act plans that begin Jan. 1, and Congress remains at odds over letting expanded tax credits for the plansā premiums expire and increasing the cost of insurance for millions of Americans. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to remake vaccine policy to reflect ideology rather than science. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times join Ńī¹óåś“«Ć½Ņīl Health Newsā Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown professor Linda Blumberg about the GOPās health plans.
Scientists are conducting genetic analyses to see if the measles outbreak that started in Texas is still spreading from state to state. Itās a contentious question, because the findings may determine whether America loses its measles-free status.
Under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Department of Health and Human Services increasingly uses its social media channels to promote Kennedy himself and his agenda. Interviews with over 20 former and current employees provide a look inside an agency where personality and politics steer communications with the public.
A CDC panel is reconsidering the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine. Renewed doubt could lead to fewer kids getting vaccinated, leaving them vulnerable to an incurable, preventable virus that can be acquired by indirect contact with infected blood.
A reshaped CDC website suggesting that vaccines cause autism has appalled the medical community.
Under Trump policies, cancer registries in 2026 will have to classify sex data strictly as male, female, or unknown, a change scientists and advocates say will harm the health of one of the nationās most marginalized populations.
Fueled by covid backlash, a libertarian author created the Brownstone Institute in 2021. In recent months, people with ties to the group have catapulted to the highest levels of U.S. government, exercising significant authority over access to vaccines and scientific research.
Federal law allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to guard detainees at health care facilities, but patients can ask to speak privately with medical providers and lawyers.
The Trump administration has directed visa officers to consider common health ailments, including obesity and diabetes, when would-be immigrants seek visas to enter the U.S.
Clinicians and researchers are starting to embrace an effort to develop whatās known as āshame competenceā in physicians to combat burnout and prevent that uncomfortable emotion from being passed along to patients.
A standoff in Congress is keeping much of the government shut down as open enrollment begins in most states for Affordable Care Act plans. Democrats are demanding Republicans agree to extend ACA tax credits, but there has been little negotiating ā even as customers are learning what theyāll pay for coverage next year. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is telling states they canāt pass their own laws to keep medical debt off consumersā credit reports. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join Ńī¹óåś“«Ć½Ņīl Health Newsā Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.
The health secretaryās statement doesnāt consider the impact that the Medicaid cuts advanced in the same law will have on health care in rural America.
Doctors say acetaminophen, the main ingredient in Tylenol, is safe to take during pregnancy. Other over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin and ibuprofen arenāt recommended because they can harm fetal development. Untreated fever in pregnancy can pose maternal and fetal health risks.
The decisions by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices matter, because insurers and federal programs rely on them, but they are not binding. States can follow the recommendations, or not.
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