Health sector GPS: the first stop for national healthcare policy
>ACA, Medicare, Medicaid, CDC, FDA, NIH, HHS
Administration Policy
‘Crisis brewing’ in Trump Country as hospitals shutter at alarming rate, top ER doc warns
Fox News 7.2.25
ER DR. Randy Pilgrim met with RFK Jr. to discuss the issue — and hopes Washington can help.
‘MAHA Report’ Calls for Fighting Chronic Disease, but Trump and Kennedy Have Yanked Funding
After issuing the MAHA report, the administration proposed to cut funding for the NIH by $17.0 billion, or 38%, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by $550 million, or 12%, and the EPA by $5 billion, or 54%.
Top FDA Official Overrode Scientists on Covid Shots
The Food and Drug Administration’s top vaccine official rejected broad uses of two Covid vaccines, citing unknown risks or injuries despite assurances of safety from dozens of staff experts, newly released documents show.
The latest on measles outbreak cases in the U.S.
The latest measles outbreak case counts, with data from the CDC and affected states.
What Medicaid Work Requirements Mean for Enrollees
Wall Street Journal 7.1.25
Policy analysts expect millions of Americans to lose coverage because of cumbersome paperwork, bureaucratic hurdles and noncompliance.
Congressional Action
Legal Developments
RFK Jr.'s Mass Firings Likely Unlawful and Must Be Halted, Judge Says
Associated Press 7.1.25 (534 words)
A federal judge ruled that mass layoffs at HHS were unlawful and ordered the Trump administration to halt plans to downsize the department.
MAGA law group fights to expose how DEI agenda may have tainted life-saving organ transplants
Fox News 7.1.25 (856 words)
America First Legal alleges Biden admin policies may have prioritized patients based on race
20 states sue after Trump administration releases private Medicaid data to deportation officials
Associated Press 7.1.25 (630 words)
California AG said the Trump administration’s data release violates federal health privacy protection laws, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Mayors, doctor groups sue over Trump’s efforts to restrict Obamacare enrollment
Associated Press 7.1.25 (765 words)
New HHS rules that give millions of people a shorter timeframe to sign up for the ACA coverage are facing a legal challenge from Democratic mayors around the country.
How the tax-cut bill that just passed the Senate would upend health care
Stat News 7.2.25
The House is set to vote on the bill before the end of the week. If it passes and is signed into law, the bill would mark the biggest changes to U.S. health policy since the 2010 passage of the ACA.
Here’s how millions of people could lose health insurance if Trump’s tax bill becomes law
Associated Press 7.2.25
The GOP’s “ One Big, Beautiful Bill Act ” makes changes that will whittle away at enrollment over a decade in order to wrest nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Republican Megabill Will Mean Higher Health Costs for Many Americans
KFF Health News 7.2.25
The Senate-passed bill would reverse many of the health coverage gains of the Biden and Obama administrations
CNBC 7.2.25
CBO estimates that the current version of the bill would result in 11.8 million people losing health insurance by 2034, with the majority of those people losing Medicaid coverage.
Medicaid moderates face politically perilous vote
Politico 7.2.25
Six Republicans said big cuts to the low-income health insurance program were unacceptable. Now they have to vote.
Dr. Oz tries to seal the deal on Trump’s tax-cut bill
Stat News 7.2.25
The Medicare and Medicaid chief has been an enduring presence on Capitol Hill
Rep. Carter, seeking Georgia Senate seat, surrenders Health gavel
Roll Call 7.2.25
Republican lawmaker played role in drafting proposed Medicaid cut
Commentary
Medicaid cuts could save thousands of lives
The Hill 7.2.25
Bureaucratic expenses suck money away from patient care, and takes doctors’ time away from patients to comply with administrative paperwork.
Medicaid Cuts Will Hit Rural America Hard
Bloomberg 7.2.25
As it stands, President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful, Bill” would have a disproportionate impact in red states that helped propel him to victory.
Kennedy is a shot in the arm for the anti-vaccine movement
Financial Times 7.2.25
The US appears to be turning its back on a scientific consensus that has relegated several diseases to history.
How to Have 'The Talk' — About Vaccines
Med Page Today 7.2.25
Tips to persuade, and lead with empathy, in the dreaded vaccine conversation.
Trump’s Ongoing Tariff Chaos Will Make Medications Less Affordable And Harder To Find
Health Affairs 7.2.25
Pharmaceuticals are our fifth-largest import. In dollar terms, Ireland is our biggest drug supplier, followed by the EU. Generics made primarily in China and India account for more than 80 percent of prescriptions.
Quotable
“What we really should be doing is taking action to get rid of this scam instead of institutionalizing it. If we have to make some financial considerations elsewhere to address the matter of the states or hospitals being in financial trouble, so be it, but let's not do it this way.”
- Michael Abrams, managing partner at healthcare consulting firm Numerof & Associates.
He is referring to provider taxes, a legal yet controversial practice that states and hospitals use to attain more Medicaid funding.
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Unfiltered
RFK Jr., Marty Makary, Jay Bhattacharya, at Health Technology Ecosystem event
HHS You Tube channel 7.2.25
Dr. Oz on $14.6 billion healthcare fraud takedown
New York Post You Tube channel 6.30.25
CDC Director Nominee Susan Monarez at Senate Health Committee
C-SPAN 6.25.25
American Academy of Pediatrics President Dr. Sue Kressly on vaccine policy
RFK Jr. on Reforming Insurance Prior Authorization System
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