Trump Appointees Must Temporarily Approve Federal Health Communications
For the first time in its more than 60-year history, the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) did not go out as scheduled because of a communications pause at federal health agencies issued by the Trump administration. Past editors of MMWR and prior leaders of CDC lamented the lack of publication, and its potential impact on the distribution of vital public health information. (Robertson, 1/23)
US Withdraws From World Health Organization
The United States will exit the World Health Organization on Jan. 22, 2026, Reuters reported Jan. 23. The planned exit comes after President Donald Trump signed a executive order Jan. 20 removing the U.S. from the WHO over "the organization's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member state," the order said. (Ashley, 1/23)
Trump Administration Appoints Susan Monarez As Acting CDC Director
The Trump administration is expected to tap Susan Coller Monarez, the deputy director of a federal health research agency, to serve as the acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, multiple health officials tell CBS News. Picking Monarez would close an unprecedented leadership gap atop the CDC, which is tasked with tracking and responding to a myriad of emerging diseases and health emergencies. Other health agencies have also been operating without acting heads. (Tin, 1/23)
As Schools In LA Reopen, Parents Worry About Harmful Ash From Wildfires
More Los Angeles-area schools reopened on Thursday for the first time since wildfires swept the region this month and forced officials to shutter buildings in the areas hit by fires. In the Pasadena Unified School District, six campuses reopened, out of more than two dozen that had been closed since the fire. Roughly two-thirds of the district’s 14,000 students and about half of its roughly 3,000 staff members live in areas that were under evacuation or warnings. (Taft and McFadden, 1/23)
Health Insurance Coverage For Children and Young Adults Under 26: Up to 3 million Californians could see health care savings under legislation coming today that would end out-of-pocket costs for young patients. Assembly Member Mia Bonta, D-Alameda, said her first-in-the-nation bill would eliminate co-pays, deductibles, or cost-sharing on most health insurance plans in the state for patients 21 and younger. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Potential Expiration Of Enhanced Premium Tax Credits Threatens Healthcare Coverage
Covered California, the state’s health insurance marketplace, has hit a record 1.8 million enrollees and the number could climb higher ahead of a Jan. 31 open enrollment deadline, due in large part to enhanced subsidies that have made plans more affordable. But the state’s progress in extending health coverage to all residents could come to an abrupt halt as the second Trump administration takes power alongside a Republican Congress whose leadership has long been hostile to the Affordable Care Act, the 2010 federal law also known as Obamacare. (Boyd-Barrett, 1/23)
Record ACA Enrollment Amid Uncertainty Over Subsidies
At least 24.2 million people purchased health insurance on the exchange marketplaces during open enrollment for 2025, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Friday. That tally surpasses a record set a year ago, as sign-ups for exchange plans accelerated mostly due to the enhanced subsidies enacted in 2021 and extended in 2022. (Young, 1/17)
Los Angeles Wildfires Highlight Challenges For Residents With Disabilities: Top L.A. County officials say they want to build a database of residents with disabilities who require help fleeing a neighborhood engulfed in flames. In Altadena, at least eight of the 27 fire victims to date were at least 80, and some had disabilities that hampered their efforts to evacuate. Read more from the Los Angeles Times.
Why Valley Children's Posts Quality Data Outside Of Starbucks
At Valley Children's Hospital in Madera, Calif., quality metrics are on full display for everyone to see — even in front of the Starbucks within the hospital walls. This level of transparency is central to creating a culture of continuous quality improvement and shared accountability, according to David Christensen, MD, senior vice president, chief physician executive and president of Valley Children's Medical Group. (Carbajal, 1/21)
Hospitals Have Lost Nearly 30% Of Pediatric Units Since 2008
Between 2008 and 2022, U.S. hospitals closed nearly one-third of pediatric inpatient units, according to a study published in JAMA Pediatrics. This shrinking availability of hospital beds could lead to longer wait times at emergency departments, delays in care and increased medical costs, the study's authors said. For example, during the 2022-2023 "tripledemic" — a surge in flu, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus cases increased — access to care was significantly impaired. (Twenter, 1/21)
Recent Insights On Health Disparities In The U.S.
The life expectancy among Native Americans in the western United States has dropped below 64 years, close to life expectancies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti. For many Asian Americans, it’s around 84 — on par with life expectancies in Japan and Switzerland. Americans’ health has long been unequal, but a new study shows that the disparity between the life expectancies of different populations has nearly doubled since 2000. “This is like comparing very different countries,” said Tom Bollyky, director of the global health program at the Council on Foreign Relations and an author of the study. (Maxmen, 1/22)
Mental Health Support Amid California Wildfires
Catastrophic wildfires are common in California, and mental health specialists have become a key part of local governments’ response to extreme weather events, which scientists say are becoming more intense and frequent due to climate change. Los Angeles County has been modifying its approach with each disaster. (Molly Castle Work, 1/21)
Health Systems Resume Care Amid LA Wildfires
Many health systems have reopened clinics or resumed surgeries during the second week of deadly wildfires spreading through Los Angeles County. Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai and Pasadena, Calif.-based Huntington Hospital were among the healthcare organizations that temporarily paused some elective surgeries due to fire-related disruptions. Most health systems in the area also shuttered outpatient clinics and physician offices amid evacuation orders and heavy smoke. (Bean, 1/17)
President Trump Signs Executive Order Defining Gender As Male And Female: President Donald Trump signed executive orders Monday asserting that the U.S. government recognizes only two sexes that are “not changeable.” Read more from the Los Angeles Times and Advocate. He also cleared the way to ban transgender people from the military. Read more from The 19th.