House Conservatives Push for Contentious Medicaid Reforms in Budget Reconciliation
A group of House conservatives is calling for significant “structural reforms” of Medicaid as part of the Republican reconciliation legislation, illustrating the seemingly intractable differences across GOP factions. In a “Dear Colleague” letter led by Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and signed by 19 others, the lawmakers said the GOP conference must pursue “meaningful reforms” in reconciliation, including eliminating the enhanced federal matching funds for states that expanded Medicaid. (Weixel, 5/1)
White House Seeks to Prevent Medicaid Cuts, But GOP Hard-Liners See Them as Crucial The fate of Republicans’ sweeping domestic policy bill is snagged on a crucial question: Are deep cuts to Medicaid, the federal health care program covering nearly 80 million Americans, something to be avoided? Or are they the whole point of pursuing the legislation? That clash — with the White House on one side and GOP hard-liners in Congress on the other — is now playing out in closed-door meetings and in the hallways of Capitol Hill as the party rushes to write the megabill and potentially cut more than a half-trillion dollars from the safety-net health program over the coming decade. (Cancryn, Leonard and Lee Hill, 5/1)
Federal Watchdog Anticipates Medicaid Work Requirement Report by Fall The country’s top nonpartisan government watchdog has confirmed it is examining the costs of running the nation’s only active Medicaid work requirement program, as Republican state and federal lawmakers consider similar requirements. The U.S. Government Accountability Office told KFF Health News that its analysis of the Georgia Pathways to Coverage program could be released this fall. (Whitehead and Rayasam, 5/2)
Polls Show Most Californians Back Affordable Health Care for Undocumented Immigrants
Amid an escalating federal crackdown on undocumented immigrants, a majority of Californians support extending Medicaid benefits to immigrants without legal status, according to two recent polls. This broad public backing in the state contrasts sharply with the increasingly dehumanizing rhetoric emanating from Washington. Advocates hope the findings will shape how California navigates its budget shortfall and looming federal cuts to Medicaid. The state has gradually expanded coverage to undocumented residents since 2016, with notable health improvements among those populations. (Lindenfeld, 4/28)
Majority of U.S. States Approve Medicaid Pilot Programs for Sickle Cell Gene Therapies In a speech Friday, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said 35 states have agreed to participate in a federal pilot program aimed at helping Medicaid patients access costly gene therapies for sickle cell disease. The states represent about 84% of Medicaid patients with the blood disorder, Kennedy said in an address to the National Council of Insurance Legislators, according to a person who attended the meeting but was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. (Cohrs Zhang and Smith, 4/25)
Federal Report Criticizes Gender-Affirming Care for Adolescents
Federal health officials published a report on Thursday declaring that the use of hormonal and surgical treatments in young people with gender dysphoria lacked scientific evidence and expressing concern about long-term harms, a stark reversal from previous agency recommendations and the advice of top U.S. medical groups. The report instead prioritized the role of psychotherapy, a divisive intervention to treat gender dysphoria that many advocates and physicians have equated with so-called conversion therapy. (Ghorayshi and Harmon, 5/1)
Comprehensive Federal LGBTQ Bill Faces Immediate Defeat
For the fifth congressional session in a row, Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill have introduced an omnibus federal LGBTQ rights bill. Known as the Equality Act, it is dead on arrival due to Republicans’ control of both chambers of Congress and the White House. Nonetheless, the law’s backers used its reintroduction April 29 to hammer away at the myriad actions the Trump White House has taken to roll back the rights of LGBTQ Americans during Republican President Donald Trump’s first 100 days of his second term. He and his administration have particularly focused on reversing the rights gained by transgender, intersex, Two-Spirit, and gender-nonconforming youth and adults. (Bajko, 5/1)
Governor Newsom Backs Bill to Add LGBTQ Helpline to Student ID Cards
Gov. Gavin Newsom expressed support for LGBTQ suicide hotline measures for K-12 students in direct response to recent reports that Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s., plans to cut funding for the national nonprofit that provides the resource to LGBTQ people. ... Assembly Bill 727, introduced by Assemblymember Mark González, would aim to facilitate pupil and student safety by requiring schools and institutions to have the telephone number and text line for a specified LGBTQ suicide hotline provided by The Trevor Project, that is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. (Palomera, 4/29)
Weakened Education Department Sets New Priorities: Scaling Back Civil Rights Cases, Focusing on Transgender Students
The Trump administration is subverting the traditional priorities of the department’s decimated civil rights office by making discrimination investigations practically impossible — instead enforcing its own anti-diversity campaign. (Richards and Cohen, 5/2)
Education Department Withdraws Bipartisan-Backed Grants Approved After Uvalde Shooting The Education Department is cutting approximately $1 billion worth of federal mental health grants approved by Congress in the wake of a 2022 Texas elementary school mass shooting. The agency concluded the funding conflicts with Trump administration priorities. The department’s decision, announced by an agency official late Tuesday in a written notice obtained by POLITICO, centers on grants included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that were meant to help states and higher education institutions train mental health professionals who could then work in local schools. (Perez Jr., 4/30)
Supreme Court Justices Appear Supportive of Student in Disability Discrimination Case
The Supreme Court appeared sympathetic Monday to the arguments of the parents of a Minnesota teen with severe epilepsy who want schools to do more to accommodate the needs of disabled students. The case focuses on whether families must meet an unfairly high burden to show schools are falling short. It is being closely watched by disability advocates and schools, with officials saying a ruling for the girl — identified as Ava in court filings — could make it easier for millions of students to require educators to do more to tailor teaching to their unique situations. (Jouvenal, 4/28)
ACLU Files Lawsuit to Block Trump Administration's Attacks on Head Start Childcare Program
The American Civil Liberties Union, on behalf of six early childhood organizations, including one in California, sued the Trump administration Monday to halt the dismantling of Head Start and restore cuts to the program, alleging that the actions required congressional approval. The lawsuit, filed in the Western District of Washington, also alleged that the administration’s directive to strip the program of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts is “unconstitutionally vague,” violates the free speech of its teachers and does not provide enough guidance for providers to know what must be done to avoid losing federal funding. (Sequeira, 4/29)
Email Reveals HHS Plans to Reduce Funding for Child Welfare Program Research
The Trump administration could gut research on the effectiveness of child welfare programs, with plans to terminate dozens of university grants studying improvements to Head Start and child care policy, according to a spreadsheet mistakenly made public this week. The document listed more than 150 research projects under consideration for termination by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It covered grants funded by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, which says it “builds evidence to improve lives” by helping policymakers evaluate programs that help low-income children and families. (Foley, 5/2)
RFK Jr. Requests New Measles Treatment Guidelines from CDC Amid Unsubstantiated Claims
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will ask the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop new guidance for treating measles with drugs and vitamins, an HHS spokesperson said. The move comes as Kennedy has faced criticism during this year's record measles outbreaks for remarks misleading people into thinking that measles infections are easily curable and inflating myths about measles vaccines. Vaccination is the only way to prevent the highly infectious disease that can cause serious health complications or death in some cases. (Tin, 5/1)
NIH Withdraws from Safe to Sleep Campaign Aimed at Preventing Infant Deaths
The Trump administration has cancelled federal participation in Safe to Sleep, a 30-year campaign to prevent babies from dying in their sleep, STAT and the Medill News Service have learned. (Belkoura, 4/30)
A Small Increase in Vaccinations Could Prevent Millions of Measles Cases in the U.S. — Here's How Measles cases are continuing to spread throughout the U.S. with outbreaks in at least six states. Public health experts have previously said lagging vaccination rates are to blame for the rise in cases, at least partly due to vaccine hesitancy and vaccine fatigue left over from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, even a small uptick in MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccination could prevent millions of infections, according to new research. (Kekatos, 4/30)
Children's Hospital LA First to Conduct Study on Pig Heart Transplants for Infants
A team from Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is the first in the world to study the use of genetically engineered pig hearts for infants waiting for heart transplantation. The study was led by John David Cleveland, MD, a congenital heart surgeon at CHLA’s Heart Institute, and presented at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation’s annual meeting, according to an April 28 news release from the hospital. (Gregerson, 4/29)
First Patient to Receive Gene Therapy from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Now Living Pain-Free A new gene therapy developed at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has been approved by the FDA and is being used to transform lives. The first patient to receive this gene therapy after it was FDA cleared is now living pain-free for the first time. Bike riding is fun now for 12-year-old Rahemeen Nabeel, who lives in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. "I do lots of sports, and now that I have like more energy and stuff, I actually joined clubs and stuff," Nabeel said. (Stahl, 4/28)
US Measles Cases Surge, Nearing 900 The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today reported 84 more measles cases, boosting the national total to 884, keeping the nation on pace to experience its worst year since the nation eliminated the disease in 2000. So far, 30 jurisdictions have reported cases, up 5 from the previous week. One more outbreak was reported, bringing that total to 11, the largest one centered in West Texas. The CDC said 820 (83%) of the cases so far are part of outbreaks. (Schnirring, 4/25)
Selena Gomez, Founder of Rare Beauty, Talks Mental Health Access
It’s not often that a beauty brand reshapes how we talk about mental health. But Rare Beauty, founded by Selena Gomez, has done just that — built a mission-driven business where beauty meets purpose, and social impact is more than a bullet point. As a brand, Rare Beauty isn’t just redefining industry standards, it’s reimagining how brands can lead conversations that matter. “The goal was always to bring some sort of mental health access to people in every community because I didn’t have that,” Gomez said at Rare Beauty’s 4th Annual Mental Health Summit. (Kitnick, 5/1)
Governor Moves to Close Loophole Exploited by Psychiatric Hospitals: Gov. Gavin Newsom is moving to impose nurse-to-patient staffing ratios in California’s psychiatric hospitals in response to a Chronicle investigative series that spotlighted rampant abuse and neglect in many of the locked facilities. The administration intends to deploy the state’s emergency regulations process. Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
RFK Jr.'s Controversial Quest to Identify the 'Root Cause' of Autism In a statement, an HHS spokesperson said Kennedy is “committed to working toward a society where people with autism have access to meaningful opportunities, appropriate supports, and the full respect and recognition they deserve.” Kennedy’s plan, the spokesperson said, aims to further those goals, “not to stigmatize individuals with autism or their families.” But many in the autism community said Kennedy is not the person to lead the effort. (Cirruzzo and Gardner, 5/1)
New Study Disputes RFK Jr.'s Claim of Increasing Severe Autism Cases
When Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the government’s new autism findings this month, he painted a grim and highly controversial picture: Not only was autism becoming more prevalent, he said, but “most cases now are severe.” The notion that severe symptoms are becoming more common isn’t substantiated by scientific evidence. Rather, new research being announced this week at the annual meeting of the International Society for Autism Research in Seattle suggests that the share of autism cases with moderate or significant symptoms remained relatively consistent from 2000 to 2016. (Bendix, 4/30)
RFK Jr. Inflates Proportion of Autistic Population Facing Severe Limitations Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attracted notice — and in some quarters, outrage — for remarks about autism, a topic he’s clashed with scientists about for years. Kennedy held an April 16 press conference pegged to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that found the prevalence of autism rising to 1 in 31 among 8-year-olds, the latest in a series of increases in recent decades. Kennedy said “autism destroys families” and is an “individual tragedy as well.” (Jacobson, 4/28)
California's Primary Care Shortage Persists Despite Ambitious Efforts to Close the Gap
The state has in recent years embraced several initiatives recommended in an influential health care workforce report, including alternative payment arrangements for primary care doctors to earn more. Despite increasing residency programs, student debt forgiveness, and tuition-free medical school, California is unlikely to meet patient demand, observers say. (Bernard J. Wolfson and Vanessa G. Sánchez, 5/1)
Investing in Nurse-Scientists Could Help Rebuild Trust in Medicine Every day, nurses make decisions that shape not only how patients recover but how they experience illness. Take patients recovering from sepsis, who are often under sedation on a ventilator. Evidence urges daily sedation breaks to prevent delirium, but guidelines rarely acknowledge the fear of suddenly waking up in a maze of tubes. These moments — where protocol clashes with human need — make nurses want to be scientists and figure out better answers. (Kathryn Connell, Eleanor Turi and Mollie Hobensack, 4/28)
Can $1,000 a Month Increase Nursing Enrollment? L.A. Initiative Says Yes
Community colleges play a critical role in addressing California’s persistent demand for healthcare workers, preparing students to become the state’s next generation of nurses, medical assistants and physical therapy aides. But in the Los Angeles Community College District, where more than half of all students report incomes near or below the poverty line, many people struggle to complete their degrees while also holding down jobs to pay rent, buy groceries and cover child-care costs. A pilot program at the L.A. district — the state’s largest, with nine colleges and 194,000 students — aims to address these seemingly intractable challenges with a targeted remedy: $1,000 a month in guaranteed income. (Plevin, 4/28)
After Overdoses and Disorder, Will the State Assume Control of L.A. Juvenile Halls?
For years, conditions at L.A. County’s juvenile halls have been deteriorating in plain sight. But despite entering into a settlement with the county to mandate reform, the California attorney general’s office has done little to force change as kids remain in squalid and dangerous conditions. (Queally, 5/1)
Trump's Science Funding Cuts Could Harm U.S. Economy, Study Finds
Cutting federal funding for scientific research could cause long-run economic damage equivalent to a major recession, according to a new study from researchers at American University. In recent months, the Trump administration has sought to cancel or freeze billions of dollars in grants to scientists at Columbia, Harvard and other universities, and has moved to sharply curtail funding for academic medical centers and other institutions. Deeper cuts could be on the way. As soon as this week, the White House is expected to propose sharp reductions in discretionary spending, including on research and development, as part of the annual budget process. (Casselman, 4/30)
Pregnancy Checkbox on Death Certificates Primarily Responsible for Rise in Maternal Deaths The introduction of the pregnancy checkbox on death certificates was responsible for most of the spike in maternal deaths in the U.S. since 2000, other than a jump attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, a longitudinal cross-sectional analysis showed. The addition of the pregnancy checkbox on death certificates in 2003 was associated with an increase of 6.78 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births -- 66% of the total increase in maternal mortality from 2000 to 2019, reported Seth Flaxman, PhD, of the University of Oxford in England, and colleagues. (Robertson, 4/28)
Trump's First 100 Days: Focus on Public Health At the Department of Health and Human Services, 10,000 jobs are gone. Billions of dollars in research sent to scientists and universities was shut off. Public meetings to discuss flu shots and other vaccines have been canceled. Fluoride in drinking water may be the next to go, according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy has done a blitz of his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign at day cares, schools and health centers around the country where he has promised to work with Trump’s other agency leaders to prohibit soda from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, limit dyes in the food supply and call for fluoride to be removed from drinking water. (Seitz, 4/27)