Chronically Ill? In Kennedy’s View, It Might Be Your Own Fault
In their zeal to “Make America Healthy Again,” top Trump administration officials depict patients and the doctors who treat them as partly responsible for whatever ails them.
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In their zeal to “Make America Healthy Again,” top Trump administration officials depict patients and the doctors who treat them as partly responsible for whatever ails them.
The health industry couldn’t persuade GOP lawmakers to oppose big Medicaid cuts in President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill for many reasons. A big one: Congressional Republicans were more worried about angering Trump than a backlash from hospitals and low-income constituents back home.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. lambasted federal agencies he accused of being overly influenced by the pharmaceutical industry. But he and other “Make America Healthy Again” notables have their own financial ties to the vast and largely unregulated $6.3 trillion global wellness industry that ethicists say raise red flags.
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Republicans claim 4.8 million Americans on Medicaid who could work choose not to. The GOP’s work-requirement legislation could sweep up disabled people who say they’re unable to hold jobs.
Some of the nation’s most well-known beaches are managed by the National Park Service, which saw about 1,000 employees laid off in February by the quasi-agency Department of Government Efficiency, then led by Elon Musk. The void has become a serious public health and safety concern.
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Food safety inspections are being scaled back and the public was not notified after an investigation into E. coli contamination.
The FDA will encourage new clinical trials on the widely used vaccines before approving them for children and healthy adults. The requirements could cost drugmakers tens of millions of dollars and are likely to leave boosters largely out of reach for hundreds of millions of Americans this fall.
On the surface, President Donald Trump embraced the MAHA movement with a pledge to end the nation’s high rates of chronic disease. But the broader Trump agenda may prove to be the biggest barrier this effort confronts.
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Leaders of the "Make America Healthy Again” movement cheered the ascent of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to Health and Human Services secretary, but their wish list is far from being realized.
From halting diversity programs that benefit disabled workers to making federal staffing cuts, the Trump administration has taken a slew of actions that harm people with disabilities.
The Senate Finance Committee questioned Mehmet Oz, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. KFF Health News reporters discussed the biggest takeaways from the hearing.
Republicans have proposed legislation in several states to ban the pioneering technology used in covid shots. Many doctors worry a huge medical advance could be rolled back.
During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump distanced himself from the conservative governing plan after Democratic attacks. But now it’s increasingly viewed as a blueprint for his administration’s plans for federal health programs.
Controversy over raw milk reflects the push-pull the Trump administration faces in rolling back regulations and offering consumers more choices. For now, the CDC still recommends against consuming raw milk and the FDA bans its interstate sale.
President Donald Trump issued a flurry of executive orders and other actions on health care soon after reentering office. Other than signaling he intends to reverse many of Joe Biden’s moves, the orders will have little immediate impact.
Some Trump insiders are ready to take on the food industry. It remains to be seen whether their entrée will result in any meaningful change in government oversight of “Big Food” — or in American health.
The president-elect’s choices to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, FDA, and CDC, hold positions on issues including abortion and vaccination that are often at odds.
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