Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Court Blocks Trump Administration's Effort To Weaken Air Quality Standards
Bloomberg: Court Rejects Trump EPA Bid To Roll Back Soot Pollution Limit
In a blow to the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda, a federal appeals court on Friday rejected the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempt to roll back soot pollution standards set in 2024. The decision upholds the tightened National Ambient Air Quality Standards for small particulates, called PM2.5, set by former President Joe Biden’s administration. (Hirji, 6/26)
More news about the Trump administration —
AP: New Mexico's Attorney General Launches Probe Into DEA's Fentanyl Actions
New Mexico’s attorney general on Friday opened a criminal investigation to determine whether U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents broke state law by allowing hundreds of thousands of fentanyl pills to reach the streets of Albuquerque. The extraordinary inquiry comes less than a week after The Associated Press reported that DEA agents repeatedly monitored — but did not seize — shipments of the synthetic opioid in a bid to build bigger criminal cases between 2023 and 2025. (Mustian, 6/26)
AP: Lawsuit Says New Federal Policy Puts Reproductive Healthcare At Risk
Family planning and health organizations that serve tens of thousands of people across Pennsylvania could see federal funding delayed or denied by a new Trump administration policy, a new lawsuit alleges. The suit, which includes the Cumberland County-based Family Health Council of Central Pennsylvania as a plaintiff, takes aim at a step added this year by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to applications for Title X grants, which provide local agencies with funds to aid low-income and uninsured patients with family planning and related health services. (White, 6/26)
Axios: Medicare Pushes End-Of-Life Discussions In Hospitals
The Trump administration wants to formalize the process for recording whether Medicare patients want to be kept alive if they become incapacitated. (Goldman, 6/29)
Axios: Three Finalists Emerge To Lead FDA
White House aide Heidi Overton, oncologist Jeffrey Vacirca and senior Pentagon health official Stephen Ferrara are all in the running to be the next FDA commissioner, sources tell Axios. (Owens, 6/26)
CIDRAP: New ACIP Charter Could Allow RFK Jr. To Further Restrict Vaccine Access, Critics Say
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is continuing his battle to remake federal vaccine policy, this time by rewriting the charter of a federal committee that wields enormous influence over childhood immunizations to shift its focus beyond vaccines. During his confirmation hearing, Kennedy promised senators that he would not alter the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which makes vaccine recommendations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including which vaccines should be available for free to needy children and which ones should be covered without a copay by private insurance. (Szabo, 6/26)
Health news from Capitol Hill —
NBC News: Senators Call For Military Healthcare Program To Cover Autism Therapy As A Basic Benefit
Less than 24 hours after NBC News reported on members of the military and retirees facing roadblocks in getting coverage for critical therapies for children with autism, Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., issued a letter Friday to Pentagon leadership calling for changes. Gillibrand and Schmitt are members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, which oversees the Defense Health Agency and TRICARE. (Kane, McLaughlin and Dunn, 6/26)
The Hill: Social Security's Insolvency Is No. 1 Issue, Says Sen. Bill Cassidy
Outgoing Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) said Sunday he is “working” on gaining consensus for his proposed reforms to Social Security, which he warns is growing closer to insolvency. “Right now, we’re working on Social Security. Social Security is … going to [be] insolvent, and when that happens, there’ll be a cut of 22 percent to 25 percent in someone’s benefits if we follow the current law,” Cassidy, who was defeated by a President Trump-backed opponent in a primary earlier this year, told host Margaret Brennan on CBS News’s “Face the Nation.” (Rego, 6/28)
The Hill: Bill Cassidy Criticizes Hegseth After Flu Outbreak At Texas Air Force Base
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) on Sunday knocked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after an outbreak of influenza infected several service members at an Air Force base in Texas. Cassidy, a licensed gastroenterologist and the first physician to chair the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation” that “we do see the consequences, though, of ignoring the benefits that things like vaccines bring for public health.” “And if you will, I think what you’re going after is that this administration, parts of it, have tried to downplay the importance of immunization,” he said. (Mancini, 6/28)
The Hill: GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy Seeks To Explain RFK Jr. Confirmation Vote For Health And Human Services
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) in a Sunday interview sought to explain his controversial vote to confirm Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as he said Kennedy is dug in on his views toward vaccinations despite public opinion. Cassidy, the first physician to serve as the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation” that Kennedy “has not restored trust in public health.” (Mancini, 6/28)
