Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump Reportedly Plans To Issue New Guidelines For Childhood Vaccines, Autism
The Washington Post: White House Drafting Order On Vaccines, Autism Despite Pollsters’ Warnings
White House officials are drafting an executive order focused on the childhood vaccine schedule and autism, according to four people familiar with the matter. The order would continue to spotlight a divisive issue that Republican pollsters have warned carries political risk ahead of November’s midterm elections and would follow the confirmation of a new CDC director who has promised to uphold the scientific integrity of the agency. The aim is to focus on the vaccine schedule, research around autism and parental choice, according to three people familiar with the matter, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to share internal deliberations. (Roubein, Sun and Diamond, 8/6)
On the immigration crisis —
NOTUS: Trump Targets ‘Birth Tourism’ And Citizenship Eligibility In New Executive Orders
President Donald Trump signed two executive orders Thursday in a renewed attack on birthright citizenship, just over a month after the Supreme Court struck down an earlier order heavily restricting eligibility. The new orders are aimed at cracking down on “birth tourism” and denying citizenship to some foreign diplomats’ children born in the U.S., Trump said in the Oval Office, standing alongside White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. (Silva, 8/6)
The Texas Tribune: Democrats In Congress Say ICE Lockup Conditions Are Worsening
Rep. Joaquin Castro has made seven visits to the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, a sleepy town southwest of his San Antonio district, since the Trump administration reopened it last year. He’s met immigrants there who’ve garnered national attention and outcry, from teenage mariachi-performing brothers to five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, detained wearing a bunny hat and a Spiderman backpack. (Birenbaum, 8/7)
'Make America Healthy Again' —
Bloomberg: RFK Jr. Cooking Show Misses Mark With Actual Food Experts
When I first got the email announcing The Real Food Show, a cooking program focused on “healthy, affordable meals” with US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., I liked the creative, accessible approach to dietary advice. The brief announcement said that Robert Irvine, the longtime TV chef who began volunteering to improve Army food in the Biden administration, would be joining Kennedy at the introductory press conference. (Shanker, 8/6)
The Hill: Kellogg Moves To Ditch Artificial Dyes From Cereals By End Of 2026
WK Kellogg Co. said Thursday that it is moving to end the use of artificial dyes in its products by the end of this year for its cereals. In a Thursday press release, the company said it had unveiled “an accelerated timeline to eliminate all artificial colors and the preservative BHT” in all of its cereals and packaging for the cereals. The company said cereals made from new recipes will go into production “later this year” and that the new cereals will be sent to retailers prior to the end of 2026. WK Kellogg Co. said it will instead use natural dyes in the cereal. (Suter, 8/6)
In other Trump administration updates —
Stat: Advocacy Group: Medicare Decision Helped Put Off Talks On AbbVie Drug Price
A little-noticed policy shift by Medicare caused a seven-year delay in choosing a costly AbbVie medicine for price negotiations, a move likely to hurt taxpayers, according to an analysis by a consumer advocacy group. (Silverman, 8/6)
MedPage Today: Trump's Gain-Of-Function Policy May Suppress Key Pandemic Research
A White House policy that seeks to end what it calls "dangerous gain-of-function" (DGOF) research is not as restrictive as experts feared, but several said it could still suppress essential work that would better prepare the world for the next pandemic. (Clark and Fiore, 8/6)
Politico: Trump Admin Defunds Abstinence-Only Programs In Chaotic Budget Cuts
The Trump administration’s sweeping grant cuts are hitting sexual abstinence programs long favored by Republicans. Earlier this summer, the administration abruptly terminated tens of millions in funding for groups teaching children and teenagers about how to prevent pregnancy and sexually-transmitted infections. (Ollstein, 8/6)
The 19th: Trump Admin's Funding Cuts To Sex Education Strip Young People Of A Safe Space In NYC
On June 26, Children’s Aid was preparing to continue summer sexual health and youth development programming in schools, foster care settings and community organizations across New York City. By the end of the day, the federal funding behind that work was gone. (Curry, 8/6)
The 74: Head Start’s Antipoverty Mission Threatened By Trump Overhaul
Most of Cassie Reed’s life has been marked by instability. During her childhood, she moved between nine different foster homes, often enduring abuse. Violence followed her into her adult life, as she met and fled partners who mistreated her. (Sullivan and Geduld, 8/6)
“I don’t think we’re any safer than we were a year ago' —
CNN: One Year After Shooting, CDC Workers Say They Still Feel Like Targets
“Kuh, kuh, kuh.” It was a Friday, and staffers at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Atlanta headquarters were getting ready to pack up and head home for the weekend. They thought the steady pneumatic sounds they heard outside their windows were coming from some kind of road work. (Goodman, 8/7)
