CMS Gives ICE Access To Medicaid Recipients’ Data, Including Addresses

AP: Trump Administration Hands Over Nation's Medicaid Enrollee Data To ICE
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials will be given access to the personal data of the nation’s 79 million Medicaid enrollees, including home addresses and ethnicities, to track down immigrants who may not be living legally in the United States, according to an agreement obtained by The Associated Press. The information will give ICE officials the ability to find “the location of aliens” across the country, says the agreement signed Monday between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Department of Homeland Security. The agreement has not been announced publicly. (Kindy and Seitz, 7/17)

The 19th: Trump’s New Tax Law Could Override Protections For Children In Immigration Detention 
President Donald Trump’s so-called “one, big beautiful” tax and spending bill allocates $170 billion to fulfill the administration’s long list of immigration priorities, including hiring for law enforcement agents, border security personnel and immigration court judges. Also tucked into the massive, nearly 1,000-page legislation are provisions that pave the way for migrant children to face longer periods in detention with fewer legal protections. (Norwood, 7/17)

The Colorado Sun: DOJ Subpoenas Children’s Hospital Colorado Over Gender Care
Children’s Hospital Colorado, the state’s largest pediatric specialty hospital, has received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice as part of an apparent investigation into gender-affirming care for transgender youth. (Ingold, 7/18)

President Trump's health —

CNBC: Trump Diagnosed With Chronic Venous Insufficiency
President Donald Trump underwent a comprehensive medical exam that revealed he has a common vein disorder but cleared him of more serious illnesses, the White House said Thursday. The White House disclosed the 79-year-old president’s medical information in response to speculation after photos showed Trump with swollen ankles. (Breuninger, 7/17)

Politico: 3 Things To Know About Trump’s Vein Condition
President Donald Trump was recently diagnosed with a common vein condition called chronic venous insufficiency. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Thursday that Trump had noticed swelling in one of his legs, prompting him to undergo testing. CVI is a condition usually caused by damaged leg veins that struggle to send blood back up to the heart. Leavitt said Trump tested for other, more serious complications that sometimes go hand in hand with chronic venous insufficiency, but none were found. (Gardner, 7/17)

FDA developments —

The New York Times: F.D.A. Approves Juul Vapes After Yearslong Delay
The Food and Drug Administration authorized Juul e-cigarettes for the U.S. market on Thursday, ending a lengthy standoff with regulators and lawmakers who accused the company of spurring an epidemic of e-cigarette use among youths. The company was required to prove that the products were “appropriate for the protection of public health” under agency rules. Juul said in a statement that it met the bar, in part, by showing that its products had helped about two million adults quit smoking cigarettes. (Jewett, 7/17)

Stat: GSK's Blood Cancer Drug Blenrep Hits Setback With FDA Advisers
In a surprise, advisers to the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday voted that the risks tied to a blood cancer drug from GSK outweighed the benefits it had demonstrated in trials, as concerns about sometimes serious eye-related side effects and questions about the dose the company selected dominated a hearing. (Joseph, 7/17)

MedPage Today: Myeloma Drug's Comeback Nixed By FDA Panel
The comeback story of belantamab mafodotin (Blenrep) hit a roadblock Thursday as the FDA's Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) voted that the drug does not have a favorable benefit-risk profile in combination with either of two different regimens for patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma. Granted accelerated approval in 2020 for the treatment of adults with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma who had received at least four prior therapies, belantamab was pulled from the market 2 years later after the DREAMM-3 confirmatory trial failed to meet the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS). (Bassett, 7/17)

MedPage Today: FDA Reviewers Flag Inconsistent Data For Rexulti In PTSD
Whether brexpiprazole (Rexulti) is effective as adjunctive treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will be debated at an FDA advisory committee meeting on Friday. The atypical antipsychotic is under review as an adjunct to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) sertraline (Zoloft) for adults with PTSD. Brexpiprazole already is approved for schizophrenia, as adjunctive therapy for major depressive disorder, and for agitation associated with dementia. (Monaco, 7/17)

The New York Times: F.D.A. Panelists Call For Removal Of Warnings On Menopause Treatments
A dozen physicians and researchers participating in a Food and Drug Administration panel on Thursday pleaded with the agency to “stop harming women” and remove the so-called black box warning from packages containing hormone treatments for menopause. One after another, the panelists described patients who suffered from severe menopause symptoms — from hot flashes and painful sex to severe mood swings, forgetting names and even suicidal ideation — yet were scared away from estrogen-containing products by the labels. (Caryn Rabin, 7/17)

Modern Healthcare: The FDA Clearances For Medical Devices You Need To Know
The Food and Drug Administration has cleared a variety of medical devices for clinical use that detect seizures, monitor for cardiac arrhythmias and cut across and seal soft tissue and organs. These devices received 510(k) clearance, which means they are similar to other devices on the market and are considered safe to use. (Dubinsky, 7/17)

MedPage Today: A 'Culture Change' Is Needed In Academic Medicine, FDA Commissioner Says
The culture of academic medicine needs to change, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, MD, MPH, said at an event sponsored by The Hill. "The culture of academic medicine in the United States has been defined by the culture of NIH, the Francis Collins culture mindset that the gene is responsible for most of our problems and the gene can solve most of our problems," Makary said at the event on Wednesday, referring to the former NIH director, who is a geneticist. "And while we need to do work on genetics, and we have a very robust gene editing and rare disease program at the FDA," that's not where the problem lies. (Frieden, 7/17)

RFK Jr. and MAHA —

ProPublica: RFK Jr. Wants To Overhaul A Vital System That Supports Childhood Immunization
Five months after taking over the federal agency responsible for the health of all Americans, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to overhaul an obscure but vital program that underpins the nation’s childhood immunization system. Depending on what he does, the results could be catastrophic. (Callahan, 7/17)

Stat: RFK Jr.’s Pick To Overhaul Tribal Health At HHS — Mark Cruz In Q&A
Standing between the United States and the U.S. Health and Human Services flags, Mark Cruz wore a bright red tie and a tribal medallion. He raised his right hand in the air, placed the other on a copy of the Constitution and the Bible held by health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and swore his oath of office. With that, Cruz joined Kennedy’s team as a senior adviser to the secretary on American Indian health. (Chen, 7/18)

ABC News: RFK Jr. Wants To Expand The Role Of Dairy In Dietary Guidelines. Here's What The Science Says
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced earlier this week that he wants to expand dairy recommendations in the federal dietary guidelines, which are set to be updated later this year. ... Currently, the U.S. dietary guidelines recommend Americans ages 9 and older have three cup equivalents of dairy daily or lactose-free or fortified soy alternatives. and children ages 1 to 8 are recommended to have between 1.6 cups and 2.5 cups depending on their age. (Kekatos, 7/17)

Stat: MAHA's Moves On Coca-Cola, Ice Cream Called 'Nutritionally Hilarious'
Pop quiz: What’s Coca-Cola with cane sugar and ice cream made with natural dyes? Answer: Coca-Cola and ice cream. Getting Coca-Cola to use cane sugar rather than corn syrup and ice cream manufacturers to stop their use of synthetic dyes are the latest achievements trumpeted by the Make America Healthy Again movement as part of its quest to reform the U.S. food supply. But nutrition experts say that despite MAHA’s rhetoric, these kinds of changes won’t move the needle when it comes to Americans’ health. (Todd, 7/17)

The Washington Post: What To Know About Corn Syrup As Trump Pressures Coca-Cola To Ditch It
The corn industry is bracing for impact after President Donald Trump took aim at high-fructose corn syrup in Coca-Cola soft drinks, saying in a Truth Social post that he persuaded the company to use cane sugar in the U.S. version of its namesake drink, as it does in some other countries. Coca-Cola has yet to publicly confirm Trump’s claim, but the company suggested in a statement Wednesday that changes are in the pipeline. (Amouyal and Telford, 7/17)