First Edition: Friday, Jan. 31, 2025

KFF Health News: Trump’s Order On Gender-Affirming Care Escalates Reversal Of Trans Rights
President Donald Trump ratcheted up his administration’s reversal of transgender rights on Tuesday with an executive order that seeks to intervene in parents’ medical decisions by prohibiting government-funded insurance coverage of puberty blockers or surgery for people under 19. Trump’s order, titled “Protecting Children From Chemical and Surgical Mutilation,” is certain to face legal challenges and would require congressional or regulatory actions to be fully enacted. But transgender people and their advocates are concerned it will nonetheless discourage prescriptions and medical procedures they consider to be lifesaving in some cases, while complicating insurance coverage for gender-affirming care. (Appleby, 1/31)

KFF Health News: Drawn-Out Overhaul Of Troubled Montana Hospital Leaves Lawmakers In Limbo
Montana lawmakers are grappling with what they can do to improve patient care and operations at the state’s psychiatric hospital since realizing that the efforts underway to restore the troubled facility’s good standing could take more time. The nearly 150-year-old Montana State Hospital has recently struggled to care for patients and retain staff. The problems came to a head in 2022, when federal investigators yanked the hospital’s federal certification — and funding — from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services because of a pattern of patient deaths found to be preventable, as well as injuries and falls. (Silvers, 1/31)

KFF Health News: Recapping The RFK Jr. Hearings: A Live Discussion With KFF Health News Journalists
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation hearings for secretary of Health and Human Services took place Jan. 29 and Jan. 30, and KFF Health News reporters watched as the Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions asked Kennedy about everything from vaccines to abortion to Medicaid. (Norman, 1/30)

KFF Health News: KFF Health News' 'What The Health?': RFK Jr. In The Hot Seat
President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the vast Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., faced sharp questioning from senators this week, particularly over his history of vaccine denialism. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s second week has been even more disruptive than its first, with an on-again, off-again funding freeze that left many around the country scrambling to understand what was going on. (Rovner, 1/30)

Stat: At Confirmation Hearing, RFK Jr. Refuses To Say That Vaccines Don’t Cause Autism
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. refused to confirm to senators that he believes vaccines do not cause autism during his confirmation hearing Thursday, appearing to jeopardize support in his effort to become health secretary with at least one key Republican, Sen. Bill Cassidy. (Zhang and Herper, 1/30)

AP: When RFK Jr. Was Presented With The Science On Vaccines He Said Needed To See, He Dismissed It
The man who hopes to be President Donald Trump’s health secretary repeatedly asked to see “data” or “science” showing vaccines are safe – but when an influential Republican senator did so, he dismissed it. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spent two days this week insisting to senators that he’s not anti-vaccine. He said that he instead supports vaccinations and will follow the science in overseeing the $1.7 trillion Department of Health and Human Services, which, among other duties, oversees vaccine research, approval and recommendations. (Neergaard and Stobbe, 1/31)

The Hill: Alsobrooks Grills Kennedy On Belief That Black Americans Should Get Different Vaccine Schedules
Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) on Thursday grilled Department of Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s history of claiming Black Americans have a better immune system than white people. Alsobrooks, one of only two Black women serving in the Senate, questioned Kennedy on what he meant regarding a 2021 claim that “we should not be giving Black people the same vaccine schedule that’s given to whites because their immune system is better than ours.” (Daniels, 1/30)

The New York Times: RFK Jr. Says He Won’t Keep Financial Stake In HPV Vaccine Lawsuits
During intense questioning Thursday by members of the Senate health committee about his plan to keep a financial stake in major vaccine litigation, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that he would give away his rights to fees that might flow from it. It appears to be a reversal from the details of the government ethics agreement that he filed for his Senate confirmation hearings to become the nation’s health secretary. (Jewett and Craig, 1/30)

Stat: RFK Jr. Endorses Medications For Opioid Addiction At Confirmation Hearing 
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has treated the U.S. drug epidemic as a priority, both in his independent bid for president and now as President Trump’s nominee for health secretary. But for all his advocacy surrounding the addiction crisis, Kennedy has never made clear his views on methadone and buprenorphine, the highly effective medications most commonly used to treat opioid use disorder. (Facher, 1/30)

Modern Healthcare: After Hearings, RFK Jr. Hasn't Swayed 3 Key Republicans
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s chances of confirmation as Health and Human Services secretary appeared to hinge Thursday on convincing a handful of Senate Republicans that he would adhere to accepted science when it comes to vaccines. During a hearing before the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Kennedy faced tough questioning from Democrats and a few Republicans about his long history advocating against vaccinations and disseminating misinformation about the disproved link between vaccines and autism. In contrast, several Republicans expressed support for Kennedy's stance on vaccines. (McAuliff, 1/30)

The Hill: Pentagon Scrubs Biden-Era Abortion Travel Policy
The Pentagon has struck a Biden administration policy of covering travel costs for service members and their dependents who must cross state lines to receive abortions and other reproductive care, according to a new memo. The change, which took effect Tuesday, was announced in a memo posted by the Defense Travel Management Office on Wednesday. (Mitchell, 1/30)

The Guardian: Groups Helping Americans Find Abortion Pills Report Instagram ‘Shadow-Banning’ 
Over the last week, the accounts of some major organizations that help Americans find abortion pills had their Instagram posts censored or removed, and at least one group said its account became difficult to find through searching – a practice known as “shadow-banning”. Since last week, an Instagram search for the words “hey jane” will not surface the organization’s account. Instead, users can only find it if they type in the word “hey jane health” – the account’s full name. This, Davis said, constitutes a shadow ban. “For someone who’s not following us but is seeking out care, there’s really no way for them to be able to know that the only way to find us is to type ‘hey jane health’,” Davis said. (Sherman, 1/29)

ABC News: FDA Approves New Type Of Non-Opioid Pain Medication, 1st Of Its Kind In More Than 20 Years
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday approved a new type of prescription pain medication for adults to treat moderate to severe acute pain. The drug, called Journavx (suzetrigine) and manufactured by biotech company Vertex Pharmaceuticals, is a non-opioid painkiller, which doesn’t have addictive properties, unlike opioids often used for this type of pain. This is the first class of non-opioid pain medication approved to treat moderate to severe acute pain approved by the FDA in more than 20 years. (Cobern and Kekatos, 1/31)

CBS News: New Stockton Lab Discovery Shows Promise In Fighting Fentanyl Crisis
Fentanyl overdose is the leading cause of death among Americans aged 18 to 45. It's a crisis that has impacted so many lives and families, but a new way of fighting fentanyl overdoses could be coming out of Stockton. In one of the labs inside the School of Pharmacy at the University of the Pacific is where a team discovered a new way to deliver naloxone, the chemical in Narcan that is used to combat overdoses, that they say will save even more lives. (Reynoso, 1/30)

Stat: Biden Administration Stacked Vaccine Advisory Committee With New Members
Before leaving office, President Biden’s health secretary approved the appointments of eight new candidates to a critical committee that helps set U.S. vaccination policy — a burst of activity within a matter of a few months that could, in theory, make it more difficult for the Trump administration to shape the panel with its own appointees, several sources have told STAT. (Branswell and Owermohle, 1/31)

Stat: Scientists Struggle To Pay Bills After NSF Suspends Salary Payments
One scientist texted his landlord to say February rent would be late. Another wasn’t able to pay her credit card bill. Yet another wondered how much longer he could afford his mortgage. These were some of the effects of President Trump’s federal funding freeze on the postdoctoral researchers who rely on grants from the National Science Foundation. (Boodman, 1/30)

The New York Times: How The World Is Reeling From Trump’s Aid Freeze
In famine-stricken Sudan, soup kitchens that feed hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in a war zone have shut down. In Thailand, war refugees with life-threatening diseases have been turned away by hospitals and carted off on makeshift stretchers. In Ukraine, residents on the frontline of the war with Russia may be going without firewood in the middle of winter. Some of the world’s most vulnerable populations are already feeling President Trump’s sudden cutoff of billions of dollars in American aid that helps fend off starvation, treats diseases and provides shelter for the displaced. (Wee, Walsh and Fassihi, 1/31)

Stat: With Trump Back In Office, No Plans For A Second March For Science 
The start of a Trump administration. The prospect of political appointees that eschew scientific consensus. Renewed attacks on institutions of science. To many scientists, 2025 is shaping up like 2017. The same ingredients that were in the pressure cooker that led to the historic March for Science are present. But at the moment, there seem to be no cooks in the kitchen. There are no plans for another march. (Oza, 1/31)

Modern Healthcare: Cigna To Reform Prior Authorization, Provider Services In 2025
The Cigna Group will spend up to $150 million to reform its prior authorization, patient advocacy and provider services this year, CEO David Cordani said Thursday. The commitment comes a month after the assassination of a high-profile industry executive sparked loud, public conversations about the worsening value of health insurance. (Tepper, 1/30)

The Washington Post: How Killing Of UnitedHealthcare CEO Sowed Fear For Executives’ Safety
Local police conducted security checks and stood guard at the homes of health-care executives dozens of times in the weeks after UnitedHealthcare’s CEO was killed on Dec. 4 — a sign of the heightened concerns that security professionals say persist after the targeted shooting. In suburban Texas, police arrived at the home of David Joyner, chief executive of CVS, for a “special watch” in the shooting’s immediate aftermath. Later that day, police in Connecticut patrolled the secluded home of Cigna CEO David Cordani. And over the next few days, police officers in Missouri were hired to sit overnight in an unmarked car outside the home of Centene CEO Sarah London. (1/29)

Modern Healthcare: Cardinal Health CEO Jason Hollar Issues Warning On Tariffs
Cardinal Health warned Thursday that if President Donald Trump follows through with threatened tariffs next month, higher prices for some of the company's products will follow. Trump is set to impose a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on goods from China starting Saturday. (Dubinsky, 1/30)

Modern Healthcare: CommonSpirit To Extend DEI Programs Despite Federal Pushback
CommonSpirit Health plans to expand its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts despite employers across the country and in all industries backing away from the programs and the Trump administration taking aim at them. The 137-hospital system seeks to bolster its partnership with Morehouse School of Medicine, a historically Black medical school, in part by creating 10 new residency training sites at CommonSpirit hospitals. It also is seeking a chief health equity officer to help lead those efforts, said Dr. Veronica Mallett, chief administrative officer of the More in Common Alliance, a partnership formed by the health system and Morehouse. (DeSilva, 1/30)

The Boston Globe: Steward Demanding Millions From Former Hospitals For Tech Service
Steward Health Care is threatening to cut off critical medical record and billing services it continues to provide to its six former Massachusetts hospitals unless it receives millions of dollars more each month, a move the hospitals say could create wide-scale disruptions and potentially even force some to close. The new owners of those hospitals have been scrambling for nearly a month as a result of the demands, and this week filed motions in Steward’s bankruptcy case demanding the chain adhere to the contract, which covers a range of software and technology services including digital patient records for radiology, laboratory, pathology, microbiology, and pharmacy. (Bartlett, 1/31)

AP: Some Hospitals Pause Gender-Affirming Care To Evaluate Trump's Executive Order
Hospitals in Colorado, Virginia and the nation’s capital said Thursday they have paused gender-affirming care for young people as they evaluate President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at cutting federal support for such care. Denver Health in Colorado has stopped providing gender-affirming surgeries for people under age 19, a spokesperson confirmed Thursday, in order to comply with the executive order and continue receiving federal funding. (Johnson, Bose and Bargfeld, 1/31)

CBS News: Colorado Is Seen By Some As A Haven For Transgender Rights, And One Organization Has Been Inundated With Requests To Move To The State
A nationwide movement brought people together in Denver Thursday at a rally to empower transgender voices, unite allies and advocate for equality and justice. The effort is part of a push to unite as concerns grow in the transgender community following President Trump's efforts to roll back protections for transgender people across the country. That includes an executive order threatening funding for schools supporting transgender rights. (Arenas, 1/30)

MedPage Today: Doctors, Nurses In Oregon Still On Strike
As the strike by nearly 5,000 healthcare workers from Providence Health in Oregon reaches the 3-week mark, representatives from the Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) union, which is representing the workers, and the health system are in mediation at the request of Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D). (Henderson, 1/30)

Bloomberg: Private Equity Deal For NY Harborside Retirement Home Threatens To Evict Seniors
Wheelchair-bound Terie Gelberg has lived at the Harborside, a retirement community on Long Island’s North Shore, for almost two decades. It was supposed to be the last home for the 99-year-old with memory issues, but plans to sell the bankrupt facility to a private equity firm threaten to upend her care. She, alongside other residents of Harborside’s Port Washington nursing home, memory-care and assisted-living units will be forced to relocate if a bankruptcy court judge approves Focus Healthcare Partners’ $80 million deal to buy the complex in February. (Braun, 1/30)

San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. Must Rehire Employees Who Refused To Get Vaccinated, Court Rules
San Francisco must rehire two city employees who left their jobs after refusing to be vaccinated against the coronavirus for religious reasons, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday. The Selina Keene and Melody Fountila were longtime employees of San Francisco’s Human Resources Agency, where they worked on job training and employment plans for low-income residents. They retired from their jobs after the city required all 35,000 of its employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus by Nov. 29, 2021. (Egelko, 1/30)

The Texas Tribune: At Least Four Measles Cases Reported In Texas
At least four cases of measles, including two involving school-aged children, have been reported in Texas in less than two weeks, putting state health agencies on alert. For some communities, this is the first case of measles in more than 20 years. (Simpson and Carver, 1/30)