First Edition: Monday, Aug. 4, 2025

KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES

KFF Health News: Work Requirements And Red Tape Ahead For Millions On Medicaid
Now that the Republicans’ big tax-and-spending bill has become law, new bureaucratic hurdles have emerged for millions of Americans who rely on Medicaid for health coverage. A provision in the new law dictates that, in most states, for the first time, low-income adults must start meeting work requirements to keep their coverage. Some states have already tried doing this, but Georgia is the only state that has an active system using work requirements to establish Medicaid eligibility — and recipients must report to the system once a month. (Mador, 8/4)

KFF Health News: Sorting Out Covid Vaccine Confusion: New And Conflicting Federal Policies Raise Questions
If you want a covid-19 shot this fall, will your employer’s health insurance plan pay for it? There’s no clear answer. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist, has upended the way covid vaccines are approved and for whom they’re recommended, creating uncertainty where coverage was routine. Agencies within HHS responsible for spelling out who should get vaccinated aren’t necessarily in sync, issuing seemingly contradictory recommendations based on age or risk factors for serious disease. (Andrews, 8/4)

KFF Health News: KFF Health News’ ‘On Air’: Journalists Distill $50B Rural Health Fund And Newsmaking Diagnoses
KFF Health News chief rural correspondent Sarah Jane Tribble discussed the $50 billion rural health fund authorized by the recent Republican megabill on Daily Yonder’s “The Yonder Report” on July 31. ... Céline Gounder, KFF Health News’ editor-at-large for public health, discussed bladder cancer symptoms and treatment on CBS News’ “CBS Mornings” on July 29. (8/2)

FUNDING AND RESEARCH CUTS

AP: NSF Can Withhold Research Funding, Federal Judge Rules
The National Science Foundation can continue to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars from researchers in several states until litigation aimed at restoring it plays out, a federal court ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge John Cronan in New York declined to force the NSF to restart payments immediately, while the case is still being decided, as requested by the sixteen Democrat-led states who brought the suit, including New York, Hawaii, California, Colorado and Connecticut. (Ramakrishnan, 8/1)

PHARMACEUTICALS

The Wall Street Journal: How Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Will Keep Drug Prices Higher Longer And Cost Medicare Billions
Thousands of Medicare recipients will have to wait longer to get some price relief on the expensive cancer drugs they depend on for treatment, while others might not get any reprieve at all. Two little-known provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Trump in July will delay Medicare price negotiations for some of the biggest-selling drugs in the world, including Merck’s Keytruda, which is used to treat cancer and had $17.9 billion in U.S. sales in 2024. Other drugs, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Darzalex, will be excluded entirely. (Walker, 8/3)

Stat: Drug Companies’ Price Transparency Reports Paint Murky Picture 
Over the past decade, pharmaceutical companies have released carefully curated “price transparency” reports that make it appear the prices of their medicines are barely increasing — or even going down. But the reports disclose no pricing information about specific drugs, manipulating the reality of how much Americans spend on prescription drugs. (Herman, 8/4)

Stat: FDA’s Top Cancer Drug Regulator Played Key Role In Rejection Of Replimune Therapy
The top regulator of cancer drugs at the Food and Drug Administration interceded during the late stages of a contentious review of a skin cancer therapy from Replimune Group — actions that contributed to the treatment’s last-minute rejection despite support from others inside the agency, STAT has learned. (Feuerstein, 8/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Longevity Firms Push Montana To Become Hub For Biohacking, Experimental Treatments 
Montana is well known for luring visitors with outdoor activities such as fly fishing and hiking. Now, longevity companies are exploring investments in the state in a moonshot bid to make it a medical tourism hub. State legislators have backed measures designed to ease patients’ access to therapies not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The measures, known as “Right to Try” laws, exist in more than 40 states. But Montana has pushed even further by adopting rules to make it easier for businesses to provide experimental drugs, therapies or devices and profit from selling them. (Janin, 8/3)

GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE

AP: States Accuse Trump Of Intimidating Hospitals To Drop Gender-Affirming Care
Seventeen Democratic officials accused President Donald Trump’s administration of unlawfully intimidating health care providers into stopping gender-affirming care for transgender youth in a lawsuit filed Friday. The complaint comes after a month in which at least eight major hospitals and hospital systems — all in states where the care is allowed under state law — announced they were stopping or restricting the care. The latest announcement came Thursday from UI Health in Chicago. (Mulvihill, 8/1)

Chicago Tribune: UI Health Ends Gender-Affirming Pediatric Surgery
Another Chicago hospital has ended gender-affirming pediatric surgery amid threats to its federal funding. But Illinois and 15 other states are fighting back in a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration for “intimidating providers” into denying such care. On Friday, UI Health became the latest hospital to suspend gender-affirming surgical procedures for adolescents effective immediately, according to an announcement posted on the hospital’s website. (Channick, 8/1)

VACCINE POLICY AND COVID

The Hill: Most Adults Do Not Plan On Getting COVID-19 Shot Amid Vaccine Policy Changes
More than half of American adults — 59 percent — say they do not expect to get the COVID-19 booster shot this autumn, according to new poll findings from health care policy group KFF. Poll results show 23 percent of U.S. adult respondents said they will “probably not” get the vaccine, while 37 percent said they will “definitely not” get the shot. Americans who said they will “probably” or “definitely” not get the shot were also more likely to say they think changes to U.S. vaccine policy are “major” and will make people less safe. (O’Connell-Domenech, 8/1)

Daily Southtown: Government Sues Silver Cross Over Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccines
Silver Cross Hospital violated federal law when it fired two employees in 2021 who did not comply with the New Lenox hospital’s mandatory policy that all employees be vaccinated for COVID-19, lawsuits allege. (Nolan, 8/1)

The Hill: Breast Cancer Cells Reawoken By Flu, COVID Infections: Study
Respiratory infections like COVID-19 and the flu can activate dormant cancer cells in breast cancer patients who are in remission, new research finds. The study, published in Nature, found that common viruses can reawaken small numbers of dormant breast cancer cells in the lungs. (Whiteside, 8/2)

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

The Hill: Texas Abortion Ban Prompts Travel Surge For Procedures
Texans who sought an abortion out of state more than quadrupled between 2021 and 2023 after a state law went into effect that bans the procedure in almost all cases. Data from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) shows at least 7,844 Texas residents received an abortion in a different state in 2023, up from 4,718 in 2022 and 1,712 in 2021. Still the total number of abortions for Texas residents dropped by 85 percent compared to 2021. (Adams, 8/1)

Axios: Most New Moms Skip Vital Postpartum Checkups
More than half of new mothers in the U.S. are missing critical postpartum checkups, new data shows. Postpartum visits save lives. The risk to maternal health doesn't end after an initial postpartum appointment: A recent JAMA Network Open study found that nearly one-third of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. occurred six weeks to one year postpartum. (Mallenbaum, 8/4)

HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Pay For Hospice, Rehab, Psychiatry To Rise In 2026 
Inpatient rehabilitation facilities, hospice providers and inpatient psychiatric hospitals will receive modest Medicare reimbursement increases in fiscal 2026 under final rules the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued Friday. Medicare payments for inpatient rehab facilities will rise 2.6% when the fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Hospice providers got a 2.6% payment update. The regulation also requires that face-to-face encounter attestations must include signatures and dates from the clinicians present. (Early, 8/1)

Modern Healthcare: Rising Costs, Medicaid Cuts Drive Hospitals’ Efficiency Overhaul
Rising healthcare costs and declining reimbursement rates are forcing hospitals to rethink how they operate and deliver care. High pharmaceutical, labor and administrative expenses coupled with looming Medicaid and Medicare cuts mandated by the new tax law are dragging hospital finances. As a result, providers are implementing new technology, tweaking their staffing models and retooling supply chain operations to try to eke out savings before reimbursement reductions and an expected decline in Medicaid enrollment hit, health system executives said. (Kacik, 8/1)

Modern Healthcare: UnitedHealth Group Hires Wayne DeVeydt As CFO, John Rex Retiring
UnitedHealth Group has named Wayne DeVeydt as its next chief financial officer in another major leadership change. He will replace John Rex, who will become the strategic advisor to CEO Stephen Hemsley, on Sept. 2, according to a Thursday news release from the company. DeVeydt was most recently the managing director and operating partner at Bain Capital. He was previously CEO and chair of Surgery Partners and, prior to that, the CFO for Anthem, now known as Elevance Health. (DeSilva, 8/1)

Modern Healthcare: PACE Expands In Ohio With Three New Centers
Three new centers are part of the PACE expansion in Ohio funded by American Rescue Plan Act dollars. (Eastabrook, 8/1)

Modern Healthcare: How AI Agents In Healthcare Are Impacting RCM, Clinical Care
The era of generative artificial intelligence in healthcare has led to the industry’s growing use of agentic AI technology. The tools use AI models to complete time-intensive functions usually done by humans. While regular generative AI models focus on creating new content, agentic AI tools are programmed to autonomously make decisions and achieve specific goals. Big tech companies such as Epic, Amazon, Salesforce and Microsoft have developed them for use in healthcare settings, as have dozens of startups. (Perna, 8/1)

FiercePharma: J&J Coins The Term ‘3rd Opinion’ To Empower Lung Cancer Patients
In honor of the annual World Lung Cancer Day commemoration on Aug. 1, Johnson & Johnson has unveiled a new initiative encouraging patients to speak up in the treatment decision-making process. The campaign centers around a neologism from J&J: “The 3rd Opinion,” meant to signify a patient’s own opinion, joining the traditional first opinion of a doctor and the second from seeking advice about or corroboration of the first opinion. (Park, 8/1)

NPR: How Surgeons Build A New Bladder For Cancer Patients Like Deion Sanders
At 57, two-time Super Bowl champion Deion Sanders, has a brand-new bladder. The University of Colorado coach recently underwent reconstructive surgery to treat an aggressive form of bladder cancer after doctors discovered a tumor this spring. (Boden, 8/2)

STATE WATCH

The New York Times: Victims Named In Montana Bar Shooting As Manhunt Stretches On 
Those killed on Friday were a bartender and three patrons, ranging in age from 59 to 74, the authorities said. The suspect fled into the nearby foothills. (Mazzei, Ellison and Rao, 8/3)

Asheville Watchdog: North Carolina Supreme Court Grants Mission Hospital’s Request For Temporary Stay In Battle For 67 Beds
The North Carolina Supreme Court has granted Mission Hospital’s request for a temporary stay of a lower court’s decision to grant 67 acute care beds to AdventHealth nearly three years ago. (Jones, 8/2)

The CT Mirror: Lamont Nixed Overdose Prevention Centers, But Advocates Fight On
The provision would have made Connecticut one of the only states in the country to have an overdose prevention center, or OPC, a space equipped with supplies to mitigate the dangers of drug use that would allow people to bring illegal drugs and use them under the supervision of trained staff, equipped with supplies, like Narcan, that can prevent and reverse overdoses. (Golvala and Tillman, 8/3)

The Baltimore Sun: Two Years After Cannabis Legalization In Maryland, Teachers See Impact On Kids
It’s been two years since recreational cannabis became legal in Maryland. While revenue has increased and arrests for cannabis possession have decreased, health experts and school officials say there’s an often-overlooked impact — many kids don’t see the drug as risky. (Fine, 8/4)

The Denver Post: For ‘Mama Bear’ Parents, Access To Their College Kids’ Medical And Student Records Can Be A Waiver Away 
When Jennifer Hughes’ son was in a mountain biking accident last year, she was prepared to go into full “mama bear” mode, overseeing his medical care and insurance details. But the Chicago-area mom ran into repeated roadblocks — federal privacy laws — that turned an already stressful time into a nightmare. (Hernandez, 8/2)

OUTBREAKS AND HEALTH THREATS

ABC News: Deadly 'Flesh-Eating' Bacteria Cases Rise Along Gulf Coast, Doctors Warn
Health officials are warning of a rise in potentially deadly "flesh-eating" bacteria cases along the Gulf Coast, with Louisiana reporting higher numbers than usual this summer. Louisiana health officials have reported 17 cases of Vibrio vulnificus so far this year -- four of which have resulted in death. That compares to an average of seven cases and one death in the same period over the past 10 years. All 17 cases in Louisiana resulted in the person being hospitalized, the Louisiana Department of Health said. Meanwhile, health officials in Florida confirmed 13 cases and four deaths this year. (Louallen, 8/2)

CBS News: Freeze Dried Fruit Sold At Sam's Club Recalled Due To Listeria Contamination
Doehler Dry Ingredient Solutions, LLC is recalling boxes of Member's Mark freeze dried fruit due to potential listeria contamination, which can lead to serious illness. In an alert Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the company discovered the problem affecting some 15-count boxes of "Member's Mark Freeze Dried Fruit Variety Pack" after internal product testing. So far, no illnesses have been reported. (Moniuszko, 8/1)

The New York Times: Radioactive Wasps Found At Nuclear Site In South Carolina Could Be A ‘Red Flag,’ Expert Says
Four radioactive wasp nests have been discovered at a South Carolina nuclear facility, according to federal officials. The first nest, which was found by workers at the Savannah River Site early last month, was recently disclosed in a report from the Department of Energy, which owns the site. The facility, near Aiken, S.C., produced material for nuclear weapons throughout the Cold War. Three additional nests have since been discovered at the site, officials told The Times on Friday. (Anthes, 8/1)

CIDRAP: Report Details Raccoon Roundworm Infections In 2 California Children In 2024
Yesterday in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, investigators from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local health officials recounted 2024 raccoon roundworm infections in two children in Los Angeles County, California, that left one with severe cognitive, motor, and visual deficits due to initial misdiagnosis. After possibly ingesting raccoon feces and/or contaminated soil, the two unrelated boys presented with signs and symptoms such as encephalopathy, roundworm larva in the eye, peripheral and cerebrospinal fluid eosinophilia (high levels of a kind of white blood cell), behavioral changes, and unsteady gait. (Van Beusekom, 8/1)

ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH

AP: Smoke From Canada Brings Unhealthy Air To Large Swaths Of Midwest
Smoke from Canadian wildfires hovered over several Midwestern states Saturday, bringing warnings of unhealthy air for at least the third day. Air quality alerts were in effect in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan, as well as eastern Nebraska and parts of Indiana and Illinois. Forecasters said the smoky skies would remain for much of the day. Canadian environmental officials said smoke from the forest fires would persist into Sunday for some areas. (Thompson and Pineda, 8/2)

The Washington Post: Weather Sensitivity Gains Attention From Some Doctors And Therapists
Some people don’t need a weather app — they feel the forecast in their bones. A storm rolls in and so do throbbing heads, aching joints and mood drops. For years, this phenomenon was dismissed as imagination or coincidence. Now, with sharper tools and larger datasets, more researchers are taking weather-related symptoms seriously. As former Agriculture Department chief meteorologist Albert Peterlin put it: “It’s not the weather. It’s the change in weather that causes stress.” (Rota, 8/2)

LIFESTYLE AND HEALTH

San Francisco Chronicle: Study: Type 2 Diabetes Remission Possible Via Diet And Lifestyle
People with Type 2 diabetes — especially those with less severe diabetes, and those who are in earlier stages of the disease — can achieve remission through diet and lifestyle changes, according to a new study from the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research. Diabetes remission is relatively rare, and doctors and researchers have long known that weight loss — particularly through bariatric surgery — is one main way people with diabetes can achieve it. But the new research offers hope that people can also achieve remission through less extreme methods, while noting the challenges of sustaining it. (Ho, 8/2)

The Washington Post: Low-Dose Radiation Therapy May Help Treat Arthritis And Other Benign Conditions 
In March 2024, radiation oncologist Sanjay Mehta had been dealing with painful Achilles tendinitis on his left ankle for over a year. He’d tried steroid injections and PRP (platelet-rich plasma) injections, which Mehta said eventually did the trick. But when his right Achilles started hurting three months later, he opted for a different approach. He had recently started offering low-dose radiation therapy to treat some patients suffering from inflammatory conditions and thought: Why not try it himself? (Carlson, 8/3)

CBS News: Hepatitis C Is A Silent Epidemic In The U.S., But This Small Clinic Is Proving It Doesn't Have To Be 
Although it's been over a decade since game-changing curative drugs for hepatitis C were approved, progress has been slow and treatment remains out of reach for many. But one small clinic in Buffalo, New York, is proving that doesn't have to be the case. Hepatitis C is a silent epidemic in the U.S., affecting up to 4 million people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many people don't know they have it. Left untreated, the disease can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer. With a model that's faster, more accessible and remarkably effective, La Bodega, a clinic at Erie County Medical Center, is curing patients at a staggering rate. (Gounder and Moniuszko, 8/1)

The Washington Post: Wearable Devices Helped Spot Postsurgical Complications In Kids
Wearable devices like Fitbits can help health care providers spot postsurgical complications in kids, a new analysis in Science Advances finds. About 1 in 7 children will have postoperative complications, but diagnoses can be delayed because they can be difficult for caretakers outside the hospital to spot. (Blakemore, 8/3)

The Washington Post: What Dog Cancers Can Tell Us About Human Cancers
After a train carrying chemicals derailed and caught fire in East Palestine, Ohio, in 2023, residents were exposed to carcinogens such as vinyl chloride, acrolein and dioxin. Since tumors are typically slow to develop, it could take decades to know what that might have done to the locals’ cancer risk. But there may be a quicker route to an answer: The residents’ dogs were also exposed, and dogs develop cancer more quickly. (Holmes, 8/2)

GLOBAL WATCH

BBC: World-First Gonorrhea Vaccine Rollout Begins In UK As Infection Rates Soar
Gonorrhea vaccines will be widely available from today in sexual health clinics across the UK, in a bid to tackle record-breaking levels of infections. The jabs will first be offered to those at highest risk - mostly gay and bisexual men who have a history of multiple sexual partners or sexually transmitted infections. NHS England say the roll out is a world-first, and predict it could prevent as many as 100,000 cases, potentially saving the NHS almost £8m over the next decade. (Parry, 8/3)