First Edition: Thursday, May 1, 2025

KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES

KFF Health News: Federal Cuts Gut Food Banks As They Face Record Demand
Food bank shortages caused by high demand and cuts to federal aid programs have some residents of a small community that straddles Idaho and Nevada growing their own food to get by. For those living in Duck Valley, a reservation of about 1,000 people that is home to the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes, there’s just one grocery store where prices are too high for many to afford, said Brandy Bull Chief, local director of a federal food distribution program for tribes. The next-closest grocery stores are more than 100 miles away in Mountain Home, Idaho, and Elko, Nevada. And the local food bank’s troubles are mirrored by many nationwide, squeezed between growing need and shrinking aid. (Orozco Rodriguez, 5/1)

KFF Health News: California’s Primary Care Shortage Persists Despite Ambitious Moves To Close Gap
Sumana Reddy, a primary care physician, struggles on thin financial margins to run Acacia Family Medical Group, the small independent practice she founded 27 years ago in Salinas, a predominantly Latino city in an agricultural valley often called “the salad bowl of the world.” Reddy can’t match the salaries offered by larger health systems — a difficulty compounded by a widespread shortage of primary care doctors. (Wolfson and Sánchez, 5/1)

VACCINES

The Washington Post: RFK Jr. Will Order 'Placebo' Testing For New Vaccines, Alarming Health Experts 
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. intends to shift the way vaccines are tested, a move that the agency said will increase transparency but that medical experts fear could limit access to vaccines and undermine the public’s trust in immunization depending on its implementation. The potential change outlined in a statement says all new vaccines will be required to undergo placebo testing, a procedure in which some people receive the vaccine and others receive an inert substance — such as a saline shot — before the results are compared. (Weber, Roubein, Sun and Johnson, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: RFK Jr. Bets $500 Million On Universal Vaccines In Shift From Covid-19 Funding
In a shift away from next-generation Covid-19 vaccines, the Trump administration is investing $500 million in a vaccine project championed by two scientists who were recently tapped to serve in senior roles within the National Institutes of Health, according to emails reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. The unusually large sum comes as the nation’s health agencies are cutting budgets, shrinking staff and terminating hundreds of active research grants. (Subbaraman, 5/1)

NBC News: The Little-Known Database At The Heart Of Kennedy’s Vaccine Conspiracy Theory
Without evidence, anti-vaccine lawyer Aaron Siri and activist Del Bigtree have claimed on the internet show "The HighWire" that the CDC scattered the vaccine safety data after Kennedy took office, making it unavailable for Kennedy’s team to examine. The goal, according to Siri, was to “thwart the ability for the current administration to actually conduct a study in the VSD.” ... A CDC spokesperson confirmed that nothing about the stewardship of VSD data had changed in the last year. (Zadrozny, 4/30)

CIDRAP: CIDRAP's Vaccine Integrity Project Names Steering Committee Members
The University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) has announced the steering committee members for its Vaccine Integrity Project, which was introduced last week. (Van Beusekom, 4/30)

ABC News: Even A Small Uptick In Vaccination Could Prevent Millions Of US Measles Cases. Here's How
Measles cases are continuing to spread throughout the U.S. with outbreaks in at least six states. Public health experts have previously said lagging vaccination rates are to blame for the rise in cases, at least partly due to vaccine hesitancy and vaccine fatigue left over from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, even a small uptick in MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccination could prevent millions of infections, according to new research. (Kekatos, 4/30)

CIDRAP: Analysis: Small But Meaningful Menstrual Cycle Changes Follow Flu Vaccination
Receiving an influenza vaccine with or without a co-administered COVID-19 vaccine was associated with a small and temporary—but meaningful—change in the menstrual cycles of regularly menstruating women, according to a study published yesterday in JAMA Network Open. The study was based on data collected from an English-language digital birth control app used globally. (Soucheray, 4/30)

AUTISM

NBC News: New Research Contradicts RFK Jr.'s Claim That Severe Autism Cases Are Rising
When Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the government’s new autism findings this month, he painted a grim and highly controversial picture: Not only was autism becoming more prevalent, he said, but “most cases now are severe.” The notion that severe symptoms are becoming more common isn’t substantiated by scientific evidence. Rather, new research being announced this week at the annual meeting of the International Society for Autism Research in Seattle suggests that the share of autism cases with moderate or significant symptoms remained relatively consistent from 2000 to 2016. (Bendix, 4/30)

FUNDING FREEZE AND DEI

Medill News Service: NIH Ends Role In Safe To Sleep Campaign To Prevent Infants Deaths 
The Trump administration has cancelled federal participation in Safe to Sleep, a 30-year campaign to prevent babies from dying in their sleep, STAT and the Medill News Service have learned. (Belkoura, 4/30)

Stat: NIH Plans To Reduce Animal Testing In Federally Funded Research 
In a significant move, the National Institutes for Health said it would reduce its reliance on animals in federally funded research and instead prioritize investment in human-based alternatives, the second time this month that a key government agency has taken such a step. (Silverman, 4/30)

Politico: Education Department Cancels Grants That Won Bipartisan Support After Uvalde Attack
The Education Department is cutting approximately $1 billion worth of federal mental health grants approved by Congress in the wake of a 2022 Texas elementary school mass shooting. The agency concluded the funding conflicts with Trump administration priorities. The department’s decision, announced by an agency official late Tuesday in a written notice obtained by POLITICO, centers on grants included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that were meant to help states and higher education institutions train mental health professionals who could then work in local schools. (Perez Jr., 4/30)

Stat: Trump Order Targeting DEI In Medical Accreditation Sparks Concern 
A new Trump administration executive order targeting the use of “DEI-based standards” to accredit universities could shake up the small club of groups that set standards for the nation’s medical schools and residency programs. (McFarling, 5/1)

MedPage Today: International Doctors Forgo U.S. Medical Meetings, Citing Detention Fears
Some international doctors are skipping medical conferences in the U.S. this year out of concern over the Trump administration's treatment of foreign visitors at the country's borders. While none of the American medical associations contacted by MedPage Today reported a major dip in conference attendance this year so far, at least one doctor in the U.K. suspects that fewer international physicians will attend the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting in late May. (4/30)

TARIFFS

Axios: Hospitals Begin To Grapple With Tariff Fallout
Hospitals across the country are starting to reckon with the effects President Trump's tariffs are having on medical supplies like syringes and PPE, and in some cases freezing spending and making other contingencies. (Reed, 5/1)

MEDICAID

The Washington Post: Republican Medicaid Cuts Could Mean ‘Armageddon’ In D.C., Official Says
D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D), her staff and health-care providers have been lobbying Congress for months to stave off Medicaid cuts that one top city official said would amount to “Armageddon” for low-income residents and wreak havoc on the region’s health network. House Republican proposals to slash government spending on Medicaid would devastate the insurance program that covers 40 percent of District residents and makes it possible for hospitals and clinics to care for the most vulnerable, they say. Under one scenario, D.C. could lose $1.1 billion, forcing the city to drop some residents from the rolls and scale back services for others. (Portnoy, 4/30)

HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY

CBS News: Delaware County Lawmakers Want Pennsylvania AG To Take Criminal Action Against Prospect Medical Holdings
Delaware County's delegation of state lawmakers is asking the Pennsylvania attorney general to consider bringing criminal charges against Prospect Medical Holdings for closing the Crozer Health system. In a letter to Attorney General Dave Sunday, a group of state lawmakers requested that the attorney general open a criminal investigation into the California-based private health care company. (Holden, Kuhn, Wright and Specht, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: Envision To Transfer Some Imaging Sites To Radiology Partners
Physician staffing company Envision Healthcare has entered a transition agreement with Radiology Partners as it moves to exit the imaging business. Radiology Partners would take over operations at an estimated 95 Envision imaging sites and onboard up to 400 radiologists. A specific timeline was not disclosed, but the transition is expected to occur throughout the rest of the year, according to a Wednesday news release. (DeSilva, 4/30)

The Baltimore Sun: Healthcare Nonprofit Gifts $6.225 Million To Support Coppin State’s Medical Program
Coppin State University announced Wednesday that it received a $6.22 million investment from CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield to expand its health services and education. The investment, the largest philanthropic gift Coppin State has ever received, is aimed at renovating and expanding the university’s health center, as well as building up its healthcare education and scholarship programs. (Schumer, 5/1)

Modern Healthcare: Two Chairs Adds Psychiatry Services In Florida
Two Chairs is adding psychiatry services as it tries to stand out in a crowded virtual mental therapy market, the company said Wednesday. The company is launching its psychiatry services in Florida, but it will expand to more markets over time, said Two Chairs founder and CEO Alex Katz. The company, which offers therapy in 22 states, aims to bring therapy, psychiatry, care navigation and primary care collaboration into one experience for its patients and health plan customers, Katz said. (Perna, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: Epic Widens EHR Market Share Lead Over Oracle: KLAS
Epic added to its electronic health record market share lead last year, according to a report published Wednesday from market research firm KLAS. The Verona, Wisconsin-based EHR company made significant gains among acute care hospitals while its rival Oracle Health lost a sizable number of customers. Epic grew its market share to 42% of acute care hospitals and 55% of acute care beds by the end of 2024, up from 39% of acute care hospitals and 52% of beds in 2023, according to KLAS. (Turner, 4/30)

Modern Healthcare: Leapfrog Hospital Grades Improve With Help From AI, Tech
The Leapfrog Group is out with its biannual report card on hospitals' safety and qualify efforts, and it's clear that providers' use of artificial intelligence and other technology tools is helping boost grades. The nonprofit healthcare watchdog organization grades hospitals on areas including infection rates, hand hygiene and medication safety. Its survey also looks at how hospitals use technology and if it is effective in ensuring patient safety. (DeSilva, 4/30)

Becker's Hospital Review: California Hospital Gets $3M Lifeline To Stave Off Closure
Avalon, Calif.-based Catalina Island Health received $3 million in one-time funding to help keep its doors open. Catalina Island Health is the island’s only source of emergency medical care for residents, workers and more than 1 million annual visitors, according to an April 8 news release from Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn’s office. The hospital faces serious financial challenges with insolvency predicted as early as July, according to the release. (Cass, 4/30)

San Francisco Chronicle: UC Health Workers To Strike At UCSF, Other Campuses Statewide
Up to 20,000 unionized health care workers are poised to strike at all UC campuses and medical centers Thursday, the third such strike this year over what the unions say are unfair labor practices by UC. Locally, the strike, led by UPTE-CWA Local 9119 and AFSCME Local 3299, is slated to take place 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at UCSF Mission Bay campus, and will include workers from Parnassus, St. Francis and St. Mary’s hospitals. Picketing is also planned at the UC Berkeley entrance at Telegraph Avenue and Bancroft Way. (Ho, 4/30)

Newsweek: California Faces Probe After Sharing People's Health Data With LinkedIn
California Representative Kevin Kiley has called for an investigation after the state's handling of sensitive health information came under scrutiny following a report that data entered by residents on the state's health insurance marketplace was shared with LinkedIn. In a letter exclusively shared with Newsweek, the Republican asked the Department of Health and Human Services to launch an investigation into the issue "due to Covered California's blatant disregard for privacy and the law." "This is incredibly disturbing," Kiley also wrote on X, formerly Twitter. (Laws, 4/30)

CalMatters: California Sent Investigators To ICE Facilities. They Found More Detainees, And Health Care Gaps
A new report from the California Department of Justice finds that immigration detention facilities across the state continue to fall short in providing basic mental health care, with gaps in suicide prevention and treatment, recordkeeping, and use of force incidents against mentally ill detainees. (Fry, 4/29)

San Francisco Chronicle: Study: At-Home Testing Program Slashes Colorectal Cancer Rates, Deaths
An innovative colorectal cancer screening program at Kaiser Permanente Northern California has significantly reduced cancer rates and deaths, according to a new study by Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Northern California. The program mails at-home fecal tests to patients yearly — a convenient, noninvasive part of a screening protocol that also includes other, less frequent routine tests like colonoscopies. (Ho, 4/30)

CBS News: Santa Clara County Confirms First Carfentanil Overdose Death
Santa Clara County Medical Examiner's Office has confirmed a 39-year-old man has died from a carfentanil overdose. County health officials said he was found with counterfeit pills that were made to look like prescription oxycodone. "Using drugs alone increases the risk of death. We urge people to avoid the dangers of opioids, especially fake pills that may contain carfentanil or fentanyl," said Dr. Michelle Jorden, Chief Medical Examiner and Neuropathologist in the Office of the Medical Examiner. "Fake pills look real, but they can be deadly. People should not take any pill that they did not buy from the pharmacy."  (Corry, 4/30)

AP: Northern California Town's Sugary Soda Tax Is First To Defy State Ban
A tax on sugary drinks takes effect Thursday in the beachside community of Santa Cruz, seven years after California banned its cities and counties from implementing local grocery taxes as part of a reluctant deal with the powerful beverage industry. The 2-cent-per-ounce tax, approved by voters in November, is the first in the state since lawmakers approved the 2018 deal. The American Beverage Association spent heavily to campaign against the ballot measure in the small city of 60,000, and in court called the tax illegal and likely to strain city resources. (Har, 5/1)

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Lawsuit Seeks To Help Missouri Minors Obtain Abortions
An organization that helps youth with abortion and birth decisions filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to strike down Missouri regulations that make it difficult for minors to obtain an abortion. (Munz, 4/30)

Wyoming Public Radio: Wyoming’s First Birth Center Receives National Certification 
Earthside Birth and Wellness Center in Cheyenne is Wyoming’s first freestanding birth center. Last month, they received a national certification from the Commission for the Accreditation of Birth Centers (CABC).The center is based on the Midwifery Task Force’s woman-centered midwives model of care. Earthside works with low-risk clients who want to give birth outside of a hospital setting. It offers prenatal and postpartum care, birth services and lactation classes. (Khera, 4/30)

Axios: Poll: Instead Of A $5K "Baby Bonus," What Parents Really Want
Just 4% of adults on the fence about parenthood say a $5,000 incentive would sway them, per a new BabyCenter poll shared with Axios. The Trump administration has reportedly discussed a $5,000 "baby bonus" to boost birth rates — but that amount doesn't stretch much beyond Day 1 of a newborn's life. 9% of respondents said it would take at least $10,000 to convince them to have kids, and 30% said it would take more than $25,000 — of the nearly 700 votes cast in a BabyCenter poll. (Mallenbaum, 4/30)

PUBLIC HEALTH

CBS News: Diabetes Deaths Fall To Lowest Levels In Years, In Early CDC Figures
Diabetes deaths in the U.S. have fallen to some of the lowest rates in years, according to new preliminary figures published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reversing a surge in mortality that was seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 26.4 deaths per 100,000 people from diabetes, according to early death certificate data for the third quarter of 2024 published this month by the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics. (Tin, 4/30)

MedPage Today: Breast Cancer Mortality In Young Women Declined Precipitously After 2010
While the incidence of breast cancer in young women has been increasing over the last 20 years, breast cancer deaths in this age group fell significantly between 2010 and 2020, researchers found. Among women ages 20 to 49, incidence-based mortality declined from 9.70 per 100,000 women in 2010 to 1.47 per 100,000 in 2020, reported Adetunji Toriola, MD, PhD, MPH, of the Siteman Cancer Center at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting in Chicago. (Bassett, 4/30)

ABC News: Active Ingredient In Weight Loss Drug Wegovy May Help Treat Type Of Fatty Liver Disease: Study
The active ingredient in the popular weight loss drug Wegovy may help treat a type of fatty liver disease, according to new research. The disease, known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), occurs where fat builds up in the liver, leading to inflammation, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. (Chang, 4/30)

The New York Times: Young People Are Not As Happy As They Used To Be, Study Finds
The happiness curve is collapsing. For decades, research showed that the way people experienced happiness across their lifetimes looked like a U-shaped curve. Happiness tended to be high when they were young, then dipped in midlife, only to rise again as they grew old. But recent surveys suggest that young adults aren’t as happy as they used to be, and that U-shaped curve is starting to flatten. (Caron, 4/30)

The Hill: Older Americans Working Longer To Stay Active, Save More
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 1 in 5 workers were 55 or older in 2023. In that same year, 15 percent of workers were between 55 and 64, and about 7 percent were 65 or older. ... Nearly 80 percent of older workers said they are still working because they need the paycheck or because they want to keep building their retirement savings, according to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies. A recent survey from insurance company Allianz Life found 64 percent of Americans worry more about running out of money than they do about dying. (Perkins and Prann, 4/30)