First Edition: Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025

KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES

KFF Health News: White House Calls This 9/11-Era Fund ‘Wasteful.’ Red And Blue States Rely On It
President Donald Trump’s push to eliminate a federal disaster preparedness program threatens a fund used by state health systems from Republican-led Texas to the Democratic stronghold of California. The Hospital Preparedness Program was created more than two decades ago in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the deadly anthrax attacks that began days later. The fund has provided nearly $2.2 billion to states, territories, major cities, and other entities over the past 17 years to ready health care systems for the next pandemic, cyberattack, or mass-casualty event. (Thompson, 11/6)

KFF Health News: Farmers, Barbers, And GOP Lawmakers Grapple With The Fate Of ACA Tax Credits
John Cleveland is ready to pay a lot more for his health insurance next year. He hasn’t forgotten the pile of hospital bills that awaited him after he had a seizure while tending to customers in his Austin, Texas, barbershop four years ago. Once doctors hurriedly removed the dangerous tumor growing on his brain, a weeklong hospital stay, months of therapy, and nearly $250,000 worth of medical expenses followed. The coverage he has purchased for years through the Affordable Care Act marketplace covered most of those bills. (Seitz, 11/6)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

Bloomberg: Americans Sue Trump Administration To Fund SNAP Benefits
The Trump administration faces a new challenge in the battle over food assistance benefits amid a federal funding lapse — a lawsuit filed by recipients who say they’re in danger of going hungry. The proposed class-action suit comes as the administration has sent conflicting signals about whether it will comply with court orders to continue funding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, that serves 42 million low-income people. (Burnson, 11/5)

The Baltimore Sun: 311 Reports Phone Outages As SNAP Assistance Calls Spike
The Baltimore City phone system experienced intermittent outages and longer hold times Wednesday because of a high volume of residents calling for SNAP and food assistance, the Baltimore City Comptroller’s Office said. (Pryce, 11/5)

Kansas City Star: DSS Says Partial Food Aid Will Reach Missouri Families Soon 
As the government shut down continues, Missouri recipients of federal food assistance will soon receive partial benefits for the month of November, according to the Department of Social Services. In a news release Wednesday afternoon, DSS announced that the state had received guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture which allowed for partial funding of this month’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. (Bauer, 11/5)

Modern Healthcare: Government Shutdown Disrupts Some Pay For Safety-Net Hospitals
Five weeks into the lengthiest federal government shutdown in U.S. history, the healthcare system is mostly operating as usual but safety-net providers and others are feeling the squeeze. Medicare, Medicaid and the health insurance exchanges are not fully impacted by the shutdown that began Oct. 1 because the Health and Human Services Department has access to mandatory funding and other sources of money to keep them running. (Early, 11/5)

NPR: Many Medicare Patients Can’t Get Telehealth During The Shutdown 
A few weeks ago, when Vicki Stearn, 68, tried to schedule a virtual visit with her doctor, she was told Medicare — at least temporarily — stopped paying for telehealth appointments when the government shut down. So Stearn was offered a choice: Make an in-person appointment, or pay out of pocket for telehealth. "So I said, 'OK, well, when can I get an in-person appointment?' And it wouldn't have been until December." (Noguchi, 11/6)

Fierce Healthcare: Amid Shutdown, Health IT Vendors Say Hospitals Are Cutting Back
Most healthcare IT vendors say they’ve had ongoing procurements paused as hospitals facing cashflow issues due to the shutdown reconsider their spending, Black Book Research recently reported. Citing a poll of 107 business development leaders offering IT and services to healthcare organizations, which was fielded in the final week of October, the market research group outlined signs that buyers are shifting their spend to “must-haves” and other offerings with near-immediate return on investment. Some respondents told Black Book they’ve already shifted their sales strategies to address their customers’ tightened budgets and new priorities. (Muoio, 11/5)

RURAL HEALTH

Newsweek: States Submit Plans For Rural Health Transformation Funding
Three states have announced their submissions of their Rural Health Transformation (RHT) plans to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this week. On Wednesday, the deadline for submission, North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong and Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe both announced that their plans have been submitted. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves unveiled his state’s plan Tuesday. (Giella, 11/5)

VETERANS' HEALTH CARE

ProPublica: Lawmakers Demand Veterans Affairs Reverse Male Breast Cancer Decision
What Happened: More than two dozen Democrats in the House are pressing the Trump administration to reverse a new policy at the Department of Veterans Affairs that makes it harder for male veterans with breast cancer to get health coverage. The demand, issued in a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, follows a ProPublica story last week that revealed the change. (Umansky, 11/6)

The Washington Post: VA Pays More In Disability For Sleep Apnea Than Some Lost Limbs 
VA vowed to modernize its disability benefits system. As criticism from veterans and their advocates has mounted, efforts to move forward have stalled. (Rein, Whitlock and Gilbert, 11/6)

The Washington Post: The Unregulated Industry That Coaches Veterans To Pile On Benefits 
The number of vets receiving 100 percent disability ratings has surged in recent years. For-profit firms, influencers and the VA play a large role in the trend. (Rein, Whitlock, Gilbert and Schaffer, 11/5)

Capital & Main: Despite Vow To Protect Health Care For Veterans, VA Losing Doctors And Nurses
Impact of understaffing, facility closures and waiting times has been "dire" under Trump’s second term, medical workers say. (Baram, 11/3)

MORE ON THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION

ProPublica: Foreign Food Safety Inspections Hit Historic Low After Trump Cuts
American inspections of foreign food facilities — which produce everything from crawfish to cookies for the U.S. market — have plummeted to historic lows this year, a ProPublica analysis of federal data shows, even as inspections reveal alarming conditions at some manufacturers. About two dozen current and former Food and Drug Administration officials blame the pullback on deep staffing cuts under the Trump administration. (Waldman and Roberts, 11/6)

HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY

Stat: Billions At Stake As Appeals Court Hears NIH Indirect Cost Arguments 
Federal appeals court judges’ questions and comments during a hearing Wednesday suggested they may be skeptical of some of the Trump administration’s central arguments in a lawsuit challenging its proposed changes to research overhead payments. (Wosen, 11/5)

Axios: Trump's New Rebate Program Is Causing Concern For Hospitals And Clinics
Nonprofit hospitals and health clinics are alarmed about a change that's coming to federal drug purchasing discounts next year. They'll have to pay up front and then get rebates — rather than direct price cuts — in a pilot with eight pharmaceutical companies. The new system, greenlit by the Trump administration, is a win for drugmakers, and it could be a big hassle for providers. (Goldman, 11/6)

The Baltimore Sun: Randallstown Nursing Home To Pay $200,000 For Infractions
The Maryland Attorney General’s Office reached a $200,000 settlement with Patapsco Healthcare in Randallstown after investigators found that residents at the nursing home received substandard care that violated state law. (Karpovich, 11/5)

Fierce Healthcare: Carrum Health Expands Substance Use Disorder Treatment Model
Carrum Health launched a substance use disorder treatment program for employers a year ago and has now expanded it to include cannabis, cocaine and methamphetamine as employer demand surges. (Landi, 11/5)

Modern Healthcare: Healthcare M&A In 2025 Lag Behind 2024 Totals
It’s not shaping up to be a banner year for healthcare mergers and acquisitions. The number of deals that closed during the first three quarters of the year totaled 1,015, a 17.5% drop compared with 1,230 recorded during the same period in 2024, based on data from Modern Healthcare’s Mergers & Acquisitions dashboard. Deal-making this year has been affected by uncertainties about policy, regulation and the economy, according to Baker Donelson, KPMG and Ziegler, which provided the data. (Broderick, 11/5)

NBC News: Their Daughter Needed Reconstructive Surgery. They Got An Insurance Fight
Minutes before a 10-hour surgical procedure, 8-year-old Olivia Olson sat on a hospital bed grinning. With quiet confidence she explained why the operation was so important to her. “I think I look beautiful, and I don’t really care what other people think of me,” Olivia said. “I just want to get a big ear so people don’t bully me in the future.” (Bernal and Douglas, 11/5)

PHARMA AND TECH

AP: FDA Issues Warning To 18 Websites Selling Unapproved Botox
U.S. health regulators on Wednesday sent warning letters to 18 websites selling counterfeit or unapproved versions of Botox and similar injectable drugs commonly used to smooth wrinkles. The Food and Drug Administration said it was taking action after receiving reports of injuries in connection with the products, including toxic side effects. Botox is a diluted, purified form of botulinum, one of the most toxic substances in the world. The ingredient works by temporarily blocking nerve signals and causing muscles to relax. (Perrone, 11/6)

MedPage Today: FDA Approves First Drug For Kids' Irritable Bowel Syndrome With Constipation
The FDA approved linaclotide (Linzess) capsules to treat irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) in children age 7 years and older, the agency announced Wednesday. The decision makes the guanylate cyclase-C agonist the first treatment approved for IBS-C in pediatric patients, with a recommended dose of 145 µg orally once daily per linaclotide's updated label. (McCreary, 11/5)

Stat: Hair Loss Treatments Attract Attention From Biotech Investors 
Biotech investors have not often looked at a balding head of hair and been struck with inspiration, even on the rare occasions when a new treatment is pitched to them. More often, they’ve rolled their eyes before moving on to the next slide deck from a new cancer drug developer or AI-focused startup. But a funny thing happened last month: Two startups — Pelage Pharmaceuticals and Veradermics — raised a combined $270 million to develop treatments for a common form of hair loss, known clinically as androgenetic alopecia. (DeAngelis, 11/6)

Bloomberg: Pfizer Loses Legal Bid To Temporarily Block Novo’s Metsera Offer
A judge denied Pfizer Inc.’s request to temporarily block Novo Nordisk A/S’ $10 billion bid to acquire the obesity startup Metsera Inc., saying the US pharmaceutical company’s objections to the deal don’t warrant a delay. Delaware Chancery Judge Morgan Zurn concluded Wednesday that Pfizer didn’t level legitimate complaints about Novo’s effort to supplant it as New York-based Metsera’s buyer and refused to bar the Danish company from proceeding with the transaction. (Feeley, 11/5)

STATE WATCH

Mirror Indy: Indianapolis Launching Program To Support Pregnant Women In Areas With High Infant Mortality Rates
Imagine this: You’re pregnant and a nonprofit gives you $1,125. You can spend it on anything: prenatal care, transportation to appointments, a crib for your new baby. After you give birth, more cash is on the way each month: $750 for the first 15 months of the baby’s life, and $375 for the following 21 months. Over the course of three years, you receive about $20,000 to support your family. For 100 moms in Indianapolis, this is about to be a reality. (Molloy, 11/5)

CANCER RESEARCH

The Washington Post: Pancreatic Cancer Trials Fuel Hope For New Drug Fast-Tracked By FDA
At 69 years old, Debby Orcutt was diagnosed last year with pancreatic cancer, a condition so dire that her doctor refused to tell her how long she had to live. With few good options, she enrolled in a clinical trial for an experimental drug. “I just looked at it like, what have I got to lose?” she said. “I’m gonna die.” A scan last week showed her tumor had shrunk 64 percent since starting the drug in January, according to her husband. It is the sort of clinical evidence that is stirring optimism and has prompted the Trump administration to put it on a novel path for rapid approval. (Gilbert, 11/5)

The New York Times: Radiation May Be Unnecessary For Many Breast Cancer Patients
Radiation has long played a role in the treatment of breast cancer, though doctors have used it more sparingly in early-stage disease in recent years, as advances in diagnostics and treatment have improved survival rates. Now a new study with an unusually long follow-up period has found that radiation to the chest wall made absolutely no difference in survival among women with early-stage breast cancer who had been treated with mastectomy, lymph-node surgery and advanced anti-cancer drugs. (Caryn Rabin, 11/5)

The Washington Post: How Dry Cleaning Might Increase The Risk Of Cancer
A new study found links between a toxic dry cleaning chemical and liver cancer. Trump officials are reconsidering an EPA plan to phase it out. (Ajasa, 11/6)

LIFESTYLE AND HEALTH

Newsweek: Psychologists Reveal Type Of Parents Most Likely To Feel Burnt Out
Parents with unhealthy attachment styles are at higher risk of parental burnout—including emotional exhaustion and a need to distance themselves from their children—a new study has found. The study, published in the journal PLOS One and conducted by researchers at the Maria Grzegorzewska University in Warsaw, Poland, examined 440 Polish parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Gray, 11/5)

GLOBAL WATCH

The New York Times: Attacked By Swarm Of Wasps, American Father And Son Die In Laos 
Daniel Owen, 47, and his son, Cooper, 15, died after being stung dozens of times last month by what appeared to be so-called murder hornets. (Cave and Wee, 11/5)

Phys.org: The World's Healthiest Countries Aren't The Richest, Study Finds
Wealth alone doesn't make a nation healthy, according to new collaborative research from the University of Surrey and its international partners, which ranks 38 OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries on their progress toward global health goals. The study, published in Annals of Operations Research, shows that some of the world's wealthiest nations, including the United States and Canada, lag behind smaller economies in achieving the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG 3)—ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all. Meanwhile, countries such as Iceland, Japan and Norway lead the way, supported by robust health systems and equitable access to care. (Gould, 11/5)