Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
First Edition: Tuesday, July 28, 2026
KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES
KFF Health News: Cyclospora Boosts Fears That Worse Foodborne Outbreaks Are Ahead
The next foodborne illness outbreak could be much worse. That’s the concern of food safety leaders across the U.S. who are raising alarms over federal cuts they say have made it harder to detect and stop the spread of foodborne illnesses, such as the recent outbreaks of cyclospora, which has sickened thousands in dozens of states. And they’re especially worried the next pathogen will be much more deadly. (Wells and Armour, 7/28)
KFF Health News: Newsom Reverses On Long-Sought Paid Leave Benefit For Teachers In California
California public school teacher Mollie Blustein planned her pregnancy so that her daughter would arrive during summer break. But when the elementary school teacher went into premature labor and delivered her baby two weeks before the end of school, she faced another stressor: a huge pay cut. The majority of California’s roughly 300,000 teachers don’t have access to the state-funded paid leave program that most new parents in the private sector do. Instead, many local school districts deduct the cost of a substitute teacher from educators’ pay during parental leave. (Sciacca, 7/28)
KFF Health News: Federal Loan Caps Add Barriers — And Likely Debt — For Healthcare Students
The federal government is capping the amount graduate students can borrow. The Department of Education says the new rules are designed to help curb student debt and pressure schools to lower tuition. But some loan experts fear those good intentions could leave many at the mercy of private lenders with higher interest rates. Saddling healthcare graduate students with pricier debt burdens can narrow their career choices. (Sausser, 7/28)
CAPITOL WATCH
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
The Hill: Trump Aid Cuts Put HIV Response At Risk, Reports Show
Funding for the global HIV response plunged in 2025, entirely due to a steep decline in U.S. support, according to reports from KFF and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Taken together, the reports, released at the International AIDS Conference, show decades of progress to combat HIV is at risk. The current HIV response is fragile, and the world is not on track to achieve the 2030 goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat. (Weixel, 7/27)
ProPublica: New Trump Rule Could Exclude U.S. Scientists From Critical Discoveries
For decades, physicists wrestled with a fundamental mystery of the universe. They wanted to know why certain particles — like the protons in atoms — have mass, while particles of light do not. Whatever the reason was, it was crucial to understanding the origins of planets, galaxies and life itself. ... Doing so would require one of the most ambitious international collaborations in scientific history. Starting decades ago, thousands of scientists from dozens of countries worked side by side, even though some of their nations considered one another adversaries. The United States contributed a quarter of the workforce and hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars. (Song, 7/27)
Stat: CMS Assesses Health Tech Progress, Reveals New Pledges
It was a skit worthy of an Agatha Christie whodunit reveal: Against the perhaps-too-joyous strains of a jazzy “When The Saints Go Marching In,” a gaggle of health IT professionals and Medicare staffers accompanied a Spirit Halloween-style coffin prop onstage at Health and Human Services headquarters on Monday. Some wore black veils, some held white roses. The coffin read, “RIP CLIPBOARD,” referring to the decades-old information-gathering staple of health care provider waiting rooms. (Trang, 7/28)
AP: Federal Survey Shows Promising Youth Mental Health Trends
A key U.S. government report on mental health, substance use and addiction showed continued improvements in several metrics, especially among young people. There was some uncertainty about the future of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health last year, when the entire 17-member team responsible for it was laid off by the Trump administration. But the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released the latest report Monday, with data that lets researchers look at trends from 2021 to 2025. (Shastri, 7/27)
CYCLOSPORIASIS OUTBREAK
The Hill: Lawmaker Seeks Records On Taylor Farms And White House Connections
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, on Monday called on Taylor Farms to provide information about its connections with the White House amid a parasitic outbreak potentially linked to the company’s lettuce supply. Garcia wrote a letter to Taylor Farms CEO Bruce Taylor questioning whether the company used its influence on the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) investigation into the outbreak. (Mancini, 7/27)
The Hill: Survey Finds Cyclospora Outbreak Changing Food Habits, Less Trust In FDA
A poll released Sunday shows that 40 percent of U.S. adults are buying or eating less produce after the cyclospora outbreak. Comparatively, according to survey results from CBS/YouGov, 4 percent of people said they are eating more produce. Among respondents, 56 percent said there has been no change in their diet. Earlier this month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched an investigation into the outbreak. (Fields, 7/27)
CNBC: Cyclospora Outbreak Shows Risks Of Consolidated Food Supply
The cyclospora outbreak that has sickened thousands in the U.S. is drawing renewed attention to a decades-long shift in how fresh food moves through the country. While investigators work to identify the original source of contamination, some food safety experts say the industry’s centralized sourcing and distribution networks after a wave of consolidation can help turn what once may have been an isolated contamination event into a multistate outbreak. (Gomez, 7/27)
EBOLA OUTBREAK
CIDRAP: First Volunteer Vaccinated In Ebola Vaccine Trial
The first volunteer has been vaccinated in a phase 1 trial of an investigational vaccine that targets the Bundibugyo virus. The trial is assessing the safety and immune response of ChAdOx1 BDBV in 50 healthy volunteers aged 18 to 55 years. The vaccine was developed by researchers with the Oxford Vaccine Group, which is conducting the trial with support from the Serum Institute of India and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness. (Dall, 7/27)
Medical Xpress: Stockpiled Ebola Vaccines Trigger Antibody Response Against Bundibugyo Virus In Lab Tests
Because there was no licensed vaccine designed specifically for the virus, researchers wanted to know whether vaccines already used for the more common Zaire ebolavirus could be repurposed to help protect people against Bundibugyo virus. Although existing vaccines were designed specifically for the Zaire strain of Ebola, they still activated immune mechanisms that helped the body build a defense against the related Bundibugyo virus. (7/27)
Reuters: Uganda's Health Minister Declares Country Free Of Ebola
Uganda's health minister declared the country Ebola-free on Tuesday following the East African nation's latest outbreak of the viral haemorrhagic disease that infected 20 people and killed two of them. Fifteen people in the latest outbreak, declared in mid-May, were infected in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo - the epicentre of the epidemic where the number of confirmed cases now stands at more than 3,000. (7/28)
MORE OUTBREAKS AND HEALTH THREATS
CIDRAP: Egg-Related Salmonella Outbreak Sickens Nearly 100 In 17 US States
Midwest Poultry Services has recalled 1.6 million cartons of eggs, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a food-safety alert about a 98-case Salmonella outbreak in 17 states. The CDC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and public health authorities are investigating the outbreak, which has led to 26 hospitalizations. Among the 44 patients interviewed, 91% said they ate eggs before symptom onset. The FDA traced the cases to Midwest Poultry Services. (Van Beusekom, 7/27)
CIDRAP: Many Black US Patients With Long COVID Being Missed, Analysis Reveals
A new study suggests that Black patients with acute COVID-19 infection are less likely to be diagnosed as having long COVID than White patients, despite no significant difference in long-COVID symptom burden between the two groups. For the study, published this month in Health Affairs, researchers led by a team at Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley analyzed electronic health records for roughly 2.4 million US patients diagnosed with acute COVID from January 1, 2022, to March 31, 2023. The researchers identified six race and ethnicity categories and 222 symptoms within one year after infection. (Bergeson, 7/27)
VACCINES
HR Dive: Previous Vaccinations Shouldn’t Bar Worker’s Religious Vaccine Exemption Request, 9th Circuit Says
The 9th Circuit’s analysis turned upon the question of whether the plaintiff had sufficiently communicated to her employer how her sincerely held religious belief conflicted with its vaccine mandate. Under both Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, religious discrimination plaintiffs must show that they have a “bona fide religious belief” that conflicts with an employment duty, the court said. The plaintiff also must have informed the employer of the conflict and be able to show that the employer threatened the employee with, or subjected them to, discriminatory treatment because of that conflict. (Golden, 7/27)
HEALTHCARE WORKERS
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: Ohio Doctor Arrested On Rape Charges
An Ohio doctor was arrested Monday after he was accused of sexually assaulting patients during medical examinations. Dr. Ali Ghasemzadeh, 63, is being held in the Brown County Jail without bond, according to jail records. He is charged with rape, sexual battery and gross sexual imposition, all felonies. (Pinckard, 7/28)
MedPage Today: Effort To Unionize 10,000 Attending Physicians Gets Underway
Some doctors are pushing to organize the 10,000 attending physicians within the University of California system, setting in motion what could become the largest union of employed physicians, organizers say. Factors driving the organization effort include hiring freezes, increasing patient loads, long hours, and clinician burnout, some of the attendings said during a news conference at UCSF Medical Center late last week. Some of them had been members of the Committee of Interns and Residents through Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare. (Clark, 7/27)
Becker's Hospital Review: WVU Medicine Gave $25K In Cash To Hundreds Of Aspiring Nurses. Did It Work?
When WVU Medicine started handing aspiring nurses up to $25,000 in cash, the bet was that money for life’s expenses, not just tuition, would keep them in school. Early returns suggest it is. As of late July, the Morgantown, W.Va.-based system had signed 985 students to its Aspiring Nurse Program and expected to cross 1,000 within a month, said Jessica Huffman, DNP, RN, assistant vice president of system nursing services. (Twenter, 7/27)
The Guardian: Misleading AI-Generated Doctors Pose ‘Huge Danger To Public Safety’
Misleading health claims online pose a “huge danger to public safety”, experts have warned, after research has shown that AI-generated doctors are gaining millions of views on TikTok by spreading dubious health advice. The British Medical Association council deputy chair, Dr Emma Runswick, flagged the risks posed by AI accounts that “peddle medical myths and promote so-called miracle cures”. (Pinner, 7/27)
HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY
Asheville Watchdog: HCA In 'Potential Noncompliance' With Mission Sale, AG Warns
A report from the independent monitor tasked with supervising Mission Hospital has found two areas of “potential noncompliance” with the agreement HCA Healthcare signed when buying the hospital in 2019. (Clifford, 7/28)
Daily Herald: 3 Northwest Suburban Hospitals Accused Of Not Properly Providing Pricing Information
Three behavioral health hospitals in the Northwest suburbs are among the medical facilities the Trump administration says have failed to provide the public with basic pricing information. (Lissau, 7/27)
The CT Mirror: CT Hospitals Are Redesigning ERs For Behavioral Health Crises
Emergency rooms aren’t equipped to meet the needs of patients in the midst of a mental health crisis. The rush of people, beeping machines and bright, fluorescent lighting can all worsen anxiety, confusion and agitation. In many cases, hospital safety protocols also require removing all personal belongings from patients arriving with a psychiatric emergency and dressing them in paper gowns without strings or ties that could be used for self-harm. (Golvala, 7/28)
Fierce Healthcare: Current AI Scribe Evaluations Fall Short, Researchers Argue
As adoption of AI ambient scribe technology rapidly grows, the healthcare industry's standard method for evaluating clinical AI notes may be fundamentally flawed, failing to detect significant errors or omissions in patient notes. That's the position among researchers at Suki based on a study of evaluation rubrics. Suki offers an ambient clinical artificial intelligence solution for providers, and it works with more than 400 health systems. (Landi, 7/27)
PHARMA AND TECH
MedPage Today: First-In-Class Drug For ADHD Wins FDA Approval
The FDA approved oral centanafadine (Simtriyo), a first-in-class triple reuptake inhibitor for attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Otsuka announced late last week. The once-daily extended-release capsule -- a norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin reuptake inhibitor that functions as a central nervous system stimulant -- is indicated for patients ages 6 years and older who weigh at least 20 kg (44 lb). "By inhibiting the reuptake of norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin, Simtriyo increases the availability of these neurotransmitters in pathways involved in attention and behavioral regulation," the drugmaker explained. (Monaco, 7/27)
Stat: FDA Questions The Efficacy Of Capricor's Duchenne Drug
The Food and Drug Administration said Monday that Capricor Therapeutics’ stem cell treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy did not meet the objectives of a Phase 3 trial — contrary to the company’s claims last year. (Mast, 7/27)
Stat: How A Single Rare Disease, AATD, Sparked A Biotech Gold Rush
Biotechs are spending billions to cure a rare liver disorder most Americans have never heard of. The contentious race features dueling technologies, patent wars, a broken alliance, and a boiling competition between the U.S. and Chinese drug industries. (Mast, 7/28)
Phys.org: AI Finds Tiny Gene Editor Changes That Reduce Unintended DNA Edits
Gene editing is a highly precise and powerful technology that allows scientists to insert, delete, modify or replace DNA bases in living organisms. It has a variety of uses, including correcting disease-causing mutations and improving crops. Tools like CRISPR act as molecular scissors that target specific places in a genome to make these changes. But the technology is not perfect and can accidentally edit the wrong pieces of DNA or RNA. (Arnold, 7/27)
Medical Xpress: Scientists Decipher How T Cells Sense Enemies—Such As Cancer—At Point Of Contact
Every encounter between a T cell and a potential target—especially when that target is a developing tumor—begins with a rapid series of molecular decisions. Within seconds, the immune cell must determine whether to launch an attack or stand down. T cells are so potent, so potentially devastating, that misreading the situation can cause serious tissue injury. But cancer cells come equipped with a bag of tricks that allows them to disarm these powerful warriors of the immune system. All of these activities, whether mediated by T cells or their targets, occur at split-second speed and unfold at the point of cell-to-cell contact. (Ricks, 7/27)
STATE WATCH
Missouri Independent: Abortion Returns To Southwest Missouri After More Than Two Decades Without Access
It’s been nearly 21 years since Missourians living in Springfield could access abortion without driving at least a couple hours. That ended Monday. (Spoerre, 7/27)
AP: New York Medical Institution Agrees To Boost Sexual Abuse Prevention Program
In a deal that ends a criminal investigation, a prestigious New York City medical institution agreed to boost its sexual abuse prevention program after one of its star doctors was convicted of abusing patients during a decade-long span and was sentenced to life behind bars, authorities said Monday. Weill Cornell Medicine, whose faculty treats patients at several New York-area hospitals, reached a voluntary compliance agreement with the federal government that calls for it to spend $30 million to create the Institute for Safe Patient Care and Patient Empowerment. (Neumeister, 7/27)
AP: Psychologist Says Georgia School Shooter Had A Chaotic Childhood
The teenager who killed two students and two teachers in a 2024 shooting at Georgia’s Apalachee High School had a chaotic, lonely upbringing and immersed himself in an online community of people interested in mass shootings, a psychologist testified Monday. Colt Gray, 16, pleaded guilty Friday to 55 counts, including murder, in the Sept. 4, 2024, shooting that also left several others wounded at the school about 45 miles (73 kilometers) northeast of Atlanta. (Brumback, 7/27)
San Francisco Chronicle: ‘Significant Flea Infestation’ Closes Popular Marin Playground
A popular Marin County playground has temporarily closed because of a “significant flea infestation,” leaving Fairfax officials to determine how to eliminate the pests without violating the town’s prohibition on pesticides on public property. The town closed Peri Park playground immediately and expected it to remain off-limits for approximately two weeks, according to a notice posted Friday. Officials had not announced a treatment plan or firm reopening date as of Monday. (Vaziri, 7/27)
LIFESTYLE AND HEALTH
Phys.org: Kids Who Own Cellphones Have Poorer Reading Comprehension Scores Than Those Who Don't, Researchers Find
School cellphone bans might seem like a good way to improve learning for elementary school children, but new research published in Behavioral Sciences shows that simply owning a cellphone correlates with worse reading comprehension. Whether a child brings the phone to school made no difference in reading comprehension, the team of UCLA psychologists and researchers found. (Ober, 7/27)
The Washington Post: How Financial Stress Can Affect The Brain Over The Long Term
The stress of being poor can cause long-term damage to your brain, according to a new study. British scientists examined a group of more than 2,700 people who were all born in March 1946, meaning they are now 80 years old, who agreed to have their health and social circumstances tracked for years. (Weil, 7/27)
The New York Times: Hiker Trekked 10 Miles To Safety After Impaling Himself On Pole
David Cifaldi was hiking up Granite Peak, Montana’s tallest mountain, last week when he slipped and fell on one of his trekking poles. A wound nurse, he went into survival mode. (Tumin, 7/27)
