Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
GAO: Trump Can't Void Millions That Congress OK'd Spending On HHS Programs
AP: Watchdog Says Trump Can't Cancel More Than $800M In Spending
President Donald Trump is not permitted to withhold beyond the end of the fiscal year ending Wednesday more than $800 million in spending approved by Congress. That’s according to a review from the Government Accountability Office that was sent to federal lawmakers and Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday. The president announced his intention on Friday night to impound more than $800 million from 11 appropriations accounts, using a rare and contested power to axe funding for immigrant services and diversity-focused initiatives. (Freking, 9/29)
KFF Health News: US Poised To Boot Legal Immigrants From Medicaid, Including Refugees And Sex-Trafficking Victims
Hundreds of thousands of immigrants with legal status are at risk of losing government health coverage starting Oct. 1, state data shows, signaling that the impact of Medicaid changes in President Donald Trump’s signature legislation from 2025 may be greater than anticipated. Many lawfully present immigrants will be among the first people to lose Medicaid coverage under congressional Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is expected to cut spending by more than $900 billion through 2034 for the state-federal health program for people with low incomes or disabilities. The law will strip many more immigrants of their Affordable Care Act plan subsidies and Medicare coverage next year. (Galewitz, Jones and Boyd-Barrett, 9/30)
More on the immigration crisis —
The Washington Post: Supreme Court Allows ‘Third Country’ Deportations To Resume For Now
The Trump administration can resume deporting certain migrants to countries where they are not citizens for the time being, while the justices hear arguments and make a final ruling on the policy, a divided Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. The ruling is a temporary victory for a centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda and sets up a major Supreme Court argument in December over the controversial policy. (Mark and Jouvenal, 9/29)
The New York Times: Man Shot By ICE Agent In Austin Is Charged With Assault
Prosecutors say Wilber Garces Perez struck an agent with his car’s mirror before another agent shot him. ... A spokeswoman for Mr. Garces Perez’s lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said in a statement that the charges were surprising. Noting that a bullet remains lodged in Mr. Garces Perez’s body, the statement condemned the Department of Homeland Security’s actions. “Rather than provide the life saving medical care he needs, D.H.S. and the government are playing games with his life,” the statement said. (Sandoval and Aleaziz, 9/29)
The 19th: How Trump's Immigration Crackdown Is Harming Children
President Donald Trump has revived a policy change from his first term that gives immigration agents broad authority to deny green cards and visas to applicants who have received public benefits — or whose families have. The change to what’s known as the public charge rule took effect on September 18. (Becker, 9/28)
AP: Newsom Signs Law Banning Officers From Using Shock Gloves
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law Tuesday banning local, state and federal law enforcement officers from using gloves that can deliver painful electric shocks to people. The ban on shock gloves will take effect next year and remain in place until 2030. It comes weeks after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement moved to equip its officers with the gloves, which are designed to gain compliance from combative individuals. Last month, the agency awarded a nearly $17 million contract to buy 6,000 pairs. (Austin, 9/29)
