Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
More Public Health Webpages Are Scrubbed, Federal Databases Removed
ABC News: Multiple Health Agency Websites On HIV, Contraception Taken Down To Comply With Executive Orders
Government agency webpages about HIV, LGBTQ+ people and multiple other public health topics were down as of Friday evening due to President Donald Trump's executive orders aimed at gender ideology and diversity, equity and inclusion. Some of the terms being flagged for removal include pregnant people, chestfeeding, diversity, DEI and references to vaccines, health and gender equity, according to officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who spoke to ABC News on the condition of anonymity. Entire databases have also been temporarily removed. (Wang, Portnoy, Haslett, Brownstein and Benadjaoud, 1/31)
Stat: NSF Restores Payments After Pause Due To Trump Order
On Sunday, the National Science Foundation announced that its payment system was back online to comply with a judge’s order, five days after the agency froze funding to researchers. While post-doctoral fellows were relieved that they could now request the checks they rely on to pay for rent, food, and credit card bills, some remain concerned about what they see as contradictory messages that the funding agency has put out, and worry their grants and livelihoods may still be at risk. (Boodman, 2/2)
On USAID and international health care —
The Hill: USAID Leaders Escorted Out Of Building After Blocking DOGE Access To Secure Systems
Senior officials at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were placed on administrative leave after they refused to turn over classified material to teams from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Officials spoke with The Associated Press on Sunday to say USAID members were eventually unsuccessful and DOGE teams were able to gain access to some of the agency’s classified information, including intelligence reports. (Irwin, 2/2)
NPR: Why Does Musk Want USAID 'to Die'? And Why Did Its Website Disappear?
It's been a tumultuous weekend for USAID — the U.S. Agency for International Development. On Saturday sometime after 3 a.m., its website went down, according to the Internet Archive, a nonprofit group that tracks web pages. Some browsers display the error message: "This site can't be reached. Check if there is a typo in www.usaid.gov." The agency's account on X (formerly Twitter) has also been deleted. (Schreiber, 2/3)
San Francisco Chronicle: Silicon Valley Legislators: Trump’s ‘Cruelty’ To Hamper Health, Safety
Silicon Valley politicians denounced President Donald Trump’s decision to freeze funding to states and international aid organizations, saying Saturday that his executive orders threaten public health locally and abroad. Democratic Reps. Zoe Lofgren, Ro Khanna and Sam Liccardo slammed Trump’s recent slate of executive orders during a news conference in San Jose. They argued that his tariffs will make it harder to build housing and that his attempts at mass deportation will hamper law enforcement efforts. (Leonard, 2/1)
The New York Times: Health Programs Shutter Around The World After Trump Pauses Foreign Aid
Lifesaving health initiatives and medical research projects have shut down around the world in response to the Trump administration’s 90-day pause on foreign aid and stop-work orders. In Uganda, the National Malaria Control Program has suspended spraying insecticide into village homes and ceased shipments of bed nets for distribution to pregnant women and young children, said Dr. Jimmy Opigo, the program’s director. Medical supplies, including drugs to stop hemorrhages in pregnant women and rehydration salts that treat life-threatening diarrhea in toddlers, cannot reach villages in Zambia. (Nolen, 2/1)
ProPublica: “People Will Die”: The Trump Administration Said It Lifted Its Ban on Lifesaving Humanitarian Aid. That’s Not True.
Organizations that provide vital care for desperate and vulnerable people around the world have been forced to halt operations, turn away patients and lay off staff. “I’ve never seen anything that scares me as much as this,” one doctor said. (Murphy and Barry-Jester, 1/31)
AP: WHO Chief Asks Countries To Push Washington To Reconsider Its Withdrawal
The World Health Organization chief asked global leaders to lean on Washington to reverse President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the U.N. health agency, insisting in a closed-door meeting with diplomats last week that the U.S. will miss out on critical information about global disease outbreaks. But countries also pressed WHO at a key budget meeting last Wednesday about how it might cope with the exit of its biggest donor, according to internal meeting materials obtained by The Associated Press. A German envoy, Bjorn Kummel, warned: “The roof is on fire, and we need to stop the fire as soon as possible.” (Cheng and Keaten, 2/3)
