Latest KFF Health News Stories
FDA Alleges Uniqure Misrepresented Request In Rare-Disease Drug Approval
FDA and HHS officials have publicly attacked Uniqure, the biotech company seeking approval for a Huntington’s disease treatment, and accused it of lying about requests made by the FDA for additional studies involving placebo brain surgery, which the company has characterized as unethical. The company says the anonymous FDA statements “are incomplete or entirely incorrect.”
Community Health Systems Selling 4 Arkansas Hospitals To Pay Down Debt
Missouri-based Freeman Health System has agreed to buy the hospitals, along with outpatient centers and physician practices, allowing it to expand its reach into neighboring Arkansas. Plus, Amazon Web Services, CVS Health, and Salesforce move forward with AI health tools.
White House Expands Medicaid Fraud Probe, Turns Spotlight To New York
The look at New York’s program comes a week after the Trump administration froze nearly $260 million of Minnesota’s Medicaid funding. Also in the news: the impact of the Medicaid work mandate on homeless Californians; the rate of Tylenol use by pregnant women in ERs after President Donald Trump’s September autism comments; and more.
Noem Ousted As DHS Chief Amid Scrutiny Over Immigration Crackdown
According to two people who spoke to The Washington Post on condition of anonymity, President Trump told advisers that he had grown increasingly unhappy with Kristi Noem after the surge of thousands of immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota in December and January, an escalation that led to the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at the VA.
First Edition: Friday, March 6, 2026
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Research Roundup: The Latest Science, Discoveries, And Breakthroughs
Each week, KFF Health News compiles a selection of health policy studies and briefs.
Missouri Lawmaker: Money Meant For Needy Sent To Anti-Abortion Centers
In recent years, at least eight states have given funds, meant to help families experiencing poverty, to crisis pregnancy centers. As many as $2 of every $3 for pregnancy centers in Missouri is expected to come from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program in the 2026 fiscal year.
Opinion writers delve into these public health topics.
A Month After Launch, TrumpRx Faces Lack Of Metrics, Drug Availability
STAT reports that administration officials have declined to offer details on the number of new drugs expected to be added, when that might happen, or how many people have used the site.
Study: GLP-1s May Help Fight Addiction To Smoking, Alcohol, Opioids
Meanwhile, Eli Lilly has launched an Employer Contract, its direct-to-employer platform for GLP-1s. Plus, researchers find that most patients can keep the weight off with less frequent GLP-1 shots.
Texas ICE Facility That’s On Lockdown For Measles Has Contract Reassessed
The Department of Homeland Security has faced growing scrutiny over the living conditions at Camp East Montana, a detention center at Fort Bliss in El Paso. Plus: A Haitian man has died at an Arizona detention center after suffering an untreated toothache, his brother says.
RFK Jr. Decides What Public Health Proof Is Within HHS Purview, DOJ Says
In a lawsuit challenging the legality of changes made to the country’s vaccine policy, the government contends Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may choose what evidence to consider and whom to consult, Stat reported.
At Hearing, House GOP Scolds Minn. Governor Over Medicaid Fraud Scandal
Democratic Gov. Tim Walz said the government has flooded his state with ICE agents “under the guise of combating fraud.” Plus: The New York Times reviewed nearly 200 lawsuits challenging the president’s power to withhold funding, including from hospitals that don’t alter their services and nonprofits that don’t embrace his gender views.
First Edition: Thursday, March 5, 2026
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial writers examine these public health issues.
CVS Warns Tenn. Bill Would ‘Devastate’ Access, Force 134 Pharmacies To Close
Legislation in the state Senate would ban pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) — such as CVS Caremark — from owning or controlling pharmacies in Tennessee.
2 Patient-Assistance Charity Groups Merge To Form $800M Foundation
The merger of the Patient Advocate Foundation and the Patient Access Network Foundation will allow them to better serve low- and middle-income patients facing rising health care costs, leaders say. Also: Insurers react to CMS’ proposed 2027 Medicare Advantage rates.
Jury Finds Father Of Georgia School Shooting Suspect Guilty Of Murder
Colin Gray, who gave his teenage son a gun for Christmas, was found guilty Tuesday of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. His sentencing will take place at a later date. Other news from around the nation is on drug affordability in Virginia; mental health courts in California; and more.
US Maternal Mortality Rate Dipped Again In 2024, CDC Data Indicate
Black women — with 44.8 deaths per 100,000 live births — and those aged 40 and older — with 62.3 deaths per 100,000 live births — had the highest mortality rates, according to CDC data. The 2024 U.S. maternal mortality rate is the lowest it has been since 2018.
