First Edition: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
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Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial writers discuss these public health issues.
Heading toward the midterm elections, the Trump administration will argue that its agenda is addressing issues including too few physicians and too much paperwork, The Washington Post reported. But critics have pointed to other administration policies, including the significant reductions to Medicaid funding, as harmful.
Meanwhile, a proposed rule from CMS would require Medicare Advantage plans to respond to medication prior authorization requests within 24 or 72 hours, depending on urgency.
The first long-term study in the U.S. shows that drinking fluoridated water has no negative effect on cognition up to the age of 80. The use of fluoridated water has been shown to reduce tooth decay by 25%. Two states have banned the mineral, while several others have similar legislation pending.
Inspectors for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have faulted seven Ohio facilities for discharging people to homeless shelters, which aren't capable of caring for seniors with medical needs. Often, the issues trace back to insurers that cut off residents’ benefits, Signal Ohio reported.
Houman Hemmati, who criticized the government's response to the covid pandemic, is in the running to replace Vinay Prasad as the director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, sources told The Washington Post.
Stat reported that patients who took the daily pill, called daraxonrasib, lived a median of 13.2 months compared with 6.7 months for patients who received chemotherapy. One of the trial's participants, former U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska, said, "This experience has seemingly extended both quantity and quality of [my] life.”
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers delve into these public health topics.
Stat reports that some health systems are trying to find a way to reach the huge proportion of people turning to AI for health care questions. Also: ER workers weigh in on nine things "The Pitt" gets right.
There are no national standards for schools regarding heat safety. Until there are federal regulations in place, schools will continue to be constrained by their budgets. Also: red light therapy; reversing cellular aging; and more.
Health insurance companies and states would also have to publicly disclose their denial rates for meds. Meanwhile, Medicare enrollees will soon have access to a digital health record system, enabling them to share records with providers.
The protein craze promoted by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has more people adding red meat and poultry to their diets. Health experts say overloading on inflammation-inducing saturated fats and meat-based minerals can cause myriad problems. Plus, the nonbuzz about raw milk.
Lungs have been found to release protein particles that the covid virus needs to enter healthy cells. Those particles move throughout the body, expanding the number of cells the virus can infect and causing immune and blood vessel cells to become vulnerable. This discovery of cell-to-cell communication might lead to better treatment for infections.
Inspectors aren't finding evidence of widespread fraud, state Medicaid director John Connolly said, adding the revalidation process of more than 5,000 providers should be completed by the end of May. Plus: Louisiana's anti-abortion effort; punitive damages in an infant formula case; and more.
Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Each week, KFF Health News finds longer stories for you to enjoy. Today's selections are on Artemis II, people who are in a persistent vegetative state, the health effects of plastic, and more.
Opinion writers examine these public health issues.
The high-alcohol libations are packaged in pretty colors and concocted with flavors reminiscent of childhood drinks — an appealing mix to underage consumers, a substance abuse expert claims. Plus, a family blames an energy drink for the death of their Texas teen.
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