Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Residency Match Rates Largely Stable As Pool Of Applicants Grows
MedPage Today: Match Rates Hold Steady As Applicants Reach Record High
The 2025 Match cycle reached another all-time high with an increase of 4.1% applicants over last year's record, the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) reported Friday. Of 52,498 applicants who were registered, 47,208 submitted a certified rank order list to compete for 43,237 positions, which were likewise up 4.2% from 2024. Of the active applicants, 37,667 matched to a postgraduate year 1 (PGY-1) position, representing an increase of 4.7% from last year. (Henderson, 3/21)
San Francisco Chronicle: For UC And CSU Applicants, Nursing Is The Most Competitive Major
Winning admission into the University of California’s most competitive majors — including computer science, engineering and business — is about as likely as hitting a home run your first time at bat. Yet even those subjects are not the hardest to get into. That honor belongs to nursing, for which you might have to hit two home runs. In a row. Just 1% of the nearly 6,000 yearly applicants to UC’s undergraduate nursing programs, at UCLA and UC Irvine, are permitted to walk through the door. (Asimov, 3/22)
More health industry news —
CBS News: Nurses At Butler Memorial Hospital Picketing Today For Safer Working Conditions
Nurses in Butler County will be picketing today, adding their voices to a growing call for change when it comes to violence against healthcare workers. Workers will be doing informational picketing on Monday as they call for Independence Health System to increase safety measures, including having metal detectors at all of the entrances to Butler Memorial. (Shinn, 3/24)
The Wall Street Journal: Doctors Are Just As Frustrated As You By Our Messed Up Healthcare System
Doctors have a message for patients: Trust is a two-way street. A recent Turning Points column discussed patients’ eroding trust in doctors, who for better or worse, are the front face of the healthcare system. Readers shared stories of rushed appointments, disjointed care and communication breakdowns. (Ansberry, 3/22)
The Washington Post: A Precise Way To Measure Pain Still Eludes Doctors And Sufferers
Madison Evans was 16 when she first felt the sharp pain in her lower pelvis, pain that radiated through her back and grew so severe that some days she could not get out of bed. Pain relievers “couldn’t touch it,” she said. “Sports, social events, whatever was on the calendar had to be cleared.” The pediatricians Evans visited during her adolescence in Severna Park, Maryland, never asked her to rate the pain. Instead they told her, “The cramps are bad when you’re young,” and “You’ll grow out of it,” then prescribed the ineffective pills. (Johnson, 3/23)
Modern Healthcare: Baptist Health, Clovis Community Sue HHS Over Low DSH Payments
More health systems are suing the federal government to recoup alleged underpayments for treating Medicare patients. Dozens of hospitals and health systems allege the Health and Human Services Department collectively owes them billions of dollars in Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments, which are meant to bolster providers that treat many low-income patients. (Kacik, 3/21)
In pharmaceutical news —
Modern Healthcare: J&J To Invest $55B In US Manufacturing, Research, Technology
Johnson & Johnson announced on Friday that it will invest $55 billion in U.S. manufacturing, research and development, and technology over the next four years. The planned spending represents a 25% increase compared with the company’s investments in the previous four years. (Dubinsky, 3/21)
