Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: Doctors Should Strike If RFK Jr. Doesn’t Resign; The Struggle To Access Covid Vaccines Has Begun
Stat: If RFK Jr. Doesn’t Resign, Physicians Should Join A Limited Strike
On behalf of the misleadingly named Make America Healthy Again movement, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has launched an undisciplined assault on biomedical science and public health: defunding research at the National Institutes of Health, canceling mRNA vaccine studies, purging dedicated government scientists, gutting the Preventive Services Task Force and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, and trying to force millions off Medicaid. (Richard L. Kravitz, 9/12)
The Washington Post: How To Access Covid Vaccines In Your State
Despite Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s assurances that anyone who wants a coronavirus vaccine can receive one, many readers wrote about their difficulties accessing the updated 2025-2026 shot. In today’s newsletter, I wanted to share their stories and provide some advice for people seeking the vaccines. (Leana S. Wen, 9/11)
The Washington Post: The Exorbitant Cost Of Going Without Vaccines
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts to undermine vaccines in America are not just scientifically absurd. They’re also financially ruinous. The costs of medical care in the United States have been skyrocketing for years, forcing health insurers to raise their premiums faster than overall inflation and pushing Medicare’s trust fund ever deeper into trouble. (Donald G. McNeil Jr., 9/12)
The Washington Post: Health Insurance Premiums Poised To Spike Over Drug Costs, Tariff Threats
Health insurance costs in the United States are on track for their biggest jump in at least five years, according to multiple surveys, adding turbulence to an uncertain economy and boosting expenses for millions of Americans already beset by inflation. (Peter Whoriskey and Paige Winfield Cunningham, 9/12)
The New York Times: Trump’s Policies Are Endangering Your Health
President Trump has turned Make America Healthy Again into one of his administration’s signature promises. It is a laudable goal, too. By several measures, the United States is the world’s least healthy high-income country. As is so often the case with Mr. Trump, however, he has both identified a real problem and enacted a set of policies that will worsen that problem. (9/12)
Kansas City Star: Kansas City Doctors Have New Treatment For Migraine Headaches
Few diseases cause as much misery as migraine headaches, the world’s most prevalent neurological malady. More than 1 billion people get migraines. Almost all are young, and most are female. Migraines are a common cause of missed work. They affect about 10% of school children and 20% of women, and generate an emergency room visit every 10 seconds. Lost productivity and migraine-associated medical expenses are estimated at more than $40 billion per year. (John C. Hagan III, 9/11)
