Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
From KFF Health News - Latest Stories:
KFF Health News Original Stories
Human, Bird, or Dog Waste? Scientists Parsing Poop To Aid DC’s Forgotten River
A huge infrastructure project coupled with a new scientific review of microbes in the water could be bringing Washington, D.C., closer to a once-unimaginable goal — a safely swimmable Anacostia River.
Republicans Once Wanted Government out of Health Care. Trump Voters See It Differently.
Frustrated by high health care prices, many who backed President Donald Trump support strong government actions to protect patients. It’s unclear whether GOP leaders will listen.
Political Cartoon: 'Health Nut?'
KFF Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Political Cartoon: 'Health Nut?'" by Sarah Morrissette.
Here's today's health policy haiku:
A BAD CASE OF FLU SEASON
So much flu this year.
— Anonymous
Vaccines this year a good match?
We may never know.
If you have a health policy haiku to share, please Contact Us and let us know if we can include your name. Haikus follow the format of 5-7-5 syllables. We give extra brownie points if you link back to an original story.
Opinions expressed in haikus and cartoons are solely the author's and do not reflect the opinions of KFF Health News or KFF.
Summaries Of The News:
Vaccines
FDA Scraps Panel Meeting That Advises On Vaccines For Next Season's Flu
NBC News: FDA Cancels Meeting To Select Flu Strains For Next Season's Shots
A Food and Drug Administration vaccine advisory committee meeting scheduled for March to select the strains to be included in next season's flu shot has been canceled, a panel member said Wednesday. Federal health officials notified members of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee of the cancelation in an email Wednesday afternoon, said committee member Dr. Paul Offit, the director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. (Lovelace Jr., 2/27)
On the measles outbreak —
NBC News: First Measles Death Reported In Texas As Kennedy Downplays The Outbreak
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday appeared to downplay the seriousness of the West Texas measles outbreak that has killed a school-age child. The child’s death, the first from the disease in a decade in the United States, was confirmed by Katherine Wells, director of public health at the health department in Lubbock, Texas. The child had not been vaccinated against the measles. The outbreak has so far infected at least 124 people — mostly children — in rural West Texas. (Edwards, 2/26)
Bloomberg: As Measles Cases Surge In Texas, WHO’s Global Control Program Risks Collapse
The World Health Organization has warned that its largest global laboratory network is on the brink of collapse unless new funding is secured to replace the support lost after President Donald Trump’s order to withdraw from the United Nations agency. The Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network — known internally as “Gremlin” — is the backbone of efforts to track and control infectious threats. With 760 labs worldwide, it tests about 500,000 patient samples annually, identifying outbreaks before they cross borders. Its potential collapse threatens the elimination of measles, which killed a school-age child in a growing outbreak in Texas. (Gale, 2/26)
CBS News: Health Officials Say Orange County Infant With Measles Traveled Through LAX In Early January
Health officials on Tuesday advised the public that a person with a confirmed case of measles traveled through Los Angeles International Airport earlier this month. The person, an infant from Orange County, arrived at the airport's Tom Bradley International Terminal following an overseas trip aboard Korean Air Flight KAL11/KE11 on Feb 19, according to health officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and the Orange County Health Care Agency. (Fioresi, 2/26)
On the chikungunya vaccine —
CNN: CDC Investigating Hospitalizations Of Five People Who Recently Received Chikungunya Vaccine
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is currently investigating five hospitalizations that occurred in people who had recently received a vaccine that prevents disease caused by the chikungunya virus. (Howard, 2/26)
On long covid in children —
CIDRAP: Imaging Shows Significant Lung Injury In Kids With Long COVID
Children and teens with long COVID have significant lung abnormalities detected with an advanced form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), called free-breathing phase-resolved functional lung (PREFUL) MRI. The findings were published yesterday in Radiology. (Soucheray, 2/26)
CIDRAP: Vaccinated Kids At 57% To 73% Lower Risk Of Long COVID, CDC Study Suggests
MRNA vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 was tied to a 57% and 73% lower risk of having at least one or two long-COVID symptoms, respectively, in US children ages 5 to 17 years, according to a case-control study led by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (Van Beusekom, 2/25)
White House Reconsidering Moderna's Bird Flu Vaccine Contract
Bloomberg: Trump Team Considers Pulling Funding For Moderna Bird Flu Vaccine
US health officials are reevaluating a $590 million contract for bird flu shots that the Biden administration awarded to Moderna Inc., people familiar with the matter said. The review is part of a government push to examine spending on messenger RNA-based vaccines, the technology that powered Moderna’s Covid vaccine. The bird flu shot contract was awarded to Moderna in the Biden administration’s final days, sending the company’s stock up 13% in the two days following the Jan. 17 announcement. (Muller, Griffin and Swetlitz, 2/26)
CBS News: U.S. Officials Walk Back Plans To Stop Culling Poultry For Bird Flu
U.S. Department of Agriculture officials said Wednesday that there are "no anticipated changes" to the current federal policy requiring poultry to be culled in response to bird flu outbreaks, which have driven up egg prices to record highs in recent months. The decision marks a rebuke of an idea floated by Trump administration officials in recent weeks to change the policy. More than 35 million birds have been killed in response to bird flu outbreaks in commercial flocks so far this year, according to the USDA's figures. (Tin, 2/26)
Stat: Trump Administration Shifts Bird Flu Policy From Health To Egg Prices
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday an additional $1 billion to help the nation’s poultry industry combat an accelerating outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza, which has devastated farmers and driven the price of eggs to record highs. The infusion is part of a new strategy under the Trump administration that aims to boost financial relief to farmers whose flocks have been affected by the bird flu and aid in increasing biosecurity measures to prevent the spread from wild birds to domestic poultry operations. It also sets aside funds to develop vaccines and therapeutics for laying chickens. (Molteni and Branswell, 2/26)
CIDRAP: CDC Shares Clinical And Sequencing Details From 3 Recent Human H5N1 Cases
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today shared new sequencing findings on samples from two people with H5N1 avian flu infections, one a patient from Wyoming who was hospitalized after contact with backyard poultry and the other a dairy worker from Nevada. It also fleshed out clinical findings for the two patients, plus another from Ohio. (Schnirring, 2/26)
Also —
The New York Times: Trump Administration Ends Global Health Research Program
An obscure but influential program that gave detailed public health information to about half of the world’s nations will fold as a result of the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign aid. With funding from the United States Agency for International Development, the Demographic and Health Surveys were the only sources of information in many countries about maternal and child health and mortality, nutrition, reproductive health and H.I.V. infections, among many other health indicators. (Mandavilli, 2/26)
MedPage Today: Proposed Legislation Targets Breaking Up NIAID
Proposed legislation, should it make its way through Congress, would dismantle the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) as it currently exists, replacing it with three separate research institutes. The bill would replace NIAID with a new National Institute of Allergic Diseases, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, and National Institute of Immunologic Diseases, according to an announcement from its sponsor, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas). (Henderson, 2/26)
Administration News
Trump Administration Ends Nearly All USAID Programs
NPR: Nearly All USAID Programs Have Been Cut By The Trump Administration
The Trump administration is terminating thousands of USAID foreign assistance grants and awards, according to the State Department. The move effectively guts the six-decade-old agency. Elisha Dunn-Georgiou, president and CEO of the Global Health Council, said the situation is "horrible." She said that even some of the programs that had received waivers for being "life saving humanitarian assistance" – including ones that provided HIV medications – have now received termination notices. (Tanis and Langfitt, 2/26)
Politico: Chief Justice Allows Trump Administration To Keep Foreign Aid Frozen For Now
Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday night granted a respite to the Trump administration as it seeks to keep billions of dollars in foreign aid frozen, despite a judge’s order directing the administration to resume payments immediately. Roberts’ intervention heads off the possibility of administration officials being held in contempt for failing to comply with the order from U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, who imposed a deadline of 11:59 p.m. Wednesday for the federal government to pay nearly $2 billion in unpaid invoices from foreign-aid contractors. (Gerstein and Cheney, 2/26)
The Washington Post: Musk Claims DOGE ‘Restored’ Ebola Prevention Effort. Officials Disagree.
Elon Musk on Wednesday acknowledged that the U.S. DOGE Service “accidentally canceled” efforts by the U.S. Agency for International Development to prevent the spread of Ebola — but the billionaire entrepreneur insisted that the initiative was quickly restored. “When we make a mistake, we’ll fix it very quickly,” Musk said at a meeting of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet officials. “So we restored the Ebola prevention immediately. And there was no interruption.” Yet current and former USAID officials said that Musk was wrong: USAID’s Ebola prevention efforts have been largely halted since Musk and his DOGE allies moved last month to gut the global-assistance agency and freeze its outgoing payments, they said. (Diamond and Hudson, 1/26)
On NIH funding —
NPR: NIH Partially Lifts Freeze On Funding Process For Medical Research
The Trump administration has partially lifted a hold that had frozen ability of the National Institutes of Health to review new grant applications for research into diseases ranging from heart disease and COVID to Alzheimer's and allergies. The freeze occurred because the Trump administration had blocked the NIH from posting any new notices in the Federal Register, which is required before many federal meetings can be held. The stoppage forced the agency to cancel meetings to review thousands of grant applications. (Stein, 2/26)
Stat: Trump NIH Indirect Costs: Why Foundations Pay Less For Overhead
One of the key justifications the Trump administration has offered for its bombshell proposal to sharply cut what the National Institutes of Health pays research grant recipients for overhead costs is that most private organizations place similar restrictions on funding for what’s known as indirect costs. (Oza, 2/27)
Talk to us —
We’d like to speak with personnel from the Department of Health and Human Services or its component agencies about what’s happening within the federal health bureaucracy. Please message us on Signal at (415) 519-8778 or get in touch here.
On VA funding —
The Hill: VA Reverses Course, Halts Contract Cancellations After Pressure From Congress
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on Wednesday paused an effort to terminate hundreds of contracts after pressure from Democrat lawmakers, according to Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee ranking member Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). The major reversal, which came a day after VA Secretary Doug Collins publicly touted the cancellation of up to 875 contracts in a video posted to social media, was relayed in an email to agency staff. (Mitchell, 2/26)
Military.Com: VA Research On Cancer, Suicide Prevention, Toxic Exposure At Risk From Federal Hiring Freeze
Hundreds of Department of Veterans Affairs medical research projects are being threatened by a hiring freeze across the federal government, a pair of top Democratic senators warned in a letter to the department this week. About 200 research personnel could be cut and an estimated 370 studies and clinical trials could be canceled or suspended in the next 90 days if the freeze isn't lifted, the senators said, "directly impacting up to 10,000 veterans currently participating in research studies." (Kheel, 2/26)
On climate change —
Politico: EPA Moves To Ditch Finding That Greenhouse Gases Cause Harm
The Environmental Protection Agency will move to reverse its 2009 declaration that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare — a step that would threaten most major climate regulations and make it harder for future presidents to enact new ones. Three people granted anonymity to discuss the action said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has recommended to the White House that the agency overhaul the finding, which underpins all Clean Air Act climate regulations. (Chemnick, Colman, Guillén and Cama, 2/26)
Pharmaceuticals
Eli Lilly To Spend Billions Shifting Its Drugmaking To US
FiercePharma: With $27B Plan To Build 4 New Plants, Eli Lilly Doubles Down On US Drug Manufacturing
On Wednesday, Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly said it will begin construction this year on four new production facilities in the U.S. The $27 billion effort more than doubles what the company has earmarked for domestic manufacturing since 2020, bringing the total outlay to more than $50 billion. "This represents the largest pharmaceutical expansion investment in U.S. history," Lilly CEO David Ricks, said during the press event, calling the new facilities "mega sites." (Dunleavy, 2/26)
Axios: A New Era Of Made In America Drug Manufacturing
Reshoring pharmaceutical manufacturing would be a shift for the industry, which still sources most drug ingredients from overseas and has seen its global supply chains buckle from disease outbreaks and natural disasters. Now, political winds from Washington could force a reckoning. (Reed, 2/27)
On prescription drug costs —
Modern Healthcare: PBM Legislation Will Pass In 2025, Lawmakers Say
Lawmakers who support tough rules on pharmacy benefit managers reaffirmed their ambitions to reanimate legislation that nearly passed Congress in December. The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Health Subcommittee relaunched the push at a hearing Tuesday that featured declarations from majority Republicans and minority Democrats that they will tackle high pharmaceutical prices and limited competition in the PBM market through bills that have lingered for more than a year without final action. (McAuliff, 2/26)
KFF Health News: Republicans Once Wanted Government Out Of Health Care. Trump Voters See It Differently
Like many Americans who voted for Donald Trump, Jason Rouse hopes the president’s return will mean lower prices for gas, groceries, and other essentials. But Rouse is looking to the federal government for relief from one particular pain point: high health care costs. “The prices are just ridiculous,” said Rouse, 53, a retired Michigan firefighter and paramedic who has voted for Trump three times. “I’d like to see a lower cap on what I have to pay out-of-pocket.” (Levey, 2/27)
Have you experienced Rx sticker shock? —
The podcast “An Arm and a Leg” is collecting stories from listeners about what they’ve done to get the prescription drugs they need when facing sticker shock. If you’re interested in contributing, you can learn more and submit your stories here.
On artificial intelligence —
Modern Healthcare: Philips Updates AI Tech For MRI Scanners
Philips released an updated artificial intelligence technology for its MRI scanners on Wednesday called SmartSpeed Precise, which the company says triples exam speed and improves image resolution by 80%. The release is the latest iteration of Philips’ SmartSpeed AI-powered MRI acceleration software, which received Food and Drug Administration clearance in July 2022. (Dubinsky, 2/26)
Modern Healthcare: UnitedHealthcare's AI Lawsuit Not Deterring Claims Automation
A recent court ruling on UnitedHealth Group’s use of automation in the claims process may signal what’s ahead for its competitors. Earlier this month, a federal judge partially advanced a potential class action lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group and its UnitedHealthcare insurance unit over their alleged use of artificial intelligence to deny post-acute care for some Medicare Advantage members. That could spell bad news for other insurers like Humana and Cigna that also automate the process and have seen lawsuits filed against them, legal experts said. (Berryman, 2/26)
Health Industry
Malpractice Standards Change From 'Medical Custom' To 'Evidence-Based'
MedPage Today: Legal Group Issues 'Restatement' Of Medical Malpractice Law
The American Law Institute — an organization of judges, professors, and practicing attorneys — published a new standard for medical malpractice that takes into account evidence-based medicine. "The new standard of care ... represents a shift away from strict reliance on medical custom and invites courts to incorporate evidence-based medicine in malpractice law," wrote Christopher Robertson, JD, PhD, of the Boston University School of Law, and co-authors in JAMA. (Frieden, 2/26)
More health industry developments —
The New York Times: Organ Transplant System ‘In Chaos’ As Waiting Lists Are Ignored
The sickest patients are supposed to get priority for lifesaving transplants. But more and more, they are being skipped over. (Rosenthal, Hansen and White, 2/26)
Stat: New York Congressman Launches Examination Of UnitedHealth Clinics In Hudson Valley
Following complaints from constituents, a New York congressman is launching an examination of UnitedHealth Group’s management of large physician groups in the state’s Hudson Valley region. (Ross, 2/26)
Axios: Telehealth Advocates Turn Up The Pressure As Medicare Deadline Nears
Providers, patients and digital health companies are ramping up their calls for more certainty that Medicare will continue to reimburse them for telehealth appointments after the current authority to do so expires on April 1. (Goldman, 2/27)
Stat: Medicare Advantage Enrollment Growth Slows Sharply, Misses Estimates
The number of people enrolled in a private Medicare Advantage plan grew just 3.1% from 2024 to 2025 — well below projections from the federal government and Wall Street, and one of the slowest years of growth ever in the program. (Herman, 2/26)
Modern Healthcare: Mass General Brigham, Atrium Health Partner On Rural Medical Vans
Mobile medical units will deliver hospital-at-home care to patients in rural communities as part of a five-year pilot program aimed at expanding healthcare access in underserved areas. The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health recently awarded an undisclosed amount of funding to Boston’s Mass General Brigham, University of Utah’s Huntsman Cancer Institute and Kentwood, Michigan-based Homeward Health to develop programs that will extend hospital-level care to patients in remote communities using mobile platforms. (Eastabrook, 2/26)
ProPublica, Montana Free Press: Dr. Thomas Weiner’s Montana Medical License Renewed Despite Criminal Inquiry
In late 2020, St. Peter’s Hospital in Helena, Montana, fired its oncologist, Dr. Thomas C. Weiner, and took the extraordinary step of publicly accusing him of hurting patients. The hospital said the doctor overprescribed narcotics and gave chemotherapy to patients who didn’t have cancer, among other allegations. Despite being notified by St. Peter’s that it had revoked Weiner’s privileges, the Montana Board of Medical Examiners renewed his license in 2021 and 2023. This week, the board renewed his license again for another two years. (Silvers and McSwane, 2/26)
Modern Healthcare: UVA Health CEO Dr. Craig Kent Resigns
UVA Health CEO Dr. Craig Kent resigned following an internal investigation spurred by the health system’s physician group. The University of Virginia board and UVA President James Ryan had a special meeting on Feb. 25 to discuss the findings of an independent investigation into UVA Health. Kent resigned after the meeting, a University of Virginia spokesperson said. (Kacik, 2/26)
State Watch
Planned Parenthood Wins Appeal In Medicaid Fraud Case
Politico: 5th Circuit Rebuffs Ruling Against Planned Parenthood
A three-judge panel at the conservative-leaning 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday reversed a lower court ruling that Planned Parenthood could be liable for nearly $2 billion for defrauding Medicaid. The unanimous ruling overturns a decision by Texas U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Donald Trump appointee. (Ollstein, 2/26)
The CT Mirror: CT Approves Funds For Planned Parenthood To Stockpile Abortion Pill
Connecticut will stockpile mifepristone, known as the abortion pill, to facilitate access to the drug in the wake of threats to curb its availability. One of two emergency-certified bills passed by the state legislature this week includes $800,000 in funding to Planned Parenthood of Southern New England. Use of the funding is up to the discretion of the organization, but vice president Gretchen Raffa confirmed that part of it will go towards stockpiling mifepristone, a drug used to end pregnancies. (Golvala, 2/26)
More health news from across the U.S. —
Health News Florida: BayCare's New Behavioral Health Center Is The First-Of-Its-Kind Urgent Care In Florida
If you're dealing with a mental health or addiction issue, you have a new place to get help in Pasco County. BayCare Behavioral Health opened a new urgent care center in New Port Richey. The grand opening of the center comes a little over a year after the Pasco County Commission gave BayCare almost $3.6 million for the project. (Marsee, 2/27)
North Carolina Health News: NC Defendants With Mental Illness Wait Months In Jail For Court-Ordered Treatment
For nearly a year, Jake Davis languished in jail, waiting for a bed in a state-run psychiatric hospital to get court-ordered mental health treatment. Davis, 37 and diagnosed with bipolar and delusional disorder, was arrested and booked into the Watauga County Detention Center in Boone on Mother’s Day Weekend 2023 for nonviolent crimes. His mother, Jama Hinson, said he committed those crimes while in a state of psychosis. His mental status continued to be “off the chain” in the weeks that followed, she said. (Crumpler, 2/27)
San Francisco Chronicle: Could A Co-Op Network Help Customers In S.F.'s 'Pharmacy Deserts'?
In response to Walgreens closing a dozen pharmacies across San Francisco this month, a supervisor wants the city to investigate creating a network of pharmacy co-ops citywide to fill the gap. Supervisor Jackie Fielder requested this week that the Budget and Legislative Analyst explore city support for a co-op network to “ensure that low-income families, seniors and people with chronic health conditions continue to have access to pharmacy services” amid the mass pharmacy closures. (Toledo, 2/26)
CBS News: North Texas Medical Students Working To Address Rising Infant Mortality Rates
Hospitals in both Tarrant and Dallas counties are taking at a growing problem: children who are dying before their first birthday. The infant mortality rate in both Texas and the U.S. has worsened in recent years. Along with seasoned doctors and health care professionals working toward solutions, some medical students just getting started in their careers are also hoping to make a difference. (Lucia, Salazar and Standing, 2/26)
AP: Texas Says This Doctor Illegally Treated Trans Youth. He Says He Followed The Law
On the Texas border, Dr. Hector Granados treats children with diabetes at his El Paso clinics and makes hospital rounds under the shadow of accusations that have thrown his career into jeopardy: providing care to transgender youth. In what’s believed to be a U.S. first, Texas is suing Granados and two other physicians over claims that they violated the state’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors, calling the doctors “scofflaws” in lawsuits filed last fall that threaten to impose steep fines and revoke their medical licenses. He denies the accusations, and all three doctors have asked courts to dismiss the cases. (Stengle, 2/27)
KFF Health News: Human, Bird, Or Dog Waste? Scientists Parsing Poop To Aid DC’s Forgotten River
On a bright October day, high schoolers from Francis L. Cardozo Education Campus piled into a boat on the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. Most had never been on the water before. Their guide, Trey Sherard of the Anacostia Riverkeeper, started the tour with a well-rehearsed safety talk. The nonprofit advocates for the protection of the river. (Fortiér, 2/27)
Health Policy Research
Research Roundup: The Latest Science, Discoveries, And Breakthroughs
MedPage Today: Fish Consumption Tied To Disability Progression In Multiple Sclerosis
Higher fish consumption was tied to less disability progression among people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a case-control study in Sweden showed. (George, 2/26)
MedPage Today: More Data Assuage Suicide Concerns With GLP-1 Agents
Risk of suicidality wasn't higher for type 2 diabetes patients starting on GLP-1 receptor agonists than for those on two other popular classes of diabetes drugs, a U.K. cohort study found. (Monaco, 2/26)
CIDRAP: More Than Half Of COVID-19 ECMO Patients Die In Hospital, While Survivors Often Struggle Long Term, Study Finds
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO, is one of the most serious life support measures offered at a hospital, with critically ill patients often receiving both heart and lung support for a number of days or weeks during organ and respiratory failure. (Soucheray, 2/25)
CIDRAP: Study Finds Increase In Macrolide-Resistant Mycoplasma Pneumoniae In Children
A study conducted among hospitalized children in Ohio shows that rates of macrolide-resistant Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MRMp) are low but have been rising in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers reported last week in Emerging Infectious Diseases. (Dall, 2/24)
ScienceDaily: Drug May Prevent Some Migraine Attacks In Children And Teens
For children and teens living with migraine, there may be a new preventive treatment, according to a preliminary study. Researchers found the drug zonisamide, which has been used to treat seizures, may reduce migraine days in this age group. This study does not prove that zonisamide reduces migraine days; it only shows an association. (American Academy of Neurology, 2/26)
ScienceDaily: Genetic Risk Of Schizophrenia Affects Men And Women Differently
A research study has analyzed the relation between the genetic risk of having schizophrenia and mild subclinical traits in people of the general population. According to the study, the way the genetic risk of having this disorder affects these subclinical traits is different in men and women. (Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, 2/26)
Editorials And Opinions
Viewpoints: Dangers Of The Anti-Vax Movement Come Into Focus As Child Dies In Texas Measles Outbreak
Bloomberg: Texas Measles Death Sparks Questions About RFK Jr. Anti-Vax Stance
As if the world couldn’t get any more bleak, today Texas announced the first death in the ongoing measles outbreak: a school-aged child who was not vaccinated. (Jessica Karl, 2/26)
Stat: Government Investment In Long Covid Appears To Be Ending
In December 2020, the U.S. government’s involvement in addressing the pandemic of long Covid officially began when Congress allocated $1.15 billion to the National Institutes of Health for research into the lasting health consequences of Covid-19. For people suffering from long Covid, the move offered hope. Just over four years later, on Feb. 19, President Trump disbanded the Health and Human Services Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Long COVID, as part of an executive order titled “Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy.” (Steven Phillips, 2/27)
Stat: A Progressive Drug-Approval Approach Would Benefit Companies, Patients
The public and pharmaceutical companies are calling for changes in drug regulation and the costs of medicines. They are right to do so. Companies want to see products approved faster for financial reasons, and patients want medicines that can improve their lives. The two are inextricably tied, and realizing those goals requires tossing out the broken system we have in exchange for a superior system that is richer in data and evidence. It also means that we all have to embrace the simple truth that taking these chemicals will always come with risk. (Eric D. Perakslis and Michael Stebbins, 2/27)
Also —
The Washington Post: House GOP Flips Growing Medicaid Crisis To The States New Budget Plan
If the “big, beautiful bill” that House Republicans barely passed on Tuesday night ever translates into actual government policy, it will put the states in a huge, hairy hole. Many states would be faced with some ugly choices regarding their Medicaid programs: dropping people from the rolls, slashing their benefits or making up the difference by cutting spending on other priorities, such as education, public safety and transportation. (Karen Tumulty, 2/26)
Kansas City Star: Trump Medicaid Cuts Could Impact End-Of-Life Hospice Care
Most people only hear about end-of-life care when a former president goes into hospice or when news stories report on sad cases, inspiring cases, or crimes involving hospice staff: Like the time a young Kansas City hospice patient got to cuddle a pig and received messages from the Royals and the Chiefs. Or when a hospice caretaker was arrested and booked for abandoning an elderly cancer patient. (Yvette Walker, 2/27)
The Baltimore Sun: Don't Balance The Budget On Backs Of People With Disabilities
Gov. Wes Moore’s 2026 budget makes deep, dangerous cuts to services for Marylanders with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). The numbers are staggering — cutting about $235 million in state funds and forfeiting $215 million of additional federal Medicaid matching funds. Total cuts to Maryland services for our family, friends and neighbors with IDD — things like autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other disabilities — exceeds $450 million. (Rick Callahan, David A. Ervin, Steve Kenner and Karen Lee, 2/26)