Axios: Trump Administration Plan To Partially Fund SNAP Benefits Could Take Months
The Trump administration announced it plans to partially fund SNAP benefits on Monday, after two federal judges ruled on Friday that the funds must be released. A supplementary declaration noted that the changes states have to implement to roll out reduced benefits could "take anywhere from a few weeks to up to several months." The process of distributing SNAP benefits varies from state to state, and some states' "decades old" systems may slow down the process of doling out the money, according to the declaration. (Walker, 11/3)

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Governor Releases $62 Million To Cover November SNAP Benefits
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said Monday that Maryland will release $62 million to ensure full November SNAP benefits for recipients across the state affected by the ongoing federal government shutdown. The funding, authorized by executive order, comes after federal courts ordered the Trump administration to provide contingency funds for the program. (Ibrahim and Schumer, 11/3)

NPR: How One Tech Startup Is Giving Cash To SNAP Recipients 
Propel CEO Jimmy Chen knows how it feels to go hungry. When he was growing up in Kansas City, his parents sometimes struggled to put food on the table. Today, his Brooklyn tech company makes a free app for people on the federal government's anti-hunger Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. About 5 million people use Propel's app to check their SNAP balances, and get coupons and discounts on groceries. (Aspan, 11/4)

NPR: Agriculture Secretary Claims SNAP Program Is 'Corrupt' 
In an appearance on Fox and Friends on Sunday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins claimed SNAP is a "corrupt" program riddled with "massive fraud." But some of her claims need more context. (Joffe-Block, 11/4)

On Obamacare —

Politico: House Members Release Bipartisan 'Principles' For Extending Obamacare Subsidies 
A bipartisan quartet of House lawmakers released a “statement of principles” Monday for a potential compromise on an extension of Obamacare subsidies, which would include a two-year sunset and an income cap for eligibility. The compromise framework from Republican Reps. Don Bacon of Nebraska and Jeff Hurd of Colorado, and Democratic Reps. Tom Suozzi of New York and Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, is the first public tangible offering on health care policy since the government shutdown began 33 days ago. (Guggenheim and Hill, 11/3)

Politico: Senate Democrats Head To Trump’s ‘Backyard’ To Press Him On Obamacare 
A trio of Senate Democrats descended on South Florida on Monday to highlight how badly high health insurance prices will hit area residents as the government shutdown drags on. The soaring insurance costs in the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces are among the issues at the center of the shutdown, which is set to become the longest in U.S. history if it continues into Tuesday night. Florida has 4.7 million people who use marketplace, or “Obamacare,” plans for coverage, more than any other state. But the subsidies that made them affordable to many customers are set to expire at the end of the year. (Leonard, 11/3)

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: BJC Teams With UnitedHealthcare For 2026 Marketplace Plans
BJC Health System says that its hospitals and providers will accept UnitedHealthcare insurance plans purchased on the Affordable Care Act individual marketplace for 2026.UnitedHealthcare is the only marketplace insurer for 2026 with BJC in its coverage network. (Suntrup, 11/3)

WUSF: Broward Hospitals Partner To Provide Health Insurance On ACA Marketplace 
Broward County’s two largest public health systems have teamed up to offer residents a new health insurance option for 2026 on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. Broward Health and Memorial Healthcare System, which operate a total of 11 hospitals, are partners in a venture called 22 Health, according to the insurers’ website. (Mayer, 11/3)

Central Florida Public Media: Floridians Face 'Impossible Choices' As ACA Premiums Skyrocket 
With Affordable Care Act tax credits scheduled to expire at the end of year, thousands of Floridians will face paying significantly more for health insurance. (Duerig, 11/4)

KFF Health News: Congressional Stalemate Creates Chaos For Obamacare Shoppers
This year’s Obamacare open enrollment period, which started Nov. 1 in most states, is full of uncertainty and confusion for the more than 24 million people who buy health insurance through the federal and state Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Even with sign-up season underway, the fate of the enhanced premium tax credits that make coverage more affordable for 92% of enrollees remains up in the air, with the prospect of significantly higher premiums looming. But there are steps marketplace shoppers can take to ensure they make the right choices for the upcoming plan year. (Andrews, 11/4)

Modern Healthcare: Medicare Specialty Physician Pay Cut For 2026 Under Fire
Nearly three dozen physician specialty groups have called on Congress to halt a new policy that will reduce Medicare payments for thousands of billing codes. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a final rule Friday setting Medicare reimbursements to physicians in 2026. Although the regulation grants a 2.5% overall rate increase, it also introduces a “efficiency adjustment” that will trim payments for some specialty services by 2.5%. One of the agency’s stated goals is to increase support for primary care. (Early, 11/3)

Stat: UnitedHealth Pays Optum Physicians 17% More Than Outside Providers 
UnitedHealth Group pays its own physician practices much more than it pays competing practices, a new study finds, reinforcing STAT’s own analysis on the subject and presenting fresh evidence that the conglomerate may be skirting a rule designed to curb health insurer profits. (Bannow, 11/3)

North Carolina Health News and The Charlotte Ledger: Atrium Health’s New Surgical Training Hub Attracts 900+ Doctors In Six Weeks 
Atrium Health’s new surgical training center in Charlotte is off to a fast start. In just six weeks, IRCAD North America has brought in 932 health care providers from 14 countries for training, said Rasu Shrestha, chief innovation and commercialization officer at Advocate Health, Atrium’s parent company. (Crouch, 11/4)

MedPage Today: Joint Commission Includes Nurse Staffing In Updated Hospital Performance Goals
A leading nurse organization applauded the Joint Commission's latest hospital performance goals, which elevated the issue of nurse staffing and linked it to patient safety. In a press release, the American Nurses Association (ANA) said that it "proudly celebrates a historic victory for nurses and patients alike: for the first time ever, nurse staffing has been elevated within the Joint Commission's National Patient Safety Goals, now renamed the National Performance Goals." (Firth, 11/3)

In other health care industry developments —

Modern Healthcare: Lumeris Launches Rural Health Transformation Program Coalition
Technology and consulting companies have teamed up to try to expand the reach of rural providers and the Rural Health Transformation Program. Lumeris, Teladoc Health, Nuna, Deloitte and Unite Us on Monday launched the Collaborative for Healthy Rural America. The coalition aims to use artificial intelligence-backed technology and the scale of those companies to boost care and lower costs for rural hospital operators and other providers. (Kacik, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Ensign Group Expands Footprint Across Two States
The Ensign Group has expanded its reach across Alabama and Utah with the acquisition of eight skilled nursing facilities. The senior living operator said in a news release Monday it acquired the real estate and operations of seven Stonehenge skilled nursing facilities across Utah, including properties in American Fork, Cedar City, Washington Terrace, Orem, Richfield, South Jordan and Springville. The Ensign Group purchased the real estate assets through its subsidiary Standard Bearer Healthcare REIT, according to the release. Ensign-affiliated operators will manage the nursing homes. (Eastabrook, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Why Cardinal Health Is Eyeing Physician Management Acquisitions
Pharmaceutical wholesalers are poised to grow their physician management businesses as private equity investment slows. Backing from companies like McKesson, Cencora and Cardinal Health can help physician groups weather drug shortages and inflation, among other clinical and financial hurdles, some doctors said. Wholesalers are filling a void left by private equity firms that have retreated due to economic headwinds and rising regulatory scrutiny, advisers said. (Kacik, 11/3)

The Colorado Sun: UCHealth Will Receive Direct Taxpayer Funding In Estes Park Merger
The Colorado Attorney General’s Office earlier this fall signed off on a merger between UCHealth and Estes Park Health, a critical access hospital, expanding the footprint of a system that has grown to be the largest health care provider in the state. (Ingold, 11/4)

WUSF and Jacksonville Today/ WJCT: Children’s Hospitals Share $30M Boost For Cancer Research 
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday backed his commitment to pediatric cancer research in Florida with grants of $7.5 million annually to four specialty children’s hospitals over the next five years. (Mayer and Brown, 11/3)

AP: Maine Voters Consider Red Flag Gun Law Inspired By Lewiston Mass Shooting
Two years after the deadliest mass shooting in state history, Maine residents are voting on whether to make it easier for family members to petition a court to restrict a potentially dangerous person’s access to guns. A statewide ballot question Tuesday asks residents if they want to build on the state’s yellow flag law, which allows police officers to initiate a process to keep someone away from firearms. Approval would add Maine to more than 20 states that have a red flag law empowering family members to take the same step. (Whittle, 11/4)

ABC News: Maine Health System Accidentally Sends Letters To More Than 500 Patients Stating They're Dead
A large health care system in Maine said it "sincerely regrets" an error that mistakenly sent condolence letters to patients about their deaths. MaineHealth, a nonprofit system that includes hospitals, health care facilities and clinics in Maine and New Hampshire, sent letters to 531 patients, expressing condolences that included information on how next of kin could resolve their estates. (Kekatos, 11/3)

More health news from across the U.S. —

Chicago Tribune: Gov. JB Pritzker Undecided On Medical Aid-In-Dying Bill
Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday said he was still deciding whether he’d sign legislation that would permit doctors to help terminally ill people end their lives, after the bill narrowly passed the General Assembly last week. “It was something that I didn’t expect and didn’t know it was going to be voted on, so we’re examining it even now,” Pritzker said. (Olander, 11/3)

Chicago Tribune: Bill Strengthens Illinois' Ability To Set Vaccine Guidelines
Lawmakers have passed a bill to strengthen Illinois’ ability to make its own vaccine guidelines — legislation that follows months of tumult over vaccines at the federal level. (Schencker, 11/3)

The Hill: Florida's Decision On School Vaccine Mandates Stirs Concern Among Immunocompromised
Florida’s announcement that it would scrap public school vaccine mandates next year hit Elizabeth particularly hard. Her 11-year-old daughter suffers from a rare immunodeficiency disorder that requires biweekly plasma infusions to provide some protection against disease. But she can still be out of school for 50 days during the school year — and Elizabeth is worried that falling vaccine rates will make their situation far worse. (Anderson, 11/3)

The Colorado Sun: An El Paso County Program Is Reducing Suicides Among Veterans
Sitting outside on a warm July day in a white polo, his black ballcap backward, Heath Miller recounts his military career. Originally from Tampa, Florida, Miller spent 12 years in the Marine Corps, including multiple deployments to Kosovo and Afghanistan as a heavy machine-gunner. After an injury and the loss of multiple friends to suicide, Miller decided he was ready for the next step in his life. He was discharged in 2008 and moved to Colorado. (Singer, 11/4)

New Hampshire Public Radio: Elevated Kidney Cancer Rates In Merrimack Warrant Further Research, Dartmouth Study Says 
Kidney cancer rates are higher in the town of Merrimack compared to the rest of New Hampshire. And according to an investigation led by state officials and researchers from Dartmouth, more research is needed to determine the cause. (Hoplamazian, 11/3)

KFF Health News: Louisiana Took Months To Sound Alarm After Two Babies Died In Whooping Cough Outbreak
When there’s an outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease, state health officials typically take certain steps to alert residents and issue public updates about the growing threat. That’s standard practice, public health and infectious disease experts told KFF Health News and NPR. The goal is to keep as many other vulnerable people as possible from getting sick and to remind the public about the benefits of vaccinations. But in Louisiana this year, public health officials appeared to have not followed that playbook during the state’s worst whooping cough outbreak in 35 years. (Westwood, 11/4)

The Wall Street Journal: Kimberly-Clark Stock Takes Biggest One-Day Hit Since Black Monday
Kimberly-Clark shares suffered their biggest one-day drop since the 1980s after the Huggies diapers maker agreed to buy Kenvue. Kimberly-Clark's stock fell 15% to $102.27. That was its worst one-day percentage drop since Oct. 19, 1987—the day of the Black Monday stock-market crash—when it slid by one-quarter. (11/3)

The New York Times: With Acquisition, Kimberly-Clark Bets That Tylenol Can Weather The Storm
In deciding to buy the company behind Tylenol, the consumer products giant Kimberly-Clark is betting that the product can withstand an extraordinary attack from President Trump and his administration. Top officials have singled out Tylenol, making unproven claims that the use of acetaminophen products during pregnancy can cause autism. (Robbins and Hirsch, 11/3)

On weight loss drugs —

Stat: Novo Nordisk Spent Millions On Weight Loss Searches 
Over a recent two-year period, Novo Nordisk spent an estimated $7.5 million on more than 15,000 paid keywords related to weight loss searches and generated more than 2.4 million visits to Ozempic.com, even though the medicine is not approved to combat obesity, a new analysis found. (Silverman, 11/3)

NPR: Searching 'Weight' Can Bring Up Ozempic In Results. It's A Drug Advertising Loophole
If you've googled "weight loss," there's a good chance that one of the first search results that came up was a website for Ozempic. But Ozempic hasn't been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for weight loss — it's only approved to treat Type 2 diabetes. So why is it showing up there? (Lupkin, 11/4)

Bloomberg: Pfizer Sues Novo, Metsera Again In Brewing Buyout Clash
Pfizer Inc. accused Novo Nordisk A/S of trying to stifle competition in the weight-loss market by attempting to acquire obesity startup Metsera Inc., the second lawsuit Pfizer has filed in four days as it tries to retain its grip on a deal Novo upended last week. Pfizer brought its latest complaint Monday in Delaware federal court on antitrust grounds, saying it seeks to “stop Novo Nordisk from illegally paying off Metsera and its controlling stockholders to gain control of, and impair and potentially kill, an emerging US competitor.” Metsera called Pfizer’s new arguments “nonsense” and Novo called them “absurd” in statements. (Muller and Feeley, 11/3)

Stat: Microdosing GLP-1s Could Help Telehealth Firms More Than Patients
Noom, Found, and Hims & Hers have all launched programs to prescribe “microdosed” GLP-1s in the last three months, following in the footsteps of many smaller direct-to-consumer telehealth companies. Microdosing is getting a shot of promotion from Hollywood, too: Noom has promoted its program alongside a new celebrity spokesperson, actor Rebel Wilson, and TV host Andy Cohen has been doing the rounds talking about his microdosing habit. (Palmer, 11/4)

The Washington Post: New Study Links Melatonin And Heart Failure. Don’t Panic, Experts Say
A study that reviewed health records for tens of thousands of adults with chronic insomnia found that people who took prescribed melatonin for more than a year had a higher chance of heart failure over five years compared with people who were identified as nonusers, the American Heart Association announced Monday. The researchers behind the study also reported that people taking melatonin were more likely to be hospitalized for heart failure and die of any cause than those who did not use the supplement. (Chiu, 11/3)

On vaping and smoking —

MedPage Today: More Teens Vape Daily, Struggle To Quit
Though the percentage of U.S. teenagers who vape nicotine has declined in recent years, daily vaping among those already doing so increased, as did unsuccessful quit attempts, a cross-sectional study suggested. (Henderson, 11/3)

NBC News: Maldives Becomes The First Country To Impose A Generational Ban On Smoking
The Maldives has become the first country in the world to impose a generational smoking ban, barring anyone born after Jan. 1, 2007, from ever smoking, purchasing or using tobacco. “The ban applies to all forms of tobacco, and retailers are required to verify age prior to sale,” the health ministry said Saturday as the ban came into effect. The step “makes the Maldives the first country in the world to enforce a nationwide generational tobacco ban,” it added. (Aggarwal, 11/4)

On pig kidney transplants, gun blasts, and vaccines —

AP: First Clinical Trial Transplanting Pig Kidneys Into People Begins 
The first clinical trial is getting underway to see if transplanting pig kidneys into people might really save lives. United Therapeutics, a producer of gene-edited pig kidneys, announced Monday that the study’s initial transplant was performed successfully at NYU Langone Health. It’s the latest step in the quest for animal-to-human transplants. A second U.S. company, eGenesis, is preparing to begin its own pig kidney clinical trial in the coming months. (Neergaard, 11/3)

The New York Times: How Gun Blasts From Indoor Shooting May Cause Brain Injuries 
The Times tested the blast waves of several popular civilian guns at an indoor range and found that repeated firing could add up to potentially harmful exposure. (Gibbons-Neff, Philipps and White, 11/3)

CIDRAP: COVID Vaccination Cuts Risk Of Long-Term Symptoms In Teens By Over A Third, Data Suggest
The risk of long COVID was 36% lower in adolescents vaccinated within 6 months before their first infection than in their unvaccinated peers, suggests an analysis of US Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) trial data published late last week in Vaccine. The study, led by Massachusetts General Hospital researchers, involved 724 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years who were vaccinated against COVID-19 within the previous 6 months and 507 unvaccinated youth matched on sex, symptom onset, and enrollment date. (Van Beusekom, 11/3)

CIDRAP: Trial Data Highlight Sustained Protection From Dengue Vaccine
Data from a phase 3 trial show that Takeda's live-attenuated dengue vaccine provides sustained protection against the mosquito-borne disease, with a favorable safety profile, the Japanese drugmaker said today. (Dall, 11/3)

The New York Times: Dick Cheney, Powerful Vice President And Washington Insider, Dies At 84 
Dick Cheney, who was George W. Bush’s running mate in two successful campaigns for the presidency and his most influential White House adviser in an era of terrorism, war and economic change, died Monday. He was 84. ... Mr. Cheney had five heart attacks from 1978 to 2010 and had worn a device to regulate his heartbeat since 2001. But his health issues did not seem to impair his performance as vice president. In 2012, three years after retiring, he underwent a successful heart transplant and had been reasonably active since then. (McFadden, 11/4)

Advocate: Dick Cheney, Who Supported Same-Sex Marriages, Is Dead
Cheney held very conservative beliefs and was a war hawk, but he did not back a constitutional ban on marriage equality. (Cooper, 11/4)

His transplant in 2012 sparked questions about age and preferential treatment —

CBS News: Dick Cheney Transplant Surgery Renews Age Debate 
A leading doctor at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles says it's unlikely former Vice President Dick Cheney got preferential treatment for his heart transplant surgery Saturday. Cheney received the new heart Saturday at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va., the same place where he received an implanted heart pump that has kept him alive since July 2010. The 71-year-old waited 20 months for the transplant. (3/26/2012)

Reuters: Cheney Waited Longer Than Average For Heart Transplant
At 71, former Vice President Dick Cheney was older than average for a heart transplant and had to wait longer than the typical patient as well -- 20 months compared with a year or less. The fact that he was still able to receive a donor heart after surviving five heart attacks shows he must have been in excellent health, doctors said on Sunday. They also pointed to advances in care that have made it possible for older patients to still be good transplant candidates. Cheney is recovering at a Washington-area hospital after undergoing the surgery on Saturday. (Steenhuysen and Sherman, 3/26/2012)

In other news about aging and health —

Stat: Take Steps To Slow Alzheimer's Progression: 5,000 Of Them, Actually 
New research bolsters evidence that people with early signs of Alzheimer’s can take steps to slow the devastating neurologic disease — literal steps. (Wosen, 11/3)

Fox News: Erratic Blood Pressure Tied To Brain Aging In Older Adults, Study Finds
A new study from the University of Southern California suggests that the way blood pressure fluctuates from one heartbeat to the next may be just as important as the overall blood pressure reading — especially when it comes to brain health in aging adults. Researchers found that older adults who experienced greater beat-to-beat changes in blood pressure had smaller brain volumes in areas tied to memory, and higher levels of a protein linked to nerve-cell injury. (Quill, 11/3)

San Francisco Chronicle: Have Efforts To Curb Opioids Left Nursing Home Residents In Pain? UCSF Study Raises Concerns
Opioid prescriptions for U.S. nursing home residents dropped sharply between 2011 and 2022, according to a new UCSF study — a potentially negative consequence of the nation’s yearslong efforts to reduce opioid overprescribing. Nursing home residents often have multiple medical conditions and chronic pain, including joint and back pain. (Ho, 11/3)

Katie Couric Media: The Human Cost Of SNAP Benefit Cuts: A Doctor’s Perspective
What was once an abstract policy discussion has become painfully real in my exam room. ... Members of the Trump administration have hammered home their goals to “Make America Healthy Again.” But here’s the issue: There’s a massive difference between wellness and public health, and we’re about to see that gap widen in a way that should concern all of us. (Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD, MS, 11/2)

Business Insider: I Never Thought My Family Would Need SNAP Benefits. Then, My Husband Was Laid Off Just After I Had Our Third Kid.
I never thought we'd need SNAP benefits — until we did. Accepting help broke down my pride and taught me that this safety net exists for a reason. And while it was hard for me to admit that we needed that help, especially at the beginning, I'm also grateful for the temporary relief that SNAP benefits provided to my family. (Kris Ann Valdez, 11/3)

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: The Courts Have Ordered SNAP Relief. Now Let’s Deliver Support.
Two federal courts have ordered to the Trump administration to provide emergency funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, that’s been endangered by the federal government shutdown. But those payments provides only temporary relief — and even that may not fully fund the program or prevent delays for recipients. (Michael P. McMillan, 11/3)

Stat: Parkinson's Cases Double, Access To Levodopa Lags Behind
In the late 1960s, scientists discovered a miracle drug for Parkinson’s disease — a simple, inexpensive dopamine-replacement pill called levodopa. It transformed the lives of millions of people. People who could barely rise from a chair could stand, walk, and work again. (Michael S. Okun and Ray Dorsey, 11/4)

Stat: How A Neuroscientist Rewired His Brain To Recover From Addiction 
When philosophers imagined the ship of Theseus, they asked: Can a vessel that has all its planks replaced one by one over time as it sails uncharted waters still be considered the same ship Neuroscience offers a fascinating answer to this conundrum: yes — and not quite. (Steve Ramirez, 11/4)