Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
From KFF Health News - Latest Stories:
KFF Health News Original Stories
Democrats Demand Tougher Standards for Companies Running Medicaid Systems
A year after launching an inquiry into companies, including Deloitte, that receive billions in taxpayer dollars to build complex computer systems determining Medicaid eligibility, senators are urging the federal government to impose stricter rules.
As Politicians Argue About China, US Patients Find Cutting-Edge Treatment There
The rapid emergence of the Chinese biotech industry has panicked U.S. politicians, but investors and patients caution that a clampdown on pharmaceutical collaboration could hurt everyone.
More Medications, More Risks. If You’re Worried, Start a Deprescribing Discussion.
As people take a greater number of medications across years or decades, experts say the risk for adverse drug interactions increases. One way to advocate for yourself? Keep a list of your meds handy.
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A PRIMARY CONCERN
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Summaries Of The News:
Administration News
In Lead-Up To Midterms, Melania Trump Announces Women’s Health Initiative
The New York Times: Melania Trump Announces White House Women’s Health Initiative
Melania Trump, the first lady, made a rare Rose Garden appearance on Monday to announce a new White House initiative to advance women’s health. The initiative, outlined in an executive order issued by President Donald Trump, will include a new Division of Women’s Health within the National Institutes of Health, and a new Women’s Health Task force within the White House. But the N.I.H. already has an Office of Research on Women’s Health, created in 1990 during the administration of President George H.W. Bush, and it is unclear whether the Trump administration is putting any money behind the new division. (Gay Stolberg and Rabin, 10/19)
In other research and funding news —
CIDRAP: NIH Sees 7,400 Fewer Grants During Fiscal Year 2026 Than In Previous Year
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded nearly 12% fewer grants, or 7,400, in fiscal year 2026 compared to the year before President Donald Trump took office for his second term, according to a new analysis from the Association of American Medical Colleges. In fiscal year 2026, NIH awarded 56,600 grants, compared to fiscal year 2024, when the agency awarded 64,000 grants to biomedical researchers. (Soucheray, 10/19)
AP: After Trump's Funding Cuts To Science, US Researchers Are Heading Abroad
Halley Froehlich was sure she’d spend her scientific career in the United States. Her family has been in America since the 1700s. But over the past two years, delayed federal grants and fears about the future motivated her to pack her life into boxes. She moved to Finland with her husband and daughter and is continuing her research — studying how fish, shellfish and seaweed that humans eat are responding to climate change — at the University of Helsinki. When the Trump administration began upending U.S. scientific research last year, dismantling the federal grant-giving process and attempting to exert more political influence over what projects get funded, foreign universities saw an opportunity. (Ramakrishnan, 10/19)
The Washington Post: Scientists Plow Ahead With Research Needed For A Key Climate Report Scrapped Under Trump
After the Trump administration dismissed scientists behind a key national climate report last year, some of them decided they’d keep working on it — but from outside the government. Now, those scientists have published their first paper, part of a new effort they say will provide a home for the type of research that would’ve formed the basis of a National Climate Assessment. (Douglas, 10/20)
On the immigration crisis —
The New York Times: Man Who Died In ICE Custody In Texas Was Denied Medicine, Daughter Says
When Estefani Andrade spoke over video last Friday to her father, who was in an immigration detention center in Texas, he looked pale and unwell, she said. The next day, he was found unconscious in his cell, and she was later told he died. The man, Emiliano Andrade-Covarrubias, who had a heart condition, diabetes and high blood pressure, had complained to his daughter for months about the lack of medical care at the Rio Grande Processing Center, a detention center in the border city of Laredo, Ms. Andrade said. (Sandoval, 10/19)
The Washington Post: A Maryland Woman's Husband Died Suddenly In ICE Custody. She Wants Answers.
Hospital records say 47-year-old Julian Curo Churata died of “cardiac arrest” because of “septic shock.” (10/20)
The New York Times: U.S. Citizen Hospitalized After Being Detained By ICE, His Family Says
A California man whose family said he was a U.S. citizen was hospitalized in Long Beach over the weekend after an altercation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement left him pinned to the ground in handcuffs. The man, Ricardo Gonzalez, was riding an e-bike when he was struck by an unmarked vehicle, according to Leslie Gonzalez, his daughter, in a post on Instagram. In clips posted to social media, Mr. Gonzalez appears immobilized on his stomach by officers wearing ICE vests. “My arm is broken, stop!” he yells, asking for medical assistance as officers handcuff him, restraining his arms behind his back. (Kircher, 10/19)
ProPublica: House Democrats Introduce Bill To Help Wrongfully Detained Citizens Sue ICE
A New Mexico Democrat in the House introduced a bill last week that would make it easier for U.S. citizens to sue immigration agents and the federal government over wrongful detentions and arrests. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández credited ProPublica’s reporting as the catalyst for the bill, the Justice for Citizens Wrongfully Detained by ICE Act. Earlier this month, we revealed that more than 500 U.S. citizens have been detained in warrantless arrests during the second Trump administration. (Foy, 10/19)
On veterans' healthcare —
Military.com: Exclusive: Veteran Homelessness Fell 8.2% In 2026, The Biggest Drop In 10 Years, New Analysis Finds
A major decrease in veteran homelessness rates is predicted this year, including one that may be historic. Findings by Community Solutions project an 8.2% veteran homelessness decline when compared to 2025. Numbers are also expected to fall below 30,000 in 2026, marking the first time ever since veterans were included in the Point-in-Time count beginning in 2009 (there was no figure in 2021 due to the COVID pandemic). (Mordowanec, 10/19)
Military.com: FEDVIP’s Premium Rates: Dental Up 1%, Vision 1.6% For 2027
Premiums for insurance under the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program are going up in 2027. Military retirees may buy vision and dental coverage through FEDVIP; and active-duty families, and beneficiaries enrolled in Tricare Reserve Select, may buy vision coverage. (Wile, 10/19)
Elections
Medicaid Cuts Take Center Stage In The Fight For Battleground State Voters
Politico: Medicaid Cuts Haunt Republicans In Battleground States
Democrats in battleground states seeking to flip control of Congress in November are counting on a potent weapon: the deep cuts to Medicaid that Republicans approved last year in their signature legislation known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In recent Senate debates in Alaska, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan and South Carolina, Democratic candidates went after their opponents for supporting the law, which will reduce federal funding to the low-income health insurance program by hundreds of billions of dollars over the coming years. They also vowed to restore the money to the program if elected. (Ollstein, 10/19)
KLAS: Hospital Chaplain Aims To Win Seat In Congress To Protect Health Care
Hospital chaplain Steven St. John is running for Congress, one of three challengers to Democratic Nevada Congresswoman Dina Titus in Congressional District 1. He’s not affiliated with a political party. St. John’s primary reason for running is Medicaid and the work requirements that are set to start in January. “The Medicaid cuts are coming and I have to do something about it, and being in Congress is the way to do it,” he said. (Haas, 10/19)
ProPublica: What A Ken Paxton Senate Win Could Mean For Federal Anti-Abortion Efforts
Early in his tenure as Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton issued a statement commemorating what he believed was a national tragedy. “It’s impossible to fill the void of more than 50 million missing human beings,” he said in 2016. He was marking the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court ruling that protected abortion rights — and had long stood in the way of efforts to ban terminations in early pregnancy, when most abortions occur. (Jaramillo, 10/19)
The New York Times: In Iowa, A Four-Time Paralympian Tries To Flip A Pivotal Senate Seat
Josh Turek, a two-time American gold medalist, is trying to do what no Democratic Senate candidate has done in the state since 2008: Win. Turek was born with spina bifida after his father was exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam and has used a wheelchair since childhood. (Tauber, 10/20)
In other news from Capitol Hill —
The Hill: Suhas Subramanyam Becomes Latest Lawmaker To Receive Suspicious White Powder
Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.) is the latest lawmaker to report receiving suspicious mail containing white powder in the last month. “I can confirm that my office in Leesburg received an envelope containing a suspicious substance. The office was promptly evacuated,” Subramanyam said on social platform X, adding his thanks to the Leesburg Police, Loudoun County Fire and Rescue and hazmat team and the Capitol Police for their “swift response.” “These acts of political intimidation have no place in our country,” he continued. (Bhakta, 10/19)
KFF Health News: Democrats Demand Tougher Standards For Companies Running Medicaid Systems
A group of Democratic senators is demanding that the federal agency overseeing Medicaid — the health coverage program for people with low incomes or disabilities — institute tougher standards for government contractors running complex computer systems that millions of people rely on to get benefits. Three Democratic senators issued recommendations a year after launching an inquiry into companies — Deloitte, General Dynamics Information Technology, Gainwell Technologies, and Conduent — that are paid billions in taxpayer dollars to build or run eligibility systems for safety net health coverage. (Liss and Pradhan, 10/20)
Public Health
TikTok Staff Raised Concerns About Child Safety; Records Show Executives Ignored Them
NPR: TikTok Staff Raised Child Safety Alarms And Were Ignored
TikTok employees repeatedly raised concerns internally about the risks the short-form video app posed to children, including sexual exploitation and exposure to suicide content. Previously unreported court records show that the employees were frustrated with how the company's leadership responded to their concerns. Depositions of staffers filed in federal court in March 2026 offer new insights into how TikTok has approached child safety since the platform exploded in popularity among young users in 2018. (McQue, 10/20)
On the gun violence epidemic —
The New York Times: After School Shooting, Bend Residents Want Accountability. Oregon’s Gun Laws Make It Hard.
As calls for accountability grow in the Oregon school shooting, the state’s gun laws — shaped by liberal politics and libertarian traditions — could make it difficult to hold anyone criminally responsible. The police have said the mother of the 16-year-old shooter had purchased the Maverick 88 12-gauge pump action shotgun that he used to kill three children and a teacher last week at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend. They have yet to reveal how the shooter, who was killed by a passerby, got the weapon. But even if his mother gave him the gun, she might not face legal consequences. (Griffin and West, 10/19)
More health and wellness news —
MedPage Today: ADHD Tied To Higher Mortality Risk
People with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had a higher mortality risk compared with others, a study of 16 million people showed. (George, 10/19)
NBC News: Selena Gomez Says Vaping Changed Her Voice. What Do Doctors Say?
Selena Gomez says that vaping has permanently altered her voice. The singer, 34, recently took to social media to address growing speculation online about why she sounds so different. ... Vaping is often marketed as a healthier or “safer” alternative to smoking cigarettes. “There are no safe tobacco products, including e-cigarettes,” the CDC says. Can Vaping Change a Person’s Voice? Yes, it’s possible for vaping to affect a person’s voice, Dr. Paul Kwak, otolaryngologist at NYU Langone’s Voice Center, tells TODAY.com. (Kee, 10/19)
The Wall Street Journal: For Wellness Fans, Gummies Are Out. The New Craze Is Supplement Strips.
Jean Godfrey-June wanted a good night’s sleep. A former executive beauty director at Goop, Godfrey-June was in Rome this summer discussing her insomnia with a colleague, Kelly Atterton, when Atterton reached into her purse. “I brought something for you,” she said. (Tattoli, 10/19)
NBC News: Over 1.5 Million Pounds Of Meat And Poultry Products Recalled: See Full List
More than 1.5 million pounds of meat and poultry have been recalled because they may have been affected by a temperature issue during storage. The Kayem Foods Inc. voluntary recall affects hotdogs, sausages, bacon and deli meats sold across the country under brand names like Kayem, Al Fresco, McKenzie, Triple M, Deutschmacher, Jordan’s and more. (Jacoby, 10/19)
Vaccines
Absent A Universal Vaccine Mandate, US Would See Jump In Hep B Cases, Related Diseases: Study
The New York Times: Kennedy’s Vaccine Plan Could Cause Surge In Hepatitis B, Study Finds
Ending the practice of immunizing all newborns against hepatitis B, as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has recommended, would sharply increase the number of chronic infections and put more than half of Americans at risk of the disease by age 20, according to a new study published on Monday. (Mandavilli, 10/19)
Vox: RFK Jr.’s Anti-Vax Agenda Might Kill Millions Of Birds This Winter
RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine agenda — and chicken companies — are holding back the bird flu vaccine. (Torrella, 10/20)
More news about vaccine skepticism —
The New York Times: Death Penalty Sought for Mother Who Blamed Toddlers’ Deaths on Vaccines
Prosecutors in Idaho have steadfastly maintained that 23-year-old Andrea Shaw murdered her twin toddlers in the bed they shared, rejecting her claims that they died after adverse reactions to childhood vaccines. In a court filing on Friday, they raised the stakes, saying they will seek the death penalty against her. But the defense team indicated that Ms. Shaw would continue with a vaccine injury defense, hiring a lawyer who works with Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine nonprofit founded by the secretary of health and human services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (Miller, 10/19)
State Affairs Florida: Miami Archbishop Hits Back At AG Uthmeier Over Catholic Schools' Vaccine Rules
As season vaccinations ramp up, Archbishop Thomas Wenski is accusing Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier of "bullying" Catholic schools in a dispute over religious freedom, public health and state scholarship funding. (Kam, 10/19)
In other news about covid and Ebola —
ScienceDaily: Scientists Discover Why Some People Still Can’t Taste Food After COVID-19
Scientists have uncovered a possible explanation for why some people struggle to taste food more than a year after recovering from COVID-19. By examining taste buds from patients with lingering symptoms, researchers discovered molecular abnormalities that weaken the signals responsible for detecting sweet, bitter, and savory flavors. (10/19)
Africanews: US Raises Kenya Travel Advisory Over Ebola And Security Concerns
The United States has raised its travel advisory for Kenya, urging Americans to reconsider travel to the East African country due to health and security concerns. The advisory, updated on 19 October, moves Kenya from Level 2 to Level 3, citing risks including Ebola, crime, kidnapping, terrorism, civil unrest and road safety. (10/20)
Health Industry
Justice Department Unveils Streamlined Self-Disclosure Protocol For Healthcare Fraud
Modern Healthcare: DOJ Eases Healthcare Fraud Self-Reporting With New Policy
The Justice Department’s new effort to encourage healthcare companies to self-report fraudulent behavior could streamline a delicate process. The department outlined the new self-disclosure protocol for criminal healthcare fraud in a memorandum issued Thursday. The DOJ’s efforts are a much-needed first step to smooth the process, attorneys said, but companies will still be faced with hurdles to qualify for the full benefits of self-reporting issues. (Early, 10/19)
In other healthcare industry updates —
The Wall Street Journal: Nurses Are In High Demand—But They’re Quitting In Droves
Paige Campbell became a nurse during the pandemic, wanting to make a difference. She landed a job after college working in the emergency department at a Fort Walton Beach, Fla., hospital. Since then, she’s been kicked, spat on and shoved to the ground. Last year, after an emergency patient strangled her, she left for a role remotely monitoring patients. Front-line nurses are in high demand, but she needed a break. (Chen, 10/19)
Verite News New Orleans: Three Things You Need To Know About The New Xavier Medical School
Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine, a collaboration between the largest healthcare provider in the state and Xavier University, will welcome in its inaugural class of students in August 2027. The school was granted preliminary accreditation on Wednesday (Oct. 14), making it one of five historically Black colleges or universities in the nation that has a medical school. (Bell, 10/19)
CIDRAP: Many Hospitals Still Lax On Catheter-Related UTI Prevention, 2 Decades Of Data Show
While more US hospitals are recognizing that urinary catheters pose a risk of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and better monitoring their use, less than half have a catheter-reminder system for physicians, a study based on 20 years of surveys concludes. For the study, published in JAMA Network Open, researchers at the Veterans Affairs (VA) Ann Arbor Healthcare System and the University of Michigan evaluated systems to prevent catheter-associated UTIs (CAUTIs) using national surveys of 1,461 hospitals from 2005 to 2025. (Van Beusekom, 10/19)
KFF Health News: More Medications, More Risks. If You’re Worried, Start A Deprescribing Discussion
For nearly three years, Jonathan Bledsoe of Reading, Pennsylvania, took one prescription to stabilize his mood and one to keep his cholesterol in check, among a handful of other medications. “You wouldn’t think you would have to be your own advocate and look out for yourself as far as managing your medications,” the Marine veteran said. “But when you wake up one morning and what you pee comes out the color of fresh brewed coffee, there’s an issue.” (Farmer and Anthony, 10/20)
Modern Healthcare: OpenEvidence, Doximity Reach Settlement In AI Lawsuit
Clinical artificial intelligence competitors OpenEvidence and Doximity have settled an ongoing lawsuit. The companies reached a settlement Thursday, and the case was dismissed with prejudice Friday, according to documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The filing did not include settlement details. The two companies have agreed to handle their own costs and attorneys’ fees. (Famakinwa, 10/19)
Cancer
Dana-Farber, Beth Israel Break Ground On $1.68B Hospital Tailored To Cancer Patients In Boston
The Boston Globe: Dana-Farber, Beth Israel To Begin Construction Of New $1.68 Billion Cancer Hospital
Officials at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Lahey Health celebrated on Monday the start of work on their new $1.68 billion Boston hospital to treat cancer patients, the only medical center of its kind in New England. The 300-bed, 450,000-square-foot hospital is set to open in 2031 for patients who need inpatient care during treatment. (Wolf, 10/19)
More news about cancer —
The Guardian: New AI Tool Can Predict Cancer Survival By A Single Patient Selfie, Study Suggests
Doctors have developed an artificial intelligence tool that can predict a cancer patient’s chances of survival from a single photograph of their face. The AI system was custom-built by experts at Mass General Brigham, a nonprofit, integrated academic healthcare system in Massachusetts, to estimate biological age and directly predict survival outcomes in patients diagnosed with cancer. (Gregory, 10/19)
MedPage Today: 'Groundbreaking Option' Approved For Rectal Cancer
The FDA on Monday granted accelerated approval to the PD-1 inhibitor dostarlimab (Jemperli) to help select patients with operable rectal cancer potentially avoid surgery. The approval allows use in stage II/III patients with mismatch repair-deficient/microsatellite instability-high (dMMR/MSI-H) rectal cancer, a subgroup that represents about 3% of all locally advanced rectal cancers. Patients who achieve a complete response may be able to avoid the typical treatment paradigm for operable rectal cancer -- chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. (Bankhead, 10/19)
Fox News: Lung Cancer Screening With CT Scan Can Cut Death Risk By 20%, Doctor Says
Cancer can strike at any age, often without symptoms. For many cancers, routine screening remains the best way to detect the disease early and reduce the risk of death. For lung cancer, screening guidelines can vary, as the disease doesn’t always show obvious signals and can occur in both smokers and never-smokers. (Stabile, 10/19)
Medical Xpress: DNA Once Dismissed As 'Noise' Reveals New Bacterial Species In Prostate Cancer Patients
University of East Anglia researchers have discovered the genetic blueprints of 18 new bacterial species collected from prostate cancer patients. Most came from the mouth, including new types of Porphyromonas, which the team has previously linked to more aggressive prostate cancer, and Treponema. Whether they contribute to prostate cancer is unknown, but this work provides new insights into microbes in cancer patients and could uncover links that improve understanding of how cancer develops. (10/19)
ScienceDaily: Scientists Discover A Surprising Link Between Vitamin C And Cancer Survival
A surprising clinical trial suggests that taking vitamin C daily could improve survival in people with precancerous blood disorders and early-stage blood cancers. Patients receiving the supplement had fewer adverse events and showed a promising survival advantage, raising hopes that a common vitamin could help protect against leukemia-related complications. (10/20)
The Washington Post: How Simply Sitting Less Could Help Reduce Your Breast Cancer Risk
Being more physically active has long been known to both slash the risk of cancer and help improve survival in people who already have it — but research is also zeroing in on a simpler target, with possible anticancer benefits of its own: sitting less. (Sloan, 10/20)
KFF Health News: As Politicians Argue About China, US Patients Find Cutting-Edge Treatment There
Until recently, a Manhattanite might venture no more than a few dozen blocks to find the world’s most sophisticated cancer treatment. Cutting-edge American medicines have helped reduce the U.S. cancer death rate by about a third since 1990, and New York City hospitals deliver some of the best care in the country. But in January 2025, the city’s health systems had no good options for Debbie Doppelt, a 60-year-old jeweler with an unusual form of lung cancer that mostly afflicts nonsmokers like her. (Allen, 10/20)
Also —
Iowa Capital Dispatch: Iowa Governor's Husband, Kevin Reynolds, Diagnosed With Cancer Recurrence
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ husband, Kevin Reynolds, is recovering from a surgery to remove a brain tumor after being diagnosed with a recurrence of cancer, the governor’s office announced Monday. ... The governor’s family struggle with cancer comes as the state of Iowa grapples with high cancer rates. In 2026, the state had the second-highest rate of cancer incidences in the country, and was one of only three states with a rising rate, according to the Iowa Cancer Registry. (Opsahl, 10/19)
Editorials And Opinions
Viewpoints: US Isn't Prepared For Biological Risks Of AI; Most Voters Want Vaccine Access, But RFK Jr. Pushes For Change
The Washington Post: AI Capabilities Mean America Needs A Manhattan Project For Biodefense
Uncertainty about potential harm from AI is no reason to postpone preparedness. (Cesar de la Fuente, 10/20)
The Washington Post: Why RFK Jr. Is Planning An Attack On A Little-Known Vaccine Program
Repealing vaccine injury protections could drive up costs and hurt supply. (Ross Marchand, 10/20)
Stat: Resident Physicians Need Time Off Between Shifts
Coming off Interstate-280 in California, I rolled my windows all the way down and blasted a top 40 radio station at 2 a.m. I kept blinking to stop myself from drowsing off. At a red light, a horn jolted me awake. I had briefly dozed off behind the wheel. I could not accurately count the hours I had been awake that week as a junior otolaryngology (head and neck) surgery resident in 2023. (Arifeen Rahman, 10/20)
Stat: I Was A Theranos Whistleblower. In ‘You Can See Everything,’ Elizabeth Holmes Is Still Lying
“You Can See Everything” is a hilarious, thrilling, fascinating, beautiful piece of art. What it certainly is not is a documentary, and it’s dangerous to pretend that it is. (Tyler Shultz, 10/19)
The Washington Post: He Forages All His Food But Calls Your Diet ‘Extreme’
For the past year, Robin Greenfield has eaten only what he can find or catch as he travels across the country teaching others to do the same. Some will think that radical. He calls it normal. (Michael J. Coren, 10/20)