Wednesday, November 4, 2026

From KFF Health News - Latest Stories:

KFF Health News Original Stories

Stuck in Shelters for Months, Some Migrant Children Abandon Hopes of Staying in US

The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement is supposed to care for migrant children who arrive in the country alone. But new policies are stranding kids in shelters and undermining their mental health. Some children have chosen to return to the countries they fled. ( Claudia Boyd-Barrett and Renuka Rayasam , 11/4 )

IVF Patients, Doctors Navigate Fetal Personhood Laws’ Unknowns

People trying to start families and clinics trying to help them have been left confused and worried since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, triggering fetal personhood laws in several states. ( Cheryl Platzman Weinstock , 11/4 )

Here's today's health policy haiku:

UNINTENDED OUTCOMES

Two — two! — failed attempts?
How about a game of chance?
Who, then, is at fault?

— Anonymous

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 are solely the author's and do not reflect the opinions of KFF Health News or KFF.

Summaries Of The News:

Elections

Democrats Sweep Midterms, Gaining Power To Roll Back Trump’s Healthcare Reforms

Votes are still being counted, and final numbers could change. But at the time of this publication, Democrats had won control of the Senate, garnering at least 54 seats in the chamber. Democrats also gained control of the House, with 228 seats. Democrats are likely to focus efforts on reversing Medicaid cuts and restoring ACA subsidies, Stat reported.

Stat: Democrats Win Power To Push Back On Trump’s Health Care Moves

Democrats broke the Republican trifecta of power in Washington Tuesday night, securing powerful new tools to push back on the Trump administration’s health agenda. Voters granted Democrats control of both chambers of Congress, with the party winning at least 54 seats in the Senate, and 228 in the House, according to the Associated Press, as of 5:07 a.m. EST Wednesday. Votes are still being counted, and the final numbers could change. The scale and sweep of the results in Democrats’ favor may lend them new political strength to beat back the unprecedented health reforms from the GOP. Still, Democrats’ policy aspirations will face challenges. (Payne and Wilkerson, 11/3)

Politico: Democrats Are About To Run The Show On Capitol Hill. What Will They Do With Their Power?

While much of Democrats’ time will be spent wielding their new subpoena power to haul in President Donald Trump’s top officials and allies, they have no shortage of ideas for policies they also want to pursue — on everything from technology and artificial intelligence to health care and taxes. (Brugger, 11/4)

Big upsets in Texas and Maine —

The New York Times: ‘An Earthquake’: A Democratic Rout Stuns Texas

Texas may never be the same. Democrats shattered the 32-year-long Republican grip on statewide offices in what had been, until Tuesday, the nation’s most populous conservative state. James Talarico’s victory over Ken Paxton, a scandal-scarred Republican candidate, in the U.S. Senate race was only the beginning of a series of seismic victories for Democrats on Tuesday in Texas. Gina Hinojosa made history with her defeat of Gov. Greg Abbott, the third-term governor and political powerhouse who, just a few months ago, appeared to have a lock on winning a record fourth term. She becomes Texas's first Hispanic governor. In one night, the state was transformed. (Goodman and McGaughy, 11/4)

People.com: Susan Collins Loses Maine Senate Seat After Nearly 30 Years In Office

Susan Collins has lost her Senate seat in Maine after close to 30 years in office.The Republican, 73, sought a sixth six-year term against Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, 58, a former Maine Senate president and majority leader. The Associated Press called the race for Jackson at 1:02 a.m. local time on Wednesday, Nov. 4. With 86% of the votes counted as of 4:21 a.m., Jackson had earned 53.8% of the vote, while Collins had earned 46.1%, the outlet added. ... Jackson ran on a platform of passing Medicare for all, lowering prescription drug costs, taxing billionaires, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and overturning the Citizens United decision. (Lian, Bjornson and England, 11/4)

Reaction from President Trump and other Republicans —

The New York Times: Trump Says In Interview That He Will Accept Election Results

President Trump said on Tuesday night that he was “absolutely willing” to accept the results of the midterm elections, and was prepared to work with Democrats. “We’ll, you know, look forward to working with them,” he said in a phone interview with The New York Times. “We’ll probably work something out.” (Green and Pager, 11/3)

BBC: Trump Takes Aim At Republicans But Says Democrats Did A 'Good Job'

He wrote on Truth Social that Republicans would have won "in a landslide" if his name had been on the ballot. (Ewe, Davies and Pomeroy, 11/4)

Politico: Republicans Start To Point Fingers At Trump After Severe Midterms Loss

President Donald Trump’s allies on Wednesday tiptoed their way toward once unthinkable territory: blaming the president. The unusual candor followed sweeping GOP defeats across the country, a repudiation of the president that matched some of the party’s worst fears. Some pointed to the Iran war and its effect on gas and grocery prices. Others pointed to the president’s demeanor. (Cai, Hill, Doherty and Howard, 11/4)

Missouri, Virginia, And Nevada Voters Preserve Abortion Rights; Idaho Keeps Ban

Ballot measures in three states showed voters' interest in protecting reproductive freedom, leaving Missouri lawmakers unable to reverse the will of the people and allowing Virginia and Nevada to enshrine protections into their constitutions. In Idaho, which lost roughly a third of its OB-GYNs after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, the abortion ban stands.

The Hill: Missouri Voters Reject Measure To Reinstate Near-Total Abortion Ban

Missouri voted to protect abortion access Tuesday, Decision Desk HQ projects, narrowly rejecting a ballot measure that would have reinstated a near-total abortion ban just two years after it was overturned. Missouri in 2024 became the first state to use a ballot measure to overturn a near-total abortion ban and put a reproductive freedom amendment in the state constitution. That measure, also called Amendment 3, was approved by a narrow 51.6 percent majority. Nearly 54 percent of voters rejected the measure, with 15 percent of the vote reported. (Weixel, 11/4)

The Hill: Abortion And Fertility Care Secured In Virginia Vote

Virginia voters passed a “reproductive freedom” ballot measure Tuesday, enshrining current protections — including abortion — into the state constitution, Decision Desk HQ projects. The amendment puts protections for abortion, birth control, and in-vitro fertilization into the state constitution. It also protects fertility care, pregnancy-related care, and miscarriage care. (Weixel, 11/4)

The Hill: Nevada Voters Back Abortion Rights Ballot Measure Second Election In A Row

Nevada voters have approved a ballot measure protecting abortion up to the point of viability, officially adding the protection to the state constitution, Decision Desk HQ has projected. The measure allows the state to enact restrictions after viability is reached, which is usually around the 24-week mark, except when necessary to protect the life or health of the mother. It is projected to pass with 63 percent support, with 70 percent of the vote reported early Wednesday. (Gans, 11/4)

A loss for reproductive rights in Idaho —

NBC News: Idaho Voters Reject Abortion Ballot Measure, Preserving State Ban

Voters have rejected an Idaho ballot measure that would have codified the right to an abortion up until fetal viability, NBC News projects. The move preserves Idaho’s abortion ban, which went into effect in 2022 following the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, which had guaranteed abortion rights nationally. (Zola, 11/4)

Idaho Statesman: A ‘Gutting’ Loss: Idaho’s Prop 1 On Abortion Access Falls By Wide Margin

“This is a tremendous, frankly gutting, loss, especially for the women, families and physicians of Idaho,” Melanie Folwell, the executive director of the organization that got Prop 1 on the ballot, said in a news release. “For a state that claims to distrust big government, there is no greater hypocrisy than keeping politicians in the exam room.” (Cutler, 11/4)

Physicians, Women, And Diverse Candidates Score Historic Wins In Contests For Governor, Congress

Doctors triumphed in high-profile races in South Carolina, Ohio, Michigan, Kansas, and elsewhere. Fifteen states elected female governors, including in Georgia, where Keisha Lance Bottoms will become the nation's first Black female governor.

Chief Healthcare Executive: Doctors Who Won And Lost Races For Congress

Annie Andrews, a Democrat and pediatrician, won a seat in the Senate in South Carolina in what political analysts described as a significant upset. She defeated Republican Sen. Darline Graham, who filled the seat after the death of her brother, Sen. Lindsay Graham, who died in July. ... Abdul El-Sayed, a Democrat, [beat] Republican Mike Rogers in a highly watched race. An epidemiologist, El-Sayed previously led health departments in Detroit and Wayne County. ... Amy Acton, a pediatrician, won the Ohio governor’s race, defeating Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in a race that gained notoriety far beyond the state's borders. The Associated Press projected Acton the winner late Tuesday night. She became the first woman elected governor in Ohio. (Southwick, 11/4)

A night of historic wins for women and diverse candidates —

NBC News: Record Number Of Female Governors Elected

Voters in 15 states have elected female governors, setting a record as Democrats made sweeping gains in races up and down the ballot. (Marquez, 11/4)

NPR: Ohio Elects Amy Acton First Woman Governor

Democrat Amy Acton beat biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican backed by President Trump, in a race marked in the final weeks by a Ramaswamy attack ad that drew national criticism. She is the first woman elected governor of Ohio. Her win marks the first time in two decades that Ohioans have elected a Democrat to lead the state. (Donaldson, 11/3)

The 19th: Georgia’s Keisha Lance Bottoms To Become Nation's First Black Woman Governor

Keisha Lance Bottoms is projected to become the next governor of Georgia and the nation’s first Black woman governor, according to Decision Desk HQ. (Gerson, Barclay and Rice, 11/3)

The Guardian: Progressive Abdul El-Sayed Wins Michigan Senate Race To Become First Muslim US Senator

“You took a chance on the unlikeliest of candidates,” El-Sayed told the crowd in his election night speech. “You welcomed me in your homes, your churches, your synagogues.” He credited a movement built over a year and a half of campaigning in Michigan’s biggest cities and smallest towns, and said voters gave him strength in his lowest moments. His opponent and detractors, including Donald Trump and his vice-president, JD Vance, led a largely Islamophobic campaign against him, often pointing to his name and faith, including the president alleging he was a “jihadist” and that he would need to walk through a metal detector to get into the Senate. (Gedeon, 11/4)

NBC News: GOP Rep. Byron Donalds Defeats David Jolly, Becoming Florida’s First Black Governor

Republican Rep. Byron Donalds defeated Democrat David Jolly to become Florida’s next governor, NBC News projects, extending the GOP’s nearly three-decade run in the Governor’s Mansion. Donalds, who was endorsed early by President Donald Trump, was widely considered the favorite. He will become Florida’s first Black governor when he is sworn in next year. (Dixon, 11/3)

The 19th: Haaland And Flanagan Midterm Wins Set Historic Firsts For Native American Women

Native American women have secured two historic firsts on Tuesday. Democrat Deb Haaland is projected to become the first Native woman governor after winning her race in New Mexico, and Democrat Peggy Flanagan is set to become the first Native woman to secure a U.S. Senate seat after her victory in Minnesota, according to Decision Desk HQ. (Kurtz and Barclay, 11/3)

Xavier Becerra, Biden's HHS Secretary, Is Elected California's First Latino Governor In 150 Years

Becerra beat Republican Steve Hilton, a British-born former host at Fox News. Meanwhile, the outcome of California's billionaire tax, Proposition 40, is still unknown, AP reported. And California voters rejected a proposition on community health clinic spending but supported one on immunology research, CalMatters reported.

Bloomberg: Becerra Becomes California’s First Latino Governor In 150 Years

Democrat Xavier Becerra, a former congressman and President Joe Biden’s health secretary, cruised to victory as California’s next governor, becoming the first Latino to lead the state in more than 150 years. (Sisco, 11/4)

AP: It’s Too Early To Call The Outcome Of California’s Proposal To Tax Billionaires

A California measure to tax the net worth of billionaires that divided liberal leaders nationally and triggered one of the most expensive ballot fights in state history was too early to call Wednesday morning as the vote tally continued. Proposition 40 would impose a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of Californians whose net worth exceeds $1 billion, with most of the revenue dedicated to replacing federal funding cuts to healthcare. ... With almost 6 million votes yet to be counted, the AP Decision Team will wait for additional vote results before declaring a winner. (Austin, 11/4)

CalMatters: California Election Result: Prop. 44 On Healthcare Spending

California voters have overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 44, which would have required community health clinics to spend at least 90% of their revenue on program services. (Ibarra, 11/3)

CalMatters: CA Election Result: Prop. 38 On Funding Immunology Research

Voters on Tuesday appeared to support Proposition 38, a bond measure that would send billions of dollars for immunology research to find cures for Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease and other ailments. Late Tuesday night, Prop. 38 was leading with 56% of the vote compared to 44% against. (Zinshteyn, 11/3)

Also —

Los Angeles Times: Nithya Raman Narrowly Leads Karen Bass In Tight L.A. Mayor's Race

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman pulled narrowly ahead of Mayor Karen Bass, her onetime political ally, in the race to lead the nation’s second largest city, according to partial returns released Wednesday. Bass, a veteran politician who had been politically weakened in the wake of the 2025 Palisades fire, had been attempting to hold off a vigorous challenge from Raman, who stunned the city’s establishment this year by entering the race at the last minute. (Zahniser, Goldberg, Harter and Haggerty, 11/3)

A Rainbow Wave Of LGBTQ Wins: NH Elects First Openly Gay Man To US Senate; Virginia Officially Repeals Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

Meanwhile, a ballot measure in Colorado that would ban gender-related surgeries for children remains too close to call. Also in the news: ballot initiatives on gender-related requirements in school sports in Washington state and Nebraska.

Advocate.com: Rainbow Wave: See All The LGBTQ+ Midterm Election Winners

In addition to Senator-elect Chris Pappas, voters sent several out candidates to Washington, D.C., as well as state houses across America. (Ennis, 11/3)

The 19th: Chris Pappas Will Be The First Out Gay Man In The U.S. Senate

In New Hampshire, Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas defeated former Sen. John Sununu, a Republican backed by President Donald Trump, according to projections by Decision Desk HQ. Pappas will be the first out gay man to serve in the upper chamber. (Rummler, 11/3)

On same-sex marriage and transgender health —

The 19th: Virginia Voters Repeal Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

Virginia voters on Tuesday approved a constitutional amendment officially repealing the state’s ban on same-sex marriage, nearly 20 years to the day after it was adopted in 2006. (Migdon, 11/4)

The Colorado Sun: Proposition 135, Banning Gender-Related Surgeries For Kids, Too Close To Call

Colorado voters are closely divided on a ballot measure to ban certain gender-related surgeries for minors, following a campaign that featured debates about medical independence and appropriate care for young people. As of 11:30 p.m., Proposition 135 remained too close to call, with 51.5% of tabulated voters in favor of the measure and 48.5% opposed. Because the measure would amend state statutes, not the constitution, it needs a simple majority to pass. (Ingold, 11/3)

The New York Times: Live Results For Colorado Proposition 135: Prohibit Gender Confirmation Surgery For Minors

As of 6:05 am ET, the "yes" votes had garnered 51.7% of the vote, versus 48.3% for "no." (11/4)

KOMO: Voters Favor Banning Transgender Student Athletes From Girls' Sports In Washington

Washington voters will decide whether to approve Initiative 638, a measure that would require students to undergo a physical exam documenting sex assigned at birth before participating in interscholastic sports. With nearly 1,117,424 votes counted, the initiative had 60% support and 39% opposition as of Nov. 3 early results. (11/3)

Nebraska Examiner: Nebraska On Track To Add Gender-Based School Sports Requirements To State Constitution

Voters appeared to agree to cement sex-separate school sports requirements into the Nebraska Constitution with Tuesday’s approval of the Fairness for Girls ballot measure. Initiative Measure 442 had 318,439 yes votes to 160,626 no votes, as of 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, with 69% of the vote counted. The proposal would make permanent part of a 2025 state law requiring public K-12 schools, colleges and universities, and any private schools or colleges in the state playing against those schools, to designate sports and teams as male, female or coed. Male students couldn’t play on female-only teams. (Bamer, 11/3)

Plus —

WCAX: Vermont Voters Approve Equal Protection Amendment

Vermonters overwhelmingly approved an equal protection of law amendment on this Election Day. With about 64% of the vote counted, the results stood at nearly 80% of voters saying yes to Proposal 4. Prop 4 would guarantee everyone equal protection under the law. It would prohibit the denial of rights based on race, ethnicity, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or national origin. (11/3)

Health Industry

Healthcare Powerhouse CVS Health Is Splitting Its Pharmacy, Insurance Wings

The breakup of the healthcare giant, slated for 2028, will move its pharmacy business to a new company called CVS Pharmacy while keeping its Aetna insurance and Caremark pharmacy benefit manager units under the umbrella of CVS Health.

The New York Times: CVS To Split Off Pharmacy Business, Ending The Healthcare Conglomerate Era

CVS Health plans to split in two, in a major unraveling of the country’s largest health care conglomerate after years of rampant expansion, the company announced on Wednesday. Under the breakup, planned for the first half of 2028, a new spinoff company, to be called CVS Pharmacy, will house the conglomerate’s approximately 9,000 retail pharmacies, in-store clinics and a warehouse-based operation that sends prescriptions through the mail. (Robbins, 11/4)

In other healthcare industry developments —

Boston Globe: Mass General Brigham CEO Letter Amid Layoffs Stirs Staff Anxiety

Less than two weeks after Mass General Brigham said it had begun laying off workers, the head of the health care system has sent employees a cryptic email saying MGB faces urgent financial challenges and needed to make improvements but provided no specifics. (Saltzman and Wolf, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: MultiCare, Samaritan Finalize Hospital Merger

MultiCare Health System and Samaritan Health Services closed their merger Sunday. The organizations announced plans to combine about a year ago, when their respective boards approved a membership-substitution agreement that makes MultiCare the parent company of Samaritan. State officials approved the transaction last month. (Kacik, 11/3)

Military.com: VA's New 135,000-Square-Foot Outpatient Clinic Will Serve More Than 120K Veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs is opening a new outpatient clinic in Sarasota, Fla. The new 135,000-square-foot clinic announced Oct. 30 is the second VA initiative in Sarasota County and is projected to serve more than 120,000 veterans annually across Sarasota and Manatee counties. (Plummer, 11/4)

Modern Healthcare: Providence Remains In Restructuring Mode Amid Health Plan Exit

Providence Health and Services is making headway on its financial turnaround with a strategic reset that includes ending most of its health plan offerings, which has improved its balance sheet. The 51-hospital system based in Renton, Washington, is more than a year into its strategic direction for 2030, which aims for a $1 billion-to-$2 billion financial improvement target by 2028. The mix of cost-cutting and revenue-generating initiatives includes refocusing its core mission through ancillary business sales and joint ventures, workforce reductions, hospital divestitures, standardizing supply purchases and increasing surgical volumes, Providence President and CEO Erik Wexler has said. (Kacik, 11/3)

State Watch

NC's Rural Health Pilot To Resume In January After 18-Month Pause

The scaled-back Medicaid initiative will include stricter eligibility requirements and a narrower focus on food assistance, North Carolina Health News reported. The philosophy behind the Healthy Opportunities Pilot program was that investing in people’s basic needs could keep them healthier, out of the hospital, and ultimately save Medicaid money.

North Carolina Health News: Scaled-Back Version Of NC's Rural Health Pilot Will Return In January

The Healthy Opportunities Pilot, a first-of-its-kind initiative that used Medicaid dollars to address non-medical health needs of rural North Carolinians, will resume in January after an 18-month pause. However, the scope of the program will be drastically reduced. (Baxley, 11/4)

More health news from across the U.S. —

The Washington Post: Inmates Detail Pervasive Raw Sewage And Mold Issues At D.C. Jail In New Lawsuit

“The toilets are like volcanoes waiting to erupt,” one inmate says in the class-action suit. (Solano and Scott, 11/3)

CBS News: NYC Marathoner Died Of Rhabdomyolysis, Her Father Says. Here's What To Know About The Rare Condition.

A 24-year-old woman who died after collapsing 2 miles from the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon had a rare condition called rhabdomyolysis, her father said. Steve Apa told The New York Times that his daughter Rachel had been texting him indicating that she was in pain earlier in the race. Her mother was waiting at Mile 25, he said, but Rachel never made it to the milestone. (Breen and Gounder, 11/3)

The New York Times: Can Restaurants And Bars Become The New Funeral Homes?

More Americans are forgoing funeral services altogether in favor of memorials in nontraditional places, like restaurants and bars. (Hennessy, 11/2)

KFF Health News: Stuck In Shelters For Months, Some Migrant Children Abandon Hopes Of Staying In US

One morning this summer, a 9-year-old girl from El Salvador picked through colorful markers at a Houston-area shelter for migrant children and crafted a letter to her mom. “I want to be with you already,” the little girl, M.R., wrote in misspelled, unpunctuated Spanish, adding hearts, a rainbow, and a large “I love you” surrounded by pink and blue dots. “I miss you a lot, mami I love you a lot mami I want to be with you.” (Boyd-Barrett and Rayasam, 11/4)

KFF Health News: IVF Patients, Doctors Navigate Fetal Personhood Laws’ Unknowns

In the summer of 2022, Allison Mertzman and her wife, Leanne, asked their fertility clinic to destroy their embryos. The married couple were living in California but storing their nine embryos for $3,000 per year at the clinic in Michigan, where Mertzman had resided before. After having two daughters through in vitro fertilization, the couple had decided they wanted more children. But Mertzman was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021, and the women were waiting for a better time for implantation. (Platzman Weinstock, 11/4)

Pharma and Tech

Pharma Firm's Expensive Gamble Falters As Experimental Muscular Dystrophy Drug Fails In Trial

Sevasemten had previously shown promising results in a smaller, randomized study before being bought by French pharma Servier in June. This is a setback for both Servier and patients with Becker muscular dystrophy, who have no approved treatments, Stat reported. Servier is still testing sevasemten for Duchenne.

Stat: Servier's $1.55 Billion Muscular Dystrophy Drug Fails Major Test

The French pharma Servier said Tuesday that an experimental drug it purchased in June for $1.55 billion in cash, plus about $1 billion more in potential milestones, failed to slow a rare form of muscular dystrophy in a long placebo-controlled trial. (Mast, 11/3)

MedPage Today: FDA Panel Largely Pans Trial Data For Myopia Eye Drops

The regulatory status of a low-dose atropine eye drop formulation for myopia remained unresolved following a day-long FDA advisory committee meeting, but closing comments did not bode well for SYD-101. The Dermatologic and Ophthalmic Drugs Advisory Committee (DODAC) did not vote to recommend for or against approval of the eye drops, but panelists' responses to key questions posed by the FDA suggested the evidence from a phase III trial of SYD-101 did not meet standards for approval. (Bankhead, 11/3)

Modern Healthcare: Siemens, GE HealthCare Pursue Faster, Cheaper Radiotherapy

One of the most common treatments for cancer may soon become faster and more affordable. Medtech companies across the radiotherapy industry are pursuing different ways to improve care, from developing faster and cheaper treatment delivery devices to using artificial intelligence to accelerate the often lengthy pretreatment planning process. About 50% to 60% of people diagnosed with cancer undergo radiotherapy, a treatment that uses high doses of ionizing radiation to destroy cancer cells and shrink tumors, according to the medical device trade association AdvaMed. (Dubinsky, 11/3)

The Guardian: Why Pharma Firms Are Going To Earth’s Orbit In Search Of New Cancer Drugs

Roughly 300 miles above our heads, three washing machine-sized capsules are orbiting the Earth. Inside one of them, tiny crystals of a potential cancer drug are being grown in the weightlessness of space. The others are testing heat protection materials and navigation systems for when the capsules plunge back through Earth’s atmosphere at hypersonic speeds. Together, they represent a small but significant step towards what some hope will become a lucrative new industry: manufacturing drugs and other materials in space. The spacecraft belong to California-based Varda Space Industries. (Geddes, 11/4)

Bloomberg: Apple Releases IOS 27.3 Beta With Watch AI Listening Tools, Health App, China AI

Apple Inc. rolled out the first developer beta versions of iOS 27.3 and watchOS 27.3 on Tuesday, putting new features like always-listening artificial intelligence tools, its AI platform for China and a fresh Health app into widespread testing. The controversial Audio Intelligence capabilities, which work with the company’s Series 12 and Ultra 4 smartwatches, were unveiled more than a month ago as part of a September product launch event. The idea is to use AI and a device’s microphone to track and analyze nearby conversations. (Kelly and Gurman, 11/3)

Editorials And Opinions

Viewpoints: Could HRT For Menopause Be Key In Fighting Dementia?; Pros And Cons Of European Vs. US Healthcare

Opinion writers tackle these public health topics.

The Washington Post: Hormone Replacement And Dementia: Did My Mom Pay The Price?

My mom gave up her hormone-replacement therapy. I wonder if things could have been different. (Sarah McBride, 11/3)

Stat: What It’s Like To Move To Europe For Free Health Care

Tuesday, at exactly 7 a.m., I arrived at my general practitioner’s office, in the basement level of his house, two blocks from mine in Mellieħa, Malta. There are six chairs in the waiting area. Ikea, I think. People note who got there first and go in, in turn. On his desk, there’s an ancient laptop with a big monitor running a vaguely Y2K version of Windows. He wears a digital Casio watch I remember my dad having in the 1980s. My American doctor’s office had a water feature. (Mariska Breland, 11/4)

The Washington Post: The Best Part Of Science Might Be What Rattles You

It’s uncertain why blood pressure medicine works. That’s no reason to reject it — or other discoveries. (Stuart Firestein, 11/3)

The Boston Globe: Seniors In Nursing Homes Need A Cost-Of-Living Raise, Too

MassHealth personal needs allowance hasn’t increased since 2008. (11/4)