Julie Rovner

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jrovner@kff.org
@jrovner

A Legal Battle Over Herring Fishing Has Big Implications for Health Care

KFF Health News Original

What do herring fishing and health policy have in common? Quite a bit, it turns out, owing to a case now before the Supreme Court. If the justices rule as expected, based on this month’s oral arguments, they could dramatically change the way federal health agencies operate. “The upheaval caused … would be immense,” argues […]

What Would a Second Trump Presidency Look Like for Health Care?

KFF Health News Original

Health policy during Donald Trump’s tenure was dominated by covid-19 and a failed effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. His appointments to the Supreme Court led to the end of national abortion rights, and he took steps to increase hospital price transparency and improve care for veterans.

The AMA Wants a Medicare Cut Reversed – And Lawmakers To Stay Out of Care

KFF Health News Original

Congress is back this week and feverishly working on a bipartisan agreement to fund the government for the rest of the 2024 fiscal year. Ahead of a potential vote, I spoke with Jesse Ehrenfeld, the president of the American Medical Association, the nation’s largest lobby group for doctors, about his organization’s priorities in Washington.  Some […]

Republicans Once Championed Public Health. What Happened?

KFF Health News Original

It wasn’t that long ago that Republicans were all-in on boosting public health spending. “The highest investment priority in Washington should be to double the federal budget for scientific research,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) wrote in a 1999 op-ed in The Washington Post. Big spending increases for the National Institutes of Health soon […]

Abortion “Until the Day of Birth” Is Almost Never a Thing

KFF Health News Original

It’s one of the most frequent claims made by antiabortion lawmakers: That abortion rights supporters favor allowing abortions literally until the end of pregnancy. “Frankly I think it’s unethical and immoral to allow for abortions up until the day of birth,” Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) said at last week’s GOP presidential primary debate. At that […]

The AMA May Reconsider Single-Payer Health Care

KFF Health News Original

Is the American Medical Association going soft on single-payer health care? We’re about to find out. For more than a century, the most influential U.S. physician group has stridently opposed what could generally be described as “national health insurance.” It famously helped defeat health reform efforts in the 1930s and 1940s, delayed the establishment of […]

What’s It Really Like to Be HHS Secretary? Three Who’ve Done It Spill the Beans

KFF Health News Original

Three secretaries of Health and Human Services, who served under Presidents Joe Biden, Donald Trump, and Barack Obama, gathered this week for a rare, candid conversation hosted by the Aspen Ideas Festival and KFF Health News’ “What the Health?” about the experience of being the nation’s top health official.

The Debt Ceiling Deal Takes a Bite Out of Health Programs. It Could Have Been Much Worse.

KFF Health News Original

A bipartisan deal to raise the government’s borrowing limit dashed Republican hopes for new Medicaid work requirements and other health spending cuts. Democrats secured the compromise by making relatively modest concessions, including ordering the return of unspent covid funds and limiting other health spending.

Abortion Bans Are Driving Off Doctors and Closing Clinics, Putting Basic Health Care at Risk

KFF Health News Original

Doctors say they are reluctant to practice in abortion-banned states, where making the best decision for a patient could run afoul of the law. Even former President Donald Trump’s surgeon general is concerned about the repercussions for women’s health, writes KFF Health News’ chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner.

Walensky to Leave CDC in June as Covid Emergency Winds Down

KFF Health News Original

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director presided over one of the most tumultuous times in the agency’s history, struggling to regain public trust after it was revealed that Trump officials intervened in its pandemic response.

Doctors’ Lesson for Drug Industry: Abortion Wars Are Dangerous to Ignore

KFF Health News Original

The American Medical Association ducked the abortion issue for years and now sees its members’ professional opinions second-guessed by lawmakers and judges. PhRMA is following the same playbook.

Why Do Politicians Weaponize Medicare? Because It Works

KFF Health News Original

Politicians are again pointing fingers over who wants to cut Medicare. As past Washington brawls show, the party accused of threatening popular entitlements tends to lose elections — although it’s the beneficiaries relying on lawmakers to fund it who stand to lose the most.

Ask Voters Directly, and Abortion Rights Wins Most Ballot Fights

KFF Health News Original

Anti-abortion candidates have fared well in recent elections. But decades of ballot initiatives — including a half-dozen measures considered after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last June — show that when voters are asked directly, they usually side with preserving abortion rights.

Abortion Issue Helps Limit Democrats’ Losses in Midterms

KFF Health News Original

Although control of Congress was still undecided Wednesday, Republicans seemed poised to take power in the House, while the fate of the Senate remained too close to call. Economic issues were at the top of voters’ minds, but abortion access also played a large role in their decisions.