Latest News On Children’s Health

Latest KFF Health News Stories

RFK Jr. Says Healthy Pregnant Women Don’t Need Covid Boosters. What the Science Says.

KFF Health News Original

Despite opposition by the leader of the Department of Health and Human Services, existing evidence on the safety and efficacy of getting a covid vaccine during pregnancy all points the same way: The shots are important for maternal and fetal health.

Role Reversal: Millions of Kids Are Caregivers for Elders. Why Their Numbers Might Grow.

KFF Health News Original

As state officials anticipate Medicaid funding cuts that could strip resources for those with disabilities and chronic health conditions, an army of unpaid caregivers waits in the wings: children. At least 5.4 million kids are estimated to be caring for family members at home, a number likely to rise if Medicaid cuts hit professional home-based services.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Bill With Billions in Health Program Cuts Passes House

Podcast

The House narrowly passed a budget reconciliation bill, including billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy along with billions of dollars in cuts to health program spending. But the Senate is expected to make major changes to the measure before it can go to President Donald Trump for his signature. This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.

Covered California Pushes for Better Health Care as Federal Spending Cuts Loom

KFF Health News Original

Monica Soni, Covered California’s chief medical officer, oversees an effort to hold health plans financially accountable for the quality of care they provide, including childhood vaccination rates, which have fallen in California and nationwide. She worries federal spending cuts could soon bring turbulence to the state’s Affordable Care Act marketplace.

A Chicago Hospital Bows to Federal Pressure on Trans Care for Teens

KFF Health News Original

In the wake of an executive order by President Donald Trump opposing gender-affirming surgeries for minors, hospitals are pausing procedures — even those already scheduled. Families fear the eventual loss of all gender-affirming care for their transgender kids.

More Psych Hospital Beds Are Needed for Kids, but Neighbors Say Not Here

KFF Health News Original

Amid a youth mental health crisis and a shortage of inpatient psychiatric beds, residents of a St. Louis suburb opposed a plan to build a 77-bed pediatric mental health hospital. Resistance to such facilities has occurred in other communities as misconceptions about mental health spur fear.

Se cancelan clínicas de vacunación por recortes federales, mientras aumentan los casos de sarampión

KFF Health News Original

Los esfuerzos de inmunización en todo el país se vieron afectados después que los Centros para el Control y Prevención de Enfermedades cancelaran abruptamente $11.400 millones en fondos relacionados con covid-19 que se usaban para muchas vacunas.

Slashed Federal Funding Cancels Vaccine Clinics Amid Measles Surge

KFF Health News Original

Federal funding cuts, though temporarily blocked by a judge, have upended vaccination clinics across the country, including in Arizona, Minnesota, Nevada, Texas, and Washington state, amid a rise in vaccine hesitancy and a resurgence of measles.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Federal Health Work in Flux

Podcast

It’s the Trump administration vs. the federal courts, as the Department of Government Efficiency continues to try to cancel federal contracts and programs and fire workers. But in the haste to cut things, jobs and programs are being eliminated even if they align with the new administration’s goal to “Make America Healthy Again.” Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

Law and Order or Bystander Safety? Police Chases Spotlight California’s Competing Priorities

KFF Health News Original

California’s governor is pressuring Oakland to allow more police pursuits as part of a crackdown on crime. But more pursuits mean a greater risk to public health, with more potential injuries and deaths among bystanders. Policies in cities including New York and San Francisco reflect divergent local priorities.

Can Medicaid’s Popularity Shield It From the Budget Ax? 

KFF Health News Original

Republicans in Congress have suggested big cuts to Medicaid, the state-federal health insurance program for people with low incomes or disabilities. The complex, multifaceted program touches millions of Americans and has become deeply woven into state budgets and the U.S. health care system.

Texas Measles Outbreak Nears 100 Cases, Raising Concerns About Undetected Spread

KFF Health News Original

Health officials expect a measles outbreak in West Texas to exceed 100 cases because of low vaccination rates and undetected infections. Vaccine misinformation and new laws may make such situations more common and harder to contain.

GOP Takes Aim at Medicaid, Putting Enrollees and Providers at Risk

KFF Health News Original

Congressional Republicans are pushing plans that could make deep cuts to Medicaid to finance President Donald Trump’s tax cuts and other priorities. At stake is coverage for millions of low-income Americans, as well as a huge revenue source for hospitals — and every state.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Medicaid in the Crosshairs, Maybe

Podcast

President Donald Trump has said he won’t support major cuts to the Medicaid health insurance program for people with low incomes, but he has endorsed a House budget plan that calls for major cuts, leaving the program’s future in doubt. Meanwhile, thousands of workers at the Department of Health and Human Services were fired over the holiday weekend, from the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with possibly more cuts to come.

Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

Nueva ley ofrece atención médica a jóvenes que salen de la cárcel

KFF Health News Original

A pesar de la alta tasa de problemas de salud mental y trastornos por adicciones en esta población, muchas veces regresan a sus comunidades sin cobertura, lo que aumenta sus posibilidades de morir o sufrir una recaídas.