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To get drugs and devices out faster, the FDA lets companies conduct studies of safety or efficacy after the products are approved. In many cases, such “postmarket” studies are behind schedule or overdue, records show.
An experiment to provide meals to some Medicaid recipients shows food can be cost-effective medicine. But even as federal officials tout the power of nutrition, Medicaid budget cuts could lead states to think twice about covering healthy food for sick residents. One has already reconsidered.
The agreements, covering issues like drug pricing, reducing the use of synthetic food dyes, and cutting back on insurance prior authorization rules, were announced with fanfare and touted as victories. But it’s not clear whether they’ll result in lasting change.
States must submit Rural Health Transformation Program progress reports to the federal government, but they aren’t required to proactively post those reports, or related information, publicly.
The Department of Health and Human Services has launched an effort to streamline clinical research, and legislation is pending in Congress. But patients and providers face participation challenges.
The Trump administration is working to implement the president’s new order on childhood vaccines, which he publicly faulted for a rise in autism — even as health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s closed-door research has yet to produce evidence linking them.
Rising premiums forced many people in Affordable Care Act plans to give up their coverage. But the Trump administration claims a huge drop in enrollment is almost entirely due to its fraud crackdown.
The Department of Justice in June issued a legal opinion saying states aren’t required to provide services that help people with disabilities remain in their homes. The new position has added momentum to states’ existing legal challenges to the requirement and triggered worries among people who rely on these services.
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They’re known for touting pandemic precautions, Affordable Care Act plans, and testing for lead in schools. This year, some former public health officials are touting themselves — for governor or senator.
Congress appropriated $345 million for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality for the 2026 fiscal year, but the agency has spent less than $15 million on grants. AHRQ hasn’t issued a new one in over a year.
The recent outbreak of a foodborne parasite sickened thousands and hospitalized hundreds across the U.S. before federal investigators identified the suspected source. Food safety experts say cuts to the public health system hobbled the response — and that the next outbreak could be much worse.
Bill Cassidy of Louisiana chairs the Senate’s health committee. In an interview with KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner, he discusses the drug supply, his proposal to defray out-of-pocket costs, and his controversial vote to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary.
Federal officials charged two virologists they stopped en route from an African disease outbreak with violating import rules. But scientists tell KFF Health News the inactivated samples they carried posed no threat to the public, and they characterize the arrests as part of a government harassment campaign.
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national or local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Erica Schwartz, expressed support for vaccines, including covid shots, in her confirmation hearing. That contrasts with the stance of health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
From screwworm to flesh-eating bacteria, mounting public health risks are emerging in the wake of deep cuts to federal health agencies and programs.
Massachusetts passed laws and joined lawsuits to protect access to gender-affirming care for minors. But faced with the Trump administration’s threats, some hospitals voluntarily stopped care. Families are outraged.
Four years after the Volunteer State enacted the nation’s first law allowing drugstores to sell ivermectin without patient-specific prescriptions, dozens of pharmacies dispense the drug in highly concentrated pills — many with the help of one anti-vaccine physician.
Mehmet Oz, head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, framed the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program as “bold, creative plans” led by states. But as states have started to roll out their plans, federal officials control where and how the money is spent.
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