The Week in Brief: Friday, Oct. 2, 2026
These 100 Nursing Homes Face Perilous Flood Risk. Minnesota Shows What Can Happen.
By Brett Kelman and Holly K. Hacker and Daniel Chang and Frankie McLister, WCCO | CBS News Minnesota and Jason Rantala, WCCO | CBS News Minnesota
Staff raced against rising floodwater to evacuate 36 residents from a nursing home in New Richland, Minnesota. It’s one of 100 facilities KFF Health News identified as facing some of the nation’s worst flood risk.
Rural MAHA Followers Say Trump Health Policies Haven’t Reached Their Communities
By Ali Swenson, The Associated Press and Sarah Jane Tribble and Linley Sanders, The Associated Press
President Donald Trump has championed sprawling health policy changes under the Make America Healthy Again movement, but a KFF-Associated Press survey of rural voters found people aren’t seeing the initiatives reach their communities.
Food Safety Finds a Place Among ‘Kitchen-Table’ Political Issues
By Stephanie Armour
Recent outbreaks of foodborne illness and high-profile recalls have made this issue a concern of voters.
Midterms Have Revived Universal Healthcare Debate. These States Are Ahead of Everyone.
By Markian Hawryluk
While Democratic congressional candidates are floating the restoration of federal Affordable Care Act subsidies and Medicaid funding, Oregon officials are crafting a more ambitious plan to implement universal coverage in their state.
Confusion and Angst Follow State’s Early Rollout of Medicaid Work Rules
By Aaron Bolton, MTPR
In most states, people with Medicaid coverage will have to prove they’re working, volunteering, or studying starting Jan. 1. But Montana put the rules into effect early, and they’re sowing uncertainty and anxiety.
US Poised To Boot Legal Immigrants From Medicaid, Including Refugees and Sex-Trafficking Victims
By Phil Galewitz and Andrew Jones and Claudia Boyd-Barrett
The Congressional Budget Office estimated 100,000 more immigrants will be uninsured by 2034 because of Medicaid eligibility changes under President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act that take effect Oct. 1. A KFF Health News survey of nine states found many more are at imminent risk of losing health coverage.
After Failed Execution, Health Workers Say State’s Rules Flout Medical Ethics
By Catherine Sweeney, WPLN
The death penalty is legal in 27 states, and lethal injection is the primary method. That means involving medical professionals to store, test, and inject the drugs. After a botched execution in Tennessee, doctors and nurses there say medical professionals need to be removed from the process completely.
Patient Dies by Suicide After ‘Insurance Issue’ Delayed Medicine for Lung Disease Flare-Ups
By Lauren Sausser
Hours after experiencing a flare-up related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Kenney Blewett of Kyle, Texas, died by suicide in June. A medication his doctor prescribed days earlier to ease his breathing problems hadn’t been filled due to an “insurance issue,” his pharmacy explained via email.
Republicans and Democrats Find a Unifying Target: Pharmacy Benefit Managers
By Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio
Some states have considered barring companies that own a PBM from also owning brick-and-mortar pharmacies, as CVS does. Two states have followed through. A similar proposal at the federal level has gained prominent sponsors, aligning conservative, business-friendly Republicans with Democrats traditionally more open to government regulation.
Hospitals Have a Little-Known Tool To Prevent Medical Debt. Here’s How It Works.
By Melanie Evans, Tradeoffs and Oona Zenda
Getting financial assistance from hospitals often involves filling out cumbersome forms. Some states now require hospitals to identify and automatically enroll patients eligible for charity care.
The MAHA Metamorphosis
The Make America Healthy Again movement held a shindig in Washington, D.C., this week. But rather than moms arguing to get chemicals out of their kids’ food, the room was full of Trump administration officials and industry representatives looking to promote health-related products. Meanwhile, the administration for the second year in a row is refusing to spend money Congress appropriated. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Rachana Pradhan of KFF Health News, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Aaron Carroll of AcademyHealth.
Healthcare Is Scary. Channel Your Fears Into a Haiku.
By KFF Health News Staff
Think you can terrify us in 17 syllables? KFF Health News’ eighth annual Halloween haiku contest is now open. Send us your most haunting healthcare verses.
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Journalists Discuss What RFK Jr. Recently Told the Anti-Vaccine Group He Founded
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.