The Week in Brief: June 6, 2025
Native Americans Hurt by Federal Health Cuts, Despite RFK Jr.’s Promises of Protection
Katheryn Houghton and Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez and Arielle Zionts
The Indian Health Service was mostly spared in the federal government’s widespread staffing cuts, but tribal governments and organizations have lost funding elsewhere in the melee of federal health agency cuts.
Trump Decried Crime in America, Then Gutted Funding for Gun Violence Prevention
Bram Sable-Smith
The U.S. Department of Justice canceled $500 million in grants to public safety organizations nationwide, including some that address gun violence. A clinic in St. Louis lost a $2 million award to develop a mobile clinic, increase mental health services, and engage the community.
Live From AHCJ: Shock and Awe in Federal Health Policy
This episode was taped live on Friday, May 30, at the annual conference of the Association of Health Care Journalists in Los Angeles. Host Julie Rovner moderated a panel featuring Rachel Nuzum, senior vice president for policy at The Commonwealth Fund; Berenice Núñez Constant, senior vice president of government relations and civic engagement at AltaMed Health Services; and Anish Mahajan, chief deputy director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The panelists discussed the national, state, and local implications of funding cuts made over the first 100 days of the second Trump administration and the potential fallout of reductions that have been proposed but not yet implemented. The panelists also took questions from health reporters in the audience.
Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Continues Assault on Obamacare
Phil Galewitz and Julie Appleby
The domestic policy legislation the House advanced in May includes the most substantial rollback of the Affordable Care Act since President Donald Trump and his Republican allies tried to pass legislation in 2017 that would have largely repealed President Barack Obama’s signature domestic accomplishment.
Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Lands in Senate. Our 400th Episode!
The House’s gigantic tax-and-spending budget reconciliation bill has landed with a thud in the Senate, where lawmakers are divided in their criticism over whether it increases the deficit too much or cuts Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act too deeply. Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate that the bill, if enacted, could increase the ranks of the uninsured by nearly 11 million people over a decade won’t make it an easy sell. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Arielle Zionts, who reported and wrote the latest “Bill of the Month” feature, about a Medicaid patient who had an out-of-state emergency.
In Axing mRNA Contract, Trump Delivers Another Blow to US Biosecurity, Former Officials Say
Amy Maxmen
The Trump administration is eroding national pandemic flu defenses as it guts health agencies, cuts research and health budgets, and withdraws funding for bird flu vaccines, health security experts said.
RFK Jr. Says Healthy Pregnant Women Don’t Need Covid Boosters. What the Science Says.
Jackie Fortiér
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.
In a Dusty Corner of California, Trump’s Threatened Cuts to Asthma Care Raise Fears
Miranda Green
The Trump administration wants to shutter the CDC’s National Asthma Control Program, which provides millions in funding to state-administered initiatives aimed at fighting the disease. The program’s closure, combined with massive cuts to environmental programs, could put the 28 million Americans with asthma at increased risk.
Trump Administration Is Ending Multiple HIV Vaccine Studies, Scientists and Officials Say
Céline Gounder and Alexander Tin, CBS News
The cuts will shutter two major HIV vaccine research efforts, and a National Institutes of Health senior official said the agency has been instructed not to issue any more HIV vaccine research funding in the next fiscal year, with few exceptions.
Role Reversal: Millions of Kids Are Caregivers for Elders. Why Their Numbers Might Grow.
Leah Fabel and Oona Zenda
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.
Ballad Health’s Hospital Monopoly Underperformed. Then Tennessee Lowered the Bar.
Brett Kelman
Ballad Health, a state-sanctioned hospital monopoly in Tennessee and Virginia, can now be deemed a “clear and convincing” benefit to the public with performance that would earn a “D” on most grading scales, according to Tennessee state documents.
Newsom’s Push To Block Law Could Save California Nursing Homes Over $1 Billion
Annie Sciacca
Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to block a state law that requires nursing homes to have 96 hours of backup power in the case of emergencies, potentially giving the industry a break from spending over $1 billion on facility upgrades. Patient advocates say rolling back the nursing home industry requirements for preparedness could jeopardize the safety of residents.
A Mathematical Solution for US Hospitals?
Dan Weissmann
An immigrant mathematician is on a mission to save U.S. hospitals billions of dollars and improve the lives of doctors, nurses, and patients. At one hospital, it's working.
Watch: In a ‘Dead Zone,’ Doctors Don’t Practice and Telehealth Doesn’t Reach
Sarah Jane Tribble
Chief rural health correspondent Sarah Jane Tribble explains how millions of rural Americans live in counties with doctor shortages and where high-speed internet connections aren’t adequate to access advanced telehealth services.
Listen to the Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
The "KFF Health News Minute” brings original health care and health policy reporting from our newsroom to the airwaves each week.
Two Patients Faced Chemo. The One Who Survived Demanded a Test To See if It Was Safe.
Arthur Allen
Worried that President Donald Trump’s FDA might not act, a panel of cancer experts recommended that doctors consider testing before dosing patients with a commonly used but sometimes deadly cancer drug. It came too late for many patients.
Journalists Draw Link Between Internet Dead Zones, Threatened Medicaid Cuts, and Health
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national or local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.