FDA Prohibits Red Dye No. 3, Which Is Linked To Cancer In Rats
January 16, 2025
Morning Briefing
Food safety advocates, who had urged the ban for decades, do not anticipate difficulties in the transition and hope this will lead to more bans on synthetic dyes. Also in public health news: baby formula, processed meats, and more.
New Rule From DEA, HHS Will Allow Some Opioid Treatment Via Telehealth
January 16, 2025
Morning Briefing
Roll Call reports that the newly finalized rule will allow for health care providers who have not seen a patient in person to prescribe six months’ worth of buprenorphine via telehealth. Also in pharma news: FDA’s proposed nicotine crackdown; FDA’s fast-track approval process for drugs; insulin prices; and more.
Industry Leaders Back Policy Allowing Interstate Health Care Professionals
January 16, 2025
Morning Briefing
Texas is being encouraged to join existing interstate compacts, which would allow health care workers from nine professions to practice in other states and out-of-state workers to come to Texas. Other health industry news is on furloughs, contract deals, updates on the J.P. Morgan conference, and more.
First Edition: Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025
January 16, 2025
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Childhood Vaccination Rates, a Rare Health Bright Spot in Struggling States, Are Slipping
By Daniel Chang Sam Whitehead
January 16, 2025
KFF Health News Original
Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia — states with some of the worst health outcomes — also have some of the highest childhood vaccination rates. But doctors and health officials worry a rising tide of vaccine skepticism is causing those public health bright spots to dim.
New California Laws Target Medical Debt, AI Care Decisions, Detention Centers
By Christine Mai-Duc
January 16, 2025
KFF Health News Original
California has a few major changes coming to its health policy landscape in 2025. New laws that took effect Jan. 1 ban medical debt from credit reports, allow public health inspections of private immigration detention centers, and ban toxic chemicals in makeup.
Las sólidas tasas de vacunación infantil, un raro punto positivo de salud en estados complejos, están disminuyendo
By Daniel Chang Sam Whitehead
January 16, 2025
KFF Health News Original
Defensores, médicos, investigadores, y funcionarios de salud pública temen que estos logros en algunos estados como Mississippi y Tennessee estén desapareciendo.
After 2 Deaths, Philips Recalls Software That Mishandled Some EKG Readings
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
Another 109 people reported injuries after using the remote cardiac monitoring software, Modern Healthcare reported. Other pharmaceutical and tech news is on the FDA’s drug approval system and a rapid diagnostic test for bloodstream infections.
Viewpoints: GOP Plan To ‘Make America Healthy Again’ Would Have The Opposite Effect
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
Opinion writers discuss these public health topics.
FTC Finds Top Three PBMs Took In Billions From Inflated Drug Costs
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
During a roughly five-year span, CVS Health, Cigna, and UnitedHealth benefited the most from increasing prices for generic drugs that treated illnesses such as HIV and cancer. Some of the price hikes topped 1000%. Other news is on the price of drugs under Trump; how the shift to online therapy has worsened disparities in care; and more.
Insurers Won’t Be Required To Cover Free OTC Birth Control After All
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
The Biden administration ran out of time to expand contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act, The 19th reports. It’s not likely the incoming Trump administration would support such a mandate. More news is about abortion pill stockpiles, an OB-GYN mobile van, Meta’s LGBTQ+ policy, and more.
FDA Wants Easier-To-See Nutrition Labels On Most Packaged Foods, Drinks
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
The proposal would require brands to list sodium, sugar, and fat on the fronts of packages in an effort to help people make better choices. Also in the news: A possible overhaul in how obesity is defined.
A Drink A Day Might Be Fine. More Than That? Not So Much, Study Finds.
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
The risk of premature death increases when people consume a couple of drinks a day, an HHS report says. A trade group disagrees, arguing the report is “rife with bias and conflicts of interest.” And in other health news, a federal judge has temporarily blocked a new warning label on cigarettes.
Biden Team Begins Cooperation With Trump Officials On Bird Flu Response
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
“We sent them all of the information on our work,” a Biden health official told NBC News. Public health officials raise concern that a lack of coordination could imperil the response to the emerging H5N1 threat. Other news is on the current norovirus wave and MIS-C recovery.
Trump Administration Could Squelch Biomedical Innovation, Experts Warn
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
Although some concede reforms are needed at the National Institutes of Health, and specifically the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, overhauling the agency whose research saves lives is a concern. ProPublica explains why.
Newly Sworn In, W.Va. Governor Immediately OKs Vaccine Exemptions
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
On his first full day in office, Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey approved religious exemptions from school vaccinations. Also: the threat of contaminated water from the California wildfires; a new Mississippi law that stops people from being jailed while awaiting mental health care; and more.
Morning Briefing for Wednesday, January 15, 2025
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
KFF Health News is on Instagram and TikTok ! Watch our videos and follow along as we break down health care headlines and policy.
First Edition: Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025
January 15, 2025
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Midwives Blame California Rules for Hampering Birth Centers Amid Maternity Care Crisis
By Ronnie Cohen
January 15, 2025
KFF Health News Original
Birth centers, where midwives deliver babies with emergency backup from hospitals, can offer an alternative for families as hospitals close maternity units. But the state’s stiff regulations and what many call a dysfunctional licensing process are hobbling new initiatives and forcing some facilities to shut down.
