Can House Republicans Cut $880 Billion Without Slashing Medicaid? It’s Likely Impossible.
By Madison Czopek, PolitiFact Amy Sherman, PolitiFact
March 13, 2025
KFF Health News Original
A Republican House resolution, which needs the Senate’s buy-in, directed a committee to propose ways to reduce the deficit by at least $880 billion over a decade. Lawmakers have taken Medicare off the table for cuts, which makes it impossible to reach $880 billion without cutting Medicaid.
CMS Pulls Plug On Projects Aimed At Improving Care, Saving On Costs
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
One initiative that has been scrapped would have offered some generic drugs to Medicare enrollees for $2. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has backed off hospice oversight.
EPA To Reassess Whether Greenhouse Gases Truly Do Damage Public Health
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
The agency in 2009 determined that six greenhouse gases posed health risks and put regulations in place to mitigate any harm. The Trump administration intends to revisit 31 of those environmental regulations. Plus, news outlets examine the effects of budget cuts, layoffs, and reduced services.
MRNA Research Might Be Next On List Of NIH Grant Cuts
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
NPR reports on the National Institutes of Health funding cuts with insight from two NIH staffers and one person familiar with NIH’s activities who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Also in research-related news, a lawsuit over the removal of two research papers from a government website, stranded Fulbright Scholars, and more.
North Dakota Might Ask Supreme Court To End Same-Sex Marriage
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
The resolution passed the Republican-led House last month but still needs Senate approval, which is not assured, AP reported. In other LGBTQ+ news, a federal judge questions the Pentagon’s transgender ban; President Donald Trump shares a link that included an image associated with the persecution of gay people during the Nazi regime; and more.
Montana Judge Voids 2 Abortion Laws, Ruling They Added Unneeded Hardship
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
The laws, passed in 2023 and immediately halted by the courts, required those who use Medicaid to submit to unnecessary steps before receiving care, a district court judge determined. More abortion-related news comes from Wyoming, Kentucky, and Missouri.
Nearly 26 Years After Columbine High Massacre, Death Toll Rises By One
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
A coroner has determined that the cause of death for Anne Marie Hochhalter, who was paralyzed in the 1999 Colorado school shooting and died last month, was “best classified as homicide.” Hochhalter, 43, had sepsis related to the two gunshots she suffered. Her death raises the victim toll to 14, not including the two shooters.
Research Roundup: The Latest Science, Discoveries, And Breakthroughs
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
Each week, KFF Health News compiles a selection of the latest health research and news.
First Edition: Thursday, March 13, 2025
March 13, 2025
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Hospital Gun-Violence Prevention Programs May Be Caught in US Funding Crossfire
By Stephanie Wolf
March 13, 2025
KFF Health News Original
Hospital-based violence intervention programs have operated in the U.S. since the mid-1990s. The public health approach to gun violence works, by many accounts. But recent moves by the White House are raising anxiety about the programs’ future.
In Trump’s Team, Supplement Fans Find Kindred Spirits in Search of Better Health
By Darius Tahir
March 13, 2025
KFF Health News Original
President Donald Trump’s health team has deep financial ties to the supplements industry. Now they’re poised to boost its growth and remake the government’s approach to health.
Recortes federales pueden afectar a programas en hospitales de prevención de la violencia con armas de fuego
By Stephanie Wolf
March 13, 2025
KFF Health News Original
El objetivo de estos programas es identificar los factores sociales y económicos que contribuyeron a que una persona terminara en una sala de emergencias.
Abortion Reporting Requirements Are Now Too Risky, Advocacy Group Says
March 12, 2025
Morning Briefing
Guttmacher data scientist Isaac Maddow-Zimet worries some of the information could be used to identify patients, AP reports. In other news, an Idaho health system is fighting the state’s abortion ban; a Louisiana mother in a cross-state abortion pill case pleads not guilty; and more.
House Funding Bill Preserves Hospital Provisions, Omits Physician Pay Terms
March 12, 2025
Morning Briefing
The narrowly passed funding bill, which still must win Senate approval to avoid a government shutdown, extends certain programs through September. Separately, a bipartisan bill to expand fentanyl testing has been reintroduced in the Senate.
RFK Jr. Wants Artificial Food Dyes Removed From Foods Quickly
March 12, 2025
Morning Briefing
HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. reportedly wants them gone before he leaves office. In related news, The Wall Street Journal reported that Kennedy also told the FDA to consider changes to a rule governing food additives deemed “generally recognized as safe,” or GRAS.
EPA To Shutter Environmental Justice Offices, A Blow For Minorities’ Health
March 12, 2025
Morning Briefing
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the plan in a memo. The work slated for elimination had aimed to ease the pollution that affects poor and minority communities. Also: older Black people in America die at higher rates; the Education Department slashes half its staff; and more.
Texas-New Mexico Measles Outbreak Has Likely Spread To Oklahoma
March 12, 2025
Morning Briefing
Two people from the Sooner State were reportedly exposed to the virus and followed safety measures to stop the spread. Meanwhile, as cases swell to 223 in Texas and 33 in New Mexico, health officials in California are warning about an exposure risk after a Los Angeles County resident tested positive.
