The Covid Contrarian Clubhouse Makes Its Mark on Trump’s Washington
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What To Know About the CDC’s Baseless New Guidance on Autism
A reshaped CDC website suggesting that vaccines cause autism has appalled the medical community.
By Arthur Allen -
Cancer Stole Her Voice. She Used AI, Curse Words, and Kids’ Books To Get It Back.
After a total glossectomy and laryngectomy to treat her cancer, Sonya Sotinsky can no longer speak. She searched for a way to sound like herself again and now pays out-of-pocket for an artificial intelligence app that can replicate her old voice — emotion, inflection, and all.
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Waning Immunity and Falling Vaccination Rates Fuel Pertussis Outbreaks
New details from health officials suggest the whooping-cough surge may be part of a national pattern driven by slipping vaccine coverage and waning immunity, with infants bearing the brunt of the consequences.
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Help Us Investigate Medical Care for Gunshot Wounds
We’d like to talk to people who’ve been wounded or families of those killed by gun violence to better understand how insurance affects such medical care.
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A Small Texas Think Tank Cultivated Covid Dissidents. Now They’re Running US Health Policy.
Fueled by covid backlash, a libertarian author created the Brownstone Institute in 2021. In recent months, people with ties to the group have catapulted to the highest levels of U.S. government, exercising significant authority over access to vaccines and scientific research.
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A Hidden Health Crisis Following Natural Disasters: Mold Growth in Homes
As extreme weather wreaks havoc, the risk of dangerous mold looms. An estimated 47% of homes already have mold or dampness, leaving their residents exposed to mold spores and associated allergens that can cause respiratory problems.
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Journalists Untangle Issues of Health Care Costs and Food Benefits
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national or local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
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Conflicting Advice on Covid Shots Likely To Ding Already Low Vaccine Rates, Experts Warn
About 1 in 4 American adults got a covid vaccine shot during the 2024-25 virus season, a fraction health care experts warn could be smaller this year as millions wrestle with conflicting advice from the government and trusted medical organizations about the value of a shot.
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ICE Crackdown Heightens Barriers for Immigrant Domestic Violence Victims
Immigrant victims of domestic violence have long encountered hurdles when seeking help from police and courts. The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown has made victims without legal status even more afraid to report abuse, advocacy groups say.
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Wielding Obscure Budget Tools, Trump’s ‘Reaper’ Vought Sows Turmoil in Public Health
Through shrouded bureaucratic maneuvers, White House budget director Russell Vought and DOGE have quietly upended outbreak response, HIV treatment, and dementia care in communities across America.
By Amy Maxmen -
White House Calls This 9/11-Era Fund ‘Wasteful.’ Red and Blue States Rely on It.
States from California to Texas say they rely on tens of millions in federal funding to help them prepare for the next pandemic, cyberattack, or mass-casualty catastrophe. The Trump administration wants to cut it.
By Don Thompson -
Is Covid During Pregnancy Linked to Autism? What a New Study Shows, and What It Doesn’t
Massachusetts researchers examine how growth and learning are subtly shaped among children whose mothers had covid while pregnant.
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Louisiana Took Months To Sound Alarm After Two Babies Died in Whooping Cough Outbreak
Louisiana health officials appear to have deviated from the usual steps for public health communications amid a whooping cough outbreak after it killed two infants.
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From Narcan to Gun Silencers, Opioid Settlement Cash Pays Law Enforcement Tabs
Local governments have received hundreds of millions of dollars from the opioid settlements to support addiction treatment, recovery, and prevention efforts. Their spending decisions in 2024 were sometimes surprising and even controversial. Our new database offers more than 10,500 examples.
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Sock Hops and Concerts: How Some Places Spent Opioid Settlement Cash
States, counties, and cities are receiving millions in opioid settlement money to address the addiction crisis. The ways they spent the dollars in 2024 sometimes drew criticism from advocates and at least one state official, who alleged misuse.
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At The Hollow in Florida, the ‘Medical Freedom’ Movement Finds Its Base Camp
Florida’s surgeon general, spiritual healers, and Trump allies push their cures in a swampy outpost of anti-government absolutism and mystical belief.
By Arthur Allen Happy Open Enrollment Eve!
Episode 420A standoff in Congress is keeping much of the government shut down as open enrollment begins in most states for Affordable Care Act plans. Democrats are demanding Republicans agree to extend ACA tax credits, but there has been little negotiating — even as customers are learning what they’ll pay for coverage next year. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is telling states they can’t pass their own laws to keep medical debt off consumers’ credit reports. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.
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Doctors Muffled as Florida Moves To End Decades of Childhood Vaccination Mandates
Florida has announced plans to end mandatory vaccination. Now scientists are assessing which of several diseases deadly to children — whooping cough, measles, polio, rubella, mumps, diphtheria, and tetanus — are likely to make a resurgence and when.
By Arthur Allen -
As Sports Betting Explodes, States Try To Set Limits To Stop Gambling Addiction
Some advocates and lawmakers want to impose national regulations on the gambling industry but would settle for reining in excessive betting at the state level.