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In a far-ranging debate that touched on everything from border control issues to TikTok, Republican presidential candidates could not escape hotly contested health care cost issues. The second GOP primary debate, still missing lead candidate Donald Trump, spanned drug prices, the opioid crisis, gender affirming care, and even the notion to resurrect Obamacare repeal attempts. (Owermohle, 9/27)

Republican candidates during the second GOP presidential debate Wednesday night offered some unconventionally tough talk about the health care industry, even if they failed to offer substantive policy answers. (Owens, 9/28)

“Transgenderism, especially in kids, is a mental health disorder.”— Vivek Ramaswamy. This is false. Being transgender is not a mental health disorder. Many transgender people experience gender dysphoria, or psychological distress as a result of the incongruence between their sex and their gender identity. Gender dysphoria is a diagnosis in the psychiatric Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and can be given to children, adolescents or adults. (Ghorayshi, 9/27)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called out former President Trump during Wednesday’s Republican debate for calling Florida’s six-week abortion ban a “terrible thing” during an interview earlier this month. Responding to a question about his own position on abortion, DeSantis said Trump was “missing in action.” “He’s had a lot to say about that. He should be here explaining his comments to try to say that pro-life protections are somehow a terrible thing. I want him to look into the eyes and tell people who’ve been fighting this fight for a long time,” DeSantis said. (Meyn, 9/27)