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After the chaotic withdrawal of President Trump’s previous nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the president selected the CDC’s acting director, Susan Monarez, to lead the agency. Monarez would be the first CDC director since 1953 not to have a medical degree. She has a B.S. and Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. (Owermohle and Branswell, 3/24)

Susan Monarez has previously held several prominent positions within the U.S. government. She served as deputy director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), where she led initiatives in artificial intelligence and health technology. She has also held roles at the Department of Homeland Security and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. This nomination is notable as Monarez would be the first CDC director to require Senate confirmation, following a law change in 2022. (Whisnant and Adeosun, 3/24)

The Trump administration is shuttering HHS’ long Covid office as part of its reorganization, according to an internal email seen by POLITICO. The email was sent Monday by Ian Simon, the head of the Office of Long Covid Research and Practice. It said the closing is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ reorganization. (Gardner and Ollstein, 3/24)

Prominent outside scientists who help the National Institutes of Health evaluate its internal research programs are being abruptly removed, according to five advisers whose positions were terminated and a recording of an internal meeting obtained by STAT. (Molteni and Mast, 3/24)

The Justice Department asked the Supreme Court on Monday to block a judge’s order requiring it to reinstate more than 16,000 federal employees, as administration officials vow to seek the justices’ intervention in clearing away lower-court rulings that have slowed Trump policies. In her Supreme Court brief, acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris argues that the case should have been thrown out of court because it was filed by labor unions and other organizations rather than the terminated employees themselves. (Bravin, 3/24)

The National Institutes of Health will no longer be funding work on the health effects of climate change, according to internal records reviewed by ProPublica. The guidance, which was distributed to several staffers last week, comes on the back of multiple new directives to cut off NIH funding to grants that are focused on subjects that are viewed as conflicting with the Trump administration’s priorities, such as gender identity, LGBTQ+ issues, vaccine hesitancy, and diversity, equity and inclusion. (Waldman and Lerner, 3/24)

The Trump administration wants to spend more federal dollars replicating medical research. A key question will be which studies get repeated and, with limited resources, at what expense. Many findings can't be replicated — a problem scientists say needs to be addressed. But it could also consume increasingly scarce resources as the administration cuts spending and freezes federal grants. (Snyder, 3/24)

Europe is investing millions in a flurry of newly announced academic programs, in an energetic effort to lure top American scientists across the Atlantic at the same time as President Donald Trump casts many U.S. research efforts into turmoil with funding cuts and executive edicts. Spurred by “alarming political interference in academic research by the Trump administration,” Brussels’s Vrije Universiteit (VUB), or Free University, allocated $2.7 million in funding last week for at least 12 new postdoctoral roles open to “censored Americans.” (Sands, 3/24)

Ahead of his confirmation hearing Thursday to become assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, Keith Bass is facing tough questions from a prominent Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Bass, a retired Navy commander and substance abuse counselor who previously led the Central Intelligence Agency's Office of Medical Services and the White House Medical Unit, was nominated Dec. 22 to manage the Defense Department's $61 billion health system, which serves 9.5 million beneficiaries, including 1.3 million active-duty troops. (Kime, 3/24)

A federal judge on Monday agreed to temporarily block President Donald Trump's administration from initiating proceedings that could lead to the firing of two transgender men serving in the U.S. Air Force — the latest legal setback in the administration's push to implement sweeping changes in the military. The decision by U.S. District Judge Christine P. O'Hearn came less than a week after the men — Master Sgt. Logan Ireland and Staff Sgt. Nicholas Bear Bade — sued to try to prevent their impending dismissal under Trump's executive order seeking to bar transgender people from serving in the military. They filed suit in New Jersey because Bade is stationed at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Burlington County, and Ireland recently was stationed there for a training program. (Palmer, 3/24)

Hill Air Force Base in Utah -- the service's second-largest base by population and size -- has closed one of its two day care centers, harming quality of life for some service members, civilian employees and their families following hiring freezes ordered by President Donald Trump's administration. (Novelly, 3/24)

An array of 23andMe ME customers rushed to its website Monday, seeking to delete their genetic data from the DNA-testing company after its bankruptcy filing. They faced long wait times or error messages and had to make repeated attempts to receive confirmation that their request had been received. Some sought unsuccessfully to delete the data of a deceased family member, and many expressed uncertainty about whether or how they would receive confirmation that the data had been deleted. (McElhaney, 3/24)

23andMe states that if it's involved in a bankruptcy or sale, customers' personal data may also be sold or transferred. It also provides a relatively straightforward way for customers to delete their data and request that their genetic samples be destroyed. (Cerullo, 3/24)

When the biotech company Humacyte designed a study to see if its lab-grown blood vessel worked, it decided to measure whether blood was flowing freely through the high-tech tube 30 days after it was implanted in a person. As those days passed, some of the 54 patients in the study ran into trouble. Doctors lost track of one. Four died. Four more had a limb amputated, including one who developed a clot and infection in the artificial vessel, Food and Drug Administration records show. (Jewett, 3/24)

Fujifilm Healthcare Americas Corporation said Monday it will integrate Us2.ai's artificial intelligence software into its Lisendo 800 cardiovascular ultrasound. The software automates echocardiogram analysis and reporting by providing cardiac measurements along with diagnostic insights based on international guidelines. (Dubinsky, 3/24)

Researchers are developing an injection that creates a contraceptive implant in the body using an approach that could herald a new way of delivering drugs over long periods of time. Current contraceptive implants last for years, meaning women do not have to take a pill every day, but the devices must be fitted by a trained professional via a small surgical procedure. Contraceptive injections are already available but they have limitations, including that they last for only three months. Now scientists say they have completed proof-of-concept experiments for a new type of long-lasting implant that self-assembles in the body. (Davis, 3/24)

GSK Plc is studying a large group of elderly adults in the UK to determine if its blockbuster shingles vaccine reduces the risk of dementia, potentially opening the door to an expanded label for the shot. The UK drugmaker will look at the data of 1.4 million people aged 65 to 66 years, some of whom received GSK’s Shingrix shot and some who did not, over a four-year period starting from 2023. (Furlong, 3/25)

The sale of bluebird bio and Pfizer’s decision to drop a gene therapy for hemophilia have led to some anxiety regarding the future of cell and gene therapy (CGT). As the chief executive officer of the nonprofit multistakeholder advocacy organization the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine, I hear all the questions: Will the technology meet the promise?  Is there a viable commercial model in one-time treatments? Is there a sustainable business that can scale?  I remind people that the reality is a bit messy — but a highly familiar tale of breakthroughs and struggles in the bigger arc of biotechnology. (Tim Hunt, 3/25)

Kerr v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic is one of the most straightforward cases the Supreme Court will hear this year. It involves a federal law that requires every state’s Medicaid program to ensure that “any individual eligible for medical assistance” may obtain that care “from any institution, agency, community pharmacy, or person, qualified to perform the service or services required.” Thus, Medicaid patients, and not the state, clearly have a right to choose their own health providers, with only one exception. The provider must be “qualified,” which, as the federal appeals court that heard this case explained, means that the provider is “professionally competent” to provide the care that the patient seeks. (Millhiser, 3/25)

Consumers who have failed to complete registration for the Medicaid program known as CDPAP by April 1 will be allowed to continue their services and workers until April 30. Those who enroll during the grace period will be eligible to receive retroactive payments, the state Department of Health revealed to POLITICO on Sunday. The late registration window extends until April 30, but the Hochul administration says this is not a delay: It’s merely a safeguard to ensure that participants in the popular Medicaid program don’t lose service. (Cordero and Kaufman, 3/24)

Ohio Medicaid changed the way it processes claims for payments from health providers a few years ago. And now it appears it's taking longer for those providers to get paid. Although the agency denies it's a problem, two large central Ohio hospital systems confirm they've experienced the delays. (Fox, 3/24)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Many People With Disabilities Risk Losing Their Medicaid If They Work Too Much

Zach Mecham has heard politicians demand that Medicaid recipients work or lose their benefits. He also has run into a jumble of Medicaid rules that effectively prevent many people with disabilities from holding full-time jobs. “Which is it? Do you want us to work or not?” he said. Mecham, 31, relies on the public insurance program to pay for services that help him live on his own despite a disability caused by muscular dystrophy. (Leys, 3/25)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: Bill That Congressman Says Protects Medicaid Doesn’t — And Would Likely Require Cutting It

On Feb. 25, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) voted in favor of a House budget resolution that calls for sharp cuts in spending across a vast array of government areas. Medicaid is among the programs that could be at risk — catapulting it to the center of the political debate. President Donald Trump has insisted he won’t harm Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security benefits, saying his administration is looking to root out fraud. But Democrats have pushed back, saying the sheer size of the proposed cuts will result in harm to the Medicaid program, its enrollees, and medical providers. (Appleby, 3/25)

The program is a political flashpoint because of its vital role in the lives of adults and children across the country. (Mathews and Overberg, 3/24)

In the most sweeping move of its kind, West Virginia has banned foods containing most artificial food dyes and two preservatives, citing their potential health risks. The legislation, signed into law Monday by Gov. Patrick Morrisey, will go into effect in 2028. At least 20 states are considering similar restrictions on food chemicals, but West Virginia is the first to ban virtually all artificial dyes from foods sold statewide. The new law will also prohibit products containing the dyes from being served in school meals starting this August. (Callahan, 3/24)

Public health leaders are horrified by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s approach to measles, but government and industry are responding to him. (Stolberg, 3/25)

Federal officials earlier this month announced a new initiative that they say will better ensure the safety and nutrition of baby formula in America, a directive that puts a spotlight on the current state of formula production and oversight — and may raise questions for some parents about which products they should buy to feed their young children. (Rodriguez, 3/24)

Large soda companies are worried about their futures as Republicans eye legislation to exclude sugary drinks from SNAP, also known as food stamps. (Green and Halashak, 3/25)

Thousands of Utahns have been the target of online hackers over the last several months, according to data provided by the Utah Department of Workforce Services. As of December, federal funds set aside to reimburse stolen benefits have run out and the state has not stepped in to fund reimbursements. (Rivera, 3/21)

Following a healthy diet — one primarily plant-based, with minimal ultra-processed food and low to moderate amounts of animal-based foods like fish and dairy — can raise the chances of reaching age 70 without developing a chronic disease, according to a new study. The research, published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine, analyzed the diets of more than 105,000 people in midlife and found that by 70, less than 10% had achieved “healthy aging.” (Bendix, 3/24)

Breastfeeding exclusively and for longer duration were independently associated with reduced odds of developmental delays and some neurodevelopmental conditions, according to a retrospective study from Israel. Children who were exclusively breastfed, along with those breastfed for at least 6 months had fewer delays in reaching language and social or motor developmental milestones versus children breastfed for less than 6 months, reported Inbal Goldshtein, PhD, of the KI Research Institute in Kfar Malal, and colleagues. (Robertson, 3/24)

More healthcare leaders are planning to leave their organizations in the next year, according to a survey from B.E. Smith, a member of staffing group AMN Healthcare, which focuses on leadership positions. The survey of 588 healthcare leaders, ranging from managers to C-suite executives, shows that 46% of respondents intend to leave their organizations within the next 12 months, compared with 41% in 2024. (DeSilva, 3/24)

Yale New Haven Health is restructuring operations and consolidating management and administrative roles. The restructure will affect inpatient and ambulatory operations. Most of the affected employees will be transitioned to new roles at Yale New Haven, but up to 38 people could be laid off from the health system, Director of Public Relations Dana Marnane said in a statement. (Hudson, 3/24)

Health systems are trying to steer clear of the Trump administration as it targets diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Some providers are removing DEI language from their annual reports, rethinking titles for leaders and updating programs. Others are still assessing their response. There may not be one right answer, particularly for healthcare, which finds itself particularly reliant on federal funding. (Hudson, 3/24)

Pointing to opportunities to conduct research and serve an aging population, Florida State University this week will seek approval to issue $413.9 million in bonds to build a hospital in Panama City Beach. The State University System’s Board of Governors will be asked Wednesday to sign off on the bonds, after the Florida State University Board of Trustees meets earlier in the day on the issue. (Saunders, 3/24)

The third Friday in March is when med school grads learn where they will start their careers as residents. Often they extend their careers in the same area, although Florida trails other large states in such retention. (Brown, 3/24)

Rising neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) capacity was not tied to lower infant mortality, a large cross-sectional study in the U.S. suggested. From 1991 to 2020, total adjusted neonatologists per 1,000 live births increased 227%, from 0.44 to 1.44, while NICU beds per 1,000 live births rose 48%, from 5.43 to 8.02, respectively, reported researchers led by Gwenyth Gasper, MS, of the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire. (Henderson, 3/24)

Tennessee has reported its first measles case of the year, in a mid-state resident whose exposure is still under investigation, according to the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH). (Soucheray, 3/24)

After returning home from a trip abroad last week, an infant in Houston was hospitalized with measles. In Lamoille County, Vermont, this month, a child became sick with measles after returning from foreign travel. The same thing happened to an adult in Oakland County, Michigan, whose vaccination status was unknown. Although measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000, it still rages on in many parts of the world. With decreasing vaccination rates across the US, experts say, imported cases can have large consequences. (Mikherjee, 3/24)

As spring breakers this season continue to head south into warmer territory, mosquitoes are posing a health risk that calls for extra attention. The following countries have also reported higher-than-expected numbers of dengue cases among American travelers returning to U.S. soil: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Iran, Mexico, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Saint Lucia and Sudan. (Stabile, 3/24)

One of New York City Mayor Eric Adams' signature mental health programs is in question after a City Council report suggested sending mentally ill people who are homeless to involuntary care has been ineffective. Members were never happy with Adams' decision to force the severely mentally ill into treatment against their will, but their report comes as the mayor says he's gearing up to run for reelection and wants to tout his accomplishments. (Kramer, 3/24)

A lawsuit filed earlier this month seeks to stop Atrium Health from taking control of organ donation services at partner hospital Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem. For 40 years, Wake Forest Baptist relied on HonorBridge, an independent organ procurement organization that serves 75 percent of North Carolina, to handle the hospital’s life-saving organ donations and get them to transplant recipients. But after joining the Atrium Health system, Wake Forest Baptist petitioned the federal government to switch to LifeShare Carolinas, Atrium’s in-house organ procurement service. (Crouch, 3/25)

Aurora Public Schools is partnering with Community College of Aurora to launch the state's first health science high school. Aurora voters approved a bond in 2024 that will fund the project. The school will prepare students for careers in health care and address the growing demand for health care workers. The magnet school, which doesn't have a name yet, will give students a head start in the workforce by offering hands-on experiences and college-level courses. (Mason, 3/24)

The powerful health care interests who put Proposition 35 on the ballot last November had a simple pitch for the complex initiative: a tax no voter paid would provide a long-awaited pay bump to doctors and hospitals who serve the state’s lowest-income residents. Californians overwhelmingly accepted the offer, giving Prop 35 more than two-thirds of the vote, but are no closer to seeing the changes they were promised. (Bluth, Schultheis and McCarthy, 3/24)

The company behind Roundup weedkiller herbicide was ordered to pay more than $2 billion in a man’s cancer lawsuit. According to his attorneys, John Barnes developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after using Monsanto’s Roundup for two decades. The case resulted in a $2.065 billion verdict, Barnes’s lawyers said. The Associated Press reported that Bayer, the parent company for Monsanto, was ordered to pay $65 million to compensate Barnes and an additional $2 billion in punitive damages by a Georgia jury. Monsanto is appealing the ruling. (Frazin, 3/24)

A more precise form of prostate cancer surgery nearly doubles the chances of men retaining erectile function afterwards compared with standard surgery, according to the first comprehensive trial of the procedure. Doctors in five UK hospitals assessed the surgical approach that aims to preserve crucial nerves that run through the outer layer of the prostate and are thought to be responsible for producing erections. (Sample, 3/24)

Researchers are warning that men who regularly dodge prostate cancer screening appointments are 45% more likely to die from the disease. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men and the second-leading cause of cancer deaths, according to UC San Francisco (UCSF). (Rudy, 3/22)

Patients with certain subtypes of breast cancer may face a higher risk of death from the cancer if they wait more than 42 days after diagnosis to have surgery, according to newly published research from the University of Oklahoma. The research team was surprised that the subtypes of breast cancer most affected by delayed surgery were those with the best prognosis: hormone receptor-positive breast cancers, meaning the cancer uses estrogen or progesterone to grow, and HER2-negative cancers, which do not have high levels of the HER2 protein that is associated with more aggressive cancer growth. (3/24)

Mark Vieth was stunned when he saw the numbers. Vieth coordinates the Defense Health Research Consortium, which advocates for a Pentagon program that has long received about $1.5 billion a year in federal funds for medical research — nearly half of which typically goes toward cancer. (Chen, 3/24)

The technology, which uses a smartphone app to “listen” to clinical encounters (with the patient’s consent) and convert the conversation into medical documentation, is transforming care for the better. Health systems and federal regulators should look to this example of how artificial intelligence that reduces administrative inefficiencies can vastly improve the care experience. (Leana S. Wen, 3/25)

In April 1990, in testimony to the joint congressional hearing titled “Alzheimer’s – The Unmet Challenge for Research and Care,” Hilda Pridgeon, a founder of the Alzheimer’s Association, recounted the challenges of working full-time for Control Data Corporation and caring for her husband, Al, who was living with dementia. The American health care system offered them no support. (Jason Karlawish, 3/25)

On June 24, 2022, the same day the Supreme Court issued its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, I received a call from the fertility clinic where I’d been undergoing in vitro fertilization, informing me that seven of my fertilized eggs had made it to the five-day-old blastocyst stage. (Anna Louie Sussman, 3/25)

A few days ago, I spoke with “Lisa” who is a participant in a research study at the Yale School of Public Health. Lisa, a New Haven resident, has spent almost five years on a subsidized housing waitlist. Since losing her apartment early in the pandemic, Lisa has stayed on a relative’s couch anxiously awaiting rental assistance that would help her to afford her own apartment.  Unfortunately, such subsidies are in short supply. (Penelope Schlesinger, 3/25)

Every year, more than 50,000 dogs, mostly beagles, are used in research in the United States. They are often used in painful and deadly tests, and laws to protect them are minimal. We should end this betrayal of man’s best friend. (Mark Bekoff and Jane Goodall, 3/24)