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Supreme Court Upholds Bans on Gender-Affirming Care

Episode 402

June 20, 2025

The Supreme Court this week said Tennessee may continue to enforce its law banning most types of gender-affirming care for minors. The ruling is likely to greenlight similar laws in two dozen states. And the Senate is preparing to vote on a budget reconciliation bill that includes even deeper Medicaid cuts than the House version. Victoria Knight of Axios, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join �鶹Ů�� Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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A photo of a psychologist writing in a notebook in a dark office.

$20K Bonuses Among Latest Moves To Improve California’s Prison Mental Health System

After decades of unsuccessful efforts to improve California prison conditions, advocates and a federal judge are betting that bonuses and better work accommodations will attract and keep the mental health professionals needed to better treat prisoners.

By Don Thompson

June 9, 2025

A photo of a worker wearing reflective gear, hard hat, and a mask, stands by a coal cutting machine in a coal mine.

Feds Chop Enforcement Staff and Halt Rules Meant To Curb Black Lung in Coal Miners

The Trump administration has paused implementation of a rule limiting miners’ exposure to airborne silica dust days after a federal court agreed to put it on hold to hear an industry challenge. The protections are meant to head off a surge in cases of black lung disease. Meanwhile, any enforcement of new standards might be meager due to workforce cuts.

By Taylor Sisk

May 29, 2025

The Week in Brief

Trump’s DOJ Accuses Medicare Advantage Insurers of Paying ‘Kickbacks’ to Brokers

Get our weekly newsletter, The Week in Brief, featuring a roundup of our original coverage, Fridays at 2 p.m. ET.

By Julie Appleby

May 23, 2025

A photo of an older man having his blood pressure checked by a doctor in an exam room.

Trump’s DOJ Accuses Medicare Advantage Insurers of Paying ‘Kickbacks’ for Primo Customers

The Department of Justice alleges that several major health insurers paid brokerages “hundreds of millions of dollars in kickbacks” to get agents to steer consumers into their Medicare Advantage plans, allegations the insurers strongly dispute.

By Julie Appleby

May 19, 2025

A photo of a man in a suit walking outside a courthouse with another man following behind him.

Pain Clinic CEO Faced 20 Years for Making Patients ‘Human Pin Cushions.’ He Got 18 Months.

Michael Kestner, CEO of Pain MD, was convicted of 13 fraud felonies after his company gave patients hundreds of thousands of questionable injections at clinics in Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina.

By Brett Kelman

May 15, 2025

A photo of a crowd of protesters holding signs that read, "Protect Oak Flat."

Trump’s Fast-Tracked Deal for a Copper Mine Heightens Existential Fight for Apache

Apache tribal members are already feeling psychological and spiritual harm as the Trump administration moves to fast-track a deal to turn their sacred land of Oak Flat, Arizona, into a copper mine.

By Melissa Bailey

May 14, 2025

A photo illustration of a person's head with their brain drawn as tangled threads. Three hands work to unknot the threads.

Trump Team Faces Key Legal Decision That Could Put Mental Health Parity in Peril

The administration is facing a May 12 deadline to declare if it will defend Biden-era regulations that aim to enforce laws requiring parity in insurance coverage of mental and physical health care.

By Aneri Pattani

May 9, 2025

What the Health? From �鶹Ů�� Health News

Cutting Medicaid Is Hard — Even for the GOP

Episode 396

May 8, 2025

Republicans on Capitol Hill are struggling to reach consensus on cutting the Medicaid program as they search for nearly a trillion dollars in savings over the next decade — as many observers predicted. Meanwhile, turmoil continues at the Department of Health and Human Services, with more controversial cuts and personnel moves, including the sudden nomination of Casey Means, an ally of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s, to become surgeon general. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join �鶹Ů�� Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews �鶹Ů�� Health News’ Lauren Sausser, who co-reported the latest “Bill of the Month” feature, about an unexpected bill for what seemed like preventive care.

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Watch: How the FDA Opens the Door to Risky Chemicals in America’s Food Supply

To a great extent, the FDA leaves it to food companies to determine whether their ingredients and additives are safe. Some chemicals and additives are tied to health risks while others are absent from product labels. Watch this video explainer to learn more.

By David Hilzenrath, Hannah Norman, and Oona Zenda

May 7, 2025

A photo of a mail package containing mifepristone and misoprostol.

Despite Historic Indictment, Doctors Will Keep Mailing Abortion Pills Across State Lines

When a New York physician was indicted for shipping abortion medications to a woman in Louisiana, it stoked fear across the network of doctors and medical clinics who engage in similar work. But some physicians vowed not to stop.

By Rosemary Westwood, WWNO

May 6, 2025

A photo of a man sitting in a Senate hearing room, speaking into a microphone at a desk.

Alabama Can’t Prosecute Groups Helping Patients Get Abortions Elsewhere, Judge Rules

Although most abortions remain illegal in Alabama, a judge’s decision in early April allows doctors and advocacy groups to tell patients about abortion options in other states, and help with travel and other costs.

By Drew Hawkins, Gulf States Newsroom

May 5, 2025

A photograph showing the ornate ceiling of the dome in the Montana Capitol.

Montana Lawmakers Approve $124M To Revamp Behavioral Health System

The legislation calls for a new mental health facility in eastern Montana, upgrades to existing state facilities, expansion of community services, and revisions to commitment procedures.

By Sue O'Connell

May 2, 2025

A close-up shot of a blister pack of contraceptive pills.

Trump Restores Title X Funding for Two Anti-Abortion States — While Wiping It Out Elsewhere

The Biden administration shut off federal family planning grants to Tennessee and Oklahoma after the states directed clinics not to provide abortion counseling. The Trump administration restored the money, claiming two lawsuits were settled. They weren’t.

By Rachana Pradhan

April 30, 2025

A small prison cell. There is a narrow bed agains the wall with dilapidated sheets, and a metal table connected to the wall.

In a Broken Mental Health System, a Tiny Jail Cell Becomes an Institution of Last Resort

Like local jails nationwide, Montana’s small holding facilities have become institutions of last resort as patients in mental health crisis stall in backlogs, waiting for beds at the state-run mental hospital.

By Katheryn Houghton

April 29, 2025

What the Health? From �鶹Ů�� Health News

Can Congress Reconcile Trump’s Wishes With Medicaid’s Needs?

Episode 394

April 24, 2025

When Congress returns next week, it will be writing a budget reconciliation bill that’s expected to cut taxes but also make deep cuts to Medicaid. But at least some Republicans are concerned about cutting a program that aids so many of their constituents. Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join �鶹Ů�� Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss this story and more. Also, Rovner interviews �鶹Ů�� Health News’ Rae Ellen Bichell about her story on how care for transgender minors is changing in Colorado.

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An illustration drawn with pencil and gently colored digitally shows a child with white hair reaching out to touch their finger to a butterfly cocoon that is hanging from a branch in front of them. On their left, there is a caterpillar that has yet to undergo metamorphosis. On the right of the cocoon, and covering half of the child's face, a butterfly emerges in the colors of the transgender flag.

Families of Transgender Youth No Longer View Colorado as a Haven for Gender-Affirming Care

Colorado was long considered a haven for gender-affirming care. But under this Trump administration, hospitals in the state have limited the treatments available for people under 19. Some services have been restored, but trans youth and their families say the state isn’t the rock they thought it was.

By Rae Ellen Bichell

April 14, 2025

What the Health? From �鶹Ů�� Health News

The Dismantling of HHS

Episode 392

April 10, 2025

A week into the reorganization of the Department of Health and Human Services announced by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the scope of the staff cuts and program cutbacks is starting to become clear. Among the biggest targets for reductions were the nation’s premier public health agencies: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the […]

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A photo of lawyer Aaron Siri gesturing while speaking at a lectern in a hearing room.

RFK Jr.’s Purge of FOIA Staff at FDA Spares People Working on Covid Vaccine Lawsuits

A purge of FDA staff spared some people tasked with responding to a judge’s orders to disclose government records on covid vaccines, according to agency employees. The FOIA litigation was brought by Aaron Siri, an ally of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s who represents anti-vaccine interests.

By Rachana Pradhan

April 10, 2025

A photo of female caregiver escorting an elderly woman patient down a hallway in a nursing home.

Federal Judge Blocks Mandate on Nursing Home Staffing

A federal judge in Texas blocked a Biden administration rule to boost staffing at nursing homes. The decision comes even though many homes lack enough workers to maintain residents’ care.

By Tarena Lofton

April 8, 2025

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