Latest Morning Briefing Stories
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: A New CDC Nominee, Again
President Donald Trump this week nominated a former deputy surgeon general who has expressed support for vaccines to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Considered a more traditional fit for the job, Erica Schwartz would be the agency鈥檚 fourth leader in roughly a year, should she be confirmed by the Senate. And Health […]
Listen: With Little Federal Regulation, States Are Left To Shape the Rules on AI in Health Care
As artificial intelligence embeds itself into health care, some physicians and patient advocates worry it could be used by insurance companies to refuse payment for care. Maryland passed one law banning AI from acting alone on a denial. Meanwhile, Virginia鈥檚 then-governor vetoed that state鈥檚 attempt at regulating AI in health insurance.
Rural Nebraska Dialysis Unit Closes Despite the State鈥檚 $219M in Rural Health Funding
A rural Nebraska dialysis unit that was hemorrhaging money closed, upending patients鈥 lives. That鈥檚 despite a federal rural health program that granted the state more than $200 million this year to improve health care in rural communities.
Listen to the Latest ‘麻豆女优 Health News Minute’
The “麻豆女优 Health News Minute鈥 brings original health care and health policy reporting from our newsroom to the airwaves each week.
How To Make a High-Deductible Health Plan Work for You
Lower premiums often mean higher costs when you get sick and need care. Among the ways to plan ahead and soften the financial hit: health savings accounts, which act like a medical piggy bank.
Watch: As AI Makes More Health Coverage Decisions, the Risks to Patients Grow
Major health insurers and even Medicare are using artificial intelligence to make coverage decisions. But class action lawsuits have accused insurers of using AI to wrongfully withhold treatment, and new research illuminates the risks.
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: Abortion Pills, the Budget, and RFK Jr.
This week, the Trump administration won a court battle to delay a ruling on access to the abortion pill mifepristone, angering its own anti-abortion allies. Meanwhile, the president鈥檚 budget arrived on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers are unlikely to agree to its proposed cuts to Health and Human Services programs. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Maya Goldman of Axios join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Can I Opt Out of Having My Doctor Take Notes With AI?
Your doctor might ask to have an AI tool listen during your next appointment. If you opt in, you will likely get more of your doctor鈥檚 attention. But the technology is not perfect. Here鈥檚 what to know.
Listen: What the Vaccine Schedule Whiplash Means for Your Kids
Big swings in federal vaccine policy are giving some parents and clinicians whiplash. 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner appeared on WAMU鈥檚 鈥淗ealth Hub鈥 to break down the latest developments and their relation to growing cases of vaccine-preventable illnesses in the Washington, D.C., region.
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: GOP Mulls More Health Cuts
Despite public opposition to the cuts they made to federal health programs in 2025, Republicans reportedly are considering more cuts to help pay for the war in Iran. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court ruled that Colorado cannot ban 鈥渃onversion therapy鈥 for LGBTQ+ minors. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of Bloomberg Law join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Elisabeth Rosenthal, who wrote the last two 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 stories.
Inside the High-Stakes Corporate Fight Over Feeding Preterm Babies
Behind their warm-and-fuzzy marketing, infant formula industry giants Abbott, maker of Similac products, and Mead Johnson, maker of the Enfamil line, have turned neonatal intensive care units into arenas of brutal competition.
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: A Headless CDC
The Trump administration faces the challenge of naming a new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who can both satisfy the Make America Healthy Again movement and get confirmed by the Senate. Meanwhile, a new Senate bill to rescind the approval of the abortion pill mifepristone is again elevating the abortion debate, which some Republicans would prefer to stay on the back burner until after the midterms. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Lizzy Lawrence of Stat, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss the news. Also this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown University Law Center鈥檚 Katie Keith about the state of the Affordable Care Act on its 16th anniversary.
Taking a GLP-1? Doctors Say Not To Forget About Movement and Mental Health
So you鈥檝e decided to go on a GLP-1 to lose weight. These medicines might seem like an easy way to drop unwanted pounds, but you鈥檒l likely need to do a few other things to be successful long-term.
An Arm and a Leg: Steep Health Care Costs Steer Americans to Tough Decisions
Two Americans explain how the skyrocketing cost of health insurance influenced their decision to buy 鈥 or skip 鈥 health insurance in 2026.
鈥楾hey Tricked Me鈥: A Father Was Chained After He Went to ICE To Reunite With His Kids
The administration has largely converted the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement into an arm of immigration enforcement, detaining children longer while helping immigration officers arrest their parents or other family members. One father was chained when he went to an ICE office to discuss being reunited with his son and daughter.
Listen: Trump鈥檚 NIH 鈥楻eset鈥 Is Driving Away Scientists
In President Donald Trump鈥檚 second term, federal data shows, the National Institutes of Health has lost about 4,400 workers. Scientists say the departures harm the nation鈥檚 ability to respond to disease outbreaks, develop treatments, and confront public health problems. 麻豆女优 Health News spoke with six scientists about why they left.
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: RFK Jr.鈥檚 Vaccine Schedule Changes Blocked 鈥 For Now
A federal judge in Massachusetts this week sided with public health groups to block changes to the federally recommended schedule of childhood vaccines, dealing at least a temporary setback to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.鈥檚 efforts to remake the schedule. Meanwhile, Congress has put its debate over the future of the Affordable Care Act on the back burner, but the issue of rising health care costs is still front and center for the voting public. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 President and CEO Drew Altman to kick off a new series looking at health care solutions, called 鈥淗ow Would You Fix It?鈥
Watch: Affordability Plagues Health Care in Its Shift From Nonprofit to Profit Machine
On 鈥淲hat the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News,鈥 distributed by WAMU, chief Washington correspondent and host Julie Rovner sat down with Drew Altman, president and CEO of 麻豆女优, to talk about the likelihood of a national health care debate.
What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News: RFK Jr.鈥檚 Very Bad Week
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had another tough week. In addition to Kennedy having rotator cuff surgery, the nomination of his ally to become surgeon general is teetering, the controversial head of the FDA’s vaccine center is resigning next month, and a new survey shows Americans trust government health officials less than they do former Biden official Anthony Fauci. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Six Federal Scientists Run Out by Trump Talk About the Work Left Undone
Cancer treatments, disease outbreaks, addiction science: Scientists say an exodus from the National Institutes of Health will harm the nation’s ability to respond to illness.
