What the Health? From KFF Health News

Turnarounds and Shake-Ups

The twists and turns continue at the nation’s health agency, where this week’s announcements included notice that the Food and Drug Administration will review Moderna’s new flu vaccine after all and that a handful of top agency officials are getting new jobs.Those developments and others can be traced to a White House looking to shake things up before the midterms — and win over voters on health care. Tami Luhby of CNN, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too:  Mary Agnes Carey: Politico’s “Why Congress Failed To Reach an Obamacare Deal,” by Robert King and Simon J. Levien. Lauren Weber: NiemanLab’s “The Atlantic’s Elizabeth Bruenig on Her ‘Hypothetical,’ Heavily Reported Measles Essay,” by Laura Hazard Owen. Tami Luhby: The City’s “NewYork-Presbyterian Nurses Reject Contract by Overwhelming Margin,” by Claudia Irizarry Aponte and Ben Fractenberg. Shefali Luthra: NPR’s “Minneapolis Doctors Warn of Lasting Medical Effects, Even After ICE Agents Leave,” by Jasmine Garsd. 

New Flu Vax? FDA Says No Thanks

It’s been a busy week at the Food and Drug Administration, with a political appointee overruling agency scientists to reject an application for a new flu vaccine, a decision that’s reverberating through the drug industry. Meanwhile, anti-abortion Republicans on Capitol Hill complain the agency is dragging its feet on reviewing the abortion pill mifepristone. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Lizzy Lawrence of Stat, and Jackie Fortiér of KFF Health News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner. Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: Julie Rovner: ProPublica’s “The Children of Dilley,” by Mica Rosenberg.  Alice Miranda Ollstein: Politico’s “Why Washington’s All-In on Smart Rings,” by Amanda Chu.  Lizzy Lawrence: KFF Health News’ “US Cancer Institute Studying Ivermectin’s ‘Ability To Kill Cancer Cells,’” by Rachana Pradhan.  Jackie Fortiér: Stat’s “The New Childhood Vaccine Guidelines Have a Paid Leave Problem,” by Ariana Hendrix.  

HHS Gets Funding, But How Will Trump Spend It?

Congress has passed — and President Donald Trump has signed — the annual spending bill for the Department of Health and Human Services. But it’s unclear whether the administration will spend the money as Congress directed.In 2025, billions of dollars were stalled, disrupting patient care and scientific research, until federal judges ordered funding resumed. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Renuka Rayasam about a new reporting project, “Priced Out.”Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: Julie Rovner: Politico’s “DeSantis’ Canadian Drug Import Plan in Florida Goes From Campaign Trail to Tough Realities,” by Arek Sarkissian.  Sandhya Raman: The Washington Post’s “Free HIV Drugs Save Lives. Why One State Is Restricting Access for Thousands,” by David Ovalle.  Anna Edney: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Associated Press’s “Forever Stained: Inside America’s Carpet Capital: An Empire and its Toxic Legacy,” by Dylan Jackson, Jason Dearan, and Justin Price.  Joanne Kenen: Inside Climate News’ “‘Toxic Colonialism’ on the Bay of Bengal,” by Johnny Sturgeon. 

The Hazards of ICE for Public Health

The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is not just roiling politics but also directly affecting the provision of health care, medical groups say. Meanwhile, in Washington, federal spending bills on their way to passage have been stalled by the fight over immigration enforcement funding after the shooting death of a second person in Minneapolis this month. Maya Goldman of Axios, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: Julie Rovner: Science’s “U.S. Government Has Lost More Than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s Since Trump Took Office,” by Monica Hersher and Jeffrey Mervis.  Maya Goldman: NBC News’ “Many Obamacare Enrollees Have Switched to Cheaper Bronze Plans. Here’s Why That Could Be Risky,” by Berkeley Lovelace Jr.  Alice Miranda Ollstein: The New York Times’ “After Donations, Trump Administration Revoked Rule Requiring More Nursing Home Staff,” by Kenneth P. Vogel and Christina Jewett.  Rachel Roubein: Stat’s “HHS Appoints 21 New Members to Federal Autism Advisory Committee,” by O. Rose Broderick.  

Health Spending Is Moving in Congress

Lawmakers appear on the brink of passing a spending bill for the Department of Health and Human Services and a bipartisan health policy bill delayed for over a year. But the outlook is considerably bleaker for the health care outline released by President Donald Trump last week. Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews oncologist and bioethicist Ezekiel Emanuel to discuss his new book, “Eat Your Ice Cream: Six Simple Rules for a Long and Healthy Life.” Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: Julie Rovner: CIDRAP’s “Minnesota Residents Delay Medical Care for Fear of Encountering ICE,” by Liz Szabo.  Sheryl Gay Stolberg: Rolling Stone’s “HHS Gave a $1.6 Million Grant to a Controversial Vaccine Study. These Emails Show How That Happened,” by Katherine Eban.  Paige Winfield Cunningham: Politico’s “RFK Jr. Is Bringing the GOP and the Trial Bar Together,” by Amanda Chu. Sandhya Raman: Popular Information’s “ICE Has Stopped Paying for Detainee Medical Treatment,” by Judd Legum.