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Health Policy

All articles tagged with #health policy

politics1 day ago

Kennedy revamps vaccine-panel charter to stress safety risks amid court fight

After a court ruling paused Kennedy’s overhaul of the ACIP, the HHS-signed charter updates broaden the panel’s mandate to include vaccine safety risks and research gaps, expands membership expertise to include toxicology and vaccine-injury recovery, and allows non-voting liaisons from groups skeptical of vaccines. The changes come as Kennedy, who previously fired ACIP members, seeks to align policy with his anti-vaccine views; critics say the move advances “junk science” while HHS calls it a routine renewal. The charter also tasks ACIP with evaluating international vaccination schedules and enhancing safety surveillance.

via Politico|
#acip#health-policy#politics
States rely on consultants to enforce Trump-era Medicaid work rules
health-policy12 days ago

States rely on consultants to enforce Trump-era Medicaid work rules

States are paying Deloitte, Accenture, Optum and other contractors millions to update Medicaid and SNAP eligibility systems to implement Trump’s work requirements, a move likely to drive up upfront costs while analysts project about 7.5 million fewer people could be uninsured by 2034 and roughly 2.4 million losing food assistance; Wisconsin, Iowa, Kentucky, Illinois and Vermont are among states lining up multi-million-dollar contracts as the federal government foots most of the bill.

via CBS News|
#accenture#deloitte#health-policy
politics12 days ago

MAHA fracture could tilt the midterms toward Democrats

A POLITICO/Public First poll finds 47% of Americans support the MAHA movement, with cross‑partisan appeal including about a third of Harris 2024 voters and a similar share of Democrats, while 70% of Trump 2024 voters back MAHA. The movement is reshaping GOP health policy and offers Democrats an opening to win MAHA voters by emphasizing disease prevention, stricter regulation of chemicals, and expanded reproductive health care, even as some MAHA supporters oppose vaccines. MAHA voters are not strictly partisan and also back several GOP-friendly policies (e.g., removing artificial dyes, restricting junk-food subsidies), suggesting the movement could influence key midterm races depending on how candidates frame health issues. Overall, health topics aren’t the top priority for most voters, but MAHA could become a meaningful swing factor in November.

via Politico|
#health-policy#maha#pesticides
CDC mulls new ICD-10 code to track COVID vaccine injuries
health15 days ago

CDC mulls new ICD-10 code to track COVID vaccine injuries

CDC officials are weighing a plan to add a distinct ICD-10 code for COVID-19 vaccine injuries to better identify and study adverse effects, with public comments due by mid-May and the code potentially taking effect in fall 2027 if approved; supporters say it could improve care and research and aid data collection, while others caution that the condition is not yet clearly defined and the issue intersects with politics and potential litigation against manufacturers.

via Axios|
#cdc#covid-19#health
The deadly cost of banning abortion: Romania’s policy experiment
health18 days ago

The deadly cost of banning abortion: Romania’s policy experiment

Romania’s Ceaușescu-era ban on abortion (1966–1989) spurred a surge in unsafe terminations and a sharp rise in maternal deaths, with an estimated 10,000 women dying during the ban; when access was restored, deaths declined as abortions moved to safe, regulated settings. The piece frames this as a natural experiment showing that restrictive abortion laws increase unsafe practices and mortality, a global pattern given that unsafe abortions still cause about 8% of maternal deaths worldwide, underscoring that safe, legal abortion saves lives—even though Romania’s case was unusually extreme.

via Our World in Data|
#abortion#health#health-policy
health-policy19 days ago

Kennedy eyes FDA action to widen peptide access and spur a booming market

Health Secretary Kennedy Jr. signals that the FDA will broaden access to peptide therapies—a fast-growing, largely unregulated market—by taking action that could loosen rules for domestic compounding. Supporters say it will improve patient access, while critics warn of safety risks due to limited long-term data and a thriving gray/black market for unproven products. The move comes amid industry litigation, lobbying by compounding pharmacies, and high commercial interest in peptide-based treatments like GLP-1 therapies.

via Politico|
#compounding-pharmacies#fda#health-policy
politics22 days ago

Judge restricts RFK Jr.'s remarks on minors' gender care

An Oregon federal judge ruled that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. overstepped his authority by publicly denouncing gender-affirming care for minors and criticizing providers, in a suit brought by 18 states. The court found he violated standard rulemaking procedures by releasing a December 2025 declaration and issued a ruling that preserves clinics’ funding prospects as the case continues.

via Politico|
#federal-regulation#gender-affirming-care#health-policy
ACIP at Crossroads: Evidence vs. Politics in COVID Vaccine Policy
health-policy22 days ago

ACIP at Crossroads: Evidence vs. Politics in COVID Vaccine Policy

An Op-Ed argues that the reconstituted ACIP is relitigating COVID vaccine safety using an unvalidated PACVS framework, proposing unvalidated diagnostics and dubious prevalence, while ignoring robust VSD surveillance showing no excess mortality post-vaccination; internal dissent among work-group members and a court ruling suggesting the process violated the Administrative Procedure Act highlight concerns that policy is being guided by conclusions rather than evidence. The piece warns that replacing GRADE with a weaker evidentiary standard would undermine vaccine policy across all vaccines, and notes the March meeting was postponed, set against a public health backdrop of measles outbreaks.

via CIDRAP|
#acip#covid-19-vaccines#grade-framework
TrumpRx: Small Discounts, Big Questions on Real Price Relief
health23 days ago

TrumpRx: Small Discounts, Big Questions on Real Price Relief

TrumpRx.gov, launched to curb prescription costs, has offered discounts on only 54 drugs—many with cheaper generics or other savings options—and remains far from an insurance-friendly tool, with limited awareness; experts say its real impact hinges on scale, broader drug coverage, price transparency, and potential congressional action to codify MFN-style deals into law.

via NBC News|
#drug-pricing#health#health-policy
FDA drafts framework to validate human-centric NAMs, trimming animal testing in drug development
health-policy23 days ago

FDA drafts framework to validate human-centric NAMs, trimming animal testing in drug development

The FDA issued a draft guidance to help drug developers validate new approach methodologies (NAMs) as replacements for animal testing in drug development, outlining four core validation principles—context of use, human biological relevance, technical characterization, and fit-for-purpose—and encouraging early consultation with FDA review divisions. NAMs encompass advanced in vitro systems, organoids and organ-on-chip models, in silico methods, and even phylogenetically lower organisms like zebrafish. The goal is to rely on human-relevant data to improve safety predictions and accelerate access to safer therapies, building on previous efforts to reduce animal testing and update related guidance on pyrogen/endotoxin testing.

via fda.gov|
#animal-testing-alternatives#drug-development#fda-guidance
politics25 days ago

Judge halts RFK Jr.'s vaccine policy push, freezes ACIP changes

A federal judge stayed Health Secretary RFK Jr.'s appointments to the vaccine advisory panel (ACIP), effectively blocking its upcoming meeting and the January downgrade of certain vaccines to 'shared clinical decision-making,' as litigation over his vaccine-policy changes proceeds; the ruling emphasizes the traditional, evidence-based process for vaccine recommendations and could be appealed.

via Politico|
#acip#court-ruling#health-policy
Internal memos challenge data behind ending Covid vaccine guidance for pregnancy and children
health26 days ago

Internal memos challenge data behind ending Covid vaccine guidance for pregnancy and children

Internal memos published in a lawsuit allege U.S. health officials largely ignored hundreds of studies and built the decision to end Covid vaccine recommendations for pregnant people and children on a narrow, potentially biased evidence base, sparking criticism that policy shifts were ideology-driven even as data show vaccination reduces risks in pregnancy and protects young infants.

via The Guardian|
#covid-19#health#health-policy
NHS delays push patients toward private care, watchdog finds
health26 days ago

NHS delays push patients toward private care, watchdog finds

Healthwatch England warns of a rising two‑tier system as patients increasingly pay for private tests, scans and even treatment to bypass NHS waits. A survey shows 16% used private care in the past year (up from 9%), with wealthier people more likely to pay; many privately funded results then feed back into NHS care, adding to GP workloads. Private providers offer quicker access (some tests in under 48 hours) compared with NHS targets of about 18 weeks for treatment, and about 950,000 private procedures were carried out last year. The watchdog and medical groups urge urgent action to cut waiting times and curb the private‑sector shift, while the government says it is investing and gradually reducing delays.

via BBC|
#health#health-policy#healthwatch-england