Two months on the job, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has plowed forward with mass firings, funding cuts and policy shifts. The most immediate effect is across state and local health agencies, where officials say they see new cracks in safeguards against diseases.
Federal Policy
Posted inPublic Health
Making Sense of Sweeping Cuts at HHS
Veteran health care reporter Julie Rovner breaks down the massive cuts and reorganization at HHS and answers listeners’ questions about what to expect next.
Posted inCost of Care
Patients and Employers Support This GOP Budget Cut. Hospitals Say It’s Too Risky.
Medicare would save billions of dollars changing how it pays for routine medical care. Patients would save, too, but rural hospitals could see financial losses.
Posted inCost of Care
This Budget Cut Would Save Medicare Patients Money. But Can Rural Hospitals Afford It?
Medicare often pays clinics owned by hospitals at least double the amount it pays independent clinics for the exact same medical care. Ending that practice would save money for taxpayers and patients, but critics say it could also push rural hospitals to cut services or close.
Posted inInsurance
Medicare and Medicaid Under Dr. Oz: What to Expect
A closer look at the surgeon-turned-TV-star President Trump wants in charge of Medicare, Medicaid and Obamacare.
Posted inInsurance
Former CMS Chief Advises Dr. Oz: ‘Go Have Lunch’ with Democrats
Tom Scully, who led Medicare and Medicaid for George W. Bush, says Oz is well-suited to be a spokesman for Trump’s health care agenda, despite Oz’s lack of health policy experience.
Posted inHealth Technology
Lots of Hospitals Are Using AI. Few Are Testing For Bias
New research sheds light on how many hospitals are using artificial intelligence, what they’re using AI for, and what it means for patients and policymakers.
Posted inPublic Health
RFK Jr. Wants to Change What Americans Eat. He’s Not The First.
The fight to improve Americans’ nutrition could get new momentum from Robert F. Kennedy Jr., but he will face practical and political limits to changing U.S. food supply if he’s confirmed to lead the Health and Human Services Department.
Posted inPublic Health
The Powerful Vaccine Committee RFK Jr. Could Soon Control
If the Senate confirms Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a vaccine skeptic — to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, he would control an influential group of federal vaccine advisors.
Posted inInsurance
Why Many Republicans Think Shrinking Medicaid Will Make it Better
Republicans have singled out Medicaid for possible cuts under the new administration and Congress. We explore why many conservatives think less Medicaid will mean better Medicaid.