A Headless CDC – KFF Health News

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The Trump administration this week missed a deadline to appoint a brand new director for the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. With no nominee, present appearing Director Jay Bhattacharya — who can also be the director of the Nationwide Institutes of Well being — has to surrender that title, leaving nobody on the helm of the nation’s major public well being company. 

In the meantime, per week after one federal decide blocked modifications to the childhood vaccine schedule made by the Division of Well being and Human Companies, one other blocked a proposed ban on gender-affirming take care of minors. 

This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Well being Information, Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg Information, Lizzy Lawrence of Stat, and Shefali Luthra of The nineteenth.

Among the many takeaways from this week’s episode:

• A federal decide dominated in opposition to the Trump administration’s declaration meant to restrict trans take care of minors, although the ruling’s sensible results will rely on whether or not hospitals resume such care. And a key member of the remade federal vaccine advisory panel resigned because the panel’s actions — and even membership — stay in authorized limbo.
• Two senior administration well being posts stay unfilled, after President Donald Trump missed a deadline to fill the highest job on the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention — and the Senate made little progress on confirming his nominee for surgeon common.
• The proportion of worldwide graduates from international medical faculties who match into U.S. residency positions has dropped to a five-year low. That’s notable given immigrants symbolize 1 / 4 of physicians, lots of them in essential however lower-paid specialties equivalent to major care — significantly in rural areas. In the meantime, new surveys present that greater than 1 / 4 of labs funded by the Nationwide Institutes of Well being have laid off staff and that federal analysis funding cuts have had a disproportionate impact on ladies and early-career scientists.
• And new information exhibits the variety of abortions in the USA stayed comparatively steady final 12 months, for the second straight 12 months — largely because of telehealth entry to abortion care. And a vocal opponent of abortion within the Senate, together with his eyes on a presidential run, launched laws to successfully rescind federal approval for the abortion tablet mifepristone.

Additionally this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown Regulation Middle’s Katie Keith concerning the state of the Inexpensive Care Act on its sixteenth anniversary.

Plus, for “further credit score,” the panelists recommend well being coverage tales they learn this week that they suppose you must learn, too:

Julie Rovner: Stat’s “The Potential Loophole in Trump’s Plan To Get Different International locations To Pay Extra for Medicine,” by John Wilkerson. 

Shefali Luthra: NPR’s “Yep. A Mother’s COVID Shot Throughout Being pregnant Protects Her Child, a Massive Examine Finds,” by Tara Haelle. 

Lizzy Lawrence: The Atlantic’s “The Meme-Washing of RFK Jr.,” by Nicholas Florko. 

Rachel Cohrs Zhang: The Boston Globe’s “‘We’re on the Inside Now’: Meet the Man Constructing a Political Empire Behind RFK Jr.” by Tal Kopan. 

Additionally talked about on this week’s podcast:

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