A Mass. woman knew the drug her doctor prescribed required preauthorization, but she didn’t realize the approval had an expiration date. It took weeks of calls and paperwork to get her prescription refilled. Tips for navigating the process ⤵️

Premium increases hit early retirees, middle-income earners, and residents of high-cost states hardest. Chaz and Jean Franklin are all three. Read their full story ⤵️ https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/insurance-premium-payments-terminal-diagnosis-aca-subsidies-covered-california/

This week on What the Health? From KFF Health News and @wamu.org, host @julierovner.bsky.social interviews Avik Roy, a GOP health policy adviser and co-founder and chair of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity. You can listen to the full episode here: kffhealthnews.org/news/podcast...

About 1 in 4 American adults got a covid vaccine shot during the 2024-25 virus season, a fraction health care experts warn could be smaller this year as millions wrestle with conflicting advice from the government and trusted medical orgs about the value of a shot. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

Here’s what happened in health care this week: - If the government remains closed, millions could lose food stamps starting November first. - ICE is hiring more health care providers to work in its detention centers to fight a surge in deaths. - Bird flu has infected dozens of poultry flocks

Here’s what happened in health care this week: federal shutdown continues to be centered on the ACA, judge halts federal employee layoffs, lead in protein powder. KFF Health News will be back with a weekly recap of the news you need to know about. Follow for more!

Here's why we rate this statement from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., “It’s going to be the biggest infusion of federal dollars into rural health care in American history,” Mostly False. @ajzionts.bsky.social explains ⤵️

On Day 10 of the federal shutdown, the head of the Office of Management and Budget announced it had begun reducing the federal workforce again. HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon confirmed health agencies, including the CDC, would be hit with layoffs Friday.

This week in health care: - The government shutdown continues, and health care is at the center of the debate. - CDC says people need to talk to a health care provider before getting a covid shot. - More prescription drugs could soon be cheaper for people on Medicare.

Much of the federal government shut down on Oct. 1, after Congress failed to agree on spending bills. But as Democrats push to extend enhanced ACA subsidies and reverse to Medicaid cuts, a big question arises: Will Americans notice? Here's @shefalil on "What the Health?" ⤵️

This week in health care: - The government shutdown halted some health services. - More than 32,000 employees at federal health agencies are suspended from work without pay during the shutdown. - People may soon be able to buy prescription drugs from “TrumpRX.”

This week in health care: - HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. released his strategy to make America’s kids “Healthy Again”. - The Trump administration wants to crack down on the prescription drug ads you see on TV. - Covid wasn’t a top 10 cause of death in the U.S. last year.

The number of patients treated at the NIH Clinical Center is falling under the second Trump administration. @rachanadpradhan.bsky.social reports why, drawing on government documents and interviews with NIH staff.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is currently testifying before the Senate Finance Committee. What will be the biggest takeaways? What comes next? We've got the details. Tune in for our post-hearing discussion today at 3 p.m. ET. RSVP here: bit.ly/4mVyO3J

Céline Gounder, KFF Health News’ editor-at-large for public health, appeared on CBS News’ “Face the Nation With Margaret Brennan” on Aug. 31 to discuss leadership changes at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and vaccine policy concerns. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

This week in health care: - HHS Secretary RFK Jr. and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are challenging Americans to improve their physical fitness. - CMS announced a plan to disenroll noncitizens from Medicaid and CHIP. - A MAHA report draft calls for more research and offers few policies.

This week in health care: - More details about last week’s shooting at the CDC’s Atlanta campus are emerging. - Turning 26 and freaking out about being kicked off of your parents’ health insurance? A new guide is available. - Public release of RFK Jr.’s second MAHA report has been delayed.

A gunman, reportedly disgruntled over covid vaccines, attacked the headquarters of the CDC in Atlanta, highlighting how increasingly inflammatory rhetoric from health critics endangers the public health workforce. Here's a quote from @alicemiranda.bsky.social. ⤵️

A year after Trump promised on the campaign trail to secure coverage of IVF, the White House reportedly is not planning to compel insurers to pay the services — a change that would require an act of Congress and could raise costs overall. Here's a quote from @sarahkarlin-smith.bsky.social ⤵️

Here’s what happened in health care this week: - Some states will ban junk food from being purchased with food stamps. - RFK Jr. is cutting $500 million in research funding for mRNA vaccines. - President Trump is bringing back the Presidential Fitness Test.

Here’s what happened in health care this week: - Organs nearly taken from people showing signs of life. RFK Jr. called the situation “horrifying”. - Your ACA plan will likely be more expensive next year. - Humana says it will cut back on prior authorization for outpatient services.

“I had to come back for the insurance, because they informed me this year that I’m on COBRA,” said Venus Williams in a post-match interview at the Mubadala Citi D.C. Open. Williams, 45, became the oldest woman to win on the Women’s Tennis Association tour since 2004. Learn more about COBRA.⤵️

Lawmakers added a $50 billion program for rural health to President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending package with promises it would help plug the hole left by Medicaid cuts. Rural hospital and clinic leaders worry the infusion won’t reach the right places. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

3/4: “I’ve been undetectable for 15 years, but that law still punishes us,” Smith said. For nearly two decades, Smith had dealt with the stigma associated with having HIV; the registry added another layer of exclusion, severely restricting where he could live and work to avoid minors

🧵After an ex-girlfriend accused Robert Smith of a felony called "intentional exposure to HIV," he accepted a plea deal to spend six months in prison without realizing the conviction would also land him on the sex offender registry.

RFK Jr. is pushing to remove artificial dyes from food. But doctors say dyes aren’t the biggest issue in our diets. Medical debt can appear on your credit report, said a federal judge. Sen. Josh Hawley wants to undo some of the cuts to Medicaid in Trump’s big budget law... which he voted for.

This week's health news you need to know: - Climate change may have tripled heat-related deaths in Europe's recent heatwave. - Measles cases have reached the highest total record since the U.S. eliminated the disease in 2000. - Major medical groups are suing RFK Jr. over new covid guidance.

Trump's tax and immigration bill cleared the House Thursday after a chaotic overnight and morning in Congress. The legislation contains $1.2 trillion in cutbacks to Medicaid and food stamps. The CBO forecasts that 11.8 million Americans would become uninsured by 2034 We broke down the numbers. ⤵️

#SCOTUS ruled states can block Planned Parenthood from their Medicaid programs. Some health provisions in Trump's “One Big Beautiful Bill” violate U.S. Senate rules. And the country’s largest health insurers pledge to improve prior auth. Here's @samuelwhitehead.bsky.social with the weekly recap ⤵️

RFK Jr. fired every member of the CDC vaccine advisory committee and picked new members, including vaccine skeptics. And the FDA plans to use AI to help determine whether new drugs and medical devices are safe to use. We broke down what's happening. ⤵️