News Archives — Protect Our Care

HEADLINES: HHS Cuts Are Devastating American Health Care, Wreaking Havoc Across The Country

Last week, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. announced plans to dismantle critical health care services for the American people by gutting his own department. The latest plan includes firing 10,000 employees who have been responding to infectious disease outbreaks, approving new life-saving drugs, administering critical programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and more. This comes after thousands of employees have already left HHS due to DOGE efforts to slash the federal workforce to the bone and cut the programs the American people rely on. These drastic cuts will undermine disease prevention, food inspection, and drug safety, raising the danger Americans face.

HEADLINES

CNN: ‘It’s a Bloodbath’: Massive Wave of Job Cuts Underway at US Health Agencies.

“Cuts at the CDC slashed divisions that work on workplace health and safety, HIV, injury prevention, reproductive health, smoking and violence prevention, among others.”

Forbes: How The Layoff Of 10,000 Health Workers From HHS Could Affect Your Health.

“Employees at the CDC are tasked with responding to infectious disease threats like measles, implementing prevention programs for potential outbreaks like bird flu and communicating effective messages to the public so Americans can stay safe. With thousands fewer employees staffing the center, the ability to monitor and contain diseases effectively could be hindered… The Food and Drug Administration, which sets safety standards for medical devices, drugs and food, will see a reduction of 3,500 workers. This degree of downsizing may slow the approval process for many lifesaving drugs and delay inspection of food processing facilities… Institutions of higher learning are already potentially facing enormous funding cuts with a cap of indirect costs to federal research grants to 15%, which translates to hundreds of millions of dollars that will not be granted to many universities.”

STAT: At CDC, Trump Administration’s Job Cuts Wipe Out Wide Array of Specialists.

“In all, the CDC is expected to lose roughly 2,400 employees, or about 18% of its staff, as part of the broader cuts playing out across the Department of Health and Human Services… The Trump administration has argued the CDC’s mission had become too broad, and that it should focus squarely on infectious disease concerns… ‘We are weaker,’ said one CDC employee who did not receive a termination notice but asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals. The individual noted that the CDC is the country’s rapid response force, deployed when there are new disease threats or bioterror attacks. ‘If there was an outbreak, I would not know who is deployment-ready to get on a plane in the next 24 hours,’ this person wrote. ‘I would not know who is still left to GET people deployment-ready if they are not already up-to-date.’”

The Washington Post: Widespread Layoffs, Purge of Leadership Underway at U.S. Health Agencies.

“Senior leaders across the Department of Health and Human Services were put on leave and countless other employees lost their jobs Tuesday as the Trump administration began a sweeping purge of the agencies that oversee government health programs… At the CDC, entire branches and divisions were eliminated or significantly reduced, employees said. In the Immunization Services Division, staff members who worked on vaccination education and outreach to under-vaccinated communities were among those who received notices, including one person working on the ongoing measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico, according to two staff members who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.”

Bloomberg: Top US Drug, Tobacco Regulators Cut as RFK Jr. Reshapes Health Agency.

“The sweeping cuts also allow Kennedy to reshape the country’s health policy and communications, providing a road map for where the new health chief is directing his focus. Among the 10,000 people cut on Tuesday, some entire divisions were gutted including groups working on sexually transmitted diseases, environmental health, global health and birth defects, according to people familiar with the matter. Big swaths of the agency’s communications and federal records teams were also laid off.”

Newsweek: Here’s How RFK Jr.’s HHS Cuts Could Impact Americans.

“HHS administers health insurance programs that affect nearly half the U.S. population, including Medicare and Medicaid, and regulates medical products and food. Critics warn that the scale of the cuts could jeopardize disease response capacity, scientific research, and regulatory oversight. ‘They may as well be renaming it the Department of Disease because their plan is putting lives in serious jeopardy,’ Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, said on Friday.”

NBC News: Widespread Job Cuts Begin at Health Agencies.

“The administration made deep and wide-ranging cuts to divisions responsible for tackling HIV, improving minority health and preventing injury, such as gun violence. Jobs were eliminated at offices overseeing the approval of new drugs, providing health insurance and responding to infectious disease outbreaks. A number of lesser-known divisions — including several focused on the safety of mining workers — were cut entirely.”

Politico: Thousands Laid off as Kennedy and Musk Take Aim at Health Agencies.

“Driving the cuts is Kennedy’s desire to reorient HHS to combat chronic diseases, rather than infectious ones, and root out conflicts of interest he claims have led it to approve dangerous drugs. A longtime critic of vaccination, Kennedy has accused HHS of downplaying vaccine side effects — in defiance of public health consensus that vaccines are safe.”

EXPERTS

Dr. Robert Califf, Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner: “The FDA as we’ve known it is finished, with most of the leaders with institutional knowledge and a deep understanding of product development and safety no longer employed. I believe that history will see this a huge mistake.” [LinkedIn, 04/01/25]

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Former Trump Food and Drug Administration Commissioner: “Through a generation of congressional actions, investments in expertise and hiring, and careful policymaking, we built the FDA into the most efficient, forward-leaning drug regulatory agency in the world—and established the U.S. as the global center of biopharmaceutical innovation. Today, the cumulative barrage on that drug-discovery enterprise, threatens to swiftly bring back those frustrating delays for American consumers, particularly affecting rare diseases and areas of significant unmet medical need.” [X, 04/01/25]

Dr. Mandy Cohen, Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director: “These cuts to agency experts and programs leave our country less safe, less prepared and without the necessary talent and resources to respond to health threats.” [NBC, 04/01/25]

Dr. Ashish Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, Former Biden Administration COVID-19 Coordinator: “We’ve never seen anything like this before. We rely on our CDC for things like tracking down disease outbreaks. We rely on NIH for research into new treatments and tests and vaccines. At this moment, whether those will continue to be effective has really been put into question. We don’t know what the implications of all of this will be. I’m worried that what we’re going to see is more people getting sick, more disease outbreaks and infrastructure that is going to be less and less capable of responding to those threats.” [NPR, 04/01/25]

Jeremy Berg, Former Director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at the NIH: “The level of cuts at NIH I am hearing about today is truly mind-boggling. I try not to be hyperbolic but this seems to be a massacre. … I honestly don’t know where this leads.” [NPR, 04/01/25]

Dr. Tom Frieden, Former Commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene: “If we look at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are discussions of reducing our global work that’s really dangerous. It means that instead of finding and stopping threats where they emerge, which is less expensive, safer and more efficient, we’ll have to fight them here within the United States at greater risk and greater expense. … These are changes which not only will make the U.S. less safe, less healthy, and with higher healthcare costs, but unless these changes are reversed, they will literally cause millions of deaths around the world.” [PBS, 03/29/25]

Larry Levitt, KFF Executive Vice President for Health Policy: “The general public likely won’t feel the results of these HHS layoffs immediately. But eventually, these layoffs will affect the health information available to people, access to care and prevention, and oversight of health and social services.” [X, 04/01/25]

Dr. Craig Spencer: “Thousands of the best experts at FDA, NIH, and all across HHS are being terminated right now. These are the people who make sure the medications you and your children take are safe. These are the people who perform and oversee research on cancer, infant health, and so so so much more. These are the people who make sure new devices that physicians and patients use are effective. These are the people who keep workers safe on the job and help prevent devastating injuries for workers all around the country. These are the people who track what drugs and medications are experiencing shortages so we can adapt. These are the people who help tackle HIV and other infectious diseases, asthma, lead poisoning, and everything else that makes many Americans sick. And now, thousands of them are gone. There is no way this makes Americans healthier. We will regret this.” [X, 04/01/25]

Dr. Richard Besser, President and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: “HHS has a mission to improve and protect Americans’ health and wellbeing. Its leadership should be working nonstop to ensure health is no longer a privilege but a right. Instead, they are systematically and cruelly dismantling our nation’s public health system and workforce, which threatens the health and wellbeing of everyone in America. … These are reckless, thoughtless cuts that will only make American communities less healthy and less safe. They represent an abdication of the department’s essential responsibility to promote and protect health.” [Press Release, 04/01/25]

Barbara Collura, President of RESOLVE: “It is vital that the CDC, our nation’s public health agency, employs doctors and scientists who understand infertility, a disease that impacts one in six people worldwide. Following today’s layoffs at the CDC, there will be no experts on infertility who will be able to inform public policy, brief members of Congress, publish articles and reports, and advance public awareness on the causes and treatments for infertility. RESOLVE is deeply concerned by this development and what it means for those who struggle to build their family.” [X, 04/01/25]

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New Navigator Polling Shows Medicaid is “Deeply and Broadly Popular” as Republicans Try to Rip it Away

As Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) holds the Senate floor to defend Medicaid from Republican budget cuts amid Medicaid Awareness Month, new Navigator polling confirms Medicaid is “deeply” popular across the board and there is broad opposition across party lines to any cuts to Medicaid. Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are pursuing nearly $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid so they can give billionaires another tax cut. If they get their way, millions could lose their health care. Poll after poll confirms this is completely out of step with the American people. Here’s the latest:

Medicaid is Widely Popular. While Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are trying to slash hundreds of billions from the country’s largest health insurance program, 77 percent of voters view Medicaid favorably, including 70 percent of Republicans.

Americans Overwhelmingly Oppose Cuts to Medicaid. 75 percent of Americans are strongly or somewhat opposed to cuts to Medicaid. 59 percent of Americans, or nearly every three in five, strongly oppose any cuts. And 60 percent of voters, or three in five, know someone who relies on Medicaid for health care coverage, underscoring the fact that the consequences of Republican cuts to Medicaid would touch nearly every household in America.

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FACT SHEET: Seniors and Their Families Count On Medicaid, But Republicans Want to Slash It to Give Tax Breaks to the Rich

Week One of Medicaid Awareness Month Focuses on the Importance of Medicaid to Older Adults As Republicans Pursue Draconian Cuts

This April marks the eighth annual Medicaid Awareness Month. Medicaid is the largest health insurance program in the country, providing health care for over 70 million Americans, including 7.2 million seniors. It provides essential coverage for expenses like long-term care, medical equipment, hospitalization, and prescription drugs. As the single largest payer to long-term care services in the country, middle-class families depend on Medicaid to help take care of their loved ones. Six in 10 nursing home residents count on Medicaid for the long-term care they need – that’s 5.6 million older Americans.

But Trump and Republicans in Congress are determined to gut Medicaid in order to give billionaires another tax cut, even if it means dismantling the health care American families rely on. The GOP budget paves the way for slashing $880 billion from Medicaid, putting the health care of tens of millions of Americans at risk. For seniors, who often live on fixed incomes and face high medical expenses, losing their health care coverage would be catastrophic. The consequences of such severe cuts to Medicaid would touch nearly every household in America. Families would be forced to choose between seeing a doctor, filling a prescription, or putting food on the table. Without Medicaid, millions may be forced to leave a job to provide full-time care for an aging parent who can no longer afford their nursing home. Recent polling found there is broad opposition across party lines to any cuts to Medicaid, with 67 percent saying Congress should increase spending on Medicaid or keep it about the same.

During Medicaid Awareness Month, Protect Our Care is continuing its “Hands Off Medicaid” campaign with theme weeks to underscore the importance of Medicaid across the country. Alongside partners, lawmakers, and other advocates, Protect Our Care is working to defend Medicaid from the Republican-led plan to slash funding to pay for another round of tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations.

By The Numbers

Millions of Seniors & Older Americans Rely On Medicaid Coverage. 7.2 million Americans over 65 are enrolled in Medicaid and more than 11 million Americans ages 50 to 64 have health coverage through Medicaid – many thanks to the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion.
6 to 8 Million Older Adults Live Below The Federal Poverty Level. For millions of seniors and older Americans on fixed incomes, Medicaid is a lifeline.
Medicaid Is the Single Largest Payer To Long-Term Care Services Nationwide. As seniors age, long-term care services become more essential. Medicaid serves about 70 percent of seniors who will need some form of long-term care in their lives.
2.7 Million People Would Gain Coverage If Remaining States Expanded Medicaid. This includes 1.4 million people who are in the Medicaid coverage gap and an additional 1.3 million uninsured people with incomes between 100 and 138 percent of the federal poverty line who are eligible, but not enrolled in Marketplace plans. 17 percent, approximately 238,000, of the uninsured in the coverage gap are people aged 55-64 who face increased health care needs.
Medicaid Pays For 62 Percent Of Long-Term Care Residents In Nursing Homes. Medicaid covers nursing home bills for over 60 percent of residents in nursing homes. In 2019, this totaled over $50 billion. The median private nursing home room cost over $100,000 yearly in 2025.
12 Million Medicare Beneficiaries Also Have Medicaid Coverage. Nearly 8 million of the dual eligible Medicare-Medicaid beneficiaries are “full benefit” Medicaid enrollees who have access to a range of Medicaid benefits, not otherwise covered by Medicare.

Seniors And Older Adults Depend On Medicaid For Affordable, Comprehensive Care. As of 2023, approximately 2.98 million older adults are uninsured. Older Americans often have more complex health issues, requiring additional medical attention that is costly, pushing care out of reach. For seniors on Medicare, Medicaid helps fill many of the gaps in Medicare coverage, such as transportation to medical appointments and medical equipment.

Middle Class Families Rely on Medicaid for Peace of Mind and Financial Security. Millions of middle class families across the country depend on Medicaid, whether it’s for an aging parent, a disabled child needing special care, or a child who can’t be covered under their parent’s health plans but doesn’t make enough yet to afford insurance on their own. Studies show increased Medicaid access leads to middle class families having an increased amount of money in their savings and retirement accounts and are significantly more likely to never miss a mortgage payment. Without Medicaid, middle class families would be more likely to drain their savings, lose their homes, and not save for retirement.

Medicaid Supplements Medicare Coverage For Millions Of Seniors. 12 million seniors are eligible Medicare-Medicaid dual beneficiaries. Nearly 8 million are “full benefit” Medicaid enrollees who have access to a range of Medicaid benefits, not otherwise covered by Medicare. Nearly half of dual enrollees are seniors of color and over half of dual enrollees suffer from long-term disabilities.

Medicaid Helps Seniors And Older Americans Stay Retired And Out Of Poverty. Many seniors and older Americans survive on low incomes or have chronic health conditions that prohibit them from working. Medicaid allows individuals living on fixed incomes or who have chronic health problems to continue getting the care they need by filling the gaps in their Medicare coverage without having to worry about choosing between food and housing or their health. Medicaid has long been considered one of the most effective anti-poverty programs in the nation, and its expansion has significantly improved health outcomes for seniors and older adults. In a nation where 4 in 10 adults report having medical debt, Medicaid serves as a lifeline not only for health care, but for economic stability as Americans age. A January 2021 study from Health Affairs found that the ACA helped reduce income inequality across the board, but much more dramatically in Medicaid expansion states.

Low-Income Seniors With Medicare Depend On Medicaid For Long-Term Care. It is estimated that 70 percent of seniors will need long-term care at some point and 62 percent of nursing facility residents utilize Medicaid to receive their care. Medicaid is a critical provider of home- and community-based care that are essential to keep loved ones at home with their families and neighbors. Without Medicaid, many seniors would not be able to afford these needed services with Medicare alone. 80 percent of individuals in nursing facilities covered by Medicaid were dually eligible, with Medicaid covering costs once Medicare benefits have been depleted.

Hundreds of Thousands of Seniors Are Stuck In The Medicaid Coverage Gap. 10 states have refused to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), stranding many seniors with low incomes in the Medicaid coverage gap. As a result, over 407,000 older Americans with incomes below the federal poverty level are ineligible for Medicaid or ACA marketplace assistance in these states. Over half of these individuals reside in Texas or Florida, and seniors from at least 25 percent of those in the Medicaid coverage gap in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida.

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This Medicaid Awareness Month, We’re Exposing the Republican Scheme to Slash Medicaid to Fund Tax Breaks for Billionaires

Protect Our Care Will Continue Its “Hands Off Medicaid” Campaign With Events and Activities Throughout the Month

Washington, D.C. – Tuesday, April 1 kicks off the eighth annual Medicaid Awareness Month, and Protect Our Care is leading the charge to defend Medicaid and the care that Americans count on. Medicaid is under fire like never before as Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress pursue close to a trillion dollars in cuts. Their efforts jeopardize the health care that one in five Americans rely on in order to fund massive tax breaks for the wealthy and large corporations. If Trump and MAGA Republicans get their way, millions will lose their health care.

Medicaid provides health care to over 70 million Americans, including seniors who need long-term care, children who make up nearly half of Medicaid enrollees, new moms, rural Americans, people with disabilities, and working families. Medicaid benefits just about every household and community in the country, but the Republican health care agenda isn’t about families or everyday Americans — it’s about implementing Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthy, no matter how many people are left to pay the price.

To mark the start of Medicaid Awareness Month, Protect Our Care President Brad Woodhouse released the following statement: “Trump and his yes-men in Congress are plotting the largest Medicaid cuts in history, all so the rich can get richer. This Republican budget proposal is an assault on hardworking Americans who count on Medicaid. This Medicaid Awareness Month, we’re calling out Donald Trump’s shameless war on health care and making it clear that Medicaid cuts mean tearing away health care from millions of Americans, including seniors, kids with disabilities, and low-income working people. Trump and his Republican allies are focused on lining the pockets of the wealthy, even if it means trampling on the needs of everyone else.”

Throughout the month of April, Protect Our Care will release reports, publish fact sheets, host events around the country, and continue its “Hands Off Medicaid” campaign, demanding Republicans abandon their cuts to Medicaid. These activities will highlight Medicaid’s importance to middle- and low-income Americans, underscore what needs to be done to protect the program, and make clear the dire consequences of the Republican agenda.

The month will include the following themes each week:

March 31 – April 4: Seniors: Over 8 million seniors across America rely on Medicaid for affordable and essential health care. It helps seniors age with dignity and independence and lightens the load of working families struggling to get by.
April 7 – 11: People with Disabilities: Medicaid covers 45 percent of non-elderly adults with disabilities, including adults with physical disabilities, developmental disabilities, and brain injuries.
April 14 – 18: Communities of Color: Over 60 percent of those covered by Medicaid are people of color. Altogether, Medicaid provides coverage for 36.9 million non-elderly Americans of color across the nation.
April 21 – 25: Opioid Crisis & Mental Health: Medicaid is the single largest payer for mental health services in America, serving 26 percent of all adults living with a serious mental health condition. Medicaid is crucial to building a system of comprehensive substance use disorder treatment. These interventions have been vital and life-saving.
April 28 – May 2: Moms and Kids: Medicaid provides the care for over 40 percent of births and other maternal care such as prenatal visits, ultrasounds, and screenings. It also covers nearly half of all American children, including children with special needs, foster youth, and children of color.

Background:

As one of the largest health insurers in the country, Medicaid is an indispensable pillar of our economy and health care system. Medicaid is a lifeline for children who make up almost half of Medicaid recipients, seniors in nursing homes, mothers, people with disabilities, rural Americans, and working families. It covers more than 40 percent of all births in the U.S. and is the single largest payer to community clinics, long-term care services, and mental health and substance use disorder care in the country. Medicaid keeps hospitals open in rural communities, helps children do better in school and earn better jobs in adulthood, shields families from overwhelming medical debt, allows seniors to age with dignity and the care they need, and so much more.

By The Numbers

Republican threats to Medicaid put health care at risk for over 70 million (21 percent of) Americans, including:
- 31.5 million children
- 9.1 million people with disabilities
- 8.3 million seniors
Republicans will create a $50 billion hole in state Medicaid budgets to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy and corporations.
If Republicans decrease federal funding for people in the Medicaid expansion population, it would immediately rip health care away from 4 million Americans across twelve states and jeopardize health care for about 21 million people.
Republicans threaten care for 18.5 million people on Medicaid by imposing lifetime caps.
Republicans could deny coverage to 36 million Americans through burdensome bureaucratic reporting requirements.

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FACT CHECK: Senate Republicans Are Planning to Gut Medicaid

New reports indicate that Senate Republicans are advancing a budget bill this week, bringing them closer to achieving their goal of implementing Trump’s scheme to gut Medicaid and hand out tax breaks for the wealthy and big corporations.

No matter what Senate Republicans may claim, the truth is that their budget paves the way for severe cuts to Medicaid. Per Politico: “The Senate won’t alter the House’s instructions to its own committees, including leaving untouched the House GOP plans for the Energy and Commerce Committee to slash $880 billion from its jurisdiction.” According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, these cuts will lead to drastic cuts to Medicaid. By adopting the rules and funding cuts laid out in House Republicans’ budget plan, Senate Republicans are endorsing the House GOP’s plan and greenlighting massive cuts to Medicaid which will rip health care away from millions of Americans just to fund tax breaks for the rich. Here’s the truth:

This Is Clearly Another Scheme To Take Health Care Away From Working People, Seniors, Veterans, And Children To Give Tax Breaks To The Rich. As the Georgetown Center for Children and Families found, Republicans’ math does not add up. The CBO confirmed that Republicans cannot make their proposed $880 billion in cuts without drastically cutting Medicaid and throwing millions of hardworking families off their coverage, closing rural hospitals, and kicking seniors out of nursing homes.

Medicaid Is Extremely Popular And Voters Will Hold Republicans Accountable For Ripping It Away From Their Loved Ones and Neighbors. Recent polling found that 71 percent of voters who backed Trump say cutting Medicaid would be unacceptable. Republicans are making a grave mistake by assuming the voters who supported them, many of whom rely on Medicaid, are not smart enough to see through their lies.

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Trump’s War on Health Care: Public Health Watch

In the Words of the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, “Our Worst Fears About Mr. Kennedy Are Coming True.”

Welcome to Public Health Watch, a weekly roundup from Protect Our Care tracking catastrophic activity as part of Donald Trump’s sweeping war on health care. From installing anti-vaccine zealot RFK Jr. as Secretary of HHS to empowering Elon Musk to make indiscriminate cuts to our public health infrastructure, including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control, Donald Trump is endangering the lives of millions of Americans. Protect Our Care’s Public Health Watch will shine a spotlight on the worst of the Trump/RFK/Musk war on vaccines, science and public health and serve as a resource for the press, public and advocacy groups to hold them accountable.

What’s Happening In Public Health?

Catastrophic Cuts Are Creating Chaos And Endangering Americans’ Health And Scientific Innovation

Wall Street Journal: RFK Jr. Plans 10,000 Job Cuts in Major Restructuring of Health Department Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is set to significantly cut the size of the department he leads, reshaping the nation’s health agencies and closing regional offices, according to documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal. Kennedy is set to announce Thursday the planned changes, which include axing 10,000 full-time employees spread across departments tasked with responding to disease outbreaks, approving new drugs, providing insurance for the poorest Americans and more. The worker cuts are in addition to roughly 10,000 employees who opted to leave the department since President Trump took office, through voluntary separation offers, according to the documents. The voluntary departures and the plan, if fully implemented, would result in the department shedding about one-quarter of its workforce, shrinking to 62,000 federal health workers. It will also lose five of its 10 regional offices. The documents viewed by the Journal say essential health services won’t be affected.

Politico: RFK Jr.’s massive cuts stun staff, leave senior employees scrambling Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s move to gut and reorganize the federal health department shocked many people tasked with making it happen, and left others fearful that everything from the safety of the nation’s drug supply to disease response could be at risk. The disaster preparedness agency in the Department of Health and Human Services has just two days to prepare a plan to fold itself into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to an HHS official, granted anonymity for fear of retribution. Health staffers entrusted with regulating prescription drugs, managing public health programs and conducting scientific research were blindsided by the cuts, with many learning the details from a Wall Street Journal story published early on Thursday, several people familiar with the matter said. “There’s very few people who actually know what’s happening,” said one health official granted anonymity to describe the internal reaction. House Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) also said he learned of the cuts from news reports. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chair of the committee that oversees the health department, found out from Kennedy during a breakfast Thursday just before the news broke. The hushed-and-hurried nature of Thursday’s announcement, which called for terminating 10,000 workers, the elimination of departments and the closure of regional offices, underscores how Kennedy as health secretary intends to impose his singular vision on a department he has chided as a bloated bureaucracy that has lost its way.

New York Times: Trump Administration Abruptly Cuts Billions From State Health Services The Department of Health and Human Services has abruptly canceled more than $12 billion in federal grants to states that were being used for tracking infectious diseases, mental health services, addiction treatment and other urgent health issues. The cuts are likely to further hamstring state health departments, which are already underfunded and struggling with competing demands from chronic diseases, resurgent infections like syphilis and emerging threats like bird flu. State health departments began receiving notices on Monday evening that the funds, which were allocated during the Covid-19 pandemic, were being terminated, effective immediately.

Stat: State and local health departments grapple with flurry of cuts from D.C.

New York Times: H.H.S. Scraps Studies of Vaccines and Treatments for Future Pandemics The Trump administration has canceled funding for dozens of studies seeking new vaccines and treatments for Covid-19 and other pathogens that may cause future pandemics. The government’s rationale is that the Covid pandemic has ended, which “provides cause to terminate Covid-related grant funds,” according to an internal N.I.H. document viewed by The New York Times. But the research was not just about Covid. Nine of the terminated awards funded centers conducting research on antiviral drugs to combat so-called priority pathogens that could give rise to entirely new pandemics. “This includes the antiviral projects designed to cover a wide range of families that could cause outbreaks or pandemics,” said one senior N.I.H. official who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. The vaccine research also was not focused on Covid, but rather on other coronaviruses that one day might jump from animals to humans.

Stat: Cancer research, long protected, feels ‘devastating’ effects under Trump For decades, cancer held a near-sacred spot in the American biomedical enterprise, commanding the lion’s share of research dollars and support from both Democrats and Republicans. Now, not even cancer is protected from political change. More than a dozen people in the cancer field — including researchers, clinicians, policy experts, advocates, and patients — told STAT that government and congressional actions since President Trump’s inauguration are threatening treatment for cancer patients and the development of new therapies or cures. As they faced what felt to them like a bombardment of cuts, delays, and policy changes to science, the word members of the cancer community used over and over to describe the changes was “devastating.”

New York Times: ‘Chaos and Confusion’ at the Crown Jewel of American Science A week after Donald J. Trump was inaugurated, a senior scientist at the National Institutes of Health was preparing to give an invited talk at a scientific meeting when an urgent call came in from an administrative assistant. There is a total communications ban, the scientist was told, and you cannot give the speech. As soon as the scientist got back to the office, another ban went into effect — one that prohibited researchers from submitting papers to journals for publication. Seven senior investigators working in different parts of the National Institutes of Health described rules put in place on orders from the Department of Government Efficiency that risk hampering and undermining American medical science. All spoke on the condition of anonymity because they feared for their jobs for speaking publicly. One said that DOGE had begun a reign of “chaos and confusion.” The scientists warned that it had the potential to seriously weaken the N.I.H. — the crown jewel of American science, with a vast network of thousands of researchers in 27 centers dedicated to treating disease, improving health and funding medical research.

Stat: Hours after NIH director confirmed, the agency tackles one of his priorities — ending ‘censorship’ in science In October, Jay Bhattacharya, then a health economist at Stanford University, posted on X: “If you favor government control of misinformation, you are an enemy of free speech.” On Wednesday, on the morning after his confirmation as director of the National Institutes of Health, the agency directed staff to compile a list of grants and contracts related to “fighting misinformation or disinformation” — a step that in recent weeks has preceded the termination of research funding in areas that run counter to the Trump administration’s priorities. The early morning email, marked “URGENT,” asked contracting officers at the NIH to respond by “noon today” with information on any contract that “may be related to any form of censorship at all or directing people to believe one idea over another related to health outcomes.” It goes on to list examples including contracts to promote vaccine uptake, or public health messages about the “dangers of Covid or not wearing masks.” Staff were also instructed to search for keywords such as media literacy, social media, social distancing, and lockdown. “This should address any contract that could be used to ‘censor Americans,’” the email concluded.

Wall Street Journal: Trump Administration Plans to Freeze Family-Planning Grants The Trump administration is moving to freeze tens of millions of dollars in federal family-planning grants to certain organizations while it investigates whether the money was used for diversity efforts, people familiar with the matter said. The Health and Human Services Department is weighing an immediate freeze of $27.5 million in grants, an agency spokesman said after The Wall Street Journal reported the plans. The groups that would be subject to the freeze include Planned Parenthood affiliates, the people familiar with the matter said. Altogether, the groups were set to get a total of about $120 million this year. The freeze, which could be made public as soon as this week, would suspend funding meant to support, in the U.S., pregnancy testing, provision of contraception, treatment of sexually transmitted infections and evaluation and counseling for infertility. An HHS spokesman said the department was reviewing grant recipients to make sure they comply with President Trump’s executive orders and federal law.

New York Times: U.S. to End Vaccine Funds for Poor Countries The Trump administration intends to terminate the United States’ financial support for Gavi, the organization that has helped purchase critical vaccines for children in developing countries, saving millions of lives over the past quarter century, and to significantly scale back support for efforts to combat malaria, one of the biggest killers globally. The administration has decided to continue some key grants for medications to treat H.I.V. and tuberculosis, and food aid to countries facing civil wars and natural disasters. Those decisions are included in a 281-page spreadsheet that the United States Agency for International Development sent to Congress Monday night, listing the foreign aid projects it plans to continue and to terminate. The New York Times obtained a copy of the spreadsheet and other documents describing the plans.

Politico: Long Covid office ‘will be closing,’ Trump administration announces The Trump administration is shuttering HHS’ long Covid office as part of its reorganization, according to an internal email seen by POLITICO. The email was sent Monday by Ian Simon, the head of the Office of Long Covid Research and Practice. It said the closing is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ reorganization. The office’s handful of staff were not told whether they would remain employed in the federal government or whether the office would close immediately or wind down operations over time.

ProPublica: NIH Ends Future Funding to Study the Health Effects of Climate Change The National Institutes of Health will no longer be funding work on the health effects of climate change, according to internal records reviewed by ProPublica. The guidance, which was distributed to several staffers last week, comes on the back of multiple new directives to cut off NIH funding to grants that are focused on subjects that are viewed as conflicting with the Trump administration’s priorities, such as gender identity, LGBTQ+ issues, vaccine hesitancy, and diversity, equity and inclusion. While it’s unclear whether the climate guidance will impact active grants and lead to funding terminations, the directive appears to halt opportunities for future funding of studies or academic programs focused on the health effects of climate change.

Chaotic Firings and Re-Hirings:

Cruel and Destructive Policy Changes:

Associated Press: Trump administration cancels at least 68 grants focused on LGBTQ health questions
The Atlantic: The NIH’s Most Reckless Cuts Yet
The Bulwark: The NIH Moves to Stop Studying Vaccine Skepticism
HuffPost: Trump Pulls Research Funding To Protect Pregnant Women From Domestic Violence, Citing ‘DEI’
HuffPost: The Trump Administration Is Quietly Trying To Gut Important ACA Protections For Trans Americans
Law360: HHS To Share Immigration Status Of Migrant Kid Sponsors
Marketwatch: Agency for older adults and people with disabilities to be shuttered under HHS cuts
Mother Jones: RFK Jr. Moves to Close Administration For Community Living
Mother Jones: Domestic Violence and Maternal Mortality Are Rising. The NIH Just Defunded a Project to Study Both.
The 19th: What happens to health research when ‘women’ is a banned word?
NOTUS: HHS Pulled Funds for HIV Research at 22 Universities
Politico: HHS is killing offices devoted to improving minority health and tackling HIV
Politico: Trump administration claws back $1 billion in mental health, substance use treatment funding
Stat: NIH cuts halt 24-year program to prevent HIV/AIDS in adolescents and young adults

RFK Jr. Is An Extreme MAGA Anti-Vaxxer Who’s Breaking His “Assurances” To Key Republicans To Get Confirmed

Washington Post: RFK Jr. forces out Peter Marks, FDA’s top vaccine scientist The Trump administration on Friday pushed out Peter Marks, the nation’s top vaccine regulator and an architect of the U.S. program to rapidly develop coronavirus vaccines, a move that comes as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues his overhaul of the nation’s health and science agencies amid a worsening U.S. outbreak of measles. Marks, who joined the Food and Drug Administration in 2012 and had overseen its Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research since 2016, was offered the choice to resign or be fired, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a sensitive situation. He opted to resign, with an effective departure date of April 5. Marks is leaving his post with a “heavy heart,” he wrote in his resignation letter Friday, which was obtained by The Washington Post. The longtime regulator wrote that he was particularly worried about the measles outbreak in Texas, which “reminds us of what happens when confidence in well-established science underlying public health and well-being is undermined.”

Stat: Ouster of FDA’s Peter Marks alarms a biopharma industry that saw him as an ally

The Daily Beast: RFK Jr. Says He’s ‘Having Fun’ on Day He Axes 10k Jobs Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he was “having fun” on the same day he announced the Department of Health and Human Services would cut 10,000 jobs. The remark came as health workers across the country were reeling from the shock of learning that they could be losing their livelihoods. In a video announcing the job losses, Kennedy said there would be a “painful period” ahead and slammed the department he runs as a “sprawling bureaucracy.” “I want to promise you now that we’re going to do more with less,” he said. However, when Kennedy met podcaster Drew Pinsky, known as “Dr Drew,” in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, he seemed to be in good spirits. Pinsky was one of a group of podcasters invited to the White House by President Donald Trump. Later, he broadcast live from the Capitol and told his guest, right-wing commentator Jack Posobiec, that he had met Kennedy. Pinsky said he asked how Kennedy was doing after he “pulled him aside.” “He said one thing to me that made me enthusiastic,” the podcast host added. He said Kennedy told him: “I’m having fun.” “That’s what I wanted to hear,” Pinsky said.

Mediate: Trump’s Budget Director Hails ‘Fantastic’ Layoffs of 10,000 More Federal Employees: ‘It’s Really Exciting’ Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, gushed over the mass layoffs announced by the Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday. Vought – co-author of Project 2025, which Trump distanced himself from on the campaign trail – appeared on Thursday’s Kudlow on Fox Business to discuss. “That’s a big piece of change from the DOGE brothers,” host Larry Kudlow observed after noting that 10,000 more federal workers would be fired. “No, it’s fantastic,” Vought replied. “I talked with Secretary Kennedy about an hour ago, and he is really excited about what they’ve unveiled today, the extent to which they’ve [reorganized] the department, the number of people that they’re able to let go, and be able to find efficiencies at HHS. And so, it’s really exciting what you’re seeing.”

Washington Post: Vaccine skeptic hired to head federal study of immunizations and autism A vaccine skeptic who has long promoted false claims about the connection between immunizations and autism has been tapped by the federal government to conduct a critical study of possible links between the two, according to current and former federal health officials. The Department of Health and Human Services has hired David Geier to conduct the analysis, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. Geier and his father, Mark Geier, have published papers claiming vaccines increase the risk of autism, a theory that has been studied for decades and scientifically debunked. David Geier was disciplined by Maryland regulators more than a decade ago for practicing medicine without a license. He is listed as a data analyst in the HHS employee directory. Public health and autism experts fear that choosing a researcher who has promoted false claims will produce a flawed study with far-reaching consequences. They fear it will undermine the importance of the lifesaving inoculations and further damage trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The government’s premier public health agency has stressed vaccination as the safest and most effective measure to control the spread of some contagious diseases, including the growing measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico. Additional Coverage: New York Times

Stat: Vaccine critic’s apparent selection to head HHS autism study shocks experts People who have followed Geier and his father over the years were dumbfounded that he may have been chosen by Kennedy to conduct a study on the notion that childhood vaccines have led to an increase in autism rates. “It’s like hiring Andrew Wakefield,” said Dorit Reiss, a law professor at UC Law San Francisco who studies the anti-vaccine movement. Wakefield is the British doctor who alleged that the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine triggered autism in some children. That study, published in the Lancet in 1998, was later retracted and Wakefield lost his medical license in 2010 for conducting research on children without the approval or oversight of his hospital’s medical board. British investigative journalist Brian Deer, author of “The Doctor Who Fooled The World,” a book about Wakefield, couldn’t believe that Geier might have been chosen to conduct a study for HHS. My first thought was … is this a hoax?” he said in an interview with STAT. “He has no relevant qualifications. … He’s not qualified to express an opinion on these matters.”

Life Site News: RFK Jr. says ‘everything is going to change’ with CDC vaccine policy in Michael Knowles interview When Michael Knowles asked new Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. if anything will change regarding the public’s justifiable concern with the growth of vaccines, Kennedy quickly shot back, “Everything is going to change.” Kennedy pointed to the Centers for Disease Control’s current flawed VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System) online mechanism. By way of example, he said, “None of the vaccines that are given during the first six months of life have ever been tested for autism. The only one was the DTP vaccine. And that one study that was done, according to the Institute of Medicine, the National Academy of Sciences, found that there was a link.” But “They threw out that study because it was based upon CDC’s surveillance system, VAERS, and they said that system is no good.” “That begs the question, why doesn’t CDC have a functional surveillance system?” he asked. “We’re gonna make sure they do.” “They don’t do pre-licensing safety testing for vaccines” he continued. “They’re the only product that’s exempt. So what they say is, if there are injuries, we’ll capture them afterward.” However, “they have a system that doesn’t capture them. In fact, CDC’s own study of its own system said it captures fewer than 1% of vaccine injuries,” Kennedy said. “It’s worthless, and everybody agrees it’s worthless.” “Why have we gone for 39 years and nobody’s fixed it?” he wondered, promising, “We’re gonna fix it.”

Axios: How RFK Jr. could threaten vaccine markets The not-so-slow drip of vaccine-unfriendly news coming from the Trump administration poses the longer-term question of just how much drugmakers would be willing to take before they decide the historically fragile market is too volatile to participate in. Why it matters: The availability of vaccines in the U.S. isn’t just dependent on whether the federal government has approved them; manufacturers have to be willing to continue making and selling them. Actions taken by the Trump administration — including HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine critic — could ultimately convince drug companies that the market is too risky to enter or remain in, either because of depressed demand or an increased threat of litigation “It’s a fragile market and it’s not something we can take for granted, and it is a market we have seen drastically threatened before,” said Richard Hughes, a professor of vaccine law at George Washington University and a partner at Epstein, Becker & Green.

New York Times: Remedy Supported by Kennedy Leaves Some Measles Patients More Ill Doctors in West Texas are seeing measles patients whose illnesses have been complicated by an alternative therapy endorsed by vaccine skeptics including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary. Parents in Gaines County, Texas, the center of a raging measles outbreak, have increasingly turned to supplements and unproven treatments to protect their children, many of whom are unvaccinated, against the virus. One of those supplements is cod liver oil containing vitamin A, which Mr. Kennedy has promoted as a near miraculous cure for measles. Physicians at Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, Texas, say they’ve now treated a handful of unvaccinated children who were given so much vitamin A that they had signs of liver damage. Some of them had received unsafe doses of cod liver oil and other vitamin A supplements for several weeks in an attempt to prevent a measles infection, said Dr. Summer Davies, who cares for acutely ill children at the hospital. “I had a patient that was only sick a couple of days, four or five days, but had been taking it for like three weeks,” Dr. Davies said. While doctors sometimes administer high doses of vitamin A in a hospital to manage severe measles, experts do not recommend taking it without physician supervision. Vitamin A is not an effective way to prevent measles; however, two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine are about 97 percent effective. At high doses, vitamin A can cause liver damage; dry, peeling skin; hair loss; and, in rare instances, seizures and coma. So far, doctors at West Texas hospitals have said they’ve seen patients with yellowed skin and high levels of liver enzymes in their bloodwork, both signs of a damaged liver.

CNN: Some measles patients in West Texas show signs of vitamin A toxicity, doctors say, raising concerns about misinformation Doctors treating people hospitalized as part of a measles outbreak in Texas and New Mexico have also found themselves facing another problem: vitamin A toxicity. At Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, near the outbreak’s epicenter, several patients have been found to have abnormal liver function on routine lab tests, a probable sign that they’ve taken too much of the vitamin, according to Dr. Lara Johnson, pediatric hospitalist and chief medical officer for Covenant Health-Lubbock Service Area. The hospitalized children with the toxicity were all unvaccinated.
The Atlantic: Texas Never Wanted RFK Jr.’s Unproven Measles Treatment Robert F. Kennedy Jr., staring down his first major health crisis as the head of Health and Human Services, had a plan. After Texas experienced the first measles death in the United States in a decade, Kennedy told Fox earlier this month that the federal government was delivering vitamin A—an unproven treatment that Kennedy has promoted as an alternative to vaccines—to measles-stricken communities in West Texas “right now.” But a Texas official told me this week that no doses of vitamin A have arrived at the state health department—not because RFK Jr. broke his promise, but because Texas doctors didn’t ask for them. The doses are available “if we need them,” Lara Anton, the senior press officer for the state public-health department, told me in a statement. But her office, she said, has not requested any, “because healthcare providers have not requested it from us.” Anton had no records of any shipments of vitamin A, budesonide, clarithromycin, or cod-liver oil—all of which Kennedy has said can help with measles—even though the state has received 1,760 additional vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella from the federal government since the middle of February. When I asked Anton if Texas officials thought vitamin A treatment was useless, she referred me to a state website, which reads, “Vitamin A cannot prevent measles. Vitamin A may be useful as a supplemental treatment once someone has a measles infection, especially if they have a severe case of measles or low vitamin A levels and are under the care of a doctor.” The local health department for Gaines County, the epicenter of the deadly outbreak, told me that it has not received any of the alternative treatments either. (HHS did not respond to a request for comment.)

ProPublica: The CDC Buried a Measles Forecast That Stressed the Need for Vaccinations Leaders at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered staff this week not to release their experts’ assessment that found the risk of catching measles is high in areas near outbreaks where vaccination rates are lagging, according to internal records reviewed by ProPublica. In an aborted plan to roll out the news, the agency would have emphasized the importance of vaccinating people against the highly contagious and potentially deadly disease that has spread to 19 states, the records show. A CDC spokesperson told ProPublica in a written statement that the agency decided against releasing the assessment “because it does not say anything that the public doesn’t already know.” She added that the CDC continues to recommend vaccines as “the best way to protect against measles.” But what the nation’s top public health agency said next shows a shift in its long-standing messaging about vaccines, a sign that it may be falling in line under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines: “The decision to vaccinate is a personal one,” the statement said, echoing a line from a column Kennedy wrote for the Fox News website. “People should consult with their healthcare provider to understand their options to get a vaccine and should be informed about the potential risks and benefits associated with vaccines.”

Other MAHA Activities:

Axios: RFK Jr. body shames W.Va. governor
Politico: RFK Jr.’s food stamp plan fuels tension with USDA
The Bulwark: MAGA Influencers May Have Been Paid to Break With RFK
NOTUS: ‘This Is a Safe Media Space’: Behind the Strategic Insulation of the MAHA Movement
Stat: Make America Healthy Again is ringing through statehouses across the U.S.
Wall Street Journal: U.S. Prosecutors Probe Tip About Timing of Pfizer Vaccine

Disastrous, Dangerous Appointments

New York Times: Trump Nominates Susan Monarez to Lead C.D.C. President Trump has selected Susan Monarez, the acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to lead the agency permanently. The president withdrew his first nominee, Dr. Dave Weldon, just hours before his confirmation hearing. If confirmed by the Senate, Dr. Monarez, an infectious-disease researcher, will be the first nonphysician to lead the agency in more than 50 years. […] “She has a strong reputation as a solid researcher and expert in infectious diseases,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. “She clearly understands public health and the role governmental public health plays,” he said. “I believe the public health community can work with her in a positive manner.” But Dr. Monarez has spent weeks away from Atlanta, where the agency is headquartered. She has not attended the agency’s all-hands meetings or offered reassurance to employees unsettled by the tumult of the past weeks, according to several C.D.C. employees who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. A comment section on the agency’s internal website was quickly deleted after staff members began to note that they wanted more communication from her. Center directors have been interpreting the president’s executive orders and various court instructions with little input from the director, the officials said. Instead, the acting director’s office has served as a conduit for directives from the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Washington Post: Trump’s picks to lead FDA, NIH confirmed by Senate The Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Donald Trump’s picks to lead two major health agencies critical to implementing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s agenda to tackle chronic disease and charged with making decisions affecting Americans’ health. In a 53-47 party-line vote, the Senate signed off on a leader for the National Institutes of Health: Jayanta “Jay” Bhattacharya, the Stanford University doctor and economist who rose to prominence as a vocal critic of the country’s handling of the covid-19 pandemic. The Senate also confirmed Marty Makary to lead the Food and Drug Administration, elevating a doctor also known for criticizing the medical establishment and whose prominence skyrocketed amid the conservative backlash to the pandemic response. In a 56-44 vote, Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin (Illinois), Maggie Hassan (New Hampshire) and Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire) joined Republicans in supporting the nominee, a rare moment of one of President Donald Trump’s health picks securing bipartisan support. Both Makary and Bhattacharya will lead agencies they themselves have criticized and as Trump has pledged to restore public trust in both institutions. But Democrats and patient advocacy groups have criticized some of the Trump administration’s early moves, expressing deep concern that the firings of probationary staff could imperil the nation’s global health leadership.

Washington Post: Health benefits company co-founded by Dr. Oz could be a conflict of interest Mehmet Oz, the nominee to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, co-founded health benefits company ZorroRX with his son last year, according to now-hidden source code and a blog post on the company’s website. ZorroRX and similar companies promise to make hospitals money and save employers cash by connecting patients to the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program. That program is designed to help hospitals get a deal on prescription drugs with the government intention that profits could be passed on to patients in underserved and underinsured communities. But as use of the government drug pricing program has exploded, health care analysts say the unregulated system has driven up health care costs and is failing to help vulnerable patients, all while allowing companies such as ZorroRX to thrive. As head of CMS, Oz would lead an agency that could directly influence how much money hospitals — and in turn companies like ZorroRX — make from the federal system. Ethics experts, lawyers and health care analysts say his ties to a health benefits company that could profit off the federal drug program entangle him in a potential conflict of interest.

Stat: Oz moves closer to role running Medicare, Medicaid on party-line vote Mehmet Oz has been a heart surgeon, a TV show host, an author, and a Senate candidate. On Tuesday, he inched closer to adding CMS administrator to the list. The Senate Finance Committee voted along party lines to send Oz’s nomination to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to the full Senate for a vote, where he’ll likely be confirmed. All 14 Republicans on the committee voted in favor of Oz’s nomination and all 13 Democrats voted against. The CMS has a roughly $1.5 trillion budget and oversees health care for about 160 million Americans. All of the Democrats who spoke ahead of the vote said that they could not support Oz because he wouldn’t commit to guarding against Republicans’ planned cuts to Medicaid, the program that covers over 70 million low-income Americans.

Associated Press: Trump nominates Republican once accused of mishandling taxpayer funds as HHS watchdog President Donald Trump has nominated a Republican attorney who was once accused of mishandling taxpayer funds and has a history of launching investigations against abortion clinics to lead the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General. If confirmed by the Senate, Thomas March Bell will oversee fraud, waste and abuse audits of the Medicare and Medicaid programs, which spend more than $1 trillion annually. Bell, who was nominated on Monday, currently serves as general counsel for House Republicans and has worked for GOP politicians and congressional offices for decades. The president’s nomination is a brazenly political one for a job that has long been viewed as nonpartisan and focuses largely on accounting for and ferreting out fraud in some of the nation’s biggest spending programs. Bell was terminated from his role at Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality in 1997 after a state audit showed he improperly authorized a nearly $8,000 payment to the agency’s former spokesman, according to Washington Post reporting at the time.

Wall Street Journal: Trump’s Nominee for Top Health Post Is Urologist Whose Practice Treated Transgender Men President Trump’s pick for a top health post is an Alabama urologist whose practice has advertised its work treating erectile dysfunction in transgender men. Dr. Brian Christine’s nomination to be assistant secretary of health was sent to the Senate on Monday. If confirmed, he would fill a role that involves overseeing thousands of uniformed public-health service officers and in the first Trump administration was the central hub for public-health policy plans. Adm. Rachel Levine, who is transgender, had filled the role during the Biden administration

Politico: Drug policy expert set to take senior role at HHS A former Trump drug policy expert is expected to rejoin the administration in a top role at the Health and Human Services office focused on behavioral health issues, two people familiar with the discussions told POLITICO. Art Kleinschmidt, a longtime addiction and mental health expert, is in line to return to government as the deputy assistant secretary of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, said the two people, who were granted anonymity to discuss personnel moves that aren’t yet public.

Public Health Threats

Associated Press: Texas reaches 400 measles cases as U.S. deals with outbreaks in 5 states At least five states have active measles outbreaks as of Friday, and Texas’ is the largest with 400 cases. Already, the U.S. has more measles cases this year than in all of 2024, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said. Other states with outbreaks — defined as three or more cases — include New Mexico, Kansas, Ohio and Oklahoma. Since February, two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes. The new outbreaks confirm health experts’ fears that the virus will take hold in other U.S. communities with low vaccination rates and that the spread could stretch on for a year. The World Health Organization said this week cases in Mexico are linked to the Texas outbreak.

West Virginia Watch: West Virginia House rejects vaccine exemption bill, a priority for Morrisey The House of Delegates on Monday rejected a bill that would have loosened the state’s strict school vaccination laws. Delegates voted 42 to 56 against Senate Bill 460. The legislation would have implemented a religious exemption for the state’s vaccine laws, allowing families who object to the shots on religious grounds to submit a written statement to their school administrator in order to be exempt from the requirements. The state’s private and parochial schools would have been able to set their own requirements for vaccines. Under current law, children must have a medical reason for being exempt from vaccine requirements. The bill also would have revamped the state’s medical exemption process.

NPR: As opposition to fluoride grows, rural America risks a new surge of tooth decay In the wooded highlands of northern Arkansas, where small towns have few dentists, water officials who serve more than 20,000 people have for more than a decade openly defied state law by refusing to add fluoride to the drinking water. For its refusal, the Ozark Mountain Regional Public Water Authority has received hundreds of state fines amounting to about $130,000, which are stuffed in a cardboard box and left unpaid, said Andy Anderson, who is opposed to fluoridation and has led the water system for nearly two decades. This Ozark region is among hundreds of rural American communities that face a one-two punch to oral health: a dire shortage of dentists and a lack of fluoridated drinking water, which is widely viewed among dentists as one of the most effective tools to prevent tooth decay.

Associated Press: Utah bans fluoride in public drinking water, a first in the US

Public Health Threats Around The World:

Opinion and Commentary

Washington Post (Kevin Griffis): When the government becomes a health misinformation superspreader
Wall Street Journal (Editorial): RFK Jr. Is Already Vindicating His Critics
New York Times (Holden Thorp): I Was Diagnosed With Autism at 53. I Know Why Rates Are Rising.
Stat (Jess Steier): A form letter canceled my project to support local health departments
Stat (Michael Bronstein): The NIH canceled my research on vaccine hesitancy

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FACT SHEET: Trump and Republicans Are Targeting Health Care Across the Country In An Anti-Trans Crusade

The Trump Administration Has Spent Its First Three Months Laser-Focused On Stripping Rights and Health Care Access From Transgender Americans

Today, as we celebrate International Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV), Republicans are targeting transgender people and their health care in more visible attacks than ever before. Trump is continuing his attacks on the rights of transgender Americans and promoting his hateful rhetoric as a core focus of his agenda. Less than 10 weeks into his second term, Trump has barred the federal government from funding, sponsoring, promoting, assisting, or supporting gender-affirming care – including for troops and prisoners. GLAAD found that 10 percent of all Trump executive orders signed as of late March 2025 have targeted LGBTQI+ Americans. Trump has baselessly declared gender-affirming care for transgender youth as “child abuse” and “mutilation” while targeting non-profits supporting gender-affirming care. Meanwhile, Republicans across the country are sabotaging trans people’s health care access, with over 100 bills related to LGBTQI+ health care restrictions – primarily targeting gender-affirming care – being introduced this year alone.

Health care access has always been a critical issue for transgender Americans, long before TDOV was first celebrated in 2009. Health care for trans people is not limited to issues like gender-affirming care and anti-discrimination protections. Transgender Americans face significantly higher rates of substance use disorder and complications like lung disease and cirrhosis of the liver, poor mental health, suicidal ideation and suicide, sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, and both physical and sexual violence. Addressing these disparities and expanding access to health care is a critical part of ensuring the care and well-being of transgender Americans.

Republicans want to rip away health care that trans people rely on, as well as millions of other Americans, by targeting the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Medicaid, and more. March 2025 marks the 15th anniversary of both the ACA and TDOV. From expanding Medicaid access to requiring coverage of no-cost preventive services and protecting trans people from being denied coverage, the ACA has been transformative in enabling greater access to the services queer and trans people count on to stay healthy and safe. Likewise, Medicaid has increased access to dignified, high-quality gender-affirming care and is a critical source of health care for transgender Americans. Yet Trump campaigned on repealing the ACA, and Medicaid funding is already on the GOP chopping block with Republicans in Congress pushing for the largest cuts in the history of the program. Trump and his Republican allies only want to slash Medicaid funding in order to give tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy and big corporations at the expense of working Americans – including trans people across the country.

Trump and His Republican Allies Are Waging War on the ACA and Medicaid, Which Disproportionately Help Trans People Access Care. The ACA has been transformative in enabling greater access to health care for transgender Americans, from requiring coverage of no-cost preventive services that queer and trans people count on to stay healthy — including PrEP, a medicine that is 99 percent effective at preventing the spread of HIV and can cost thousands of dollars annually – to protecting people from being denied coverage due to having a pre-existing condition. By expanding Medicaid, the ACA also enabled more lower-income trans people to access affordable health care. Thanks to the ACA, all health facilities and programs receiving federal funding cannot deny insurance coverage or care on the basis of sex and gender identity and expression. But Republicans want to take that all away; Trump campaigned on repealing the ACA, which would have a devastating impact on the trans community and disseminate access to health care. Medicaid has also increased access to dignified, high-quality gender-affirming care for transgender Americans, and disproportionately serves transgender Americans and covers gender-affirming care for between 60 to 80 percent of trans people enrolled in the program in 27 states and the District of Columbia. Yet Republicans in Congress are pushing for billions of dollars in cuts to the program, which would rip away health care from tens of millions of Americans, including hundreds of thousands of trans people, all to fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy.

On His First Day In Office, Trump Banned Gender-Affirming Care and Erased Critical LGBTQI+-Related Medical Information Used By Doctors Across the Country. Trump moved quickly after taking office to target health care access for trans people. First, he signed an executive order declaring that the government would only recognize two sexes and barred taxpayer funds from being used for gender-affirming healthcare. Then, his administration eliminated nearly all mentions of LGBTQI+ content, including the words “transgender” and “gender identity,” from the CDC website – which provides guidance to medical providers across the country for everyday health care services. Both actions have been challenged in court and are currently paused as lawsuits proceed through the federal court system.

The Trump Administration Barred The Government From Funding, Sponsoring, Promoting, Assisting, or Supporting Gender-Affirming Care – Including For Troops and Prisoners. On January 27, Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Defense to reinstate his first administration’s ban on trans people from serving in the military, revoking Biden-era policies allowing transgender troops to access gender-affirming medical care. On January 28, Trump signed an executive order declaring that the United States would not “fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support” gender-affirming medical care for people under the age of 19. As part of this policy, the Federal Bureau of Prisons stopped offering gender-affirming medical treatment to transgender inmates and began moving trans women in federal custody to men’s prisons.

Trump Is Pushing to Halt Gender-Affirming Coverage For The Hundreds of Thousands of Trans People On Medicaid. Trump’s executive order, if fully implemented, would cut off government health insurance coverage of gender-affirming care, which would be a seismic shift for hundreds of thousands of transgender Americans. Over 20 percent of the 1.3 million transgender adults in the U.S. are enrolled in Medicaid (compared to roughly 16 percent of adults overall), 60 percent of whom definitively have coverage of gender-affirming care under state laws. Medicaid covers gender-affirming care in 27 states and the District of Columbia.
Hospitals Have Begun Pausing Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth. As a result of Trump’s anti-trans executive orders targeting federal funding, many hospitals across the country – even outside those states – reportedly began pausing gender-affirming care for people under 19 in the wake of Trump’s executive order. CMS estimates that around 15 percent of all Medicare-enrolled hospitals are government-owned – many of which disproportionately serve rural communities – and were immediately required to stop providing gender-affirming medical care to transgender youth under the ban.

The Trump Administration Baselessly Declared Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth “Child Abuse” and “Mutilation.” On February 18, the Trump administration added a header to the top of HHS websites declaring, “Any information on this page promoting gender ideology is extremely inaccurate and disconnected from the immutable biological reality that there are two sexes, male and female… The Trump Administration rejects gender ideology and condemns the harms it causes to children by promoting their chemical and surgical mutilation and to women by depriving them of their dignity, safety, well-being, and opportunities. This page does not reflect biological reality and therefore the Administration and this Department reject it.” On February 19, the Trump administration rolled out a new Health & Human Services (HHS) webpage titled “Protecting Women and Children” declaring gender-affirming care for youth a form of “child abuse,” pushing an exclusionary definition of sex to ignore and erase trans people, and falsely framing gender-affirming care as “chemical and surgical mutilation.”

The Trump Administration Is Targeting Non-Profits Supporting Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth. On March 7, Trump signed an executive order targeting nonprofits supporting gender-affirming care for transgender youth, declaring it a “substantial illegal purpose” and blocking employees from receiving Public Service Loan Forgiveness. CMS estimates that around half of all Medicare-enrolled hospitals are non-profit, meaning that Trump’s executive order will further push hospitals to phase-out gender-affirming care for transgender youth or risk facing scrutiny by the federal government.

Republicans Across the Country Are Targeting Gender-Affirming Care. According to PBS, 26 states have passed laws banning or limiting gender-affirming care for minors as of March 2025. In 2025 alone, over 800 anti-trans bills have been introduced in 49 states, with 40 passing (all in Republican-led states) and over 700 currently pending. The ACLU has tracked over 100 bills related to LGBTQI+ health care restrictions, primarily targeting gender-affirming care.

Idaho Republicans Ended Medicaid Coverage of Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth and Passed A Law Allowing Health Care Providers and Insurers To Refuse Care To LGBTQI+ Patients. This year, Idaho Republicans passed a law explicitly allowing health care professionals, institutions, and payers to discriminate against LGBTQI+ patients on the basis of religious, moral, or ethical grounds. Idaho Republicans also banned Medicaid coverage of gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth.
Kansas Republicans Banned Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth. This year, Kansas Republicans passed a law barring health care providers from offering gender-affirming medical care to transgender youth and requiring “professional discipline” against providers offering gender-affirming treatments.
Mississippi Ended Medicaid Coverage of Gender-Affirming Care For Transgender Youth. This year, Mississippi passed a law barring Medicaid from covering gender-affirming Medicaid from reimbursing or paying for gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth. The bill is awaiting the Governor’s signature.
Wyoming Banned Off-Label Gender-Affirming Drug Prescriptions. This year, Wyoming passed a law barring health care providers from prescribing medications for off-label indications related to gender-affirming medical care. All but one Democrat in the state legislature voted against the bill.
Kentucky Republicans Passed A Loophole Allowing Unlicensed Individuals To Practice Harmful Conversion Therapy – But It Was Vetoed By Democratic Governor Andy Beshear. This year, Kentucky Republicans passed a law allowing unlicensed, unaccredited people to continue the banned practice of harmful conversion therapy on children in the state, including transgender youth. Democratic Governor Andy Beshear quickly vetoed the bill as soon as it reached his desk.

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IN THE STATES: Lawmakers and Advocates Demand an End to the Republican War on Health Care

Protect Our Care Holds More Than 25 Events Across 13 States in the Last 2 Weeks

Over the past two weeks, members of Congress, local elected officials, and advocates joined Protect Our Care for events in Alaska, Arizona, California, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin, demanding that Republicans end their war on American health care. Right now, Republicans are working to slash nearly a trillion dollars from Medicaid and raise premiums for hard-working families by ending cost-saving tax credits. As a result, millions of Americans across the country would lose their health coverage and premium costs would skyrocket. Recent polling found there is broad opposition across party lines to any cuts to Medicaid, with 67 percent saying Congress should increase spending on Medicaid or keep it about the same. Republicans are deeply mistaken if they think they can get away with devastating our health care system.

Protect Our Care is continuing its “Hands Off Medicaid” campaign to underscore the importance of Medicaid across the country. Alongside partners, lawmakers, and other advocates, Protect Our Care is working to defend Medicaid from the Republican-led plan to slash funding to pay for another round of tax cuts for the wealthy and big corporations. Read more about the latest round of paid ads here.

ALASKA

Tuesday, March 18 – House Health and Social Services Committee Hearing on ePTCs with Rep. Genevieve Mina and Alaska Health Care Advocates: Representative Genevieve Mina, advocates and storytellers gathered for the Alaska House Health and Social Services Committee Hearing to discuss HJR 9, which urges the US Congress to extend enhanced premium tax credits for health insurance premiums under the ACA, which are set to expire at the end of 2025. ePTC recipients shared how they have positively impacted their lives: “I work four jobs to support my kids, and the ACA tax credits bring my health insurance premium down from $2,300 to $205,” said Shellie Gooden, a single mother. “As a diabetic, I need this coverage to stay healthy for my children. Without these credits, affording both housing and medical care simply won’t be realistic for our family.” You can watch the committee hearing here, read HJR 9 here, and view the post-event release here.

Thursday, March 20 – Empty Suit Town Hall with Alaska Advocates and Storytellers: Over 600 Alaskans joined Protect Our Care Arizona and the 907 Institute at Anchorage Loussac Library to raise awareness against proposed Medicaid cuts for Alaskans and demand answers from Sen. Dan Sullivan and Rep. Nick Begich. “Alaska has the most expensive health care in the country, and with 250,000 Alaskans relying on Medicaid, cuts to this program would be devastating,” said Aubrey Wieber, Executive Director of the 907 Initiative. “Medicaid isn’t just a lifeline for patients—it’s an economic engine that supports jobs and health care providers across our state.” You can read the post-event release here.

Alaska Current: Alaskans turn to empty-chair town halls as Sullivan, Begich duck outrage over Trump
Anchorage Daily News: Protests draw hundreds as Alaska congressional delegation diverges in response to Trump policies
Alaska Current: Sullivan says he doesn’t need to meet with outraged Alaskans as they pack empty-chair town halls

Friday, March 21 – Medicaid Postcard Signing Party and Drop-Off with Alaska SEIU Caregivers: SEIU Caregivers and advocates signed and hand-delivered nearly 200 postcards bringing attention to Medicaid and calling on Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan to protect the vital program from devastating cuts. Despite challenges from office staff members, the postcards were delivered at the Anchorage, Fairbanks and Matsu state offices of Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski.

KKBI: Homer caregivers push for better wages

Wednesday, March 26 – ACA Anniversary/ePTC/Medicaid Event with Alaska Storytellers and Advocates: 13 advocates and storytellers from across the state joined Protect Our Care Alaska to mark the 15th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) passage and discuss the urgent need to protect the ACA, as well as ePTCs and Medicaid expansion. From small business owners and caregivers to college students and nonprofit leaders, participants shared emotional and compelling stories about how the ACA and Medicaid expansion have made health care more affordable and accessible in Alaska. Pat Race, a small business owner and artist in Juneau, stressed the ACA’s economic impact: “So many downtown businesses wouldn’t exist without the ACA. I’ve had real conversations about shutting down my shop if I lost coverage. One in five small business owners relies on the ACA. Undermining it would be a huge blow to our economy.” You can read the post-event release here, and watch the full event here.

ARIZONA

Monday, March 17 – ePTC/Medicaid Event with Rep. Yassamin Ansari and Advocates: Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ-03), emergency room physician Dr. Larry DeLuca, and Les Braswell of Honest Arizona joined Protect Our Care Arizona to discuss the urgent need for Congress to stop Republican efforts to slash Medicaid and raise premiums for millions of people through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Speakers urged Congress to protect Medicaid and renew these tax credits so that Arizonans can continue to rely on these benefits to remain insured and healthy: “I’m grateful to Congresswoman Ansari for her advocacy for expanding access to health care,” said Les Braswell, Honest Arizona. “I live in the district next door and I’m urging my own Congressman David Schweikert to work with Congresswoman Ansari to expand the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits and make them permanent.” You can watch the full event here and read the post-event release here.

Washington Examiner: Fractured Democrats grasp for unity during ‘Day of Action’

Monday, March 17 – Medicaid Town Hall with Senators Mark Kelly, Ruben Gallego and Storytellers in Phoenix: Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego held a town hall on Monday in Phoenix warning Arizonans of “impending cuts” to Medicaid (also known as AHCCCS in Arizona), which featured storyteller Marcos Castillo. “They fight dirty and we’re not willing to get in the mud with them,” said Protect Our Care storyteller Marcos Castillo. “Maybe it is time we start getting in the mud with them.” You can watch the full event here.

Fox 10 Phoenix: Arizona Senators Mark Kelly, Ruben Gallego warn of ‘impending cuts’ to Medicaid
AZ Mirror: ‘Make them fear voters more than Trump’: Kelly, Gallego rally against GOP Medicaid cuts
Mesa Tribune: Medicaid concerns aired at Democratic town hall
KYMA: Locals react to Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego’s Medicaid Town Hall
MSNBC: ‘Tell them how pissed off you are’: Democratic senators hold town halls as GOP cancel events
KTAR: Mark Kelly, Ruben Gallego explain how potential Medicaid cuts would hurt Arizonans at town hall
AZ Central: Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego answer questions on potential Medicaid cuts
AZ Central: Sens. Gallego, Kelly urged at town hall session to resist Trump Medicaid cuts
KJZZ: ‘You want a game plan’: Arizonans share how Medicaid cuts would hurt at Kelly, Gallego town hall
12 News: Town hall participants grill Arizona senators over potential cuts to Medicaid

Thursday, March 20 – Medicaid Week of Action Event at the Arizona State Capitol with Health Care Advocates and Storytellers: Health care workers, storytellers and advocates joined Protect Our Care Arizona for a rally outside the Arizona State Capitol to protect health care for all Arizonans and urge Congressman David Schweikert to oppose cuts to health care. This press event was part of a larger nationwide effort to oppose billionaire-driven efforts to slash federal programs like Medicaid in order to fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy. “Our ten-year-old daughter requires multiple treatments,” said Quinna Brown, a mother of three adopted children, including one child with special needs. “Today, she is thriving because of those treatments. She is functioning as a happy, creative ten-year-old girl. The idea of her losing her services is very scary. We do not know what will happen and when it will happen.” You can read the post-event release here, and watch the full event here.

CALIFORNIA

Sunday, March 23 – Benefits Over Billionaires Tour with Congressman Ro Khanna in Bakersfield (Rep. David Valadao’s District): Rep. Ro Khanna, along with Protect Our Care and other progressive partners, hosted a town hall in CA-22 which is held by Republican Rep. David Valadao who has refused to hold a town hall with his constituents. Rep. Khanna wanted to hear from people directly impacted by Trump’s mass firings and the Republicans’ $880 billion in Medicaid cuts. As Republicans follow orders to dodge their constituents’ protests, Californians must be loud and clear in standing up to the unholy alliance of wealth and power in our time and rejecting the failed policies that put billionaires and corporations over the working class.

Politico: Ro Khanna confronts voters spoiling for a fight – against GOP – in town hall tour
San Francisco Chronicle: A Bay Area Democrat ventured into a red district for a town hall. Here’s how it went
Spectrum News 1: U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna holds town hall in Bakersfield
KBAK (CBS Bakersfield): Ro Khanna holds town hall in Valadao’s district
KGET (NBC Bakersfield): Ro Khanna holds town hall in Bakersfield

Sunday, March 23 – Benefits Over Billionaires Tour with Congressman Ro Khanna in Norco (Rep. Young Kim’s District): Rep. Ro Khanna, along with Protect Our Care and other progressive partners, hosted a town hall in CA-40 which is held by Republican Rep. Young Kim who has refused to hold a town hall with her constituents. Rep. Khanna wanted to hear from people directly impacted by Trump’s mass firings and the Republicans’ $880 billion in Medicaid cuts. As Republicans follow orders to dodge their constituents’ protests, Californians must be loud and clear in standing up to the unholy alliance of wealth and power in our time and rejecting the failed policies that put billionaires and corporations over the working class.

Sunday, March 23 – Benefits Over Billionaires Tour with Congressman Ro Khanna in Anaheim (Rep. Ken Calvert’s District): Rep. Ro Khanna, along with Protect Our Care and other progressive partners, hosted a town hall in CA-40 which is held by Republican Rep. Young Kim who has refused to hold a town hall with her constituents. Rep. Khanna wanted to hear from people directly impacted by Trump’s mass firings and the Republicans’ $880 billion in Medicaid cuts. As Republicans follow orders to dodge their constituents’ protests, Californians must be loud and clear in standing up to the unholy alliance of wealth and power in our time and rejecting the failed policies that put billionaires and corporations over the working class.

CBS News: Packed Santa Clara town hall highlights growing frustration over Trump and Musk’s policies

IOWA

Friday, March 21 – ACA Anniversary Event with Health Care Advocates: Laura Packard, executive director of Healthcare Voter, and Margarida Jorge, executive director of Healthcare for America Now, joined Protect Our Care Iowa to highlight the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) turns 15 years old. “This is not acceptable, we need to get loud and make sure they hear us again,” said Laura Packard. “They should never be threatening health insurance for millions of Americans to pay for tax giveaways to Elon Musk and his billionaire buddies, they do not need more yachts. We need more health care.” You can view remarks here, and view the post-event release here.

MAINE

Monday, March 24 – ACA Anniversary/ePTC/Medicaid Event with Maine Assistant House Leader Lori Gramlich and Advocates: Maine Assistant House Leader Lori Gramlich and advocates from Children’s Alliance of Maine and Consumers for Affordable Health Care joined Protect Our Care Maine to highlight the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) turns 15 years old. For over a decade, millions of Americans have been able to get quality and affordable health care through the ACA, and more Mainers than ever are covered. But Republicans remain hard at work trying to rip away Mainers’ access to quality, affordable health coverage. “We should be celebrating this landmark legislation, but instead, we are fighting to protect the access that Maine people rely on,” said Assistant House Leader Lori Gramlich. “Maine’s congressional delegation must stand up against the incredibly harmful proposals put forward by President Trump and Republican lawmakers to rip away Mainers’ health insurance.” You can read the post-event release here, and watch the full event here.

WABI: Maine organizations and lawmakers call on the state’s Congressional Delegation to fight against healthcare cuts
Maine Public: Health care advocates urge Maine’s federal lawmakers to fight against Medicaid cuts

MINNESOTA

Monday, March 24 – Virtual Health Care Town Hall with U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar and Health Care Advocates: Protect Our Care Minnesota hosted a virtual health care town hall alongside Senator Amy Klobuchar. During the town hall, Senator Klobuchar highlighted the ongoing threats to Minnesotans’ health care and discussed what she and her colleagues are doing to protect access to care. “Republicans in Congress are moving forward with a budget that threatens health care for the 80 million Americans who get coverage through Medicaid,” said Senator Klobuchar. “In Minnesota that’s more than a million seniors, families, children, veterans, and people with disabilities. I’ve been [across the state] in senior living facilities, and they are worried about their health care being taken away. Why? Right now, Medicaid provides health care for at least one-in-five rural Minnesotans, more than 31% of kids in our state, more than half of all nursing home residents across our state. These aren’t just numbers. Everyone knows someone who gets access to care through Medicaid.” You can watch the town hall here.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Monday, March 24 – ACA Anniversary/ePTC/Medicaid Event with New Hampshire Health Care Advocates: Health care and policy advocates Lisa Beaudoin, Jake Berry and Edward Shanshala joined Protect Our Care New Hampshire to highlight ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marks its 15th anniversary. For over a decade, millions of Americans have gained quality, affordable health care through the ACA. Today, more Granite Staters have coverage than ever before, and insurance rates statewide are at record highs. Yet there are those in Congress who support efforts to undermine this progress, aiming to remove vital tax credits that help New Hampshire families save thousands annually and proposing to slash Medicaid funding by at least $880 billion—putting health care at risk for working families and vulnerable populations statewide. “In Washington, proposals to slash Medicaid by as much as $800 billion over the next decade pose a real and frightening threat to New Hampshire,” said Edward D. Shanshala, CEO of Ammonoosuc Community Health Services. “Even a fraction of those cuts would severely harm coverage for individuals with disabilities, families, and pregnant mothers. And here, the stakes are uniquely high: New Hampshire is one of just nine states with a trigger law, meaning if federal Medicaid funding drops by even one dollar below the current 90% level, Medicaid expansion would immediately end—no votes, no debate, just immediate loss of coverage. The consequences would be devastating.” You can read the post-event release here, and watch the full event here.

The Tip Sheet: On the 15th Anniversary of the ACA, NH Celebrates the Health Care Accomplishments but Worries about the Future for Granite Staters
Patch: Looking at American healthcare as the Affordable Care Act turns 15

NEW YORK

Tuesday, March 18 – Medicaid Day of Action Press Conference with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies and New York Medicaid Storytellers: House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jefferies held a press conference in Brooklyn highlighting the importance of protecting Medicaid for New Yorkers as part of the Medicaid Day of Action. Protect Our Care New York worked with 1199SEIU and the Healthcare Education Project to provide storyteller and provider Dr. Judith Flores, a pediatrician, to speak at the event. “Medicaid is health care, and we believe that in the United States of America, it is not simply a privilege, it is a right. Medicaid is health care for people in this community, in this city, in this country. It is not simply a privilege to have health care in the United States of America. It is a right, and we’re going to fight to make sure that right is alive and well, and save Medicaid in the United States of America,” said Rep. Hakeem Jefferies. You can watch the event here.

Axios: Democrats hammer GOP on Medicaid after weeks of turmoil
NY1: House Democrats hold ‘Medicaid Day of Action’ to call attention to expected cuts

Saturday, March 22 – 1199SEIU Stop Cuts to Health Care Rally at Rep. Nicole Milliotakis: 1199SEIU health care workers rallied with other South Brooklynites to call on Rep. Malliotakis to protect Medicaid–which over 7 million New Yorkers depend on for their health care–and other federal programs that are a lifeline for millions. In late February, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) voted for a congressional budget reconciliation resolution that sets Congress on a path to decimate and radically change federal health care programs that millions of New Yorkers count on for their care. “I think we all ended up here today because we are tired of opening up our phones and seeing nothing but Trump and Musk taking a chainsaw to basic services regular people depend on. Services like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP.” said the organizer, Christina. “It’s not to cut waste and fraud, but to give tax cuts to billionaires… these cuts will result in a loss of 2.7 billion dollars in our district”

Radio Free Bay Ridge: Rally Against Nicole Malliotakis’s Cuts to Medicaid

Thursday, March 27 – ACA Anniversary Event with Congressmembers Dan Goldman, Pat Ryan, Tim Kennedy, and State Legislators: Congressmen Dan Goldman (NY-10), Pat Ryan (NY-18) and Tim Kennedy (NY-26), State Senator Gustavo Rivera (Senate Health Committee Chair) and Assembly Member Amy Paulin (Assembly Health Committee Chair) joined Protect Our Care New York to highlight the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) turned 15 years old. “This week, the Affordable Care Act turned 15 years old – providing insurance coverage to more people than ever before – adding over 24 million enrollees,” said Congressman Tim Kennedy (NY-26). “We all know how important our health and well-being is, and the peace of mind that comes with being able to see a specialist when something is wrong, to have your child see a doctor when they are sick, or to know your parents can receive long-term care when they need it. The ACA, Medicaid, and Medicare are all investments in the health and well-being of our communities and our country. It is a basic human right to have access to health care. Yet, time and again, Republicans have put the ACA and Medicaid on the chopping block to pay for tax giveaways for the ultra-rich. We need to keep organizing, mobilizing, and speaking out against these attacks on our health care that would hurt hardworking families who deserve so much more.” You can watch the event here, and view the post-event release here.

WCBS: New York Democrats come together to highlight the 15th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (preview clip)
1010WINS: New York Democrats come together to highlight the 15th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (preview clip)

NORTH CAROLINA

Thursday, March 20 – Medicaid Defense Event with State Representative Julie von Haefen and Health Care Advocates: State Rep. Julie von Haefen, Little Lobbyists mom Shannon Dingle, and former AARP National President Eric Schneidewind joined Protect Our Care North Carolina to discuss the GOP’s latest budget plan to put billionaires over Americans. “The fact that Medicaid is under attack right now breaks my heart because of that decade-long effort we had to expand it and get where we are today,” said Representative von Haefen. “I recently met a woman at an event who came up to me and said ‘I just wanted to thank you so much for your vote on Medicaid and your hard work to get health care to somebody like me.’ She said that three weeks after she received her Medicaid card, she had a serious medical problem and ended up having to have open heart surgery. She said that if she did not have Medicaid it would have been financially devastating.” You can watch the event here, and view the post-event release here.

Thursday, March 27 – ACA Anniversary Event with Lieutenant Governor Rachel Hunt and Health Care Advocates: Lt. Gov Rachel Hunt, Pediatrician Dr. David Hill, and health care advocate DonnaMarie Woodson joined Protect Our Care North Carolina to highlight the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) turns 15 years old. “For 15 years, the ACA has provided quality, affordable health care to Americans and we won’t let that be ripped away,” said Lt. Governor Rachel Hunt. “National Republicans’ attacks on the ACA will not stop, but we have seen them all before and we have made it through.” You can watch the event here, and view the post-event release here.

PENNSYLVANIA

Tuesday, March 18 – Medicaid 101 Press Briefing with Pennsylvania Health Access Network and Health Care Advocates: Becky Ludwick of PA Partnerships for Children, Jennifer Garman of Disability Rights Pennsylvania, Michael Berman of Protect Our Care Pennsylvania, and Antoinette Kraus of the Pennsylvania Health Access Network joined a call today to discuss the devastating impact of proposed cuts to Medicaid on the 3 million Pennsylvanias who rely on the program for health coverage, particularly children, seniors, and people with disabilities. “Medicaid covers over 3 million Pennsylvanians. These are Pennsylvanians from every county in the Commonwealth. They are children, older adults, people with disabilities, and low-income working Pennsylvanians,” said Antoinette Kraus, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Health Access Network. “Each year, we field over 10,000 calls from people from across Pennsylvania about health insurance. Across the board, we hear that Medicaid is a life-saving program that keeps people healthy and working. Beyond coverage, Medicaid is a top funder for critical services that communities across Pennsylvania rely on, like mental and behavioral health care, school nurses, substance use disorder treatment, community health centers, rural hospitals, in-home care, and nursing homes.” You can watch the event here, and view the post-event release here.

KYW: (Also ran during the 6pm, 4am, and 7am broadcasts)
KYW: (Also ran during the 7pm, 9pm, 11pm, and 6am broadcasts)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Pennsylvania advocates warn of devastating impacts as federal Medicaid cuts loom
WFMZ: ‘This funding is critical’: PA organizations unite to protect Medicaid funding in face of proposed cuts
Tioga Publishing: ‘This funding is critical’: PA organizations unite to protect Medicaid funding in face of proposed cuts

Wednesday, March 19 – Congressman Scott Perry “Empty Chair” Townhall in Harrisburg, PA: Protect Our Care provided support for an “Empty Chair” Medicaid townhall to hold Congressman Scott Perry accountable for refusing to show up and listen to how these devastating Medicaid cuts will impact the people he represents.

WGAL: Frustration boils over at Scott Perry
WGAL: Calls for townhalls
WGAL: Advocates hold their own townhall
WGAL: Frustration boils over (also ran during the 1am broadcast)
WGAL: Where is Scott Perry? (also ran during the 5am, 6am, and 7am broadcasts)
Politics PA: ‘Where is Scott Perry?’: Progressive Group Holds Town Hall, With Focus Largely on Medicaid Cuts.
PennLive: ‘Where is Scott Perry?’: Progressive group holds town hall, with focus largely on Medicaid cuts
The Keystone: Scott Perry isn’t holding town halls. His constituents did one anyway, aiming ire at Trump, Musk
WGAL: US Rep. Scott Perry’s constituents urge him to protect their health care

Thursday, March 20 – Congressman Ryan Mackenzie “Empty Chair” Townhall in Bethlehem, PA with Congressman Jamie Raskin and DNC Chair Ken Martin: Protect Our Care provided support for an “Empty Chair” Medicaid townhall to hold Congressman Ryan Mackenzie accountable for refusing to show up and listen to how these devastating Medicaid cuts will impact the people he represents.

KYW: Pennsylvanians host their own townhall
WFMZ: Pennsylvanians call out Rep. Mackenzie for voting to cut Medicaid
Lehigh Valley News: Hundreds rally with Democrats over Medicaid threats, Trump cuts
Morning Call: At People’s Town Hall, Lehigh Valley residents and politicians attack Ryan Mackenzie, national Republicans

VIRGINIA

Tuesday, March 18 – Medicaid Roundtable with Congressman Bobby Scott and Health Care Advocates: Protect Our Care Virginia provided storytellers Yusun Beck and Sparkle Edwards as well as press support for Congressman Scott’s Medicaid roundtable. “House Republicans and President Trump have made their intentions clear,” said Congressman Scott. They’re going to try to cut the Medicaid program. The proposal includes $880 billion in cuts to the two programs under the jurisdiction of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.” You can watch the event here.

13NewsNow: Congressman Bobby Scott hosts Medicaid roundtable amid fears of cuts
13NewsNow: Hampton Roads caregivers raise alarm about possible cuts to Medicaid: ‘Devastated, afraid and shocked’
WAVY: Rep. Scott hosts Medicaid roundtable in Norfolk
WRIC: Rep. Scott hosts Medicaid roundtable

Tuesday, March 18 – Medicaid Press Conference with Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan and Health Care Advocates: Protect Our Care Virginia provided storyteller Aida Pacheco and press support for Congresswoman McClellan’s event. “House Republicans claim they’re not trying to cut Medicaid, yet the budget plan that they adopted, as the CBO has made clear, can only be achieved with cuts to Medicaid,” said Congresswoman McClellan. “Speaker Mike Johnson says that the people on Medicaid are 29-year-olds, sitting in their mom’s house playing video games. With all due respect, Mr. Speaker, that’s a lie.” You can listen to the event’s audio here, and view the post-event release here.

Virginia Mercury: ‘Not on our watch’: McClellan stresses congressional fight to defend Medicaid from potential cuts

Saturday, March 22 – “Cardboard Kiggans” Accountability Town Hall in Virginia Beach, VA: Protect Our Care Virginia provided staffing support for a “Cardboard Kiggans” accountability town hall with Affordable Virginia, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, and Freedom Virginia. At the event, neighbors shared their stories and learned more about how this administration’s disastrous policies are impacting Hampton Roads.

WAVY: Cardboard Kiggans Town Hall (also ran during the 11pm, 6am, and 7am broadcasts)
13NewsNow: Cardboard Kiggans Town Hall

WEST VIRGINIA

Monday, March 24 – ACA Anniversary/ePTC/Medicaid Event with West Virginia Health Care Advocates: Health care advocates across West Virginia joined Protect Our Care West Virginia to highlight how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has dramatically shifted West Virginia’s health care landscape, and the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care ACA turns 15 years old. “Fifteen percent of West Virginia’s hospitals are at immediate risk of closure, so if the ACA, Enhanced Premium Tax Credits and Medicaid expansion go away, those hospitals will likely close,” said Rich Sutphin, executive director of West Virginia Rural Health Association. “Then, all other hospitals in the state will have to evaluate whether they can afford to continue offering high quality care and expanded services.” You can watch the full event here, and read the post-event release here.

WISCONSIN

Thursday, March 20 – Medicaid Defense Roundtable with U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin and Health Care Advocates: U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin discussed the importance of Medicaid at a roundtable in Madison, WI. Joining the Senator were six Wisconsinites who would be directly impacted by the Republican budget plan that calls for slashing at least $880 billion from Medicaid to give tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy and big corporations. “This week, I’ve been traveling across the state to talk with families about what’s at stake as Republicans work overtime to terminate their health care and rip the rug out from under them,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin. “The bottom line is clear – people are really scared, and sadly, they have good reason to be. Republicans plan to slash Medicaid so they can fund their tax breaks for people like Elon Musk is wrong – and I am proud to stand with Wisconsinites and fight back.” You can view the post-event release here.

SPNWS: Senator Baldwin continues her “Hands Off Medicaid Tour” (also ran during the 6am, 7am, 8am, 9am, and 10am broadcasts)
WKOW-TV (ABC): Baldwin stops in Madison to discuss Medicaid cuts
WisPolitics: Protect Our Care: Sen. Baldwin sounds the alarm against GOP plans to slash Medicaid funding at Madison roundtable

Friday, March 21 – ACA Anniversary Event with Governor Tony Evers and Health Care Advocates: Governor Tony Evers joined Protect Our Care Wisconsin to highlight the ongoing threats to American health care as the Affordable Care Act (ACA) turns 15 years old. For over a decade, millions of Americans have been able to get quality and affordable health care through the ACA, and more Wisconsinites than ever are covered. “With the reckless actions coming out of Washington in recent weeks, it’s more important than ever to protect access to affordable health care here in Wisconsin and across our country,” said Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. “I promise that, as long as I’m governor, we’re going to keep doing everything we can to fight this recklessness and make sure Wisconsinites receive health care that’s affordable and accessible.” You can watch the event here.

ashoup In Statement, News

STATEMENT: RFK Jr. Guts Critical Services And Puts Health Care For Millions At Risk

The GOP “Bloodbath” Continues at HHS With 20,000 Critical Jobs Lost

Washington, D.C. – Today, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. announced plans to dismantle critical health care services for the American people by gutting his own department. The latest plan includes firing 10,000 employees who have been responding to infectious disease outbreaks, approving new life-saving drugs, administering critical programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and more. This comes after 10,000 employees have already left HHS due to DOGE efforts to slash the federal workforce to the bone and cut the programs the American people rely on.

This latest move is all part of the Trump administration’s sweeping effort to gut federal funding for health care. The Trump administration has slashed hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants for universities and state agencies around the country studying health issues over the past few weeks. Read more about the “bloodbath” here.

Republicans are also working to slash nearly a trillion dollars from Medicaid and raise costs on hard-working families by ending cost-saving tax credits. As a result, millions of Americans will be at risk of losing their health care coverage. Protect Our Care recently released a report detailing all the GOP attacks on health care.

Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued a statement:

“Donald Trump continues to gut vital health programs across the country. These drastic cuts will undermine disease prevention, food inspection, and drug safety. Lifesaving research to develop treatments and cures for diseases will be eliminated. America will be vulnerable to the next big health threat, and more Americans will get sick, and more will die. There is no telling just how damaging these cuts will be, but they will be felt across the country.”

BACKGROUND

Wall Street Journal: RFK Jr. Plans 10,000 Job Cuts in Major Restructuring of Health Department.

“Kennedy is set to announce Thursday the planned changes, which include axing 10,000 full-time employees spread across departments tasked with responding to disease outbreaks, approving new drugs, providing insurance for the poorest Americans and more.”
“The worker cuts are in addition to roughly 10,000 employees who opted to leave the department since President Trump took office, through voluntary separation offers, according to the documents. The voluntary departures and the plan, if fully implemented, would result in the department shedding about one-quarter of its workforce, shrinking to 62,000 federal health workers. It will also lose five of its 10 regional offices.”

New York Times: Trump Administration Abruptly Cuts Billions From State Health Services.

“The Department of Health and Human Services has abruptly canceled more than $12 billion in federal grants to states that were being used for tracking infectious diseases, mental health services, addiction treatment and other urgent health issues. The cuts are likely to further hamstring state health departments, which are already underfunded and struggling with competing demands from chronic diseases, resurgent infections like syphilis and emerging threats like bird flu. State health departments began receiving notices on Monday evening that the funds, which were allocated during the Covid-19 pandemic, were being terminated, effective immediately.”

ashoup In News, Roundup

“It’s A Bloodbath”: Trump Administration Slashes Millions in NIH Funding for Maternal Health, HIV, and Other Research

The Republican War On Health Care Continues With Devastating Cuts to Lifesaving Research

Over the last two days, the Trump administration has slashed hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants for universities and state agencies around the country studying health issues, including maternal mortality, domestic violence, climate change, HIV, health disparities, immunizations, and more. Trump and his RFK-led HHS also shuttered its Long Covid office, which worked on curing Long Covid and streamlining Covid-related public health efforts, and they froze funding for family planning efforts such as contraception distribution, STD and pregnancy testing, and counseling for infertility. With these new efforts, the Trump administration is not only targeting women, children, people of color, and other marginalized communities, it is hurting universities, axing much-needed life-saving research and medical innovation, and threatening public health. These cuts will dramatically harm the health and well-being of communities nationwide, and they will cost lives.

CNN: ‘People Will Die Based on These Decisions’: Trump Administration Cuts Funding for Dozens of HIV Studies.

“‘This is just pure chaos and insanity,’ said Kelley, chair of the HIV Medicine Association. The National Institutes of Health canceled two grants last week for HIV projects she was working on, as well as funding for a large HIV clinical trial network she was involved with. ‘It’s just a massive, massive bloodbath,’ Kelley said. The NIH has eliminated funding for dozens of HIV-related research grants, according to a US Department of Health and Human Services database that was updated last week, halting studies and threatening patient care across the country. Several researchers said the cuts put a stop to hopes of ending HIV in the US and around the world.”

Wall Street Journal: Trump Administration Plans to Freeze Family-Planning Grants.

“The freeze, which could be made public as soon as this week, would suspend funding meant to support, in the U.S., pregnancy testing, provision of contraception, treatment of sexually transmitted infections and evaluation and counseling for infertility.”
“The Department of Health and Human Services distributes the funds under its program known as Title X. The $120 million is roughly half the money available for the program for the year, according to the HHS website. The program gives free or discounted services to about four million people annually through a network of roughly 4,000 clinics.”

NBC: CDC Is Pulling Back $11B in COVID Funding Sent to Health Departments Across the U.S.

“‘The COVID-19 pandemic is over, and HHS will no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a non-existent pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago,’ HHS Director of Communications Andrew Nixon said in a statement. ‘HHS is prioritizing funding projects that will deliver on President Trump’s mandate to address our chronic disease epidemic and Make America Healthy Again…’ The clawed-back funds were largely being used for Covid testing, vaccination, community health workers and initiatives to address Covid health disparities among high-risk and underserved populations, including racial and ethnic minority populations and rural communities, as well as global Covid projects, according to talking points emailed from CDC leadership to agency departments on Tuesday.”

Politico: Long COVID Office ‘Will Be Closing,’ Trump Administration Announces.

“The Trump administration is shuttering HHS’ long Covid office as part of its reorganization, according to an internal email… The office’s handful of staff were not told whether they would remain employed in the federal government or whether the office would close immediately or wind down operations over time… One HHS employee who works on long Covid, granted anonymity to share details of the move, argued closing the office would not save much money and could cost more over time. Not only could suspending the office’s coordination work lead to overlapping and duplicated efforts, the employee said, but abandoning work that could cure Long Covid means the country’s health care system will have to provide years if not decades of costly care for tens of millions of chronically ill people.”

NOTUS: HHS Pulled Funds for HIV Research at 22 Universities.

“The Trump administration’s Department of Health and Human Services terminated around 60 federal grants supporting HIV and HIV prevention-related research over the past five weeks, cutting tens of millions in funding for programs spread across nearly two dozen universities and a handful of other institutions. Much of the research focused on population groups most impacted by HIV. Roughly half of the programs centered on Black or Latino populations, who have made up the vast majority of recent HIV infections per estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Others focused on transgender people, a frequent target of this White House. At least one grant focused on preventing HIV in infants and children… ‘The American people have seen their tax dollars used to fund the passion projects of unelected bureaucrats rather than to advance the national interest,’ the memo reads. ‘The American people have a right to see how the Federal Government has wasted their hard-earned wages.’”

Mother Jones: Domestic Violence and Maternal Mortality Are Rising. The NIH Just Defunded a Project to Study Both.

“The National Institutes of Health intended to terminate a grant of approximately $400,000 for one of her projects. Fielding-Miller, who researches infectious diseases and gender-based violence, along with some colleagues who do similar work received the funds last fall to support a project focused on training up to a dozen early-career researchers on how to better study intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy. The lead researchers were just about to start recruiting mentees for the year-and-a-half-long program, Fielding-Miller said… ‘Research programs based primarily on artificial and non-scientific categories, including amorphous equity objectives, are antithetical to the scientific inquiry, do nothing to expand our knowledge of living systems, provide low returns on investment, and ultimately do not enhance health, lengthen life, or reduce illness,’ the termination letter from the NIH said… Emily Hilliard, spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees the NIH, said: ‘At HHS, we are dedicated to restoring our agencies to their tradition of upholding gold-standard, evidence-based science. As we begin to Make America Healthy Again, it’s important to prioritize research that directly affects the health of Americans.’”

AP News: Trump Administration Cancels at Least 68 Grants Focused on LGBTQ Health Questions.

“Last week the U.S. government terminated at least 68 grants to 46 institutions totaling nearly $40 million when awarded, according to a government website. Some of the grant money has already been spent, but at least $1.36 million in future support was yanked as a result of the cuts, a significant undercount because estimates were available for less than a third of grants. Most were in some way related to sexual minorities, including research focused on HIV prevention. Other canceled studies centered on cancer, youth suicide and bone health… ‘We now no longer have anywhere studying LGBT cancer in the United States,’ said Rosser, who saw his grants canceled on Friday… ‘It’s a loss of a whole generation of science,’ Rosser said.”

STAT: NIH Cuts Halt 24-Year Program to Prevent HIV/Aids in Adolescents and Young Adults.

“During Donald Trump’s first term, he made it a goal to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S. by 2030. That priority has fallen by the wayside in the second Trump administration, with the termination of a number of grants related to HIV in the past week. Most notable was the sudden withdrawal of $18 million per year for a program dedicated to understanding how to diagnose, treat, and prevent HIV infections and AIDS in adolescents and young adults, who account for about 19% of new infections annually in the U.S. On Friday, the Adolescent Medicine Trials Network for HIV/AIDS Intervention was notified that the two major grants that support its operations had been halted by the National Institutes of Health, in a move that legal experts say may be found illegal if it were challenged in court. Researchers say the loss of the program — during the third year of the seven-year grants — would mean ceasing research that could help expand the populations that might benefit from emerging treatments.”

ProPublica: NIH Ends Future Funding to Study the Health Effects of Climate Change.

“While it’s unclear whether the climate guidance will impact active grants and lead to funding terminations, the directive appears to halt opportunities for future funding of studies or academic programs focused on the health effects of climate change… She called the new guidance ‘catastrophic’ and said it would have a ‘devastating’ impact on much-needed research… The new NIH directive follows the Trump administration’s broader agenda to gut efforts to document and address climate change. Trump has paused billions of dollars of spending on climate-related causes. He has also issued executive orders aimed at increasing the production of fossil fuels and scaling back the government’s efforts to address climate change.”

Roll Call: Trump Cancels NIH Grants on Equity Research.

“The Trump administration is canceling dozens of National Institutes of Health grants funding health equity research, including work studying Black maternal and fetal health and HIV. Grantees were told in termination notices delivered over the last several days that their project ‘no longer effectuates agency priorities’ and that ‘so-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) studies are often used to support unlawful discrimination on the basis of race…’ ‘The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed countries and ranks 54th for infant mortality,’ said Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine President Sindhu Srinivas. ‘Cutting research funding and critical public health programs that support perinatal care only serves to worsen this problem.’”

Arkansas Democrat Gazette: Over $165 Million in Grants to Arkansas Services to Be Terminated.

“The list of terminations includes 11 grants to the Arkansas Department of Health totalling $158 million. ‘The referenced funding was supplemental funding in immunizations, health disparities, and epidemiology and laboratory capacity funding,’ said Meg Mirivel, a spokesperson for the Arkansas Department of Health. ‘We always understood these were temporary grants. The ADH is adjusting accordingly and is well equipped to serve Arkansans.’”

The Baltimore Banner: HHS Cuts Millions in Grants to Hopkins and University of Maryland, Baltimore.

“At least two dozen research grants at the University of Maryland, Baltimore and Johns Hopkins University have been terminated by the federal government in recent weeks amid President Trump’s executive orders targeting diversity efforts.”
“‘We face challenging times for the patients and families that rely on us for cures and treatments, and for the researchers dedicated to the pursuit of improving the health of all Americans,’ Hopkins said in a statement. ‘These are cuts to research that will take away prevention strategies and treatments from American patients facing infectious and chronic diseases.’”

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