Daily Edition for Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Palomar Health Loses Grant For Mental Health Hospital: A major project designed to add 120 beds for mental health care in north San Diego County has lost a $50 million state grant, making the project’s future uncertain. Palomar was unable to meet “match” requirements, the California Department of Healthcare Services said in a statement. Read more from The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Changes at NIH Give Political Appointees Greater Power To Fund or Block Research
By Arthur Allen
The National Institutes of Health’s long-held standard of peer review for grantmaking has been subverted by President Donald Trump and NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, who gave unprecedented power to politicos, NIH workers say.
Do Pediatricians Recommend Vaccines To Make a Profit? There’s Not Much Money in It
By Madison Czopek, PolitiFact
Four pediatricians said evidence-based science and medicine and a desire to keep kids healthy drive doctors’ childhood vaccination recommendations. And while pediatric practices might make money immunizing privately insured children, most practices likely break even or lose money from providing the shots.
At CDC, Worries Mount That Agency Has Taken Anti-Science Turn
By Stephanie Armour
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s push to fire Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez is more than an administrative shake-up. It marks a major offensive by Kennedy to seize control of the agency and impose an anti-science agenda, public health leaders say.
Daily Edition for Tuesday, September 2, 2025
Salmonella Outbreak Linked To California Egg Producer: A Salmonella outbreak linked to recalled eggs has sickened at least 95 people across 14 states, with the vast majority of cases — 73 — reported in California. Eighteen people have been hospitalized. Investigators traced the source to Country Eggs, a Lucerne Valley (San Bernardino County) producer that supplied large brown cage-free eggs sold as “sunshine yolks” and “omega-3 golden yolks.” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle and CIDRAP.
Cuando los pacientes quedan atrapados en medio de las peleas entre aseguradoras y hospitales
By Bram Sable-Smith
El 18% de los hospitales no federales experimentaron al menos un caso documentado de enfrentamiento público con una aseguradora entre junio de 2021 y mayo de 2025. Lo sufren los pacientes.
When Hospitals and Insurers Fight, Patients Get Caught in the Middle
By Bram Sable-Smith
About 90,000 people spent months in limbo as central Missouri’s major, and often only, provider fought over insurance contracts. Patients getting caught in the crossfire of disputes has become a familiar complication, as about 8% of hospitals have left an insurer network since 2021. Trump administration policies could accelerate the trend.
Listen: As Kids Head Back to School, Parents Sort Out Confusion Over Vaccine Access
By Jackie Fortiér
Confusion over federal immunization policy could have major implications for how families with private insurance and Medicaid pay for routine vaccinations. Some doctors are encouraging parents not to wait and get their children shots as soon as they are eligible.
Social Security Praises Its New Chatbot. Ex-Officials Say It Was Tested but Shelved Under Biden.
By Darius Tahir
Social Security, under the leadership of a tech enthusiast, rolled out an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot to answer calls. But as beneficiaries complain about glitches, lawmakers and former officials ask whether it’s a preview of a less human agency at which rushed-out AI takes the place of pushed-out government workers.
Watch: How Concerns of CDC Scientists Over Political Interference Have Grown This Year
By Amy Maxmen
KFF Health News correspondent Amy Maxmen traces the political turmoil at the CDC under President Donald Trump.
