Meet the Florida Group Chipping Away at Public Benefits One State at a Time
By Katheryn Houghton and Samantha Liss
The Trump administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” platform has boosted the agenda of a conservative think tank that’s been working for more than a decade to reshape the nation’s public assistance programs.
Seeking Spending Cuts, GOP Lawmakers Target a Tax Hospitals Love To Pay
By Phil Galewitz
Republicans, on the hunt for spending cuts, are eyeing a special kind of Medicaid tax that nearly every state uses to boost funding for hospitals, nursing homes, and other providers.
A California Lawmaker Leans Into Her Medical Training in Fight for Health Safety Net
By Christine Mai-Duc
As California’s budget deadline looms, state Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson, a physician-turned-lawmaker, says state leaders may soon have to make some tough decisions on health care spending. With the state’s Medi-Cal program billions of dollars short, California’s health care safety net is at risk — even without federal cuts to Medicaid.
Daily Edition for Wednesday, May 7, 2025
Rite Aid Again Seeks Bankruptcy Protection: Rite Aid has put its Sacramento-area store leases on the market as the bankrupt pharmacy chain looks to offload its assets. The company plans to sell customer prescription files, inventory, and other assets. Stores will remain open for now, but the company isn’t buying new inventory, so bare shelves will likely become more common. Read more from the Sacramento Business Journal and AP.
Trump Policies at Odds With ‘Make America Healthy Again’ Push
By Stephanie Armour
On the surface, President Donald Trump embraced the MAHA movement with a pledge to end the nation’s high rates of chronic disease. But the broader Trump agenda may prove to be the biggest barrier this effort confronts.
Watch: How the FDA Opens the Door to Risky Chemicals in America’s Food Supply
By David Hilzenrath and Hannah Norman and Oona Zenda
To a great extent, the FDA leaves it to food companies to determine whether their ingredients and additives are safe. Some chemicals and additives are tied to health risks while others are absent from product labels. Watch this video explainer to learn more.
Daily Edition for Tuesday, May 6, 2025
KP Mental Health Workers Tentatively Agree To End Strike: Approximately 2,400 mental health workers have ended a strike that began Oct. 21, 2024, after reaching a tentative labor contract with Oakland-based Kaiser Permanente. Read more from Becker’s Hospital Review, The San Diego Union-Tribune, and Capital & Main.
At Social Security, These Are the Days of the Living Dead
By Darius Tahir
In recent weeks, Social Security has been plagued by problems related to technology, system errors, and even the marking of living people as dead.
Despite Historic Indictment, Doctors Will Keep Mailing Abortion Pills Across State Lines
By Rosemary Westwood, WWNO
When a New York physician was indicted for shipping abortion medications to a woman in Louisiana, it stoked fear across the network of doctors and medical clinics who engage in similar work. But some physicians vowed not to stop.
HIV Testing and Outreach Falter as Trump Funding Cuts Sweep the South
By Amy Maxmen
A disruption in federal funds has jeopardized HIV testing and outreach in Mississippi, and researchers warn of a resurgence of the epidemic in the South.
