Health Industry

Latest California Healthline Stories

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Public Health Further Politicized Under the Threat of More Firings

In a rambling news conference that shocked public health experts, President Donald Trump — without scientific evidence — blamed the over-the-counter drug acetaminophen, and too many childhood vaccines, for the increase in autism diagnoses in the U.S. That came days after a key immunization advisory panel, newly reconstituted with vaccine doubters, changed several long-standing recommendations. Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official Demetre Daskalakis joins KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories. Meanwhile, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join Rovner with the rest of the news, including a threat by the Trump administration to fire rather than furlough federal workers if Congress fails to fund the government beyond the Oct. 1 start of the new fiscal year.

She Had a Broken Arm, No Insurance — And a $97,000 Bill

Deborah Buttgereit knew piecing together the broken bone in her elbow would be expensive. But complications the doctor deemed a surprise, midsurgery, drove the total bill tens of thousands of dollars above the original estimate.

Mercury in Your Hot Dog? Vaccine Skeptics Face Their Limits at Crucial CDC Meeting

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention meeting on vaccines pitted scientific expertise against vaccine skepticism. An often confusing debate ended with critics of the current vaccine schedule tabling a vote to remove one of its cornerstones.

Projected Surge in Uninsured Will Strain Local Health Systems

In South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley, many people go without health insurance, and the health system struggles as a result. Similar communities dot the nation, and more could face such difficulties under President Donald Trump’s tax-and-spending law.