Purging vaccine advisers

The first indication of what was in store was Helen Branswell's scoop that four members of the panel that advises the CDC on vaccination policy were terminated because their special government employee contracts had lapsed.

It wasn't clear then whether it was part of a purge or a clerical mixup. It was a purge.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday announced via an editorial in the Wall Street Journal that he is firing every member of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Kennedy said the action is needed to restore faith in vaccines.

But others were shocked. Read more from Helen.

congress

GOP senators zero in on Medicaid policy that would barely curb enrollment losses

A handful of GOP senators say they want to safeguard Medicaid enrollees from federal funding cuts to the program in President Trump's tax cut package.

But the changes that most of them are talking about would not keep many people from losing insurance.

The policy getting the most attention would rely on a mechanism called provider taxes. It's a tactic states use to boost federal funding for their Medicaid programs. But while the tactic is used to hike Medicaid pay rates for health care providers, it's not expected to have much of an impact on enrollment compared to other policies, such as one that would require adults without young kids or disabilities to work in return for Medicaid coverage.

nih

Bhattacharya gets a dose of his own medicine

Five years ago, NIH Director Bhattacharya was one of three professors to publish an open letter calling for relaxed public health protections against the Covid pandemic. Now, several hundred of his employees have written their own declaration to rebuke many of the agency's actions over President Trump's second term, Anil Oza reports.

They're calling it the Bethesda Declaration — the NIH is located in Bethesda, Maryland — a reference to Bhattacharya's letter, dubbed the Great Barrington Declaration.

In response, Bhattacharya said the Bethesda Declaration has "fundamental misconceptions" about the policy directions of the NIH. Read more.

budget

NIH budget cuts put to the test

Today we will find out whether Republicans will push back against the Trump administration's proposed cuts to the NIH.

The NIH detailed proposed cuts in its budget justification ahead of a Senate Appropriations hearing today. Jonathan Wosen and Daniel Payne have those details.

Trump's 2026 budget proposes cutting 43% of funding from the NIH's central function, supporting research by awarding grants to universities, academic medical centers, and other institutions. The $11.6 billion cut would reduce the number of new grants awarded as well as existing grants for ongoing research. Read their story for more details.

disease prevention

CDC prevention programs on the chopping block

The budget documents also give the first clear indication of the priorities of a proposed new agency focused on preventing chronic disease, Elizabeth Cooney writes.

The proposed Administration for a Healthy America would absorb multiple federal agencies and existing programs, but the documents indicate that many CDC initiatives that were axed would be resurrected with less funding, if any.

It's important to note that this is a proposal from the president, but Congress controls the purse strings and routinely ignores much of a president's budget request. Read more.

More around STAT

Check out more exclusive coverage with a STAT+ subscription

Read premium in-depth biotech, pharma, policy, and life science coverage and analysis with all of our STAT+ articles.

What we're reading

5 food power players have strong ties to the MAHA movement, STAT
Trump budget's caps on grad school loans could worsen doctor shortage, The New York Times
NIH walks back ban on new grants for universities with DEI programs or Israel boycotts, STAT
No drug price pledges by Pfizer, others in talks with US government, Pfizer CEO says, Reuters