KFF Health News

11/09/2025

Buoyed by a Montana court ruling upholding state residents’ right to a “clean and healthful environment,” nearly two dozen people ages 7 to 24 hope to block the Trump administration’s executive orders on energy.

Buoyed by a Montana court ruling upholding state residents’ right to a “clean and healthful environment,” nearly two dozen people ages 7 to 24 hope to block the Trump administration’s executive orders on energy.

08/09/2025

More Americans are choosing burials in which everything is biodegradable.

In a survey by the National Funeral Directors Association, more than 60% of respondents said they would be interested in exploring green and natural burial alternatives.

07/09/2025

: Just days after his firing of the brand-new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a defiant Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the U.S. secretary of health and human services, defended that action and others before a sometimes skeptical Senate Finance Committee. Criticism of Kennedy’s increasingly anti-vaccine actions came not just from Democrats on the panel but from some Republicans who are also medical doctors.

Meanwhile, members of Congress have only a few weeks left to complete work on spending bills or risk a government shutdown, and time is also running out to head off the large increases in premiums for Affordable Care Act health plans likely to occur with additional Biden-era government subsidies set to expire.

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A combative Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the HHS secretary, appeared before a Senate committee Thursday, defending his firing of the CDC's new director and other actions that could limit vaccine availability. Meanwhile, Congress has only a few weeks to complete work on annual spending bills to avoid a poss...

06/09/2025

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is hunting for Medicaid waste, fraud, and abuse in at least six Democratic-led states that expanded coverage to low-income and disabled immigrants without legal status, according to records obtained by KFF Health News and The Associated Press.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is hunting for Medicaid waste, fraud, and abuse in at least six Democratic-led states that expanded coverage to low-income and disabled immigrants without legal status, according to records obtained by KFF Health News and The Associated Press.

05/09/2025

KFF Health News was in the room as HHS Secretary RFK Jr. testified before the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday. We captured a photo of Kennedy's talking points, but what was actually covered? Watch our post-hearing discussion for the biggest takeaways: https://bit.ly/3V3mq5A

04/09/2025

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testified before the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday. Watch his heated exchange with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

The hearing follows the ouster last week of the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Susan Monarez. At least four other senior CDC officials resigned in protest.

03/09/2025

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is set to testify before the Senate Finance Committee on Sept. 4. The session follows the ouster last week by Kennedy of the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Susan Monarez. Four other senior CDC officials resigned in protest.

What are the biggest takeaways? What comes next? Tune in for a post-hearing discussion with KFF Health News correspondents Stephanie Armour, Julie Rovner, and arthur allen, and KFF’s Josh Michaud, associate director for Global Health Policy, on Sept. 4 at 3 p.m. ET.

RSVP here: https://kff-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/8017569106693/WN_E0zBbhInR3214xgmuQxTUw

03/09/2025

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s push to fire CDC director Susan Monarez is more than an administrative shake-up. It’s part of Kennedy’s anti-vaccine, anti-science agenda, some public health experts say.

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 ...

02/09/2025

The Trump administration touts the millions of Social Security inquiries answered by its new artificial intelligence-powered chatbot. But former agency officials and longtime observers say the bot was tested and shelved when Joe Biden was still in office.

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 o...

01/09/2025

The FTC has long required companies to back any medical claims about their products with evidence. A lawsuit would put the burden of proof on the government.

Xlear, a maker of xylitol gum, has sued the Federal Trade Commission, saying the onus should be on government to prove that ingredients don’t live up to advertised claims. RFK Jr.’s “medical freedom” allies have rallied to the cause.

31/08/2025

Headaches over the health system?

Health Care Helpline helps you navigate the hurdles between you and good care. Send us your tricky question and we may tap a policy sleuth to puzzle it out.

Share your story: https://bit.ly/461p020

Pre-authorization delay? No in-network specialists? Dispute over costs? Confusion after a hospital discharge? Long wait times in the ER? Share your story. Health Care Helpline helps you navigate the hurdles between you and good care. Send us your tricky question and we may tap a policy sleuth to puz...

30/08/2025

CNN’s Erica Hill spoke with KFF Health News correspondent Amy Maxmen about leadership changes at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Maxmen noted that turmoil at the CDC has been occurring since early in the Trump administration.

KFF Health News correspondent Amy Maxmen traces the political turmoil at the CDC under President Donald Trump.