INSIDER
'Obamacare' enrollment opens, as Republicans threaten the health insurance program used by millions
Read full article: 'Obamacare' enrollment opens, as Republicans threaten the health insurance program used by millionsAmericans can start signing up Friday for health care coverage offered through the Affordable Care Act marketplace for 2025.
Feds rarely punish hospitals for turning away pregnant patients
Read full article: Feds rarely punish hospitals for turning away pregnant patientsAn Associated Press analysis has found that hospitals are rarely fined for violating a federal law that is supposed to guarantee that patients with medical emergencies get the treatment they need.
Biden administration hikes pay for Head Start teachers to address workforce shortage
Read full article: Biden administration hikes pay for Head Start teachers to address workforce shortageThe Biden administration is hiking pay for educators in the early childhood program Head Start as part of an effort to retain current employees and attract new ones in the midst of a workforce shortage.
Texas sues over federal program that lets minors get birth control without parental consent
Read full article: Texas sues over federal program that lets minors get birth control without parental consentTexas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), Secretary Xavier Becerra, and other members of the Biden Administration for a federal contraception program that allows minors to get birth control prescribed without parental consent.
Justices seem set to allow emergency abortions in Idaho for now, a prematurely posted opinion says
Read full article: Justices seem set to allow emergency abortions in Idaho for now, a prematurely posted opinion saysThe Supreme Court appears poised to allow emergency abortions in Idaho when a pregnant patient’s health is at serious risk, as a legal case plays out.
The Flores agreement has protected migrant children for nearly 3 decades. Changes may be coming
Read full article: The Flores agreement has protected migrant children for nearly 3 decades. Changes may be comingThe Biden administration wants to partially end a 27-year-old agreement that provides court oversight of how the federal government cares for migrant children in its custody.
Biden administration will seek partial end to special court oversight of child migrants
Read full article: Biden administration will seek partial end to special court oversight of child migrantsThe Biden administration plans to partially end the 27-year-old court supervision of how the federal government cares for child migrants, shortly after producing its own list of safeguards against mistreatment.
Biden administration says 100,000 new migrants are expected to enroll in 'Obamacare' next year
Read full article: Biden administration says 100,000 new migrants are expected to enroll in 'Obamacare' next yearRoughly 100,000 immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children are expected to enroll in the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance next year.
Biden administration tightens rules for obtaining medical records related to abortion
Read full article: Biden administration tightens rules for obtaining medical records related to abortionThe medical records of women will be shielded from criminal investigations if they cross state lines to seek an abortion where it is legal.
Latest attempt to chip away at 'Obamacare' questions preventive health care
Read full article: Latest attempt to chip away at 'Obamacare' questions preventive health careA federal appeals court is considering whether the government properly put in place requirements that health insurance plans affecting an estimated 150 million Americans must cover certain types of preventive care.
Medical groups urge Alabama Supreme Court to revisit frozen embryo ruling
Read full article: Medical groups urge Alabama Supreme Court to revisit frozen embryo rulingGroups representing Alabama doctors and hospitals are urging the state Supreme Court to revisit a decision equating frozen embryos to children.
Patients urge Alabama lawmakers to restore IVF services in the state
Read full article: Patients urge Alabama lawmakers to restore IVF services in the stateMore than 200 in vitro fertilization patients have gathered at the Alabama Statehouse to urge lawmakers to find some way to restore IVF services in the state.
Nation's top health official to visit Alabama in wake of IVF ruling
Read full article: Nation's top health official to visit Alabama in wake of IVF rulingThe Biden administration is sending the nation’s top health official to meet with patients and doctors in Alabama to discuss a controversial court ruling that upended in vitro fertilization treatment in the state.
The Biden administration is slow to act as millions are booted off Medicaid, advocates say
Read full article: The Biden administration is slow to act as millions are booted off Medicaid, advocates sayError-ridden state reviews have purged millions of the poorest Americans from the Medicaid program in recent months.
Democratic lawmakers want President Biden to protect Palestinians in US from being forced home
Read full article: Democratic lawmakers want President Biden to protect Palestinians in US from being forced homeDozens of Democratic lawmakers are urging President Joe Biden to take steps to protect Palestinians in the United States as the Israel-Hamas war continues.
New rules aim to make foster care with family easier, provide protection for LGBTQ+ children
Read full article: New rules aim to make foster care with family easier, provide protection for LGBTQ+ childrenThe Biden administration is moving to make it easier for caregivers to take in family members in the foster care system, requiring states to provide them with the same financial support that any other foster home would receive.
Donald Trump, skipping GOP debate, eyes California delegate sweep in the state he loves to hate
Read full article: Donald Trump, skipping GOP debate, eyes California delegate sweep in the state he loves to hateDonald Trump lost heavily Democratic California by over 5 million votes in the 2020 election.
Biden administration announces $600M to produce COVID tests and will reopen website to order them
Read full article: Biden administration announces $600M to produce COVID tests and will reopen website to order themThe Biden administration has announced that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household.
US will regulate nursing home staffing for first time, but proposal lower than many advocates hoped
Read full article: US will regulate nursing home staffing for first time, but proposal lower than many advocates hopedAn association that lobbies for health care facilities says President Joe Biden’s decision to require nursing homes to comply with federal rules on staffing levels will cost them billions of dollars.
Marijuana recommendation from Health Dept. hailed by senators as first step to easing restrictions
Read full article: Marijuana recommendation from Health Dept. hailed by senators as first step to easing restrictionsThe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has delivered a recommendation to the Drug Enforcement Administration on marijuana policy, and Senate leaders are hailing it as a first step toward easing federal restrictions on the drug.
Judge limits Biden administration in working with social media companies
Read full article: Judge limits Biden administration in working with social media companiesA judge on Tuesday prohibited several federal agencies and officials of the Biden administration from working with social media companies about “protected speech,” a decision called “a blow to censorship” by one of the Republican officials whose lawsuit prompted the ruling.
Merck sues federal government, calling plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices extortion
Read full article: Merck sues federal government, calling plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices extortionMerck is suing the federal government over a plan to negotiate Medicare drug prices, calling the program a sham equivalent to extortion.
Commerce Department starts process to fund tech hubs across the US with $500 million in grants
Read full article: Commerce Department starts process to fund tech hubs across the US with $500 million in grantsThe Commerce Department is launching the application process for cities to receive a total of $500 million in grants to become technology hubs.
Feds: Hospitals that denied emergency abortion broke the law
Read full article: Feds: Hospitals that denied emergency abortion broke the lawA first-of-its-kind federal investigation has found two hospitals put a pregnant woman's life in jeopardy and violated federal law by refusing to provide an emergency abortion when she experienced premature labor at 17 weeks.
White House wants rule to protect abortion patients' records
Read full article: White House wants rule to protect abortion patients' recordsThe White House has proposed a federal rule to limit how law enforcement and state officials collect medical records if they investigate women who flee their home states to seek abortions elsewhere.
Justice Department appeals Texas abortion pill order
Read full article: Justice Department appeals Texas abortion pill orderThe Justice Department is appealing a Texas court ruling that would halt approval of a drug used in the most common method of abortion in the U_S_ In its appeal Monday, the Justice Department called the decision “extraordinary and unprecedented.”.
White House promises crackdown on migrant child labor
Read full article: White House promises crackdown on migrant child laborThe Biden administration says it is creating a new task force to crack down on an explosion of the illegal exploitation of migrant children for labor in the U.S. Hundreds of companies that employed nearly 4,000 children last year were found in violation of federal labor laws, a dramatic increase in the last five years.
Feds expect to collect $4.7B in insurance fraud penalties
Read full article: Feds expect to collect $4.7B in insurance fraud penaltiesThe Biden administration is estimating that it could collect as much as $4.7 billion from insurance companies with newer and tougher penalties for submitting improper charges on the taxpayers’ tab for Medicare Advantage care.
US plans end to mpox public health emergency in January
Read full article: US plans end to mpox public health emergency in JanuaryThe federal government plans to end in January the public health emergency it declared earlier this year after an outbreak of mpox left more than 29,000 people across the U.S. infected.
'West Wing' cast urges struggling Americans to seek help
Read full article: 'West Wing' cast urges struggling Americans to seek helpAs more Americans struggle with depression and anxiety, the cast of “The West Wing” teamed up with the Biden administration on Thursday to share a simple message: you are not alone.
New rules fix 'flaw' for families seeking Obamacare coverage
Read full article: New rules fix 'flaw' for families seeking Obamacare coverageMore families who are offered expensive health insurance premiums from their employers will get a discount if they sign up instead for coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace this fall.
Regulators try to stop unlawful nursing home debt collection
Read full article: Regulators try to stop unlawful nursing home debt collectionA federal report says nursing homes and debt collectors are flouting a law that prohibits them from requiring friends and family of care home residents to be responsible for costs of the facilities.
Medicaid extensions for new moms grow, may run into limits
Read full article: Medicaid extensions for new moms grow, may run into limitsStates around the country are making it easier for newborn moms to keep Medicaid in the year after childbirth, a crucial time when depression and other health problems can develop.
Idaho can’t enforce abortion ban in medical emergencies
Read full article: Idaho can’t enforce abortion ban in medical emergenciesA federal judge has barred Idaho from enforcing a strict abortion ban in medical emergencies, clearing the way for hospitals to continue treating ectopic pregnancies and other pregnancy-related complications normally for now.
Arizona judge to hear state request to enforce abortion ban
Read full article: Arizona judge to hear state request to enforce abortion banAn Arizona judge is set to hear arguments on the state’s request to allow it to enforce a near-total ban on abortions under a law that has been blocked for nearly 50 years.
U.S. officials plan to declare monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency, NBC News reports
Read full article: U.S. officials plan to declare monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency, NBC News reportsThe Biden administration plans to declare monkeypox a public health emergency as cases top 6,600 nationwide, two sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.
Number of uninsured Americans drops to record low
Read full article: Number of uninsured Americans drops to record lowThe number of people living in America without health insurance coverage hit an all-time low of 8 percent this year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Tuesday.
Biden names FEMA, CDC officials to head monkeypox response
Read full article: Biden names FEMA, CDC officials to head monkeypox responsePresident Joe Biden is set to name top officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to serve as the White House coordinators to combat the growing monkeypox outbreak.
White House hosts lawyers for discussion on abortion access
Read full article: White House hosts lawyers for discussion on abortion accessAttorney General Merrick Garland headlined a White House event bringing together pro bono lawyers, bar associations and public interest groups to discuss how best to offer legal services and protections for women seeking abortions.
Biden's realism approach runs head-on into liberal pressure
Read full article: Biden's realism approach runs head-on into liberal pressureWhen it comes to the thorniest issues confronting his administration, the instinct from Biden and his White House is to often speak about what he can’t do, citing constraints imposed by the courts or insufficient support in a Congress that is controlled by his own party.
Pharmacies can't discriminate on reproductive health scripts
Read full article: Pharmacies can't discriminate on reproductive health scriptsThe Biden administration is warning pharmacies not to discriminate against women who may seek reproductive health prescriptions, including some that might be involved in ending a pregnancy.
U.S. Department of HHS secretary reveals action plan to protect women’s access to reproductive health care in response to SCOTUS decision
Read full article: U.S. Department of HHS secretary reveals action plan to protect women’s access to reproductive health care in response to SCOTUS decisionThe U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra held a press conference on Tuesday to announce an action plan in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
US boosts monkeypox testing, 142 cases confirmed
Read full article: US boosts monkeypox testing, 142 cases confirmedThe Biden administration has started shipping testing kits for monkeypox to commercial laboratories, in a bid to speed diagnostic tests for suspected infections for the virus that has already infected at least 142 people in the U.S. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is sending tests to commercial labs, including Aegis Science, Labcorp, Mayo Clinic Laboratories, Quest Diagnostics and Sonic Healthcare, which it said would significant expand the nation’s health system’s capacity to...
Texas sues to block Biden administration from lifting Title 42, a pandemic-era health rule used to expel migrants
Read full article: Texas sues to block Biden administration from lifting Title 42, a pandemic-era health rule used to expel migrantsTexas has led the legal fight against the Biden administration’s immigration policies, filing numerous lawsuits that have led to judges overturning or altering those policies.
US-backed group gets lifesaving meds to Ukrainians amid war
Read full article: US-backed group gets lifesaving meds to Ukrainians amid warThousands of patients in Ukraine are receiving lifesaving medicines to treat HIV and opioid addiction through a U.S.-funded group still operating amid the Russian invasion.
COVID budget impasse halts aid to test and treat uninsured
Read full article: COVID budget impasse halts aid to test and treat uninsuredA federal agency says it's running out of money to cover medical bills for COVID tests and treatments for uninsured people and will stop taking claims at midnight Tuesday.
The AP Interview: Health chief warns of COVID funds shortage
Read full article: The AP Interview: Health chief warns of COVID funds shortageWith the nation yearning for a new normal after its long struggle with the coronavirus, U.S. Health Secretary Xavier Becerra is warning that vaccines, tests and treatments will be “stuck on the ground” unless Congress provides additional funds the White House has demanded.
Attorney General Ken Paxton appeals restraining order that blocked state agency from investigating trans teen’s family
Read full article: Attorney General Ken Paxton appeals restraining order that blocked state agency from investigating trans teen’s familyA Texas judge was scheduled to consider a statewide injunction on investigations of parents over obtaining gender-affirming care. The appeal now puts the hearing on hold.
No money for drug pipes: Feds douse social media firestorm
Read full article: No money for drug pipes: Feds douse social media firestormThe Biden administration says a government grant program to help prevent additional harm to people who use illicit drugs will not pay for safer pipes to smoke crack or meth.
As omicron surges, HealthCare.gov sign-up deadline arrives
Read full article: As omicron surges, HealthCare.gov sign-up deadline arrivesPeople looking for health insurance in the grip of the omicron surge have through Saturday to sign up for taxpayer-subsidized private coverage under the Obama-era Affordable Care Act.
Nursing home workers are urged to get boosters as cases soar
Read full article: Nursing home workers are urged to get boosters as cases soarFederal health officials are pressing nursing home workers to get their booster shots amid a spike in COVID-19 cases among staffers and a concerning lag in booster vaccination for residents and staff.
Justice Department asks high court to allow vaccine mandate
Read full article: Justice Department asks high court to allow vaccine mandateThe Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to block lower court orders that are keeping President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate for health care workers from going into effect in about half of the states.
A retro feel to Biden's plan for covering OTC virus testing
Read full article: A retro feel to Biden's plan for covering OTC virus testingThe Biden administration’s plan for health insurers to reimburse consumers for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests is recalling the model of a bygone era when the companies processed large volumes of claims from individuals — with paper receipts.
UK to probe racial bias in medical devices after COVID toll
Read full article: UK to probe racial bias in medical devices after COVID tollThe British government is investigating whether built-in racial bias in some medical devices led to Black and Asian people getting sick and dying disproportionately from COVID-19.
Feds urge schools to provide COVID-19 shots, info for kids
Read full article: Feds urge schools to provide COVID-19 shots, info for kidsThe Biden administration is encouraging local school districts to host clinics to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to kids and information to parents on the benefits of the shots.
Federal government announces funding for emergency contraception for Texans impacted by near-total abortion ban
Read full article: Federal government announces funding for emergency contraception for Texans impacted by near-total abortion banThe Biden administration also issued memorandums detailing two federal statutes officials says they would enforce to provide protection for patients who may need an abortion and health care providers who assist pregnant patients in certain situations.
US Health and Human Services announces efforts to combat Texas’ new abortion law
Read full article: US Health and Human Services announces efforts to combat Texas’ new abortion lawHealth and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra announced Friday that resources and actions would be placed in effect as a federal response to Texas’ new abortion law, SB8.
Budget bill reopens moderate vs. progressive divide for Dems
Read full article: Budget bill reopens moderate vs. progressive divide for DemsOpposition from some leading moderate Democrats over a $3.5 trillion budget proposal championed by the party's most liberal, progressive wing has left the party grappling with deeper ideological questions.
Budget bill reopens moderate vs. progressive divide for Dems
Read full article: Budget bill reopens moderate vs. progressive divide for DemsOpposition from some leading moderate Democrats over a $3.5 trillion budget proposal championed by the party's most liberal, progressive wing has left the party grappling with deeper ideological questions.
US health agency will prod hospitals to cut carbon emissions
Read full article: US health agency will prod hospitals to cut carbon emissionsThe Biden administration is launching a new health office that will prod hospitals to cut carbon emissions, aiming to provide greener, more environmentally friendly medical care.