The Senate has confirmed Mehmet Oz as administrator for CMS, making him the head of Medicaid at a time where its funding is at risk of being severely cut. The Senate voted 53-45 along party lines to confirm Oz.
Steep federal funding cuts have forced public health officials in one of Texas' most populous counties — Dallas — to cancel dozens of vaccination clinics and lay off 21 workers on the front lines of combatting the state's growing measles outbreak.
The FTC issued the stay in the case against CVS Caremark, OptumRx and Express Scripts in response to a motion "citing the fact that there are currently no sitting Commissioners able to participate in this matter."
Drug and medical device makers didn't oppose Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation as health secretary but are speaking up in opposition to the agency downsizing he ordered.
A coalition of 23 states sued the Trump administration on Tuesday over its decision to cut $11 billion in federal funds that go toward COVID-19 initiatives and various public health projects across the country. The lawsuit argues the cuts are illegal, and that the federal government did not provide "rational basis" or facts to support the cuts. The attorneys general say it will result in "serious harm to public health" and put states "at greater risk for future pandemics and the spread of otherwise preventable disease and cutting off vital public health services."