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Morning Briefing
In This Edition:
- KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES
- 1. Climate Activists Cite Health Hazards in Bid To Stop Trump From ‘Unleashing’ Fossil Fuels
- 2. Affirmative Action Critics Refuse To Back Down in Fight Over Medical Bias Training
- 3. Watch: Patient Numbers at NIH Hospital Tumble After Trump Cuts
- 4. Political Cartoon: ‘Ten Shiny Rocks?’
- 9/11 ANNIVERSARY
- 5. FDNY Honors 39 Who Died This Year From 9/11-Related Illnesses; HHS ‘Chaos’ Delays WTC Health Program
- SPENDING AND FISCAL BATTLES
- 7. Fight Over Obamacare Premiums Could Trigger Federal Government Shutdown
- EDITORIALS AND OPINIONS
- 12. Viewpoints: Anti-Vaccine Rhetoric Is Dangerous; The MAHA Movement Is Destroying The CDC’s Credibility
From KFF Health News:
KFF HEALTH NEWS ORIGINAL STORIES
1. Climate Activists Cite Health Hazards in Bid To Stop Trump From ‘Unleashing’ Fossil Fuels
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. (Jim Robbins, 9/11)
2. Affirmative Action Critics Refuse To Back Down in Fight Over Medical Bias Training
A nonprofit fighting affirmative action in medicine and a Los Angeles ophthalmologist have launched a long-shot legal appeal aimed at ending California’s requirement that every continuing medical education class include training to recognize and address unconscious bias. (Ronnie Cohen, 9/11)
3. Watch: Patient Numbers at NIH Hospital Tumble After Trump Cuts
Fewer people are seeking care at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, a renowned research hospital, under the second Trump administration. (Rachana Pradhan, 9/11)
4. Political Cartoon: ‘Ten Shiny Rocks?’
KFF Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with “Political Cartoon: ‘Ten Shiny Rocks?'” by Scott Nickel.
Here’s today’s health policy haiku:
SIDELINING SCIENCE
RFK madness —
mRNA funding cut.
New cancel culture.
– Philippa Barron
If you have a health policy haiku to share, please Contact Usand let us know if we can include your name. Haikus follow the format of 5-7-5 syllables. We give extra brownie points if you link back to an original story.
Opinions expressed in haikus and cartoons are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions of KFF Health News or KFF.
Summaries Of The News:
Plus, three more victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were recently identified using DNA. The New York City medical examiner’s office is still working to identify about 1,100 victims.
Fox5 New York: 24 Years Later, 9/11 Continues To Claim Lives
Today marks 24 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, and the toll from illnesses linked to Ground Zero continues to grow. The FDNY this week added 39 names to its World Trade Center memorial wall in Brooklyn, honoring firefighters who died in the past year from diseases tied to rescue and recovery work after the attacks. (Shivonne, 9/11)
ABC News: 3 Additional 9/11 Victims Have Been Identified, According To The New York City Chief Medical Examiner’s Office
Twenty-four years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) announced in August three new identifications of World Trade Center victims. Ryan Fitzgerald of Floral Park, N.Y., Barbara Keating of Palm Springs, Calif., and an adult woman whose name is being withheld at the request of her family are the 1,651st, 1,652nd and 1,653rd victims positively identified through DNA analysis, OCME said in their announcement. … Some 1,100 victims of the 9/11 attacks, representing roughly 40% of those who died that day, remain unidentified, according to OCME. (Katersky, 8/7)
NPR: Inside The Lab Working To Identify The Remains Of 9/11 Victims
Last month, New York City officials announced they had identified the remains of another three victims who died in the Sept. 11 attacks at the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan. It was the latest update to come out of the missing persons unit of the New York City medical examiner’s office, which since 2001 has been running the forensic investigation into the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history. But the news may have surprised those who didn’t know that many 9/11 victims still haven’t had any of their remains identified — and that city officials are still trying, 24 years later. (Hernandez, 9/11)
On the World Trade Center Health Program —
NBC News: Democrats Demand Answers From Kennedy Over Delayed Actions Of 9/11 Health Program
Ahead of the 24th anniversary of 9/11, Democrats are demanding answers from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about the future of the federal World Trade Center Health Program, which covers treatment for 9/11-related illnesses such as cancer and chronic coughs. In a letter to Kennedy on Wednesday, obtained exclusively by NBC News, six Democratic senators expressed concern that the program was not abiding by a mandate to evaluate whether additional health conditions should be eligible for the program’s medical coverage. (Bendix, 9/10)
NY1: HHS ‘Chaos’ Undermining WTC Health Program, Advocates Warn
Ahead of the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attack, advocates for victims and first responders warn that “chaos” at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is undermining the World Trade Center Health Program. Since President Donald Trump returned to office earlier this year, advocates say, the administration has shortchanged the health program by firing and then rehiring program staff and other HHS workers and slow-rolling grants for research. The impact, those who work with victims say, is tangible. “Recently, during one of the proposed cuts in which we became collateral damage, we had three members who actually were denied authorization for cancer treatment,” Jim Brosi, president of the NYC Uniformed Fire Officers Association, said. (Frey, 9/9)
Newsday: Group That Has Advised On Health Issues Since 9/11 No Longer Meets Under Trump Administration
For the past 24 years a panel of doctors, union leaders and advocates met monthly with federal health officials to address the mounting health concerns surrounding 9/11 first responders and survivors. The meetings of the World Trade Center Responder Steering Committee were described by attendees as collaborative and cordial — until they came to an abrupt stop this year. … The group has been stymied for eight months by a Trump Administration policy that has kept administrators of the federal World Trade Center Health Program from meeting with the group, according to emails reviewed by Newsday. The committee has not met since January and its members, including representatives of New York City’s firefighter and police unions, have not been able to resume long-standing discussions with federal health officials about the tracking of rare diseases cropping up among some 9/11 survivors. (Hernandez, 9/6)
Also —
The Washington Post: 9/11 Survivor Fulfills Childhood Dream Of Becoming Nurse
Jocelyn Brooks had escaped the World Trade Center — through 40 desperate stories of stairs, thick black smoke and dismembered body parts — when she looked toward the clear sky and realized she made it out alive. People trapped inside New York City’s twin towers after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, were jumping from windows, trying to flee the greedy flames and instead falling to their deaths. In a clarifying moment, Brooks had two thoughts: She needed to watch her two children become adults, and she needed to pursue her childhood dream of working in medicine. (Melnick, 9/11)
The New York Times: A New 9/11 Generation: These Children Promise To Never Forget
A generational shift has been taking place at the annual Sept. 11 remembrance ceremony in New York City. Those reading the names will also include children. About one-third of last year’s readers belong to this new generation in the Sept. 11 families, one with no memory of the attacks but increasingly shouldering the responsibility to never forget. (Rosenberg, 9/10)
6. Partisan Division Over Gun Control Erupts In US House After Kirk Slaying
Leaders across the political spectrum have decried Wednesday’s fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, 31, at a political event in Utah. But in the House, a moment of silence led to a shouting match, with at least one conservative blaming liberals for the shooting and Democrats demanding that Republicans “pass some gun laws!”
The New York Times: House Moment of Silence for Kirk Descends Into Partisan Strife
The shooting that killed the political activist Charlie Kirk on Wednesday drew expressions of sympathy and outrage from across the political spectrum. But on the floor of the House of Representatives, a request for a moment of silence to honor him quickly gave way to a moment of bitter partisanship, in a reminder of the polarization that has fueled political violence in recent years. … As other Republicans began yelling at Democrats, calling on them to back down, one Democrat responded, “Pass some gun laws!” (Gold, 9/10)
AP: Charlie Kirk Shooting Brings Condemnation From Victims Of Political Violence
The fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at an event in Utah had particular resonance for public figures who have experienced political violence themselves. Kirk, who served as chief executive and cofounder of the youth organization Turning Point USA, made frequent appearances on college campuses and in other settings, engaging in political dialogue with students in public settings. Several leaders who have survived public attacks or had family members victimized joined in bipartisan condemnation of the attack on Kirk. (9/11)
Also Wednesday, a school shooting happened in Colorado —
AP: Authorities Say A Student Is Dead After Shooting 2 Peers And Then Himself At Colorado High School
A student shot two of his peers Wednesday at a suburban Denver high school before shooting himself and later dying, authorities said. The handgun shooting was reported around 12:30 p.m. at Evergreen High School in Evergreen, Colorado, about 30 miles west of Denver in the Rocky Mountain foothills. The teens were originally listed in critical condition, St. Anthony Hospital CEO Kevin Cullinan said. Their ages were not released. By early evening, one teen was in stable condition with what Dr. Brian Blackwood, the hospital’s trauma director, described as non-life threatening injuries. He declined to provide more details. (Slevin and Brown, 9/10)
CNN: Since Columbine In 1999, Colorado Continues To Be Scarred By Gun Violence
Once again, a shooting with multiple victims has rocked Colorado – this time at a high school in Evergreen. At least two students were shot Wednesday at Evergreen High School, which is located roughly 28 miles southwest of Denver. The suspect, a student at the school, died from self-inflicted injuries, officials said. It is the 47th shooting at a school in the United States so far this year — 24 of which were on college campuses and 23 on K-12 school grounds. For nearly three decades, Colorado has experienced some of the highest-profile shootings in the nation. (Sanchez and Tucker, 9/11)
More on mental health and violence —
Newsweek: RFK Jr. Says Mass Shootings May Be Connected To Video Games—What Data Shows
Violent video games are sold worldwide yet the U.S. “far and away, has the highest rate of mass shootings or school shootings,” a researcher noted. (Mordowanec, 9/10)
AP: Charlotte Commuter Train Stabbing Suspect Had Long Criminal History
After Decarlos Brown Jr. was arrested for the fatal stabbing of a Ukrainian refugee aboard a North Carolina commuter train, he was quickly sent to a state mental hospital for an evaluation. It was a sharp contrast from a January misdemeanor arrest, where it took more than six months for a court to order a mental evaluation after Brown told officers that he had been given a human-made substance that controlled when he ate, talked or walked. (Lauer, 9/10)
7. Fight Over Obamacare Premiums Could Trigger Federal Government Shutdown
Senate and House Democrats are demanding that Republicans stop a sharp spike in Affordable Care Act premiums. In other news, House lawmakers have included an amendment in their 2026 spending bill to fund mRNA vaccine research — in direct opposition to HHS chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Bloomberg: US Government Shutdown Threatened By Democrats Over Obamacare
Democrats are threatening to block a bill needed to avert an Oct. 1 US government shutdown unless Republicans agree to stop a sharp spike in Obamacare health insurance premiums or meet other demands by the minority party. Obamacare insurance subsidies, which have slashed premiums for millions of Americans, will expire Jan. 1, and out-of-power Democrats said they view the stopgap funding bill as their best legislative chance. Republicans need at least seven Democratic votes in the Senate to pass the bill. (Wasson and Dennis, 9/10)
Stat: Lawmakers Snub Kennedy, Include MRNA Vaccine Funding In Spending Bill
House appropriators have snubbed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. by including an amendment in their 2026 spending bill that specifically funds continued messenger RNA vaccine research, despite his effort to roll it back. (Cirruzzo, 9/10)
On children’s nutrition —
MedPage Today: House Hearing On Kids’ Nutrition Veers Off In Many Directions
A House hearing on Tuesday aimed at discussing ways to improve children’s diets — but also veered off into many other directions. At the House Oversight Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services hearing on “Better Meals, Fewer Pills: Making Our Children Healthy Again,” Rep. Wesley Bell (D-Mo.) said, “The health of the American people, especially our children, face significant risk when the most pressing threat is the growing anti-vaccine rhetoric that undermines decades of scientific consensus and life-saving health policy.” (Frieden, 9/10)
CNN: More Of The World’s Children Are Now Obese Than Underweight, UNICEF Warns
More school-age children and adolescents are now obese than underweight, a new report from the United Nations’ children’s agency, UNICEF, has revealed, with 188 million young people affected. (Woodyatt, 9/10)
More on federal funding cuts and DEI —
AP: Judge Blocks Trump Policy Ending Social Services For Immigrants
A federal judge on Wednesday blocked Trump administration restrictions on services for immigrants in the country illegally, including the federal preschool program Head Start, health clinics and adult education. The order from the judge in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island applies to 20 states and the District of Columbia, whose attorneys general, all Democrats, sued the administration. It puts the administration’s reinterpretation of a Clinton-era federal policy on hold while the case is decided. (Seminera, 9/10)
The Washington Post: Education Department Ends Grants For Some Minority College Students
The Trump administration said Wednesday that it will withhold $350 million in grants to hundreds of colleges that serve large populations of minority students, calling the decades-old programs discriminatory. The Education Department said it would cease funding eight discretionary grant programs that individually support Black, Native, Hispanic and Asian American students across the country. The agency said it will reallocate funding for fiscal 2025 to other priorities. (Douglas-Gabriel and Rosenzweig-Ziff, 9/10)
Bloomberg: Harvard Says US To Restore Some Research Funds After Freeze
Harvard University said it has received notice that some of the federal research funding frozen by the Trump administration is being restarted, although the money hasn’t started flowing yet. The notification followed a court victory for Harvard last week in which a federal judge ruled that the US illegally froze more than $2 billion in research dollars for the school. It can take several days for the university to receive authorized funding after submitting a request. (Lorin and Ryan, 9/10)
KFF Health News: Watch: Patient Numbers At NIH Hospital Tumble After Trump Cuts
Government documents viewed by KFF Health News show a drop in patients receiving care this year at the National Institutes of Health’s renowned research hospital, a 200-bed facility at NIH headquarters in Maryland. We previously reported a decrease in the number of patients being treated at the NIH Clinical Center from February through April. Since then, we’ve obtained newer data showing the drop has continued. (Pradhan, 9/11)
8. Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, And Connecticut Preserve Covid Vax Access
Bucking HHS, several more states issued orders allowing their residents to get shots without a doctor’s prescription. Meanwhile in Oregon, CVS rescinded its policy allowing anyone to get a shot.
Virginia Mercury: Va. Department Of Health Issues Order To Ease COVID-19 Vaccine Access, As Federal Guidance Shifts
An order the Virginia Department of Health issued Wednesday now makes it easier for eligible Virginians to get vaccines in the weeks ahead. (Woods, 9/10)
6ABC Philadelphia: New Jersey And Pennsylvania Expand COVID-19 Vaccine Access Amid Federal Confusion
An executive directive issued this week by the New Jersey Department of Health allows anyone six months or older to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. A standing order also authorizes pharmacists to administer the shot without a prescription to individuals ages three and older. … And in Pennsylvania, pharmacists are now allowed to follow vaccine recommendations from trusted authorities, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Family Physicians, instead of waiting for guidance from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which was not scheduled to meet until October. (Staff and Pinder, 9/11)
The CT Mirror: Conn. Gov. Lamont Issues Orders Aimed At COVID Vaccine Access
Gov. Ned Lamont on Wednesday issued a slew of executive actions seeking to protect COVID-19 vaccine access in Connecticut amid recent federal changes that are causing confusion over who’s eligible for shots, where people can get them and how much they’re going to cost. (Golvala, 9/10)
OPB: CVS Reverses Course, Won’t Give COVID Vaccines To Oregonians Without Prescriptions
One of the nation’s largest pharmaceutical chains has walked back its offering of the COVID-19 vaccine to Oregonians without a prescription as pharmacies and the state government await clarity from a federal public health agency in the midst of political upheaval. Patients in Oregon and nationwide have struggled to make appointments for COVID boosters, which in recent years have been a routine fall offering alongside flu shots, after the federal Food and Drug Administration tried to limit who can get the shots. (Nanguneri, 9/9)
More on vaccines —
CIDRAP: US Government Signs $56 Million Deal For Smallpox/Mpox Vaccine
Emergent BioSolutions announced yesterday that it has received a $56 million contract extension to supply the US government with doses of a combined smallpox/mpox vaccine. The single-dose vaccine, ACAM2000, was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2007 for active immunization against smallpox in people considered to be at high risk of infection, then for active immunization against mpox in high-risk individuals in 2024. It’s one of two FDA-approved smallpox and mpox vaccines, along with Bavarian Nordic’s Jynneos vaccine. (Dall, 9/10)