Latest news with #healthpolicy
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Menopause care is finally getting a national spotlight—and lawmakers are stepping up
If women make up half the global population, why have policies so rarely addressed their fundamental biological realities? In midlife, perimenopause—the transitional phase before menopause—and menopause itself are significant health milestones for women. Yet, until recently, they have received little attention from lawmakers. That is changing in 2025. Menopause is emerging as a long-overdue priority in the policy arena. More than a dozen U.S. states are now considering legislation to mandate insurance coverage for menopause-related treatment, improve clinician training, and introduce workplace protections for menopausal women. This wave of legislation marks a long-overdue shift. It's what so many midlife moms have been asking for: to be taken seriously, to have their health needs recognized as real and important, and to stop being told to 'just deal with it' when their bodies demand otherwise. According to CNN, at least 24 bills across 15 states were introduced this year alone—targeting insurance coverage, medical education, public awareness campaigns, and workplace protections for women in menopause. And while not all of them will pass this year, advocates say simply forcing these issues onto statehouse floors is a sign of how far the conversation has come. Related: What if we didn't have to dread menopause? California Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, who sponsored one of the most ambitious bills (requiring insurance coverage for menopause evaluation and treatment), says her own experience of being dismissed by doctors was the last straw. In her words: 'Here I am, a woman in my mid-40s, telling my doctor that my brain isn't working properly, and once again, I was dismissed as 'fine.'' Sound familiar? Millions of women have shared similar stories online. Posts about being blown off by physicians when describing menopause symptoms routinely rack up thousands of likes and comments. It's no surprise—women in midlife have historically been an afterthought in research and policy. Dr. Mary Claire Haver, author of The New Menopause, calls out the lack of standardized protocols and spotty insurance coverage, especially for evidence-backed treatments like hormone replacement therapy (HRT). And if you're wondering why so many doctors are undertrained on menopause, there's a specific historical reason. In 2002, the Women's Health Initiative study prematurely linked HRT to breast cancer, sparking fear that shut down research, training, and prescribing for years. Since then, follow-up studies have clarified that for many women under 60, HRT can offer significant benefits that far outweigh any increased cancer risk, when appropriately prescribed. As Dr. Sharon Malone put it: 'We are still digging ourselves out of a hole of the past 23 years.' That 'hole' has left millions of women suffering without clear guidance, and doctors without the education to help them. This is what midlife moms have been asking for Legislators are beginning to recognize menopause as a major health milestone that affects half the population, deserving real attention and support. About 1.3 million U.S. women enter menopause each year, most with symptoms ranging from hot flashes and insomnia to mood changes, weight gain, and vaginal discomfort. The new bills are designed to address that with: Insurance mandates so that cost isn't the barrier to care. Education for clinicians so they don't dismiss symptoms as 'normal aging' without offering real solutions. Public awareness campaigns to normalize talking about menopause. Workplace protections so symptoms don't become grounds for discrimination or forced unpaid leave. In Rhode Island, lawmakers recently passed the nation's first menopause-in-the-workplace law. New York and New Jersey are weighing similar measures that would ensure menopausal women can request remote work or leave if their symptoms demand it. As Assembly member Bauer-Kahan says: 'This isn't a political issue; it's about recognizing that half our population deserves proper healthcare.' A generational shift It's a big shift, and it reflects how far we've come in talking openly about once-taboo health topics. Twenty years ago, talking openly about periods at work was rare; now, we have period leave policies, better menstrual products, and more honest education for girls. In the last decade, maternal health has become a policy priority, with new federal investments to address postpartum care and Black maternal mortality. Menopause is the next frontier. And moms in midlife are leading the charge by sharing their stories, voting for legislators who take their health seriously, and demanding that our medical system and workplaces treat them with dignity. Hope, not fear If you're in perimenopause right now—up at 2 a.m. trying to Google why your heart is racing, or crying in frustration after yet another unhelpful doctor's visit—know this: You are not imagining it. You deserve care. And you're not alone. After decades of silence, menopause is having its moment. I'll say it: Menopause is hot right now. And it's time for real change for the millions of women who deserve more. Related: There's now an at-home perimenopause test Sources: Menopause care is finally getting a national spotlight. July 11, 2025. CNN. Menopause care is finally getting a national spotlight—and lawmakers are stepping up. Reproductive Health and the Workplace. March 2023. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Reproductive Health and the Workplace: Physical Job Demands. Menopause disparities: March 2024. Society for Women's Health Research. Menopause disparities: prevalence and health impact across the United States. Women's Health Initiative Hormone Therapy Trials. October 18, 2013. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Women's Health Initiative Hormone Therapy Trials.
New York Times
21 hours ago
- Health
- New York Times
Kennedy Fires Two Top Aides in Health Department Shake-Up
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired two of his top aides this week, shaking up his leadership team at the Department of Health and Human Services amid an aggressive effort to reshape public health policy. The firings included Heather Flick Melanson, his chief of staff, and Hannah Anderson, his deputy chief of staff for policy, according to two people familiar with the matter. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the personnel changes. The reason for the ousters, which were first reported by CNN, was not immediately clear. In recent weeks, Mr. Kennedy has pushed ahead with a plan to fire about 20,000 staff members from the health department and pare down 28 divisions to 15 — all amid court challenges. His pressure campaign to rid the nation's food supply of synthetic dyes has produced some results. Under Mr. Kennedy, the department has also taken a series of actions around vaccines that have chipped away at public confidence in the efficacy and safety of the shots. He fired all 17 members of a federal vaccine policy board that makes influential decisions on the availability of the shots. At least three of the people Mr. Kennedy selected to replace the experts he ousted have taken part in lawsuits casting doubt on the safety or efficacy of vaccines. In its first meeting, the new panel voted to rescind recommendations for flu vaccines that contain the ingredient thimerosal, which Mr. Kennedy has long linked to harms. Mr. Kennedy also continued an about-face he has made since his confirmation hearings, when he sought to assure lawmakers he was not 'anti-vaccine' despite a long history of questioning immunizations. In a recent appearance on Tucker Carlson's podcast, Mr. Kennedy repeated the claim that vaccines introduced since 1986 'were ushered in without safety studies.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CNN
2 days ago
- Health
- CNN
Vested interests. Influence muscle. At RFK Jr.'s HHS, it's not pharma. It's wellness.
On his way to an Ultimate Fighting Championship event, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stopped by the home of podcaster Gary Brecka. The two spent time in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber and tried some intravenous nutrition drips that Brecka, a self-avowed longevity and wellness maven, sells and promotes on his show, 'The Ultimate Human.' Then the podcast taping started, and Kennedy — who was also on the mic — took aim at Big Pharma's influence on federal health policy. 'We have a sick-care system in our country, and the etiology ultimately of all that disease is corruption,' Kennedy said before the show cut away to an ad for vitamin chips. 'And it's the capture of these agencies by the industries they are supposed to regulate.' While Kennedy lambastes federal agencies he says are overly influenced by the pharmaceutical industry, he and some other figures of the 'Make America Healthy Again,' or MAHA, movement — such as siblings Calley and Casey Means, Robert Malone, and Peter McCullough — have their own financial ties to a vast and largely unregulated $6.3 trillion global wellness industry they also support and promote. Kennedy and those four advisers — three of whom have been tapped for official government roles — earned at least $3.2 million in fees and salaries from their work opposing Big Pharma and promoting wellness in 2022 and 2023, according to a KFF Health News review of financial disclosure forms filed with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics and the Department of Health and Human Services; published media reports; and tax forms filed with the IRS. The total doesn't include revenue from speaking fees, the sale of wellness products, or other income sources for which data isn't publicly available. The Means siblings have launched wellness companies that have raised more than $99 million from investors, according to company news releases as well as information from Clay, a customer research data company, and Tracxn, an information technology firm that provides access to a database of companies, funding rounds, and investor information. 'Secretary Kennedy, and all HHS officials, fully comply with all ethics and financial disclosure laws,' agency spokesperson Emily Hilliard said in an email. 'Any attempt to suggest impropriety is reckless and politically motivated.' Some public health leaders and ethicists say the financial ties raise red flags, with the potential for personal profits to shape decision-making at the highest levels of federal health agencies. 'It's becoming completely corrupted,' said Arthur Caplan, founding head of the medical ethics division at New York University's Grossman School of Medicine. 'You shouldn't have a vested interest in making recommendations on wellness or supplements or health. It opens the door to all kinds of shenanigans. Big Wellness is no different than Big Pharma. They're a well-organized political force.' Unlike any other previous administration, President Donald Trump's administration has elevated anti-vaccine and wellness leaders to positions at HHS from which they can steer federal policy. Adherents to the MAHA movement say the change is long overdue, arguing that previous administrations haven't devoted sufficient attention to the potential harms of traditional medical approaches. Critics including health policy leaders and physicians say they worry the revamped HHS and its agencies are now harming public health. For example, they point to a recent Kennedy decision to remove and replace all the members of a vaccine advisory group, a move the American Medical Association criticized as lacking transparency and proper vetting. Two of Kennedy's newly named panel members — Malone and Martin Kulldorff — previously earned money as paid experts in vaccine lawsuits against Merck, as first reported by Reuters and the life-sciences news outlet BioSpace. Calley Means, who has criticized the recommended U.S. vaccine schedule for youths and has no medical training, is a special government employee and a top health adviser to Kennedy. He also co-founded the wellness company Truemed. The company enables people to spend pretax dollars from Flexible Spending Accounts and Health Savings Accounts to pay for wellness products, health food, and SoulCycle classes. Truemed's website says it can provide customers with a 'Letter of Medical Necessity' for the items. The IRS has warned consumers about companies that misrepresent wellness items like food as FSA-eligible when they are not, in fact, permitted medical expenses. The IRS did not respond to questions about the status of that policy under the Trump administration. In 2024, when Kennedy was running for president as an independent, he promoted Means' company on his own podcast. Means also promoted his close connection with Kennedy last year on podcasts and on Instagram while also using social media to advance Truemed. And while working for the public as a special government employee since March, Means has used social and new media to promote podcasters who make money selling wellness products, to criticize specific pharmaceutical drugs, and to tout the wellness book he co-wrote, 'Good Energy,' according to a KFF Health News review of social media posts and podcasts. Means has also used podcasts and social media to rail against new injectable weight loss drugs. The Trump administration in April decided not to finalize a rule that would have allowed Medicaid and Medicare to cover the injectable drugs, putting them out of reach for millions of potential users. Hilliard, the HHS spokesperson, didn't respond to questions about whether Means, as a Kennedy adviser, has recused himself from decisions that could affect his business. Neither HHS nor the White House responded to requests to speak with him. His sister, Casey Means, is Trump's pick for surgeon general and was also an adviser to Kennedy during his 2024 presidential run. She co-founded Levels, a company valued at $300 million in 2022 that promotes glucose monitoring for nondiabetic, healthy individuals. Consumers pay $199 for a one-month supply of continuous glucose monitors. She has used social media to call for public policy that would encourage blood sugar monitoring for healthy individuals, saying 'tips to stabilize glucose should be on every billboard in America.' Research has found little evidence that such monitoring provides health benefits for people without diabetes. Her company stands to benefit under the Trump administration. Kennedy said in April that he was considering a regulatory framework for federal health programs' coverage of injectable weight loss drugs that would first require patients to try glucose monitoring or other options. 'And if they don't work, then you would be entitled to the drug,' he told CBS News. Casey Means isn't a practicing doctor and doesn't hold an active medical license, according to records from the Oregon Medical Board. And, as an online influencer, she 'failed to disclose that she could profit' from sales of products she recommends, according to The Associated Press. HHS spokesperson Hilliard didn't answer questions about whether Casey Means would recuse herself from working on anything that would directly benefit her company, or why she didn't disclose that she could profit from sales of products she recommends. HHS didn't respond to questions about Means' ties to Kennedy or agency support for glucose monitoring, nor did the agency respond to a request to speak directly to the Trump surgeon general pick. McCullough, a former cardiac doctor who has financial ties to the wellness industry, has been part of Kennedy's circle of informal advisers, according to people close to the secretary. He also has enough sway with some GOP lawmakers that they've had him testify before Congress. In May, he told a Senate subcommittee that mRNA covid-19 vaccines can lead to deaths that have been underreported. But the FDA says the covid vaccines are safe, with fewer than 1 in 200,000 vaccinated individuals experiencing a severe allergic reaction or heart problems like myocarditis or pericarditis. He profits from his anti-covid-vaccine message. McCullough devised a protocol he says helps people detox from covid mRNA shots, selling the products through The Wellness Co. McCullough is the company's chief scientific officer, draws a partial salary, and holds an equity stake. For $89.99, consumers can purchase Ultimate Spike Detox supplements containing nattokinase, an enzyme from fermented soybeans. A two-month supply of Spike Support supplements sells on Amazon for about $62. More than 900 bottles have sold in the past month. McCullough didn't respond to an email seeking comment. HHS also didn't respond to questions about his relationship with Kennedy. Some health policy leaders and doctors say the financial connections federal health officials and advisers have to the wellness industry raise concerns. 'It's exactly the problem RFK has taken up with the FDA, saying it's too beholden to pharma,' said Pieter Cohen, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard University. 'When you're in bed with supplement manufacturers, you are creating the same kinds of conflicts of interest, whether or not you directly profit,' he said. 'You should be independently advocating for public health, not cheerleading for any particular industry.' The wellness sector includes personal care, weight loss, health, nutrition, and wellness tourism. Its lobbying influence is markedly smaller than the lobbying reach of pharmaceutical companies, according to OpenSecrets, a research organization that tracks money in U.S. politics. The nutritional and dietary supplements industry spent about $3.7 million on lobbying in 2024, for example, compared with the $387 million the pharmaceutical industry spent the same year. It's also gotten far less scrutiny. The industry is a growing political force with its own lobbyists, celebrities, and industry-backed advocacy groups, and research shows that public interest in wellness has grown since the pandemic. Eighty-four percent of U.S. consumers say wellness is a 'top' or 'important' priority, according to a survey released this year by McKinsey & Co. Unlike with Big Pharma, there's scant regulation of the industry. Companies can sell supplements and other products without notifying the FDA, and there's little oversight by the Federal Trade Commission of their product claims. 'The wellness industry profiteers by undermining and creating distrust in science and regulated products,' said Andrea Love, an immunologist and microbiologist who founded ImmunoLogic, a science and health education organization. 'They are messaging that the government and Big Pharma are hiding information and treatments or cures to keep us weak and vulnerable.' People on both sides of the issue say the industry has found its captain in Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist with deep ties to the MAHA and wellness movements. He has profited by referring people to law firms that are suing over alleged vaccine injury. For example, he gets a fee for referring potential clients to a Los Angeles personal injury firm, according to a January ethics statement to HHS and his financial disclosures. One of his adult sons works at the personal injury law firm. When his nomination to the HHS secretary post was under consideration, Kennedy indicated in his ethics disclosure that he intended to continue profiting from lawsuits over Gardasil, a Merck vaccine that protects against HPV. After Democrats raised concerns with the financial relationship, he told Congress he would divest his interest and sign over the financial stake to one of his adult sons. Federal ethics rules bar government employees from participating in matters in which they, their spouse, or their minor child has a financial stake. It doesn't include adult children such as Kennedy's sons. 'There are a lot of loopholes, and that is one of them,' said Cynthia Brown, senior ethics counsel at the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a watchdog organization focused on U.S. government ethics and accountability. 'It certainly is an appearance problem. Even if it's not a technical violation, it is an ethical problem in terms of influence.' Some lawmakers and ethics leaders weren't mollified by Kennedy's planned divestiture. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called on Kennedy to agree to a four-year, post-employment ban on accepting any compensation from lawsuits involving any entity regulated by HHS. 'It would be insufficient for RFK Jr. to only divest his interest in the Gardasil case while leaving the window open to profit from other anti-vax lawsuits, including future cases he could bring after leaving office,' she said in a statement. Kennedy also made money on the MAHA name by applying in September 2024 to register it as a trademark. He transferred trademark ownership to a limited liability company led by friend and MAHA ally Del Bigtree after making about $100,000 off the phrase, according to his financial disclosure. HHS' Hilliard didn't answer questions about whether Kennedy had signed over his interest in fees from legal referrals to his son, the money he made by registering MAHA as a trademark, or whether he agreed with Warren's request that upon leaving office he accept a four-year ban on accepting money from lawsuits involving entities regulated by HHS. Bigtree is executive director of the Informed Consent Action Network, or ICAN, an anti-vaccination group. He was communications director for Kennedy's failed presidential campaign, and as an informal adviser to the secretary he helped vet candidates for HHS jobs. Bigtree's salary at the nonprofit was $234,000 for the 2023 fiscal year, according to documents filed with the IRS. ICAN paid $6 million in legal fees to Siri & Glimstad in 2023. The firm's managing partner, Aaron Siri, focuses on vaccine injury. He has been Kennedy's personal lawyer and adviser, and also helped vet candidates for the secretary. Brown, an ethics counselor, said the transfer and ongoing advisory relationship could raise questions about who is influencing Kennedy. Bigtree, at a Politico event in February, called on Kennedy to recruit scientists to HHS who believe vaccines cause autism, for example. One of Kennedy's early actions at HHS was the launch of a study on the causes of autism. ICAN didn't respond to an email seeking comment. HHS also didn't respond to questions about Kennedy's transfer of the MAHA trademark to Bigtree. 'This is the type of Washington wheeling and dealing that raises questions about integrity in government,' Brown said. 'If it was trademarked before he became a public official, there may be no law broken. But by transferring it to someone he knows, it illustrates the constant trickle of influence among those in power.' Past administrations have faced similar criticism over health regulators' ties to Big Pharma. Alex Azar, who led HHS during the previous Trump administration, worked for drugmaker Eli Lilly before entering public office. Robert Califf, FDA commissioner during the Biden administration, was a consultant to drug companies. Scott Gottlieb, who was FDA commissioner from 2017 to 2019 and an adviser to Trump's presidential campaign, stepped down to join the board of the drugmaker Pfizer. 'Big Pharma is well off. But, in general, financial conflicts don't depend on how much the organizations are spending,' said Zeke Emanuel, a bioethicist who served on a covid advisory board under President Joe Biden. 'The question is, is there a reasonable concern that financial or other concerns are affecting their judgment?' KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.
Free Malaysia Today
4 days ago
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
Visitors' board process to be reviewed after vape boss controversy
Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said Adzwan Abdul Manas's professional background presented a conflict of interest with the ministry's policies. PETALING JAYA : The appointment process for members of hospital boards of visitors will be reviewed after a vape entrepreneur was appointed to Rembau Hospital's board of visitors. Health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said there was an oversight in the screening process as Adzwan Abdul Manas's professional background presented a conflict of interest with the ministry's policies. Adzwan is the president of the Malaysian Retail Electronic Cigarette Association. Dzulkefly said the appointment process for visitors' board members will be reviewed and improved in terms of eligibility criteria and their contributions to local communities, in line with national public health policies. He said the ministry remains committed to appointing community representatives who are 'appropriate, competent, and principled.' Yesterday, Adzwan announced that he had resigned from the Rembau Hospital board following criticism over his suitability for the honorary appointment. He said the decision was made after considering the potential negative impact and public perception arising from his involvement in the vape business. Adzwan shared a photo of his appointment letter on social media on June 23. The letter was signed by Dzulkefly. In a statement today, Dzulkefly acknowledged that Adzwan's appointment had significantly affected public perception of the ministry. He said the ministry received 2,860 nominations to the visitors' boards of 143 public hospitals. Every nomination submitted to him had undergone a screening process that considered evaluations and recommendations from state representatives. 'However, in this particular case, there was an oversight in the screening process,' said Dzulkefly.
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Trump's big, beautiful bill is downright ugly for health insurers
For America's private health insurers, President Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' is turning out to be not so the many Sign in to access your portfolio
