Public Health

Population health, policy and the data behind prevention.

HHS launches new vaccine injury research and reporting initiatives

HHS announced four vaccine injury initiatives, including an NIH clinic, VAERS upgrades, EHR reporting standards, and CMS physician reimbursement.

A JAMA research letter found 432 U.S. hospital closures from 2010 to 2025, with urban and rural shutdown…

RAND experts found no Medicare Advantage reform that satisfied enrollees, plans and government, but three near-term policy ideas…

CMS released 2027 Medicare Advantage star ratings, with Humana and Clover rising sharply while Aetna and Alignment lost…

WHO puts lifestyle first for childhood obesity, a pain study finds years of opioids did not improve chronic…

Unanswered calls are costing practices patients and ad spend. AI voice agents may help with overflow, weekend, and…

Urban Institute data show medical debt persists among insured adults, with hospitals the leading source and larger burdens…

Cybersecurity leaders warn hospitals must plan for prolonged AI-driven outages, stronger backups, and continuity testing beyond standard disaster…

PBM transparency rules may help employers, but contract barriers, data delays, and specialty drug economics still block real…

MHRA’s orphan medicines register has been updated with new additions, removals, and expiry changes across rare-disease therapies.

Public Health

Population health, policy and the data behind prevention.

In Brief The 5-minute rounds