Disabled Travelers Advocate for Timely Amtrack Updates To Become ADA Compliant
A report from Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General stated the railroad company aims to be fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by 2029; concurrently, the Trump administration intends to maintain Amtrak funding at 2.4 billion dollars. In the meantime, passengers continue to complain that inconsistent and noncompliant infrastructure is exacerbated by poor customer service. Amtrak stated they began addressing report’s recommendations by creating a comprehensive strategic plan on improving passengers’ experiences and enhancing training processes. To become compliant with the ADA, Amtrak will need to collaborate with local governments to ensure stations and adjacent parking lots owned by states and municipalities are updated. Americans with disabilities overwhelmingly prefer Amtrak over flying because passenger rail stations are smaller and easier to navigate, rail car boarding processes allow individuals to maintain independence, and rail car personal belonging storage systems promote the safekeeping of large, durable medical equipment.
Comments Due 9/2: Rule Stripping Minimum Wage for Health Aids
Comments on the Department of Labor proposed rule that would roll back the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) to Domestic Service are due next Tuesday, September 2nd. The Obama-era policy narrowed the definition of “companionship services” and extended federal wage protections to domestic service workers employed by third parties. These policies ensured most home health, personal care, and hospice aides employed by third-party agencies received federal minimum wage and overtime protections. The Trump administration proposed to reinstate the original 1975 policies, asserting the change would reduce compliance costs, expand access to in-home care, and aligns with the best interpretation of the FLSA. If finalized, the rule would result in up to 3.7 million home care workers losing minimum wage and overtime protections and 1.5 million independent providers experiencing an increase in responsibilities. Advocates worry the proposed rule could cause increased caregiver turnover, higher employee recruitment costs, reduced quality of care, and worsen the existing workforce crisis.
Draft MAHA Strategic Report Leaked
Late last week, a draft report from President Trump’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission titled Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy (The Strategy) was leaked. Established in February 2025 by Executive Order and chaired by Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the MAHA Commission was directed to conduct an initial assessment and develop a strategy on childhood chronic disease. The Make Our Children Healthy Again Assessment (The Assessment) was released May 22nd, concluding that childhood chronic disease drivers include poor diet, environmental chemicals, lack of physical activity, chronic stress, and medication overprescribing.
Notably, The Strategy recommends moving forward with HHS restructuring plans, including the creation of the Administration for a Healthy America (AHA). The Strategy aims to address the issues identified in The Assessment through four major pillars:
The Advancing Critical Research to Drive Innovation pillar will include a plethora of studies and data analyses, mostly through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The research will use real world data and expanded trial mechanisms to explore autism, infertility, vaccine injuries, environmental hazards, nutrition, precision medicine, artificial intelligence (AI), and more. Additionally, HHS will establish a mental health diagnosis and prescription working group to evaluate the therapeutic harms and benefits of current childhood diagnostic thresholds and prescribing trends for SSRIs, antipsychotics, stimulants, and other relevant drugs and explore the benefits of school-based interventions, diet, and foster care services.
The pillar on Realigning Incentives and Systems to Drive Health Outcomes outlines policy reforms, process efficiencies and deregulation, and agency restructuring to promote health across the lifespan. The recommendations include efforts to improve food labeling and nutritional quality, revisit water fluorination, readdress vaccination injuries, promote sunscreen innovation, improve accessibility to direct primary care, and implement medical service price transparency. Additionally, the proposals aim to improve nutrition education programming, influence Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) waivers, establish new Medicaid quality standards for nutrition and fitness in managed care organizations (MCOs), and expand Medicaid medication prior authorizations for children.
The Strategy aims to Increase Public Awareness and Knowledge of childhood health issues and interventions, as well as Foster Private Sector Collaboration by investing in community-level innovations, promoting “whole, healthy foods”, addressing infertility, and improving land stewardship and agricultural practices.
The report was due to the President on August 12th, 2025, and has not been officially released.
New CMS Immigration Status Oversight Initiative for Medicaid and CHIP
On August 19th, CMS launched an oversight initiative aimed at ensuring Medicaid and CHIP enrollees are U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or have a satisfactory immigration status. States will be given monthly enrollment reports in order to identify individuals whose immigration status could not be confirmed federally. The monthly enrollment reports will require states to review cases, verify immigration status, request additional documentation and take appropriate actions, like disenrollment from Medicaid, as necessary. CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz says that the purpose of the initiative is to safeguard taxpayer dollars and ensure that benefits are reserved for those eligible under the law. States will receive the first set of reports as early as today.
American Academy of Pediatrics Breaks from CDC on Vaccine Recommendations for Children
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released its own immunization schedule on Tuesday, August 19th in contrast to the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation for the COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 6 months to 17 years. The CDC currently recommends the parents of children in this age range base their decision to vaccinate on “shared clinical decision-making”. In comparison, the AAP explicitly recommends all children ages 6 through 23 months receive a COVID-19 vaccination unless they have known allergies to the vaccine. The recommendations further encourage a single dose of the vaccine for children ages 2 through 18 years if they are at a higher risk of the disease.
Although the AAP has historically released an immunization schedule, this year marks the first significant divergence from the recommendations of the CDC. The schism between the federal government and the AAP largely stems from recent actions taken by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kennedy – most notably his decision to dismiss all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Recommendations from ACIP carry statutory implications, requiring insurers to cover vaccines for adults under the Affordable Care Act if recommended by the advisory committee – further illustrating the importance of AAP’s decision to break from the CDC.
CDC’s ACIP Forms New Working Group on COVID-19 Vaccines
On August 20, 2025, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) announced the creation of a new working group to examine questions raised by vaccine skeptics regarding COVID-19 immunizations.
The working group is chaired by ACIP voting members Restef Levi, a professor of operations management with no medical background, and Robert Malone, an anti-vaccine activist. Both Levi and Malone have publicly promoted disputed claims about mRNA vaccine safety. The group’s formation follows the exclusion of more than two dozen medical and public health organizations from ACIP working groups.
According to its terms of reference, the new COVID-19 immunization workgroup will review existing evidence on mRNA and other COVID-19 vaccines, re-examine risk–benefit and cost–benefit analyses, and consider adjustments to vaccination schedules based on age, health status, and other risk factors. As part of this review, the group will explore claims of potential DNA contamination in vaccines, lingering spike proteins, and alleged risks such as pregnancy complications, cardiovascular issues, immune system damage, and long-term disability. The workgroup will operate largely behind closed doors, with virtual-only meetings and confidential proceedings until findings are formally presented to ACIP for public debate.
GOP Doctors Urge USPTF Overhaul Amid Debate
A group of Republican House medical professionals, led by Rep. Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) and GOP Doctors Caucus co-chair Greg Murphy (R-NC), urged U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to overhaul the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). USPSTF sets recommendations on which preventive services insurers must cover at no cost.
The letter demanded that the USPSTF be rebuilt with practicing, non-biased clinicians, that it be mandated to include relevant specialists when issuing recommendations in their field, that decision-making be fully transparent, and that the focus return to public health outcomes instead of politically charged social issues. It cited rising chronic disease rates since the Task Force’s expanded authority under the Affordable Care Act as evidence of the need for immediate reform. The letter was also signed by GOP Doctors Caucus members Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Andy Harris (R-MD), Mike Kennedy (R-UT), Brian Babin (R-TX), Bob Onder (R-MO), and Sheri Biggs (R-SC).
Secretary Kennedy has affirmed reports that he may remove and replace current USPSTF members. Several groups, including the American Association of Kidney Patients, Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, America’s Frontline Doctors, and the Pennsylvania Direct Primary Care Association, support dismantling the panel, citing its lack of patient representation, failure to improve health outcomes, and need for ideological balance. In contrast, more than 200 organizations, including the American Medical Association, urge HHS to preserve the task force, warning that changes would erode decades of bipartisan progress and public trust in the health system.
HHS and CMS Request Advisory Committee Nominations
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is requesting nominations for the 15 members to serve on the Healthcare Advisory Committee, due by September 20. The Committee will advise HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz on programs and policies to implement the administration’s “Make America Health Again” agenda, including those that promote chronic disease prevention and management, reduce regulatory burdens and increase accountability, advance real-time data systems, improve Medicaid quality for vulnerable populations, and ensure Medicare Advantage sustainability through modernized risk adjustment and quality measures. HHS invites nominations for Committee from the provider community, health insurers, academia, manufacturers, advocacy and other non-profit organizations with demonstrated expertise in the US healthcare system.
SCOTUS Allows Trump Administration to Resume Cutting NIH DEI Research Funding
On August 21, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that the Trump Administration can resume cutting nearly $800 million in NIH grant funding for research topics the administration deems related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) or otherwise inconsistent with its priorities. The decision overturns a June ruling by U.S. District Judge William Young, a Reagan appointee, who had blocked the cuts in response to lawsuits from 16 state attorneys general and public health groups, including the American Public Health Association. The lawsuits challenged the termination of grants on topics such as LGBTQ+ health, racial disparities, and other DEI-related research, arguing that they are essential to public health. If the Supreme Court sided with the plaintiffs, HHS would have been required to restore 1,700 grants.
What’s on Tap
Over the weekend, the Texas Senate approved a bill to redraw the state’s congressional maps as part of President Trump’s efforts to pick up more red seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The bill now heads to Governor Abbott, a Republican, who is expected to sign the legislation into law – fueling what is evolving into a nationwide redistricting battle. Congressional districts are typically redrawn every decade after the census is completed, which is why there has been national pushback against the Texas GOP’s mid-decade redistricting project that is expected to bleed into other GOP controlled states. In response, California Democrats – particularly Governor Gavin Newsom – have moved to add a ballot measure to the November ballot that would allow for mid-decade redistricting in the state. If California voters pass this measure, it is expected that the five newfound Republican seats in Texas will be negated by Democrats redistricting in California – potentially leading to further redistricting by both red and blue states throughout the country.
Congress returns from August recess next week after the holiday weekend. Members of Congress will be met with the looming September 30th government funding expiration – potentially setting up the federal government for a shutdown if Republicans cannot achieve consensus. Federal funding was last extended in March by a continuing resolution (CR), after end of year funding negotiations between Democrats and Republicans were uprooted following President Trump’s 2024 electoral victory. A variety of crucial healthcare extenders are set to expire at the end of September, including funding for community health centers, Medicare telehealth flexibilities, and hospital at home waivers, among many others. Unlike recent reconciliation proceedings, which produced the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), end of year funding negotiations must adhere to the Senate filibuster rule, forcing Republicans to achieve a 60-vote threshold to invoke cloture and bypass the filibuster. This will require some Democratic support in the upper chamber, further complicating coalition building among the GOP.
The Trump Administration is reportedly vetting a new candidate to be named director of the Centers for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS), after the previous director abruptly departed earlier this summer. The new candidate is co-founder and CEO of the health tech company Unite Us, Dan Brillman. The tech company advertises itself a facilitator for referrals of patients to social services and is currently marketing itself as a key partner in winning dollars in the $50 billion Rural Health Fund that was embedded in the OBBBA. If his appointment comes to fruition, Brillman will be tasked with implementing the first major revisions to the Medicaid program that were outlined in the OBBBA – like work requirements, increased redeterminations, and a massive reduction in spending of almost a trillion dollars over the next decade.
Upcoming Events
- Senate: Out of Session
- House: Out of Session
- Regular congressional activity will likely resume following the August recess on September 2nd