Healthcare & Policy News
Reporting on health care policy, insurance coverage, and federal health programs. Includes news updates and conservative commentary from The Daily Signal.
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opinion
Taking Mask Off Science Driving COVID-19 Responses as Schools Reopen
Despite the evidence, back to school means back to masks again for some children this year, and parents and educators still don’t have evidence that mask policies keep students or teachers safe. Rather, the experience of the past two years has taught us that teacher unions and other education interest groups, not science, are driving… -
news
Lawmaker Faults 4 Big Companies for Focus on Abortion Travel Rather Than Family Leave
A Texas congressman has asked four entertainment and social media companies to explain why they emphasize paying travel and other expenses for out-of-state abortions rather than their existing policies of paid family leave for employees. Women “should not feel coerced into seeking an abortion instead of taking time off to have their child, especially since… -
opinion
Federalism Enables Americans to Hold State, Local Officials Accountable for COVID-19 Actions
The COVID-19 crisis offered excellent lessons in the advantages of federalism, the division of power between the federal government and the states. Most COVID-19 policies directly affecting Americans were made and enforced, not by Washington, but by state and local officials. Federalism enables citizens to hold these officials directly accountable for what they did or… -
opinion
Examining How COVID-19 Lockdowns So Easily Curbed American Freedoms
Americans still remember how the COVID-19 pandemic led not only to the loss of lives, but the loss of livelihoods. As businesses closed, the government grew in power and Americans’ liberties shrank, contends journalist Cheryl Chumley, author of the book “Lockdown: The Socialist Plan to Take Away Your Freedom.” “It was alarming to me how… -
opinion
CDC Misunderstands Why People Hate It, Attempts to Reorganize Anyway
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is suffering from a legitimacy crisis. With that in mind, the CDC is attempting to recuperate its image and attempting to fix some of the perceived issues that plagued it during the pandemic. In a Wednesday statement, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said, “My goal is a new, public… -
news
As DC Plans to Ban 40% of Black Teens From School, Mayor Rejects DC COVID-19 Vaccine Numbers
During a Monday press conference, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser seemingly claimed her department’s own numbers surrounding the amount of black school aged children vaccinated against COVID-19 were inaccurate. Unvaccinated school children will be banned from attending Washington, D.C. public schools later this month. In response to a question from The Daily Signal about how 40%… -
opinion
Biden Executive Order on Abortion Access Is Misleading and Full of Misinformation
After the Supreme Court’s recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, President Joe Biden directed his administration to find ways to provide increased access to abortions. That includes potentially funneling taxpayer dollars to transport women and girls who live in states with stricter abortion laws across state lines into states with more lenient ones. Biden’s… -
news
Inside a Pregnancy Center That Pro-Abortion Vandals Attacked
LYNCHBURG, Virginia—Something didn’t feel right to Susan Campbell as she checked the security camera feed from Blue Ridge Pregnancy Center, where she is executive director. It was less than a day since the Supreme Court ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade, ending abortion on demand across America. And to Campbell, things seemed a little… -
opinion
Documents Reveal Collusion Between CDC, Big Tech During Pandemic
Documents newly obtained by America First Legal Foundation reveal deep collusion between public officials and allies in Big Tech to silence dissenting voices. The documents lay bare efforts by officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to push social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to censor so-called medical misinformation. John Zadrozny,… -
news
4 Takeaways From Senate Panel’s Hearing on Gain-of-Function Research, COVID-19
Congress held its first hearing Wednesday investigating whether gain-of-function research financed by U.S. taxpayers could have led to the spread of COVID-19. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., chaired the hearing held by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee on emerging threats and spending oversight. “Gain-of-function research has the potential to unleash a global pandemic… -
news
Biden Executive Order on Abortion Travel Funding Appears to Violate Hyde Amendment
President Joe Biden signed an executive order Wednesday to authorize taxpayer-financed transportation for women seeking an abortion. Biden’s order directs the Department of Health and Human Services to consider using Medicaid dollars to pay expenses for pregnant women who live in states with pro-life laws when they travel to other states for an abortion. However,… -
news
Counterfeit, Black Market Abortion Pills Flood Internet With Help of Corporate Media
Vendors have flooded the internet with illegal, unregulated chemical abortion pills, according to Politico, after corporate media outlets openly promoted do-it-yourself chemical abortions. Unregulated online vendors pose a threat to the health of women by illegally selling abortion pills which may be expired or counterfeit, according to a report in Politico. Several media outlets promoted the use… -
news
Poll Finds Americans Want Biden to Condemn Pro-Abortion Violence, Harassment of Justices
Most Americans want President Joe Biden and their other elected officials to condemn intimidation of Supreme Court justices and related violence and vandalism in the wake of their overturning of Roe v. Wade, a new poll finds. The poll, released Wednesday by the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy group, found that 61% of… -
opinion
It’s Time to Set Record Straight on Ectopic Pregnancies and Abortion
The abortion lobby wants women to think that abortion is the best—or even only—option when it comes to lifesaving maternal care. To achieve that, the pro-abortion left continues to spread harmful lies and misleading talking points in public hearings and press releases. Under the guise of a fair and open debate, House Democrats held yet… -
opinion
FDA Slaps Warning on Puberty Blockers
Puberty blockers earned a warning label from the Food and Drug Administration earlier this month after six minors (ages 5-12) experienced severe symptoms. The puberty blockers in question are known scientifically as “gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) substances.” The minors, who were all biologically female, suffered from symptoms of “pseudotumor cerebri” (tumor-like masses in the brain), including visual disturbances… -
opinion
FDA Considers Over-the-Counter Birth Control. Here’s Why It Matters.
For the first time in history, women may soon be allowed to purchase birth control over-the-counter. The Food and Drug Administration first approved the pill in the 1960s, and since then, women have always needed a prescription for birth control pills. But that might be changing. The FDA is considering approving over-the-counter birth control. The… -
opinion
Will Lower Courts Duly Follow the Supreme Court’s Lead in Abortion Cases?
The general has sounded the retreat. Will the soldiers follow? That is the question raised by Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, where the Supreme Court declared that the federal courts should retreat from their invasion of the democratic provinces of legislatures on the issue of abortion. But will the lower courts obey? One appellate… -
news
New HHS Rule Would Force Insurers to Pay for Children’s Sex Changes
The Department of Health and Human Services announced a new rule Monday that would force insurance providers to pay for breast removal and other transgender surgeries, including for minors. The proposed rule change by the federal agency concerns Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, a section of the law… -
news
YouTube to Remove Content Promoting ‘Unsafe Abortion Methods’
YouTube announced Thursday it would begin removing content containing abortion misinformation and “unsafe abortion methods.” The move came nearly a month after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision on June 24. “Starting today and ramping up over the next few weeks, we will remove content that provides instructions for unsafe… -
opinion
Whither Future of Abortion Law
Hadley Arkes, a longtime commentator on abortion, natural law, and constitutional jurisprudence, joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to discuss the arguments that should be made to defend unborn human life in America. Arkes notes that the term “value judgment … is a term that we began to use with Nietzsche. When people lost their confidence…