NEWSROOM Search Type - Any -NewsOpinionPress Release Topics - Any -ClimateDisability JusticeHealth Care & InsuranceInfectious DiseaseInstitutional DefenseInternationalSexual & Reproductive HealthSocial HealthWhopper of the Week Opinion May 22, 2026 Trump and RFK Jr have a new approach to global health: holding vulnerable people to ransom DPH member Gavin Yamey reviews the administration's attacks on global health assistance and vaccine access, writing that the U.S. is "holding vulnerable people in low income and middle income countries to ransom as an inhumane tool to weaken multilateral institutions and extract what the US wants from bilateral partnerships." He urges strengthened regional and multilateral cooperation as a way to minimize the damage. News May 22, 2026 Is Kennedy Slow-Assassinating Obamacare? Writer Jonathan Larsen takes an opinionated look at the Trump administration's often-underreported attacks on the Affordable Care Act, quoting DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs both her Bluesky account and from an op-ed she and fellow Coordinating Committee member Miranda Yaver wrote last year for The Hill. Opinion May 21, 2026 Effective Public Health Policy Making Requires a Sound Process Dr. Ronald Valdiserri, MD, MPH, published a commentary in the journal Public Health Practice and Management about the egregious process used by RFK Jr.'s ACIP to remove recommendations for the birth dose of HBV vaccine. Press Release May 21, 2026 Viral Outbreaks Show Urgent Need to Rebuild Disease Monitoring, Pandemic Preparedness Recent outbreaks of hantavirus and Ebola, though unlikely to cause a pandemic, highlight the urgent need to repair the Trump administration’s destruction of our pandemic prevention, preparedness and response capabilities, members of Defend Public Health said today. Opinion May 16, 2026 When voting rights are weakened, health suffers DPH members Donna Gaffney and Teri Mills delve into the connections between voting rights and public health, noting, "When communities are shut out of the voting booth, it is no coincidence that they are also the ones losing their critical‑access hospitals and watching maternity care deserts spread around them." Opinion May 13, 2026 Whopper of the Week: Kennedy Denies the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s Spending Cuts to Medicaid The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $900 billion over a decade. But in a series of congressional hearings last month, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. misleadingly claimed that “there are no cuts to Medicaid” as a result of that 2025 law. Opinion May 13, 2026 The Hantavirus Isn’t the Biggest Threat We’re Facing DPH Coordinating Committee member Gregg Gonsalves explains that while the hantavirus likely poses little risk to most of us, "the real story is the collapse of pandemic preparedness in this country—all the public health and scientific infrastructure that has disappeared, the purge of talent, experience, and expertise that was meant to keep us safe." As a result, we won't be ready when a highly contagious virus strikes, which is sure to happen eventually. Opinion May 13, 2026 Whopper of the Week: RFK Jr. Places Flu “Freedom” Above Military Readiness Defense Secretary Hegseth announced the flu vaccine will no longer be required for U.S. service members. RFK Jr. defended the decision, down playing the vaccine's effectiveness and claiming soldiers should have some medical "freedom." It is worrisome that the Secretaries of Defense and Health are willing to compromise both service members' health and U.S. military readiness. Opinion May 10, 2026 Looking for trustworthy health info? Here are six sites that cut through the noise DPH Communications co-chair Bruce Mirken draws on his experience in journalism and media relations to examine the many shortcomings of U.S. news media coverage of healthcare and medical research, offering several suggestions on where readers can find reliable health news that's not too impenetrable for lay readers. News May 09, 2026 What Have RFK, Jr. And The Trump Administration Done For Mothers? According to medical writer Judy Stone, the answer to the headline question seems to be: They've caused a great deal of harm to moms and their families -- citing our recent Mother's Day Whopper of the Week and the People's Health Platform. Opinion May 06, 2026 The Need for Heard Immunity (No, That’s Not a Typo) DPH members Donna A. Gaffney and Teri Mills, also cofounders of Grandparents for Vaccines, reflect on the power of storytelling and real-world experiences of the days before widespread vaccination -- that they call "heard immunity" -- to help dispel misinformation about vaccines. Opinion May 06, 2026 Whopper of the Week: It Takes a Village and RFK Jr. Is the Village Idiot Secretary of Health and Human Services Kennedy often calls out moms as his biggest supporters. His message to women sounds like praise and empowerment, but he's actually shifting the burden of evaluating scientific studies onto moms. That’s unfair and dangerous. Pagination Previous page Previous Current page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 … Next page Next
Opinion May 22, 2026 Trump and RFK Jr have a new approach to global health: holding vulnerable people to ransom DPH member Gavin Yamey reviews the administration's attacks on global health assistance and vaccine access, writing that the U.S. is "holding vulnerable people in low income and middle income countries to ransom as an inhumane tool to weaken multilateral institutions and extract what the US wants from bilateral partnerships." He urges strengthened regional and multilateral cooperation as a way to minimize the damage.
News May 22, 2026 Is Kennedy Slow-Assassinating Obamacare? Writer Jonathan Larsen takes an opinionated look at the Trump administration's often-underreported attacks on the Affordable Care Act, quoting DPH Coordinating Committee member Elizabeth Jacobs both her Bluesky account and from an op-ed she and fellow Coordinating Committee member Miranda Yaver wrote last year for The Hill.
Opinion May 21, 2026 Effective Public Health Policy Making Requires a Sound Process Dr. Ronald Valdiserri, MD, MPH, published a commentary in the journal Public Health Practice and Management about the egregious process used by RFK Jr.'s ACIP to remove recommendations for the birth dose of HBV vaccine.
Press Release May 21, 2026 Viral Outbreaks Show Urgent Need to Rebuild Disease Monitoring, Pandemic Preparedness Recent outbreaks of hantavirus and Ebola, though unlikely to cause a pandemic, highlight the urgent need to repair the Trump administration’s destruction of our pandemic prevention, preparedness and response capabilities, members of Defend Public Health said today.
Opinion May 16, 2026 When voting rights are weakened, health suffers DPH members Donna Gaffney and Teri Mills delve into the connections between voting rights and public health, noting, "When communities are shut out of the voting booth, it is no coincidence that they are also the ones losing their critical‑access hospitals and watching maternity care deserts spread around them."
Opinion May 13, 2026 Whopper of the Week: Kennedy Denies the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s Spending Cuts to Medicaid The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $900 billion over a decade. But in a series of congressional hearings last month, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. misleadingly claimed that “there are no cuts to Medicaid” as a result of that 2025 law.
Opinion May 13, 2026 The Hantavirus Isn’t the Biggest Threat We’re Facing DPH Coordinating Committee member Gregg Gonsalves explains that while the hantavirus likely poses little risk to most of us, "the real story is the collapse of pandemic preparedness in this country—all the public health and scientific infrastructure that has disappeared, the purge of talent, experience, and expertise that was meant to keep us safe." As a result, we won't be ready when a highly contagious virus strikes, which is sure to happen eventually.
Opinion May 13, 2026 Whopper of the Week: RFK Jr. Places Flu “Freedom” Above Military Readiness Defense Secretary Hegseth announced the flu vaccine will no longer be required for U.S. service members. RFK Jr. defended the decision, down playing the vaccine's effectiveness and claiming soldiers should have some medical "freedom." It is worrisome that the Secretaries of Defense and Health are willing to compromise both service members' health and U.S. military readiness.
Opinion May 10, 2026 Looking for trustworthy health info? Here are six sites that cut through the noise DPH Communications co-chair Bruce Mirken draws on his experience in journalism and media relations to examine the many shortcomings of U.S. news media coverage of healthcare and medical research, offering several suggestions on where readers can find reliable health news that's not too impenetrable for lay readers.
News May 09, 2026 What Have RFK, Jr. And The Trump Administration Done For Mothers? According to medical writer Judy Stone, the answer to the headline question seems to be: They've caused a great deal of harm to moms and their families -- citing our recent Mother's Day Whopper of the Week and the People's Health Platform.
Opinion May 06, 2026 The Need for Heard Immunity (No, That’s Not a Typo) DPH members Donna A. Gaffney and Teri Mills, also cofounders of Grandparents for Vaccines, reflect on the power of storytelling and real-world experiences of the days before widespread vaccination -- that they call "heard immunity" -- to help dispel misinformation about vaccines.
Opinion May 06, 2026 Whopper of the Week: It Takes a Village and RFK Jr. Is the Village Idiot Secretary of Health and Human Services Kennedy often calls out moms as his biggest supporters. His message to women sounds like praise and empowerment, but he's actually shifting the burden of evaluating scientific studies onto moms. That’s unfair and dangerous.
