The de Beaumont Foundation has released a new resource, Communicating About Public Health with Policymakers: A Toolkit for Public Health Professionals, designed to help public health professionals engage policymakers more effectively. Drawing from research with former elected officials and senior aides, the toolkit offers tested messages, framing strategies, and practical conversation tips to m…

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs plans to cut up to 35,000 health-care positions this month, largely affecting unfilled roles including doctors, nurses, and support staff. These reductions, described by the agency as “mostly COVID-era roles that are no longer necessary,” aim to streamline the workforce to roughly 372,000 employees—a 10% decrease from last year. Officials stress the cut…

The CDC swiftly responded to the first-ever outbreak of infant botulism linked to ByHeart infant formula, demonstrating rapid public health action. As of December 10, 2025, 51 infants across 19 states were hospitalized and treated, with no deaths reported. Infant botulism, caused by Clostridium botulinum spores in the gut, can present as feeding difficulties, weak cry, and lack of head control…

The CDC’s vaccine advisory panel has voted to revise its long-standing hepatitis B birth dose recommendation, proposing to delay the first dose until two months of age for infants born to mothers who test negative and to support individualized decision-making with clinicians. The shift has prompted concern among many experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, which warns that remo…

Updated American Cancer Society guidelines now endorse self-administered HPV testing as part of cervical cancer screening, a shift expected to expand access and improve adherence among women who avoid speculum exams. FDA-approved self-swab tests can be completed in clinics or at home and detect the high-risk HPV strains responsible for all cervical cancers. Screening remains critical, as more…

Abbott has issued a medical device correction for certain FreeStyle Libre 3 and Libre 3 Plus continuous glucose monitors after internal testing revealed some sensors may report inaccurately low glucose readings. Such errors can lead people with diabetes to make unsafe treatment decisions, including excessive carbohydrate intake or delayed insulin use, posing serious health risks. An FDA Early…

A new study in JAMA Network Open adds strong evidence that even brief reductions in social media use can meaningfully improve mental health, particularly among young adults. Using objective phone data, researchers found that cutting social media from about two hours a day to roughly 30 minutes for one week produced notable drops in anxiety, depression and insomnia symptoms, with the greatest ga…

Experts are raising concern after a leaked FDA memo from CBER leadership asserted, without supporting evidence, that COVID-19 vaccines may have been linked to child deaths. Public health and regulatory specialists warned that the claim relies on unverified VAERS reports, lacks transparency, and departs from standard evidence practices used to assess vaccine safety and performance. Critics emp…

New analysis warns that global progress in reducing deaths among children under five may reverse in 2025 as major cuts to health foreign aid limit access to vaccines, treatments, and basic services. Child mortality fell by half between 2000 and 2020, but disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic slowed gains, and analysts now project an increase of more than 200,000 deaths next year. Researche…