Decisions about health policy made by the Trump administration and Congress dominated 2025.
In a flurry of activity this year, the Trump administration weakened air pollution limits, changed vaccine schedules, sowed distrust in public health officials and science, and slow-walked a program to protect workers against extreme heat.
In the summer, Republican majorities in the House and Senate passed and the president signed an immense law that will make it more difficult for people to receive medical care, in particular for the poor and disabled.
Within the administration, health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pushed out career staff and purged scientists from federal jobs, including high-ranking posts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
After he removed former CDC head Susan Monarez from her post, she predicted illnesses of the past will make a resurgence. “I believe preventable diseases will return,” Monarez said during a Senate hearing in September. “Polio, measles, diphtheria, whooping cough.”
Yet the health picture for many Americans may worsen in 2026.
Insurance for those who receive it under the 2010 health law known as Obamacare is about to get more expensive. For people who rely on Medicaid for assistance or are seeking abortion access, life may also soon get more difficult.
Here are key stories related to those health care polices from NJ Spotlight News:
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