Episode #38 Deep Dive – No Booze for Breakfast
A deep dive into this week's episode of Paging America
››› Murder of a civilian by ICE agents in Minneapolis
The Washington Post: Video shows ICE agent in Minneapolis fired at driver as vehicle veered past him
Video of ICE agents preventing a doctor from checking on shooting victim:
››› New Medicare negotiated rates have gone into effect
On January 1st, negotiated lower Medicare costs for 10 prescription drugs went into effect. This is an outcome of Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act which authorized and required HHS to negotiate the maximum price drug manufacturers can charge Medicare plans for 10 popular drugs each year, starting this year.
Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced its first set of Medicare-negotiated “maximum fair prices” for 10 selected drugs, with negotiated prices ranging from 38% to 79% below their list prices. A drug’s list price is the manufacturer’s sticker price, though it is rarely what insurers or patients actually pay and is mainly used as a starting point for negotiations.
Those drugs are Eliquis, Enbrel, Entresto, Farxiga, Imbruvica, Januvia, Jardiance, NovoLog/Fiasp, Stelara and Xarelto, and they’re used to prevent blood clots or treat diabetes, autoimmune diseases, blood cancers and heart failure.
The news on drug prices is not all good, however, as Reuters reports:
Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 350 branded medications including vaccines against COVID, RSV and shingles and blockbuster cancer treatment Ibrance, even as the Trump administration pressures them for cuts.
››› Another shoe is about to drop on health care costs
Health insurance costs are going through the roof thanks to Republican inaction but there’s another shoe about to drop when it comes to health care costs: out-of-pocket expenses. Via Wendell Potter at HEALTH CARE un-covered:
[T]here’s another aspect to America’s looming health care crisis that almost no one is talking about.
This is the other side of the coin – the out-of-pocket expenses that everyday consumers pay for doctor visits or prescription drugs – because of higher deductibles, or because of the growing number of patients who will risk not having any insurance at all next year because they can no longer afford it.
››› Canadian officials say US health institutions no longer dependable for accurate information
The Guardian reports that Canadian officials say US health institutions are no longer dependable for accurate information and health officials worry that distrust in health care will creep into our northern neighbor:
Canadian officials and public health experts are warning that US health and science institutions can no longer be depended upon for accurate information, particularly when it comes to vaccinations, amid fears that misinformation from the Trump administration could further erode Canadians’ confidence in healthcare. [...]
In December, Canada’s health minister, Marjorie Michel, warned that US health and science institutions can no longer be depended upon for accurate information. In an interview with the Canadian Press, she said: “I cannot trust them as a reliable partner, no.”
Michel also told CBC News that “some” Canadians could be influenced by Kennedy.
The minister’s comments come at the conclusion of a disastrous year for measles in Canada, as the country was stripped of its measles elimination status in November after more than 5,000 cases were reported across the country.
The US is poised to lose its measles elimination status, as well, with over 2,000 cases reported in 2025 and the surge in the highly contagious disease continuing into 2026.
The Canadian response is understandable, especially with CMS announcing over the holiday break that it will no longer require states to report their childhood vaccination status:
States will no longer be required to report how many children they vaccinate to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), according to a December 30 letter to state health officials.
As a measure of the quality of the care, states have been required to report the percentage of patients covered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) who are immunized. [...]
In the future, however, CMS will explore “new vaccine measures that capture information about whether parents and families were informed about vaccine choices, vaccine safety and side effects, and alternative vaccine schedules,” according to the letter.
Apparently their new goal is to be sure all parents know what RFK Jr. thinks about vaccines.
In addition, RFK Jr. has changed the recommended number of childhood vaccines from 17 to 11, citing the policies of Denmark, a country, unlike the US, with universal health care coverage. Kennedy said unironically, “This decision protects children, respects families, and rebuilds trust in public health.”
The CDC said that parents could choose to have their children receive some previously recommended vaccines, including those for flu, rotavirus, COVID-19, meningitis, and hepatitis A and B, after “shared clinical decision-making.” However, many parents have no idea what “shared clinical decision-making” even means.
The move has generated headlines like these:
STAT: Why Denmark’s vaccine schedule works for Denmark — but not for the United States
NPR: Should the U.S. model its vaccine policy on Denmark’s? Experts say we’re nothing alike
KFF Quick Takes: Do We Want to Outsource U.S. Vaccine Policy to Denmark?
››› AMA cooperating with RFK Jr., donating to Republicans
This week, American Medical Association president Bobby Mukkamala posted that he is “excited about the AMA working with HHS to improve the health of our country by focusing on what we eat.” “There are aspects of healthcare that we differ on,” he said, “But there are many we can work on together.”
This statement was made in response to the release of new dietary guidelines issued by RFK Jr. that puts increased red meat, whole milk, and cheese at the top of the food pyramid in an effort to “end the war on saturated fats.”
Working with RFK Jr. on anything at a time when he is compromising public health in so many ways is a non-starter for many physicians whose political stance has become increasingly left-leaning (also here) for a number of factors.
Despite this political shift, the AMA has been giving large donations to Republican PACs in recent cycles. For example, in 2025, they gave $5,000 to Bill Cassidy’s Leadership PAC right after he voted to confirm RFK Jr. Other examples of AMA donations from 2025 include:
$5,000 to Speaker Mike Johnson’s Leadership PAC one month after the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill that gutted Medicaid
$5,000 to the Defend Our Conservative Senate PAC (Roger Marshall’s Leadership PAC)
$5,000 to Heartland Values PAC – John Thune’s Leadership PAC
››› HHS slashing billions of dollars from blue state welfare programs that mostly benefit children
The Trump administration, via HHS, is slashing billions of dollars from welfare programs, mostly those that benefit children, exclusively in blue states as a response to a welfare fraud case in Minnesota. The funds are being withheld from the Child Care and Development Fund, the Social Services Block Grant, and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, or TANF. HUFFPOST reports that, “it’s unclear what led the administration to clamp down on TANF in a handful of blue states, since the program was not implicated in Minnesota’s child nutrition fraud.”
››› Katie Miller reveals her youngest son is not vaccinated
Katie Miller, the wife of White House ghoul Stephen Miller, has gone full anti-vaxx. Via HUFFPOST:
Katie Miller discussed her family’s vaccination status on the latest episode of her podcast, revealing that her youngest son, with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, isn’t vaccinated — and claiming he could put “dirt in his mouth” and “never” get sick.
“I think more young moms, as they start asking the questions, are seeing what you and I both see, which is healthy children can do a lot better not being vaccinated,” Miller told guest Jenny McCarthy, a former model, actor and a staunch anti-vaccine activist.
Miller, a former deputy press secretary to President Donald Trump and proponent of the “Make America Healthy Again” movement spearheaded by…Robert F. Kennedy Jr., went on to divulge some personal information.
“I haven’t talked about this, but my oldest child is fully vaccinated,” Miller said. “My youngest child is not vaccinated at all. My oldest child had milk soy protein allergy, right? And we had struggles breastfeeding. My third child was fully breastfed until age 1.”
She continued, “He is my healthiest child who never, ever gets sick. He’s never been on antibiotics. He is like, every day I could put, like, dirt in his mouth and he will not get ill.”
››› What is up with Trump’s mental and physical health???
Trump’s health is back in the news with a revelation to The Wall Street Journal that he takes a higher-than-recommended dose of aspirin every day. “I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” Trump told them. “I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart.” He blamed that high dose for the visible bruises on his hands that have been seen in recent months.
Trump also received a CT scan when he visited Walter Reed Medical Center in October for a “secondary” physical. According to him, the results were “perfect”.
Concerns about Trump’s health, from a droopy face to falling asleep during cabinet meetings, have gotten so intense that there’s now a Wikipedia page titled, “Age and health concerns about Donald Trump”.
Links for a deeper dive on Episode #38
The Washington Post: Video shows ICE agent in Minneapolis fired at driver as vehicle veered past him
Video of ICE agents preventing a doctor from checking on shooting victim is HERE
The Center Square: First negotiated Medicare drug prices go into effect Jan. 1
Reuters Drugmakers raise US prices on 350 medicines despite pressure from Trump
HEALTH CARE un-covered: The Other Health Care Cliff Americans Are About to Fall Off
The Guardian: Canadian officials say US health institutions no longer dependable for accurate information
CIDRAP: CMS to stop requiring states to report childhood vaccination levels
The New York Times: Kennedy Scales Back the Number of Vaccines Recommended for Children
Annenberg Public Policy Center: CDC Urges ‘Shared Decision-Making’ on Some Childhood Vaccines; Many Unclear About What That Means
STAT: Why Denmark’s vaccine schedule works for Denmark — but not for the United States
NPR: Should the U.S. model its vaccine policy on Denmark’s? Experts say we’re nothing alike
KFF Quick Takes: Do We Want to Outsource U.S. Vaccine Policy to Denmark?
AMA Pres. Bobby Mukkamala’s Facebook post with RFK Jr. is HERE
NPR Shots: RFK Jr.’s new food pyramid puts meat, cheese and vegetables at the top
The Washington Post: In reversal, U.S. loosens guidance on alcohol
JAMA Internal Medicine: The Political Polarization of Physicians in the United States
Kevin Bass tweet about the political leanings of doctors is HERE
HUFFPOST: Trump Admin Says It’s Cutting Welfare Funds To Blue States Over Alleged Minnesota Fraud
HUFFPOST: Katie Miller Drops Revelation About Youngest Kid’s Vaccinations
The Wall Street Journal: As Signs of Aging Emerge, Trump Responds With Defiance
Wikipedia: Age and health concerns about Donald Trump