July 1, 2026 – The Week in Health Care News
Your digest on the happenings in health care this week | July 1, 2026
Reproductive Rights/Attacks on Medication Abortion
Navigator polling on the four-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision which overturned Roe v. Wade shows that support for access to legal abortion remains high and is literally the same as when Dobbs was handed down:
KFF Health News: A Ban Won’t Stop Abortion Pill Access, Telehealth Providers Say
NPR: Why are crisis pregnancy centers saying they can ‘rule out’ ectopic pregnancy?:
“It’s important to rule out an ectopic pregnancy or a natural miscarriage and find out how far along you are via limited ultrasound,” reads the website of MyChoice Pregnancy Care Center in New York’s Hudson Valley. “Contact us for a free ultrasound.” [...]
The problem is that a single ultrasound usually can’t determine whether a pregnancy is ectopic.
This week, Campaign for Accountability, a nonprofit watchdog organization, sent a letter to New York Attorney General Letitia James requesting that her office investigate whether crisis pregnancy centers in New York are fraudulently advertising to women about their ability to diagnose ectopic pregnancies.
This is one of many reasons 11 senators flagged “profound concerns” with the Trump administration’s website for new and expecting mothers, moms.gov, which lawmakers say drives families toward crisis pregnancy centers (CPC) for treatment. Sen. Elizabeth Warren described the site as “horrific.”
The New York Times reports that the right wants to send abortion patients to prison:
[Bradley Pierce, the president of a prominent pro-criminalization group, the Foundation to Abolish Abortion] said the movement to prosecute women who have abortions is “where we need to be spending the most political capital.” He added: “This is the hill we need to be willing to die on.”
Bloomberg Law: RFK Jr.’s HHS to Divert Funds From Teen Pregnancy Grant Program
The Hill reports that the repro rights group Reproductive Freedom For All is launching a $23.5 million midterm election campaign to mobilize voters and flip key battleground districts to candidates aligned with their goals. In addition, “the advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood is pouring nearly $2 million into a campaign targeting vulnerable House Republicans, part of an effort to stop Republicans from permanently “defunding” Planned Parenthood health centers.”
Health Care Affordability
Based on numbers released by HHS, around 4 million Americans dropped out of ACA insurance marketplaces in their first month of coverage this year, a drop of over 16%.
CBS News: Less than half of Americans can afford quality healthcare, Gallup finds
Modern Healthcare reports that ACA premiums are set for double-digit increases next year, too.
Health Care Policy: E&C Health Panel Advances Transparency, Prior Auth Bills:
The House Energy & Commerce health subcommittee advanced a broad package of [15] bipartisan health care bills Thursday (June 25) aimed at increasing health care price transparency and strengthening prior authorization oversight. [...]
Among the most significant bills approved Thursday was the bipartisan Lower Costs, More Transparency Act… The legislation would expand federal price transparency requirements for hospitals, health plans, ambulatory surgical centers, laboratories and imaging providers, while strengthening enforcement tools for regulators.
HEALTH CARE un-covered reveals that junk insurance plans, formerly banned by the ACA, are back.
Is a $35/month cap on insulin for those with private insurance a thing? A bipartisan vote in a key Senate committee suggests it might be. Their plan would create a pilot program in 10 states to cap costs for uninsured people, as well.
KFF Health News: Democrats To Propose Bill Capping Out-of-Pocket Medicare Costs for Enrollees
Trump Administration News
Sen. Bill Cassidy, the same guy who cast the deciding vote to confirm RFK Jr., has accused Kennedy of building public health “upon a foundation of lies“. He defended his vote by saying Kennedy was “going to have the ear of the president.” Committee Exec. Director Rob Davidson and Board Chair Dr. Kristin Lyerly responded to the news during a Paging America: On Call segment this week.
POLITICO: Top Democrat says RFK Jr. should be ‘very worried’:
California’s Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told POLITICO that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be a prime target for investigation if Democrats regain control of the House.
Following the release of a trove of internal HHS emails by Sen. Bernie Sanders, The New York Times takes a peak “Inside the C.D.C.’s Mad Scramble to Meet Kennedy’s Demands.” One of those demands was to “pull out of circulation all campaign ad buys related to flu or anything encouraging shots or vaccinations.”
After the Supreme Court ruled last week that Monsanto did not need to put a warning label about a potential cancer risk associated with its Roundup weedkiller, MAHA adherents are hopping mad. “A lot of MAHA voters are realizing they’ve been snookered, they’ve been had by Republicans that had no intention of protecting their health. It’s just a talking point that they added,” David Murphy, founder of United We Eat and finance director of Kennedy’s presidential campaign told The Hill.
Non-RFK Jr. News
Dr. Oz continues to show how completely out of touch he is, saying, “Of the people who signed up, 40% never use the insurance. Let me ask you, John, you have health insurance -- do you use it once a year? In Obamacare right now 40% of the people ostensibly signed up never use the insurance ... we have a lot of fake people on the policies.” Dr. Rob Davidson pointed out that, “Not accessing the healthcare system does not mean you’re a ‘fake person.’ It usually means you’re healthy. You still need insurance just in case.”
OOPS DEPARTMENT: Following a flu outbreak at the Air Force’s basic training facility in San Antonio caused by Pete Hegseth’s removal of vaccine requirements, the Army, Navy and Air Force are once again requiring flu shots for basic trainees. As of last week 275 recruits had gotten the flu.
Inside Health Policy: Attorney: New ACIP Charter Update Could Disguise RFK Jr.’s ‘Paper Trail’
Other Health Care News
Fortunately, Florida is failing in its effort to ban school vaccine mandates.
The Hill reports that a federal judge has blocked prosecutors from accessing the medical records of transgender individuals treated at New York City hospitals. This follows a similar ruling in California earlier this month.