It’s hard to keep track of the funding cuts, layoffs, vaccine recommendation changes and other major shake-ups happening within the country’s federal public health organizations at the hands of the Trump administration and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health and human services secretary.
One of the latest changes is RFK Jr’s postponement of a preventive health panel meeting by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), which was scheduled for July 10 and the rumored dismissal of all task force members, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
The USPSTF sets guidelines for preventive health screenings for conditions such as diabetes, depression and cancer in children and adults. Insurance companies are then required to cover these screenings based on the USPSTF’s guidelines.
This news comes not long after Kennedy postponed the meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which sets vaccine recommendations, and replaced the entire committee with individuals known to spread vaccine and health misinformation, according to earlier HuffPost reporting.
The changes to the USPSTF meeting and task force members is worrisome for a few reasons and could directly impact your health. Here’s what doctors want you to know:
