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Good morning and happy Thursday. Later this morning, NIH director Jay Bhattacharya will testify on his agency’s budget before the Senate Appropriations Committee. We’ll have the news as it comes, but for now, let’s start with the below.
A surgeon general’s report without a surgeon general?
The Office of the Surgeon General released a report yesterday urging families, schools, and providers to reduce children’s screen time. It isn’t the first time the office has addressed these concerns: During the Biden administration, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for a warning label on social media and released an advisory about potential mental health risks for young people. The new report doesn’t reference the last administration’s warning. Read more from STAT’s Chelsea Cirruzzo and Daniel Payne.
You may be asking: If there isn’t a Senate-confirmed surgeon general, who issued the advisory? (We’re currently waiting to see if and when the third Trump administration nominee for the position will be confirmed.) On Tuesday, health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. elevated senior health official Stephanie Haridopolos to serve as an interim until the position is officially filled.
