Liz Essley Whyte

Changes in paracetamol and leucovorin use after a White House briefing Changes in federal prescribing recommendations follow deliberate and transparent processes involving US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) scientists, which normally include input from stakeholders an...

What happened after the weird Sept 2025 White House press conference on autism?

📉 Tylenol use in the ED dropped >10% among pregnant patients
📈 leucovorin rx jumped 93% among kids 5-17 immediately afterwards

new @thelancet.com today with @jeremyfaust.bsky.social

www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Uniqure: "The recent statements made by anonymous FDA sources to the press have been highly irregular, unprecedented, and are incomplete or entirely incorrect."

Federal Health Officials Attack Rare-Disease Drug, Say Company Lied The FDA is already under fire from lawmakers for recent delays and rejections of new drugs for rare diseases.

A senior FDA official on a press call attacked an experimental treatment for a rare disease.

An HHS official later told me the company behind the treatment, Uniqure, "lied."

www.wsj.com/health/healt...

“It is unclear who Trump will tap to lead the agency on a permanent basis—Dr. Heidi Overton, who helps lead his Domestic Policy Council, already turned down the job, according to people familiar with the matter.”

Turmoil Takes Hold at CDC as Top Officials Keep Leaving Trump plans to nominate a new director at the nation’s top health agency following months of upheaval.

Inside the turmoil and leadership vacuum at the CDC

The Trump administration intends to nominate a permanent director soon

One person already turned the job down

NEW [gift link] www.wsj.com/health/healt...

FDA Reverses Course and Will Now Review Moderna’s Flu Shot The company’s mRNA flu shot, if approved, could be available for the 2026-27 flu season.

FDA's decision to review Moderna flu shot, after initially refusing, came after discussions with HHS and WH officials www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Top FDA Scientist Explains Why He Quit After Getting a Promotion From RFK Jr. Richard Pazdur, a longtime regulator, said politics risks outweighing science at the agency.

NEW-
Our interview with Dr. Rick Pazdur on why he left FDA less than a month after his promotion to lead its drugs division

And his concerns about the agency's future

“This wall between the commissioner’s office and the review staff has been breached" www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Exclusive | RFK Jr.’s Health Department Quietly Removes Webpages Saying Cellphones Aren’t Dangerous The Department of Health and Human Services undertakes a study on the health effects of cellphones.

via @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social

Kennedy successfully petitioned a federal court in 2020 to force the FCC to review its wireless-radiation rules. RFK has also represented plaintiffs who have sued telecom comps, alleging cellphones caused their brain tumors.

#Medsky #publichealth

ProPublica Publishes Unreleased Data on the Origins of Generic Prescription Drugs The dataset powers our Rx Inspector tool, which lets you find the factories that made your generic drugs and their FDA inspection track records.

NEW: ProPublica Publishes Unreleased Data on the Origins of Generic Prescription Drugs, by @bxroberts.org

How RFK Jr. Won Over His Skeptics and Overhauled Federal Food Guidelines Major medical associations backed his food guidelines, giving him a victory even as some doctors remain critical.

RFK Jr persuaded medical associations to back the new dietary guidelines by compromising on saturated fat - a compromise that leaves a big contradiction in the government's advice

Illuminating work from @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social

RFK Jr.’s Health Department Is Studying Health Effects of Cellphones Government webpages saying cellphones aren’t dangerous have been quietly removed.

NEW:
RFK Jr.'s health department is studying the health effects of cell phones 📳

and has removed FDA web pages saying cell phone radiation is not dangerous www.wsj.com/health/rfk-j...

Exclusive | Top Kennedy Adviser Calley Means to Join Trump Administration The MAHA leader will take on a senior role at the Department of Health and Human Services.

NEW: Top RFK Jr. confidante Calley Means is taking a permanent role in the Trump administration

www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Former CDC Leader Says Vaccine Panel’s Decisions Are ‘Concerning’ The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine panel voted on new guidance for immunizations. Debra Houry, the agency’s former chief medical officer, explains her concerns for public health ...

[I missed this at the time. Ck it out if you want to get caught up quickly.]

Video from Sept. 19th after the CDC's vaccine panel met and voted on new guidance for immunization.

@lizessleywhyte.bsky.social does a great job summarizing events. And interviews @drdebhoury.bsky.social. 4 minutes long.

RFK Jr.’s Team Wanted to Tout an Autism Therapy. He Went After Tylenol Instead. The heads of key health agencies advocated for putting the emphasis on leucovorin, but Kennedy became convinced that he had a moral duty to get the word out about the risk of acetaminophen.

excellently reported — and deeply revealing — piece by @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social

www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Gift link!

RFK Jr., HHS to Link Autism to Tylenol Use in Pregnancy and Folate Deficiencies

"Kennedy has promised to reveal the cause of autism. 'By September we will know what has caused the autism epidemic.'"

"Critics panned the promise as an impossible timeline" for a valid scientific inquiry.

Exclusive | RFK Jr., HHS to Link Autism to Tylenol Use in Pregnancy and Folate Deficiencies Kennedy’s autism report, touted by Trump, will suggest that using the pain reliever during pregnancy may be linked to the developmental disorder.

News 🚨:

The much-anticipated autism report from RFK Jr.'s HHS will point to Tylenol during pregnancy, folate deficiency, among other possible causes of autism.

With
@nidhisubs.bsky.social
Link👇
www.wsj.com/health/healt...

The Turmoil Inside MAHA Is About More Than Just Vaccines Disparate factions are sparring over some of RFK Jr.’s biggest priorities. A top FDA scientist is hired, ousted, then hired again.

Four major HHS leaders have been ousted this summer. One was rehired.

Meanwhile, the MAHA movement backing Kennedy is impatient for bolder action on vaccines, pesticides and more.

Natalie Andrews and I take you inside it all 👇

RFK Jr.’s Latest Challenge: Bring MAHA to Alaska The health secretary met with rural Alaska Natives, who often have limited access to fresh food.

“Processed food is poison,” Kennedy said, recounting how tribes had drifted from traditional food. “Processed foods are literally killing them. They’re part of a genocide that is centuries old.”

RFK Jr.'s latest challenge: bringing MAHA to Alaska www.wsj.com/us-news/alas...

Exclusive | Trump Administration Blocks Funding for CDC Health Programs The White House budget office recently reversed a decision to freeze about $15 billion in research funding for the NIH.

The Trump administration is blocking funding for a swath of public health programs run by the CDC, the latest flashpoint in a push by the White House to withhold money already approved by Congress www.wsj.com/politics/pol... w @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social

Exclusive | Trump Administration Blocks Funding for CDC Health Programs The White House budget office recently reversed a decision to freeze about $15 billion in research funding for the NIH.

The Trump administration is blocking funding for public health programs run by the CDC, the latest push by the White House to withhold money already approved by Congress @nidhisubs.bsky.social and @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social‬ report for @wsj.com www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Why America Is Rallying to Save 400 Canadian Ostriches Plan to euthanize birds prompts RFK Jr. and other U.S. officials to come to the animals’ defense; an offer from Dr. Oz

RFK Jr. and Mehmet Oz are fighting to save roughly 400 Canadian ostriches.

So far their pleas have gone nowhere.

“We don’t take our public health advice from RFK and Dr. Oz,” said David Eby, the leader of British Columbia’s provincial government. www.wsj.com/world/americ...

Trump Administration Scraps Effort to Pause Health-Research Funding The administration halted and then restarted billions in new research grants flowing from the National Institutes of Health.

UPDATE: The pause was scrapped Tuesday evening after intervention by top White House officials. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Trump Administration Puts New Chokehold on Billions in Health-Research Funding The National Institutes of Health can’t award grants to outside researchers under a new White House restriction.

NEW
The White House is blocking the NIH from awarding new research grants for the rest of the fiscal year

Chokes off billions in research funding

Gift link www.wsj.com/politics/pol... with @nidhisubs.bsky.social

Trump Administration Puts New Chokehold on Billions in Health-Research Funding The National Institutes of Health can’t award grants to outside researchers under a new White House restriction.

The White House has put new limits on NIH awards to scientists, potentially restricting billions in grants

www.wsj.com/politics/pol... New with @lizessleywhyte.bsky.social and Ken Thomas

NEW

The Trump administration has put a halt on ALL new research grants flowing from the National Institutes of Health (Billions of $$), setting up a battle with lawmakers

t.co/GEM6JmLCcG

via me @nidhisubs.bsky.social and Ken Thomas

Exclusive | Medicare Part D Drug Plan Premiums Set to Rise Trump Administration aims to soften the blow by negotiating with insurers.

NEW

The Trump administration aims to cut spending on Biden-era subsidies for Medicare drug plans by about 40% www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Exclusive | Medicare Part D Drug Plan Premiums Set to Rise Trump Administration aims to soften the blow by negotiating with insurers.

NEW from me and Anna Mathews

Medicare drug plan premiums are set to rise.

The Trump administration is aiming to soften the blow by keeping some Biden subsidies (though not all) and negotiating with insurers

www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Exclusive | RFK Jr. to Oust Advisory Panel on Cancer Screenings, HIV Prevention Drugs The task force determines which preventive services insurers must cover at no cost to patients.

New exclusive 🗞️

Health secretary RFK Jr. plans to oust the members of an advisory panel that recommends which cancer screenings, HIV drugs and other preventive services insurers must cover at no cost

www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Doctors Can Now Save Very Premature Babies. Most Hospitals Don’t Try. Babies born 22 weeks into pregnancy have increasingly better odds of survival—but parents often don’t know what’s possible.

You can read that investigation here: www.wsj.com/health/healt...

Exclusive | Bill Would Force Hospitals to Warn If They Aren’t Equipped to Save Premature Babies A Wall Street Journal investigation found parents had been told nothing could be done for their infants even when other nearby hospitals could offer care.

A new bill would require hospitals to disclose more information about how they handle extremely premature births.

The legislation is in part prompted by our Wall Street Journal investigation last year. www.wsj.com/health/healt...