A massive report studying nearly 14.5 million students in 61 countries found that long-term heat exposure is interfering with students' abilities to learn —and prolonged heat streaks are only getting worse.
Why it matters: Increasingly high temperatures are worsening disparate educational outcomes, with the potential for long-term impacts on graduation rates and cognitive ability to grow as the globe continues to warm.
The Trump administration is reportedly considering a way to ease Medicare and Medicaid into covering GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro for obesity starting as soon as next year.
Why it matters: The Health and Human Services Department in April rejected a Biden administration proposal to allow Medicare and Medicaid to cover the injections for weight-loss.
The leading professional association for gynecologists is cutting financial ties with the federal government, citing Trump administration policies it says prevent it from providing evidence-based guidance.
Why it matters: The decision by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists appears to be the first time a medical society has divested itself over conditions the administration has placed on government contractors and grant recipients.
President Trump's tariffs order for countries yet to strike a trade deal with the U.S. went into effect just after midnight on Friday, though most levies aren't due to start until Aug. 7.
Why it matters: While countries like Mexico struck trade deal extensions ahead of Trump's deadline, others face steep tariffs. The president increased Some Canadian goods imported to the U.S. on Thursday to 35%, effective 12:01am Friday ET.
Why it matters: Centuries after they were considered medicinal, mushrooms are today's go-to "functional" food — with a brain-boosting, sustainable aura.
Vaccination coverage among American kindergartners decreased for all reported vaccines during the 2024-2025 school year, according to data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Why it matters: The drop coincides with measles cases hitting a 33-year high in the U.S., while Trump's Health Department secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., upends long-standing vaccine norms.
President Trump on Thursday said he demanded commitments from 17 big drugmakers to lower their U.S. prices by committing to a "most favored nation" policy he laid out in a May executive order.
Why it matters: The move raises the stakes for pharmaceutical manufacturers as they brace for threatened tariffs on the sector.
President Trump will revive the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools, which was phased out more than a decade ago, a White House officialconfirmed to Axios on Thursday.
The big picture: The test — featuring challenges like a one-mile run, pull-ups and the sit-and-reach — was once a rite of passage for America's youth.
Providers of "direct primary care" who charge patients a monthly fee for unlimited visits and workups are poised to become big winners from the new Republican tax-and-spending law.
Why it matters: The law for the first time allows patients to tap their health savings accounts for the concierge-like primary care arrangements, and lets employers extend both benefits, in the belief they're more efficient than the traditional fee-for-service system.
