Hospitals that treat patients who require extended stays have been closing at a rapid clip, driving up demand for the remaining beds and prompting health systems to appeal to the Trump administration and Congress for relief.

Why it matters: The industry says it's unable to discharge certain patients who need long-term intensive care, which is adding to hospital overcrowding and stressing a system that's already experiencing a shortage of beds.

• It's also stoking a debate over the cost of caring for patients with serious wounds or organ failure, or who are on ventilators once they're stabilized.

The big picture: More than 25% of long-term care hospitals have closed over the past 10 years, according to the American Hospital Association.

• Hospital groups blame Medicare policies dating to the Obama administration that they say shortchange long-term care hospitals.
• The issue is that they only give full payments for patients who've spent at least three days in an ICU or been on a ventilator for at least 96 hours.

Hospital trade groups last month released a list of policy changes they say would help stabilize the long-term care hospitals, including expanding the criteria for patients who qualify for Medicare-covered stays and improving the accuracy of payments.

• They also want stricter requirements for Medicare Advantage plans to include long-term care hospitals in their provider networks and to limit pre-treatment reviews.

The other side: Long-term care hospitals have long been blamed for driving up the cost of post-acute care and accounted for $5.5 billion in annual spending, according to one 2019 study.

• In 2023, Stanford and MIT health economists estimated that Medicare could save about $4.6 billion annually without harming patients by sending them to skilled nursing facilities or home, instead of long-term care hospitals.

The bottom line: The latest lobbying push could bump up against broader efforts to contain Medicare spending, meaning the industry's pleas may fall on deaf ears.

Keep reading

Major health insurers including UnitedHealthcare, Humana and CVS Health/Aetna will adopt a single standard for health providers to request pre-treatment reviews starting next year, the insurers tell Axios.

Why it matters: Health plans often deny or delay coverage because of incomplete documentation.

• A standardized approach could reduce the back-and-forth between plans and providers — and improve the odds of delivering timely care.

Zoom in: The insurers beginning Jan. 1 will align data submission requirements for frequently requested medical services, including orthopedic surgeries, CT scans and MRIs.

• The framework will apply across commercial insurance, Medicare and Medicaid. It's an important step toward immediate electronic prior authorization answers, the insurers said.

By the numbers: More than 50 health insurers representing more than 250 million covered lives have signed on to the agreement so far.

• Others participating in the initiative include several Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers, along with Centene, Kaiser Permanente and Cigna.

Insurers will know the effort is successful if prior authorization response times speed up and denial rates from incomplete or inaccurate submissions go down, a staffer for the insurer trade group AHIP said.

Read more

"Make America Healthy Again" activists are converging on the Supreme Court today as justices hear arguments in a high-stakes case over health warnings on pesticide labels.

Why it matters: The Trump administration is backing Bayer's efforts to limit lawsuits claiming that its weedkiller Roundup causes cancer.

• That's widening a rift with MAHA activists, who've been calling for a crackdown on chemicals like Roundup's active ingredient glyphosate in the food supply.

Driving the news: The protest is being led by prominent influencer Vani Hari, known as "The Food Babe," who previously led a nationwide boycott against WK Kellogg Co. over the use of synthetic food dyes.

• "We wouldn't be doing this if the Trump administration just stayed out of things and hadn't gotten involved," Hari said, referring to a February executive order that gave national security protection to Roundup, as well as backing Bayer in the case.

Between the lines: A Reuters/Ipsos poll found widespread bipartisan concern about pesticides and shielding companies from lawsuits over cancer-causing products.

• The Bayer case will decide whether consumers can sue in state courts for lack of warning about cancer risks when federal regulators don't require such a warning.

More here

About 3 in 5 nursing home residents (61.3%) received an influenza vaccine during the 2024-2025 flu season, the CDC reported in its first such nationwide assessment.

• But only about 2 in 5 health care workers in nursing homes (42.1%) were vaccinated, researchers wrote in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Why it matters: Approximately 8% of the U.S. population becomes ill with influenza each year, and people who live and work in congregate settings are at increased risk. Residents also face potential complications from severe cases of the flu.

• CMS began requiring nursing homes to report vaccination coverage among residents starting last year.

By the numbers: Among 13,299 facilities that reported, about 735,000 residents were vaccinated against influenza in 2024-2025.

• Vaccine coverage was highest among government-owned nursing homes (71.7%) and lowest among for-profit nursing homes (58.5%).
• North Dakota, South Dakota, the District of Columbia, Vermont and New Hampshire had coverage of 75% or higher.

The CDC said coverage among health care workers was lower than during the 2023–24 influenza season and noted workers' concerns about potential side effects, vaccine effectiveness, and the need for vaccination.

🧠 The FDA said it will offer priority reviews to three psychedelic drugs being developed to treat mental health conditions, including depression. (AP)

👂🏻 Turning Point USA's Erika Kirk helped organize the White House listening session this month with disgruntled MAHA advocates and President Trump. (Politico)

⚖️ A judge blocked Wyoming's six-week abortion ban, saying abortion rights supporters who sued "made a sufficient showing of irreparable injury." (KHOL)

⚕️ The chief science officer of the PEPFAR global HIV/AIDS program stepped down and penned a withering critique of Trump global health policies. (Science)