The drama will be in the House today, when an extension of the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies is expected to pass — but the action to watch is the bipartisan talks in the Senate to hammer out a compromise.

Why it matters: The House bill isn't going to become law, but the vote is still likely to be a remarkable rebellion against the Republican leadership. And it could provide the pressure the Senate group will need to reach a bipartisan deal.

• The enhanced subsidies expired Jan. 1, leaving millions of ACA enrollees facing much higher out-of-pocket premium payments.
• There's growing interest in bringing back the tax credits and extending the ACA sign-up period, though most Republicans remain firmly against extending the Obamacare payments and any deal still faces tough odds.

Driving the news: The House today is expected to pass a Democratic bill to extend the subsidies for three years, after four House Republicans joined the chamber's Democrats to force a vote over the objections of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).

• While the bill is expected to die in the Senate, there's growing pressure on the upper chamber to come up with a bipartisan deal that would include GOP changes tightening eligibility for the subsidies.
• A group of senators including Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) has been meeting to suss out a deal.
• Their emerging outline includes a two-year extension, along with a new income cap and language eliminating $0 premium plans that the GOP says fuel fraud. It also would give patients the option of receiving funding in a health savings account, Moreno told Axios.

What they're saying: Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) said lawmakers had a "quite productive" meeting earlier this week. "There's going to be some action in the House this week and then it's going to come over here, so we'll see," he said.

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Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s long-awaited rewrite of federal dietary guidelines may have raised as many questions as it answered.

The big picture: While the updated nutritional guidelines released yesterday hit on many familiar "MAHA" themes, they were prepared with the input of researchers with food industry ties and contained what nutritionists say were fundamental inconsistencies.

• The emphasis on a protein-heavy diet — seen in a new food pyramid — also comes at a time of soaring prices for beef and other foods and may be impractical for Americans on tight budgets.

State of play: The 10-page document HHS issued with the USDA on Wednesday for the first time explicitly advised against consuming highly processed foods.

• It continues a push Kennedy has taken to states for new restrictions on what's covered by the the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Yes, but: Some questioned how Kennedy could assert the government is "ending the war" on saturated fats when the recommendations maintain advice to limit intake to 10% or less of total calories.

• Following the guidance would require eating less meat and fatty dairy, not more, said Marion Nestle, nutrition expert and professor emerita at New York University.

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This flu season is shaping up as one of the most severe in recent memory — and it could get even worse.

• At least 11 million people have gotten sick, 120,000 have been hospitalized and 5,000 have died from the flu so far this season, per the latest CDC estimates — including nine pediatric deaths.
• Flu activity levels were very high in over half of the states for the week ending Dec. 27, 2025, per the latest available data. Recent holiday travel may have helped the virus spread even further.

Nearly 44% of U.S. adults reported getting a flu shot as of Dec. 27, the CDC says, up from 41.6% at the same time the previous year.

• The Trump administration's new childhood vaccination schedule, meanwhile, says parents should talk to their doctors before giving kids the flu vaccine, which was previously recommended for all children.

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OpenAI is expanding its capabilities by adding a dedicated health tab to ChatGPT, allowing people to bring in electronic medical records and other data from apps like Apple Health and MyFitnessPal.

Why it matters: Seeking answers for health-related queries is already a top use of ChatGPT, with more than 40 million people using it daily for medical and health insurance questions.

• People have already been using ChatGPT to make sense of lab tests, navigate health insurance claims and figure out what is causing various symptoms.

Driving the news: The new feature, dubbed ChatGPT Health, aims to expand on what's already being done in chats by allowing users to connect to other apps and data sources.

• OpenAI says that information shared in the health tab won't be used in other types of chats and that people can easily view and delete their health-related "memories."

Yes, but: Like other information shared with ChatGPT, health information could potentially be made available to litigants or government agencies via a subpoena or other court order.

• That's noteworthy at a time when access to reproductive health care and gender-affirming care are under threat at both the state and federal levels.

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⚖️ Bayer sued the creators of three COVID-19 vaccines, claiming they violated intellectual property developed by Monsanto, which Bayer acquired a decade ago. (Fierce Pharma)

🦠 Another shake-up of scientific leadership is underway at NIH, this time after a clash over funding a study that would alter seasonal flu viruses. (Science)

💸 AbbVie is in advanced talks to buy cancer-drug biotech Revolution Medicines in what would be one of the year's first megadeals. (WSJ)