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Ariel Cohen

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Republican Rep. Michael C. Burgess led a coalition of 18 Texas lawmakers in a letter urging ARPA-H Director Renee Wegrzyn to select Dallas for the agency’s customer experience hub.

ARPA-H announces first two regional hubs

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 26, 2023 at 6:14pm
Rep. Christopher H. Smith is pushing for a one-year reauthorization of PEPFAR that would reinstate some anti-abortion restrictions.

PEPFAR reauthorization debate highlights splits in GOP

By Ariel Cohen and Sandhya Raman
Posted September 21, 2023 at 7:00am
Last year's formula shortage has spurred lawmakers to call for making donor breast milk more mainstream.

After infant formula crisis, lawmakers look to donor milk

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 14, 2023 at 7:00am
The Food and Drug Administration approved the boosters one day before a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel is expected to discuss recommendations for who should receive the vaccines and when, with CDC Director Mandy Cohen expected to sign off shortly thereafter.

New CDC director urges COVID-19 booster as cases increase

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 31, 2023 at 6:58pm
A health worker administers a COVID-19 vaccine shot to a local resident in Los Angeles on Dec. 17, 2022. Critics worry that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new program to get the next generation of COVID-19 vaccines to uninsured and underinsured Americans will likely not be ready in pharmacies by the time the new vaccines hit the market as early as this September.

COVID vaccine program for uninsured could be late to pharmacies

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 17, 2023 at 6:00am
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said he aims to have bipartisan reauthorization community health center legislation ready by the first week of September. That measure is one of a handful of health programs Congress must pass before the end of this fiscal year.

Health deadlines pile up as Congress adjourns for August

By Lauren Clason, Ariel Cohen, Jessie Hellmann and Sandhya Raman
Posted July 27, 2023 at 6:00am
President Joe Biden addresses the media before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on May 29.

Biden sets up health costs as campaign talking point

By Ariel Cohen and Jessie Hellmann
Posted July 7, 2023 at 6:33pm
President Joe Biden addresses the media in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on Feb. 16.

Biden administration targets unexpected health costs

By Ariel Cohen
Posted July 7, 2023 at 5:00am
Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., ranking Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee joined Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore.,in sending a letter to CMS on June 8 urging the agency to take a greater role in overseeing state reassessments of Medicaid beneficiary eligibility.

HHS has limited options as millions lose Medicaid

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 28, 2023 at 5:00am
Staff members hold an informal meeting before opening a free STD clinic in Portland, Maine. The CDC has told states it’s reducing funding for workers who fight sexually transmitted infections by $400 million.

CDC alerts states of cuts to STI workforce, blames debt deal

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 14, 2023 at 11:43am
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky testifies during a House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Pandemic hearing in the Rayburn Building on Tuesday.

Republicans grill outgoing CDC director as she prepares to exit

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 13, 2023 at 6:31pm
A pedestrian is seen near the U.S. Supreme Court on June 5. The court on Thursday ruled 7-2 to protect the right of Medicaid nursing home residents to seek relief in federal court when state officials do not meet a certain quality of care.

Supreme Court preserves Medicaid recipients’ right to sue

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 8, 2023 at 2:48pm
Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., the chair of the House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, criticized the CDC at a hearing Wednesday for not providing Congress with enough information on how it plans to overhaul itself in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

House Republicans quash CDC request for more authorities

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 7, 2023 at 3:14pm
Mandy Cohen, seen here in a North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services video in 2020, is expected to be named by President Joe Biden to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Biden’s pick to lead the CDC faces tough summer on Capitol Hill

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 5, 2023 at 6:47am
Mandy Cohen attends a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on Nov. 3, 2015.

Biden to pick Mandy Cohen to lead the CDC

By Ariel Cohen
Posted June 1, 2023 at 6:45pm
Monica Bertagnolli became director of the National Cancer Institute in 2022. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Biden taps National Cancer Institute director to lead NIH

By Ariel Cohen
Posted May 15, 2023 at 1:21pm
Rochelle Walensky, who announced she is leaving her job as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is shown testifying before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee in June 2022.

CDC director to depart in June

By Ariel Cohen and Lauren Clason
Posted May 5, 2023 at 3:12pm
Mifepristone and misoprostol, the two drugs used in a medication abortion, are seen in June at a New Mexico women's clinic that provides legal medication abortion services. The DOJ has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on a case that would ban the drug.

Supreme Court halts abortion drug case through Wednesday

By Michael Macagnone and Ariel Cohen
Posted April 14, 2023 at 10:57am, Updated at 5:19pm
ARPA-H Director Renee Wegrzyn said the agency is part of the health research ecosystem and is there to "add a little bit of rocket fuel to it."

Health research focus could give NIH competition for funding

By Ariel Cohen
Posted March 30, 2023 at 7:00am
Chairman Gary Peters, D-Mich., right, and ranking member Rand Paul, R-Ky., attend a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee markup on March 15.

Lawmakers say reliance on China exacerbates drug shortages

By Ariel Cohen
Posted March 22, 2023 at 4:23pm
President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., at the annual Friends of Ireland luncheon in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol on Friday.

Biden, McCarthy unite on Ireland at St. Patrick’s Day lunch

By Ariel Cohen
Posted March 17, 2023 at 3:29pm
Experts worry that a looming OB-GYN shortage will be exacerbated by confusion over disparate state laws on abortion in the aftermath of the reversal of Roe v. Wade as well as pandemic-related burnout and low reimbursement rates.

OB-GYN workforce shortages could worsen maternal health crisis

By Sandhya Raman and Ariel Cohen
Posted March 16, 2023 at 7:00am
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., says he will push for oversight hearings on the implementation of the law.

Surprise-billing lawsuits slow payments processes

By Ariel Cohen
Posted February 27, 2023 at 3:08pm
President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address to Congress on Tuesday.

Biden mixes doable, aspirational health messages in speech

By Lauren Clason, Sandhya Raman, Jessie Hellmann and Ariel Cohen
Posted February 9, 2023 at 7:01am
President Joe Biden, pictured here at a Cancer Moonshot event in Boston last September, will call on Congress to renew funding for the initiative during Tuesday night’s State of the Union address.

Biden to push Congress for more funding for ‘cancer moonshot’

By Ariel Cohen
Posted February 7, 2023 at 4:44pm
Incoming Senate HELP Chairman Bernie Sanders has expressed worry about drug company plans to increase COVID-19 vaccine costs after the public health emergency ends.

End of public health emergency causes cascade of changes

By Sandhya Raman, Lauren Clason, Jessie Hellmann and Ariel Cohen
Posted February 2, 2023 at 6:30am
The FDA’s Closer to Zero initiative, launched in 2021, aims to lower the amount of lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic in the food supply to the lowest levels possible.

FDA falls behind in review of heavy metals in baby food

By Ariel Cohen
Posted January 27, 2023 at 2:17pm
Diverse CBD products, including oils, gummies and hemp smokes, are displayed at Empire Standard, a hemp extract processing and distribution plant, in Binghamton, N.Y., on April 13, 2021.

FDA seeks end of regulatory wild west for CBD products

By Ariel Cohen
Posted January 26, 2023 at 1:35pm
The departure of Dr. Francis Collins, right, director of the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has led to worries about key vacancies at NIH during a crucial period for the agency.

NIH missing top leadership at start of a divided Congress

By Ariel Cohen
Posted January 18, 2023 at 7:00am
Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, testifies during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on Sept. 14.

Post-pandemic, CDC faces ‘uphill battle’ for backing in new Congress

By Ariel Cohen
Posted December 15, 2022 at 5:00am
Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, earlier this year on Capitol Hill. During an interview with CQ/Roll Call Wednesday, Walensky called for funding and authority to allow the agency to more nimbly respond to public health crises such as COVID-19 and mpox.

CDC head asks for COVID-19 funding, data as Hill interest fades

By Ariel Cohen and Lauren Clason
Posted December 7, 2022 at 4:54pm, Updated at 9:36pm
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks about the coronavirus during the White House press briefing on Tuesday.

New booster shots cut risk of symptomatic COVID-19

By Ariel Cohen and Lauren Clason
Posted November 22, 2022 at 2:38pm
A surge in respiratory illnesses has pediatric groups begging President Joe Biden and Congress to provide the resources to help them better respond.

Pediatricians beg for more federal help to fight wave of RSV

By Ariel Cohen
Posted November 16, 2022 at 10:41am
Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., saw his victory margin increase threefold this year compared to a race against the same opponent in 2020.

New election, same result: Most incumbents win 2022 rematches

By Laura Weiss and Ariel Cohen
Posted November 15, 2022 at 6:00am
Rep. Abigail Spanberger, right, and Sen. Mark Warner, both D-Va., meet with reporters following a Prince William County early voting rally for Spanberger in Woodbridge, Va., on Sept. 24. Spanberger won a competitive reelection race Tuesday.

How vulnerable House incumbents fared in the 2022 midterms

By Laura Weiss, Jessica Wehrman, Jim Saksa, Aidan Quigley, Mary Ellen McIntire, Paul V. Fontelo, Ariel Cohen, Daniela Altimari and Kate Ackley
Posted November 8, 2022 at 11:18pm, Updated November 23, 2022 at 8:20pm
Cavapoo mix Teddy, held by owner and staffer Clarissa Rojas, celebrates his birthday in the Rayburn House Office Building on on Sept. 30. He gets a little help from Rep. Tony Cárdenas, left, and rapper Mase.

Who can lift up Congress? Maybe dogs

By Sandhya Raman and Ariel Cohen
Posted October 27, 2022 at 6:45am
A physician assistant talks with a man after he received the monkeypox vaccine at Families Together of Orange County in Tustin, Calif., in August. The Jynneos vaccine consists of two doses administered 28 days apart.

Monkeypox response looks to long term

By Ariel Cohen
Posted October 11, 2022 at 3:14pm
The north front of the White House is seen through the security fence in Washington on Thursday.

Biden announces sweeping pardon of federal marijuana possession convictions

By Niels Lesniewski and Ariel Cohen
Posted October 6, 2022 at 3:28pm
A physician assistant talks with a man after he received the monkeypox vaccine at Families Together of Orange County in Tustin, Calif., in August. The Jynneos vaccine consists of two doses administered 28 days apart.

Monkeypox response relies on trade-offs without federal aid

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 28, 2022 at 5:11pm
White House COVID-19 response coordinator Ashish Jha is worried about congressional reluctance to approve additional COVID -19 dollars.

Pandemic fatigue threatens COVID-19, monkeypox funding requests

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 14, 2022 at 3:11pm
A man holds the drug PrEP in November 2017 in South Africa.

Federal judge rules HIV drug mandate violates religious freedom

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 7, 2022 at 2:48pm
A Moderna COVID-19 vaccine awaits administration at a vaccination clinic in Los Angeles. A CDC advisory panel on Thursday recommended boosters designed to better respond to newer variants of the coronavirus.

CDC advisers back use of updated COVID-19 vaccine boosters

By Ariel Cohen
Posted September 1, 2022 at 6:46pm
Residents line up at one of three walk-up D.C. Health Department monkeypox vaccination clinics in Washington earlier this month.

For CDC, monkeypox prevention focus remains on vaccines

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 22, 2022 at 11:06am
A sign reminding riders to wear a face mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 appears on a bus outside the Capitol in January. The CDC on Thursday eased guidelines for those exposed to the virus.

Citing lower risk, CDC changes COVID-19 exposure guidelines

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 11, 2022 at 4:30pm
FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said the agency aims to eventually make the monkeypox treatment available with less bureaucracy but first needs to collect more data.

Administration declares monkeypox a public health emergency

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 4, 2022 at 4:34pm
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra told reporters last week that he's considering declaring a public health emergency over the monkeypox virus.

Health officials seek monkeypox vaccines, urge health emergency

By Ariel Cohen
Posted August 2, 2022 at 2:48pm
President Joe Biden traveled to Somerset, Mass., on Wednesday before testing positive for COVID-19.

President Biden tests positive for COVID-19, isolating at White House

By Niels Lesniewski and Ariel Cohen
Posted July 21, 2022 at 10:52am, Updated at 3:36am
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions ranking member Richard M. Burr has sent a letter to the HHS secretary demanding clarity on the federal government's monkeypox response.

Doctors warn US monkeypox response is lagging

By Ariel Cohen
Posted July 14, 2022 at 1:43pm
Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, left, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, are among a small bipartisan group of lawmakers working on legislation to enshrine rights to abortion and contraception into law.

Biden administration says pharmacists cannot deny contraceptives

By Ariel Cohen, Sandhya Raman and Jessie Hellmann
Posted July 13, 2022 at 5:57pm
Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, earlier this year on Capitol Hill. During an interview with CQ/Roll Call Wednesday, Walensky called for funding and authority to allow the agency to more nimbly respond to public health crises such as COVID-19 and mpox.

Biden administration urges caution as BA.5 surges

By Ariel Cohen
Posted July 12, 2022 at 1:02pm