Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

Biden's nomination of Dr. Rachel Levine sends signal about LGBTQ health protections

Jan 20, 2021
If confirmed, Levine, a transgender woman, would take a top health care role as assistant secretary of health.
Incoming President Joe Biden has tapped Pennsylvania Health Secretary Rachel Levine to be his assistant secretary of health, leaving her poised to become the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Courtesy of Biden transition team

Budget cuts in a time of coronavirus

Feb 25, 2020
The HHS, Alex Azar, is likely to face questions on the COVID-19 virus when he faces congress this week.
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar speaks during a press conference on the coordinated public health response to COVID-19 on Jan. 28, 2020 in Washington, D.C.
Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Health and Human Services head nominee differs from the former secretary in one key way

Jan 8, 2018
Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee is scheduled to hold its confirmation hearing for Alex Azar to run the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Azar is widely expected to win Senate approval, despite some misgivings over the rise of drug prices while he served as a top executive at drugmaker Eli Lilly. However, it […]

Government seeks to improve patient access to records

Feb 9, 2016
Doctors and hospitals told to trim the red tape around getting access to records.
Medical forms lined up next to each other at a doctor's office. 
rosefirerising/Flickr

PODCAST: Size does matter for FedEx

May 8, 2014
The new nominee for HHS Secretary goes before the Senate. And more Americans are going online to find cremation urns.