Liz Szabo
@lizszabo.bsky.social
She/her. Award-winning health and science journalist. Investigative reporter at CIDRAP News. https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/all-news
Pinned
Liz Szabo
@lizszabo.bsky.social
· Apr 1
Transgender patients and their health providers fear worsening discrimination
Surveys show that mistreatment of transgender patients is common, sometimes leading them to delay or avoid seeking health care.
www.nbcnews.com
In his first term, Trump reversed an Obama-era nondiscrimination rule for transgender patients. Although Trump hasn’t yet issued a new rule, a web page created by the Biden administration, which explained legal protections for transgender patients, is now blank.
www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-...
www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-...
Study in Europe: monoclonal antibodies effectively prevent respiratory syncytial virus in infants | EurekAlert! www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
Study in Europe: monoclonal antibodies effectively prevent respiratory syncytial virus in infants
Respiratory syncytial virus can cause severe illness especially in young infants. A new study published in Eurosurveillance shows that immunisation of children after birth reduced the risk of hospital...
www.eurekalert.org
November 24, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Study in Europe: monoclonal antibodies effectively prevent respiratory syncytial virus in infants | EurekAlert! www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. Whenever you feel like criticizing any one, just remember that all the people in the world haven't had the advantages that you've had, Charlie Brown.
November 24, 2025 at 1:58 PM
In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since. Whenever you feel like criticizing any one, just remember that all the people in the world haven't had the advantages that you've had, Charlie Brown.
Cochrane Review finds strong and consistent evidence that HPV vaccines are effective in preventing cervical cancer and pre-cancerous changes
www.cochrane.org/about-us/new...
www.cochrane.org/about-us/new...
New research confirms HPV vaccination prevents cervical cancer | Cochrane
www.cochrane.org
November 24, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Cochrane Review finds strong and consistent evidence that HPV vaccines are effective in preventing cervical cancer and pre-cancerous changes
www.cochrane.org/about-us/new...
www.cochrane.org/about-us/new...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
The cost of covering a worker is expected to pass $18,500 next year, underscoring health affordability fears.
www.axios.com/newsletters/...
www.axios.com/newsletters/...
Axios Vitals - Worker insurance cost to break $18,500
www.axios.com
November 19, 2025 at 1:00 PM
The cost of covering a worker is expected to pass $18,500 next year, underscoring health affordability fears.
www.axios.com/newsletters/...
www.axios.com/newsletters/...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Renewal of ACA enhanced subsidies looks doomed with leaders in both parties admitting odds for a bipartisan deal are slim to none. www.axios.com/newsletters/...
Axios Hill Leaders
www.axios.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:39 AM
Renewal of ACA enhanced subsidies looks doomed with leaders in both parties admitting odds for a bipartisan deal are slim to none. www.axios.com/newsletters/...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Anna also asked Cassidy directly: do you regret your vote for RFK Jr?
Cassidy declined to answer, saying “life is lived forward” and he’s focused on vaccine safety.
Cassidy declined to answer, saying “life is lived forward” and he’s focused on vaccine safety.
November 20, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Anna also asked Cassidy directly: do you regret your vote for RFK Jr?
Cassidy declined to answer, saying “life is lived forward” and he’s focused on vaccine safety.
Cassidy declined to answer, saying “life is lived forward” and he’s focused on vaccine safety.
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Changes to COVID shot guidance didn't sway public. www.axios.com/2025/11/20/c...
Changes to COVID shot guidance didn't sway public: survey
A new survey found the Trump administration guidance hasn't significantly changed Americans' willingness to get the shots.
www.axios.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Changes to COVID shot guidance didn't sway public. www.axios.com/2025/11/20/c...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Secretary Kennedy, speaking to a bipartisan group of governors, has mixed up Medicare and Medicaid, and implied the people who will lose the latter are either unauthorized immigrants, dual eligible, or people who “don’t want to get a job.”
November 21, 2025 at 12:04 AM
Secretary Kennedy, speaking to a bipartisan group of governors, has mixed up Medicare and Medicaid, and implied the people who will lose the latter are either unauthorized immigrants, dual eligible, or people who “don’t want to get a job.”
Reposted by Liz Szabo
FDA turmoil: New drug chief Richard Pazdur says Trump’s push to rush drug approvals could be illegal — and dangerous. Major clash inside the agency. wapo.st/49zvx6n #BlueSky #MedSky #SciSky #NurseSky #EMSky #NewsSky #IDSky #ObSky #PedsSky
Top FDA drug regulator raises alarms about expediting approvals
Richard Pazdur, who assumed his new role this month, has warned that new Trump administration initiatives could be illegal and pose a risk to public health.
wapo.st
November 22, 2025 at 3:04 AM
Reposted by Liz Szabo
IVF to screen for genetic traits becomes a big business. www.axios.com/2025/11/22/i...
Elective IVF gains traction. Doctors have concerns.
Screening companies promise "generational health," but doctors say the science behind scoring embryos for complex conditions is shaky.
www.axios.com
November 22, 2025 at 4:25 PM
IVF to screen for genetic traits becomes a big business. www.axios.com/2025/11/22/i...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
NEW: Trump to push new Republican plan on Obamacare subsidies. www.axios.com/2025/11/24/t...
Trump to push new Republican plan on Obamacare subsidies
The plan calls for a short-term extension of the subsidies in exchange for new eligibility limits.
www.axios.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:44 AM
NEW: Trump to push new Republican plan on Obamacare subsidies. www.axios.com/2025/11/24/t...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
In 2026, older adults and people with disabilities will pay almost $203 per month in 2026 for their Part B premium.
The projected jump greatly outpaces inflation and will put a strain on Medicare enrollees who lived on fixed incomes. www.statnews.com/2025/11/14/m...
The projected jump greatly outpaces inflation and will put a strain on Medicare enrollees who lived on fixed incomes. www.statnews.com/2025/11/14/m...
Medicare premiums to jump 10% heading into 2026
Most Medicare enrollees will face premiums that are 10% higher next year, creating budget anxiety for millions of seniors.
www.statnews.com
November 18, 2025 at 4:10 PM
In 2026, older adults and people with disabilities will pay almost $203 per month in 2026 for their Part B premium.
The projected jump greatly outpaces inflation and will put a strain on Medicare enrollees who lived on fixed incomes. www.statnews.com/2025/11/14/m...
The projected jump greatly outpaces inflation and will put a strain on Medicare enrollees who lived on fixed incomes. www.statnews.com/2025/11/14/m...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
2024: The FDA approved Sarepta's Elevidys for Duchenne despite objections from some agency scientists
March and June 2025: Two boys using the treatment died of acute liver failure
Nov 2025: The FDA issues new warnings and restrictions on Elevidys
trib.al/80pamPt
March and June 2025: Two boys using the treatment died of acute liver failure
Nov 2025: The FDA issues new warnings and restrictions on Elevidys
trib.al/80pamPt
FDA’s stronger warning on Sarepta gene therapy raises new questions about heart risk
Risk of “acute, serious, and life-threatening” heart inflammation is now on the label of Sarepta's gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. What happens next?
trib.al
November 18, 2025 at 4:43 PM
2024: The FDA approved Sarepta's Elevidys for Duchenne despite objections from some agency scientists
March and June 2025: Two boys using the treatment died of acute liver failure
Nov 2025: The FDA issues new warnings and restrictions on Elevidys
trib.al/80pamPt
March and June 2025: Two boys using the treatment died of acute liver failure
Nov 2025: The FDA issues new warnings and restrictions on Elevidys
trib.al/80pamPt
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Between long, often overnight shifts, limited food options, and employers indifferent to employees' health, truckers face unique health challenges and a typical life expectancy of 61.
It doesn't have to be this way, a new digital health program insists.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/t...
It doesn't have to be this way, a new digital health program insists.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/t...
Many truck drivers don't live past 61. Could digital health help?
Many truck drivers don't live past 61. Could digital health help?
trib.al
November 18, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Between long, often overnight shifts, limited food options, and employers indifferent to employees' health, truckers face unique health challenges and a typical life expectancy of 61.
It doesn't have to be this way, a new digital health program insists.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/t...
It doesn't have to be this way, a new digital health program insists.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/t...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Few in the health care industry thought RFK Jr., who sued vaccine companies and trafficked in conspiracy theories, could reach the apex of the U.S. health care system.
Yet here he is.
How Kennedy emerged as a singular force in the Trump administration: www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/r...
Yet here he is.
How Kennedy emerged as a singular force in the Trump administration: www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/r...
How RFK Jr., America's celebrity health secretary, is steamrolling science
RFK Jr. is plowing ahead with sweeping changes to U.S. health care that have thrilled supporters, purged opponents, and horrified critics.
www.statnews.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Few in the health care industry thought RFK Jr., who sued vaccine companies and trafficked in conspiracy theories, could reach the apex of the U.S. health care system.
Yet here he is.
How Kennedy emerged as a singular force in the Trump administration: www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/r...
Yet here he is.
How Kennedy emerged as a singular force in the Trump administration: www.statnews.com/2025/11/18/r...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
RFK Jr. has said he does not want to take vaccines away from Americans. But at a closed-door meeting of vaccine scientists in September, a top official at the FDA suggested doing just that. Here's how Vinay Prasad and Tracy Beth Høeg are reshaping vaccine regulation:
www.statnews.com/2025/11/12/f...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/12/f...
How two top FDA officials are quietly upending vaccine regulations
Vinay Prasad and Tracy Beth Høeg mix skepticism with new ways to define risk in pursuing sweeping changes to vaccine policy at the FDA.
www.statnews.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:42 PM
RFK Jr. has said he does not want to take vaccines away from Americans. But at a closed-door meeting of vaccine scientists in September, a top official at the FDA suggested doing just that. Here's how Vinay Prasad and Tracy Beth Høeg are reshaping vaccine regulation:
www.statnews.com/2025/11/12/f...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/12/f...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Moderna's stock priced has plummeted ~90% from it's highs during Covid. Its flagship mRNA technology being basically "under attack from Washington" certainly doesn't help. But there are other factors at play as well. @jasonmast.bsky.social and STAT's Damian Garde explain @statnews.com
November 14, 2025 at 8:44 PM
Moderna's stock priced has plummeted ~90% from it's highs during Covid. Its flagship mRNA technology being basically "under attack from Washington" certainly doesn't help. But there are other factors at play as well. @jasonmast.bsky.social and STAT's Damian Garde explain @statnews.com
Reposted by Liz Szabo
A wave of lawsuits with novel strategies show that the search for Covid vengeance — and jury awards — has gained force under Trump and Kennedy.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/v...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/v...
With vaccine skeptics in charge, Covid-era lawsuits are nowhere near over
A wave of lawsuits with novel strategies show that the search for Covid vengeance — and jury awards — has gained force under Trump and Kennedy.
www.statnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 2:33 PM
A wave of lawsuits with novel strategies show that the search for Covid vengeance — and jury awards — has gained force under Trump and Kennedy.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/v...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/v...
Thimerosal was only used in 4 percent of vaccines before the CDC vote this summer, and only those in vials containing multiple doses, to prevent bacterial growth
Health secretary RFK Jr. wants other countries to ban the use of the preservative thimerosal in vaccines, despite research showing it is a safe ingredient.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/r...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/r...
RFK Jr.’s warnings on thimerosal in vaccines threaten to instill doubt overseas, experts fear
Health secretary RFK Jr. wants other countries to ban the use of the preservative thimerosal in vaccines, despite research showing it is a safe ingredient.
www.statnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Thimerosal was only used in 4 percent of vaccines before the CDC vote this summer, and only those in vials containing multiple doses, to prevent bacterial growth
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Can GLP-1 drugs treat Alzheimer’s? Novo Nordisk will soon announce key results www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/n...
Can GLP-1 drugs treat Alzheimer’s? Novo Nordisk will soon announce key results
Novo Nordisk will soon announce the results of perhaps the most ambitious studies yet of its GLP-1 drug: whether it can help slow Alzheimer's.
www.statnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Can GLP-1 drugs treat Alzheimer’s? Novo Nordisk will soon announce key results www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/n...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Smoking marijuana can lead to markedly lower short-term alcohol use, according to a first-of-its-kind study. www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/c...
‘California sober’? Cannabis may help limit alcohol consumption, study shows
The first randomized controlled trial of the "California sober" approach suggests marijuana may indeed lessen alcohol consumption.
www.statnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Smoking marijuana can lead to markedly lower short-term alcohol use, according to a first-of-its-kind study. www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/c...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
Every physician needs to have a basic level of AI literacy now. That might require some sort of licensing exam.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/d...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/d...
Every doctor needs a basic level of AI literacy
Every physician needs to have a basic level of AI literacy now. That might require some sort of licensing exam.
www.statnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Every physician needs to have a basic level of AI literacy now. That might require some sort of licensing exam.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/d...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/d...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
The new report reveals that many of the authors and reviewers have been outspoken critics of gender-affirming care and belong to anti-LGBTQ+ groups www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/h...
HHS names authors and releases peer-review comments for gender dysphoria report
The new report reveals that many of the authors and reviewers have been outspoken critics of gender-affirming care and belong to anti-LGBTQ+ groups
www.statnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 11:16 PM
The new report reveals that many of the authors and reviewers have been outspoken critics of gender-affirming care and belong to anti-LGBTQ+ groups www.statnews.com/2025/11/19/h...
Reposted by Liz Szabo
The latest STATUS Report: Inside RFK Jr.’s first nine months leading HHS
www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/r...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/r...
Inside RFK Jr.'s first nine months leading HHS
In this week's STATus Report video, an inside look at RFK Jr.'s first nine months atop HHS, from his management style and work habits to his D.C. lifestyle.
www.statnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:16 PM
The latest STATUS Report: Inside RFK Jr.’s first nine months leading HHS
www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/r...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/20/r...