Nurses at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center are among nearly 15,000 striking nurses in New York City, as hospital administrators and union officials prepare for a prolonged conflict over staffing levels and pay. The ongoing strike highlights significant tensions in the healthcare sector regarding labor conditions.

Kaiser Permanente has agreed to pay $556 million to settle claims of overbilling Medicare by approximately $1 billion, as accused by the Justice Department and whistle-blowers, including Dr. James Taylor, a former physician and coding expert for the company. Dr. Taylor described the company's financial practices as driven by an insatiable desire for profit.

Former President Trump has announced a cut of $2 billion in federal funding for mental health and substance abuse services, impacting over 2,000 programs across the United States, as communicated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. This decision was made public late Tuesday, with significant implications for service providers and individuals relying on these essential services.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reinstated hundreds of employees from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) after a significant number were placed on administrative leave by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. last April. This decision affects approximately 90 percent of the nearly 1,000 NIOSH employees.

Initial enrollment in Obamacare has dropped by 1.4 million, primarily due to the expiration of premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), leading to increased costs for consumers. This decline highlights the challenges faced by individuals seeking affordable healthcare coverage in the current market environment.

He Jiankui, known for creating gene-edited babies, has returned to work after serving three years in prison. He argues that his actions were a reflection of being ahead of his time in a society unprepared for his vision of gene editing.

Researchers are increasingly concerned about the spread of bird flu viruses, particularly following the Agriculture Department's announcement of the first detection of the virus in a dairy herd in Wisconsin. This marks the third instance of the virus transferring from wildlife to dairy cattle in the state last year, highlighting a troubling trend.

Psilocybin-assisted therapy has been legalized in three states, yet access remains limited and costly, as evidenced by Dr. Bonny Koeber preparing a therapy room with sage for a patient traveling from New York to Satya Therapeutics in Ashland, Oregon.

Medical groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, are mobilizing to oppose the C.D.C.'s revised childhood vaccine schedule, which reduces the recommended vaccines from 17 to 11. They argue that this decision lacks scientific backing and poses a risk to public health. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Health Department's bypassing of established protocols has raised significant concerns among health professionals.