Stacey Abrams

And in the wake of COVID-19, now more than ever, we should understand how vital and essential healthcare as a human right is. So while fighting to protect and improve healthcare in this country is not new, here are some of the ways that healthcare may be impacted by the next administration.

And in the wake of COVID-19, now more than ever, we should understand how vital and essential healthcare as a human right is. So while fighting to protect and improve healthcare in this country is not new, here are some of the ways that healthcare may be impacted by the next administration.

One, there is an intent to dismantle or gut the Department of Health and Human Services, which is one of our nation's core agencies. And let's be clear, HHS, as it's called, has a very broad mandate.

One, there is an intent to dismantle or gut the Department of Health and Human Services, which is one of our nation's core agencies. And let's be clear, HHS, as it's called, has a very broad mandate.

It's in charge of Medicare, Medicaid, the healthcare marketplace, the Children's Health Insurance Program, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They also cover the human services side. So TANF, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Head Start, childcare and child support, and that's not an exhaustive list.

It's in charge of Medicare, Medicaid, the healthcare marketplace, the Children's Health Insurance Program, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They also cover the human services side. So TANF, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Head Start, childcare and child support, and that's not an exhaustive list.

HHS is under attack. Number two, they want to split the CDC into two agencies, one for data collection and one for public policy recommendations. And this effectively takes away the already limited authority of the CDC to provide public health guidance.

HHS is under attack. Number two, they want to split the CDC into two agencies, one for data collection and one for public policy recommendations. And this effectively takes away the already limited authority of the CDC to provide public health guidance.

It slows emergency response, and it could hurt state and local governments that rely on the CDC for public health guidance, for example, in the case of another pandemic. Number three, they want to tinker with the Food and Drug Administration's drug approval process. For example, take away the approval for mifeprestone.

It slows emergency response, and it could hurt state and local governments that rely on the CDC for public health guidance, for example, in the case of another pandemic. Number three, they want to tinker with the Food and Drug Administration's drug approval process. For example, take away the approval for mifeprestone.

And number four, at the state level, the goal is to turn Medicaid, the vital national health care program that covers the poor, the elderly,

And number four, at the state level, the goal is to turn Medicaid, the vital national health care program that covers the poor, the elderly,

the disabled, and some children to turn that program into block grants, which means that states would have further permission to deny access to healthcare to the most vulnerable in our society because states would have less money and limited federal accountability. Okay, so I've just done a very long list of what's at stake.

the disabled, and some children to turn that program into block grants, which means that states would have further permission to deny access to healthcare to the most vulnerable in our society because states would have less money and limited federal accountability. Okay, so I've just done a very long list of what's at stake.

And it's not just about what's in the proposed policy papers from Project 2025. It's about who Trump wants to put in charge of that vast agency.

And it's not just about what's in the proposed policy papers from Project 2025. It's about who Trump wants to put in charge of that vast agency.

The incoming president's decision to nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be the Secretary of Health and Human Services is indeed a source of much anxiety in the medical and scientific communities. So much so that Nobel laureates, a group that usually tries to stay out of politics, felt compelled to speak up. But there are other nominees. As I mentioned, HHS is huge.

The incoming president's decision to nominate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be the Secretary of Health and Human Services is indeed a source of much anxiety in the medical and scientific communities. So much so that Nobel laureates, a group that usually tries to stay out of politics, felt compelled to speak up. But there are other nominees. As I mentioned, HHS is huge.

So among the list of people whose names are being put forward include Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Marty Makary as the head of the FDA, both of whom have been controversial, to say the least, in their respective medical practices. I've just given you a lot of information.

So among the list of people whose names are being put forward include Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Marty Makary as the head of the FDA, both of whom have been controversial, to say the least, in their respective medical practices. I've just given you a lot of information.