A long list this time!

Headlines selected for relevance.

https://www.medpagetoday.com/practicemanagement/reimbursement/117156

Major Hospital Dumps United Healthcare; Fewer Qualified Docs; Alcohol and Hair Loss

— Health news and commentary gathered by MedPage Today staff

August 26, 2025

Note that some links may require registration or subscription.

Doctors at Johns Hopkins Medicine stopped taking in-network insurance from UnitedHealthcare after Hopkins and the health insurer failed to reach an agreement this week. (Fox 5 News)

The National Cancer Institute will stop funding a 26-year-old collaboration to accelerate pediatric brain tumor treatments. (Fierce Biotech)

And HHS is terminating an NIH grant program that supported students from marginalized backgrounds in biomedical sciences. (STAT)

Nearly two in three physicians said there were not enough qualified doctors to fill openings in their area, survey data showed. (Axios)

School nurses are being forced to confront anti-vaccine parents as skepticism rises. (USA Today)

Sugary drinks and alcoholic beverages were linked with hair loss in a systematic review. (Nutrition and Health)

A RAND study found that popular AI chatbots were inconsistent in responding to suicide-related queries. (ABC News)

Maternal depression appeared to be triggered by fluctuations in children's depression symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic, but not vice versa. (JAMA Pediatrics)

Several major companies won a lawsuit accusing them of designing ultra-processed foods to be addictive to kids. (Reuters)

A genetically modified pig lung was transplanted into a brain-dead man in China and functioned for 9 days. (Nature Medicine)

University of Michigan Health will end gender-affirming care services for minors under 19. (TPM)

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration announced $43 million in supplemental funding to expand recovery housing services for young adults.

Harvard's medical research is facing setbacks amid the federal funding freeze. (New York Times)

A judge denied a request from a network of Maine clinics to force the federal government to restore Medicaid funding, following cuts to abortion providers. (AP)

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will have nearly complete authority in determining who gets kicked off Medicaid. (Mother Jones)

Many of America's healthcare giants are filing for bankruptcy. (Newsweek)

The Idaho Supreme Court weighed in on a lawsuit filed by a Boise man against his neurosurgeon over a $184,000 medical lien. (Idaho Statesman via MSN)

Suicide deaths by firearm among older women are increasing. (JAMA Network Open)

About sugar and alcohol links to hair loss, though.

Stress causes hair loss. How do they know stressed people aren't self-medicating with sugar and alcohol, making these substances a corollary rather than causative?