During a recent visit to tribal communities in Arizona and New Mexico this week, US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr emphasized the importance of preventing chronic disease among the Native American and Alaska Native population. Is it targeting them? Because behind the scenes, a crucial health initiative that had long served those very communities is being dismantled. This will leave many tribal leaders alarmed and confused.

The initiative in question, Healthy Tribes, was part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and allocated $32.5 million annually to support culturally grounded programs focused on chronic disease prevention through traditional foods, medicine, and community engagement. As of early April, the program was also gutted due to workforce reductions at the CDC. Emails to tribal health organizations also confirmed that positions central to administering Healthy Tribes were in fact, being eliminated.

A Silent Rollback That Said A Lot

Kennedy’s public appearances, including a hike with the Navajo Nation president and a visit to a Native health center in Phoenix, made no mention of the program’s fate. He also moderated a panel at the Tribal Self-Governance Conference but avoided public questions. While he has said Native health is a top priority, his silence on the abrupt restructuring of Healthy Tribes has drawn criticism.

Tribal leaders now fear the rollback is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. However, Native leaders have pushed back against being categorized as such, asserting that tribal support is a legal obligation under treaties and federal law—not a diversity measure.

'A Violation of Trust'

The federal government has a trust responsibility to tribal nations, which includes ensuring access to healthcare, education, and public safety. Leaders like W. Ron Allen of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe call the recent cuts “a violation of trust.” He said he reminded Kennedy during their private conversation that tribes are already underfunded and rely heavily on supplementary programs like Healthy Tribes.

One of the key concerns is the lack of tribal consultation—a legal requirement for federal actions affecting Native communities. Tribes were not consulted before the layoffs, echoing similar frustrations after mass terminations at the Indian Health Service earlier this year were temporarily rescinded following backlash.

What Is The Ground-Level Reality?

For tribal health facilities, these cuts have an immediate and grave implications.

For instance, in Seattle, Healthy Tribes funded GATHER. This was a program that blended traditional medicine with modern care. Plants from community gardens were also used in this treatment, and traditional healers worked alongside clinical staff. However, now, he communication with the grant administrators has been broken down.

In Los Angeles, Healthy Tribes funds youth-elder mentorship programs among Native and Alaska Native communities. The abrupt staffing changes have left administrators unclear about how or if these initiatives will at all continue.

Native leaders stress that their status is political, not racial, a key legal distinction. “We are not DEI,” said Gila River Indian Community Governor Stephen Roe Lewis, warning new federal officials against viewing tribes through a racial equity lens rather than honoring treaty-based obligations.

For now, tribal communities remain in limbo—concerned that Kennedy’s words on improving Native health aren’t matching federal actions that could ultimately set them back.

The uncertainty around the Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine has been exacerbated by the Trump administration. The new government has imposed new requirements on the nation's only traditional protein-based vaccine. These new requirements have led to many confusions about vaccine updates, including other vaccines too, which await approval.

The Wait For Full Approval Is Too Long

Novavax is the maker of the protein-based COVID-19 vaccine, which was on track to receive full approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by April 1. However, the approval process was paused because of Dr Sara Brenner, the FDA's acting commissioner. The reason for delay has raised many questions about the interference, including political, especially after Dr Peter Marks, FDA's longtime vaccine chief had left following disagreements with Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. These events have further led to the apprehensions of uncertainty regarding the vaccine's future.

As of now, Novavax's vaccine is only authorized for emergency use. Unlike mRNA vaccines form Pfizer and Moderna, which have full approval, the Novavax vaccine holds the EUA or the Emergency Use Authorization, which allows it to be distributed during public health emergencies. However, once the emergency ends, the FDA can remove these vaccines from market unless full approval is granted.

What Caused The Delay?

The FDA had initially planned to approve Novavax's vaccine by its April 1 target date. However, sources familiar with the situation revealed that Trump appointees influenced the delay. Since then, Novavax has been in discussions with the FDA to determine additional requirements for approval. In the meantime, the FDA's recent comments have fueled concerns that Novavax’s vaccine may be treated as a “new product” due to its updates to match last year’s coronavirus strain. This would require new clinical trials, a process unlikely to be completed before the fall.

ALSO READ: Novavax Says FDA Approval Back on Track for Its COVID Vaccine

This approach to Novavax’s vaccine approval stands in stark contrast to the FDA’s treatment of the mRNA vaccines, where annual strain updates have been handled in a way similar to flu vaccines, requiring only small-scale tests to demonstrate the vaccine’s continued effectiveness against new strains. Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert, argued that it would be unnecessary to treat these annual updates as “new products” requiring full trials, as long as the updated vaccines show that they produce protective antibody levels.

Role Of HHS Secretary

Of course Robert F Kennedy Jr will have a role to play, being the Health Secretary, and a known vaccine skeptic. Despite claiming in recent speeches that he is not anti-vaccine, Kennedy’s past associations with anti-vaccine groups have raised alarms. His nonprofit, Children’s Health Defense, has been involved in campaigns questioning vaccine safety, and Kennedy himself has made public statements suggesting that vaccines can cause autism—a long-debunked claim.

His actions have also contributed to the uncertainty that surrounds the Novavax's approval today and the overall direction of US vaccine policies.

Is Novavax Different From Other Vaccines?

What sets Novavax apart from other COVID-19 vaccines is its traditional approach. While Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA vaccines use genetic instructions to create a temporary version of the virus’ spike protein, Novavax’s vaccine contains lab-grown copies of the spike protein itself. This approach has been used for decades in vaccines for diseases like hepatitis B and shingles, making it a more familiar method for people who may be hesitant about mRNA vaccines.

Danish multinational pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has launched Wegovy in Thailand, marking the entry of its hugely popular weight loss drug in Southeast Asian market. First launched in 2021, Wegovy helped make Novo Nordisk Europe's most valuable listed company until recently, worth $615 billion at its peak. Wegovy is a semaglutide shot, which means that it is a GLP-1 receptor agonist.

"We actually received the Thai FDA approval already in 2023," said Enrico Canal Bruland, vice president and general manager of Novo's Thai subsidiary. He noted that Novo was making Wegovy available in Thailand ahead of rival Eli Lilly's Zepbound. Wegovy is currently available for prescription in private hospitals around the country and will be available soon in public hospitals. Notably, Bruland declined to provide details on Wegovy's pricing in Thailand, which has a population of around 66 million, or Novo Nordisk's plans for expansion into other Southeast Asian markets.

Notably, the most popular GLP-1 agonist Ozempic was also created by Novo Nordisk. Earlier this month, the pharma giant expanded its research in the field diabetes and weight loss drug and announced that its diabetes pill, Rybelsus, demonstrated cardiovascular benefits in a late-stage trial. The findings pave the way for the medication to become a new treatment option for people living with both diabetes and heart disease.

How Do Semaglutides Work?

Semglutide is the synthetic version of GLP-1—a natural hormone produced in the intestines that regulates blood sugar, appetite, and digestion. Now, every time you eat, your body produces various hormones, including GLP-1. These are called Post nutrition hormones, and help you absorb the energy you just consumed.

GLP-1 travels to your pancreas, prompting it to produce insulin. It also travels to the hypothalamus in your brain, which gives you the feeling of being full or satiated. Ozempic imitates this hormone, thereby, silencing the food chatter in the brain. Interestingly, for some people this food chatter is really quiet ( people with low appetite) and for others it is an outbrurst, (people who generally binge eat.) So with Ozempic, silencing this self-talk in the brain, people tend to lose their appetite and eventually weight.

However, it is important to note that losing weight includes not just fat but muscle as well. Losing too much muscle can lead to reduced strength and a shorter life span. Notably, records show that most people who start taking them stop it at 12 weeks; therefore, it is important for some but not for others.

Notably, last month, US pharma major Eli Lilly launched the obesity management drug Mounjaro in India at one-fifth of the US price. The company rolled out the drug in a single-dose vial following the marketing authorisation from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO). It has been priced at Rs 3,500 for a 2.5 mg vial and Rs 4,375 for a 5 mg vial. "It is a first-of-its-kind treatment for obesity, overweight, and type 2 diabetes that activates both GIP (glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide) and GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1) hormone receptors," the company said.

One moment, Dr Cornelius Sullivan was focused on a patient during surgery, and the next moment, he woke up in ambulance, headed to the emergency room.

According to the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), Dr Sullivan had struck his head on a monitor that had been moved behind him in a surgery center. This serious accident had resulted in a two-night hospital stay and kept him away from work for weeks. However, this is not the first time he had suffered a work-related injury. This is, in fact, the third time this has happened, noted ASA.

"Boom Strikes"

These injuries are often called "boom strikes". These occur when anesthesiologists accidentally bump into operating room (OR) equipment that is mounted on fixed or moveable arms. These could be monitors, lights, or screens.

While any OR staff member could be hurt this way, anesthesiologists are particularly more vulnerable to such injuries. Their work requires them to operate in tight, also, often crowded spaces. It also requires them to move quickly during emergencies, which further increases the risk of collision with equipment.

Why The Problem Is Growing?

As per ASA, the risk of boom strikes have been on the rise. This is also because of an increase in sophisticated equipment being added to operating rooms and surgeries are also now performed in much smaller spaces.

As per a survey conducted by the organization, it was found that more than half of anesthesiologists reported experiencing at least one work-related injury, including head injuries. These numbers have highlighted the growing concern over physical safety in an already demanding and high-pressure environment.

Can New Guidelines Improve Safety?

In response to these alarming findings, the ASA has issued a new Statement on Anesthesiologist Head Injuries in Anesthetizing Locations.

The statement formally recognizes boom strikes as a serious occupational hazard and even a potential medical emergency — especially dangerous during outpatient procedures or in cases where no backup anesthesiologist is immediately available to take over patient care.

Dr. Mary Ann Vann, chair of ASA's Ad Hoc Committee on the Physical Demands of Anesthesiologists, also experienced a work-related head injury. Drawing from personal experience, Dr. Vann helped develop the new safety recommendations, aimed at preventing such incidents.

What Have Been The Key Recommendations?

The ASA outlined several measures to reduce the risk of head injuries among anesthesiologists, including:

Holding Regular Safety Meetings: OR teams should meet frequently to discuss safety concerns and review past incidents.

Creating Safety Teams: Special teams should be tasked with reviewing and tracking reports of boom strikes to identify patterns and solutions.

Involving Anesthesia Staff in Room Planning: Clinical anesthesia personnel should have a voice when designing or rearranging procedure rooms to ensure equipment placement considers movement and space needs.

Tracking Head Injuries: Systematic documentation of head injuries can help health systems better understand causes and outcomes, leading to more informed prevention strategies.

The ASA emphasized that head injuries in the OR are not just minor accidents but events that can have serious consequences for patient safety and anesthesiologists’ health.

By implementing the new guidelines and raising awareness, the ASA hopes to make operating rooms safer environments for all medical professionals — and ensure that anesthesiologists can continue their vital work without unnecessary risk.