Latest Insights & Analysis

Stay updated with the latest public health research, commentary, and field notes from our editorial team.

Featured Story

Why Are American Kids Getting Sicker?

May 23, 2025 · 5 min read

Edit: June 2, 2025. And now we learn that many of the citations in this report are fabricated. That is, they don’t exist. Of course. Why RFK is a Broken Clock. More than 40% of kids in the U.S. now have at least one chronic illness. That’s not a typo. According to the “Make Our […]

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Commentary

From Data-Driven to Data-Informed

In public health, data has become the cornerstone of our work. Whether it’s tracking disease outbreaks, measuring health disparities, or evaluating program outcomes, the demand for data has never been greater. Buzzwords like “data-driven decision-making” are often celebrated as the gold standard. But as public health professionals, we know the world isn’t as simple as […]

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Health equity

Hidden Costs of Preventive Care: Why Understanding Patient Demographics Matters

When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was introduced, it promised to make preventive care free for many Americans. This exemption from cost-sharing for services like cancer screenings, diabetes tests, and cholesterol checks aimed to improve health equity. But new research sheds light on a troubling reality: unexpected out-of-pocket (OOP) costs continue to affect many patients, […]

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Policy

Did Philadelphia’s Soda Tax Help Kids Lose Weight?

When Philadelphia implemented its soda tax in 2017, many hoped it would be a game-changer in the fight against childhood obesity. The logic seemed simple: tax sugary drinks, reduce consumption, and improve health outcomes for kids. But did it work? A new study provides some surprising answers, challenging assumptions and sparking questions about the most […]

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Funding

How New York’s Ground Ambulance Law Impacted Emergency Prices

Imagine being in a medical emergency, vulnerable, and unable to choose your ground ambulance provider. When the ambulance arrives, the last thing on your mind is whether it’s in-network. This was the reality for many people until New York took a bold step in 2015 by enacting surprise billing regulations to shield patients from unexpected […]

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Health equity

How FIFA’s Playbook Could Revolutionize Global Health Equity

When you think about FIFA, global health probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, a recent article suggests (will download a .pdf) that the international governing body of soccer could offer valuable lessons for achieving fairer benefit-sharing in global health. Specifically, the authors propose adapting FIFA’s training compensation and solidarity mechanisms to […]

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PubTrawlr News

Next Week in Public Health, November 29, 2024

It’s been a doozy of a month. We’re on the cusp of a major policy change in public health in America, and it’s not clear how to move forward yet. We’ll be talking to people, consulting the literature, and basically doing what we have to do to make all people can achieve wellness, broadly defined. […]

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Global

Global Immunization Recovery: Renewed Efforts to Rebuild Health Systems for a Safer Future

The COVID-19 pandemic left a deep mark on global health systems, unraveling years of hard-won achievements in childhood immunization. With a virus suddenly at the forefront, routine health services, including vital immunization programs, faced major disruptions. As we recover, public health experts and governments worldwide are grappling with the task of restoring, and perhaps surpassing, […]

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Implementation

Reimagining Implementation Science: From Label to Reliable Impact

For years, public health professionals have searched for ways to bridge the gap between proven health innovations and practical, everyday implementation that leads to real-world benefits. This idea—the pursuit of ensuring impactful use of evidence-based practices in health settings—is encapsulated in a field known as implementation science. Yet, despite its critical goal, implementation science often […]

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