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The number of Texans who paid for the first month of their Affordable Care Act coverage dropped 4% this year, the state’s first year-over-year decline since 2019, according to a first nationwide glimpse at how coverage through the federal marketplace is shaking out this year. (Birenbaum and Keemahill, 7/9)

More than 22,000 people enrolled in Affordable Care Act health plans in Connecticut in 2026 lost coverage in the first six months of the year after failing to make their premium payments — a 75% increase over the same period last year, according to data from Access Health CT. (Golvala, 7/10)

Alameda Health System, Alameda County’s safety net healthcare provider, has rescinded its decision to lay off 92 employees — a cost-cutting move that doctors and other workers had decried for months — after the county allocated $19.3 million to avoid the cuts. The county Board of Supervisors last month passed a budget for fiscal 2026-27 that includes $19.3 million to prevent the layoffs and extend a behavioral health program that had been slated to close. (Ho, 7/9)

Sturgis Hospital shuttered its doors June 19, citing “years of ongoing financial challenges” facing rural health care providers. The facility had 84 licensed beds and about 300 associates working, according to the hospital. There were warning signs. The facility had been winding down services in recent years, even as it obtained a city-issued pandemic relief loan, a state lifeline and new federal status — Sturgis Hospital became Michigan’s first designated rural emergency hospital in 2023, which allows for increased support from the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. It’s not the only rural hospital in Michigan to be impacted by a shifting health care landscape. (Newman, 7/9)

A longtime Anne Arundel County philanthropic family has donated $10 million to Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis. The donation, announced Wednesday, is one of the hospital’s largest philanthropic investments in its nearly 125-year history. (Bhat, 7/9)

�������ýҕ�l Health News: A New Option For Long-Term Care Costs

Kelly Haggett figures that a mandatory surcharge added to Washington state’s payroll tax cost her about $500 last year. But she doesn’t really mind. “On a scale of 1 to 10 of my annoyance with taxes in general, this one is about a 2,” she said. “I see the benefits.” The small surcharge on wages provides the funding for Washington Cares, the nation’s first state-operated program for long-term care insurance. It was set to begin distributing benefits July 1. (Span, 7/10)

One of the head-scratchers in California’s attempt to levy a one-time wealth tax is why Planned Parenthood, which usually links arms with other progressive institutions, is siding with California billionaires and Gov. Gavin Newsom in opposing the measure. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, who supports the tax, called it “the moral fight of our time for the party.” (Garofoli, 7/9)

A couple of years ago, a reporter approached the Boys’ Club of New York looking to interview some of its middle-schoolers for a story about the mental health crisis in boys. (Merelli, 7/10)

New York makes an unusual promise to its residents: Its constitution says the state must provide “aid, care and support for the needy.” But for at least the fourth time in almost 40 years, the state is being sued for failing to live up to this commitment by putting impoverished families at risk of homelessness. (Norris, 7/9)

New York’s attorney general sued several large chemical and agricultural companies on Thursday, alleging they knowingly sold harmful so-called forever chemicals used in cosmetics, non-stick cookware and other products. The lawsuit against 3M, DuPont de Nemours, The Chemours Company and Corteva and other manufacturers is the latest legal action over PFAS, which have been linked to an increased risk of certain cancers and developmental delays in children. (7/9)

A report from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) shows Iowa had 36 nitrate-related drinking water violations in 2025, which is more than double the number reported in 2024. (Koons, 7/9)

At age 15, Jessica Kahigian was playing nearly every sport she could: soccer, basketball, and lacrosse. So she said she was surprised when she went in for routine blood work and found out she needed a kidney transplant. (Richardson, 7/9)