Proposed Changes to Demographic Data Collection in the Census Could Impact Efforts to Address Health and Health Care Disparities Authors: Drishti Pillai and Samantha Artiga Published: Sep 25, 2026

https://www.kff.org/racial-equity-and-health-policy/proposed-changes-to-demographic-data-collection-in-the-census-could-impact-efforts-to-address-health-and-health-care-disparities/?utm_campaign=KFF-Racial-Equity-Health-Policy&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--m--NZLzMWemOiEQI1ovzrrspPYi1aSNw5zcZ59QnBzF4ageE_uQpC0d9bGhYa_ZwRbmjBFjTm0Y8-lNunby4H_ajrvA&_hsmi=440966185&utm_content=440966185&utm_source=hs_email KFF Examines Proposed Changes to the U.S. Census That Could Decrease Federal Funding and Reduce Representation in Congress for States with Large Immigrant Populations A new KFF issue brief explains how major changes to the U.S. Census proposed by the Trump administration would negatively affect states with large immigrant populations and undermine research on racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care. Contact: Chris Lee | 202.654.1403 | ChrisL@kff.org The proposed Census changes would effectively prohibit the counting of many noncitizen immigrants, including undocumented immigrants and some lawfully present immigrants, and ban the inclusion of questions on race and ethnicity from the decennial census. The potential exclusion of millions of noncitizen immigrants from apportionment counts could lead to the reallocation of congressional seats and reduce political representation for states with large immigrant populations, such as California, Texas, and Florida. It also could lead to decreased federal Medicaid funding for such states, since the federal government’s share of most Medicaid expenditures is based in part on a formula that takes into account a state’s per capita income -- and the noncitizens who would no longer be counted are disproportionately likely to have lower incomes. That could mean higher state expenditures for states such as Florida and Texas. California is less likely to be affected in this way because the federal government already covers the lowest share of costs allowed under the formula (50%). Banning questions about race and ethnicity would eliminate a key source of data researchers use to understand population demographics and to ensure surveys are nationally representative. It would also limit the ability to examine trends over time, since the data will not be comparable to earlier versions

Viewpoints: How Much AI Is Too Much For Med Students?; Change In Counting Method For Measles Deaths Creates Confusion

https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/viewpoints-how-much-ai-is-too-much-for-med-students-change-in-counting-method-for-measles-deaths-creates-confusion/

Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed

Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed Each week, KFF Health News finds longer stories for you to read. Today's selections are on 9/11, menthol cigarettes, C. diff, and more. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/longer-looks-interesting-reads-you-might-have-missed-275/

Maine Governor Criticizes Prime Healthcare's Nurse Firings Ahead Of Union Vote

Maine Governor Criticizes Prime Healthcare's Nurse Firings Ahead Of Union Vote Central Maine Medical Center, a Prime Healthcare hospital, is under fire for what is being seen as retaliatory firings and suspensions of 20 nurses in the run-up to an election around the formation of a nurses union, Fierce Healthcare reported. Democratic Gov. Janet Mills called the hospital's decision “unconscionable.” On Thursday night, nurses voted overwhelmingly to form a union, WMTW reported. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/health-industry-092526/

Man Shot During 2024 Trump Assassination Attempt In Pennsylvania Has Died

Man Shot During 2024 Trump Assassination Attempt In Pennsylvania Has Died A lawyer for James Copenhaver, 76, did not say whether the death was related to the gunshot wounds he suffered at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. More news is about H-1B visa petitions, separation pay for transgender service members, legal action over mifepristone, and a crackdown on compounded GLP-1s. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/administration-news-092526/

Anthropic's AI Just Made Its First Scientific Discovery: A New Enzyme System

Anthropic's AI Just Made Its First Scientific Discovery: A New Enzyme System Biologists at Anthropic said Wednesday that they used AI to uncover viral genes that produce enzymes that function in previously unknown ways. This discovery is the first for the lab, which opened in the spring. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/science-and-innovations-092526/

San Francisco's New HIV Cases Dropped 75% Over Past 20 Years, Reaching Record Low

San Francisco's New HIV Cases Dropped 75% Over Past 20 Years, Reaching Record Low While a report shows the lowest new infection rate of the past 20 years — a testament to the success of antiviral medications — the city's effort to end the AIDS epidemic is still challenging. Reaching its goal — no new infections — requires meeting the needs of the hardest-hit communities that struggle with access to health care, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/state-watch-092526/