Joshua Cohen

Boston

Contributor at Forbes

Health economist, researcher and writer on healthcare policy, drug pricing and reimbursement, political centrist, weather nut, diehard Red Sox and Bruins fan.

Articles

Firing Of Vaccine And Cancer Advice Panels Raises Question, What Next?

2 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

WASHINGTON, DC: Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before the ... More Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Capitol Hill on May 20, 2025. Kennedy testified Department of HHS's proposed 2026 fiscal year budget.(Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)Getty ImagesEarlier this year, the National Institutes of Health dismantled the National Cancer Institute’s Board of Scientific Advisors, which had 28 members.
Secretary Of HHS Kennedy Fires Entire CDC’s Vaccine Advisory Committee

2 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, during a Make America Healthy Again ... More Commission event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on Thursday, May 22, 2025. Photographer: Francis Chung/Politico/Bloomberg© 2025 Bloomberg Finance LPSecretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F.
Big Beautiful Bill Looks To Reverse Affordable Care Act Coverage Gains

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

The Affordable Care Act is going through market upheaval as Aetna announces its departure from the ... More program. The budget reconciliation bill in Congress will likely further disrupt and defund the ACA. gettyThe House budget reconciliation bill, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” includes large cuts in Medicaid spending that could lead to millions of newly uninsured individuals if the legislation passes in the Senate.
CBO Says Budget Reconciliation Bill May Add 11 Million Uninsured

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 13: U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffires (D-NY) holds a press conference ... More at the U.S. Capitol. Jeffries spoke out against the Republican budget bill and the potential cuts to safety net programs including Medicaid, Social Security and veterans’ services.
Access To Abortion Pill Mifepristone Could Be Threatened, Again

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

In this photo illustration, packages of mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning ... More clinic. Mifepristone is part of a two-drug regimen to induce an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy in combination with the drug misoprostol. (Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)Getty ImagesThe abortion pill mifepristone is in the crosshairs of politics again, as plaintiffs in several high-profile court cases together with Republican lawmakers push for restrictions.
Trump’s Executive Order To Lower Drug Prices Lacks Crucial Details

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

President Donald Trump signs an executive order. (Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT / AFP) (Photo by ROBERTO ...
Why Blood Test For Early Detection Of Alzheimer’s Disease Matters

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

Set to launch this month, a recently approved blood test to detect biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease could bring diagnosis into everyday clinical practice. In turn, this may support earlier intervention approaches that may help patients, their families and caregivers. The diagnostic, called a Lumipulse G Plasma Ratio test, is the first of its kind to get marketing clearance from the Food and Drug Administration.
Employers Reluctant To Cover Obesity Meds, Lower Costs May Change This

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

A new survey report from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans shows continued reluctance by United States employers to cover glucagon-like peptide-1 drugs for weight loss. Going forward, however, lower net costs may induce better coverage by employers. Makers of GLP-1s for obesity are offering an array of discounts, some to insurers, others directly to patients. The IFEBP first conducted the survey in Oct. 2023 and again in May 2024.
U.S. Departure From WHO Leaves Void Which China Is Partly Filling

3 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

At the May annual meeting of the World Health Organization’s members in Geneva, Switzerland, officials and delegates spoke of the potential disruption that could be caused by the organization’s budget crisis. They expressed concerned about possible program cuts that could lead to substantial increases in burden of disease and deaths globally.
Subtle Differences Emerge Between FDA And CDC On COVID Vaccine Advice

4 weeks ago | forbes.com | Joshua Cohen

In a major policy shift last month, Food and Drug Administration officials proposed requiring new clinical trial research with respect to the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in healthy people under 65, including pregnant women, before issuing an updated approval for a broader population. At the same time, in an update to its immunization schedule posted May 29th, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention include the option of COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women.