Insurers have pledged to streamline prior authorization processes, but medical associations and patient advocacy groups say little has changed a year later. Some insurers have eliminated prior authorization requirements for some services and improved their capacity for real-time status checks, and three new measures are scheduled to be implemented in January, with more to follow.

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A new American Hospital Association report based on data from Vizient shows that survival rates in US hospitals have increased 30% since 2019, central line-associated bloodstream infections have decreased 24%, and urinary tract infections linked to catheters decreased 25%, as of mid-2025. Breast and colon cancer screenings increased 95% over the study period, according to the report.

Nearly 40% of adults over age 50 brought a companion with them to health care appointments, and more than 90% said it was helpful, according to a University of Michigan poll. Companions help with transportation and communication, and are often a spouse, partner or adult child.

A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found the rate of parents refusing vitamin K shots for newborns increased from less than 3% in 2017 to more than 5% in 2024. Researchers found that about 4% of babies did not receive the shots from 2017 to 2024. The CDC has said that compared with infants who get the shot, those who do not get vitamin K shortly after birth have a more than 80 times higher risk of developing bleeding from vitamin K deficiency.

All-cause mortality was 25% lower among adults younger than 60 who received at least one dose of a messenger RNA COVID-19 vaccine over a median follow-up of 45 months, compared with those who were not vaccinated, according to a nationwide cohort study in France. The reduced risk persisted even after adjusting for age, comorbidities and socioeconomic differences, with a weighted hazard ratio of 0.75. The protective effect was most pronounced within the first six to nine months after vaccination and gradually declined but remained significant throughout the study period.

Some patients in North Carolina have received unexpected bills for self-administered questionnaires assessing mental health and social drivers of health needs. Novant Health began charging for these surveys in 2024 and connecting patients to resources if needed, but patients say they were not informed of the charges before completing the questionnaires. Some commercial insurers expect such screenings to be included in the total visit charge and will not pay a separate fee.

Research reported in the journal Epidemiology, which included almost 200,000 privately insured schoolchildren in California, found that their mental health improved after schools reopened for in-person learning in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The likelihood of a child being seen for mental health conditions dropped 43% nine months after schools reopened.

Pediatricians and health institutions are rejecting a recommendation from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to limit hepatitis B