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As a practical matter, it’s not normal for Senators to tussle with the nation’s top health official. But amid a spiraling, three-hour hearing on Thursday, Senators from both parties couldn’t hide their aggravation with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose tumultuous defense of his alienation of top health officials, abrupt changes in vaccine policies, and even his own continued employment was both a low point for public health and a reminder that, as much as lawmakers object to his bedside manner, they are the ones who installed him and preserve his gig.

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RFK Jr. found his place in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet in no small measure thanks to his reputation as a skeptic of vaccines. The chamber’s Republicans—save for Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, himself a polio survivor—confirmed him to his pow..

This article is part of The D.C. Brief, TIME’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to get stories like this sent to your inbox.

As a practical matter, it’s not normal for Senators to tussle with the nation’s top health official. But amid a spiraling, three-hour hearing on Thursday, Senators from both parties couldn’t hide their aggravation with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose tumultuous defense of his alienation of top health officials, abrupt changes in vaccine policies, and even his own continued employment was both a low point for public health and a reminder that, as much as lawmakers object to his bedside manner, they are the ones who installed him and preserve his gig.

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RFK Jr. found his place in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet in no small measure thanks to his reputation as a skeptic of vaccines. The chamber’s Republicans—save for Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, himself a polio survivor—confirmed him to his pow..

Private citizens may soon be able to sue people who send abortion pills to patients in Texas, under a recently passed bill that furthers the state’s effort to crack down on abortion.

HB 7 passed both chambers of the Republican-controlled state legislature in recent days, and the bill now heads to the desk of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who has publicly expressed anti-abortion views and is widely expected to sign it into law. If he does, the law would go into effect in December, and would be the first of its kind in the country.

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“Texas is a first mover here,” says Elizabeth Sepper, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law. “I think this is yet another tool that probably lots of states will take up and think about in 2026.”

Texas has one of the strictest abortion restrictions in the country: The state has banned abortion in almost all cases, and already allows private citizens to sue people, including providers, who help patient..

When the fitness company Peloton added weighted-vest classes to its streaming exercise offerings in May 2025, its members rejoiced, says instructor Rebecca Kennedy. “They were like, ‘Finally! You answered my prayers’!” she laughs. “The appetite has been really wild.”

Strapping extra weight to your body while working out is nothing new; the practice of “rucking”—walking with a weighted backpack—has roots in military training and has been shown to help improve endurance and build muscle power and stamina.

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But wearing a weighted vest to exercise has surged in popularity over the last few years, with the global market for weighted vests predicted to grow from $199 million in 2024 to $313 million by 2031.

Adding mechanical load onto your skeleton means your muscles have to work harder for support, Kennedy says. “Our metabolic output naturally increases, because the load is heavier. We’re getting higher use of oxygen, we’re burning more calories, we hav..

While questions swirl about the health of America’s 79-year-old President, who has openly pondered whether he’ll get to heaven, China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, both 72, were caught Wednesday discussing living longer, and possibly, forever.

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In a hot mic moment livestreamed by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV during a major military parade in Beijing, the two leaders, who have each brushed past previous term limits to hold on to power in their respective countries, bantered about longevity and the potential for medical advancements.

“In the past, we used to say that very rarely people lived to 70, but these days at 70 years old you’re still a child,” a Russian translator of Xi could be heard telling Putin.

“In a few years, with the development of biotechnology, human organs can be constantly transplanted so that people can live younger and younger, and even become immortal,” Putin responded, according to a Chinese translator.

Xi then pr..

California, Oregon, and Washington announced on Wednesday that they are creating a health alliance that will share “credible information” about vaccine safety and efficacy, at a time when the federal health agency tasked with releasing vaccine guidance has been thrown into chaos.

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In a joint statement, the Democratic governors of the three West Coast states said the alliance was meant “to ensure residents remain protected by science, not politics.” The governors slammed the Trump Administration’s “dismantling” of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“President Donald Trump’s mass firing of CDC doctors and scientists—and his blatant politicization of the agency—is a direct assault on the health and safety of the American people,” the governors said. “The CDC has become a political tool that increasingly peddles ideology instead of science, ideology that will lead to severe health consequences. California, Oregon, and Washington will no..