- LGBTQ RightsHealthcareColorado legislators introduced House Bill 26-1322 to create a private right of action allowing survivors of conversion therapy to sue for harm, giving LGBTQ+ people a new legal path to hold practitioners accountable after the Supreme Court ruling.
- HealthcareLGBTQ RightsThe State Senate moved to set aside funds to protect Medicaid coverage for transgender minors’ health care amid federal threats to block such care.
- HealthcareEducationMassachusettsMassachusetts lawmakers are moving a $10 million pilot to cover UMass Chan medical school tuition for students who commit to practicing family medicine in the state, expanding access to primary care.
- HealthcareStates are moving to add folic acid to corn tortillas to close a major health gap and prevent birth defects, a public-health win.
- HealthcareDemocracyEconomic JusticeTwo-thirds of voters favor using $200 billion for domestic priorities such as health care instead of funding the war in Iran, marking a clear public win for progressive domestic spending.
- HealthcareNew YorkA proven Medicaid model that improves health outcomes is gaining traction in New York, offering a scalable, cost-effective approach to reform the state’s largest public health program.
- HealthcareThe FDA approved a high-dose regimen of SPINRAZA (nusinersen), providing people living with spinal muscular atrophy access to an expanded, potentially more effective treatment option.
- HealthcareDemocrats have quietly launched a coordinated effort to undo Trump-era health-care rollbacks and build momentum toward larger progressive health reforms.
- HealthcareDespite being half-deaf in one ear and having blurred vision in one eye, Elliot Cadeau has overcome those challenges to lead Michigan’s potent offense and produce his best season as the Wolverines’ point guard.
- HealthcareThe state launched PlayWell, its own program to help problem gamblers—replacing the licensed GameSense toolkit—and marking a positive step toward locally managed, tailored gambling harm-reduction services.
- HealthcareDemocracyProgressive Democrat Graham Platner, a pro–Medicare for All candidate, has surged to lead a new poll in Maine's 2026 Senate race.
- HealthcareCriminal Justice ReformLGBTQ RightsUtah enacted a law banning government-requested polygraph tests for people reporting sexual assault—removing a harmful, unreliable barrier to reporting and prompting a task force to strengthen oversight of licensed health professionals.
- HealthcareEnvironmentA surge of new funding can be used to repair Texas's aging water pipes and prioritize public health protections over costly desalination and industrial expansion, offering a major win for communities and environmental health.
- HealthcareCriminal Justice ReformNew YorkZohran Mamdani announced the first steps to establish a new city response to mental-health distress calls, a progressive win toward safer, non-police crisis care.
- HealthcareCaliforniaA Los Angeles jury's landmark verdict holding Meta and Google liable for creating addictive products that harmed a young user is a major win for public health and corporate accountability. [2] [3] [4] [5]
- HealthcareA court blocked Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s proposed vaccine-schedule changes and his vaccine skepticism has left key health posts unfilled, a win for public-health protections.
- HealthcareNew YorkNYC Aging Commissioner Dr. Lisa Scott-McKenzie toured the Selfhelp Community Services Center in Maspeth to hear directly from seniors and bolster city support and awareness of older adult services.
- HealthcareA landmark jury verdict held Meta and Google’s YouTube liable for social media addiction and recommended $6 million in damages, marking a significant win for accountability and public health. [2] [3]
- HealthcareCaliforniaA Los Angeles jury delivered a landmark win for public-health advocates by finding Google and Meta liable for social media addiction, holding major tech platforms accountable.
- HealthcareCaliforniaIn a landmark progressive win for accountability and public health, a California jury found Meta and Alphabet liable for social media addiction and awarded the plaintiff $3 million in damages.
- HealthcareA landmark court win held Meta and YouTube liable for social media addiction and awarded a woman $3 million, a major progressive victory that could open the door for hundreds of similar cases and greater tech accountability.
- HealthcareAnti-vaccine vice chair Dr. Robert Malone resigned from a federal vaccine advisory panel after a judge blocked the panel for lacking proper expertise, a win for science-based public health decision-making.
- HealthcareEducationCompetency-based education is transforming medical training by prioritizing measurable skills and outcomes, producing more effective, equitable, and patient-centered physicians and accelerating reform in medical education.
- HealthcareNew YorkState officials seized over 14 tons of illegal vapes from a major Buffalo-area distributor, stopping distribution of more than 28,000 pounds of illicit e-cigarette products and protecting public health in New York.
- HealthcareProPublica expanded its Nursing Home Inspect database to let users search by owner, manager or officer name, boosting transparency and accountability by revealing owner connections across facilities and making it easier to uncover potential quality and oversight issues.
- HealthcarePuerto Rican activists successfully delivered suitcases of medicine and medical supplies to Havana despite the US blockade, providing critical healthcare relief.
- LGBTQ RightsHealthcareAn Oregon federal judge blocked Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from limiting gender-affirming care for minors nationwide, preserving access to medically recommended treatment for trans youth. [2]
- LGBTQ RightsNew YorkHealthcareNew York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani established a Mayor's Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs and appointed civil rights attorney Taylor Brown as its director — making her the city's highest‑ranking openly trans official and marking a major progressive win for LGBTQ rights and access to gender-affirming care.
- HealthcareEducationUSF Health has launched a new psychiatry residency at Tampa General Behavioral Health Hospital, expanding training capacity to help meet growing mental health needs in Florida.
- HealthcareImmigrationIsrael reopened the Rafah crossing to allow a small number of Palestinians to seek medical care abroad, providing critical humanitarian relief.
- HealthcareLaborNew YorkAfter days of daily sit-ins at City Hall, the No More 24 Act — which would end 24-hour shifts for about 130,000 New York City home care workers — is now expected to pass in mid‑April, marking a major win for labor and caregiver rights.
- HealthcareNew Mexico achieved a progressive win by recording its highest-ever Affordable Care Act enrollment, bucking nationwide declines after enhanced federal subsidies expired.
- HealthcareDemocracyChicago City Council unanimously approved a resolution urging Congress to pass Medicare for All, marking strong municipal support for expanding universal healthcare.
- HealthcareCriminal Justice ReformNew YorkMayor Zohran Mamdani launched a new community safety office early in his term that prioritizes mental-health crisis response, marking a progressive shift toward treating crises as healthcare rather than solely policing.
- HealthcareCriminal Justice ReformNew YorkMayor Zohran Mamdani will sign an executive order creating an Office of Community Safety to kickstart a mental-health-focused alternative response and fulfill a key campaign promise.
- HealthcareA federal court's decision to reverse Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s changes to the U.S. childhood vaccination schedule was hailed by Philadelphia medical experts as a victory for public-health safeguards that restores trust and clarity for families.
- HealthcareA judge blocked RFK Jr.’s proposed vaccine-policy overhaul, a victory for public-health advocates and critics who celebrated the ruling to protect vaccine standards.
- HealthcareLaborCaliforniaCalifornia enacted a new law to better protect countertop stonecutters from deadly silicosis, marking a crucial worker-safety victory even as experts warn the measures may not go far enough.
- HealthcareImmigrationA bipartisan House bill would waive $100,000 H-1B visa fees for doctors and nurses, helping to ease critical medical staffing shortages across the U.S.
- HealthcareEconomic JusticeHHS Secretary RFK Jr. ordered healthcare providers and insurers to disclose rates and publicly post prices, a win for transparency that empowers patients and could help lower healthcare costs.
- HealthcareKansas is taking a progressive step by moving to update its Children’s Health Insurance Program eligibility, which has been tied to 2008 rules, to expand and modernize access to low-cost health coverage for children.
- HealthcareA judge blocked RFK Jr.'s attempt to cut the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule from 17 to 11, preserving expert-backed, science-based immunization recommendations and protecting public health. [2] [3]
- HealthcareReproductive RightsCaliforniaNew YorkBlue states scored a progressive win by refusing to cooperate with GOP attempts to criminalize abortion—California and New York have enacted legal and policy measures to protect providers and patients, including declining to extradite doctors accused of mailing abortion pills.
- HealthcareA federal judge struck down RFK Jr.’s vaccine policies after finding the government’s limits on COVID shots and changes to the childhood immunization schedule weren’t science-based, marking a win for evidence-based public health. [2] [3]
- HealthcareLGBTQ RightsIn a tense meeting, most medical societies defended their support for gender-affirming medical care for transgender teens, a win for trans healthcare advocates despite the Society for Plastic Surgeons' dissent.
- HealthcareNew YorkNYU Langone strengthened its endocrine care and research leadership by appointing Marcus D. Goncalves, MD, PhD as director of the Holman Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism.
- HealthcareLaborA judge ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to restore a collective-bargaining contract covering 300,000 V.A. workers, a major win protecting federal union and workers' rights after the secretary tried to nullify it.
- HealthcareNew YorkAssembly Member Jessica González-Rojas unveiled a five-point plan to strengthen neighborhood health care in COVID-hit Queens communities like East Elmhurst, Corona, and Jackson Heights, marking a progressive win for improved local access to care.
- HealthcareDemocracyNew YorkProgressive Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Pat Ryan energized a packed town-hall in Glens Falls, engaging hundreds on health care and local cuts and boosting progressive outreach and civic engagement in upstate New York.
- HealthcareCaliforniaNevada regulators imposed fines on three individuals and a private membership association for unlicensed mailing and administration of peptides at a Las Vegas anti-aging festival where two women became critically ill, marking enforcement action to protect public health.
- HealthcareMassachusettsDisabilities advocates are advancing bills at the State House to establish supported decision-making and stronger standards of care for people with autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities.
- HealthcareRacial JusticeReproductive RightsMassachusettsMassachusetts is launching a doula certification this spring as part of implementing 20+ provisions of the 2024 maternal health law to expand access to services and reduce racial disparities in care.
- HealthcareEducationNew YorkA long-awaited independent report exposing decades of abuse at Columbia prompted the university to release findings, led to two senior administrators leaving their posts, and advanced accountability and compensation measures for survivors, including a $100 million fund.
- HealthcareEconomic JusticeCongress secured PBM transparency and delinking reforms in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, a major progressive win to rein in pharmacy benefit managers even as broader antitrust measures like the Break Up Big Medicine Act face long odds.
- HealthcareFormer US Open champion Gary Woodland publicly disclosed his struggles with PTSD and said he won't waste energy hiding it, a positive step toward destigmatizing mental health.
- Reproductive RightsHealthcareA long-shot campaign by abortion rights activists successfully restored public funding for abortion, marking the movement’s biggest victory in a generation.
- HealthcareReproductive RightsThe Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordered Peru to pay reparations to the family of a woman who died following forced sterilisation, a victory for reproductive rights and accountability.
- HealthcareMassachusettsProgressive win: Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey defended consumer choice and pushed back against RFK Jr.'s safety claims by defiantly challenging his request to test Dunkin' and Starbucks ingredients. [2]
- HealthcareEducationNew YorkThe New York Attorney General has opened an investigation into Columbia University’s handling of predatory OB‑GYN Robert Hadden, offering survivors a path toward accountability and potential institutional reform.
- Racial JusticeReproductive RightsHealthcareGeeta Gandbhir made history as the first woman nominated for both Best Documentary Feature and Best Documentary Short in the same year, a landmark recognition that amplifies stories of racial injustice and the fight for reproductive healthcare.
- HealthcareLaborNew YorkNearly 15,000 New York City nurses achieved a historic victory after staging the largest and longest nurse strike in the city's history.
- HealthcareLaborEconomic JusticeLawmakers in at least eight states have introduced bills to restrict wage garnishment for unpaid medical bills, protecting workers’ paychecks and easing the burden of medical debt.
- HealthcareNew YorkThe city's planned merger of Maimonides into NYC Health + Hospitals — framed as not a takeover — will inject millions in cash and help stabilize the hospital while preserving much of its current operations, marking a win for public healthcare in New York.
- HealthcareLaborHousingEducationEconomic JusticeDemocracyHigh school socialist Reese Armstrong is organizing in Travis County through Young Democratic Socialists of America to represent workers, tenants, and students and push for better wages, housing, health care, and political representation.
- HealthcareMinnesota sued to block the Trump administration’s attempt to withhold roughly 7% of the state’s quarterly Medicaid funding, a win for protecting healthcare access for low-income residents.
- HealthcareDemocracyStates across party lines are moving to limit the use of AI in insurance to protect consumers and preserve state regulatory authority, pushing back against the Trump administration's effort to constrain state oversight.
- HealthcareClimateEnvironmentCommunities are turning to advanced wastewater recycling—potentially for about $49 a month—to provide safe, affordable, drought-resilient drinking water as a climate-smart public health solution.
- HealthcareColorado lawmakers advanced House Bill 1271 to impose modest fees on alcohol sales to create a dedicated revenue stream for addiction prevention and treatment, bolstering healthcare services for people with substance use disorders.
- HealthcareEducationA former walk-on for top-ranked LSU women's basketball who was told she'd never play again after a rare heart condition made a triumphant return to the court and received a standing ovation.
- HealthcareRacial JusticeThe family of Henrietta Lacks reached a settlement with Novartis — the second major drug-company settlement — marking a meaningful step toward accountability and justice for the unauthorized use of her cells.
- HealthcareA bill eliminating out-of-pocket costs for breast cancer screenings cleared the Alabama Senate and now heads to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk, marking a win for accessible healthcare.
- HealthcareThe House unanimously passed a plan to allocate $43.1 million in opioid settlement funds to state agencies and organizations fighting the addiction crisis.
- EducationHealthcareAlabama’s Senate unanimously approved a bill banning screen time for children under age 2 in publicly funded early-learning centers, a move supporters say protects young children’s health and development and strengthens early childhood education standards.
- HealthcareReproductive RightsCriminal Justice ReformMassachusettsNew YorkProPublica investigations prompted concrete reforms this month — from Colorado moving to tighten marijuana testing and senators introducing the Clear Labels Act for prescription transparency, to Massachusetts’ governor proposing to remove the rape statute of limitations when DNA exists, New York lawmakers proposing major funding to fix the guardianship system, and Texas’ medical board issuing training so doctors can legally provide life‑saving abortion care — delivering tangible protections for public health, survivors and vulnerable people.
- HealthcareCriminal Justice ReformA House committee advanced a bill giving Alabama’s Department of Public Health authority to enforce prison food-service and sanitation standards, a win for inmate health and accountability after reports of facilities operating without hot water.
- ImmigrationRacial JusticeEducationHealthcareA federal judge ruled the Trump administration's policy of deporting immigrants to 'third countries' unlawful, a significant win for immigrant rights.
- HealthcareThe Pentagon is investing $400 million in research to tackle a health crisis linked to rising suicide rates among service members and veterans, marking a major federal commitment to improving military mental health.
- HealthcareHousingImmigrationDevil Dog USA launched the Corporal Yegor Zubarev Veterans Housing, Citizenship and Mental Health Access Bill to help reintegrate veterans by eliminating housing discrimination and expanding access to citizenship and mental health services.
- HealthcareGovernor Kay Ivey authorized future bonds to support Jackson Hospital in Montgomery, securing funding to strengthen local healthcare services while also allocating bonds for the Space Command relocation—a win for community health and local investment.
- HealthcareSouth Carolina has enlisted outside public health experts to help contain a measles outbreak, strengthening the state’s disease response and protection for communities.
- HealthcareEconomic JusticeA newly enacted 'most favored nation' agreement will lower U.S. prescription drug prices so Americans pay the lowest prices in the world, marking a major progressive win for healthcare and economic justice.
- HealthcareIn a win for consumer and child health advocates, the Supreme Court revived a Texas couple’s lawsuit alleging tainted baby food sold at Whole Foods sickened their son, allowing accountability to proceed.
- HealthcareThe FDA is approving more drugs for rare diseases, expanding treatment options for the roughly 30 million Americans with uncommon conditions.
- HealthcareThe FDA is approving more drugs for rare diseases, expanding treatment options and improving access for patients with rare conditions.
- HealthcareDr. Ralph Abraham, a CDC vaccine skeptic who called Covid vaccines “dangerous,” has stepped down as the agency’s principal deputy director, a positive development for protecting public health and restoring science-based vaccine leadership.
- HealthcareEnvironmentLaborAfter ProPublica exposed that wildland firefighter pants contained PFAS, the U.S. Forest Service stopped issuing those garments, instructed replacements and moved to require PFAS-free fabric treatments going forward.
- HealthcareEconomic JusticeNew YorkAssemblymember Jessica González-Rojas hailed a progressive win as New York State agreed to provide $1.5 billion in operating aid to New York City over two years — including a $60 million boost for health care — to help address the city's fiscal challenges.
- HealthcareEnvironmentHousingVictory for public health and environmental justice: the Trump administration will uphold tough Biden-era mandates to replace millions of lead pipes serving homes in older industrial cities, protecting residents’ health.
- HealthcareReproductive RightsCaliforniaCalifornia’s emergency funding has largely replaced lost federal Medicaid dollars for Planned Parenthood, keeping clinics open and protecting essential reproductive and primary health care for low-income patients despite federal defunding.
- HealthcareDespite attacks claiming it would eliminate most private insurance and raise taxes, Medicare for All remains popular with voters, demonstrating durable support for progressive healthcare reform.
- HealthcareReproductive RightsWisconsin’s legislature voted to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 12 months for low-income new mothers after Assembly Speaker Robin Vos lifted his holdout, sending the bipartisan measure to Gov. Evers. [2]
- HealthcareNew YorkNew York’s attorney general won a $2.5 million settlement with EmblemHealth requiring reimbursement to affected customers, timely corrections to its inaccurate in‑network mental health provider listings, and independent monitoring to improve access to mental health care.
- HealthcareReproductive RightsConnecticut is awarding $10.4 million to Planned Parenthood to protect vulnerable residents by funding reproductive and preventive health services, a major progressive win for healthcare and reproductive rights.