The American Medical Association is “deeply concerned” about HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plan to remove all 16 members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
In a July 27 letter, the AMA said the “USPSTF plays a critical, nonpartisan role in guiding physicians’ efforts to prevent disease and improve the health of patients by helping to ensure access to evidence-based clinical preventive services.”
Sources familiar with Mr. Kennedy’s plans told The Wall Street Journal the secretary views the USPSTF as too “woke,” according to a July 25 report. The task force has advised the federal government on preventive health matters since 1984. Since 2010, the panel has determined around 100 guidelines for screenings, counseling and preventive medication that insurers are required to cover at no cost to patients.
Notably, the task force has been central in efforts to eliminate cost-sharing for colorectal cancer screenings, which, according to the American College of Gastroenterology, has saved countless lives.
In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court in June upheld the Affordable Care Act’s preventive care coverage mandate, affirming that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force can continue issuing recommendations for services that must be covered by health insurers without cost-sharing.
“The Task Force members are removable at will by the Secretary of HHS, and their recommendations are reviewable by the Secretary before they take effect,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court majority. “So Task Force members are supervised and directed by the Secretary, who in turn answers to the President, preserving the chain of command in Article II.”
