Medical Debt Relief: Michigan will erase $74 million in medical debt for 71,871 residents, building on last summer’s $144 million effort and aiming to keep families from choosing between care and basic needs. Fraud Crackdown: A Raleigh man pleaded guilty in a kickback-linked lab referral scheme that prosecutors say generated more than $60 million in fraudulent Medicare and Medi-Cal claims. Trans Health Court Fight: A federal judge temporarily blocked DOJ efforts to obtain NYU Langone records on children who received gender-affirming care, citing privacy concerns over the scope of the subpoena. Medicaid Integrity via AI: Indiana’s FSSA will use AI software (Oracle) in a CMS-backed pilot to find Medicaid fraud. Rare Disease & Drug Development: ZOIA Healthcare and Meta Healthcare announced an exclusive U.S. partnership to expand ready-to-use nutrition solutions for Maple Syrup Urine Disease; Ionis also secured $30M upfront from Recordati for ex-U.S. rights to zilganersen for Alexander disease. Public Health & Safety: Vermont became the first state to ban paraquat, citing Parkinson’s disease concerns; and firefighters knocked down a major Boyle Heights warehouse fire, with health concerns for nearby residents still under review. Care Access Expansion: Plus Therapeutics’ CNSide Diagnostics signed a national coverage agreement with Elevance Health for a cerebrospinal fluid tumor cell assay, expanding contracted coverage to 126 million people.