HJNO Sep/Oct 2025

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  SEP / OCT 2025 29 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com University, the University of Texas Health Sci- ence Center at San Antonio, and the University of Florida. Louisiana Healthcare Connections Shares Medical Preparedness Tips During hurricane season across the Gulf Coast, Louisiana Healthcare Connections is reminding residents across the state to take the following proactive steps in preparing for severe weather: • Prepare medications in advance: Keep a written list of all prescription medications, including dosages and instructions, in your emergency kit. • Safeguard medical information and ID cards: Store copies of health insurance cards, medical records, and your medica- tion list in a waterproof, easy-to-access loca- tion. Consider downloading the LA Wallet app for digital access to health plan cards, if mobile service is available. • Ensure medical device readiness: Fully charge any powered medical devices, such as oxygen machines or nebulizers, and pre- pare backup power sources. If you rely on powered devices, register with your utility company and parish emergency authorities to receive assistance during outages. • Register for medical needs support: If you require special medical assistance during emergencies, pre-register with your parish’s Office of Emergency Preparedness (OEP). • Update emergency contact information: Make sure your doctor and health plan have your current phone number and address on file. APHA Joins Others to Sue HHS, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. for Vaccine Changes The American Public Health Association (APHA), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Amer- ican College of Physicians (ACP), Infectious Dis- eases Society of America (IDSA), Massachusetts Public Health Alliance (MPHA), Society for Mater- nal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM), and a pregnant phy- sician, are suing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy for his actions changing COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children and preg- nant people, for dismissing 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), and appointing replacements who have historically espoused anti-vaccine view- points. The lawsuit asks for preliminary and per- manent injunctions to enjoin Secretary Kennedy’s rescissions of Covid vaccine recommendations and a declaratory judgment pronouncing the change in recommendations as unlawful. The lawsuit charges that a coordinated set of actions by HHS and Secretary Kennedy were designed to mislead, confuse, and gradually desensitize the public to anti-vaccine and anti- science rhetoric, and that he has routinely flouted federal procedural rules. These actions include blocking CDC communications, unexplained can- cellations of vaccine panel meetings at the FDA and CDC, announcing studies to investigate non- existent links between vaccines and autism, uni- laterally overriding immunization recommenda- tions, and replacing the diverse members of ACIP with a slate of individuals biased against sound vaccine facts. The anonymous individual plaintiff in the law- suit is a pregnant woman who is at immediate risk for being unable to get the COVID-19 vac- cine booster because of the secretarial directive, despite her high risk for exposure to infectious diseases from working as a physician at a hospital. UQ-Ochsner MD Program Student Receives Scholarship Kirsten Johnson, a student of the University of Queensland Medical School – Ochsner Health (UQ-Ochsner MD Program) was awarded the 2025 Dr. and Mrs. Roy Gregory Scholarship. The $3,000 award was established in 2018 to support senior medical students at the Ochsner Clinical School who commit to pursuing careers in family medicine and are dedicated to serving their com- munities, as exemplified by Dr. Gregory through- out his remarkable career. Johnson is a fourth-year medical student at the UQ-Ochsner MD Program. Originally from Penn- sylvania, Johnson graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in biological sciences from West Virginia University. While there, she discovered her passion for community health through her volunteer work with the Global Medi- cal and Dental Brigades organization. Throughout medical school, Johnson has remained deeply committed to serving people in need. She has volunteered extensively at Luke’s House Clinic in New Orleans, where she provides care to uninsured and Spanish-speaking patients. She has also served with the organization Float- ing Doctors in Panama, which has a mission to improve healthcare delivery worldwide. Her ded- ication to education and mentorship is equally strong. She has served as a Step 1 peer tutor and worked with the New Neighbor Project to teach English to non-native speakers. Louisiana Paid Nearly $10 Million for Healthcare DeadMedicaid Beneficiaries Didn’t Receive: Audit As reported by Greg Larose in an August Loui- siana Illluminator article, a review of how Louisi- ana keeps its Medicaid rolls up-to-date found the state paid out benefits for more than 1,000 peo- ple over the past six years after they died. Nearly $10 million was paid to managed care organiza- tions over that period, even though no healthcare services were actually provided. The Louisiana Legislative Auditor conducted its study as part of Gov. Jeff Landry’s Fiscal Responsi- bility Program, which he has branded LA DOGE. It looked specifically at how state health officials keep track of when Medicaid beneficiaries die and whether outside data sources could help that process. When auditors used those additional sources, they found 1,072 beneficiaries who died between February 2019 and March 2025 and approximately $9.6 million spent collectively on their Medicaid coverage. Auditors said the actual spending figure is higher because their calculations only included dental coverage payments — and not health coverage — for the final eight months reviewed. According to the audit report, the Louisiana Department of Health relies on federal and state data sources to identify dead Medicaid bene- ficiaries. They include Louisiana Vital Records, the Social Security Administration, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the state Department of Children and Family Services, and