MeiLan Han

The task force that shapes Americans’ preventive care has not met in a year. Doctors now worry it’s being ‘abandoned’ by HHS | CNN There’s growing concern that the US Department of Health and Human Services is abandoning the US Preventive Services Task Force – or pushing it into “quiet paralysis.”

Going by precedence, the US Preventive Services Task Force meets three times a year – in March, July and November – but it has not met since March 2025.

Postponed meetings may delay updates to recommendations that guide patient care and insurance coverage. cnn.it/4sjQ4BT

Join the ATS at the Stand Up for Science rally on Saturday, March 7! We will be standing for science-based policy, biomedical research funding, vaccines, clean air protections, & public health.

Find your local Stand Up for Science march and join us: www.standupforscience.net/march7#map

Health Wanted: RFK Jr.'s First Year This week on Health Wanted, we take a walk down memory lane to review all that RFK Jr. and the MAHA movement have been able to accomplish in their first year…for better or for worse.

You could say RFK, Jr.'s first year has been... a year. Emory's Rollins School of Public Health recaps the first year of the MAHA agenda: bit.ly/3ZYlOAE

EPA Cuts Health Out of the Air Quality Equation The agency will stop assigning dollar values to illnesses and deaths prevented through air quality standards.

This decision belongs to a broader dismantling of public health infrastructure, where protections are weakened not by overt repeal, but by removing the tools that once made them defensible.

Thank you for including my Substack, @medscape.com! wb.md/4cdJCri

Four in ten cancer cases could be prevented globally Up to four in ten cancer cases worldwide could be prevented, according to a new global analysis from the World Health Organization (WHO) and its International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Th...

Drawing on data from 185 countries and 36 cancer types, a recent WHO study identifies tobacco as the leading preventable cause of cancer, globally responsible for 15% of all new cancer cases.

bit.ly/4afQ9PE #WorldCancerDay

I'm wishing you and your loved ones the best for 2026! 🎉

We all can use a fresh start. What are some of your goals for the new year?

#lunghealth #pulmonology #pulm

Inside the Fight Over the US Preventive Services Task Force The USPSTF is under siege. Why this matters to everyone.

Most Americans don't know that many free screenings stem from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent panel whose recommendations determine which services insurers must cover without copays or deductibles because of provisions in the ACA.

open.substack.com/pub/meilanha...

Thank you! 🫁

Congratulations for @drmeilanhan.bsky.social for being elected to give the Thomas Petty memorial lecture at #CHEST2025 - titled "The Lung Health Crisis: The Achilles' Heel We Didn't Know We Had" .
Kudos @accpchest.bsky.social
Well Deserved Dr. Han!
#PeopleILookUpTo

Wildfire smoke from Canada is once again affecting #airquality across the U.S.—even in areas far from the fires themselves.

If you're wondering how to stay safer when smoke levels rise, here are some practical steps: www.newsnationnow.com/weather/stay...

Thanks, @newsnation.bsky.social!

The health risks of breathing in air polluted by wildfires Michigan’s air quality has nosedived in recent weeks, due to wildfire smoke from Canada. At one point, Detroit was listed as the third most polluted city in the world. The blanket of haze that has cov...

The health risks of breathing in air polluted by wildfires: www.wemu.org/wemu-news/20...

Thank you, 89.1 WEMU for the great conversation around increasing wildfires and our #lunghealth!

#pulmonology #publichealth #lungs

Canadian wildfires are impacting air quality in the U.S. Canada is having its second worst wildfire season yet. Two scientists explain what a red air alert means and how anyone living in impacted areas can protect themselves.

It was wonderful joining @npr.org 'Morning Edition' yesterday to talk about how the Canadian wildfires are impacting the air quality across American cities.

n.pr/4mDkn3Y

It's important to educate the public on the impacts of climate change to our #lunghealth.

#climatechange #airquality #smoke

Following court order, NIH ceases new terminations of politically sensitive grants After a judge told agency to restore hundreds of killed grants, NIH backs off plans to cancel more existing projects

Breaking news: The National Institutes of Health has ceased terminating grants on politically sensitive topics after a federal judge ruled last week that the cancellations were illegal.
scim.ag/4l9MO8Y

How Heat Waves Can Worsen Air Quality Scientists are increasingly concerned about the ways extreme heat and air pollution are linked.

Our planet's ever-increasing temperatures causes extreme weather – in all seasons! But these current heat waves not only feel unbearable, they also worsen our #airquality impacting those with respiratory conditions. nyti.ms/3TIh3rA

#climate #climatepolicy #lunghealth

How to Exercise Safely in the Summer When You Have Asthma Pollen, pollution, and weather changes can increase the likelihood of having an asthma attack when exercising in the summer. Timing your workouts, being aware of air quality, and not overexerting your...

Don't let summer allergens sideline your workouts! For those with #asthma, warmer weather can bring unique challenges, making getting movement in tougher.

Read @healthcentral.bsky.social for tips and expert advice that can help keep your fitness routine on track! bit.ly/4kFeh2c

White House Health Report Included Fake Citations

Truth is paramount when we're talking about public health communications.

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/w...

#lunghealth #clinicalresearch #medicalresearch #publichealth

Musk’s AI ‘Colossus’ in Memphis Is Everyone’s Problem The tech CEO is skirting environmental protections in a predominantly Black community. But its residents aren't the only ones who will suffer.

🚩 Loopholes other manufacturers will use. The @selc.bsky.social took satellite images of the xAI facility. Photos revealed that instead of 15 turbines, xAI had quietly moved in at least 35 portable methane gas turbines, none of which had air quality permits.

bloom.bg/44MPqV9 #lungs #pulmonology

It's not helpful to shame people with #autism or their families.

Comments such as “autism destroys families” have been received in sharply divisive ways.

On 'AirWaves', I am sharing how the #HHS can be effective in helping families manage autism: bit.ly/3Fdxokz

It was never gone. We just stopped paying attention: The Resurgence of TB Tuberculosis helped to shape the field of pulmonary medicine. Why TB is reemerging in the US now and public health infrastructure is more important than ever.

In my latest AirWaves Substack, I explore why TB is resurging now, how the pandemic weakened global surveillance, and why underinvestment in public health puts us all at risk.

meilanhan.substack.com/p/it-was-nev...

Research findings lead to future research that may save your or a loved one's life. I'm proud of our online medical community for continuing to advocate for continued research.

The more we know, the more we can do. 🥼

As a female leader in medicine, mentorship and trying to expand inclusivity within the medical field has always been rooted in a personal mission. Now, I'm reflecting what we should expect next.

From my Substack: bit.ly/4iz9OfC

#womeninSTEM #womeninmedicine

Frontline Diaries: What to Do When You Feel Powerless When the rules change overnight, this is where we begin...

When the rules change overnight, fear can make us go quiet. But small acts still matter. If you’ve been feeling powerless, this one’s for you.

open.substack.com/pub/meilanha...

Personal choice has been weaponized to undermine public health “Public health isn’t the sum of individual choices. It’s our collective agreement to protect the most vulnerable among us,” writes MeiLan Han.

We’re in a responsibility recession—not of personal responsibility, but of our shared responsibility to each other. My latest in STAT on what we’re losing when public health becomes personal choice. www.statnews.com/2025/04/08/m... via @statnews.com

Judge halts HHS plan to kill $11B in public health grants It's the latest move by a court to block recent actions by the Trump administration to abruptly cut off grant funding for public health.

NEW: A federal judge in Rhode Island froze a Trump administration plan to cut more than $11 billion in public health grants to state and local health departments that Congress allocated during the pandemic.

How Vaccine Backlash Gave Measles a Second Life Post-COVID vaccine backlash is reframing how we see preventable diseases—giving measles new ground and bringing with it a new threat: immune amnesia that leaves people vulnerable to new infections.

After COVID, many people have assumed herd immunity was out of reach for any virus. But measles isn’t COVID.

bit.ly/3XNCji9

#medicalcommunity #vaccineswork #vaccinessavelives #publichealth

The Unmaking of American Medicine No new NIH grants have been awarded. Graduate programs are curtailing admissions. An entire generation of physician scientists are on the line as the system begins to unravel. What's really at stake?

If you aren't subscribed to my Substack, Airwaves, I am getting personal with the drastic changes we are seeing in the medical landscape and how policies set today will affect clinical research and medical breakthroughs for years to come.

bit.ly/4ji8JK6

Do You Know the Warning Signs of Pulmonary Embolism? Symptoms can vary from subtle to severe, and knowing them could be lifesaving

A pulmonary embolism is not a joke.

Blood clots are linked to about 100,000 deaths annually, and pulmonary embolism, which restricts blood flow to the lungs, accounts for approximately half of them.

Thank you to @AARP for featuring this, bit.ly/3RujtsN.

#lunghealth #lungs #pulmonology

HHS plans to shutter or downsize several health agencies, including at CDC Health and Human Services is planning to cut 10,000 jobs across the sprawling department.

#HHS announced today it plans to cut 10,000 full-time jobs across several agencies, as part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to restructure many parts of the federal government.

nbcnews.to/43pel0n

I will continue to pray that research can continue on.

It's #WorldTBDay and with the resurgence of #tuberculosis, I believe it is important to educate the public on: what it is, how it spreads, and treatment.

to.pbs.org/4c4RYzK

We Need More "Apple Watch Moments" Despite our current challenges, innovation remains a powerful tool for change. The Apple Watch is quietly transforming the detection of atrial fibrillation. How do we get more breakthroughs like this?

More and more of my patients have had their Apple Watch diagnose atrial fibrillation. It's not hype. It’s a quiet revolution in digital health. Why don’t we have more tech like this?

open.substack.com/pub/meilanha...