Great new summary of how recent bipartisan endeavors to use evidence to inform federal policies has been gutted in the past 18 months. NIH attempts to cut funding for policy research will further the breakdown of the evidence pipeline. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-system... @donmoyn.bsky.social

The System for Using Evidence to Improve Federal Programs Has Been Gutted

Here’s How We Fix It

donmoynihan.substack.com

We are seeking a full-time Communications Specialist who will support the @nhats-nsoc.bsky.social & @micda-umisr.bsky.social project teams by planning, crafting & coordinating outreach communications, event planning & coordination, & educational communications. careers.umich.edu/job_detail/2...

Register now for a virtual workshop this fall! 💻️ All workshops will be held in October, via Zoom. Check out the website for dates, details and how to register: buff.ly/BakjYl3

Two events this week explore the housing challenges facing older adults. 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝟭𝟲 @ 𝟰𝗽𝗺 𝗘𝗧 (𝗛𝘆𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗱) 𝗢𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝗔𝗻 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝟭𝟴 @ 𝟭𝟮:𝟭𝟱 𝗽𝗺 𝗘𝗧 (𝗩𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹) 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻-𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲: 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗢𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 mailchi.mp/harvard/olde...

Lisa Berkman inspired many of us, including my own career for decades before I met her. Her textbook Social Epidemiology was pivotal to my professional trajectory. Her essays & lectures on the structural drivers of health pushed me to expand my thinking beyond individual solutions for health equity.

New article from Health Affairs Forefront describes the new public charge rule that limits the ability of immigrants to use safety net benefits, both harming the immigrants and failing to invest in a population that contributes so much to US society. www.healthaffairs.org/content/fore... @nilc.org

Our new article shows that states increased participation in WIC by offering benefits remotely. Given WIC's health benefits but low participation rates, this is one way states might improve maternal and child health. www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/... @ritahamad.bsky.social @pamherd.bsky.social

"...while the Islamophobes waste everyone’s time with the ludicrous charge that Muslims and Americans are irreconcilably different, Muslim Americans are just too busy making a difference. For everyone’s sake." www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... @theguardian.com

9/11 entrenched Islamophobia in US politics. But it doesn’t work the way you think | Moustafa Bayoumi

Anti-Muslim sentiment is used as a political weapon. Meanwhile, Muslim American leaders are making a difference for all

theguardian.com

WIC benefits have notoriously low take-up for some groups. Our new study in Health Affairs led by @emilydore.bsky.social found that allowing benefits to be issued remotely during pandemic boosted take-up. www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/... @capolicylab.bsky.social @oppforhealthlab.bsky.social

Great new piece @milbankfund.bsky.social from Paula Lantz @fordschool.bsky.social on the Trump administration's systematic destruction of public health infrastructure and achievements, threatening millions of lives and livelihoods. doi.org/10.1599/mqop...

Burning Down the House: The Most Recognized Public Health Achievements Have Become a Hit List for the Trump Administration | Milbank Memorial Fund

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other public health organizations periodically create lists of significant public health achievements in the United States and globally.

doi.org

Thirty years after its creation, TANF has weakened direct cash assistance and failed to move families toward economic stability. Policymakers should learn from its shortcomings, not use it as a model for other programs www.cbpp.org/blog/at-its-...

At Its 30th Anniversary, TANF Is Neither A Success Nor A Model for Other Programs

Although TANF’s model is not successful in moving families to economic stability, Republicans adopted some of its approach in the harmful 2025 reconciliation law, expanding SNAP’s harsh work requireme...

cbpp.org

It's #NationalBreastfeedingMonth! Check out our team's latest paper by recent grad @jiaoweigong.bsky.social examining impacts of 2022 formula crisis on BF & mental health, including disparities among WIC recipients. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... @natwicassoc.bsky.social @hsph.harvard.edu

Our faculty affiliate Sara Bleich and her colleagues penned an op-ed in JAMA Forum about the population health risks of data disruption, spotlighting the shutdown of the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). @ritahamad.bsky.social #PRAMS hsph.harvard.edu/news/opinion...

Opinion: Data disruptions put powerful maternal and child health tool at risk | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

The consequences of disruptions to the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System are falling heaviest on already-vulnerable populations.

hsph.harvard.edu

Powerful commentary @jamahealthforum.com on the tragedy of the loss of CDC PRAMS data (the only US long-term national survey on health around childbirth) and the need for efforts to restore it: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam... @hsph.harvard.edu @marchofdimes.org @datarescueproject.org

Excited to share paper led by @hsph.harvard.edu master's student @jiaoweigong.bsky.social that found disparities in the impacts of 2022 infant formula crisis on breastfeeding and mental health esp among WIC participants and Black women. authors.elsevier.com/a/1nNjy6gdZS... @natwicassoc.bsky.social

Very honored that our team working to rescue PRAMS are semi-finalists for @apduorg.bsky.social Data Integrity Award! Please vote for us to help bring publicity to PRAMS -- the only long-term US survey on MCH, which was taken down when Trump RIF'd entire CDC team and it is *still* not back up.

The Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies@harvardpopcenter.bsky.social · 3mo ago

PLEASE VOTE for The ALLPRAMS Collaborative, a semi-finalist for the inaugural APDU Data Integrity Award, for their efforts to protect & restore the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) in the face of unprecedented federal threats. @apduorg.bsky.social www.surveymonkey.com/r/YY6DTB2

Did you submit a comment on Fed Register to oppose proposed OMB rule, which is one of the biggest threats to science by this administration? If not, check out template from @apha.org that makes it very easy to do so: www.votervoice.net/PublicHealth... @iaphs.bsky.social @societyforepi.bsky.social

Rita Hamad@ritahamad.bsky.social · 4mo ago

This is very serious. If this proposal moves ahead, science funding in the US will move drastically away from being scientifically motivated, and instead toward politically motivated. We need major coordinated action. @popassocamerica.bsky.social @standupforscience.net @societyforepi.bsky.social

Great article of RFK's undermining of maternal health, including coverage of the devastating loss of our only national long-term survey of maternal and child health, PRAMS. @marchofdimes.org @popassocamerica.bsky.social @societyforepi.bsky.social @sherylnyt.bsky.social

Mother Jones@motherjones.com · 4mo ago

RFK's answer to the maternal health crisis: Hide the data

Can income support policies help address poverty as a key driver of mental illness? @ritahamad.bsky.social @hsph.harvard.edu journals.lww.com/hrpjournal/f...

Important piece @jamanetworkopen.com on causes of excess death in US compared to other high-income countries by @jacob-bor.bsky.social et al. US mortality is much higher, and cardiovascular, substance use, & mental health are big drivers. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam... @popassocamerica.bsky.social

Here's a great training from @peerresearch.bsky.social explaining how researchers can provide the most effective public comments! static1.squarespace.com/static/68c72...

Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌@chanda.blacksky.app · 4mo ago

In this newsletter I outline important actions to take. 1. Submit a comment opposing the rule change. 2. Contact state legislators to ensure states are engaged with the impact at the state and local level. 3. Contact members of Congress. 4. Spread awareness. This rundown is a great source:

NEW: A lot of bad has happened to American science over the last year but nothing comes even close to what’s about to happen if we don’t speak out in opposition to the OMB rule changes and I hope @aaas-socsci.bsky.social @apsphysics.bsky.social and others will launch public campaigns about this. 🧪🔭⚛️

It's the End of American Science As We Know It

We have 45 days to express our opposition to catastrophic changes.

news.chanda.science

Excellent new @brookings.edu analysis on the economic fallout from ICE in Trump 2.0 www.brookings.edu/articles/ice...

Shock, awe, and economic fallout | Brookings

Escobari, Seyal, and Beach find the 2025 ICE enforcement surge cost 668,000 jobs across U.S. cities, including jobs held by American-born workers.

brookings.edu

This is very serious. If this proposal moves ahead, science funding in the US will move drastically away from being scientifically motivated, and instead toward politically motivated. We need major coordinated action. @popassocamerica.bsky.social @standupforscience.net @societyforepi.bsky.social

Adrianna McIntyre@adrianna.bsky.social · 4mo ago

“[E]ven in a world that is on fire every day this is truly a five-alarm fire.”

If you want to give $$ to support prenatal & infant health, what would be the best time in pregnancy? @dkarasek.bsky.social examines this question using natural experiment related to timing of anti-poverty benefits: authors.elsevier.com/c/1n60~2gOwG... @mdrc-news.bsky.social @ohsunews.bsky.social 1/

We're excited to announce that @courtneyallen.bsky.social and Caroline Kravitz will be joining the Harvard Pop Center community as Bell Postdoctoral Fellows this fall! popcenter.harvard.edu/blog/2026/05...

A dye-free Froot Loop is still a Froot Loop. Banning food dyes may clean up labels, but it won’t change what people eat without bigger shifts in behavior, access, and policy. https://bit.ly/4ds3HcE

Why Banning Food Dyes Won’t Fix What's Wrong With The American Diet

Most Americans support banning food dyes—but what drives diet quality is behavior, marketing and access. Removing dyes won’t fix what’s wrong with how we eat.

bit.ly

For #mentalhealth awareness month, @harvard.edu Review of Psychiatry has an issue on social determinants of psychopathology, including my commentary on anti-poverty policies as potential population-level interventions: journals.lww.com/hrpjournal/f... @hsph.harvard.edu

@ritahamad.bsky.social describes the potentially heartbreaking consequences for women and their babies when datasets and other federal resources like surveys are deleted or altered, and the federal departments that manage those resources are gutted... www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

The Trump administration is deleting government data. From infant deaths to hunger, here are 5 ways it’s hurting Americans

This information was used to understand the problems Americans face. The consequences of its erasure, experts warn, could affect generations to come

theguardian.com

Poverty is a key driver of health; our latest article reviews the growing literature on economic policies as an upstream solution. However, several policies have insufficient evidence, and data barriers remain: www.annualreviews.org/content/jour... @hsph.harvard.edu @irpwisc.bsky.social