Hello from the Common Health Coalition! The 2-4-2 Digest is a weekly snapshot for health leaders - 4 key insights in 2 minutes or with 2 swipes on your phone. 

Weekly Health Insights

Vaccine Guidance: Yesterday, HHS approved ACIP’s September 18–19 recommendations. COVID-19 vaccines for all individuals aged 6 months and older are now formally included in the CDC’s immunization schedules under shared clinical decision-making. The Vaccines for Children (VFC) program is active for COVID-19 vaccine ordering.

Health Services Disruptions: During the shutdown, Medicare and Medicaid coverage continue, and the VA reports that medical care, benefits processing, and burials remain intact. Some provisions—such as Medicare telehealth—have lapsed and nearly 1,500 community health centers serving 34 million patients face funding uncertainty.

Mifepristone: On September 27, 2025, the FDA approved a second generic version of mifepristone, the abortion pill first authorized in 2000 and used with misoprostol in about two-thirds of U.S. abortions. The decision adds another manufacturer to the market and could help expand access to medication abortion.

ACA Subsidies: A new KFF survey found that 78% of U.S. adults support extending the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced premium tax credits, with bipartisan backing (92% of Democrats, 82% of independents, 57% of Republicans who identify with MAGA). At the same time, about six in ten adults say they have heard “a little” or “nothing at all” about the expiring ACA subsidies.

Vax News: Check out the Common Health Coalition’s Vaccine Resources page for additional explainers and toolkits related to immunization policy. Follow us on Instagram @commonhealthcoalition for more healthcare and public health content!

Colleague Corner

In a recent AJPH piece, Dr. Dora Anne Mills describes how MaineHealth’s Center for Health Improvement applies a hub-and-spokes model to integrate health care, public health, and community resources, expanding capacity for rural public health where infrastructure is limited. 

“By embedding community health work within the health system, we have been able to expand capacity for many of the nonregulatory functions of public health in rural regions. Rather than replacing local public health, this model supplements it, creating a structure in which prevention, chronic disease management, and health promotion can be delivered at scale.”

– Dr. Dora Anne Mills, MD, MPH, FAAP, Chief Health Improvement Officer, MaineHealth

Data Watch

A new study in JAMA Network Open found that mailing HPV self-sampling kits increased cervical cancer screening rates by more than 14% among women due or overdue for screening. The approach was also cost-effective or cost-saving, with program costs declining within four years.

Figure. Projected Annual Budget Over 4 Years for STEP Direct Mail Program (5000 Eligible Health Plan Members Per Subgroup)

Measles report: In the U.S., there have been 1,554 confirmed measles cases. For ongoing updates, visit our Resources page. Read the latest deep-dive here.

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