Trump’s healthcare policy: 6 changes impacting private practices

It has been a busy month for policy changes and executive orders under newly inaugurated President Trump. Trump signed a high volume of executive orders in his first 10 days, surpassing the number issued by recent presidents in their first 100 days. Below, we recap several of the quickly evolving Trump healthcare policy changes that may affect medical practices nationwide.

Under President Trump’s healthcare directives, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and National Institutes of Health (NIH) were recently forced to remove various web pages related to adolescent health, LGBTQ+ rights, and HIV. In total, 8,000 web pages were removed. 

That order directs government agencies to discontinue offering "gender identity" as a choice on government forms and to end funding of "gender ideology."

Dr. Sophia Yen, a doctor and reproductive health specialist, expressed concerns about the removal of health-related web pages and its impact on patient care in an interview with Ms. Magazine. “They took down information that healthcare providers use on a daily basis to make sure you’re safe, to prevent the spread of disease,” Dr. Yen shared.

Doctors for America, a medical advocacy group, subsequently filed a lawsuit. This lawsuit states the removal of key web pages and datasets creates a dangerous gap in the scientific data available to monitor and respond to disease outbreaks. The group also states that the removal of this information deprives physicians of resources that guide clinical practice and support patient communication and engagement. 

On February 11, 2025, a federal judge mandated that specific CDC and FDA websites be restored.

President Trump ordered HHS to end gender-affirming care for young people. This is in line with a separate executive order defining sex as strictly male or female based on “immutable biological reality of sex” characteristics at birth.

Fifteen states have opposed the executive order ending gender-affirming care for minors. They have opposed it on the grounds that the order is “wrong on the science and the law.” In addition, several lawsuits have been filed, stating the order is unconstitutional and unlawful. Here’s a recap on responses by providers, states, and litigation. 

President Trump ordered the United States to withdraw from the WHO because he claimed the organization mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic, failed to adopt urgently needed reforms, and failed to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states. 

Judd Walson, MD, MPH, Robert E. Black Chair in International Health at Johns Hopkins, shared in a Q&A that withdrawing from the WHO may limit international collaboration on health threats and visibility into those threats. This could prevent the US from accessing data necessary to create commodities and goods to improve health around the world, including vaccines and drugs for diseases.

Walson noted that at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic there were diplomatic failures — such as countries hoarding vaccines and not delivering them to other countries. There was also failure to access data around the origin of the virus. However, Walson shared that it's important to acknowledge there are valid concerns and the US should work with WHO "to resolve them so that these functions can be performed."

President Trump revoked the following 2 Biden-era directives aimed at strengthening Medicaid and the ACA:

According to the White House website, Trump's reasoning for revoking these directives — along with numerous others — are: "The revocations within this order will be the first of many steps the United States Federal Government will take to repair our institutions and our economy."  

These healthcare policy changes could affect healthcare access for 24 million Americans. In light of a potential rollback of Medicaid expansion, reduced ACA subsidies, and changes to Medicaid eligibility requirements, experts advise providers to assess the impact of rising uninsured rates. 

President Trump revoked the following 3 Biden-era directives aimed at COVID-19 response, testing, and treatment:

Issued in 2021, these executive orders supported COVID-19 testing and research into COVID-19 treatments. These orders also supported economic relief during the pandemic, and cooperation with other countries in the event of another pandemic. 

Another Trump healthcare policy change is one capping indirect costs for NIH research grants at 15%. This percentage is down from the previous average of 27–28%. However, as of the time of writing, a federal judge has temporarily restrained the implementation of the cap pending further legal proceedings.

Experts say the funding cap under Trump’s healthcare policy could halt studies — and limit researchers’ ability to find cures for diseases. The NIH said they made the move to ensure more of its funding goes directly toward research.

Here are some of the additional potential changes on the horizon:

Medical practices should stay informed about these evolving policies and assess their impacts on operations, compliance requirements, and patient care protocols.