• Georgia: NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya has been named acting CDC director amid ongoing leadership shakeups at different federal health agencies. CDC has been without a permanent director since last August when Susan Monarez was fired from the role. Since then, Jim O'Neill, who was also HHS deputy secretary, has been CDC's acting director. However, O'Neill left HHS last Friday and will likely be nominated by President Donald Trump to lead the National Science Foundation. In O'Neill's place, Bhattacharya will take over as acting CDC director until President Trump can appoint a permanent leader for the agency. Bhattacharya will also continue to lead NIH during this time. Several public health experts spoke out against the decision, saying that it will be nearly impossible for Bhattacharya to run both NIH and CDC. The arrangement is a "recipe for disaster," said Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, adding that he thinks "the CDC is one disaster away from being a disaster itself" due to significant funding cuts. (Christensen, CNN, 2/18; Stolberg, New York Times, 2/18; Owens/Sullivan, Axios, 2/18) 
• Maryland: Last week, FDA approved label changes for six hormone replacement therapies (HRTs) to remove boxed warnings for cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and probable dementia. The agency initially announced the change in November, with FDA Commissioner Marty Makary saying the shift would end a decades-long "fear machine" around HRTs. Although hormone therapy has been used to treat menopause symptoms since the 1940s, FDA added a black box warning to treatments containing estrogen in the early 2000s after a large-scale study found they could potentially increase the risk of heart attack, strokes, blood clots, and certain cancers. However, major medical societies, including the Menopause Society and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, have for years urged FDA to reevaluate warning labels for certain HRTs, such as vaginal estrogen products. In a statement, FDA said removing the boxed warnings on HRTs "will allow women, working with their healthcare professionals, to make better-informed decisions about their treatment plan for menopause symptoms." (Monaco, MedPage Today, 2/13)
• Washington: Amazon Pharmacy is planning to expand its same-day delivery services to 4,500 U.S. cities and towns by the end of 2026. This expansion will allow almost 2,000 new communities to access the service. According to Amazon, the expansion will help the company increase access to medication amid growing pharmacy closures, staffing shortages, and transportation barriers. "Patients shouldn't have to choose between speed, cost, and convenience when it comes to their medication, regardless of where they live," said John Love, VP of Amazon Pharmacy. "By combining our pharmacy expertise with our logistics network, we're removing critical barriers and helping patients start treatment faster — setting a new standard for accessible, digital-forward pharmacy care." The company is also planning to expand access to medication kiosks at its Amazon One Medical clinics. These kiosks allow patients to fill their prescriptions immediately after their visits. (Jeffries, Becker's Hospital Review, 2/11; Greenawalt, Amazon News, 2/11)

Learn eight key insights about succession planning, drawn from conversations with HR executives, to help your executive team and board build a strong, diverse leadership bench ready to meet current and future challenges.