| THE LEAD BRIEF Erica Schwartz, Trump’s pick to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, would enter the job after severing financial ties to some of the nation’s largest health care companies, according to documents filed with the Office of Government Ethics. Schwartz serves as president of insurance solutions at UnitedHealth Group, the nation’s largest insurer, where filings show she’s earning about $846,000 in salary and bonus compensation. She reported about $466,000 in income from company stock awards she received as part of her compensation package, and between $1 million and $5 million in UnitedHealth stock awards that are scheduled to vest over time. Political nominees do not have to report exact figures for their assets and liabilities on the forms; instead, they may provide the values in broad ranges. → Schwartz has a minimum net worth of about $4.6 million, in addition to receiving about $2 million in salary, bonuses, and other income such as interest or dividend payments, according to a tally of her financial disclosure. She has no liabilities such as a mortgage, car loan or credit card debt. She also sits on the boards of medical device maker Butterfly Network and home health provider Aveanna Healthcare Holdings, positions that generated more than $171,000 in fees for Schwartz and a sizable stock portfolio. The documents also reveal UnitedHealth Group agreed to provide Schwartz with one year’s salary and a performance bonus upon her departure, as well as cash payments for certain unvested stock awards that otherwise would have vested through 2027. But the agreement notes that she could forfeit the cash. → To address potential conflicts, Schwartz agreed to resign from UnitedHealth, Butterfly Network, Aveanna Healthcare and the nonprofit Searching for Solutions Institute upon confirmation and divest from the companies, according to a separately filed ethics agreement. The ethics agreement includes additional restrictions beyond divestiture: Schwartz pledged to recuse herself for two years from specific-party matters involving UnitedHealth Group, Butterfly Network and Aveanna Healthcare Holdings. More broadly, Schwartz agreed not to acquire direct financial interests in a wide range of industries regulated or affected by HHS, including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices, health insurers, health care providers, food companies and communications firms while serving as CDC director. What’s next: A spokesperson for the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which is responsible for advancing health-related political appointments, said the panel is working to schedule a confirmation hearing for Schwartz. → There are still several high-level vacancies in the Trump administration’s health agencies, including at the Food and Drug Administration, yet to be filled. The Supreme Court’s decision allowing the Trump administration to end humanitarian protections for Haitians and Syrians is sending shock waves through the health care workforce, report Maria Sacchetti and Lauren Kaori Gurley in The Washington Post newsroom. Nursing homes, hospitals and senior living facilities warn they could lose scores of workers who provide essential patient care, likely worsening staffing shortages in these sectors. The ruling clears the way for the administration to end the temporary protected status (TPS) program for Haitians and Syrians — and could ultimately affect roughly 1.3 million immigrants from more than a dozen countries. TPS, created in 1990, provides temporary work authorization and protection from deportation to people whose home countries are experiencing war, natural disasters, or other crises. I dug into some of the numbers: The National Domestic Workers Alliance estimates that there are 13,000 Haitian TPS holders working as nursing assistants and 8,000 working as caregivers. Tens of thousands more work in other health care roles around the country. The Supreme Court’s decision “will cost us all,” said Care for Seniors, Care for America, a coalition of providers, workers, immigrant rights organizations and others. “Not only does it destabilize the lives of [temporary protected status] holders who have built families, careers, and communities in the United States, but it also threatens the care infrastructure that seniors, disabled people, families, and providers rely on every day,” the coalition said in a statement. Overall, there are an estimated 53,000 health care workers who hold temporary protected status potentially at risk of deportation, according to KFF. → Maria and Lauren’s story details what’s happening on the ground. - At Laurel Ridge Rehabilitation & Skilled Care Center in Boston, managers are racing to determine how long Haitian employees can continue working.
“The residents will be losing caregivers that they really have become attached to,” Colin O’Leary, the facility’s executive director, told The Post. - Miami Jewish Health, a senior living community and health care provider in Florida, said roughly 40 health care employees and contracted workers are affected. The community had already reduced its offerings by 120 beds, in part due to staffing challenges.
- Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, characterized the decision as “a mistake” and said it is too dangerous to deport people to Haiti. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, warned the decision could “cripple our health care system.”
By the numbers: About 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians currently hold temporary protected status, though the administration has sought to terminate protections for immigrants from 13 countries. Many say they’ve been living in the United States for decades, and some fear returning to the conflict-ridden countries where they barely know the language. President Donald Trump and his allies have alleged that the protections have lasted long after the emergencies have passed, and have allowed undocumented immigrants and visa overstayers to live and work in the United States. Read the full story: “Nursing homes, factory owners and immigrants brace for fallout from Supreme Court ruling.” Chris Klomp, who is already serving in several top roles, including as director of Medicare and chief counselor at the Department of Health and Human Services, has been nominated as the No. 2 at HHS. “HHS is a massive and complex organization, but Chris knows exactly how to run it,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), who leads the Senate HELP Committee, called Klomp an “encouraging pick.” Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. privately urged at least two Libertarian congressional candidates in Iowa to drop out of competitive House races to help Republicans retain control of Congress, The Post’s Dan Diamond reports. In a June 11 call with Rick Stewart, the Libertarian candidate in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District, Kennedy said he was acting as a “liaison” with the White House and argued that a Democratic takeover of the House would jeopardize Trump’s agenda, according to a recording obtained by The Post. Why it matters: The outreach underscores the Trump administration’s growing focus on the midterms, particularly in swing districts that could determine control of the House. Kennedy explicitly tied his concerns to the possibility that a Democratic majority could launch investigations into Trump administration policies, including his own controversial health initiatives. “I don’t want to be fighting subpoenas for the next two years instead of improving America’s health,” Kennedy told Stewart during the call. “For me, you know, there’s an immediate pragmatic reason for this phone call.” → Earlier this week, Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released an investigation of the Trump administration’s actions on health care, suggesting that figures such as Kennedy could face additional scrutiny if they win back the House majority. Kennedy suggested Stewart could potentially accomplish more through an agreement than through a “symbolic run,” though Kennedy declined to discuss specifics, citing legal restrictions. Stewart said he viewed the conversation as an implied quid pro quo, describing the message as: “You help us, we’ll help you.” He said Kennedy never made a concrete offer and that he has no plans to leave the race. Kennedy also called Marco Battaglia, the Libertarian candidate in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District, and similarly encouraged him to consider dropping out. Battaglia said he declined. Iowa’s 2nd District is rated by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report as leaning Republican, while the 3rd District is considered a toss-up. Kennedy declined to comment. → Ethics experts said the calls raise questions about whether a Cabinet secretary improperly used official influence to affect federal elections, potentially violating federal law called the Hatch Act, which restricts government employees from engaging in partisan political activity in their official roles or using government resources to influence elections. Some past officials who have become involved in elections have defended their conduct by saying they were acting in their personal capacities. Read the full story: “White House, RFK Jr. tried to push third-party candidates out of tight House races” “Three finalists emerge to lead FDA,” Caitlin Owens reports at Axios. “RFK Jr. Loves Supplements. Their Makers Say They’re MAHA’s Collateral Damage.,”, Paige Winfield Cunningham writes at NOTUS. “Chaotic Push to Train Staff for US Ebola Outbreak Facility Alarms Health Workers,” Jessica Nix reports at Bloomberg. “To Wall Street, psychedelics biotechs are more teammates than rivals,” reports Jacob Bell at BioPharma Dive. This newsletter is published by WP Intelligence, The Washington Post’s subscription service for professionals that provides business, policy and thought leaders with actionable insights. WP Intelligence operates independently from the Washington Post newsroom. Learn more about WP Intelligence. | 
