Gov. Katie Hobbs worried US health care headed in wrong direction

PHOENIX — Following President Donald Trump’s Monday press conference about autism rates, Gov. Katie Hobbs expressed concerns about the future of American health care.

A few hours after the Trump administration gave the speech on the complex brain disorder, she called their findings “junk science.”

“This is like junk science and … I don’t know what the motives are,” Hobbs told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Outspoken with Bruce & Gaydos. 

Trump claimed there is a tie between Tylenol — also known as acetaminophen — and autism, despite the link being unproven and in some cases discredited.

Hobbs added that she doesn’t think there needs to be a cure for autism.

“We are doing more and more with medical research to be able to live with autism and live productive fulfilling lives,” Hobbs said.

Hobbs worried about direction of U.S. health care, trying to protect Arizona’s

The governor expressed concerns that America is losing its place in being cutting edge and finding cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s.

“So many terrible diseases that we are doing cutting-edge research for and the government is cutting all the funding for this,” Hobbs said. “We’re not going to be on the cutting edge anymore and Americans will suffer for that.”

Despite her worries about federal actions, Hobbs said she’s doing what she can to put Arizona’s medical standing in the best position possible.

“Back in April, we fought with the legislature to protect a very specific program in the development disabilities department that paid parents as caregivers,” Hobbs explained.

Hobbs signed the amended version of the supplemental spending bill HB2945 on April 24, after it was passed by the House and Senate. That happened a week after the governor said she would veto any new bills sent to her desk until the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) funding crisis was solved through a bipartisan agreement.

“Some extremists in the legislature were proposing slashing that program in half, eliminate it all together and we saved that program,” Hobbs said. “And in that process, we said, ‘We are going to have to put some guardrails in place to make sure that we can ensure the sustainability of this program and that it continues to be available.'”

In addition, earlier this month, Hobbs issued an executive order that directed the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) and the State Board of Pharmacy to ensure widespread vaccines access ahead of the 2025-2026 respiratory disease season. As a result, ADHS issued a standing order last week to make the COVID-19 vaccine available to anybody in the state who wants it.

“My priority as governor, wanting to ensure Arizonans health and safety, is that they have access to the health care that they need or want,” Hobbs said. “So, any adult who wants one can go to their pharmacy and get one without a prescription. And I know there’s still a lot of confusion out there about this, but it fold need information, we’re encouraging them to either call their pharmacy to see if they can get a … vaccine there or go to the Arizona Department of Health Services website to find the most current information.”

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