Get the latest news from our field
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent panel of medical experts that shapes preventive care, will not hold its regular meeting this month, marking one year since its members last met.
- Ordinarily, the task force meets three times a year, in March, July, and November. But it has not met since March 2025.
- Five of the 16 members’ terms ended on Jan. 1, and they have not been replaced. Plus, there have been reports of turnover among the staff who support the evidence reviews that make the task force possible.
- The main point: There is growing concern that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is abandoning USPSTF and that this is a sign that HHS plans to dismantle the group.
The broader context: USPSTF was created by statute, so eliminating it theoretically requires Congressional action, but HHS can undermine it so that it is no longer functional.
Why it’s important: Postponing meetings may delay updates to recommendations that guide patient care and insurance coverage. Changes to the task force could affect millions of Americans’ ability to access preventive care, as USPSTF-recommended services are free for patients.
- Each year, USPSTF submits a report to Congress outlining gaps in research and highlighting areas where more focus is needed, which is used to help inform NIH’s grant decision-making. But it did not submit its report last year.
- USPSTF typically releases 20-25 new guidelines annually, but it only released about 5 last year.
- The task force has not been able to advance recommendations that are in the draft or research stages. Recommendations in the draft stage include those on tobacco cessation interventions in adults and tobacco use prevention and cessation primary care interventions in children and adolescents. Those awaiting finalization include recommendations on screening and behavioral counseling interventions for unhealthy alcohol use in adolescents and adults.
Published
March 2026