Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,
Federal health officials on July 22 encouraged state Medicaid officials to stop covering dental fillings containing mercury.
Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. on Capitol Hill in Washington on April 22, 2026. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch TimesThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sent letters to the Medicaid director in each state urging them to phase out mercury-containing dental fillings by restricting or ending state Medicaid coverage for dental amalgam, fillings that combine mercury and other materials to treat cavities.
"Americans should feel confident that the health care they receive is always working in their best interest," CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said in a statement.
"That's why we're urging state Medicaid programs to end the use of mercury-containing dental fillings. This is a straightforward and meaningful step that reflects our shared commitment to safe, higher quality care for all Americans and supports the Trump Administration's broader goal to Make America Healthy Again."
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. added: "Mercury has no place in the mouths of our children or in modern American health care. For decades, we have relied on a material that contains one of the world's most toxic heavy metals when safe, effective mercury-free alternatives are widely available. The Make America Healthy Again agenda means confronting outdated practices that needlessly expose Americans to toxic substances."
The letters to the state officials noted that the Indian Health Service, which provides healthcare to American Indians, announced in February that it would end the use of mercury-containing fillings by 2027, citing "health concerns regarding mercury exposure."
Researchers have found signs that amalgam can cause health problems, including higher mercury concentrations in the blood, and patients attributing health problems to the amalgam.
The Minamata Convention on Mercury, signed by the United States in 2013, advises countries to restrict the use of amalgam and identify alternatives, and some countries have already phased out the fillings.
Certain groups such as the American Dental Association say amalgam fillings are safe.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says there is limited data on long-term health outcomes of amalgam in young children, and advises that populations such as children under 6 may face a greater health risk due to mercury exposure.
Alternatives to amalgam fillings include composite resin, porcelain, and glass ionomer.
The International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology says that composite fillings are as durable as amalgam and are the most frequently chosen alternative because the white coloring matches the teeth well, and the cost is moderate.
Tyler Durden Fri, 07/24/2026 - 18:25The US administration and Department of War has just reduced the total number of American service members killed during the Iran war from 18 to 14.
Removing the four most recent deaths, which occurred in Jordan and in Iraq last week, appears to be politically-driven as a way to keep official casualties lower related to President Trump's decision to go to war. That's what's being widely alleged anyway.
The NY Times, which reported the significant change, wrote that "Three military officials said that one reason behind the change was that the Trump administration decided to remove four service members killed this past weekend from the list — three in Jordan and one in northern Iraq — because their deaths occurred after President Trump declared a cease-fire in the war in April."
UPI/ShutterstockThe report lays out that—
The White House is being widely accused of using troop deaths to play cheap political tricks for the sake maintaining image, and ahead of the November midterms and as voters increasingly turn negative on the dragged-out war.
For example, some scathing commentary out of Rolling Stone says the following:
Soldiers die in war. But ever since the death toll in Vietnam broke a generation's appetite for war, the American public has been uniquely sensitive to casualty counts as a result of our military actions abroad.
We venerate fallen servicemembers as heroes, no matter how just the conflict they died in was. But now, Donald Trump's administration is reportedly trying to say that some deaths don't count.
On Thursday, the Pentagon's official roll of servicemember deaths as a result of the Iran war suddenly changed, with four names dropping off the list, bringing the total number from 18 down to 14. The New York Times reported that the change came as a result of a direct action, with the Trump administration declaring that four servicemembers who were killed last weekend at bases in Jordan and Iraq don't count toward the tally of deaths in the Iran conflict, as they occurred after he had declared the conflict to be at a ceasefire in late April.
This kind of paradoxical, absurdist logic is core to the administration's messaging on the Iran war. We are at war, but not technically at war, because there is a cease fire. However, neither side has ceased firing; four American soldiers just died. However, because there was a cease fire, their deaths cannot be attributed to the Iran war, which is not technically an active conflict, despite the conflict being very active.
Sean Parnell, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, on Thursday claimed on X that "the site errors on the Defense Casualty Analysis System were due to a temporary data disruption" and the "site anomalies are currently being resolved in coordination with the Military Services."
US defense officials explained that "their deaths occurred after Trump announced a ceasefire in the war in April."
This was after the Pentagon website that informs the public about the dead and wounded had clearly changed with no explanation. But the bottom line is that at the start of the week the four service members' deaths were listed under Operation Epic Fury but by Thursday their names were dropped. By close of Friday the website has remained uncorrected, displaying the lower number.
Tyler Durden Fri, 07/24/2026 - 18:00