HJBR Jan/Feb 2026

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE I  JAN / FEB 2026 37 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalBR.com LouisianaHealthcare Connections Brings NutritionHome for High-Risk Prenatal Members Louisiana Healthcare Connections is expanding its meal delivery services to improve the health outcomes of women with high-risk pregnancies who face food insecurity. This new offering builds on the health plan’s existing meal benefit, which provides nutritious, medically-tailored meals to members recovering after a hospital stay. The post-discharge component of the bene- fit remains available to all eligible members and includes: • Two meals per day for seven days following hospital discharge; • Medically-tailored meals that align with each member’s specific health needs; and • Protein shakes provided as needed to sup- port recovery and nutrition goals. All meals are designed by registered dieti- tians and prepared to support recovery, manage chronic conditions, and promote better overall health. Louisiana SurgeonGeneral Ralph Abraham, AVaccine Skeptic, Tapped For No. 2 Post at CDC Louisiana Surgeon General Ralph Abraham, who rolled back government vaccine distribution as the state’s top public health official, has been appointed to the second highest position at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Abraham, a 71-year-old medical doctor, lives in rural Richland Parish and served as a Republican congressman representing Northeast Louisiana from 2015 until 2021. According to reporting by Julie O’Donoghue in the Louisiana Illuminator , Abraham has espoused skepticism about vaccines for years. After becom- ing surgeon general in 2024, he scuttled Louisi- ana’s longstanding vaccine promotion program, shutting down its advertising campaign and elimi- nating mass vaccination events the state has con- ducted for at least two decades for the flu and other diseases. Recently, Abraham also drew criticism from other public health experts for waiting several weeks to make a public statement and offer guid- ance on whooping cough after two babies in Lou- isiana died from the illness in 2025. Gov. Jeff Landry, who has also expressed skepti- cism about vaccines, praised Abraham’s appoint- ment to help lead the nation’s leading public health organization. “While we are certainly sad to lose Dr. Abraham here in Louisiana, we are thrilled to see the CDC gain a selfless leader,” Landry said in a prepared statement. “There is no better advocate for health freedom than Ralph Abraham.” Prior to his government roles, Abraham worked as a veterinarian treating animals for a decade and then returned to school and earned his medical degree in 1994 at age 40. He operated a gen- eral practice and still treats patients on a part-time basis at a rural health clinic in Louisiana’s Missis- sippi Delta region, one of the poorest sections of the country. Gov. Jeff Landry tapped Abraham to be Louisiana’s health secretary for the first several months of Landry’s administration in 2024. The governor and state lawmakers then created the position of state surgeon general specifically for Abraham last year. In that job, the former congressman has been in charge of the state’s public health efforts and said he planned to focus on preventing diseases such as diabetes and obesity in Louisiana. In addition to casting doubt on the need for vaccines, Abraham has also promoted COVID- 19 treatments that infectious disease experts have widely debunked. They include taking hydroxychloroquine, a medication used to prevent malaria, and ivermectin, a drug used for parasitic infections. Recently, Abraham cited talking points promoted by anti-vaccine groups in a public appearance. At a press conference, he highlighted a Cleveland Clinic study that skeptics use to cast doubt on the usefulness of the flu vaccine. Staff at the Cleveland Clinic and other disease experts have pushed back on the interpretation of the study Abraham reiterated and emphasized the study doesn’t prove the flu vaccine is ineffective. The Louisiana Illuminator article this news brief was taken from was shortened for space. To read the full article, go to: https://lailluminator.com/2025/11/25/louisiana- surgeon-general-ralph-abraham-a-vaccine- skeptic-tapped-for-no-2-post-at-cdc/ FranciscanMissionaries of Our Lady Health System is NowFMOL Health Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health Sys- tem is now FMOL Health. The new positioning publicly unifies the healthcare system’s network of hospitals, clinics, and care facilities throughout the Gulf South. While local markets have always been a part of the larger network of care, this move provides better clarity to the alignment between the health system and its facilities along with over 20,000 team members. Changes the public can expect to see include the merging of the name FMOL Health with those of individual hospitals and clinics. The new brand will be rolled out across all physical locations, dig- ital platforms, and patient materials in the com- ing months. The health system is also taking this opportunity to launch new messaging and visual branding to better represent the organization’s culture and ideals. The theme of the campaign is “This is how we healthcare.” Louisiana Backs OffMedicaid Contract Termination,Will Offer ExtensionThroughMarch A week after Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration confirmed the sudden end of a $4.2 billion Med- icaid contract that provides health insurance to more than 330,000 people, state officials backed off their original plan and said they would seek an extension of the arrangement through March instead. The state will continue to work with United- Healthcare of Louisiana to provide Medicaid cov- erage if the company agrees to a short-term sup- plemental contract. The arrangement would be worth approximately $561 million for 90 days in 2026, Health Secretary Bruce Greenstein said in an article by Julie O’Donoghue in the Louisiana Illuminator . If accepted, the contract extension would keep 330,000 people with UnitedHealthcare Medicaid plans from being quickly moved to another insur- ance provider before the end of 2025. The Landry administration eased up on initial plans to abruptly cancel the UnitedHealthcare contract in response to pressure from state sena- tors during a hastily called legislative hearing after the announcement. Senators questioned whether