Here are the stories that resonated most with our readers this year.
Controversial health nominees
Several of the nominees President Trump chose to lead health care agencies tested Republicans' loyalty, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. chief among them.
Kennedy, an anti-vaccine campaigner from a storied Democratic dynasty who joined Trump's presidential campaign, went through a fraught confirmation process, with several Republicans expressing unease with his views that clash with the medical establishment.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a physician and chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, was a key vote in confirming Kennedy and repeatedly expressed his reservations with Kennedy's vaccine rhetoric. The Trump administration won Cassidy over with assurances of seeking the senator's input on HHS decisions and hirings
Since then, Cassidy's public frustration has grown, with little evidence of his influence over HHS's goings on.
CDC pushed to the limit
Along with facing the turmoil of federal reduction in force, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) experienced a fatal shooting this year at its headquarters in Atlanta and saw key leaders exit.
A shooter who was reportedly discontent with the COVID-19 vaccinations fired 500 shots into six different CDC buildings at its campus in Atlanta, killing DeKalb County police officer David Rose.
That came shortly before the dramatic firing of CDC Director Susan Monarez, a veteran federal health scientist who served in the role for less than a month.
Trump's first nominee failed to receive enough GOP Senate support, leading him to pick Monarez, who had been serving as acting CDC director prior to her nomination.
She told the Senate she was ousted from the role for refusing to Kennedy's demand that she preapprove new vaccine policies before they were issued.
Her ouster coincided with the resignations of four top CDC leaders, who left in protest of what they called political interference into their scientific work.
Vaccine policy overturned
One of the first major moves Kennedy made as HHS Secretary was firing and remaking the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), filling seats with known vaccine skeptics and critics.
After this shakeup, the remade ACIP would go on to vote in favor of limiting who the COVID-19 vaccines are recommended for, ending universal hepatitis B vaccinations for newborns and delaying administration of the vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella and varicella.
ObamaCare subsidy fight shuts down Congress
Health care became a defining fight in Congress during the last half of the year, with Democrats trying to extend COVID-era enhanced premium tax credits for Affordable Care Act plans.
The enhanced tax credits helped boost health plan enrollment, cutting down uninsurance rates. They expanded income eligibility and allowed some low-income households to access $0 plans.
Republican leadership steadfastly remained resistant to extending these credits. Congress barreled through key deadlines, including when open enrollment began, and ultimately when the subsidies officially expire tonight.
The fight peaked when the federal government shut down for a record 43 days, only ending with the promise of a vote on extending the subsidies.
But proposal after proposal was rejected or stalemated and Republicans left for their holiday recess this month with no plan in place, setting the stage for a post-expiration fight in the new year.
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