Trump Turns Obama-Era Youth Health Policy On Its Head
President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum on Tuesday that brought back the Presidential Fitness Test Award. The school-based fitness program that ended during the Obama administration gave this award to students who performed well.
Members of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition and the National Fitness Foundation board will be at the signing. Some of the famous athletes who will be there are golfer Bryson DeChambeau, retired professional golfer Gary Player, Baltimore Ravens cornerback Amani Oruwariye, and MLB pitcher Noah Syndergaard.
The change brings back a performance-based standard for student fitness, which is similar to the Trump administration’s larger “Make America Healthy Again” campaign.
Last year, Trump signed an executive order to bring back the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition and the Presidential Fitness Test. On Tuesday, a memo made it possible for the government to bring back the test and awards at all American schools, Fox News Digital learned.
According to a copy of the National Physical Fitness Award that Fox News Digital got, the new edition of the award focuses on measurable athletic performance standards, just like earlier iterations of the test that ranked students based on their physical achievements.
Former President Barack Obama ended the original Presidential Physical Fitness Test during his second term and replaced it with the Presidential Youth Fitness Program, which is part of the “Let’s Move” campaign. At the time, critics said that the test put too much emphasis on performance and competitiveness, which made less athletic students less likely to do well.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower set up the President’s Council on Youth Fitness because research revealed that American kids were less fit than their European contemporaries. President John F. Kennedy started the President’s Council on Physical Fitness by having schools give fitness tests.
According to the Let’s Move website, the Obama-era Presidential youngsters Fitness Program was mostly about “assessing health versus athleticism for America’s youth.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that between 2021 and 2023, more than 21% of Americans ages 2 to 19 were obese, and 7% of American kids were severely obese.
Trump also held an event on the South Lawn with families and kids to celebrate National Youth Sports and Fitness Month.
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Trump was also asked about the conflict in Iran.
The president told Congress on Friday that hostilities between the United States and Iran have “terminated,” stating that a ceasefire implemented last month effectively ended the conflict as a key legal deadline arrived.
The claim came as Trump reached the 60-day mark under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, which requires presidents to withdraw U.S. forces from unauthorized military engagements unless Congress approves continued action.
Despite the declaration, U.S. forces remain active in the region, and the administration has not ruled out additional strikes, The Washington Post reported.
In a letter to lawmakers, Trump argued that the absence of recent military exchanges signaled the end of hostilities.
“There has been no exchange of fire between United States Forces and Iran since April 7, 2026,” Trump wrote. “The hostilities that began on February 28, 2026, have terminated.”
The president is arguing that because he implemented a cease-fire, that effectively reset the War Powers clock, so to speak, meaning any new military action in the region would simply restart the 60-day window.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth made a similar argument during testimony last week before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Trump also questioned the constitutionality of the War Powers Resolution’s time limits, as have most all previous presidents since the law was passed toward the end of the Vietnam War.
“Most people consider it totally unconstitutional,” Trump told reporters. “Also, we had a ceasefire, so that gives you additional time.”
Democrats quickly challenged that interpretation, arguing that conditions on the ground do not reflect an end to the conflict. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) dismissed the claim in blunt terms, while other lawmakers pointed to ongoing risks facing U.S. forces.
Previous administrations have taken similar positions. President Barack Obama continued military operations in Libya beyond the 60-day window without seeking formal authorization, while President Bill Clinton’s administration argued that congressional funding effectively authorized U.S. involvement in Kosovo.
The War Powers Resolution allows for an additional 30-day withdrawal period if a president certifies that continued military engagement is necessary to ensure a safe exit. The Trump administration does not appear to have formally invoked that provision.
The Senate last week rejected a war powers resolution that would have directed the president to withdraw U.S. forces. The measure failed on a 50-47 vote, with some Republicans joining Democrats in support.
Trump Admin Says It Uncovered $10 Billion Obamacare Fraud Scheme
The Trump administration says it has uncovered what it describes as a massive fraud scheme within the Affordable Care Act.
Members of Trump’s administration allege that roughly $10 billion in taxpayer money was improperly paid out between 2021 and 2024 because of weakened enrollment safeguards under former President Joe Biden.
According to a Department of Health and Human Services report, officials have already removed nearly three million fraudulent or improper Obamacare enrollments and estimate another 2.6 million questionable enrollments remain.
Administration officials say the findings are part of a broader government-wide effort to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse across federal programs.
The report traces the alleged problems to changes made during the Biden administration that expanded enrollment opportunities while relaxing income verification and eligibility checks.
At the start of Biden’s presidency, approximately 10 million people were enrolled through the Affordable Care Act exchanges. By 2024, enrollment had surged to roughly 22 million.
Federal investigators now believe millions of those enrollments were improper, fraudulent, or created without the knowledge of the individuals involved.
“By our estimate, improper, phantom, and fraudulent enrollment peaked at 5.6 million people in 2025,” the report states.
“We estimate 2.6 million improper and phantom enrollments remain, including over 1 million enrollments without a Social Security number.”
According to the report, several different forms of abuse contributed to the alleged fraud.
Officials say some applicants intentionally understated their income to qualify for larger taxpayer-funded subsidies.
Others allegedly received premium assistance despite failing to meet eligibility requirements.
Investigators also identified what they describe as “phantom enrollments,” in which insurance brokers allegedly enrolled people in Obamacare plans without their knowledge to collect federal commissions.
The report argues that reduced verification requirements made those practices significantly easier to carry out.
Since taking office, the Trump administration says it has restored stricter income verification requirements, ended several special enrollment periods, increased screening for duplicate Medicaid enrollment, and launched investigations into brokers suspected of creating phantom policies.
Officials also say they have strengthened oversight of agents participating in the federal marketplace.
As a result of those efforts, nearly three million enrollments have already been removed from the Affordable Care Act exchanges.
Even after those removals, approximately 19.2 million people remain enrolled.
The administration says its goal is not to reduce legitimate coverage but to ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent only on individuals who actually qualify.
“Preserving the fiscal and programmatic integrity of the ACA Exchanges is key to safeguarding taxpayer-funded resources for those that truly need them,” the report states.
“The federal government paying brokers to enroll individuals without their knowledge is not.”
The report also says the administration will continue pursuing additional enforcement actions against brokers and others accused of exploiting the program.
“The Trump Administration continues to aggressively root out fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption by promulgating new regulations to improve program integrity, investigating suspected improper or fraudulent enrollment, and taking action against agents and brokers committing fraud.”
The findings are likely to reignite debate over the Affordable Care Act and how aggressively eligibility rules should be enforced.
Supporters of the administration argue the report demonstrates that stricter oversight is necessary to protect taxpayers and preserve benefits for those legally entitled to receive them.
Critics of previous verification rollbacks have long warned that loosening enrollment safeguards could increase improper payments and fraud, while supporters of the Biden-era policies argued the changes made healthcare more accessible to eligible Americans, Fox News reported exclusively.
The administration says its investigations remain ongoing, with an estimated 2.6 million additional enrollments still under review as officials continue auditing the federal health insurance exchanges.
Trump has been pushing to replace Obamacare for over a decade, and this may give Republicans enough motivation to actually do something.
