It hasn’t been easy to be an LGBTQ+ health facility in 2025. From gender-affirming care restrictions for youth to the Chevron ruling to recent HIV prevention funding cuts, LGBTQ+ healthcare has been going through a tumultuous time.

KFF reported in a 2022 study of 6,442 adults, including 958 LGBTQ+ people, that 50% of queer respondents had an “ongoing health condition” but were more likely to report a “range of negative provider experiences” and less likely to have a regular doctor compared to non-LGBTQ+ patients.

This Pride Month, we asked health experts working with the LGBTQ+ community about what challenges they’ve faced in the last six months, how they’ve changed strategies to adapt, and their goals for the rest of the year.

See what providers have to say.—CM

Amid a national mental health crisis and provider shortage, some experts are asking: Are we making it too hard to become a therapist?

Traditional state licensure is expensive and time-consuming, requiring a bachelor’s and a graduate degree, according to the American Psychological Association (APA). In 2016, the APA found early-career psychologists had an average $80,000 in student debt. There’s also a lack of diversity; in 2019, 88% of mental health counselors were white.

As a result, some are redefining who can provide counseling.

One example is the Lay Counselor Academy, co-founded in 2021 by psychologist Elizabeth Morrison and lay counselor Alli Moreno. It focuses on training people who are already connected to their communities—like social workers, legal aid staff, case managers, and community health workers—to provide mental health support. Morrison said about 850 people have been trained so far.

Here’s how one group is trying to change things up.—CC

The US trade deficit shrank by a near-record 55% in April, data from the Commerce Department shows.

But there are a couple of huge “buts” there.

The trade deficit grew to a record monthly high of $138.3 billion back in March, as companies rushed to import goods ahead of the Trump administration’s tariffs. Seen in that light, April’s results appear more like a correction of a spending spree rather than a lasting change.

In fact, this April’s trade deficit is 65.7% higher than it was back in April 2024. And so far, 2025’s trade deficit is wider than 2024’s. During January to April last year, the trade deficit was $273 billion. During that same period this year? It was $452 billion.

Pharma, auto, and industrial pullbacks. Imports of goods and services shrank by 16% in April. US companies slashed their spending on imported consumer goods by nearly a third, to $69.9 billion. In particular, they imported far fewer pharmaceutical preparations, or finished drugs, which the Commerce Department classifies as consumer goods. Imports of those drugs were down by $26 billion.

Keep reading on CFO Brew here.—CV

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