What the Health? From 窪蹋勛圖厙 News

Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 窪蹋勛圖厙 News, along with top health policy reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico and other media outlets to discuss the latest news and explain what the health is going on here in Washington.

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If you have a question for the podcast, you can send it to whatthehealth@kff.org.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    2023 Is a Wrap

    Episode 327

    2023 was another busy year in health care. As the covid-19 pandemic waned, policymakers looked anew at long-standing obstacles to obtaining and paying for care in the nations health care system. Meanwhile, abortion has continued to be an issue in much of the nation, as states respond to the Supreme Courts 2022 decision overturning the constitutional right to the procedure. This week, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and wrap up the year in health. Also this week, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Jordan Rau about his joint 窪蹋勛圖厙 News-New York Times series Dying Broke.

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    Abortion and SCOTUS, Together Again

    Episode 326

    The Supreme Court agreed this week to hear its first major case on abortion since overturning Roe v. Wade one that could restrict the availability of the abortion pill mifepristone, even in states where abortion remains legal. Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, lawmakers in the House and Senate finally moved to renew health programs that expired in October but its likely too late to finish the job in 2023. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Riley Griffin of Bloomberg News, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Jen Golbeck, a University of Maryland professor and social media superstar, about her new book, The Purest Bond, which lays out the science of the human-canine relationship.

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    Democrats See Opportunity in GOP Threats to Repeal Health Law

    Episode 325

    Sensing that Republicans are walking into a political minefield by threatening once again to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the Biden administration is looking to capitalize by rolling out a series of initiatives aimed at high drug prices and other consequences of corporate greed in health care. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court hears a case that could determine when and how much victims of the opioid crisis can collect from Purdue Pharma, the drug company that lied about how addictive its drug, OxyContin, really was. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Rachana Pradhan of 窪蹋勛圖厙 News join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Dan Weissmann of 窪蹋勛圖厙 News sister podcast, An Arm and a Leg, about his investigation into hospitals suing their patients over unpaid bills.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Trump Puts Obamacare Repeal Back on Agenda

    Episode 324

    Although Republicans have never united behind a replacement for the Affordable Care Act, 2024 GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump said this week he wants to put the issue back on the national agenda. That delights Democrats, who have won at least two elections partly by defending the now-popular health law. Meanwhile, the Texas Supreme Court takes up a case brought by women who say their pregnancy complications further endangered their health due to the vagueness of Texas near-total ban on abortions. Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Victoria Knight of Axios News join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Rachana Pradhan, who reported and wrote the latest Bill of the Month feature.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Congress Kicks the (Budget) Can Down the Road. Again.

    Episode 323

    Congress narrowly avoided a federal government shutdown for the second time in six weeks, as Democrats came to the rescue of divided House Republicans over annual spending bills that were supposed to be finished by Oct. 1. But the brinksmanship is likely to repeat itself early in 2024, when the next temporary spending patches expire. Meanwhile, a pair of investigations unveiled this week demonstrate how difficult it still is for seniors to get needed long-term and rehabilitation care. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    A Very Good Night for Abortion Rights Backers

    Episode 322

    Abortion rights backers won major victories in at least five states in the 2023 off-year elections Nov. 7, proving the staying power of abortion as a political issue in the wake of the Supreme Courts 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Health finally has a new director, after Democrats temporarily blocked President Joe Bidens nominee over a mostly unrelated fight about prescription drug prices. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Appleby, who reported and wrote the latest Bill of the Month feature.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    For ACA Plans, Its Time to Shop Around

    Episode 321

    Its Obamacare open enrollment season, which means that, for people who rely on these plans for coverage, its time to shop around. With enhanced premium subsidies and cost-sharing assistance, consumers may find savings by switching plans. It is especially important for people who lost their coverage because of the Medicaid unwinding to investigate their options. Many qualify for assistance. Meanwhile, the countdown to Election Day is on, and Ohios State Issue 1 is grabbing headlines. The closely watched ballot initiative has become a testing ground for abortion-related messaging, which has been rife with misinformation. This weeks panelists are Mary Agnes Carey of 窪蹋勛圖厙 News, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, and Rachana Pradhan of 窪蹋勛圖厙 News.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    The New Speakers (Limited) Record on Health

    Episode 320

    The House finally has a new speaker: Mike Johnson (R-La). Hes a relative newcomer whos been a lower-level member of the House GOP leadership. And while hes an outspoken opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage, his record on other health issues is scant. Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Health appears on track to be getting a new director, and Georgias Medicaid work requirement experiment is off to a very slow start. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    The Open Enrollment Mixing Bowl

    Episode 319

    Open enrollment for Medicare beneficiaries with private health plans began Oct. 15, to be followed Nov. 1 by open enrollment for Affordable Care Act plans. The selection for both is large often too large to be navigated easily alone. And people who choose incorrectly can end up with unaffordable medical bills. Meanwhile, those on both sides of the abortion issue are looking to Ohios November ballot measure on abortion to see whether anti-abortion forces can break their losing streak in statewide ballot questions since the overturn of Roe v. Wade in 2022.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Health Funding in Question in a Speaker-Less Congress

    Episode 318

    A bitterly divided Congress managed to keep the federal government running for several more weeks, while House Republicans struggle again to choose a leader. Meanwhile, many people removed from state Medicaid rolls are not finding their way to Affordable Care Act insurance, and a major investigation by The Washington Post attributes the decline in U.S. life expectancy to more than covid-19 and opioids. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Victoria Knight of Axios, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews physician-author-playwright Samuel Shem about Our Hospital, his new novel about the health workforce in the age of covid.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    An Encore: 3 HHS Secretaries Reveal What the Job Is Really Like

    Episode 317

    In this special encore episode, 窪蹋勛圖厙 News What the Health? asks three people who have served as the nations top health official: What does a day in the life of the U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services look like? And how much of their agenda is set by the White House? Taped in June before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health, part of the Aspen Ideas Festival, in Aspen, Colorado, host and chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner leads a rare conversation with the current and two former HHS secretaries. Secretary Xavier Becerra and former secretaries Kathleen Sebelius and Alex Azar talk candidly about what it takes to run a department with more than 80,000 employees and a budget larger than those of many countries.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    More Medicaid Messiness

    Episode 316

    At least 30 states are reinstating coverage for children wrongly removed from the rolls under Medicaid redetermination, the federal government reported. Its just the latest hiccup in the massive effort to review the eligibility of Medicaid beneficiaries now that the programs pandemic-era expansion has expired. And federal oversight of the so-called unwinding would be further complicated by an impending government shutdown. Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of Pink Sheet join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Samantha Liss, who reported and wrote the latest 窪蹋勛圖厙 News-NPR Bill of the Month feature, about a hospital bill that followed a deceased patients family for more than a year.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Countdown to Shutdown

    Episode 315

    Congress appears to be careening toward a government shutdown, as a small band of House conservatives vow to block any funding for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 unless they win deeper cuts to health and other domestic programs. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump continues to roil the GOP presidential primary field, this time with comments about abortion. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Tami Luhby of CNN join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, for extra credit, the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Underinsured Is the New Uninsured

    Episode 314

    The percentage of working-age adults with health insurance went up and the uninsured rate dropped last year, the U.S. Census Bureau reported this week. There isnt much suspense about which way the uninsured rate is now trending, as states continue efforts to strip ineligible beneficiaries from their Medicaid rolls. But is the focus on the uninsured obscuring the struggles of the underinsured? Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these issues and more.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Welcome Back, Congress. Now Get to Work.

    Episode 313

    Congress returns from its summer recess with a long list of tasks and only a few work days to get them done. On top of the annual spending bills needed to keep the government operating, on the list are bills to renew the global HIV/AIDS program, PEPFAR, and the community health centers program. Meanwhile, over the recess, the Biden administration released the names of the first 10 drugs selected for the Medicare price negotiation program.

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  • A Not-So-Health-y GOP Debate

    Episode 311

    The first Republican presidential debate of the 2024 cycle took place without front-runner Donald Trump and with hardly a mention of health issues save for abortion. Meanwhile, in Florida, patients dropped from the Medicaid program are suing the state for not giving them enough notice or a way to contest their being dropped from the program. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, and Victoria Knight of Axios join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.

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  • Abortion Pills Legal Limbo Continues

    Episode 310

    A federal appeals court issued a split decision on whether the abortion pill mifepristone should remain on the market rejecting a lower courts decision to effectively cancel the drugs FDA approval in 2000, while ordering the rollback of more recent rules that made the drug easier to obtain. Nothing changes immediately, however, as the Supreme Court blocked the lower courts ruling in the spring. It will be up to the high court to determine whether the pill remains available in the U.S. and under which conditions. Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    On Abortion Rights, Ohio Is the New Kansas

    Episode 309

    Nearly a year to the day after Kansas voters surprised the nation by defeating an anti-abortion ballot question, Ohio voters defeated a similar, if cagier, effort to limit access in that state. This week, they rejected an effort to raise the threshold for approval of future ballot measures from a simple majority, which would have made it harder to protect abortion access with yet another ballot question come November. Meanwhile, the number of Americans without health insurance has dropped to an all-time low, though few noticed. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, and Emmarie Huetteman of 窪蹋勛圖厙 News join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Kate McEvoy, executive director of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, about how the Medicaid unwinding is going, as millions have their eligibility for coverage rechecked.

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  • 窪蹋勛圖厙 News' 'What the Health?'

    Congress Is Out. The Presidential Campaign Is In.

    Episode 308

    Congress is in recess until after Labor Day, and lawmakers wont have much time when they return to get the government funded before the next fiscal year. Meanwhile, the Republican campaign for president has begun in earnest, and while repealing the Affordable Care Act is no longer the top promise, some candidates have lively ideas about what to do with federal health programs. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 窪蹋勛圖厙 News chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 窪蹋勛圖厙 News Phil Galewitz, who reported the latest 窪蹋勛圖厙 News-NPR Bill of the Month, about how a bill that should never have been sent created headaches for one patient.

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