A Health Podyssey

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

THIS SPONSORED PODCAST EPISODE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY DrFIRST.

In this sponsored episode, Dr. Colin Banas, chief medical officer at DrFirst, joins Health Affairs Publishing's Rob Lott to discuss prior authorization, why the process continues to create delays and administrative burden, and the future of prior authorization in the health care ecosystem.

Colin Banas joined DrFirst in 2019 after spending 17 years as CMIO at VCU Health System, where he also practiced as an internal medicine hospitalist. He has testified before the U.S. Senate on health IT and meaningful use and previously served as a health IT Fellow at the ONC. 

At DrFirst, Dr. Banas drives innovation in medication workflows, focusing on non-disruptive decision support that creates better experiences for providers and patients, including how AI can reduce clinical burnout and improve patient outcomes. 

This conversation explores the root causes of prior authorization challenges, from fragmented workflows and outdated technology to the competing incentives facing providers and payers. Dr. Banas and Lott also discuss how automation, interoperability, and artificial intelligence are beginning to reshape prior authorization and help organizations reduce friction while maintaining appropriate oversight of care.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Sumedha Gupta of Indiana University about new research on the dementia care workforce and how clinician experiences vary across provider types. They examine what those differences could mean for access, diagnosis, and care as dementia prevalence increases in the years ahead.

Order the October 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

This month marks a major milestone for Health Affairs. In October 2006, the Health Affairs Blog was launched as a new experiment in health policy dialogue. Twenty years later, that platform has evolved into Health Affairs Forefront, publishing hundreds of articles annually and serving as a leading venue for evidence-based analysis, commentary, and debate.

On this special anniversary episode of A Health Podyssey, host Rob Lott sits down with Chris Fleming, Editor of Forefront, to reflect on two decades of growth, innovation, and influence. Together, they discuss the origins of the publication, its transformation from a fledgling blog into a respected policy forum, and the editorial principles that have guided its success.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to catch all the latest Forefront articles.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

A Health Podyssey host Rob Lott chats with Dr. Alister Martin, commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, about his path from emergency medicine to public health leadership, his vision for improving health outcomes across New York City, and how the city's lessons in public health can be applied to other locales.

Their conversation explores the local response to federal health policy changes, efforts to protect Medicaid coverage and reduce medical debt, and the public health challenges shaping New York City's future.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Irene Papanicolas of Brown University about her recent paper examining how Americans contribute to health care financing through taxes, premiums, and out-of-pocket spending. The conversation explores differences in those contributions across income groups and insurance status, and considers the implications for health care affordability and financing policy.

Order the September 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

What happens when Medicare Advantage plans receive lower payments under a new risk adjustment model?

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Niru Ghoshal-Datta of the University of California, Berkeley about his recent paper exploring CMS’s updated Medicare Advantage risk adjustment model. They discuss how the policy change reduced payments to Medicare Advantage plans, had little effect on premiums and cost sharing, and led to modest reductions in some supplemental benefits

 
Order the September 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Emily Dore of Tufts University School of Medicine about her recent paper exploring COVID-era WIC policy flexibilities, increased program participation, and what those findings mean for the future of safety net programs.

 
Order the September 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Debra Lipson, health policy analyst and consultant, about her recent paper that explores how new federal limits on Medicaid state directed payments could force significant Medicaid spending cuts in many states, potentially reshaping provider funding and access to care.

 
Order the September 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Are we ready for the next public health emergency?

Rob Lott speaks with physician, researcher, and New Yorker writer Dhruv Khullar about the state of U.S. public health preparedness, the growing challenges facing infectious disease surveillance, and the connection between chronic and infectious disease.

The conversation also explores Khullar’s work as a clinician, health policy researcher, and journalist, including his research on health care consolidation, Medicare Advantage, and the commercialization of medicine.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.

This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.

Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Grace Mackleby of the University of Southern California about her recent paper that explores how vertically integrated Medicare Advantage plans and hospital systems set prices, finding that most affiliated and unaffiliated plans pay similar rates, with notable variation in certain markets.

 
Order the August 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free.