Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Christina Farr, CEO and editor-in-chief of Second Opinion Media, back to the pod to discuss her book, The Storyteller's Advantage: How Powerful Narratives Make Businesses Thrive. The conversation explores the value of storytelling in the health care and health policy space, how to invest in posting, the catch 22 of "spicy takes," recommendations for the reluctant poster, and Christina shares a quick look into what's interesting in the digital health investment space. 

Health Affairs’ Jeff Byers welcomes Georgetown University’s Katie Keith back to the podcast to break down the newly proposed HHS rule that could bring major changes to the ACA beginning in 2027.

They discuss the proposal’s biggest shifts, including a major push toward expanding catastrophic plans, new marketplace eligibility restrictions tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and potential impacts on premiums, marketplace enrollment, insurers, and consumers.

Related Links:

• HHS Proposes Sweeping Changes for 2027 Marketplace Plans (Part 1) (Health Affairs Forefront)
• HHS Proposes Sweeping Changes for 2027 Marketplace Plans (Part 2) (Health Affairs Forefront)
• Trump Team’s Planned ACA Rule Offers Its Answer to Rising Premium Costs: Catastrophic Coverage (KFF Health News)
• CMS proposes sweeping ACA exchange rule (Healthcare Dive)

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes dietitian Jenny Lo from Wellness and Sports Dietetics to discuss the recently revised dietary guidelines for Americans. They discuss what's changed, the emphasis on protein, the ambiguity over ultraprocessed foods, and the best advice she gives to new clients looking to make dietary changes.

Related Articles:

• Panel behind new dietary guidelines had financial ties to beef, dairy industries (Stat News)
• Experts Who Advised on Diet Guidelines Say RFK Jr.'s Version Is Full of Errors (MedPage Today)
• A Multilayered Public Policy Approach To Ultraprocessed Foods (Health Affairs Forefront)
• MAHA says its new food pyramid is affordable and healthy. We asked experts (Stat News)

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Senior Editor Kathleen Haddad back to the pod to discuss the recently passed $1.2 trillion spending appropriations bill, its included reforms for pharmacy benefit managers, the latest round of drugs slated for the Medicare Drug Negotiation program, TrumpRx, the upcoming flat rate for Medicare Advantage plan rates, and more recent health policy news.

Related Articles:

• Congress Reins In Drug Middlemen In Effort to Lower Prescription Prices (The New York Times)
• Analyzing The Drugs Selected For The 2028 Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Cycle (Health Affairs Forefront)
• The No UPCODE Act: Considering A Simple Start To A Complex Problem (Health Affairs Forefront)
• PRESS RELEASE: CMS Announces Selection of Drugs for Third Cycle of Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program, Including First-Ever Part B Drugs

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Katie Keith of Georgetown Law and Deputy Editor Chris Fleming to the pod to discuss what to watch out for in 2026 for health policy. The conversation touches on Affordable Care Act subsidies, Medicaid eligibility, guidance for pharmacy benefit managers, drug price negotiations, and more.

This week, we announced that Health Affairs has become Health Affairs Publishing, LLC, a single-member limited liability company wholly owned by Project HOPE. To find out more about this exciting new chapter, check out this Forefront piece.

Join us for the following events:

• 2/17: The FDA and Its Changing Relationship to Industry
• 2/25: What Excites Insiders About Health Care in 2026?

Become an Insider today to get access to these exclusive events.

Related Links:

• Health Policy At A Crossroads: What To Watch In 2026 (Health Affairs Forefront)
• Prescription Drug Policy, 2025 And 2026: The Year In Review And The Year Ahead (Health Affairs Forefront)

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Gabriel Perna, Deputy Editor of Digital Health Business & Technology at Modern Healthcare, to the pod to discuss Epic Systems, how they became one of the leading American health care EHR companies, a recent antitrust lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton against Epic Systems, and even touch on ChatGPT's entrance into health care.

Related Articles:

• Texas files antitrust suit against Epic over health data (Modern Healthcare)
• Texas hits Epic with an antitrust suit: Here’s what to know (Modern Healthcare)

On an emergency pod episode, Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Stacie Dusetzina of Vanderbilt University Medical Center to breakdown the recently unveiled The Great Healthcare Plan from the Trump administration.

Related Articles:

• The Great Healthcare Plan (White House)

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers is joined by Michael Chernew from Harvard Medical School to explore the recent 2024 health care spending report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

To kick off the new year, we are offering podcast videos of A Health Podyssey. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch those episodes. Let us know what you think about the videos by emailing us at [email protected].

Join us on January 21 for an exclusive Insider virtual event exploring the latest drug policies with the University of Utah’s Joey Mattingly. Become an Insider to get access to this event.

Related Articles:

• National Health Care Spending Increased 7.2 Percent In 2024 As Utilization Remained Elevated (Health Affairs)
• Growth In National Health Expenditures: It’s Not The Prices, Stupid (Health Affairs Forefront)

In the wake of Medicare and Medicaid's 60th anniversary, Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Jamila Michener of Cornell University to the pod to discuss her recent Forefront article on organized power and its impact on the future of Medicaid.

Also, join us for these upcoming events:

• 8/26: Provider Prices in the Commercial Sector: Independent Dispute Resolution (FREE TO ALL)
• 9/3: Theme Issue Briefing: Insights About The Opioid Crisis (FREE TO ALL)
• 9/23: Prior Authorization: Current State and Potential Reform (INSIDER EXCLUSIVE)

Become an Insider today to get access to exclusive events like the ones highlighted above.

Related Articles:

• Order Fragmented Democracy: Medicaid, Federalism, and Unequal Politics (Cambridge University Press)
• Medicare and Medicaid at 60 Forefront Series

Health Affairs' Jeff Byers welcomes Mark Fendrick of The University of Michigan's Center for Value-Based Insurance Design (VBID) to discuss the recent announcement from CMS that the Medicare Advantage VBID model would be ending after 2025, and what the future holds for VBID moving forward with the new Trump administration.

Check out a recently released Health Policy brief from Nathaniel Tran and Gilbert Gonzales exploring LGBTQI+ policies.

Join Health Affairs on February 25 for an exclusive Insider virtual event featuring Stacie Dusetzina and Laura Tollen discussing HHS’s announcement of the 15 additional drugs selected for Medicare drug price negotiations, including weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy.

Also, join a live recording of A Health Podyssey on March 12 featuring Rob Lott and Yashaswini Singh discussing her recent paper on the effect of private equity on physician turnover.  Register for the live taping here.

Related Articles:

• The End Of The MA Value-Based Insurance Design Model: What Next? (Health Affairs Forefront)
• V-BID X: Creating A Value-Based Insurance Design Plan For The Exchange Market (Health Affairs Forefront)
• Medicare Advantage Value-Based Insurance Design (VBID) Model to End after Calendar Year 2025 (CMS)