POLITICO's Pulse Check

Atul Gawande doesn't really need an introduction — but if PULSE CHECK were to provide one, it would highlight his work as a New Yorker writer, researcher, best-selling author, surgeon and founder of two non-profits. (Among other responsibilities.)

Atul sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to discuss how he manages his schedule (starts at the 2:05 mark), his book "Being Mortal" and how he thinks its lessons have resonated (5:50), his perspective on politics and public health (11:20), his early career as a Hill staffer and Clinton-era appointee at HHS (18:00), whether he'd ever take a job in D.C. again (26:00) and his writing process (28:00). Plus, stick around to hear Atul answer PULSE CHECK listener questions, which starts at the 40:20 mark.

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Stories and book referenced on the podcast:

Atul's 2015 book, "Being Mortal": https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JCW0BCY/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Atul's 2009 story, "The Cost Conundrum": https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/06/01/the-cost-conundrum

Atul's 2009 story, "Hellhole": https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/03/30/hellhole

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Aaron Carroll is making a play to be America’s doctor, or at least the physician we need to bust medical myths. The pediatrician from Indianapolis is a best-selling author of medical advice books, a featured writer in the New York Times, and even a YouTube celebrity, with more than 250,000 subscribers to his channel. So how did he do it? In a bonus episode of PULSE CHECK, Aaron joins POLITICO’s Dan Diamond to discuss his path from blogger to New York Times contributor (Starts at the 1:35 mark), his critical analysis of Medicare-for-all proposals (11:20), his view as an Indiana-based doctor of that state’s health reforms, led by Mike Pence and Seema Verma (15:50), why Congress is failing on CHIP and what policies they should pursue (20:35), Aaron’s mythbusting on what you should, and shouldn’t eat(23:00) and more. We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected] or tweet him @ddiamond. Stories and podcasts referenced on the podcast:  PULSE CHECK’s interview with Austin Frakt, Aaron’s writing partner: https://soundcloud.com/politico-pulsecheck/news-roundup-and-austin-frakt Aaron and Austin’s New York Times interactive tournament of the best health care systems in the world: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/18/upshot/best-health-care-system-country-bracket.html?_r=0 Aaron discussing his new book, THE BAD FOOD BIBLE: HOW AND WHY TO EAT SINFULLY: https://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/healthcare-triage-the-bad-food-bible/

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The Washington conversation has been focused on the fate of the ACA and whether insurers are planning to stick around. So for this episode of PULSE CHECK, we took the conversation outside the Beltway to hear from Mario Schlosser, CEO of Oscar Health — the insurance startup that’s gotten a lot of buzz and is heading into more Obamacare markets this year. Mario caught up with POLITICO’s Dan Diamond last month to discuss Oscar's evolving strategy (starts at the 2:00 mark), why Oscar is moving into new Obamacare markets (8:05), the company's much-hyped founding story (16:00) and some of the unwanted attention on Oscar, including the insurer's ties to Jared Kushner (26:10). We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected].

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Every shortlist of health care power players includes Bernard J. Tyson, head of Kaiser Permanente. (Modern Healthcare this summer ranked him the fourth most influential person, after Sens. Collins, McCain and Murkowski.)

So how does this prominent figure see the industry, and what's he telling Congress? Bernard caught up with POLITICO’s Dan Diamond last week to discuss the whirlwind around ACA repeal and what he wants to see fixed (starts at the 1:50 mark), whether insurers can come back to Obamacare markets (9:00), his own career path and whether it's replicable today (23:30), KP's role as an employer and community anchor (29:00), and the future of his organization (33:30).

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The political fights over U.S. health policy often pale next to the world's health care challenges — and Sue Desmond-Hellmann would know. The doctor-turned-CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is on the front lines of the global public health battle, as her organization tackles challenges like eradicating polio and preventing maternal and newborn deaths. Sue caught up with POLITICO’s Dan Diamond last week to discuss if the Trump administration’s putting global progress at risk (starts at the 2:45 mark), the Gates Foundation’s work around the globe, the public health priorities that are being overlooked, and the role of philanthropy in solving the world’s crises. We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected].

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Here’s how fast things are moving in health care: Mike Leavitt, who ran HHS under President George W. Bush, came to Washington 10 days ago to testify about the need for bipartisan health reforms — and since that day, when he sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond, the Senate’s bipartisan health push has collapsed and the GOP’s latest Obamacare repeal bill is on life support. Although the conversation is slightly dated, the former HHS secretary is a must-listen voice on health care issues, and he shares his perspective on possible health reforms (starts at the 16:30 mark), his pessimism on Medicare-for-all (22:00), his concerns about the Affordable Care Act (25:15) and his post-government work as head of Leavitt Partners (32:30). But first, POLITICO’s Rachana Pradhan and Jennifer Haberkorn join PULSE CHECK to break down the wild week in health care (starts at the 2:15 mark) and Rachana and Dan’s reporting about HHS Secretary Tom Price’s charter jets — an investigation that made this podcast so delayed (starts at 8:55 mark). We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected]. Stories referenced on the podcast: Jen's story with colleagues on Sen. John McCain's decision to oppose ACA repeal again: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/22/mccain-to-oppose-graham-cassidy-likely-sinking-obamacare-repeal-243028?lo=ap_a1 Dan and Rachana’s investigation into Tom Price's use of charter planes: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/19/tom-price-chartered-planes-flights-242908 Rachana and Dan's follow-up on Price's 24 charter flights since May: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/21/tom-price-private-charter-plane-flights-242989

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Progressives have spent 2017 rethinking, regrouping and — in some cases — re-litigating what it means to be a Democrat after last year's shocking presidential loss. And two health care issues, abortion rights and single-payer, have been at the center of this year's party debates. One person leading those conversations is Ilyse Hogue, head of NARAL Pro-Choice America, who joined POLITICO's Dan Diamond to explain the mission of her pro-abortion advocacy organization (starts at the 2:00 mark), whether Donald Trump has actually been a boon to progressives (7:20), how anti-abortion Republicans are targeting the judiciary (14:20), whether Democrats should only vote for candidates who support abortion rights and Medicare-for-all (17:20), her own career path (25:00) and why she talked about her own abortion on national TV at the Democratic National Convention (29:25). We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected] or tweet him @ddiamond.

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PULSE CHECK is back from August recess with a closer look at how health care politics and policy can influence spending — and sometimes not for the better. But first, Jen Haberkorn and Adam Cancryn rejoin PULSE CHECK to discuss the competing approaches to Obamacare in the Senate, whether either plan has a chance at succeeding, and if the GOP still wants to fight to repeal the law (starts at the 1:23 mark). After the break, Yale economist Zack Cooper discusses his team's first-of-its-kind work into the connection between politics, hospital behavior and health care spending, and how one last-minute addition to a major piece of Medicare legislation boosted hospital payments — and politicians' campaign contributions (starts at the 22:30 mark). We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected] or tweet him @ddiamond.

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Kathleen Sebelius, the former HHS secretary who oversaw the rollout of Obamacare, is worried that HHS’s current leaders are steering the ACA the wrong direction. "They have done a lot to sabotage the health care law," Sebelius told POLITICO’s Dan Diamond. The former HHS secretary shares her thoughts on the current administration’s strategy, what she thinks HHS should be prioritizing and what’s been overlooked because of the intense focus on the ACA. (Starts at 22:00) But first, POLITICO’s Rachana Pradhan and Paul Demko join PULSE CHECK to discuss the emerging bipartisan efforts in the Senate to stabilize the ACA, the disconnect between President Trump’s comments and the Trump administration’s actions on health care and what’s on tap when Congress returns in September (starts at 1:35 mark) We’d appreciate your help: Please share PULSE CHECK and rate us on your favorite podcast app! Have questions, suggestions or feedback? Email [email protected] or tweet him @ddiamond. Stories referenced on the podcast: Rachana’s story on how the Trump administration is spending millions to prop up Obamacare: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/13/trump-millions-save-obamacare-241549 Paul’s story on how the ACA survived the threat of “bare counties”: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/20/obamacare-insurers-county-health-plans-241803

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