In this bonus episode of Radio Advisory, managing producer Chris Phelps and host and executive producer Rae Woods compare notes from the 2026 ViVE digital health conference. They break down what stood out on the main stage and the show floor—from where AI is over and under hyped, to why point solutions keep falling short, to what it actually takes to scale technology in healthcare. They also surface the big questions they still have about the healthcare industry’s digital future.

We’re here to help:

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Payers are operating at the center of converging pressures: rising costs, accelerating utilization, heightened public scrutiny, and a wave of CMS reforms that are reshaping expectations around transparency, interoperability, prior authorization, and accountability. Medicare Advantage has become the front line for these shifts—exposing tensions between regulatory oversight, margin compression, and growing demands for better member and provider experiences.

Against this backdrop, health plans are being asked to do more with less—while proving real value through measurable outcomes, trust, and access.

In this episode, recorded in February at the ViVE digital health and healthcare innovation conference, Rae Woods moderates a conversation with payer and technology leaders on how AI and data are being used to reduce payer–provider friction, rethink prior authorization, and improve the member experience—without losing sight of accountability or return on investment.

Panelists include:

We’re here to help:

Register today for the 2026 Advisory Board Summit in Washington, D.C.

Updating COVID-19 management protocols may help address long-term impacts

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Academic medical centers (AMCs) sit at the heart of U.S. healthcare, driving scientific discovery, providing crucial clinical care, and training the next generation of clinicians. They also face mounting financial pressures and a shifting policy landscape that threatens their ability to sustainably deliver on this tripartite mission. And their complex structures make rapid business model transformation tough — at a time when it has become essential for survival.

In this episode, host Abby Burns invites Advisory Board expert Wes Campbell to provide an update on how AMCs are doing amidst the current climate, unpack how and why policy shifts hit AMCs differently than their non-academic peers, and discuss what it will take for AMCs to adapt.

We’re here to help:

Register today for the 2026 Advisory Board Summit in Washington, D.C.

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Employer-sponsored insurance is reaching a tipping point. What was once a predictable 2–4% annual increase in employer health spending has given way to double digit growth, driven by surging drug costs, rising utilization across all age groups, and escalating provider rates. For many employers—especially smaller organizations with less margin for error—absorbing these costs is no longer viable. As economic conditions shift and the labor market cools, the balance of power between employers and employees is changing, opening the door to more aggressive cost-control strategies.

In this episode, host Rachel (Rae) Woods is joined by Advisory Board expert Sally Kim to unpack what’s behind the spike in employer health costs—and what employers are doing about it. They walk through the full “menu” of options now on the table, from benefit redesign and navigation tools to network strategy, direct contracting, and alternative funding models. The conversation explores what these moves mean for health plans and providers competing for commercial lives—and why understanding employer behavior is no longer optional.

We’re here to help:

How UT Southwestern closed genomic testing gaps in prostate cancer care

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

For life sciences companies, access and adoption of clinical products is no longer as simple as demonstrating strong outcomes at a fair price. As payers and providers face mounting financial pressure and operational complexity, they are scrutinizing their partners more closely — expecting clearer evidence, more relevant value narratives, and support that reflects real world constraints.

In this episode, host Rachel (Rae) Woods sits down with Advisory Board experts Gina Lohr and Nick Hula to unpack how med tech and pharma companies should adapt their product and partnership strategies. Together, they explore why a single value story no longer works — and how life sciences organizations can better align their products, evidence, and engagement strategies to meet the rising expectations of payers, health systems, ambulatory leaders, clinicians, and patients.

We’re here to help:

How Highlands Oncology expanded access to oral oncolytics treatment

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

As health systems pursue growth beyond traditional avenues, the role of the strategic planner is becoming increasingly complex. High level directional data is no longer enough — achieving meaningful, differentiated growth now requires leveraging granular, sophisticated data to inform investment decisions.

In this episode, host Rachel Woods sits down with Advisory Board experts Sebastian Beckman and Ellie Wiles to explore how health systems can rethink strategic planning for 2026 and beyond. Together, they unpack what it should actually look like to democratize data, why data governance matters just as much as data access, and how service line leaders can partner with planners to make faster, more precise, margin savvy decisions.

We’re here to help:

Comprehensive women’s healthcare: Redefining the standard of care

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

How did health systems perform in 2025, and which strategic growth priorities are top-of-mind for 2026?

Health systems have entered the year with both momentum from buoyed volumes, and mounting pressure as those volumes don’t necessarily translate to healthy margin.

This week, host Abby Burns sits down with Advisory Board expert Marisa Nives and Optum consulting expert Alex Kist to unpack results from Advisory Board’s annual Strategic Planner Survey. They explore how health systems are—and aren’t—running at growth, and what separates the systems that are able to turn volumes and revenue into margin, from those that aren’t.

Be sure to catch next week’s episode, when Advisory Board experts discuss the data that planners need (and often lack) to make these strategic decisions with confidence in 2026.

We’re here to help:

Real-time transparency infographic

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

After a turbulent 2025, the early months of 2026 are proving that the policy landscape isn’t quieting down. Federal agencies are rolling out new payment models, lawmakers are revisiting long debated rules, and courts continue to shape what policies move forward and which stall. From value based payment to drug pricing and site of care policy, leaders are navigating a fast shifting environment with real implications for finances, operations, and long term strategy.

In this episode, host Abby Burns invites three Advisory Board experts to break down the major policy forces that leaders need to watch now:

We’re here to help:

Radio Advisory’s Health Policy playlist

Webinar | Join Optum Advisory experts at this upcoming webinar to learn how optimizing patient access unlocks the value of digital innovations and drives long-term sustainability

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Infusion services make up a roughly $150 billion market in the U.S., and underpin the financial stability of major service lines, especially oncology. Historically, health systems have enjoyed strong volumes, favorable reimbursement, and access to 340B discounts that keep their infusion business profitable. But rising competition, payer and employer driven site of care shifts, and looming policy changes are putting pressure on what many leaders have relied on as a stable, margin accretive business.

In this episode, host Abby Burns sits down with Advisory Board expert Chloe Bakst to break down what’s actually happening in the infusion market — and why every health system leader should be paying closer attention. Together, they explore how new competitors are capturing leakage you may not even see, how payers and employers are steering patients away from hospital outpatient departments, and how upcoming 340B reforms and Medicare drug price negotiations could reshape the economics of infusion over the next three years. Chloe also shares the strategies forward thinking systems are using to protect their infusion business and prepare for rapidly emerging headwinds.

We’re here to help:

Webinar | Join Optum Advisory experts at this upcoming webinar to learn how optimizing patient access unlocks the value of digital innovations and drives long-term sustainability.

Expert Insight | How data-driven risk reduction protects patients and providers

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Once a high growth, high margin line of business for health plans, Medicare Advantage (MA) is now in the middle of a financial reset.

Growth has slowed, margins have turned negative, and federal financial support is eroding — with CMS proposing a near flat reimbursement increase for 2027. As a result, plans are exiting markets, tightening benefit designs, and shifting their focus toward Special Needs Plans (SNPs). At the same time, seniors are facing rising costs, fewer perks, and more frequent plan changes.

To cut through the noise and understand what’s really happening beneath the headlines, host Rachel (Rae) Woods speaks with Advisory Board experts Sally Kim and Aaron Hill about the new divide emerging in MA: between plans equipped to manage the intensive needs of high cost seniors and execute on SNP strategies — and those that will be forced to exit markets or rethink their MA ambitions entirely.

Listen as they break down how MA’s financial and clinical headwinds are reshaping payer–provider relationships — and why future success depends on disciplined focus, deeper provider partnerships, and new investments in technology and cross benefit management.

We’re here to help:

2026 Advisory Board Summit Washington, D.C.

A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.