The Codcast

Rising power demand, ambitious clean energy targets, the rise of artificial intelligence, and skyrocketing electricity prices are colliding to create a profound moment of disruption in New England's ability to plan for the needs of the future while keeping the lights on today. Dr. Vamsi Chadalavada, president and CEO of ISO New England, the operator of the region's energy system, joins CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jordan Wolman to discuss how he's balancing it all.

Youtube:

https://youtu.be/wGWbTDdgBWc

Credits:

• Cover photo ISO control rooms - courtesy of ISO New England

• Video Production by Camila Ulian
• Music & Audio by Charlie Koczela

CommonWealthBeacon.org

[email protected]

America's health system is uniquely expensive and uniquely underperforming. On this month's edition of Health or Consequences, John McDonough of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health discusses his upcoming book, America's Wrong Turn: U.S. Health Care in the Neoliberal Era, and traces the political and economic forces that reshaped American medicine. From the Chicago School and Milton Friedman's free-market philosophy to Ronald Reagan's antitrust policies, McDonough argues that decades of neoliberal policymaking laid the groundwork for today's soaring health care costs, industry consolidation, and the growing influence of private equity.

Pre-Order America's Wrong Turn: US Health Care in the Neoliberal Era

30% OFF Code: HTWN

Publishes August 11th, 2026

https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/53872/americas-wrong-turn?srsltid=AfmBOopF7X-M0BXT1fSZffPmeezISVx0CNkt5oJ14yAOfxO722xcR2nM

Host:

Paul Hattis of the Lown Institute

Guest:

John McDonough of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

https://hsph.harvard.edu/profile/john-e-mcdonough/

Have a question or comment for Health or Consequences? Reach out to [email protected]

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/codcast/

Across Massachusetts and the country, the number of journalists is declining rapidly. Unsurprisingly, so is the number of local news publications. This trend is leaving many residents of the Bay State without a reliable source of information about the communities in which they live. To help unpack this trend and explore what can be done about it, CommonWealth Beacon's editor, Laura Colarusso, sat down with Javier Marin, executive chairman of El Planeta; Sophie Culpepper, staff writer for Nieman Lab; and Dan Kennedy, professor of journalism at Northeastern University.

Host:

• Laura Colarusso, editor of CommonWealth Beacon

Guests:

• Sophie Culpepper, staff writer for Neiman Lab
• Javier Marin, executive chairman of El Planeta
• Dan Kennedy, professor of journalism at Northeastern University

YouTube:

https://youtu.be/BmHYDkC0H_w

https://www.medill.northwestern.edu/news/2025/news-deserts-hit-new-high-and-50-million-have-limited-access-to-local-news-study-finds.html

This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporters Hallie Claflin and Jordan Wolman discuss Wolman’s latest piece on how utilities are spending millions on natural gas infrastructure in 10 communities that have gone “fossil fuel free.” They zero in on the state’s Gas System Enhancement Plan, which is now under heavy scrutiny for ballooning spending that has delivered few additional benefits at a time when Massachusetts residents are confronting soaring gas and electric bills. 

Host:

Hallie Claflin, reporter for CommonWealth Beacon

Guest:

Jordan Wolman, reporter for CommonWealth Beacon

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/energy/ten-communities-in-massachusetts-went-fossil-fuel-free-then-utilities-spent-100m-on-natural-gas-infrastructure-there/

YouTube:

https://youtu.be/CH0RLbSfE6Y

Cover Art:

By Fletcher - Own work, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=69888616. Frame and logo overlay added by CWB.

New Mexico is making waves, and generating questions from curious onlookers, by offering universal child care to all families. How is it funded? Is it truly universal? Are there enough caretakers to keep up with demand? And with our astronomically high child care costs, could Massachusetts achieve something similar? Jacob Vigil, the chief legislative officer of New Mexico Voices for Children, joins CommonWealth Beacon's Chris Lisinski to dive into the policy, the grassroots campaign behind the changes, and how money from the booming New Mexican oil and gas industry played a key role.

Guest:

Jacob Vigil, CLO of New Mexico Voices for Children

Host:

Chris Lisinski, senior reporter at CommonWealth Beacon

YouTube:

https://youtu.be/EczRJC3Juek

https://www.kob.com/news/top-news/new-mexico-universal-free-child-care-after-6-months-home-based-programs-see-barriers-removed/

Patrick Gilligan has a lifetime of experience in health care. One year ago, he accepted the role of CEO of Point32Health, a regional nonprofit health insurance provider. On this month's edition of Health or Consequences, hosts John McDonough and Paul Hattis ask Gilligan to take a deep dive into the current state of health insurance. Are patients getting what they're paying for? How are health insurers cutting costs while remaining competitive? How is market consolidation contributing to rising healthcare costs? And what policies might help stem the tide?

Guest:

Patrick Gilligan, CEO of Point32Health

Hosts:

John McDonough of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Paul Hattis of the Lowne Institute

Have a question or comment for Health or Consequences? Reach out to [email protected]

Gov. Maura Healey’s administration estimates that the state will need 222,000 by 2035 to deal with existing needs and population growth. Her new housing secretary, Juana Matias, says we can meet that goal, and joins CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith to talk about chipping away at decades of sluggish housing production. Matias, who was a state representative and regional administration at HUD, discusses what she’d like to see come from the end-of-session rush and how the state can weather federal pullbacks on fair housing an public housing.

For generations, it was virtually guaranteed that American children would out-earn their parents. But as Raj Chetty explains in this special live episode of The Codcast, recorded at the recent WBUR Festival, that dream is fading. What factors are contributing to economic stagnation? How can we increase upward mobility? How do these trends vary across neighborhoods, race, gender, and immigration status?

Watch on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/iT7qj0kakg8

Host:

Michael Jonas, executive editor of CommonWealth Beacon

Guest:

Raj Chetty, Professor of economics at Harvard University and the director of Opportunity Insights

Matches in the world’s biggest sports spectacle will kick off this week across North America. With Boston as one of the host cities — seven matches will be played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, which will be renamed Boston Stadium for the World Cup tournament — Massachusetts will be in the spotlight as it hosts thousands of international fans and will need to safely move people between the city and a stadium some 22 miles away by rail. Are we ready? And is hosting these sorts of mega-events even worth it? This week on The Codcast, Chris Dempsey, the former co-chair of No Boston Olympics joins CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jordan Wolman to discuss whether this time is any different from more than a decade ago when Dempsey successfully fought against Boston’s bid to play home base for the 2024 Olympics. 

Guest:

Chris Dempsey, partner at Speck Dempsey and former co-chair of No Boston Olympics

Host:

Jordan Wolman, reporter for CommonWealth Beacon

Further Reading:

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/government/healey-backs-later-last-call-for-once-in-a-generation-summer/

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/economy/the-inside-story-of-no-boston-olympics/

Massachusetts has been busing students between neighborhoods and school districts for 60 years, but segregation within the school system persists – and in some places it’s actually gotten worse over recent decades. This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporter Jennifer Smith talks with Dan O’Brien, professor of public policy and urban affairs and director of the Boston Area Research Initiative at Northeastern University, about a new lawsuit brought against the state. Students and civil rights organizations want the state to step in to address segregation across school districts, and Boston’s long and fraught history of attempted desegregation may offer some lessons.

Guest

Dan O'Brien, professor of public policy and urban affairs and director of the Boston Area Research Initiative at Northeastern University

Host:

Jennifer Smith, senior reporter at CommonWealth Beacon

Further Reading

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/the-answer-to-the-school-desegregation-lawsuit-revive-urban-communities/