Healthcare in the United States has increasingly become a financial enterprise that sometimes delivers care. Financial actors including private equity firms, corporate investors, insurance companies, and hospital systems buy healthcare facilities and prioritize generating profits over the health of people and communities. Consumers feel the effects when costs rise, healthcare facilities merge and close, and there are not enough healthcare professionals. How did we get here, and what will it take to change?

Experts Jamila Headley (The Patients Hub), Alankrita Olson (Physicians for a National Health Program), and Erin C. Fuse Brown (Brown University School of Public Health) join host Anton Gunn to break down the history of healthcare financialization, examine the root causes and actors behind the harm, and share how patients can start to reclaim power through community-driven solutions.

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The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and HBCU medical schools are on the frontlines of creating a healthcare workforce that is representative of the communities they're a part of. What can the rest of the healthcare system and medical schools learn from them?

Host Anton Gunn talks with Dr. Marjorie C. Gondré-Lewis (Howard University), Dr. Lisa Barkley (Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science), Dr. Leonardo Seoane (Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine), and Dr. Tabia Henry Akintobi (Morehouse School of Medicine) about how HBCU medical schools build trust, train doctors who reflect the communities they serve, and tackle physician shortages through community-rooted solutions. Their experiences offer a roadmap for how partnership built around community voices can transform care.

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

The U.S. healthcare system needs transformational change, but where do we start? Host Anton Gunn talks with Jamila Michener (Cornell University), Robin Wright-Pierce (Transforming Change), and Jennifer Wells (Community Change) about how accountability, inclusive leadership, and community organizing can improve care and health outcomes for everyone. Examples of communities tackling entrenched barriers to health offer inspiration and a roadmap.

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: ⁠⁠⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/⁠⁠⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/⁠⁠⁠

Website: ⁠⁠⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/⁠

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

Special episode 2 of 2.

In recognition of Black Maternal Health Week, this episode features Ashlei Spivey (I Be Black Girl) and Omari "Muz" Maynard (ARIAH Foundation)—both advocates whose very personal, first-hand experiences with reproductive care called them to reproductive justice.

They open up about the power of lived experience in connecting with communities facing reproductive injustice, how fathers navigate reproductive care, and approaches that advocates can use to advance maternal health policies and address systemic racism in healthcare. 

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: ⁠⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/⁠⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/⁠⁠

Website: ⁠⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/⁠

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

Special episode 1 of 2.

Healthcare providers can support safe and respectful reproductive care that considers bodily autonomy, cultural competence, and personal experience. This inspiring conversation with Jenice Fountain (Yellowhammer Fund), Jennie Joseph (Commonsense Childbirth Inc.), and Sonya Shin, MD (Harvard Medical School) focuses on using midwifery and birth center models to improve reproductive health outcomes. They also share what called them to this work and offer advice for aspiring midwives and advocates.

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: ⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/⁠

Website: ⁠https://meetattheintersection.org/

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

Special episode 3 of 3.

Embracing rest offers the opportunity to envision a future where the people leading a movement towards equity in healthcare can achieve their goals without exhaustion or burnout at work. By viewing rest as a vital public good, each generation can breathe a little easier as they work to create antiracist systems where everyone has equitable access to basic resources.

Host Carmen D. Harris joins with Cultural Strategist Esther Boykin and Founder of Huru Imani Joye Samuels to envision what a well-rested world that prioritizes equity and emotional wellbeing could look like and how protecting rest can lead to systemic changes for optimal wellness. They also imagine how valuing rest could impact future generations and help achieve equity in healthcare.

Learn more about The Intersection’s Rest & Renewal convening: https://meetattheintersection.org/rest-renewal-an-invitation-to-reset-and-reconnect/

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/

Website: https://meetattheintersection.org/

Special episode 2 of 3.

Achieving optimal wellness while working towards equity in healthcare begins with leaders actively investing in rest. Implementing sustainable practices for rest and emotional wellbeing is not limited to large-scale organizational leadership; individuals can also lead by inviting others to participate in rest to encourage renewal and prevent burnout at work.

Host Carmen D. Harris joins with Cultural Strategist Esther Boykin and Founder of Huru Imani Joye Samuels to explore techniques for weaving rest into organizational and movement work. They share how leaders and organizations are creating space for rest in their work culture and protecting their staff’s emotional wellbeing. They also discuss how tying rest and other sustainable practices to metrics and success can inspire systems change.

Learn more about The Intersection’s Rest & Renewal convening: https://meetattheintersection.org/rest-renewal-an-invitation-to-reset-and-reconnect/

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/

Website: https://meetattheintersection.org/

Special episode 1 of 3.

People working towards equity in healthcare often experience burnout at work from high demand and busy schedules that result in decentering their needs. By designing a culture of rest, leaders and staff in healthcare careers can experience optimal wellness and emotional wellbeing.

Carmen D. Harris hosts Cultural Strategist Esther Boykin and Founder of Huru Imani Joye Samuels to discuss the toll of working in unjust systems, sustainable practices leaders can use to shift into a culture of rest, and what it would take to design a community or workplace that emphasizes rest.

Merriam-Webster defines rest as freedom from activity or labor and peace of mind or spirit. Creating space for rest enables leaders and organizers to practice self-compassion and strengthen connections with their communities.

Learn more about The Intersection’s Rest & Renewal convening: https://meetattheintersection.org/rest-renewal-an-invitation-to-reset-and-reconnect/

Stay connected with The Intersection:

Convenings: https://meetattheintersection.org/convenings/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rwjf-the-intersection/

Website: https://meetattheintersection.org/

Host Anton Gunn leads a reflection on health equity successes from a tough 2025, with Jerry Jones (RWJF), Angela Hanks (Century Foundation), and Becky Payne (Rippel Foundation). They discuss how organizations can stay hopeful, motivated, and innovative as they continue to fight for equity in 2026. They also share insights from their personal journeys, advice for up-and-coming health equity leaders, and what’s giving them hope as the new year begins.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.

On this episode of The Intersection podcast, host Anton Gunn talks to Aija Nemer-Aanerud (People’s Action Institute) and Lindsey Muniak (Debt Collective)––two changemakers helping people access the healthcare they need without falling into debt. They discuss strategies that organizations can use to help those facing debt, protect the safety net, advocate for a more equitable system, and understand the importance of working inside and outside of institutions to find common ground in health equity efforts. 

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Foundation does not support lobbying efforts, including any activities or communications referenced during this podcast.