What the Health? From KFF Health News

President Joe Biden has signed the Inflation Reduction Act and Congress is gone until after Labor Day. But the administration and lawmakers left lots of health policy behind, including new rules to facilitate the sale of over-the-counter hearing aids and a potential reorganization of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, for extra credit, the panelists suggest their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: The Los Angeles Times’ “The CDC Loosened Its COVID Rules. Who Fills in This Public Health Vacuum?” by Wendy Netter Epstein and Daniel Goldberg

Alice Miranda Ollstein: MedPage Today’s “Falls From Higher Border Walls Overwhelm Trauma Services,” by Cheryl Clark 

Joanne Kenen: Harper’s Magazine’s “A Hole in the Head,” by Zachary Siegel 

Anna Edney: Stat’s “Parents and Clinicians Say Private Equity’s Profit Fixation Is Short-Changing Kids With Autism,” by Tara Bannow

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

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Congress is leaving for its annual summer break having accomplished far more than many expected, including, barring unforeseen snags, a bill to address the cost of prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries and extend the enhanced subsidies for insurance premiums under the Affordable Care Act.

Meanwhile, the abortion issue continues to roil the nation as Indiana becomes the first state to ban the procedure in almost all cases since the Supreme Court overruled the constitutional right to abortion in June.

Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

Also, for extra credit, the panelists suggest their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: The Washington Post’s “For Sleep Apnea Patients With Recalled CPAP Machines, Restless Nights,” by Laurie McGinley

Rachel Cohrs: The Washington Post’s “Conservatives Skeptical of Coronavirus Vaccines Battle to Lead a Hospital,” by Tim Craig

Alice Miranda Ollstein: The AP’s “Study Connects Climate Hazards to 58% of Infectious Diseases,” by Seth Borenstein

Sarah Karlin-Smith: The Pink Sheet’s “US FDA Commissioner Califf Takes on Misinformation, Starting With ‘Rumor Control,’” by Sue Sutter

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

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In the first official test vote since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, voters in Kansas’ primary said in no uncertain terms they want to keep a right to abortion in their state constitution. Meanwhile, the Senate is still working to reach a vote before summer recess on its health care-climate-tax measure, but progress is slow. Tami Luhby of CNN, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Bram Sable-Smith, who wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment about a very expensive ambulance trip. 

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: KHN’s “They Lost Medicaid When Paperwork Was Sent to an Empty Field, Signaling the Mess to Come,” by Brett Kelman

Rachel Cohrs: The Washington Post’s “Thousands of Lives Depend on a Transplant Network in Need of ‘Vast Restructuring,’” by Joseph Menn and Lenny Bernstein 

Tami Luhby: KHN’s “Hospices Have Become Big Business for Private Equity Firms, Raising Concerns About End-of-Life Care,” by Markian Hawryluk

Sandhya Raman: KHN’s “Nursing Homes Are Suing the Friends and Family of Residents to Collect Debts,” by Noam N. Levey

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

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In a rare surprise for official Washington, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced a deal to expand the planned health bill in the Senate to include provisions raising taxes and addressing climate change. The measure would include a third year of expanded subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, but not health care coverage for people left out of Medicaid in states that failed to expand the program.

Meanwhile, the ACA goes back to court, and the Biden administration restores anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people that were rolled back by the Trump administration.

Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Dr. Céline Gounder of KHN about the latest on the monkeypox outbreak.

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: NPR’s “Because of Texas Abortion Law, Her Wanted Pregnancy Became a Medical Nightmare,” by Carrie Feibel

Alice Miranda Ollstein: The Hill’s “Top FDA Tobacco Official Leaving for Philip Morris Job,” by Nathaniel Weixel

Joanne Kenen: Science’s “Blots on a Field? A Neuroscience Image Sleuth Finds Signs of Fabrication in Scores of Alzheimer’s Articles, Threatening a Reigning Theory of the Disease,” by Charles Piller

Sarah Karlin-Smith: NPR’s “Drugmakers Are Slow to Prove Medicines That Got a Fast Track to Market Really Work,” by Sydney Lupkin

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

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Two things happened in Washington this week that were inevitable: President Joe Biden tested positive for covid-19, and the Senate agreed to move forward on a budget bill that includes only a sliver of what Biden hoped it would. Still, the bill to allow Medicare to negotiate some drug prices, cap out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors, and extend temporary subsidies for Affordable Care Act insurance premiums would represent a major step if Democrats can get it across the finish line. Meanwhile, abortion battles continue to escalate around the country, with Texas leading the way on restrictions.

Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Dr. Jack Resneck Jr., the new president of the American Medical Association.

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: KHN’s “Conservative Blocs Unleash Litigation to Curb Public Health Powers,” by Lauren Weber and Anna Maria Barry-Jester

Shefali Luthra: Stat’s “Health Care’s High Rollers: As the Pandemic Raged, CEOs’ Earnings Surged,” by Bob Herman, Kate Sheridan, J. Emory Parker, Adam Feuerstein, and Mohana Ravindranath

Rachel Cohrs: Politico’s “Anthony Fauci Wants to Put Covid’s Politicization Behind Him,” by Sarah Owermohle

Joanne Kenen: Inside Climate News’ “When the Power Goes Out, Who Suffers? Climate Epidemiologists Are Now Trying to Figure That Out,” by Laura Baisas

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A rapidly changing landscape for abortion has left patients, providers, employers, and lawmakers alike wondering what is and is not legal and what to do next. Meanwhile, Democrats in Congress have resumed negotiations on legislation to lower drug prices and, potentially, continue expanded insurance subsidies for the Affordable Care Act. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Alice Miranda Ollstein: NiemanLab’s “Unimaginable Abortion Stories Will Become More Common. Is American Journalism Ready?” by Laura Hazard Owen

Sandhya Raman: The Atlantic’s “The Great Veterinary Shortage,” by Sarah Zhang

Tami Luhby: The Wall Street Journal’s “Medical Debt Is Being Wiped Off Credit Reports. What That Means for You,” by Ayse Kelce 

Also mentioned on this week’s podcast:

KHN’s “Three Things to Know About Insurance Coverage for Abortion,” by Julie Appleby

KHN’s “How Much Health Insurers Pay for Almost Everything Is About to Go Public,” by Julie Appleby

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade has created far more questions than it has answered about the continued legality and availability of abortion, as both abortion rights supporters and anti-abortion activists scramble to put their marks on policy. Meanwhile, Congress completes work on its gun bill and the FDA takes up the problem of the next covid-19 booster. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Victoria Knight of KHN join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Angela Hart, who reported and wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode about two identical eye surgeries with very different price tags.

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: The Washington Post’s “Women Are Still Underrepresented in Clinical Trials,” by Erin Blakemore

Margot Sanger-Katz: The Washington Post’s “This Texas Teen Wanted an Abortion. She Now Has Twins,” by Caroline Kitchener 

Sarah Karlin-Smith: The Miami Herald’s “Why Should You Stop Frolicking in Miami-Dade Floodwater? It’s Probably Full of Poop,” by Alex Harris

Victoria Knight: Insider’s “2,000 Leaked Documents and Employees Say Silicon Valley Healthcare Startup Cerebral Harmed Hundreds of Patients and Prescribed Serious Medication with Abandon,” by Shelby Livingston and Blake Dodge

Click here for a transcript of the episode.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The FDA is using its power to regulate tobacco products — ordering the vaping device Juul off the market and announcing its intention to lower the amount of nicotine in cigarettes and other products. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court rules on Medicare and kidney dialysis, and Congress makes progress on legislation surrounding guns and mental health. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Noam N. Levey about the new KHN-NPR project on the growing impact of medical debt. 

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too:

Julie Rovner: The AP’s “At Westminster Dog Show, New Focus on Veterinarians’ Welfare,” by Jennifer Peltz

Joanne Kenen: Fern.org’s “Back Forty: How to Protect Farmworkers From Heat-Related Kidney Disease,” by Nancy Averett

Rachel Cohrs: The Markup’s “Facebook Is Receiving Sensitive Medical Information From Hospital Websites,” by Todd Feathers, Simon Fondrie-Teitler, Angie Waller, and Surya Mattu

Click here for a transcript of the episode.



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