What the Health? From 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News
Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News, along with top health policy reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico and other media outlets to discuss the latest news and explain what the health is going on here in Washington.
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Countdown to Government Shutdown
Episode 413With less than three weeks before the deadline to pass legislation to keep the federal government running, lawmakers are still far apart on a strategy. Democrats hope Republicans will agree to extend expanded tax credits for the Affordable Care Act as part of a compromise, but so far Republicans are not negotiating. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. released his long-awaited 鈥淢ake America Healthy Again鈥 report, with few specific action items. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
On Capitol Hill, RFK Defends Firings at CDC
Episode 412A combative Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the U.S. secretary of health and human services, appeared before a Senate committee Thursday, defending his firing of the newly confirmed director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as other changes that could limit the availability of vaccines. Meanwhile, Congress has only a few weeks to complete work on annual spending bills to avoid a possible government shutdown and to ward off potentially large increases in premiums for Affordable Care Act health plans. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Tony Leys, who discusses his 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 report about a woman鈥檚 unfortunate interaction with a bat 鈥 and her even more unfortunate interaction with the bill for her rabies prevention treatment.
Happy 60th, Medicare and Medicaid!
Episode 411This summer marks the 60th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, the twin government programs that have shaped the health care system into what it is today. In this special episode, 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner interviews two experts on the history, significance, and future of these programs: Medicare historian and University of North Carolina professor Jonathan Oberlander and George Washington University professor emerita Sara Rosenbaum, who has studied Medicaid since nearly its beginning and has helped shape Medicaid policy over the past four decades.
Trump Further Politicizes Science
Episode 410President Donald Trump鈥檚 latest executive order about science and medicine seeks to take funding decisions out of the hands of career scientists and give them to political appointees instead. And a gunman, reportedly disgruntled over covid vaccines, shoots at the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, killing a law enforcement officer. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Aaron Carroll, president and CEO of the health services research group AcademyHealth, about how to restore the public鈥檚 trust in public health.
Kennedy Cancels Vaccine Funding
Episode 409The Health and Human Services secretary is winding down nearly $500 million in mRNA research funding, citing false claims that the technology is ineffective against respiratory illnesses 鈥 and notching a victory for critics of the covid vaccines. And President Donald Trump is demanding drugmakers drop their prices, quickly, but it鈥檚 unclear how he could make them comply. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more.
Next on Kennedy鈥檚 List? Preventive Care and Vaccine Harm
Episode 408Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services, is eyeing an overhaul of two more key entities as part of his ongoing effort to reshape health policy. And President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week that would enable localities to force some homeless people into residential treatment. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Sara Rosenbaum, one of the nation鈥檚 leading experts on Medicaid, to mark Medicaid鈥檚 60th anniversary this week.
Here Come the ACA Premium Hikes
Episode 407Medicaid may have monopolized Washington鈥檚 attention lately, but big changes are coming to the Affordable Care Act as well. Meanwhile, Americans are learning more about what鈥檚 in Trump鈥檚 big budget law, and polls suggest many don鈥檛 like what they see. Julie Appleby of 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews historian Jonathan Oberlander to mark Medicare鈥檚 60th anniversary.
The Senate Saves PEPFAR Funding 鈥 For Now
Episode 406The Senate narrowly approved the Trump administration鈥檚 request to claw back about $9 billion for foreign aid and public broadcasting but refused to cut funding for the international AIDS/HIV program PEPFAR. Meanwhile, a federal appeals court ruled that West Virginia can ban the abortion pill mifepristone, which could allow states to block other FDA-approved drugs. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Digesting Trump鈥檚 Big Budget Law
Episode 405President Donald Trump鈥檚 big budget bill became his big budget law on July 4, codifying about $1 trillion in cuts to the Medicaid program. But the law includes many less-publicized provisions that could reshape the way the nation pays for and receives health care. Meanwhile, at the Department of Health and Human Services, uncertainty reigns as both staff and outside recipients of federal funds face cuts. Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Appleby, who reported the latest 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about some very pricey childhood immunizations.
Trump鈥檚 Bill Reaches the Finish Line
Episode 404The House on Thursday moved to approve the largest-ever cuts to federal safety net programs, the last step before the measure goes to President Donald Trump鈥檚 desk. After the Senate very narrowly passed the bill, House GOP leaders ushered it past resistance from conservatives wary of adding trillions to the federal debt and moderates concerned about its cuts to Medicaid. Meanwhile, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has continued to pursue his anti-vaccine agenda, despite promising that he would not. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Live From Aspen 鈥 Governors and an HHS Secretary Sound Off
Episode 403In this special episode taped before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health, three former governors 鈥 one of whom also served as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services 鈥 discuss how state and federal officials can work together to improve Americans鈥 health. Democrat Kathleen Sebelius, former Kansas governor and HHS secretary under President Barack Obama; Republican Chris Sununu, former New Hampshire governor; and Democrat Roy Cooper, former North Carolina governor, join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner.
Supreme Court Upholds Bans on Gender-Affirming Care
Episode 402The Supreme Court this week said Tennessee may continue to enforce its law banning most types of gender-affirming care for minors. The ruling is likely to greenlight similar laws in two dozen states. And the Senate is preparing to vote on a budget reconciliation bill that includes even deeper Medicaid cuts than the House version. Victoria Knight of Axios, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
RFK Jr. Upends Vaccine Policy, After Promising He Wouldn鈥檛
Episode 401Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week did something he had promised not to do: He fired every member of the scientific advisory committee that recommends which vaccines should be given to whom. And he replaced them, in some cases, with vaccine skeptics. Meanwhile, hundreds of employees of the National Institutes of Health sent an open letter to the agency鈥檚 director, accusing the Trump administration of policies that 鈥渦ndermine the NIH mission.鈥 Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Trump鈥檚 鈥極ne Big Beautiful Bill鈥 Lands in Senate. Our 400th Episode!
Episode 400The House鈥檚 gigantic tax-and-spending budget reconciliation bill has landed with a thud in the Senate, where lawmakers are divided in their criticism over whether it increases the deficit too much or cuts Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act too deeply. Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office鈥檚 estimate that the bill, if enacted, could increase the ranks of the uninsured by nearly 11 million people over a decade won鈥檛 make it an easy sell. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Arielle Zionts, who reported and wrote the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about a Medicaid patient who had an out-of-state emergency.
Live From AHCJ: Shock and Awe in Federal Health Policy
Episode 399This episode was taped live on Friday, May 30, at the annual conference of the Association of Health Care Journalists in Los Angeles. Host Julie Rovner moderated a panel featuring Rachel Nuzum, senior vice president for policy at The Commonwealth Fund; Berenice N煤帽ez Constant, senior vice president of government relations and civic engagement at AltaMed Health Services; and Anish Mahajan, chief deputy director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The panelists discussed the national, state, and local implications of funding cuts made over the first 100 days of the second Trump administration and the potential fallout of reductions that have been proposed but not yet implemented. The panelists also took questions from health reporters in the audience.
Bill With Billions in Health Program Cuts Passes House
Episode 398The House narrowly passed a budget reconciliation bill, including billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy along with billions of dollars in cuts to health program spending. But the Senate is expected to make major changes to the measure before it can go to President Donald Trump for his signature. This week鈥檚 panelists are Julie Rovner of 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.
GOP Tries To Cut Billions in Health Benefits
Episode 397GOP-controlled House committees approved parts of President Donald Trump鈥檚 鈥渙ne big, beautiful bill鈥 this week, including more than $700 billion in cuts to health programs over the next decade 鈥 mostly from Medicaid, which covers people with low incomes or disabilities. Meanwhile, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testified before Congress for the first time since taking office and told lawmakers that Americans shouldn鈥檛 take medical advice from him. Julie Appleby of 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
Cutting Medicaid Is Hard 鈥 Even for the GOP
Episode 396Republicans on Capitol Hill are struggling to reach consensus on cutting the Medicaid program as they search for nearly a trillion dollars in savings over the next decade 鈥 as many observers predicted. Meanwhile, turmoil continues at the Department of Health and Human Services, with more controversial cuts and personnel moves, including the sudden nomination of Casey Means, an ally of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.鈥檚, to become surgeon general. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Lauren Sausser, who co-reported the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about an unexpected bill for what seemed like preventive care.
100 Days of Health Policy Upheaval
Episode 395Members of Congress are back in Washington, and Republicans are struggling to find ways to reduce Medicaid spending without cutting benefits. Meanwhile, confusion continues to reign at the Department of Health and Human Services. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times join 杨贵妃传媒視頻 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.