What the Health? From 麻豆女优 Health News

Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 麻豆女优 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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If you have a question for the podcast, you can send it to whatthehealth@kff.org.

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  • 麻豆女优 Health News' 'What the Health?'

    Live From Aspen 鈥 Governors and an HHS Secretary Sound Off

    Episode 403

    In 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner.

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    Supreme Court Upholds Bans on Gender-Affirming Care

    Episode 402

    The 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    RFK Jr. Upends Vaccine Policy, After Promising He Wouldn鈥檛

    Episode 401

    Health 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    Trump鈥檚 鈥極ne Big Beautiful Bill鈥 Lands in Senate. Our 400th Episode!

    Episode 400

    The 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 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.

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    Live From AHCJ: Shock and Awe in Federal Health Policy

    Episode 399

    This 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.

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    Bill With Billions in Health Program Cuts Passes House

    Episode 398

    The 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 麻豆女优 Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.

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    GOP Tries To Cut Billions in Health Benefits

    Episode 397

    GOP-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 麻豆女优 Health News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    Cutting Medicaid Is Hard 鈥 Even for the GOP

    Episode 396

    Republicans 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 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.

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    100 Days of Health Policy Upheaval

    Episode 395

    Members 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 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    Can Congress Reconcile Trump鈥檚 Wishes With Medicaid鈥檚 Needs?

    Episode 394

    When Congress returns next week, it will be writing a budget reconciliation bill that鈥檚 expected to cut taxes but also make deep cuts to Medicaid. But at least some Republicans are concerned about cutting a program that aids so many of their constituents. Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss this story and more. Also, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Rae Ellen Bichell about her story on how care for transgender minors is changing in Colorado.

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    On Autism, It鈥檚 the Secretary鈥檚 Word vs. the CDC鈥檚

    Episode 393

    Tensions between Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his employees at the Department of Health and Human Services are mounting, as he made a series of claims about autism this week 鈥 contradicting his agency鈥檚 findings. Plus, President Donald Trump unveiled an executive order to lower drug prices as his administration explores tariffs that could raise them. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more. Plus, 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner interviews two University of California-San Francisco researchers about an upcoming Supreme Court case that could have major ramifications for preventive care.

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  • 麻豆女优 Health News' 'What the Health?'

    The Dismantling of HHS

    Episode 392

    A week into the reorganization of the Department of Health and Human Services announced by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the scope of the staff cuts and program cutbacks is starting to become clear. Among the biggest targets for reductions were the nation鈥檚 premier public health agencies: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the […]

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    American Health Gets a Pink Slip

    Episode 391

    The Department of Health and Human Services underwent an unprecedented purge this week, as thousands of employees from the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other agencies were fired, placed on administrative leave, or offered transfers to far-flung Indian Health Service facilities. Altogether, the layoffs mean the federal government, in a single day, shed hundreds if not thousands of combined years of health and science expertise. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss this enormous breaking story and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Appleby, who reported and wrote the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature about a short-term health plan and a very expensive colonoscopy.

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    The Ax Falls at HHS

    Episode 390

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced a proposed reorganization for the department 鈥 which, counting those who already have left the agency, amounts to about a 25% cut in its workforce. And its planned 鈥淎dministration for a Healthy America鈥 will collapse several existing HHS agencies into one. Meanwhile, the department continues to cut billions in health spending while the nation faces measles outbreaks in several states and the continuing possibility of another pandemic, such as bird flu. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss the news.

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    Federal Health Work in Flux

    Episode 389

    It鈥檚 the Trump administration vs. the federal courts, as the Department of Government Efficiency continues to try to cancel federal contracts and programs and fire workers. But in the haste to cut things, jobs and programs are being eliminated even if they align with the new administration鈥檚 goal to 鈥淢ake America Healthy Again.鈥 Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    The Cutting Continues

    Episode 388

    The Trump administration鈥檚 efforts to downsize the federal government continue, with both personnel and programs being cut at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Social Security Administration. Meanwhile, the fight over cuts to the Medicaid program for those with low incomes heats up, as Republicans worry that more of their voters than ever before are Medicaid beneficiaries. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Jeff Grant, who recently retired from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services after 41 years in government service.

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  • 麻豆女优 Health News' 'What the Health?'

    The State of Federal Health Agencies Is Uncertain

    Episode 387

    The Supreme Court opined for the first time that Trump administration officials may be exceeding their authority to reshape the federal government by refusing to honor completed contracts, even as lower-court judges started blocking efforts to fire workers, freeze funding, and cancel ongoing contracts. Meanwhile, public health officials are alarmed at the Department of Health and Human Services鈥 public handling of Texas鈥 widening measles outbreak, particularly the secretary鈥檚 less-than-full endorsement of vaccines. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Stephanie Armour of 麻豆女优 Health News join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • 麻豆女优 Health News' 'What the Health?'

    House GOP Plan Targets Medicaid

    Episode 386

    The House passed a budget plan that likely would result in major cuts to the Medicaid program. But the plan now faces a battle in the Senate, where even Republicans seem reluctant to dramatically reduce a health program that covers roughly 1 in 5 Americans. Meanwhile, federal judges and the Trump administration continue to differ over whether the administration has the authority to unilaterally cancel programs approved and funded by Congress and to fire federal workers. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Victoria Knight of Axios join 麻豆女优 Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    Medicaid in the Crosshairs, Maybe

    Episode 385

    President Donald Trump has said he won鈥檛 support major cuts to the Medicaid health insurance program for people with low incomes, but he has endorsed a House budget plan that calls for major cuts, leaving the program鈥檚 future in doubt. Meanwhile, thousands of workers at the Department of Health and Human Services were fired over the holiday weekend, from the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with possibly more cuts to come.

    Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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    Courts Try To Curb Health Cuts

    Episode 384

    Some of the Trump administration鈥檚 dramatic funding and policy shifts are facing major pushback for the first time 鈥 not from Congress, but from the courts. Federal judges around the country are attempting to pump the brakes on efforts to freeze government spending, shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, eliminate access to health-related webpages and datasets, and limit grant funding provided by the National Institutes of Health. Meanwhile, Congress is off to a slow start in trying to turn President Donald Trump鈥檚 agenda into legislation, although Medicaid is clearly high on the list for potential funding cuts. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Maya Goldman of Axios News join 麻豆女优 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Mark McClellan, director of the Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy and a former health official during the George W. Bush administration, about the impact of cutting funding to research universities.

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