What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 吃瓜不打烊, 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.

Listen and Subscribe on | |  | |

If you have a question for the podcast, you can send it to whatthehealth@kff.org.

Showing 361 - 380 of 475

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Tennessee Seeks Medicaid Changes

    Tennessee wants to convert its Medicaid program to a block grant. But is its plan legal? Meanwhile, Congress continues to struggle with legislation to rein in prescription drug prices and surprise medical bills. This week, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Jennifer Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Rovner also interviews Dr. Marty Makary, author of the new book 鈥淭he Price We Pay鈥 about why health care costs so much.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Despite Booming Economy, Uninsured Rate Ticks Up

    Nearly 2 million more Americans were uninsured in 2018 than in the previous year, according to the Census Bureau鈥檚 annual report. Plus, the Trump administration announced plans to ban flavored vape liquids, and Congress is back and working to address high prescription drug prices and 鈥渟urprise鈥 medical bills. This week, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Waiting For The Trump Health Plan

    President Donald Trump keeps promising a new health plan, but so far it鈥檚 nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is proposing a plan to cancel billions of dollars in medical debt owed by patients. This week, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Rovner also interviews KHN鈥檚 Rachel Bluth about the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature. Plus, for 鈥渆xtra credit,鈥 the panelists recommend their favorite health stories of the week.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: All About Medicare

    Before 鈥淢edicare for All,鈥 there was just Medicare, the federal program that provides insurance to 60 million Americans. This week, KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner talks to Tricia Neuman of the Kaiser Family Foundation about how Medicare works and whom it serves. Then, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join Rovner to talk about some current Medicare issues being debated in Washington, D.C.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: We Answer Your Questions

    You asked about drug prices, the 鈥淐adillac tax鈥 on generous insurance plans and why Americans don鈥檛 know that most other countries also have combination public-private insurance systems. This week, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Caitlin Owens of Axios join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to answer those questions.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Gun Violence And The Politics Of Public Health

    The recent tragic mass shootings have refocused efforts to treat gun violence as a public health issue rather than strictly a law enforcement problem. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the health implications of the budget deal passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump, as well as reaction from Canada to a proposal to allow broader imports of its prescription drugs. Plus, for 鈥渆xtra credit,鈥 the panelists recommend their favorite health stories of the week.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Deciphering The Democrats鈥 Health Debate

    Health care was a major topic at the Democratic presidential candidate debates in Detroit on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the focus on plan minutiae may have left viewers more confused than edified. Alice Ollstein of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Caitlin Owens of Axios join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the points made by the candidates plus a series of Trump administration health initiatives on drug prices and hospital shopping.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Cue The Drug Price Debate

    Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee unveiled their long-awaited proposal to try to rein in prescription drug costs, even as bipartisan leaders of the other Senate committee that oversees health announced it would not bring its drug price bill to the Senate floor until fall. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus court actions on health issues.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Biden Doubles Down On Obamacare

    Presidential candidate Joe Biden unveiled a health plan intended to provide a more moderate alternative to his competitors鈥 鈥淢edicare for All鈥 plans. It would build on the Affordable Care Act but would go much further. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus Planned Parenthood鈥檚 very bad week, the U.S. House vote to repeal the health law鈥檚 鈥淐adillac tax鈥 on generous health plans, and the reduction in deaths from opioids.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Could The ACA Really Go Away?

    Is the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional? That was the question before a federal appeals court in New Orleans this week. Two of the three judges on the panel seemed inclined to agree with a lower court that the elimination of the tax penalty for failure to maintain coverage could mean the entire health law should fall. Also this week, President Donald Trump wants to improve care for people with kidney disease. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus courts blocking efforts to require drug prices in TV ads and to kick Planned Parenthood out of the federal family planning program. Plus, Rovner interviews University of Michigan law professor Nicholas Bagley about the latest legal threat to the ACA.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: All About 鈥楳edicare for All鈥

    Need to know more about 鈥淢edicare for All?鈥 It鈥檚 a top issue in the Democratic presidential primary campaign. This holiday week, we are rerunning our explainer on the subject. But first, KHN鈥檚 鈥淲hat the Health?鈥 host Julie Rovner talks to KHN鈥檚 Shefali Luthra about how health played out in the first Democratic candidate debates last week.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Dems Debate Health Care

    Democratic presidential candidates disagreed on how to fix health care in their first debate Wednesday, although they all called for boosting insurance coverage and lowering prices. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is keeping health care in the news, too, with a new plan to make medical prices more available to the public. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about bipartisan progress on catch-all legislation to address 鈥渟urprise鈥 medical bills. Plus, Rovner interviews NPR鈥檚 Jon Hamilton about the latest KHN-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 installment.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health鈥: Politics Heading Into 2020: Live From Aspen!

    How big an issue will health really be in the 2020 election? Will the Republicans find their political footing on the issue? In this episode of KHN鈥檚 鈥淲hat the Health?鈥 Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times report from the Aspen Ideas: Health festival in Aspen, Colo. Joining them are Chris Jennings, who advised Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama on health policy, and Lanhee Chen, who advised GOP presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Marco Rubio.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health鈥: Who Will Pay To Fix Problem Of Surprise Medical Bills?

    Lawmakers and patients want to eliminate 鈥渟urprise鈥 out-of-network medical bills. Hospitals, doctors and insurers say they want to eliminate them, too, but their opposition to one another鈥檚 proposals could complicate legislative efforts. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about reproductive health and health care sharing ministries.

  • Podcast

    KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥: Fetal Tissue Research Is Latest Flashpoint In Abortion Debate

    Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the Trump administration鈥檚 efforts to curtail federally funded research using fetal tissue, the backlash from former Vice President Joe Biden鈥檚 support for the anti-abortion Hyde Amendment and how health policy intersects with both trade and immigration policy.

  • Podcast: KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥 The State Of The Abortion Debate 鈥 A Deep Dive

    For our 100th episode, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jen Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times and Sandhya Ramen of CQ Roll Call join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to take a deep dive into the abortion debate, discussing everything from the latest news to the history of the Supreme Court鈥檚 jurisprudence as well as how states are trying to further expand or restrict abortion rights and access. Also, Rovner interviews KHN鈥檚 Lauren Weber about the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 installment.

  • Podcast: KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥 Is 鈥楳edicare For All鈥 Losing Steam?

    Joanne Kenen of Politico, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the latest Democratic efforts to push 鈥淢edicare for All鈥 in the U.S. House. They also review new initiatives to raise the federal minimum age to purchase tobacco to 21 and new lawsuits challenging the Trump administration鈥檚 actions on reproductive health. Also, for extra credit, the panelists suggest their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

  • Podcast: KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥 States Race To Reverse ‘Roe’

    Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the new abortion bans passed in Alabama and Georgia; bipartisan congressional efforts to end 鈥渟urprise鈥 out-of-network medical bills; and a new public option health insurance plan soon to be available in Washington state.

  • Podcast: KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥 鈥楥onscience鈥 Rules, Rx Prices and Still More Medicare

    Joanne Kenen of Politico, Jen Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the latest news about the Trump administration鈥檚 effort to allow health care practitioners and organizations to refuse to provide care or refer patients for services that violate their conscience or religion. Also this week, the administration orders TV ads for prescription drugs to include list prices. And Tennessee wants free rein from the federal government to run its Medicaid program. Plus, Rovner interviews Joan Biskupic, author of a new book on Chief Justice John Roberts, about the behind-the-scenes negotiations that led to the 2012 ruling upholding the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.

  • Podcast: KHN鈥檚 鈥榃hat The Health?鈥 Bye-Bye, ACA, And Hello 鈥楳edicare-For-All鈥?

    Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post and Erin Mershon of Stat News join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss the latest in news about the Trump administration鈥檚 effort to overturn the Affordable Care Act, a historic hearing on 鈥淢edicare-for-all鈥 and the Kansas Supreme Court鈥檚 ruling that the state constitution protects a woman鈥檚 right to abortion. Also, Rovner interviews KHN鈥檚 Carmen Heredia Rodriguez about the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature.