The Host
Summer time could also be approaching its finish, however the well being coverage tales which have marked the season proceed. In Washington and throughout the nation, public well being officers are nonetheless fighting outbreaks of vaccine-preventable illnesses corresponding to measles, whereas states and well being methods are making ready for the impression of main federal funding cuts to their Medicaid applications.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Well being Information, Shefali Luthra of The nineteenth, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Publish, and Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Instances.
Among the many takeaways from this week’s episode:
- Extra People are struggling to afford well being protection, even earlier than among the largest GOP-initiated adjustments to Medicaid and Reasonably priced Care Act plans take impact subsequent 12 months. And the federal authorities’s efforts to dam protection of medication utilized in gender-affirming care and to claw again ACA subsidies are creating entry points for a wider pool of People.
- Pennsylvania well being officers this week reported two measles-related deaths amid an ongoing outbreak and the nationwide debate over vaccines. Whereas most of the actions taken by the U.S. Division of Well being and Human Providers below Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stay held up in litigation, President Donald Trump has made his private skepticism about vaccines identified, together with via his current govt order. In the meantime, the administration is scaling again enforcement of civil rights protections for individuals with autism.
- The Trump administration is inviting states to take part in worth negotiations with producers over GLP-1 medicine if the states choose to supply the medicine via their Medicaid applications. However, amid issues over value, just one state has taken the federal authorities up on its supply.
- And farewell to Dolly Parton, the famous person nation music singer and songwriter, additionally identified for her philanthropic work, who died this week at age 80. Along with her donation in 2020 supporting the event of the mRNA-based covid vaccine, Parton funded pediatric infectious illness analysis, a girls’s well being heart within the Tennessee county the place she was raised, and coaching for pediatric medical professionals.
Additionally this week, Rovner interviews Dean Rosen about his work for former Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum, a Kansas Republican and the primary lady to guide a serious Senate committee, who died final week at age 94.
Plus, for “further credit score” the panelists counsel well being coverage tales they learn this week that they suppose it is best to learn, too:
Julie Rovner: The Washington Publish’s “Why We Should Stop Eating Lettuce, Cyclospora or Not,” by Tamar Haspel.
Margot Sanger-Katz: Stat’s “Comments on OMB Research Rule Mysteriously Removed From Federal Website,” by Anil Oza.
Rachel Roubein: The New York Instances’ “Americans Encounter Risks at Psychedelic Clinics Abroad,” by Noah Daly and Andrew Jacobs.
Shefali Luthra: The Washington Publish and KFF Well being Information’ “Why Some Couples Are Combining a European Vacation With Their IVF Treatments,” by LJ Dawson.
Additionally talked about on this week’s podcast:
- Stat’s “How Trump’s Cuts Are Reshaping America’s Health System,” by Daniel Payne.
- Fashionable Healthcare’s “Insurers Defend ‘No Claims’ Members as Feds Cut Exchange Rolls,” by Nona Tepper.
- Stat’s “Medicaid Transgender Care Rule Sets Precedent That Could Restrict Coverage of Other Drugs,” by John Wilkerson.
- The Washington Publish’s “Fighting Measles Is Expensive. See What It Cost To Contain 10 Cases,” by Naema Ahmed, Lena H. Solar and Aaron Steckelberg.
- CIDRAP’s “mRNA Covid Vaccine Linked to Lower Risk of Myocarditis in Teens, Young Adults,” by Meghan Holohan.
- Stat’s “Newer Shingles Vaccine Linked to Lower Heart Disease Risk, ‘Natural Experiment’ Shows,” by Elizabeth Cooney.
- Politico’s “Trump Offered State Medicaid Programs Lower Prices on Weight-Loss Drugs. Most Are Rejecting the Deal,” by Kelly Hooper.
- KFF Well being Information’ “Trump Puts Autistic Kids in the Spotlight and Cuts Agencies Built To Protect Them,” by Claire Sibonney.
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