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What the Health? From ��ýҕ�l Health News

Let’s Talk About the Weather

Episode 306

July 20, 2023

It’s been the summer of broken weather records around the world — for heat, rain, and wildfire smoke — advertising the risks of climate change in a big way. But, apparently, it’s not enough to break the logjam in Washington over how to address the growing climate crisis. Meanwhile, in Texas, women who were unable to get care for pregnancy complications took their stories to court, and Congress gears up to — maybe — do something about prescription drug prices. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join Julie Rovner, ��ýҕ�l Health News’ chief Washington correspondent, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Meena Seshamani, the top administrator for the federal Medicare program.

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A photo of panelists at the Aspen Ideas Festival.

What’s It Really Like to Be HHS Secretary? Three Who’ve Done It Spill the Beans

Three secretaries of Health and Human Services, who served under Presidents Joe Biden, Donald Trump, and Barack Obama, gathered this week for a rare, candid conversation hosted by the Aspen Ideas Festival and ��ýҕ�l Health News’ “What the Health?” about the experience of being the nation’s top health official.

By Julie Rovner and Emmarie Huetteman

June 22, 2023

What the Health? From ��ýҕ�l Health News

Live From Aspen: Three HHS Secretaries on What the Job Is Really Like

Episode 303

June 22, 2023

What does a day in the life of the nation’s top health official really look like? And how much of their agenda is set by the White House? In this special episode of ��ýҕ�l Health News’ “What the Health?” — taped before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health, part of the Aspen Ideas Festival, in Aspen, Colorado — host and chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner leads a rare conversation with the current and two former U.S. secretaries of Health and Human Services. Secretary Xavier Becerra and former secretaries Kathleen Sebelius and Alex Azar talk candidly about what it takes to run a department with more than 80,000 employees and a budget larger than those of many countries.

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A photo of a woman receiving a mammogram.

Mammograms at 40? Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines Spark Fresh Debate

There is no direct evidence that screening women in their 40s will save lives, yet modeling suggests expanding routine mammography to include them might avert 1.3 deaths per 1,000. Highlighting the risk of false positives, some specialists call for a more personalized approach.

By Ronnie Cohen

May 30, 2023

A photo of a woman looking over paperwork she's received in the mail.

Perspective

Denials of Health Insurance Claims Are Rising — And Getting Weirder

The Department of Health and Human Services is tasked with monitoring denials both by Obamacare health plans and those offered through employers and insurers. As insurers’ denials become more common, they sometimes defy not just medical standards of care but sheer logic. Why hasn’t the agency fulfilled its assignment?

By Elisabeth Rosenthal

May 26, 2023

A photo of a male doctor counseling a female patient.

A Catch-22 for Clinics: State Bans Limit Abortion Counseling. Federal Title X Rules Require It.

Family planning clinics are getting caught between state abortion bans and a federal requirement to refer patients for abortion care on request.

By Rachana Pradhan

May 26, 2023

A photo of officials visiting public health workers.

US Officials Want to End the HIV Epidemic by 2030. Many Stakeholders Think They Won’t.

The federal government’s ambitious plan to end the HIV epidemic, launched in 2019, has generated new ways to reach at-risk populations in targeted communities across the South. But health officials, advocates, and people living with HIV worry significant headwinds will keep the program from reaching its goals.

By Daniel Chang and Sam Whitehead

April 24, 2023

End of Covid Emergency Will Usher in Changes Across the US Health System

The May 11 expiration of the federal government’s pandemic emergency declaration will affect patient care across a broad range of settings, including telemedicine, hospitals, and nursing homes.

By Rachana Pradhan

March 22, 2023

An illustration shows the shape of Idaho next to a red rubber ink stamp that reads, "disenrolled."

Idaho Dropped Thousands From Medicaid in the Pandemic’s First Years

The removals, detailed in emails between state and federal health officials, hinged on disagreements over how states could disenroll people during the public health emergency. Consumer advocates fear the alleged violation signals the mess to come on April 1, when the pandemic-era Medicaid coverage mandate ends.

By Rachana Pradhan

March 1, 2023

An illustration shows two diagrams of green dots connected by lines, suggesting connected data networks. Floating between those networks are 3D models of viruses.

Congress Told HHS to Set Up a Health Data Network in 2006. The Agency Still Hasn’t.

Since 2006, federal officials have been charged with setting up a network to let various parts of the U.S. health system share information during emergencies. It still hasn’t been built or even planned, even after the communication and data-sharing failures put on display during the pandemic.

By Sam Whitehead

Feb. 9, 2023

A photo shows President Biden speaking during the State of the Union address.

Health Policies Were a Prominent Theme in Biden’s State of the Union Speech

Our partners at PolitiFact fact-checked a range of President Joe Biden’s statements, including key health-related comments.

By ��ýҕ�l Health News and PolitiFact staffs

Feb. 8, 2023

A photo shows a woman on a video call with a doctor while holding a prescription bottle.

Behavioral Telehealth Loses Momentum Without a Regulatory Boost

As flexible treatment options spurred by the covid pandemic wane, patients relying on medications classified as controlled substances worry that without action to extend the loosened rules, it’ll be harder to get their meds.

By Darius Tahir

Jan. 10, 2023

Podcast

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The Covid Response Coordinator Speaks

In this special episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, talks with host Julie Rovner, KHN’s chief Washington correspondent, about where we are in the pandemic and how we should transition out of the public health emergency. This episode was taped on Dec. 20.

Dec. 22, 2022

A photo shows a pharmacist organizing a medicine drawer.

States Challenge Biden to Lower Drug Prices by Allowing Imports From Canada

Colorado has joined Florida, New Hampshire, and New Mexico in seeking federal permission to import prescription drugs from Canada. President Joe Biden endorsed the approach in his 2020 campaign but has yet to approve any state plan.

By Phil Galewitz

Dec. 14, 2022

A photo illustration shows images of a business executive in a suit, a stack of money, a vial of blood from a lab test and a column from a spreadsheet with text showing various medical industries.

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

KHN Investigation: The System Feds Rely On to Stop Repeat Health Fraud Is Broken

A months-long KHN examination of the system meant to bar fraudsters from Medicaid, Medicare, and other federal health programs found gaping holes and expansive gray areas through which banned individuals slip to repeatedly bilk taxpayer-funded programs.

By Sarah Jane Tribble and Lauren Weber

Dec. 12, 2022

A photo shows the outside of Healthy Living Family Medical Center.

Patient Mistrust and Poor Access Hamper Federal Efforts to Overhaul Family Planning

For decades, many women of color, particularly those with low incomes, had little control over their family planning care. Now, a White House effort aims to give patients more choices as abortion care evaporates, but patients remain wary of providers.

By Renuka Rayasam

Nov. 21, 2022

An illustration shows a woman sitting exhaustedly with a diagram of a virus looming over her head.

People With Long Covid Face Barriers to Government Disability Benefits

Some people with long covid have fallen through the cracks of the government’s disability system, which was time-consuming and difficult to navigate even before the pandemic.

By Betsy Ladyzhets

Nov. 9, 2022

A photo shows Susie Talevski standing next to the sign outside the Valparaiso Care and Rehabilitation Center, the nursing home where her father resided.

Supreme Court to Hear Nursing Home Case That Could Affect Millions

An Indiana man's family sued a state-owned nursing home for alleged mistreatment. A U.S. Supreme Court decision in the case could determine the right of many Americans to sue government agencies.

By Farah Yousry, Side Effects Public Media

Nov. 7, 2022

A photo shows Dr. Andrew Bush stasnding outside of his orthopedic practice.

As Giant Hospitals Get Bigger, an Independent Doctor Feels the Pinch

Independent medical practices keep closing as doctors join behemoth hospital groups or leave the field. Research suggests that’s bad news for patients. Studies repeatedly conclude that consolidation in the health care industry is driving up costs while showing no clear evidence of improved care.

By Fred Clasen-Kelly

Oct. 13, 2022

A photo shows an elderly man inside of a nursing home, talking to a medical professional, holding a clipboard with paperwork.

Nursing Home Surprise: Advantage Plans May Shorten Stays to Less Time Than Medicare Covers

Private Medicare Advantage health plans are increasingly ending coverage for skilled nursing or rehab services before medical providers think patients are healthy enough to go home, doctors and patient advocates say.

By Susan Jaffe

Oct. 4, 2022

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