POLITICO's Pulse Check

One week ago, HHS Secretary Alex Azar joined President Donald Trump in the Rose Garden to announce his signature initiative: A long-awaited plan to lower drug prices. The secretary’s been on a tour to explain the plan — which has faced resistance from pharma and was panned by some Wall Street analysts — and POLITICO’s Dan Diamond joined Azar at HHS headquarters to review the latest developments. O...

President Donald Trump finally unveiled his plan to lower drug prices last week, and on this week’s episode, POLITICO looks closer at what’s in the strategy and how it builds (or doesn’t) on the Obama administration’s own efforts. First, POLITICO’s Sarah Karlin-Smith discusses her reporting on the Trump administration’s drug plan (starts at the 2:05 mark), what’s in the bill and how it’s being rec...

The health care safety net is rarely glamorous, but for tens of millions of Americans, it's often necessary. These low-income patients depend on Medicaid, public hospitals and other services for care — although safety-net resources have been increasingly strained in recent years, partly because of decisions made in Washington. On this episode of PULSE CHECK, we meet one person trying to make the s...

The Trump administration is sending mixed signals to health insurers, pushing controversial changes to the ACA markets while giving big pay bumps in Medicare Advantage. Meanwhile, companies like UnitedHealth, Walmart and even Amazon are circling deals that could shake up the industry. To make sense of this moment, this week’s PULSE CHECK features John Gorman, the head of the Gorman Health Group —...

The Trump administration has discarded or reworked a number of Obama-era programs. But this week's Health Datapalooza — an annual conference launched by Obama officials and hosted by Academy Health — has received the current administration's full support, a reminder that the desire to improve data can trump partisan politics. On the podcast, Academy Health CEO Lisa Simpson joined POLITICO’s Dan Di...

In six weeks, Matt Eyles will become the CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans, taking over for Marilyn Tavenner — one of the most prominent seats in health policy. But before that, Eyles sat down with POLITICO to preview his agenda, critique the Trump administration’s changes to the insurance markets and rebuff concerns that AHIP has lost influence in Washington. On the podcast, Eyles discussed...

When the Affordable Care Act was first signed into law, the state of Virginia led the fight against it. Eight years later, Virginia — with state Democrats on the upswing — is on the verge of expanding Medicaid, and more than 300,000 state residents could get covered as a result. First, POLITICO reviews the windy road that led to 32 states saying yes to Medicaid expansion. Then Del. Alfonso Lopez,...

The Trump administration has ushered in a new wave of conservative policies and personnel. But it’s also led to the rise of watchdog groups dedicated to investigating Trump and his agencies. And on this episode of PULSE CHECK, leaders of two new watchdogs discuss why they launched and what they’ve learned. First, Mary Alice Carter of Equity Forward joined POLITICO’s Dan Diamond to discuss her orga...

Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico nearly 200 days ago. For many residents — still dealing with power outages and no access to clean water — the disaster never ended. And while the national spotlight has largely moved on, Puerto Rico remains one of the worst public health crises unfolding in the United States. This week’s episode of PULSE CHECK tries to unpack the structural problems wit...

Paul Winfree spent a year as one of the Trump administration’s key policy leaders, with a bunch of big titles — he was Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, the Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council, and the Director of Budget Policy. Now Paul’s back at the Heritage Foundation, and he caught up with POLITICO’s Dan Diamond to share his view into Washington’s policy battles...

As Wisconsin governor, Tommy Thompson instituted welfare reform that became a national model. As HHS secretary, he created Medicare's Part D program. And as a boss, he played a pivotal role in the career of Alex Azar — who recently took over as the latest HHS secretary. Thompson sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to discuss lessons from his four years running HHS under the George W. Bush adminis...

HHS Secretary Alex Azar laid out an ambitious plan to promote value-based care this week, pledging that there's "no turning back" when it comes to reforming how hospitals and doctors get paid. What does it all mean? Karen Murphy's in position to know: She's the Chief Innovation Officer at Geisinger Health System, but she also previously worked in the Obama administration, helping to oversee value-...

HHS last summer made a move that shocked public health leaders: The Trump administration abruptly canceled $200 million-plus in funding for dozens of teen pregnancy prevention projects around the country. HHS said the projects weren't working, but public health advocates argue that HHS' decision was politically motivated - just the latest round in Republicans' war on Planned Parenthood. One leader...

As a candidate, Donald Trump promised religious conservatives that their voices would be heard - and as president, he's repeatedly delivered through executive orders and agency moves that have been hailed by Christian conservatives. Rachel Laser, the new head of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, joins the podcast to review how Christian conservatives came to support Trump (start...

Sam Quinones is the author of "Dreamland" — an award-winning book about the rise of the opioid crisis, which shows no signs of slowing. There were more than 64,000 deaths last year from drug overdoses, including opioids. Sam last month sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to discuss how the opioid crisis got started, how he discovered the story and what he thinks health leaders and politicians sho...

As CDC director, Brenda Fitzgerald should've been one of the nation's loudest voices on opioids and public health issues. Instead, she'd been remarkably quiet - recusing herself repeatedly from congressional hearings and other initiatives because of financial conflicts - and on Wednesday, she resigned after seven months in the job and one day after POLITICO revealed that she had bought tobacco sto...

Alex Azar was confirmed as the 24th Secretary of the Health and Human Services on Wednesday, about four months after Tom Price's abrupt departure. In a news roundup, POLITICO's Adam Cancryn, Paul Demko and Dan Diamond discuss Azar's confirmation, what his priorities are and what's next for the agency (starts at 2:20). Then after the break, listen to Dan's interview with Rod Hochman, CEO of Provide...

Karen DeSalvo was a top HHS official in the Obama administration, where she spent months simultaneously running the Office of National Coordinator for Health IT and serving as the acting assistant secretary for health. She also will be a familiar voice for longtime PULSE CHECK listeners: Karen appeared on an early episode of PULSE CHECK, where she talked about her work and her life story. (You can...

The health care business world gathered at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference this week, with thousands of attendees haggling over deals and gossiping over drinks in San Francisco. One of the standouts at the conference: venture capitalist Bob Kocher, a doctor and Obama administration alumnus known for his provocative thinking and Silicon Valley influence. At Venrock, Bob focuses on health IT a...

FDA’s influence can be summed up in a simple statistic: About 20 cents of every dollar that Americans spend is on a product — whether food, drug or tobacco — that’s regulated by the agency. But that enormous responsibility has also exposed the FDA to a broad array of critics, including President Donald Trump, who last year bashed the agency’s reviews as “slow and burdensome.” Trump’s pick to refor...

On today's PULSE CHECK, we’re bringing you a bonus conversation that captures this moment in politics and one of the key voices shaping the debate — a discussion with activist Ady Barkan. A Yale-trained lawyer, Ady worked with the Center for Popular Democracy to push progressive economic policies and reform the Federal Reserve, high-profile battles that led POLITICO to name Ady to our list of 50 l...

Too often, there's too much media focus on Obamacare. But with a surprise Senate upset throwing a wrench into Republican repeal plans, and with HealthCare.gov sign-ups poised to end on Friday, this was a week to go a little deeper on the ACA. First, POLITICO’s Paul Demko discusses his reporting on the ACA enrollment period and insurers’ profitability (starts at the 2:25 mark), as well as the healt...

Congress continues to try and hammer out a year-end spending bill, while outside of Washington, health care organizations dramatically ramped up their deal-making this week. First, POLITICO’s Sarah Ferris and Adriel Bettelheim join PULSE CHECK to parse what’s happened with the spending negotiations and what’s next. (Starts at the 1:30 mark.) After the break, Craig Garthwaite, a health economist wi...

It’s been another packed week in health care, and PULSE CHECK — with help from a conservative health care analyst — is here to help make sense of it all. First, POLITICO’s Jennifer Haberkorn and Adam Cancryn join Dan Diamond to talk about their reporting about the tax package that’s poised to pass the Senate (starts at the 1:45 mark), the fight over HHS Secretary-nominee Alex Azar (11:00), and the...

As the year winds down, PULSE CHECK is casting an eye outside of Washington and on what’s coming next for health care. And that's why this week's conversation is with one of the industry's big thinkers — Jeff Goldsmith, who grapples with these questions as a health care futurist and Navigant advisor. Jeff sat down with POLITICO’s Dan Diamond to discuss what a futurist does and how his predictions...