POLITICO's Pulse Check

The high cost of weight-loss drugs has states trying to figure out how their employee health plans can afford to cover them. Host Lauren Gardner talks with POLITICO health care reporter Kelly Hooper about Connecticut’s approach, which ties health plan coverage to lifestyle programs, and whether that method can serve as a model for other states. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/...

Organizers behind an abortion-rights initiative have yet to gather enough signatures to qualify for the ballot in the Sunshine State. Host Ben Leonard talks with POLITICO policy reporter Arek Sarkissian about the challenges facing the campaign.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Four years ago, President Donald Trump convinced Congress to commit millions in funding toward ending AIDS. But House Republicans plan to vote this week to cut most of the funding. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO's Evan Peng about what's behind this dramatic change in Republican support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support for abortion rights cuts across party lines, doing significantly better with voters than President Joe Biden and other Democrats. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with POLITICO health care reporter Megan Messerly, who breaks down the results of Tuesday’s elections and what’s ahead for the 2024 race. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the 2023 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit this week, experts agreed AI will revolutionize health care, but lawmakers, regulators and thought leaders warned of the risks around misinformation and data privacy, among others . Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with Politico health care reporter Daniel Payne about the key takeaways from the conference. Learn more about your ad choices. Visi...

Doulas — birthing experts who provide nonmedical support during pregnancy and childbirth — have been shown to improve health outcomes and combat racial inequities in maternal mortality and morbidity. New York just passed legislation to increase access to doulas. Host Ruth Reader talks with POLITICO health care reporter Maya Kaufman about the law and how New York plans to expand access statewide. L...

The CDC’s advisers on infection control are proposing updates to 16-year-old guidance on how doctors can limit transmission of viral infections in health care facilities. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO health care reporter Chelsea Cirruzzo about what’s ahead for the proposed changes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gov. Kathy Hochul now opposes state funding for new overdose-prevention centers, despite an advisory board's recommendations. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with POLITICO health care reporter Maya Kaufman about the governor's shifting stance.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CMS is holding public listening sessions on Medicare price negotiations for the first 10 drugs selected, but reporting uncovered concerns patient advocates and the pharma industry have over transparency and potential conflicts of interest from some speakers. Host Ben Leonard talks with POLITICO health care reporter David Lim about the ties some speakers have to the industry or advocacy groups.   L...

The 2024 Affordable Care Act open enrollment period started Wednesday, with changes such as higher premiums and different plan choices. Federal, and in some cases state, subsidies are expected to shield most enrollees from cost hikes. Host Evan Peng talks with POLITICO health care reporter Kelly Hooper about the open enrollment process and what to expect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me...

Artificial intelligence is working its way into health care. But, so far, government agencies have done little to regulate its use, potentially putting patients at risk for misdiagnoses, bias and privacy violations. Host Lauren Gardner talks with POLITICO health care reporter Daniel Payne about those risks and the debate over how to balance innovation and patient safety. Learn more about your ad c...

A Biden administration executive order directs HHS to develop guidelines and oversight for the use of AI in health care. Host Chelsea Cirruzzo talks with POLITICO health care reporter Ben Leonard about what the order means for the sector.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ohio voters will decide next week whether to amend the state constitution to protect abortion rights, overriding the current six-week ban. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO Morning Score author Madison Fernandez about what's at stake.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress took up new rules from the Biden administration that set minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes. At a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing this week, members debated whether more staff would help care for patients or make it impossible for the businesses to stay afloat. Host Evan Peng talks about that and other workforce issues with POLITICO health care reporter Daniel...

Sen. Bernie Sanders sought Democratic support for more action on lowering drug prices this year before he advanced President Joe Biden's pick to lead the NIH. It didn't work. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with POLITICO health care reporter Erin Schumaker about why Sanders' "no" vote on advancing Dr. Monica Bertagnolli's nomination failed.               Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...

The CDC has a new leader who’s working to regain the public’s trust in the sometimes-beleaguered agency. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with POLITICO health care reporter Chelsea Cirruzzo, who caught up with CDC Director Mandy Cohen to discuss her national “trust” tour and her plans for the agency’s future.             Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some state insurance commissioners want Congress to restore their authority to regulate Medicare Advantage marketing. Host Ben Leonard talks with POLITICO health care reporter Robert King about what they want and why.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The U.S. drug overdose crisis is out of control. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with Carmen Paun about why Washington’s efforts are failing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some experts fear the FDA's accelerated approval process for neurological disease treatments greenlights clinically promising but unproven drugs that can result in giving patients false hope. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO health care reporter Katherine Ellen Foley about how the FDA is balancing those concerns against the needs of patients. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone....

For the first time, CMS is screening Medicare Advantage plan TV ads before they air, blocking hundreds of them over what the agency calls misleading information and unsubstantiated claims. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with POLITICO health care reporter Robert King about the impact of CMS policing ads during Medicare’s annual open enrollment period.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

The Biden administration’s health care price transparency rules were meant to help employers get better deals from insurers. But, so far, the data’s quality has been so poor that they can’t use it. Host Lauren Gardner talks with POLITICO health care reporter Kelly Hooper about how the unclear data prevents employers from shopping around for insurers.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megap...

Health care policy is at the center of some congressional hearings this week. Host Megan R. Wilson talks with reporter Ben Leonard about how health care issues figure into upcoming action on Capitol Hill.      Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After months of delay, senators on the HELP Committee on Wednesday will vet President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the National Institutes of Health: Dr. Monica Bertagnolli. Host Daniel Payne talks with POLITICO health care reporter Erin Schumaker about the reasons for the delay and what to expect at the hearing.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rep. Michael McCaul's (R-Texas) has seen the fentanyl crisis up close, whichdrives his push for bipartisan legislation against opioid trafficking. Host Daniel Payne talks with POLITICO global health reporter Carmen Paun about McCaul's attempts to build support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In four weeks, voters in Ohio will decide whether to add abortion protections into the state constitution. Host Lauren Gardner talks with Alice Miranda Ollstein about why anti-abortion groups are pinning their hopes on the Buckeye State.             Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices