POLITICO's Pulse Check

There are 25 days before the end of the fiscal year, and a potential government shutdown looms due to a funding standoff between Congress and the White House. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO HHS reporter Chelsea Cirruzzo about what a shutdown would mean for health care agencies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Biden administration on Tuesday is expected to unveil the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare price negotiations, setting up legal and political fights over health care costs. Carmen Paun talks with POLITICO White House Correspondent Adam Cancryn about the policy and political implications of this milestone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A debate is heating up in Congress over proposed changes to high-deductible health insurance plans. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with POLITICO health care reporter Ben Leonard about changes that could help or hurt lower-income families.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The FDA is working to update standards for prescription drug marketing on radio and TV. But some consumer advocates are calling for updated regulations when it comes to drugs promoted by influencers on social media, where the line between personal endorsement and sponsored content can be blurred. Host Chelsea Cirruzzo talks with POLITICO’s FDA reporter Lauren Gardner about social media’s changing...

What makes the Florida and Texas infections so puzzling is that the patients contracted malaria here -- after 20 years of no locally transmitted cases. Host Ben Leonard talks with POLITICO fellow Mia McCarthy about the mysterious reemergence and the response from public health experts.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The introduction of new weight loss drugs is unlikely to replace bariatric surgery, but they may increase patient awareness and demand for weight loss procedures overall. Host Kelly Hooper talks with health care reporter Daniel Payne about the potential impacts of new medications on the bariatric surgery industry.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Bell, the former U.K. testing czar, argues governments should increase disease surveillance, develop routine adult vaccination programs, and build clinical trial networks in Africa to better prepare for the next pandemic. Host Megan Messerly talks with POLITICO global health reporter Carmen Paun about her Q&A with Bell.             Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...

The NYC organization Health + Hospitals is shuttering eight school-based health centers by Aug. 31 due to low uptake. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with POLITICO health care reporter Maya Kaufman about the health care system’s shift away from the school clinic model to a broader community-based model.             Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the first anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden administration is defending its authority to negotiate drug prices through Medicare as the Department of Health and Human Services filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce challenging HHS new price-setting powers under the IRA. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with Lauren Gardner about the legal challeng...

Virginia Democrats are betting that defending abortion rights will lead to wins in the state’s fall elections. Host Ben Leonard talks with Madison Fernandez, author of POLITICO’s Weekly Score, about the momentum building among Democrats despite their 2021 losses on the issue there.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Psychedelic drugs like psilocybin and MDMA are gaining bipartisan support in Washington as potential treatments for mental health issues like PTSD, anxiety, and depression. But concerns about side effects persist. Host Kelly Hooper talks with POLITICO health care reporter Katherine Ellen Foley about the promising yet delicate path forward for psychedelic therapies.     Learn more about your ad cho...

States -- both blue and red -- are dropping millions of Medicaid enrollees for the first time in three years, after a pandemic policy meant to prevent vulnerable people from losing health coverage expired in May. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with POLITICO’s White House correspondent Adam Cancryn about how this change comes at the worst time for President Joe Biden.  Learn more about your ad c...

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued proposed rules for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, requiring employer accommodations for pregnant workers. However, the EEOC’s inclusion of abortion has drawn pushback from Republicans. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with Olivia Olander about the broader landscape of protections for pregnant workers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit me...

The number of medical device shortages reported to the FDA plummeted after mandatory reporting requirements — tied to the Covid-19 public health emergency — expired in May. Host Megan Messerly talks with David Lim about the reporting nosedive.      Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Despite a decade of bipartisan collaboration and personal friendship, Reps. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) and Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.) have found their relationship strained as chair and ranking member of the committee dedicated to investigating the government response to Covid-19. Host Ben Leonard talks with Alice Miranda Ollstein about their inability to find common ground on the pandemic response, raising...

Molina Healthcare, which manages Medicaid for states, gave $1 million to the Republican Governors Association in the first half of 2023, far exceeding past contributions. Host Evan Peng talks with Robert King about the backdrop for this spike: A reassessment of Medicaid rolls that threatens insurers’ bottom lines.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Covid-19 hospitalizations have risen for the first time since early 2023. But public health experts and the White House remain confident treatments and vaccines can manage a potential fall outbreak. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with David Lim about the recent increase in cases and what it may signal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maternal health care continues to disappear across many parts of the nation as more OBGYNs move or shutter their practices and more birthing hospitals shut down, negatively affecting millions of pregnant individuals, according to new data from the March of Dimes. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with Alice Miranda Ollstein about factors fueling obstetric unit closures — maternal care costs, travel...

The House and Senate have only a few more working weeks left to pass key legislation before funding for crucial health programs runs out on September 30. Host Megan Messerly talks with Megan R. Wilson and David Lim about the status of major health policy bills and the challenges Congress faces in addressing them.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Millions of Americans risk losing Medicaid coverage as pandemic protections expire, sparking fear among public health experts of more opioid overdoses. Host Ben Leonard talks with Daniel Payne about the impacts of redetermination on the crisis.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Industry leaders and patient advocates are preparing to oppose a forthcoming Biden administration regulation that would set minimum staffing requirements for nursing homes, with the former worried about costs and the latter concerned standards won’t be high enough. Host Kelly Hooper talks with Daniel Payne about the criticism of the pending nursing home rules. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...

The CDC has identified three more tuberculosis infections linked to recalled bone graft materials from Aziyo Biologics, bringing the total cases to 5, with one death. At least 36 more patients are being preemptively treated. Host Alice Miranda Ollstein talks with Lauren Gardner about the latest contamination concerns. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mississippi’s new medical marijuana market is struggling to find its footing, with more than 280 licensed businesses but fewer than 20,000 enrolled patients. Host Katherine Ellen Foley talks with Paul Demko about how the market is trying to balance robust competition with attracting enough patients to sustain all the new businesses.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...

The Biden administration has proposed a rule designed to force health insurers to comply with a 2008 mental health parity law. Host Megan Messerly talks with Ben Leonard about the White House’s push to equalize mental and physical health benefits and what it would mean for patient access and costs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House Republicans’ health care hopes are riding on the must-pass legislation. Host Ben Leonard talks to Alice Miranda Ollstein about how the culture wars are more prominently featuring into this year’s appropriations process. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices