The Other 80

California is full of hardworking people—nurses, teachers, delivery drivers, baristas—who keep our communities running. Many of them live paycheck-to-paycheck, making too much to qualify for most government benefits, but not enough to afford the basics. For nearly 2 million Californians, Covered California provides a critical lifeline, offering access to affordable health insurance and now basic n...

In the wake of massive layoffs at HHS - and so many other federal agencies and programs - we are sharing the powerful stories of federal workers who had no choice but to leave their important work when they were fired post-election. You’ll hear from a former marine who was improving primary care for fellow veterans, a child of farmworkers who was expanding economic opportunities for rural communit...

With the House approving a plan to slash $880 billion from the federal budget, all eyes are turning to Medicaid as the most likely source of cuts. I asked former North Carolina Health Secretary Kody Kinsley, KFF’s Larry Levitt and California Health Care Foundation’s Katie Heidorn to join me to discuss the likely shape and impact of proposed cuts, and take questions from UC Berkeley students.&...

New York Medicaid has made some big bets on social care recently, and Amir Bassiri is here to answer all our questions. The bold new program centers on nine new regional networks that will be hubs for community organizations offering housing, food and other services. Will this program survive the new administration? Only time will tell.  We discuss: The state's ambitious plan to screen every...

Driving fast on the open road is almost as American as apple pie. We all remember the thrill of our first car - a symbol of American freedom and independence. But is our love affair with cars killing us? David Zipper joins us to talk about the wide ranging health impacts of our car obsession, and how policy innovations like congestion pricing and weight-based taxes could offer a way out.  We...

An incredible 43% of Americans are unpaid caregivers, who are often alone with the burden and blessing of caring for their loved ones as life begins and in the complex and heartbreaking final days. Studies show their mental health is suffering – 52% of “sandwich generation” caregivers report that they have actively thought about suicide in the last 30 days. Alexandra Drane, CEO of ARCHANGELS, join...

If AI is going to rapidly improve healthcare, shouldn’t we start at the ground floor - with primary care? Cityblock’s Chief Health Officer Dr. Kameron Matthews joins us to talk about how AI can reduce complexity and burnout, improve patient outcomes and free care teams to focus on human connections. We discuss: What it takes to design with and for the communities  Her work with the Coalition...

For the past 20 years, under both Republican and Democratic administrations, the ONC has played a pivotal role shaping and regulating the health tech market. On the eve of the election, Micky Tripathi joined me to discuss the agency’s recently expanded role. Now, two months later—though it feels like a decade—the future is uncertain. Will the ONC and ASTP continue as market regulators and opportun...

There’s a lot of concern right now about healthcare affordability, but not enough action. Paul Markovich, the CEO of Blue Shield of California, is on a mission to bring down health costs by reducing administrative overhead and negotiating lower drug prices. In this episode we dive deep into Paul’s call to action for healthcare leaders to tackle the affordability crisis head-on.  Paul and...

On so many issues, Congress has not been willing or able to act. But when faced with horrifying stories of death and mismanagement, Congress finally passed legislation to reform the US organ transplant system. They did so because people like Donna Cryer, a transplant recipient and patient advocate, demanded a better system for Americans who need lifesaving organ transplants. Now, as the new law mo...

Dr. Theresa “Terry” Cullen is on a mission to make Pima County, Arizona one of the healthiest counties in the nation. It’s a challenging goal, and one that will take dedication and a willingness to fight for what’s right. But, Terry is a self-described, life-long pugilist – with an approach to healthcare that goes beyond policies and programs. Everything she does is rooted in her deep belief in ac...

With the election just days away, Larry Levitt joins me to discuss where Harris and Trump stand on key health issues: reproductive health, affordability and Medicaid. While health has not taken center stage (as it has in the past), the outcome of this election will have profound impacts on every aspect of health in the years ahead.  We discuss: Why the ACA is no longer a political battle...

How do you create a healthier city? As the climate shifts, screens dominate our lives and cities continue to grow - urban areas are grappling with how to put themselves on a better track to health. New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan joins The Other 80 to talk about his ambitious plan to increase health in the Big Apple, with the goal of increasing life expectancy from 78 to 83 year...

In July, US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a landmark advisory declaring firearm violence a national public health crisis. The advisory builds on decades of work from Dr. Megan Ranney and other researchers who advocate taking a public health approach to reducing firearm violence. She joined us at Aspen Ideas: Health to discuss what this means: namely moving from a focus on law and order t...

Deena Shakir is an investor who is obsessed with expanding access to the basic health services people need and often can’t access: pediatric care, community health and women’s services. Her journey to investing passed through policymaking, journalism and big tech and her early techno optimism has given way to a much more nuanced and pragmatic view. She is able to see the big opportunities for impa...

Government systems often take a lot of flack for their (sometimes) built-in inability to take risks and make big bets. So, what would it take to encourage the government to take those big, risky moonshots? For Health, that’s the role of ARPA-H – to fund new ways of improving health by investing in people with big ideas. We sat down with ARPA-H Director Renee Wegrzyn at Aspen Ideas Health to talk a...

The US is living through an affordable housing crisis - in fact, we are short millions and millions of affordable housing units. During the pandemic, homelessness flattened with an influx of resources to help keep people housed. But, those resources have long expired and now we are seeing an uptick in homelessness across the country. Jeff Olivet, the director of USICH (United States Interagency Co...

California is the latest state to address healthcare affordability through cost growth targets. Elizabeth Mitchell – President and CEO of Purchaser Business Group on Health  – Joins us to discuss the nuts and bolts of the 3% cost growth target recently adopted by the state. Healthcare affordability is a big issue across the country. More than half of us skip or postpone care due to cost and m...

The scope, scale and timeline of what California is trying to do with CalAIM is truly breathtaking. Two years after the launch of the ambitious program, which offers integrated medical and social care for California's 15 million Medicaid members, Dr. Palav Babaria joins us to discuss how it’s going and what comes next. Dr. Babaria is a primary care physician who leads quality and population health...

To achieve whole person care, we can try layering new social services on top of medical care. But Dr. Rishi Manchanda believes we should move further upstream and ask, what will it take to actually improve health in communities? From founding Rx the Vote to HealthBegins, Rishi is committed to building community social capital in America.  We discuss: Why he created HealthBegins, which is now...

June 18th is “Maya Petersen” day in San Francisco, in honor of her work building disease models that guided the region through the early days of COVID and saved countless lives.  With projects spanning from developing HIV prevention strategies in East Africa to shaping new Medicaid models in California, the UC Berkeley epidemiologist is building a future where local public health leaders have...

If there’s one thing politicians do little of these days it’s change their minds. But, that’s exactly what North Carolina’s General Assembly did in 2023. Ten years after the ACA was passed, and in a historic bipartisan move, they changed their minds and voted to expand Medicaid. NC Secretary of Health & Human Services Kody Kinsley joined us to talk about what it took to get this done and how i...

One thing is clear from the last four years: public health leaders need to seriously upgrade their skills in communication and partnering. In this episode Anne Zink, who is stepping down as Alaska’s Chief Medical Officer, brings us a master class in both topics.  Guiding the state through COVID she inspired both a Facebook fan group and the hashtag #ThinkLikeZink. Take a listen and you will s...

Today’s guest is Susannah Fox, author of Rebel Health: A Field Guide to the Patient-Led Revolution in Medical Care. The book is a deep dive into the expert network of patients, survivors and caregivers who are charting a new path of innovation and research. It is for anyone who feels alone, forgotten or lost in the shadows of suffering as they navigate a new diagnosis. But, it’s also for anyone wo...

We'll be unpacking lessons from the COVID 19 pandemic for many years to come. Dr. Tomás Aragón, who leads public health for the State of California, joins us to discuss what he learned guiding America's most populous state through this challenging and disruptive period.  We discuss: That public health’s deepest power lies in the ability to help diverse groups reach consensus under great uncer...