Tradeoffs

Girls in the U.S. are in the midst of a growing mental health crisis, and schools are on the front line of finding solutions. But will Black and Latina girls get left behind? Guests: Monica Bhatt , PhD, Senior Research Director, University of Chicago Education Lab Sheretta Butler-Barnes , PhD, Professor, Washington University Kathleen Ethier , PhD, Director, CDC Division of Adolescent and School H...

This summer, our research reporter Soleil Shah added a new role to his resume: first-year medical resident. Now he spends his days alternating between making the rounds on hospital patients and reading up on the latest health policy research for the Tradeoffs newsletter.  Guest: Soleil Shah, MD, MSc, Research Reporter, Tradeoffs; Resident Physician, Brigham and Women's Hospital Learn more and...

Nearly two decades ago, Dr. Jeff Brenner hypothesized that nurses and social workers could guide the country's most complicated patients toward better health ... and cut expensive hospital admissions along the way. Was he right? Jeff Brenner, Camden Coalition of Health Care Providers Amy Finkelstein, Economist, MIT Kathleen Noonan, Camden Coalition of Health Care Providers Allison Hamblin, Center...

About half of people on Medicare use hospice care before they die, but as the popular benefit turns 40 this year, it is struggling with waste, access and inequity issues.  This week, we look at a federal experiment revamping Medicare's hospice policy, and how it could ultimately change the way millions of people die. Guests: Vince Mor , PhD, Professor of Health Services, Policy & Practice...

People leaving jail and prison are at extremely high risk of hospitalization and death. This week , why policymakers from deep blue California to solidly red Utah think bringing Medicaid behind bars could help. Guests: Lee Reed Shira Shavit , MD, Professor of Family and Community Medicine, University of California San Francisco; Executive Director, Transitions Clinic Network Jacey Cooper , Directo...

One year of health insurance premiums for a family of four now costs as much as a car. Nine states are trying to lower those costs in an aggressive way - by holding hospitals and insurance companies accountable for high spending. In this episode we look to see if any of those efforts have bent the cost curve. Guests:  Leemore Dafny, PhD, Harvard University economist Michael Bailit , MBA Presi...

Black Americans report higher levels of mistrust in the health care system than white Americans and suffer worse outcomes in everything from maternal mortality to life expectancy. What if improving health literacy and demystifying health information could be the part of the solution? This week, one doctor’s crusade to help more people understand their own health care and why insurers are starting...

The Inflation Reduction Act gave Medicare historic new power to directly negotiate the prices of some of the costliest prescription drugs. Now the federal agency must grapple with a difficult question: What makes a drug price fair? This week, we explain how this negotiation process will work and the impact it could have. Guests: Anton Avanceña , PhD, Assistant Professor of Health Outcomes, Univers...

Ashish Jha shifted from the role of academic theorizing about health policy into a calm, reassuring voice leading the White House’s COVID response. Now, he’s back in the world of studies and scholarship leading Brown University's School of Public Health. This week, what he learned from his time in Washington. Guest: Ashish Jha, Dean of Brown University’s School of Public Health and former White Ho...

It’s been one year since 988, the country’s new mental health crisis line, went live with hopes of transforming crisis services in America. So far, call volumes are up, wait times are down, and reviews are mixed. This week, we check in on what’s working, what’s not, and what’s next for 988. Content warning:  This episode includes mentions of suicide. If you or someone you know is in crisis, p...

Economist Amy Finkelstein has studied America’s patchwork of health insurance policies for more than 20 years. In a forthcoming book she concludes it’s time tear the whole system down. This week, Dan talks with Amy about how she came to that conclusion and what a better system could look like.  Guest: Amy Finkelstein , PhD, Professor of Economics, MIT Learn more and read a full transcript on...

More than 1.5 million people have lost Medicaid coverage since April 1 as states start purging people from the rolls for the first time in three years. This week, we check in on the “Medicaid unwinding” with a leading researcher, and get an up- close look at what it’s like to fall through the unwinding cracks. Guests: Adrianna McIntyre , PhD, MPP, MPH, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Poli...

One year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, 15 states have effectively banned abortion. Dozens of clinics in those states have shut their doors or moved to states where abortion is still legal. This week, Politico’s Alice Miranda Ollstein takes us to an Alabama clinic that stayed put. She wanted to learn what happens when an abortion clinic can no longer provide abortions. Guest: Alic...

Medicare is in the midst of a pretty dramatic transformation. Before long, two out of every three enrollees will likely have a private Medicare Advantage plan.     This week, we look at what’s gained and what’s lost when private insurers manage so much of the nation’s Medicare program — and where we go from here. Guests: Carol Berman, Medicare Advantage enrollee Rick Gilfillan , MD,...

Next week many of the country’s health economists will gather in St. Louis to share new research at the annual meeting of the American Society of Health Economists. This week health economist Sayeh Nikpay gives us a sneak peek at some of the most exciting papers coming out of this conference. Guest: Sayeh Nikpay, PhD, MPH, Tradeoffs Senior Research Advisor; Associate Professor, University of Minne...

There’s growing excitement that artificial intelligence can make health care better by speeding up care, improving diagnoses and easing the burden on a burned out workforce. But there are also concerns that these powerful new tools will perpetuate biases and inequities long baked into our health care system. In Part 2 of our special series on racial bias in health care AI, we dig into what the Bid...

There’s growing excitement that artificial intelligence can make health care better by speeding up care, improving diagnoses and easing the burden on a burned out workforce. But there are also concerns that these powerful new tools will perpetuate biases and inequities long baked into our health care system. In the first of two back-to-back episodes on racial bias in health care AI, we explore the...

Black Americans are at higher risk for many serious illnesses like dementia and kidney failure. But data show they are less likely to have their pain treated and less likely to access services like hospice and palliative care that can reduce suffering, especially at the end of life. This week, we explore what stops seriously ill Black patients and their families from getting the care they want in...

Every year, 100,000 Americans — mostly teens and young adults — experience their first psychotic episode. Research shows getting specialized, holistic treatment early can help, but most people don’t get that care. KQED’s April Dembosky shares her reporting on why early treatment for psychosis can be so hard to get. Guest April Dembosky , Health Correspondent, KQED News Learn more and read a f...

Medicare could soon pay hospitals much less for common outpatient services like x-rays and checkups. This week , we explain an old policy gathering new steam in Washington, how it could save Medicare and patients billions of dollars a year, and why it has hospitals worried. Guests:  Loren Adler , MS, Fellow and Associate Director, USC-Brookings Schaeffer Initiative for Health Policy Joe Antos...

Just like the rest of us, when clinicians are short on time and overwhelmed by complex decisions, their brains look for corners to cut, numbers to round, patterns to repeat. This week, Dan talks with Harvard physician and economist Bapu Jena about the surprising impact these mental shortcuts can have on our health care. Guest: Bapu Jena , MD, PhD, Professor of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical S...

A new class of drugs can help people lose up to one-fifth of their body weight and manage serious health conditions associated with obesity. But they’re also raising difficult questions. This week, we talk with STAT reporter Elaine Chen about how these breakthrough treatments are changing how we view and treat obesity.  Guest: Elaine Chen , Cardiovascular Disease Reporter, STAT Learn more and...

About half of people on Medicare use hospice care before they die, but as the popular benefit turns 40 this year, it is struggling with waste, access and inequity issues.  This week, we look at a federal experiment revamping Medicare's hospice policy, and how it could ultimately change the way millions of people die. Guests: Vince Mor , PhD, Professor of Health Services, Policy & Practice...

The Affordable Care Act faces yet another in a long string of legal challenges. Last Thursday's ruling, by a conservative federal judge who has targeted the ACA before, jeopardizes a provision in the law that gives 150 million Americans access to free preventive care for conditions like HIV and cancer. Guest: Nicholas Bagley , JD, Professor of Law, University of Michigan Learn more and read a full...

We dig into three research papers to make sense of what will happen to 15 million people set to lose their Medicaid over the next year. Guests: Sayeh Nikpay , PhD, Tradeoffs Senior Research Advisor; Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management, University of Minnesota Learn more and read a full transcript on our website . Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring...