Tradeoffs

Starting Oct. 6, providers must begin giving patients electronic access to more of their health care data than ever before. But the federal regulations forcing this change are fraught with implementation challenges and privacy risks. This week we talk with Micky Tripathi, the federal official overseeing this push to democratize America’s health data, about its promise and perils. Guest Micky Tripa...

Initial screenings for breast, lung and cervical cancer are free, but expensive secondary tests can leave patients in screening purgatory. Guests:  Mark Fendrick, MD, Professor of Medicine and public health at the University of Michigan, Director of the Center for Value Based Insurance Design. Gloria Coronado , PhD, epidemiologist and health disparities researcher, Kaiser Permanente Center fo...

California is in the early days of one of the most ambitious initiatives ever to address Medicaid patients’ social needs in hopes of improving their health. This week, we trace the origins, early results and challenges of “CalAIM.” Guests: Jacey Cooper , Director, California Medicaid Program Bradley Gilbert , MD, MPP, Former Chief Medical Officer and CEO, Inland Empire Health Plan Lacy McClellan D...

This week, we’re sharing the first episode of a new 10-part series from The Nocturnists podcast, called “Shame in Medicine: The Lost Forest.”  What is shame? And how does it manifest in medical culture? The Nocturnists teams up with two shame experts to investigate these questions. Read a full transcript of this episode on our website . Learn more about this episode and the Shame in Medicine...

The Inflation Reduction Act gives Medicare historic new powers to control prescription drug prices. We go inside the government’s race to implement these new powers — and the pharmaceutical industry’s efforts to blunt their impact. Guests: Alice Valder Curran, JD, Partner, Hogan Lovells Sean Dickson, JD, MPH, Director of Health Policy, West Health Policy Center Amber Jessup, PhD, Chief Economist,...

The Biden administration is trying to close a gap in the Affordable Care Act that blocks 5 million people from getting affordable health care. Guests:  Liana Wolk, teacher Owen Marshall , musician Katie Keith, JD, MPH ; Director, Health Policy and the Law Initiative at the O’Neill Institute at the Georgetown University Law Center. Learn more and read a full transcript on our website . Want mo...

Why are a growing number of private insurance companies starting to invest in medical respite — a decades-old idea to care for homeless people who are too healthy to be in the hospital, but too sick to be on the streets? Guests: Henry Jones, former medical respite patient Janelle Goetcheus , MD, Founder and Medical Director, Christ House Julia Dobbins , MSW, Director of Medical Respite, National H...

Letting private insurers offer Medicaid coverage was supposed to lower costs and improve care. We dig into the research on Medicaid managed care. Guests: Sayeh Nikpay , PhD, Tradeoffs Contributing Research Editor; Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management, University of Minnesota Kathleen Adams , PhD, Professor of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health at Emory Uni...

The U.S. health care system is responsible for 8.5% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. We discuss how health care contributes to climate change, how some hospitals are trying to reduce their carbon footprint and what more needs to be done. Guest: Gary Cohen, co-founder and president of Health Care Without Harm Read a full transcript and dig deeper into the issues explored in today's e...

The overdose crisis in the U.S. is as deadly as it’s ever been. In response, the Biden administration is embracing a controversial strategy known as harm reduction, which seeks to keep drug users safe even as they continue using. We explore how harm reduction has become more mainstream and what kind of impact we can expect it to have on the overdose crisis. Guests: Ricky Bluthenthal, PhD , Associa...

We explore the impacts of charging Medicaid enrollees premiums and how phasing out premiums may affect Montana's Medicaid expansion program. Guests: Katharine Bradley , Principal Researcher, Mathematica Heather O'Loughlin , Co-Director, Montana Budget & Policy Center Ed Buttrey , State Representative, Montana Read a full transcript and dig deeper into the issues explored in today's episode on...

Independent abortion funds have been flooded with donations since Roe v. Wade was overturned. How do these funds work and what role will they play in a post-Roe world? Guests: Brittany Mostiller , Leadership Development Coordinator, National Network of Abortion Funds Gretchen Ely, PhD, MSW , Director of PhD Program, University of Tennessee College of Social Work Kim Floren, Director, Justice Throu...

To mark the launch date of 988, America's new mental health crisis line, we're sharing a segment from The Takeaway, a public radio show and podcast produced by WNYC Studios and PRX, featuring Tradeoffs host Dan Gorenstein talking about our reporting on 988. Read a full transcript and dig deeper into our reporting here . Please take a couple of minutes to help us learn more about you by filling out...

In Part 3 of our special series on 988, we go on the ground to hear from individuals working in their communities to prepare for America’s new mental health crisis line to go live. Guests:  Natalie Krebs , Health reporter, Iowa Public Radio Emily Blomme , Chief Executive Officer, Foundation 2 Crisis Services Christine Herman , Managing editor, Side Effects Public Media Mike Sunseri , Deputy E...

In Part 2 of our special series on 988, we explore the scramble to staff the country’s new mental health crisis line and the workforce lessons 988 can learn from 911. Learn more about how 988 came to be, what’s at stake and what it will take to succeed in the  first episode  in our series. Guests:  Rebecca Neusteter , PhD, Executive Director, Health Lab, University of Chicago Rita S...

Starting July 16, 2022, anyone in the U.S. experiencing a mental health crisis will be able to dial 988 for help. We explore what it will take for this new nationwide hotline to meet the needs of millions of people struggling with suicide, addiction and mental illness. Guests: Andrea Harrison, Helpline Specialist,  First Choice Services Madhuri Jha , LCSW, MPH, Director, Kennedy-Satcher Cente...

Why has a little-known program designed to help hospitals and clinics that serve low-income people become one of the most controversial health policies in the country? Guests:  Sayeh Nikpay , PhD, Tradeoffs Contributing Research Editor; Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management, University of Minnesota Read a full transcript and dig deeper into the issues explored in today's episode...

The leader of a landmark abortion study shares what research and her own family experience suggest will happen to people who are denied abortions in a post-Roe world. Guests:  Diana Foster Green, director of research at Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health Read a full transcript and dig deeper into the issues explored in today's episode on our website . Support this type of journali...

A personal and political fight to keep abortion legal in Michigan is in full swing. Michigan is one of more than 20 states poised to ban abortion if Roe v. Wade falls. Politico’s Alice Miranda Ollstein speaks with one woman who got an illegal abortion in Michigan and outlines the political levers state leaders have to to preserve abortion rights. Guests:  Alice Miranda Ollstein , health care...

How one hospital is scrambling to deal with a shortage of a critical drug, and what changes are needed to fix chronic problems with the U.S. medical supply chain. Guests: Kierstin Kennedy , Chief Medical Officer, University of Alabama Birmingham Hospital Erin Fox , Senior Pharmacy Director, University of Utah Health Read a full transcript and dig deeper into the issues explored in today's episode...

We explore “cascades of care” — how a clinician's desire to be thorough can snowball into a harmful spiral of unnecessary care. Guests: Meredith Niess, MD, MPH , Clinical Academic Resource Director, University of North Carolina School of Medicine and Novant Health Ishani Ganguli, MD, MPH , Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital Cheryl Damberg, PhD,...

In Part 2 of our special series on 988, we explore the scramble to staff the country’s new mental health crisis line and the workforce lessons 988 can learn from 911. Learn more about how 988 came to be, what’s at stake and what it will take to succeed in the  first episode  in our series. Guests:  Rebecca Neusteter , PhD, Executive Director, Health Lab, University of Chicago Rita S...

The country’s high rates of pregnancy-related deaths and complications, and the potential impact Biden’s push to expand Medicaid coverage for pregnant people may have. Guests: Stacey Roussel , Deputy Director, Louisiana Budget Project Frankie Robertson, Founder & President, The Amandla Group Usha Ranji , Associate Director for Women’s Health Policy at Kaiser Family Foundation Learn more and re...

The Biden administration is trying to close a gap in the Affordable Care Act that blocks 5 million people from getting affordable health care. Guests:  Liana Wolk, teacher Owen Marshall , musician Katie Keith, JD, MPH ; Director, Health Policy and the Law Initiative at the O’Neill Institute at the Georgetown University Law Center. Learn more and read a full transcript on our website . Want mo...

Medical education is in the midst of a revolution. Students and educators want their education ingrained in antiracism and hope that by acknowledging and teaching about bias and systemic discrimination in the medical field, the next generation of doctors will be better equipped to dismantle racism within health care. STAT's “Color Code” takes a look at the groundswell of antiracism work in medicin...