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A Health Podyssey

Health Affairs
Medicaid
Medicare
Health Equity
Health Policy
Health Affairs
Food Insecurity
Medicare Advantage
Private Equity
Covid-19
Affordable Care Act
Perinatal Mental Health
Biosimilars
Public Health
Buprenorphine
Primary Care
Opioid Crisis
Mental Health
Medpac
Substance Use Disorder
Telehealth

Each week, Health Affairs' Rob Lott brings you in-depth conversations with leading researchers and influencers shaping the big ideas in health policy and the health care industry. A Health Podyssey goes beyond the pages of the health policy journal Health Affairs to tell stories behind the research and share policy implications. Learn how academics and economists frame their research questions and... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes307Founded6 years ago
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Artwork for A Health Podyssey

Latest Episodes

Are we ready for the next public health emergency?

Rob Lott speaks with physician, researcher, and New Yorker writer Dhruv Khullar about the state of U.S. public health preparedness, the growing challenges facing infectious disease surveillance, an... more

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Grace Mackleby of the University of Southern California about her recent paper that explores how vertically integrated Medicare Advantage plans and hospital systems set prices, finding that most affiliat... more

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Jiebing Wen of The University of Texas at Austin about her recent paper exploring how hospice acquisitions by investor-owned firms were associated with lower care staffing intensity and fewer patient vis... more

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Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks to Keith Ericson of Boston University about his recent paper exploring how inflation-adjusted spending benchmarks would provide a more accurate picture of state health care cost growth.

Order the August 2... more

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Recent Guests

Jiebing Wen
Dr. Jiebing Wen, research assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy
University of Texas at Austin
Episode: Health Care Acquisitions: What Happens to Patient Care Intensity?
Keith Marzilli Ericson
Professor of Markets, Public Policy and Law
Boston University
Episode: How Inflation Skewed State Health Care Spending Targets
Betsy Q. Cliff
Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago, Department of Public Health Sciences
University of Chicago
Episode: Why Are Wealthy Americans Spending So Much More on Healthcare?
Michael Chernew
Leonard D. Schaefer Professor of Health Policy, Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School; Chair of MedPAC
Episode: BEST OF: Michael Chernew on Medicare Advantage Benchmarks
Meena Seshamani
Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Medicare at CMS
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Episode: BEST OF: A Health Podyssey x Policy Spotlight w/ Meena Seshamani
James Robinson
Leonard D. Schafer Professor of Health Economics, UC Berkeley; Director of the Berkeley Center for Health Technology; contributing editor at Health Affairs
UC Berkeley; Health Affairs
Episode: BEST OF: What Most Favored Nation Drug Pricing Would Mean for the US
Dr. Robert M. Wachter
Professor and chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco
University of California San Francisco
Episode: BEST OF: Will AI Fix Health Care? Robert Wachter Weighs In
Adam A. Markovitz
Assistant Professor of General Internal Medicine and a Practicing General Internist at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
Episode: How ACO Conveners Are Changing the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Behind the Scenes
Geoffrey J. Hoffman
Associate Professor at the University of Michigan School of Nursing
University of Michigan
Episode: Why Medicare’s Hospital Wage Index Exceptions Jumped 60%

Host

Rob Lott
Host of the Health Affairs podcast, focusing on health policy and economics; long-running presenter with Health Affairs.

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 59 ratings
  • Beautiful but heartbreaking

    Just listened to your wonderful interview with Dr. Lagu from October 2022. As a med student at Columbia, I keep learning just how much has changed in medical education. I’m sure we’ll have our own problems to overcome, but I can’t think of a single classmate who wouldn’t find these behaviors completely unconscionable. Going into medicine means sacrificing our time, mental health, freedom, and so much more, and the only thing that makes it worth it is the chance to truly make a difference. How co... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    whcarson
    United Statesa year ago
  • Primary care and behavioral health

    Nice piece on 2/14! So important to integrate this effectively. Long way to go, but value based payment incentives need to structured to strengthen.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    abp4567891234
    United States4 years ago
  • Love the show - very accessible, and great research highlighted!

    I’m a huge fan of this show - appreciate the accessibility of the podcast for those who might not have budget for an HA subscription. Really appreciate the diversity of guests and topics covered.

    I know this research base is more limited than populations of Medicare Advantage enrollees, but would love to see some highlighting of studies and research that HA has published around Medicaid managed care plans and enrollees (or health plan enterprises’ large scale approaches to serving their various... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    maiag1993
    United States4 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

These insights are valuable for understanding policy implications in health care.
Guests are diverse and topics are relevant to current health policy debates.
Appreciate the data-driven discussions and access to diverse expert perspectives.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

How Inflation Skewed State Health Care Spending Targets
Q: In your paper, you write that even sophisticated actors systematically misunderstand the distinction between nominal spending changes and real spending changes. Can you explain that distinction and why it matters for benchmarks?
Nominal spending is simply the dollar amount spent, but its meaning changes with inflation. Real spending adjusts for the price level so you capture true purchasing power. This matters because benchmarks set in nominal terms can show that targets were met or missed, while real spending reveals whether health care affordability actually improved or worsened.
Why Are Wealthy Americans Spending So Much More on Healthcare?
Q: Why is income a useful lens for analyzing health care spending, and what does it tell us about value in health care?
Income is a strong determinant of health care access and ability to pay for services, and examining spending by income reveals whether growth is equitably distributed or concentrated among higher earners. The discussion highlights that while spending can be reduced, the focus should be on value—spending money on health-improving services rather than simply cutting costs. The researchers also note that policy changes, such as ACA-related expansions, have shifted spending patterns across income groups, which has implications for access and overall population health.
How ACO Conveners Are Changing the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Behind the Scenes
Q: What mechanisms might explain why dispersed conveners perform better on shared savings?
Possible explanations include genuine care improvements and better analytics (the 'good story'), dispersion as a marker of success (reverse causality), and concerns about strategic selection where low-cost clinicians are cherry-picked to beat benchmarks (the 'bad story'). The mechanisms are not mutually exclusive and may all contribute.
How ACO Conveners Are Changing the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Behind the Scenes
Q: What are the three central findings about conveners from 2012–2021?
Convener involvement grew from 11% to at least 23% of beneficiaries; networks became more geographically dispersed with higher dispersion among convener-led ACOs; dispersed convener ACOs earned notably more in bonuses, about $171 per beneficiary per year, compared with local convener and non-convener groups.
How ACO Conveners Are Changing the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Behind the Scenes
Q: Did policymakers anticipate the rise of third-party conveners when ACOs were first developed?
No, policymakers did not foresee the emergence of third-party convener firms; the original design envisioned local clinically integrated networks rather than nationwide, dispersed entities.

Audience Metrics

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Frequently Asked Questions About A Health Podyssey

What is A Health Podyssey about and what kind of topics does it cover?

This program features in-depth conversations with leading researchers, policymakers, and industry experts who shape health policy, pricing, and delivery in the U.S. Each episode tends to dissect complex health care topics—from how inflation distorts spending benchmarks and the implications for state policy, to the economics of Medicare, value-based care, and the role of intermediaries like PBMs and conveners in large health programs. Guests are frequently academics or senior policy figures, often accompanied by concrete data or policy proposals, and the conversations balance rigorous analysis with practical implications for policymakers, providers, and industry stakeholders. A notable strength is the sustained focus on policy design and rea... more

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Which podcasts are similar to A Health Podyssey?

These podcasts share a similar audience with A Health Podyssey:

1. Health Affairs This Week
2. What the Health? From KFF Health News
3. Tradeoffs
4. An Arm and a Leg
5. The Daily

How many episodes of A Health Podyssey are there?

A Health Podyssey launched 6 years ago and published 307 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on A Health Podyssey?

Recent guests on A Health Podyssey include:

1. Jiebing Wen
2. Keith Marzilli Ericson
3. Betsy Q. Cliff
4. Michael Chernew
5. Meena Seshamani
6. James Robinson
7. Dr. Robert M. Wachter
8. Adam A. Markovitz

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