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Artwork for What the Health? From KFF Health News

What the Health? From KFF Health News

KFF Health News
Affordable Care Act
Medicaid
Medicare
Public Health
Abortion Rights
Abortion
Trump Administration
Congress
Supreme Court
FDA
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Health Insurance
Mifepristone
Covid-19
Health Policy
Reproductive Health
Donald Trump
Health Care Policy
HHS
Department Of Health and Human Services

Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for KFF Health News, along with top health policy reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico and other media outlets to discuss the latest news and explain what the health is going on here in Washington, D.C.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes466Founded9 years ago
Number of ListenersCategory
News

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Artwork for What the Health? From KFF Health News

Latest Episodes

As summer comes to a close, some of the season’s major health policy stories continue to simmer, including declining insurance coverage, increasing measles cases, and cuts to federal health programs. 

Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Shefal... more

YouTube

President Donald Trump is nominating Heidi Overton, a physician who is currently a White House policy adviser, to lead the FDA, which has been without a Senate-confirmed leader since May. Overton has a controversial history and may face some obstacle... more

YouTube

President Donald Trump is trying to unilaterally change the number and schedule of childhood vaccines in the U.S., though it remains unclear how much of an impact his orders will have. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sandhya ... more

YouTube

Michigan voters this week chose former Detroit public health director Abdul El-Sayed as the Democratic nominee for the state’s open Senate seat. El-Sayed has made “Medicare for All” a major part of his campaign and further elevated the issue. 

Alice... more

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Recent Guests

Dean Rosen
Partner at Melman Consulting; former top health aide on Capitol Hill
Melman Consulting
Episode: Summer’s Health Policy Themes
Mark Cuban
Businessman and entrepreneur
Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company
Episode: Headless FDA Gets a New Nominee
Paula Andalo
KFF Health News journalist, Bill of the Month contributor
KFF Health News
Episode: Trump’s Vaccine Agenda
Andy Kim
New Jersey Democratic Senator, proponent of MediKids
U.S. Senate
Episode: The Return of ‘Medicare for All’
Bill Cassidy
Louisiana Republican Senator, Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee
U.S. Senate
Episode: A Shrinking Safety Net
Anna Edney
Bloomberg News reporter joining via video conference
Bloomberg News
Episode: States Start Their Medicaid Cuts
Sandhya Raman
Bloomberg Law reporter joining via video conference
Bloomberg Law
Episode: States Start Their Medicaid Cuts
Elizabeth Mitchell
President and CEO of the Purchaser Business Group on Health
Purchaser Business Group on Health
Episode: States Start Their Medicaid Cuts
Samantha Liss
KFF Health News journalist featured for Bill of the Month interview
KFF Health News
Episode: The Politics of Health at Midyear

Hosts

Julie Rovner
Host with long‑standing role as Washington policy correspondent, frequently guiding panel discussions and interviews.
Alice Miranda Ollstein
Co-host/reporter on health policy discussions; provides policy analysis and reporting contributions.

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars from 652 ratings
  • Informative but with a side of snide

    This podcast offers a lot of good, timely information. The discussion led by Rovner, however, is typically one-sided and can not be counted on to present all sides of an issue or its nuances. It feels partisan and left leaning, making me trust the information less. But again, it’s informative and gives me a launching pad for my own research on an issue.

    Apple Podcasts
    3
    Policy, policy, policy
    United States25 days ago
  • Great Intersection of Politics and Public Health

    This is a great podcast. It covers an interesting topic in depth and also covers the wide breadth of what’s happening in Public Health News. Plus I love the links to stories you share at the end.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    DrDK2
    United States2 months ago
  • Excellent podcast

    This is a good podcast especially in the current situation we find ourselves in. It is thought provoking and makes me want to do additional reading.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    grngrl55
    United States4 months ago
  • Excellent!

    This podcast is perfect length, perfect depth, perfect content, and the hosts stay on task. Can’t recommend enough for anyone in medicine and/or public health

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Leigh-Lew
    United States7 months ago
  • Smug, oblivious, and incurious

    Typical legacy media outlet gaslighting people about what’s really in their best interest. Captured by big pharma, love to belittle thoughtful educated advocates for children as “anti-vaxxer”. 🤮

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    dancrash81
    United States9 months ago

Listeners Say

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

Critiques often center on perceived biases or editorial tone in coverage of health policy.
Some listeners call for more coverage of marginalized groups and inclusive health issues.
Nutrition, science, or public health crises are less frequent but noted when central to policy debates.
Many reviewers appreciate expert guest insights and rigorous reporting.
Listeners praise clear, policy-focused storytelling that ties politics to real-world health outcomes.

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Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Summer’s Health Policy Themes
Q: Tell us about Nancy Kassebaum's leadership and the bipartisan approach to health reform in the 1990s.
Rosen describes Kassebaum as an incrementalist who preferred step-by-step legislation and collaboration with Ted Kennedy, highlighting the cross-party effort that led to HIPAA and the broader lesson that bipartisan progress requires willingness to compromise without sacrificing core principles.
Summer’s Health Policy Themes
Q: But that's not how it started out, right? Talk about HIPAA's origins and bipartisanship.
Dean Rosen explains HIPAA began as a bipartisan, incremental effort focused on portability and pre-existing conditions protections, emerging from a collaboration between Kassebaum and Kennedy to create a more modest, workable health reform before Congress struggled with broader reform.
The Return of ‘Medicare for All’
Q: What is the vision for this country in health care reform, beyond incremental changes?
The idea is to push bold, implementable changes that expand coverage for kids through an existing system (Medicaid) and then extend that foundation toward broader coverage, while maintaining political feasibility and bipartisan dialogue.
The Return of ‘Medicare for All’
Q: So how would this bill work?
The MediKids proposal guarantees health care from birth to 26 by automatic enrollment into Medicaid; it uses Medicaid as a base rather than creating a new bureaucracy, with a focus on continuous coverage and removing burdensome recertification paperwork.
Democrats Keep Healthcare at Fore
Q: Why do you think reforming this exclusion could be a starting point for broader health reform?
Because the exclusion drives a large portion of health coverage, especially for higher-income workers, reforming it could shift how benefits are structured, influence coverage stability across jobs, and potentially unlock other cost-control measures in the health system.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
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Frequently Asked Questions About What the Health? From KFF Health News

What is What the Health? From KFF Health News about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A policy-focused health news show that brings Washington reporting to life by unpacking how federal health policy, funding, and regulation affect patients, providers, and payers. Episodes routinely weave together breaking policy moves, legislative dynamics, and regulatory actions with expert analyses from reporters across major outlets, plus interviews with policymakers, researchers, and industry observers. Listeners can expect clear explanations of complex health policy battles—Medicare, Medicaid, the ACA, drug pricing, FDA leadership, vaccine policy, and public health funding—often framed through real-world implications, cost concerns, and accountability angles. A standout trait is the mix of sharp policy scrutiny with business-minded ref... more

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1. Tradeoffs
2. An Arm and a Leg
3. Public Health On Call
4. Health Affairs This Week
5. The Daily

How many episodes of What the Health? From KFF Health News are there?

What the Health? From KFF Health News launched 9 years ago and published 466 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 What the Health? From KFF Health News?

Recent guests on What the Health? From KFF Health News include:

1. Dean Rosen
2. Mark Cuban
3. Paula Andalo
4. Andy Kim
5. Bill Cassidy
6. Anna Edney
7. Sandhya Raman
8. Elizabeth Mitchell

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