\tJulie Rovner
\n\tKFF Health News<\/p>\n
\t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\tJulie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News\u2019 weekly health policy news podcast, \u201cWhat the Health?\u201d A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book \u201cHealth Care Politics and Policy A to Z,\u201d now in its third edition.\t\t<\/p>\n Congress is running out of time to avert a huge increase in health care premium payments for millions of Americans who buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplaces. Dec. 15 is the deadline to sign up for coverage that begins Jan. 1, and some consumers are waiting to see whether the credits will be extended, enabling them to afford coverage next year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, a federal vaccine advisory panel handpicked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. voted last week to end the universal recommendation for a hepatitis B vaccine dose at birth. It\u2019s just the start of what are expected to be major changes in childhood vaccine recommendations overall.<\/p>\n This week\u2019s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times.<\/p>\n \tAnna Edney \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \tMaya Goldman \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \tSheryl Gay Stolberg \t\t\t \t\t\t Among the takeaways from this week\u2019s episode:<\/p>\n As of Thursday morning, the Senate was preparing to vote on competing health proposals, neither of which was expected to pass: one, from Democrats, that would extend the enhanced ACA premium tax credits and a second, from Republicans, that would instead add money to health savings accounts for some ACA enrollees. With the credits set to expire and time running out to sign up for plans, it is likely that coverage will be unaffordable for some Americans, leaving them uninsured.<\/p>\n The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices\u2019 decision to end its recommendation that newborns be immunized against hepatitis B is a major development in the federal government\u2019s shift away from promoting vaccines. While the panel coalesced around the claim that babies are most likely to contract hepatitis B from their mothers, the reality is that the virus can live on household items, posing a threat of chronic disease and death to unvaccinated children.<\/p>\n In reproductive health news, House Speaker Mike Johnson removed insurance coverage of fertility treatment for service members from the National Defense Authorization Act before the legislation\u2019s passage, and anti-abortion groups are calling for the firing of Food and Drug Administration head Marty Makary over reports he is slow-walking policy changes on medication abortion.<\/p>\n Also this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown University professor Linda Blumberg about what the GOP\u2019s health plans have in common.<\/p>\n Plus, for \u201cextra credit\u201d the panelists suggest health policy stories they read (or wrote) this week that they think you should read, too:\u00a0<\/p>\n Julie Rovner:<\/strong> The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cRural America Relies on Foreign Doctors. Trump\u2019s Visa Fee Shuts Them Out<\/a>,\u201d by David Ovalle.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Anna Edney:<\/strong> Bloomberg News\u2019 \u201cAbbott Fired a Warning Shot on Baby Formula \u2014 Then Launched a Lobbying Blitz<\/a>,\u201d by Anna Edney.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Sheryl Gay Stolberg:<\/strong> The New York Times\u2019 \u201cThe Married Scientists Torn Apart by a Covid Bioweapon Theory<\/a>,\u201d by Katie J.M. Baker.<\/p>\n Maya Goldman:<\/strong> ProPublica\u2019s \u201cThese Health Centers Are Supposed to Make Care Affordable. One Has Sued Patients for as Little as $59 in Unpaid Bills<\/a>,\u201d by Aliyya Swaby.<\/p>\n Also mentioned in this week\u2019s podcast:<\/p>\n Politico\u2019s \u201c\u2019Sort of Blackmail\u2019: Billions in Rural Health Funding Hinge on States Passing Trump-Backed Policies<\/a>,\u201d by Alice Miranda Ollstein, Ruth Reader, and Liz Crampton.<\/p>\n The New York Times\u2019 \u201cKennedy\u2019s Methodical 2-Decade Quest To Dismantle Vaccine Policy<\/a>,\u201d by Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Christina Jewett.<\/p>\n Bloomberg News\u2019 \u201cFDA Slow Walking a Long-Awaited Abortion Pill Safety Study<\/a>,\u201d by Charles Gorrivan, Riley Griffin, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang.<\/p>\n The Associated Press\u2019 \u201cAffordable Care Act Enrollment Is Slightly Ahead of Last Year So Far, Despite Expiring Subsidies<\/a>,\u201d by Ali Swenson and Nicky Forster.<\/p>\n \tTaylor Cook \tEmmarie Huetteman Click here to find all our podcasts.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n And subscribe to \u201cWhat the Health? From KFF Health News\u201d on Apple Podcasts<\/a>, Spotify<\/a>, the NPR app<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Pocket Casts<\/a>, or wherever you listen to podcasts.<\/em><\/p>\n\n KFF Health News<\/a> is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF\u2014an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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