\tJulie Rovner
\n\tKFF Health News<\/p>\n
\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 President-elect Donald Trump is continuing to staff his incoming administration, and his picks so far for key health policy positions are particularly polarizing. He said he\u2019ll nominate prominent vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services and Mehmet Oz \u2014 a controversial heart surgeon, former Senate candidate, and TV host \u2014 to run the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which oversees coverage for more than 160 million Americans.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, the lame-duck Congress has just weeks to finish its work for the year, including health priorities such as pandemic preparedness, while the incoming Congress starts to lay out plans for changes to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.<\/p>\n This week\u2019s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat, Riley Griffin of Bloomberg News, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call.<\/p>\n \tRachel Cohrs Zhang \t\t\t \t\t\t \tRiley Griffin \t\t\t \t\t\t \tSandhya Raman \t\t\t \t\t\t Among the takeaways from this week\u2019s episode:<\/p>\n Trump has named Kennedy as his choice for HHS secretary and Oz as head of CMS. Their appointments could create interesting tensions for Trump\u2019s second administration. Kennedy\u2019s crusade against ultra-processed foods could translate into more regulations in an otherwise regulation-averse administration, and Oz\u2019s embrace of Medicare Advantage \u2014 a program that has drawn attention for costing more than traditional Medicare \u2014 could run afoul of efforts to slash government spending.<\/p>\n There\u2019s another facet of the Kennedy pick that could cause hiccups for the confirmation process: He supports abortion rights and is set to lead an agency that many in the GOP hope could play a major role in restricting abortion access nationwide. Could that detail prove problematic for Republican senators considering his nomination? Time will tell.<\/p>\n With Trump transition officials vowing to clean house, especially among public health agencies, it is worth noting the broad authority granted to the HHS secretary. Congress regularly passes legislation that leaves the details to the agencies. The question, though, is how state health officials will interpret federal guidance \u2014 as considerable power on matters like vaccination policy is also left to the states.<\/p>\n In the halls of Congress, congressional committees are poised for a shake-up. Many members of key health committees, such as the Energy and Commerce Committee in the House of Representatives and the Finance Committee in the Senate, are not returning. That personnel drain has broader implications: Those departing lawmakers take with them a lot of health policy knowledge.<\/p>\n Also this week, Rovner interviews Sarah Varney, who has been covering a trial in Idaho challenging the lack of medical exceptions in that state\u2019s abortion ban.<\/p>\n Plus, for \u201cextra credit\u201d the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too:<\/p>\n Julie Rovner:<\/strong> ProPublica\u2019s \u201cHow Lincare Became a Multibillion-Dollar Medicare Scofflaw<\/a>,\u201d by Peter Elkind.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Sandhya Raman:<\/strong> ProPublica\u2019s \u201cHow UnitedHealth\u2019s Playbook for Limiting Mental Health Coverage Puts Countless Americans\u2019 Treatment at Risk<\/a>,\u201d by Annie Waldman.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Riley Griffin:<\/strong> The New York Times\u2019 \u201cA.I. Chatbots Defeated Doctors at Diagnosing Illness<\/a>,\u201d by Gina Kolata.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Rachel Cohrs Zhang: <\/strong>CNBC\u2019s \u201cDental Supply Stock Surges on RFK\u2019s Anti-Fluoride Stance, Activist Involvement<\/a>,\u201d by Alex Harring.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Also mentioned in this week\u2019s podcast:<\/p>\n Bloomberg News\u2019 \u201cDeep in the Jungle, Virus Hunters Are Working to Stop the Next Pandemic<\/a>,\u201d by Riley Griffin.<\/p>\n Stat\u2019s \u201cRFK Jr. Is Exploring a Plan To Upend Medicare\u2019s Physician Payments System<\/a>,\u201d by Rachel Cohrs Zhang.<\/p>\n \tLonnie Ro \tTaylor Cook \tEmmarie Huetteman To hear all our podcasts,\u00a0click here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n And subscribe to KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cWhat the Health?\u201d on\u00a0Spotify<\/a>,\u00a0Apple Podcasts<\/a>,\u00a0Pocket Casts<\/a>, or wherever you listen to podcasts.<\/em><\/p>\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. 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