\tEmmarie Huetteman
\n\tKFF Health News<\/p>\n
\t\t\tEmmarie Huetteman,\u00a0senior editor, oversees a team of Washington reporters, as well as \u201cBill of the Month\u201d\u00a0and KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cWhat the Health?\u201d She previously spent more than a decade reporting on the federal government, most recently covering surprise medical bills, drug pricing reform, and other health policy debates in Washington and on the campaign trail.\u00a0\t\t<\/p>\n
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.\u2019s announcement that the federal government will cancel nearly $500 million in mRNA research funding is unnerving not only for those who develop vaccines, but also for public health experts who see the technology behind the first covid-19 shots as the nation\u2019s best hope to combat a future pandemic.<\/p>\n
And President Donald Trump is demanding that major pharmaceutical companies offer many American patients the same prices available to patients overseas. It isn\u2019t the first time he\u2019s made such threats, and drugmakers \u2014 who scored a couple of wins against Medicare negotiations in the president\u2019s tax and spending law \u2014 are unlikely to volunteer to drop their prices.<\/p>\n
This week\u2019s panelists are Emmarie Huetteman of KFF Health News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post.<\/p>\n
\tSarah Karlin-Smith
\n\tPink Sheet<\/p>\n
\t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \tSandhya Raman \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \tLauren Weber \t\t\t \t\t\t Among the takeaways from this week\u2019s episode:<\/p>\n Explaining the decision to cancel some mRNA vaccine funding, a priority for vaccine critics, Kennedy falsely claimed that the technology is ineffective against respiratory illnesses. Researchers have been making headway into mRNA vaccines for maladies such as bird flu and even cancer, and the Trump administration\u2019s opposition to backing vaccine development weakens the prospects for future breakthroughs.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s insistence that big-name drugmakers voluntarily lower their prices underscores how few tools the presidency has to deliver results on this important pocketbook issue for many Americans. Medicare\u2019s ability to negotiate drug prices took a hit under Trump\u2019s big tax-and-spending law, which included two provisions advocated by the pharmaceutical industry that would delay or exclude some expensive drugs from the dealmaking process.<\/p>\n A year after Trump promised on the campaign trail to secure coverage of in vitro fertilization, the White House reportedly is not planning to compel insurers to pay for those pricey reproductive services \u2014 a change that would require an act of Congress and could raise costs overall.<\/p>\n And with Congress back home for its August recess and a late September deadline looming, the annual government funding process is in progress \u2014 but unlikely to resolve quickly or cleanly. Senate appropriators are further along in their work than usual, but the House of Representatives has yet to release its version, which is expected to cut deeper and hit social issues like abortion harder.<\/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 Emmarie Huetteman:<\/strong> KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cNew Medicaid Federal Work Requirements Mean Less Leeway for States<\/a>,\u201d by Katheryn Houghton and Bram Sable-Smith.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sarah Karlin-Smith:<\/strong> Slate\u2019s \u201cConfessions of a Welfare Queen<\/a>,\u201d by Maria Kefalas.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sandhya Raman: <\/strong>CQ Roll Call\u2019s \u201cSweden\u2019s Push for Smokeless Products Leads Some To Wonder About Risks<\/a>,\u201d by Sandhya Raman.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lauren Weber:<\/strong> The New York Times\u2019 \u201c\u2018Hot Wasps\u2019 Found at Nuclear Facility in South Carolina<\/a>,\u201d by Emily Anthes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Also mentioned in this week\u2019s podcast:<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cHow RFK Jr.\u2019s mRNA Crackdown Affects Vaccinemaking and Future Pandemics<\/a>,\u201d by Carolyn Y. Johnson and Lauren Weber.<\/p>\n The AP\u2019s \u201cFact Focus: Trump Says He\u2019s Cut Drug Prices By Up to 1,500%. That\u2019s Not Possible<\/a>,\u201d by Melissa Goldin.<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cMedicare, Medicaid Plan To Experiment with Covering Weight Loss Drugs<\/a>,\u201d by Paige Winfield Cunningham.<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cWhite House Has No Plan To Mandate IVF Care, Despite Campaign Pledge<\/a>,\u201d by Riley Beggin and Jeff Stein.<\/p>\n \tFrancis Ying \tStephanie Stapleton 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. Learn more about KFF<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@SarahKarlin\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@sarahkarlin-smith.bsky.social\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Sarah’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\tCQ Roll Call<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@SandhyaWrites\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@SandhyaWrites.bsky.social\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Sandhya’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\tThe Washington Post<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@LaurenWeberHP\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Lauren’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t\tCredits\t<\/h3>\n
\n\tAudio producer<\/p>\n
\n\tEditor <\/p>\nUSE OUR CONTENT<\/h3>\n