\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 A new executive order from President Donald Trump has potentially broad implications for the future of the federal research enterprise by transferring direct funding decisions away from career professionals to political appointees.<\/p>\n And a gunman, reportedly disgruntled over covid vaccines, attacked the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, highlighting how increasingly inflammatory rhetoric from health critics endangers the public health workforce.<\/p>\n This week\u2019s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.<\/p>\n \tSarah Karlin-Smith \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t \tShefali Luthra \t\t\t \t\t\t \tAlice Miranda Ollstein \t\t\t \t\t\t \t\t\t Among the takeaways from this week\u2019s episode:<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s executive order highlights the tension between how Congress has directed federal science funding and what the administration can do to alter that course. Congress has traditionally set the parameters and experts have made the judgments for moving forward. The National Institutes of Health, considered an American crown jewel, specifically has remained apolitical. But this step opens the door to concerns about grant cancellation and adds to growing uncertainty in scientific research. Even investors are starting to hold back. The ripple effects could be much bigger than the Trump administration anticipates.<\/p>\n Many CDC staffers blame Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other agency leaders for stoking the negative climate that led to last week\u2019s attack. Kennedy appears to have doubled down on his language, however, announcing decisions and policies that continue to fuel vaccine opposition and hesitation.<\/p>\n This week, Kennedy also made the unprecedented move of calling on the Annals of Internal Medicine, a medical journal, to retract a study that found that the aluminum adjuvant in many childhood vaccines did not cause harm. The journal refused to retract the study based on Kennedy\u2019s scientifically unsubstantiated claims that the additive was damaging.<\/p>\n More fallout is emerging about the GOP-backed sweeping budget law enacted this summer. Republicans have argued that its cuts to Medicaid \u2014 most of which will not kick in until after the midterm elections \u2014 would touch only waste, fraud, abuse, and people who weren\u2019t entitled to the coverage. In reality, the sprawling nature of Medicaid is already becoming clear as institutions \u2014 ranging from hospitals to community health centers \u2014 prepare for cuts that could limit their ability to provide services.<\/p>\n The CDC reported this week that Americans are eating less ultra-processed food but that it is still a big part of the American diet. The Trump administration has talked a big game about addressing this public health issue yet has seemed loath to require the food industry to do anything. Much of the administration\u2019s efforts have focused on \u201cvoluntary\u201d changes. Former FDA chief David Kessler this week highlighted a regulatory, legal way the administration could compel more action.<\/p>\n Also this week, Rovner interviews Aaron Carroll, president and CEO of the health services research group AcademyHealth, about how to restore the public\u2019s trust in public health.<\/p>\n\n Plus, for \u201cextra credit,\u201d the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too:<\/p>\n Julie Rovner:<\/strong> ProPublica\u2019s \u201cVeterans\u2019 Care at Risk Under Trump as Hundreds of Doctors and Nurses Reject Working at VA Hospitals<\/a>,\u201d by David Armstrong, Eric Umansky, and Vernal Coleman.<\/p>\n Alice Miranda Ollstein:<\/strong> The New York Times-KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cWhy Young Americans Dread Turning 26: Health Insurance Chaos<\/a>,\u201d by Elisabeth Rosenthal and Hannah Norman.<\/p>\n Sarah Karlin-Smith:<\/strong> The New York Times\u2019 \u201cThis Ohio Farm Community Is a Mecca for the \u2018MAHA Mom,\u2019<\/a>\u201d by Caroline Kitchener.<\/p>\n Shefali Luthra:<\/strong> Stat\u2019s \u201cInside the American Medical Association\u2019s Sudden Strategy Shift in Washington<\/a>,\u201d by Theresa Gaffney.<\/p>\n Also mentioned in this week\u2019s podcast:<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cThis Phrase Was Meant To Increase Trust in Science. It Backfired<\/a>,\u201d by Aaron E. Carroll.<\/p>\n Stat\u2019s \u201cFormer Surgeon General: The CDC Shooting Must Be a Wakeup Call<\/a>,\u201d by Jerome Adams.<\/p>\n PBS NewsHour\u2019s \u201cFederal mRNA Funding Cut Is \u2018Most Dangerous Public Health Decision\u2019 Ever, Expert Says<\/a>,\u201d by Geoff Bennett and Karina Cuevas.<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cHow Schools Could Be Hit by Medicaid Cuts<\/a>,\u201d by Terell Wright.<\/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@jrovner\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@julierovner.bsky.social\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Julie’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t\tPanelists\t<\/h3>\n
\n\tPink Sheet<\/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\tThe 19th<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@shefali.bsky.social\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Shefali’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\tPolitico<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@AliceOllstein\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t@alicemiranda.bsky.social\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\tRead Alice’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