\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 Open enrollment for 2026 Affordable Care Act insurance plans starts in most states Nov. 1, with no resolution in Congress about whether to continue more generous premium tax credits expanded under President Joe Biden or let them expire at the end of this year. It is unclear whether the backlash from millions of enrollees seeing skyrocketing premiums will move Democrats or Republicans to back away from entrenched positions that are keeping most of the federal government shut down.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Trump administration \u2014 having done away earlier this year with a Biden-era regulation that prevented medical debt from being included on consumers\u2019 credit reports \u2014 is now telling states they cannot pass their own laws to bar the practice.<\/p>\n This week\u2019s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.<\/p>\n \tPaige Winfield Cunningham \t\t\t \t\t\t \tMaya Goldman \t\t\t \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 Tens of millions of Americans are bracing to lose government food aid on Nov. 1, after the Trump administration opted not to continue funding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program during the shutdown. President Donald Trump and senior officials have made no secret of efforts to penalize government programs they see as Democratic priorities, to exert political pressure as the stalemate continues on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n People beginning to shop for next year\u2019s plans on the ACA marketplaces are experiencing sticker shock due to the expiration of more generous premium tax credits that were expanded during the covid pandemic. The federal government will also take a particular hit as it covers growing costs for lower-income customers who will continue to receive assistance regardless of a deal in Congress.<\/p>\n In state news, after killing a Biden-era rule to block medical debt from credit reports, the Trump administration is working to prevent states from passing their own protections. In Florida, doctors who support vaccine efforts are being muffled, and the state\u2019s surgeon general says he did not model the outcomes of ending childhood vaccination mandates before pursuing the policy \u2014 a risky proposition as public health experts caution that recent measles outbreaks are a canary in the coal mine for vaccine-preventable illnesses.<\/p>\n And in Texas, the state\u2019s attorney general, who is also running for the U.S. Senate as a Republican, is suing the maker of Tylenol, claiming the company tried to dodge liability for the medication\u2019s unproven ties to autism. The lawsuit is the latest problem for Tylenol, with recent allegations undermining confidence in the common painkiller, the only one recommended for pregnant women to reduce potentially dangerous fevers and relieve pain.<\/p>\n Plus, for \u201cextra credit\u201d the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too:\u00a0<\/p>\n Julie Rovner:<\/strong> KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cMany Fear Federal Loan Caps Will Deter Aspiring Doctors and Worsen MD Shortage<\/a>,\u201d by Bernard J. Wolfson.<\/p>\n Alice Miranda Ollstein:<\/strong> ProPublica\u2019s \u201cCiting Trump Order on \u2018Biological Truth,\u2019 VA Makes It Harder for Male Veterans With Breast Cancer To Get Coverage<\/a>,\u201d by Eric Umansky.<\/p>\n Paige Winfield Cunningham:<\/strong> The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cStudy Finds mRNA Coronavirus Vaccines Prolonged Life of Cancer Patients<\/a>,\u201d by Mark Johnson.<\/p>\n Maya Goldman:<\/strong> KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cAs Sports Betting Explodes, States Try To Set Limits To Stop Gambling Addiction<\/a>,\u201d by Karen Brown, New England Public Media.<\/p>\n Also mentioned in this week\u2019s podcast:<\/p>\n The Washington Post\u2019s \u201cAverage Obamacare Premiums Are Set To Rise 30 Percent, Documents Show<\/a>,\u201d by Paige Winfield Cunningham<\/p>\n KFF Health News\u2019 \u201cDoctors Muffled as Florida Moves To End Decades of Childhood Vaccination Mandates<\/a>,\u201d by Arthur Allen.<\/p>\n CBS News\u2019 \u201cThe Quiet Collapse of America\u2019s Reproductive Health Safety Net<\/a>,\u201d by C\u00e9line Gounder.<\/p>\n \tFrancis Ying \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>, 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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\n\t\t\t\tRead Julie’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n\n\t\tPanelists\t<\/h3>\n
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\n\t\t\t\tRead Paige’s stories.\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\tRead Maya’s stories\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n
\n\tPolitico<\/p>\n
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\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
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