U.S. Congress

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  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    The Ax Falls at HHS

    Episode 390

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced a proposed reorganization for the department — which, counting those who already have left the agency, amounts to about a 25% cut in its workforce. And its planned “Administration for a Healthy America” will collapse several existing HHS agencies into one. Meanwhile, the department continues to cut billions in health spending while the nation faces measles outbreaks in several states and the continuing possibility of another pandemic, such as bird flu. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join 51ĘÓƵ Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss the news.

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  • A photo of the U.S. Capitol from afar, framed by trees.
    51ĘÓƵ Health News & PolitiFact HealthCheck

    Can House Republicans Cut $880 Billion Without Slashing Medicaid? It’s Likely Impossible.

    A Republican House resolution, which needs the Senate’s buy-in, directed a committee to propose ways to reduce the deficit by at least $880 billion over a decade. Lawmakers have taken Medicare off the table for cuts, which makes it impossible to reach $880 billion without cutting Medicaid.

    By Madison Czopek, PolitiFact and Amy Sherman, PolitiFact
  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    The State of Federal Health Agencies Is Uncertain

    Episode 387

    The Supreme Court opined for the first time that Trump administration officials may be exceeding their authority to reshape the federal government by refusing to honor completed contracts, even as lower-court judges started blocking efforts to fire workers, freeze funding, and cancel ongoing contracts. Meanwhile, public health officials are alarmed at the Department of Health and Human Services’ public handling of Texas’ widening measles outbreak, particularly the secretary’s less-than-full endorsement of vaccines. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Stephanie Armour of 51ĘÓƵ Health News join 51ĘÓƵ Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    House GOP Plan Targets Medicaid

    Episode 386

    The House passed a budget plan that likely would result in major cuts to the Medicaid program. But the plan now faces a battle in the Senate, where even Republicans seem reluctant to dramatically reduce a health program that covers roughly 1 in 5 Americans. Meanwhile, federal judges and the Trump administration continue to differ over whether the administration has the authority to unilaterally cancel programs approved and funded by Congress and to fire federal workers. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Victoria Knight of Axios join 51ĘÓƵ Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    Courts Try To Curb Health Cuts

    Episode 384

    Some of the Trump administration’s dramatic funding and policy shifts are facing major pushback for the first time — not from Congress, but from the courts. Federal judges around the country are attempting to pump the brakes on efforts to freeze government spending, shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, eliminate access to health-related webpages and datasets, and limit grant funding provided by the National Institutes of Health. Meanwhile, Congress is off to a slow start in trying to turn President Donald Trump’s agenda into legislation, although Medicaid is clearly high on the list for potential funding cuts. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Maya Goldman of Axios News join 51ĘÓƵ Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Mark McClellan, director of the Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy and a former health official during the George W. Bush administration, about the impact of cutting funding to research universities.

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  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    RFK Jr. in the Hot Seat

    Episode 382

    President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the vast Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., faced sharp questioning from senators this week, particularly over his history of vaccine denialism. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s second week has been even more disruptive than its first, with an on-again, off-again funding freeze that left many around the country scrambling to understand what was going on. Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 51ĘÓƵ Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Nicholas Bagley, a University of Michigan law professor, who explains how the federal regulatory system is supposed to operate to make health policy.

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  • What the Health? From 51ĘÓƵ Health News

    New Year, New Congress, New Health Agenda

    Episode 379

    Health is unlikely to be a top priority for the new GOP-led 119th Congress and President-elect Donald Trump. But it’s likely to play a key supporting role, with an abortion bill already scheduled for debate in the Senate. Meanwhile, it’s unclear when and how the new Congress will deal with the bipartisan bills jettisoned from the previous Congress’ year-end omnibus measure — including a major deal to rein in the power of pharmacy benefit managers. In this “catch up on all the news you missed” episode, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 51ĘÓƵ Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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