KFF Health News' 'What the Health?'
Latest Episodes
Abortion — Again — At the Supreme Court
For the second time in as many months, the Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case. This time, the justices are being asked to decide whether a federal law that requires emergency care in hospitals can trump Idahos near-total abortion ban. Mean
Congress Is Out. The Presidential Campaign Is In.
Congress is in recess until after Labor Day, and lawmakers wont have much time when they return to get the government funded before the next fiscal year. Meanwhile, the Republican campaign for president has begun in earnest, and while repealing the Affor
Another Try for Mental Health ‘Parity’
President Joe Biden is kicking off his reelection campaign in part by trying to finish a decades-long effort to establish parity in insurance benefits betweenmental and physical health. Meanwhile, House Republicans are working to
Let’s Talk About the Weather
Its been the summer of broken weather records around the world for heat, rain, and wildfire smoke advertising the risks of climate change in a big way. But, apparently, its not enough to break the logjam in Wa
The Long Road to Reining in Short-Term Plans
President Joe Biden made good on a campaign promise this week with a proposal to limit short-term health plans that boast low premiums but few benefits.Meanwhile, the Supreme Courts decision to outlaw affirmative action programs could
A Year Without Roe
Its been a year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and, with it, the nationwide right to abortion. The decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization set off widespread uncertainty in government and the courts ab
Live from Aspen: Three HHS Secretaries on What the Job Is Really Like
What does a day in the life of the nations top health official really look like? And how much of their agenda is set by the White House? In this special episode of KFF Health News What the Health? taped before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health,
Slow Your Disenroll
More than a million Americans have lost Medicaid coverage since pandemic protections ended. The Biden administration is asking states to slow disenrollment, but that does not mean states must listen. Meanwhile, a Supreme Court decision gives Medicaid bene
Debt Deal Leaves Health Programs (Mostly) Intact
The bipartisan deal to extend the U.S. governments borrowing authority includes future cuts to federal health agencies, but they are smaller than many expected and do not touch Medicare and Medicaid. Meanwhile, Merck & Co. becomes the first drugmaker
Our 300th Episode!
When KFF Health News What the Health? podcast launched in 2017, Republicans in Washington were engaged in an (ultimately unsuccessful) campaign to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. The next six years would see a pandemic, increasingly unaff