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Sen. Chuck Grassley Jan 29, 2019

Show notes

Sen. Chuck Grassley says it's time for the secrecy in the pharma industry to end.

"The lack of transparency... is something that allows the shenanigans that we read about every day," the Senate Finance Committee chairman said, on the eve of his committee's first drug pricing hearing.

Grassley sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to review his drug pricing plans, explain his approach to government oversight and talk through his priorities — including his famous use of Twitter.

MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

Grassley in 1983 disregarded the Reagan administration to probe Pentagon cost overruns. The resulting hearing led to a TIME Magazine cover story.

Grassley in 2017 pushed back against the Trump administration's effort to limit oversight requests.

Grassley in 2018 co-sponsored the CREATES Act, which was intended to lower prescription drug prices.

Grassley has used social media to promote a variety of priorities — including his ongoing "corn watch."

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Ashish Jha on hospital readmissions and global health Jan 24, 2019

Show notes

Ashish Jha has spent years sounding the alarm about the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program — an Obamacare policy intended to encourage hospitals to provide better care. But Jha argues the program instead put patients at risk, and new data suggests he might be right.

Jha, the director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, joins POLITICO's Dan Diamond to discuss the readmissions policy and the latest data. Jha also reflects on the Trump administration’s approach to global health and how his perspective has evolved over the past two years.

MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

Jha’s February 2017 appearance on POLITICO “Pulse Check,” where he discussed his career and global health priorities.

A JAMA study in December found a link between the readmissions policy and rising mortality. Harvard researchers this month also concluded that Medicare has overstated the benefits of its readmissions policy.

Yale’s Harlan Krumholz helped develop the policy and has extensively defended it, including in this 2017 comment in JAMA.

Writing in the New York Times, Paula Span reviewed the latest arguments and data.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar has a unique perspective: Even as he oversees a policy to cut readmissions, Azar was readmitted to the hospital last year while suffering an intestinal infection.

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Sarah Kliff on hospital billing and policy journalism Jan 18, 2019

Show notes

Why spend more than a year investigating hospital bills? Vox's Sarah Kliff says it all started with a $629 band-aid; now she's probing a hospital named after Facebook's founder.

Sarah — a senior policy correspondent, host of "The Impact" podcast and a former POLITICO reporter — sits down with Dan Diamond to discuss her billing series and the reaction, what she's learned about health care prices and how she thinks about policy journalism.

MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

Sarah's story on Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and its unusual billing practices.

Sarah's ongoing series on hospital billing and the impact on patients.

Dan's story on efforts to regulate not-for-profit hospitals, led by Sen. Chuck Grassley.

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Inside HHS: A former official defends crisis response Jan 07, 2019

Show notes

Thousands of migrant families were separated at the border by the Trump administration last year. One of the HHS officials involved in putting them back together: Chris Meekins — a Trump appointee who normally helped oversee emergency preparedness, but was tapped as part of HHS' broader response.

Meekins, who left HHS last week, sat down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to defend the HHS family reunification effort and discuss the Trump administration's broader missteps at the border (starts at the 1:30 mark), explain how HHS responds to natural disasters (21:00), review the biosecurity threats facing America (26:30) and more.

REFERENCED ON THE SHOW

How HHS got drawn into the family separation crisis.

The Trump administration has been criticized for its response to hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico.

The Strategic National Stockpile was shifted from CDC to HHS last year.

The Trump administration last fall announced a new biodefense strategy.

A U.S. doctor exposed to Ebola was brought to Nebraska last week.

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What's ahead for health care in 2019 Jan 03, 2019

Show notes

It's a new year, and PULSE CHECK returns to look at what's ahead.

POLITICO's Adam Cancryn and Rachana Pradhan join Dan Diamond to discuss if the partial government shutdown will end soon (starts at the 1:45 mark), what's on Congress' to-do list (4:00) and how the Trump administration is putting its stamp on the states (16:45) — with a bonus conversation about the most influential Trump appointees (26:10).

REFERENCED ON THE SHOW

There’s no sign that the partial government shutdown will come to an end soon. More.

Adam and Alice Miranda Ollstein’s POLITICO Pro story on House Democrats’ new health strategy. (Behind the Pro firewall.) More.

Rachana’s story about thousands of Arkansas residents losing Medicaid coverage every month. More.

Arkansas health chief Cindy Gillespie and ex-CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt dueled on POLITICO's podcast about whether work requirements would harm Medicaid beneficiaries. More.

Atul Gawande’s October 2017 New Yorker article on whether health care should be a right. More.

Mississippi is quietly considering Medicaid expansion, POLITICO’s Paul Demko scooped. More.

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Bonus: Unpacking the government shutdown Dec 28, 2018

Show notes

In an episode of POLITICO's "Nerdcast," guest host Dan Diamond joins congressional reporters Rachael Bade and Burgess Everett to review the partial government shutdown, how it's affecting the agencies and the possible path toward a deal.

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Maryland AG Brian Frosh on his fight to save Obamacare Dec 20, 2018

Show notes

You may have heard about Texas' lawsuit over Obamacare, and a judge's recent decision that the ACA is unconstitutional. But have you heard about Maryland's counter-attack?

Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh is locked in a legal battle with the Trump administration, and he joined POLITICO's Dan Diamond to explain his fight to get the ACA declared as the law of the land. (Starts at the 1:20 mark.)

Then after the break, POLITICO executive editor for health care Joanne Kenen and reporter Paul Demko sit down with Dan to discuss the ongoing ACA legal battles, interpret the latest Obamacare enrollment numbers and explain why so many Americans are at risk after Friday's court ruling against the ACA. (Starts at the 14:20 mark.)

REFERENCED ON THE SHOW

Frosh in September sued the Trump administration over the ACA.

Paul and Alice Miranda Ollstein's review of ACA enrollment numbers.

Joanne and Alice's article on how many Americans benefit from the ACA, whether they know it or not.

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Surgeon General Jerome Adams Dec 18, 2018

Show notes

"I don't want anyone to think I'm against the harm-reduction potential of these devices for adults. But 3 percent of adults are using these devices — [and] 20 percent of high schoolers are using these devices."

Surgeon General Jerome Adams sits down with POLITICO's Dan Diamond to explain why he's issuing an advisory on the risks of e-cigarettes for youth — just the second surgeon general advisory since 2005. (Starts at the 1:30 mark.) Adams also reviews what he thought of doctors' recent clash with the NRA on social media, how he's setting his 2019 priorities and even shares some personal details.

After the break, POLITICO's Sarah Owermohle joins Dan to discuss Adams' comments on e-cigarettes and the Trump administration's broader push on vaping. (Starts at the 21:30 mark.)

REFERENCED ON THE SHOW

The surgeon general's office has a resource guide for parents, providers and children on e-cigarettes.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb joined POLITICO's podcast in November to discuss his own concerns about vaping and his pending crackdown.

Physicians pushed back after the NRA said doctors should "stay in their lane" and not discuss gun violence.

Adams praised "Blue Zones," the work into why some communities appear to be healthier than others.

Former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy appeared on POLITICO's "Pulse Check" in 2016, discussing his own approach to the role.

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HealthCare.Glum? The latest on the ACA Dec 13, 2018

Show notes

Policy wonks are increasingly pessimistic about Affordable Care Act open enrollment this year, as sign-ups fall further behind last year's pace.

What's next for health coverage — in 2018 and beyond?

First, Noah Lang of Stride Health joins POLITICO's Dan Diamond to discuss Stride's new partnership with CMS to help workers for Uber, Etsy and other gig economy companies get covered.

Then, POLITICO's Adam Cancryn and Alice Miranda Ollstein review the ACA sign-up slowdown, Democrats' tricky policy fight over Medicare for All and why the Supreme Court turned down a chance to weigh in on abortion.

REFERENCED ON THE PODCAST

Sign-ups on HealthCare.gov are about 10 percent behind last year's pace, according to CMS data released Wednesday. There are many possible culprits.

Adam's story on progressives' looming dispute over Medicare for All.

Alice's story on the Supreme Court rejecting petitions to hear cases involving Planned Parenthood.

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Rep. Pramila Jayapal and the fight for 'Medicare for All' Dec 05, 2018

Show notes

Health care helped Democrats capture the House of Representatives. Now comes the hard part: Figuring out a path forward, with some progressives embracing proposals like Medicare for All — and centrists worried that the plan isn't feasible and a political loser.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who leads the House's Medicare for All Caucus, joined POLITICO's Dan Diamond to defend the idea amid Republican attacks, explain why she thinks its time has come, and criticize the health care industry's attempts to stop it.

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