What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

Join Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 吃瓜不打烊, along with top health policy reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico and other media outlets to discuss the latest news and explain what the health is going on here in Washington.

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If you have a question for the podcast, you can send it to whatthehealth@kff.org.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    The Government Is Open

    Episode 422

    The record-long federal shutdown is over after a small group of Democrats agreed to a deal with most Republicans that funds the government through January 鈥 but, notably, does not extend more generous Affordable Care Act tax credits. Plus, new details are emerging about how the Trump administration is using the Medicaid program to advance its policy goals. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner interviews 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Appleby, who wrote the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    The State of the Affordable Care Act

    Episode 421

    Nov. 1 marked the start of open enrollment for 2026 health plans bought from Affordable Care Act marketplaces in most states. But this sign-up season is like no other in the health law鈥檚 15-year history. It remains unclear, even at this late date, whether expanded tax credits launched during the pandemic in 2021 will be continued or allowed to expire, exposing millions of Americans to much higher out-of-pocket costs. In this special episode of 鈥淲hat the Health?鈥 from 吃瓜不打烊 and WAMU, host Julie Rovner interviews KFF vice president Cynthia Cox about the past, present, and possible future of the health law and how those who purchase ACA coverage should proceed during this time of uncertainty.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Happy Open Enrollment Eve!

    Episode 420

    A standoff in Congress is keeping much of the government shut down as open enrollment begins in most states for Affordable Care Act plans. Democrats are demanding Republicans agree to extend ACA tax credits, but there has been little negotiating 鈥 even as customers are learning what they鈥檒l pay for coverage next year. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is telling states they can鈥檛 pass their own laws to keep medical debt off consumers鈥 credit reports. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Nutrition Programs Face Their Own Shutdown

    Episode 419

    Two major nutrition programs 鈥 SNAP and WIC 鈥 are likely to exhaust their funding in November, and the furloughs and firings at the CDC have left the agency unable to perform some of its major functions. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump鈥檚 new IVF policy is being met with dissatisfaction from both sides. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Katheryn Houghton, who wrote the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Schr枚dinger鈥檚 Government Shutdown

    Episode 418

    Democrats and Republicans remain stalled over funding the federal government as Republicans launch a new attack on the Affordable Care Act. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is taking advantage of the shutdown to lay off workers from programs supported mostly by Democrats. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews health insurance analyst Louise Norris about Medicare open enrollment.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Starting To Feel the Shutdown鈥檚 Bite

    Episode 417

    The government shutdown continues with no end in sight, and while it theoretically should not affect entitlement programs, the lapse of some related authorizations 鈥 like for Medicare telehealth programs 鈥 is leaving some doctors and patients high and dry. Meanwhile, the FDA quietly approved a new generic abortion pill. Sarah Karlin-Smith of Pink Sheet, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Sarah Grusin of the National Health Law Program.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Democrats Make This Shutdown About the ACA

    Episode 416

    The foreshadowed federal shutdown came after Congress failed to pass required spending bills, with Democrats demanding Republicans renew the expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies in exchange for their votes. While a shutdown does not affect Medicare and Medicaid, it could eventually hinder activities from every corner of the Department of Health and Human Services. Meanwhile, as Democrats and Republicans point fingers, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pursues policies and personnel that would undermine vaccines. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss the news. Also this week, Rovner interviews 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Cara Anthony, who wrote a recent 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature about an out-of-network eye surgery that left one kindergartner鈥檚 family with a big bill.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Public Health Further Politicized Under the Threat of More Firings

    Episode 415

    In a rambling news conference that shocked public health experts, President Donald Trump 鈥 without scientific evidence 鈥 blamed the over-the-counter drug acetaminophen, and too many childhood vaccines, for the increase in autism diagnoses in the U.S. That came days after a key immunization advisory panel, newly reconstituted with vaccine doubters, changed several long-standing recommendations. Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official Demetre Daskalakis joins 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss those stories. Meanwhile, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join Rovner with the rest of the news, including a threat by the Trump administration to fire rather than furlough federal workers if Congress fails to fund the government beyond the Oct. 1 start of the new fiscal year.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Countdown to Government Shutdown

    Episode 413

    With less than three weeks before the deadline to pass legislation to keep the federal government running, lawmakers are still far apart on a strategy. Democrats hope Republicans will agree to extend expanded tax credits for the Affordable Care Act as part of a compromise, but so far Republicans are not negotiating. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. released his long-awaited 鈥淢ake America Healthy Again鈥 report, with few specific action items. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    On Capitol Hill, RFK Defends Firings at CDC

    Episode 412

    A combative Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the U.S. secretary of health and human services, appeared before a Senate committee Thursday, defending his firing of the newly confirmed director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as other changes that could limit the availability of vaccines. Meanwhile, Congress has only a few weeks to complete work on annual spending bills to avoid a possible government shutdown and to ward off potentially large increases in premiums for Affordable Care Act health plans. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Tony Leys, who discusses his 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 report about a woman鈥檚 unfortunate interaction with a bat 鈥 and her even more unfortunate interaction with the bill for her rabies prevention treatment.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Happy 60th, Medicare and Medicaid!

    Episode 411

    This summer marks the 60th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, the twin government programs that have shaped the health care system into what it is today. In this special episode, 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner interviews two experts on the history, significance, and future of these programs: Medicare historian and University of North Carolina professor Jonathan Oberlander and George Washington University professor emerita Sara Rosenbaum, who has studied Medicaid since nearly its beginning and has helped shape Medicaid policy over the past four decades.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Trump Further Politicizes Science

    Episode 410

    President Donald Trump鈥檚 latest executive order about science and medicine seeks to take funding decisions out of the hands of career scientists and give them to political appointees instead. And a gunman, reportedly disgruntled over covid vaccines, shoots at the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, killing a law enforcement officer. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Aaron Carroll, president and CEO of the health services research group AcademyHealth, about how to restore the public鈥檚 trust in public health.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Kennedy Cancels Vaccine Funding

    Episode 409

    The Health and Human Services secretary is winding down nearly $500 million in mRNA research funding, citing false claims that the technology is ineffective against respiratory illnesses 鈥 and notching a victory for critics of the covid vaccines. And President Donald Trump is demanding drugmakers drop their prices, quickly, but it鈥檚 unclear how he could make them comply. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Next on Kennedy鈥檚 List? Preventive Care and Vaccine Harm

    Episode 408

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services, is eyeing an overhaul of two more key entities as part of his ongoing effort to reshape health policy. And President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week that would enable localities to force some homeless people into residential treatment. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Sara Rosenbaum, one of the nation鈥檚 leading experts on Medicaid, to mark Medicaid鈥檚 60th anniversary this week.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Here Come the ACA Premium Hikes

    Episode 407

    Medicaid may have monopolized Washington鈥檚 attention lately, but big changes are coming to the Affordable Care Act as well. Meanwhile, Americans are learning more about what鈥檚 in Trump鈥檚 big budget law, and polls suggest many don鈥檛 like what they see. Julie Appleby of 吃瓜不打烊, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews historian Jonathan Oberlander to mark Medicare鈥檚 60th anniversary.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    The Senate Saves PEPFAR Funding 鈥 For Now

    Episode 406

    The Senate narrowly approved the Trump administration鈥檚 request to claw back about $9 billion for foreign aid and public broadcasting but refused to cut funding for the international AIDS/HIV program PEPFAR. Meanwhile, a federal appeals court ruled that West Virginia can ban the abortion pill mifepristone, which could allow states to block other FDA-approved drugs. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Digesting Trump鈥檚 Big Budget Law

    Episode 405

    President Donald Trump鈥檚 big budget bill became his big budget law on July 4, codifying about $1 trillion in cuts to the Medicaid program. But the law includes many less-publicized provisions that could reshape the way the nation pays for and receives health care. Meanwhile, at the Department of Health and Human Services, uncertainty reigns as both staff and outside recipients of federal funds face cuts. Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Appleby, who reported the latest 吃瓜不打烊鈥 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about some very pricey childhood immunizations.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Trump鈥檚 Bill Reaches the Finish Line

    Episode 404

    The House on Thursday moved to approve the largest-ever cuts to federal safety net programs, the last step before the measure goes to President Donald Trump鈥檚 desk. After the Senate very narrowly passed the bill, House GOP leaders ushered it past resistance from conservatives wary of adding trillions to the federal debt and moderates concerned about its cuts to Medicaid. Meanwhile, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has continued to pursue his anti-vaccine agenda, despite promising that he would not. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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  • What the Health? From 吃瓜不打烊

    Live From Aspen 鈥 Governors and an HHS Secretary Sound Off

    Episode 403

    In this special episode taped before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health, three former governors 鈥 one of whom also served as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services 鈥 discuss how state and federal officials can work together to improve Americans鈥 health. Democrat Kathleen Sebelius, former Kansas governor and HHS secretary under President Barack Obama; Republican Chris Sununu, former New Hampshire governor; and Democrat Roy Cooper, former North Carolina governor, join 吃瓜不打烊鈥 Julie Rovner.

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