Tradeoffs

Black Americans are at higher risk for many serious illnesses like dementia and kidney failure. But data show they are less likely to have their pain treated and less likely to access services like hospice and palliative care that can reduce suffering, especially at the end of life.This week, we explore what stops seriously ill Black patients and their families from getting the care they want in life and in death.Guests:Deborah Brunson, PhD, Caregiver and Professor Emeritus, University of North Carolina WilmingtonKaren Bullock, PhD, LCSW, Professor, Boston College School of Social WorkLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift, and have your donation tripled if you give before the end of 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Even though more Americans than ever have health insurance, medical debt is a pervasive problem in the United States.Guests: Noam Levey, Senior Correspondent, Kaiser Health NewsWesley Yin, PhD, Associate Professor of Economics, UCLALearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An overhaul of Medicare’s prescription drug benefit will lower costs for seniors while changing incentives for insurers and drugmakers.GuestsTherese Humphrey Ball, Multiple sclerosis patient and advocate.Juliette Cubanski, Deputy Director for Program on Medicare Policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation.Learn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a severe shortage of people to care for older Americans in their homes and nursing facilities. And it’s only expected to get worse. Could providing long-term care workers with new career pathways be part of the solution?Guests: Serena Maria, Manager of Care Teams, HomebridgeMark Burns, Executive Director, HomebridgeNatasha Bryant, Senior Director of Workforce Research and Strategy, LeadingAge LTSS Center at UMass Boston Jonathan Gruber, PhD, Ford Professor of Economics, MITLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Early in the pandemic, state officials unleashed a flood of emergency orders relaxing the rules that limit the care each health profession can provide. Now these temporary measures are expiring and health professionals from pharmacists to physician assistants are jockeying to shape the next wave of workforce reforms.Guests: Susanna Storeng, DMSc, PA-C, Physician Assistant, High Plains Community Health CenterBianca Frogner, PhD, Professor and Director of the Center for Health Workforce Studies, University of WashingtonLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Starting Oct. 6, providers must begin giving patients electronic access to more of their health care data than ever before. But the federal regulations forcing this change are fraught with implementation challenges and privacy risks.This week we talk with Micky Tripathi, the federal official overseeing this push to democratize America’s health data, about its promise and perils.GuestMicky Tripathi, PhD, MPP, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, U.S. Department of Health and Human ServicesLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Initial screenings for breast, lung and cervical cancer are free, but expensive secondary tests can leave patients in screening purgatory.Guests: Mark Fendrick, MD, Professor of Medicine and public health at the University of Michigan, Director of the Center for Value Based Insurance Design.Gloria Coronado, PhD, epidemiologist and health disparities researcher, Kaiser Permanente Center for Health ResearchLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

California is in the early days of one of the most ambitious initiatives ever to address Medicaid patients’ social needs in hopes of improving their health. This week, we trace the origins, early results and challenges of “CalAIM.”Guests:Jacey Cooper, Director, California Medicaid ProgramBradley Gilbert, MD, MPP, Former Chief Medical Officer and CEO, Inland Empire Health PlanLacy McClellanDale StoutAnthony Wright, Executive Director, Health Access CaliforniaPaula Lantz, PhD, James B. Hudak Professor of Health Policy, University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public PolicyLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we’re sharing the first episode of a new 10-part series from The Nocturnists podcast, called “Shame in Medicine: The Lost Forest.” What is shame? And how does it manifest in medical culture? The Nocturnists teams up with two shame experts to investigate these questions.Read a full transcript of this episode on our website.Learn more about this episode and the Shame in Medicine series at https://www.thenocturnists-shame.org/.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Inflation Reduction Act gives Medicare historic new powers to control prescription drug prices. We go inside the government’s race to implement these new powers — and the pharmaceutical industry’s efforts to blunt their impact.Guests:Alice Valder Curran, JD, Partner, Hogan LovellsSean Dickson, JD, MPH, Director of Health Policy, West Health Policy CenterAmber Jessup, PhD, Chief Economist, Office of Inspector General, Department of Health and Human ServicesMark Newsom, Founder and Principal, Health EvaluationsLearn more and read a full transcript on our website.Want more Tradeoffs? Sign up for our free weekly newsletter featuring the latest health policy research and news.Support this type of journalism today, with a gift.Follow us on Twitter.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.