A Health Podyssey

Health Affairs
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Feb 3, 2026 • 29min

Will AI Fix Health Care? Robert Wachter Weighs In

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Dr. Robert Wachter, Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicine at UCSF, about his new book A Giant Leap: How AI Is Transforming Healthcare and What That Means for Our Future. Wachter reflects on his own daily use of AI as a clinician, the reasons he has grown optimistic about its potential, and the challenges of regulating fast‑evolving technologies. Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Jan 27, 2026 • 29min

Medicaid vs. 340B: A Drug Pricing Clash (Sayeh Nikpay)

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Sayeh Nikpay of the University of Minnesota about her recent paper exploring how The Medicaid Drug Rebate Program and the 340B Program interact in ways that can unintentionally increase costs, the adoption of cost-saving strategies to mitigate these interactions, and how policymakers can act to balance Medicaid savings with revenue impacts on 340B-participating safety-net providers.Order the January 2026 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Jan 20, 2026 • 24min

How Oregon’s Hospital Payment Cap Brought Stability Amid Change

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Roslyn Murray of Brown University to discuss her paper exploring how Oregon’s 2019 hospital payment cap saved $50 million annually while having little impact on hospital finances, operations, or patient care. Order the December 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Jan 13, 2026 • 27min

US Health Care Spending 2009–2019: What Changed? (Sherry Glied)

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Sherry Glied of New York University on her paper that explores how U.S. health spending growth slowed to less than half its historical rate, driven by lower utilization, slower price growth, and shifts in care delivery and administration.Order the January 2026 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Dec 30, 2025 • 37min

BEST OF: J. Michael McWilliams on the Effects of Patient Survey Data on Risk Adjustment

Health Affairs' Senior Deputy Editor Rob Lott interviews J. Michael McWilliams of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital on his recent paper that explores opportunities for the use of patient health survey data for risk adjustment to limit distortionary coding incentives in Medicare. Order the January 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcasts free for everyone.
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Dec 23, 2025 • 28min

BEST OF: Steven Lieberman on The Meteoric Rise Of Medicare Advantage

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Steven M. Lieberman of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles on his recent paper that explores how Medicare Advantage has seen significant enrollment growth and what reform efforts can be attempted to rebalance traditional Medicare and MA.Order the August 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Dec 16, 2025 • 23min

BEST OF: Zirui Song on Private Equity’s Effect on Hospital Costs and Utilization

Health Affairs' Senior Deputy Editor Rob Lott interviews Zirui Song of Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital on his recent paper that explores how private equity acquisition impacts hospital costs and utilization and what variations were seen throughout 2005–19. Order the February 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcasts free for everyone.
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Dec 9, 2025 • 30min

BEST OF: Don Berwick on How to Fix US Health Care

Health Affairs' Senior Deputy Editor Rob Lott interviews Don Berwick of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement about his paper as part of the Vital Directions for Health and Health Care: Priorities for 2025 package that proposes strategies for how health care in the US could be transformed.Order the February 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcasts free for everyone.
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Dec 2, 2025 • 32min

BEST OF: Eric Topol on the Science of Super-Aging and Longevity

Health Affairs' Senior Deputy Editor Rob Lott interviews Eric Topol, Executive Vice President of Scripps Research, on his new book, Super Agers, which provides an evidence-based approach on extending healthy lifespans.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast
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Nov 25, 2025 • 31min

Job Lock’s Hidden Health Costs w/ Tiffany Lemon

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Tiffany Lemon of Arizona State University on her recent paper exploring the concept of job-lock as it pertains to employer-sponsored health insurance and its impacts on adult physical and mental health.Order the November 2025 issue of Health Affairs.Currently, more than 70 percent of our content is freely available - and we'd like to keep it that way. With your support, we can continue to keep our digital publication Forefront and podcast

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