
A Health Podyssey
Each week, Health Affairs' Rob Lott brings you in-depth conversations with leading researchers and influencers shaping the big ideas in health policy and the health care industry.
A Health Podyssey goes beyond the pages of the health policy journal Health Affairs to tell stories behind the research and share policy implications. Learn how academics and economists frame their research questions and journey to the intersection of health, health care, and policy. Health policy nerds rejoice! This podcast is for you.
Latest episodes

Dec 17, 2024 • 16min
Ingrid Gould Ellen on Housing Mobility and Health
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.A Health Podyssey is taking a holiday break. We will return to regular production on January 14, 2025.Until that time, enjoy a special series we created on our other podcast, Health Affairs This Week. In this special series, Rob Lott gets an update on health policy briefs surrounding the release of our theme issue on housing and health, which was released in February of this year.In this episode, Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Ingrid Gould Ellen from the NYU Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy.Order the issue here.Subscribe to Health Affairs This Week.Related Links:Eviction and Health: A Vicious Cycle Exacerbated by a Pandemic (Health Affairs)Housing Mobility Programs and Health Outcomes (Health Affairs)Gentrification and the Health of Legacy Residents (Health Affairs)
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Dec 11, 2024 • 40min
Research and Justice For All: Insight Garden Program Connects Incarcerated Populations with Nature
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Guest: Andrew Winn, Executive Director, Insight Garden ProgramRhea Boyd, MD, MPH, Pediatrician and Child and Public Health Advocate, interviews Andrew Winn from the Insight Garden Program about the relationship between the environment and people in incarcerated spaces and access to nature as a human right.This season is sponsored by Deloitte.Learn more about Deloitte's work with Drivers of Health or the Deloitte Health Equity Institute.Related Links: Why climate resilience is key to building the health care organization of the future (Deloitte)Health Affairs Health Policy Brief: Prison and Jail Reentry and HealthJail Conditions and Mortality: Death Rates Associated with Turnover, Jail Size, and Population Characteristics (Health Affairs)The views and opinions expressed by podcast speakers and guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions of Deloitte or its personnel, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse any individuals or entities featured on the episodes.
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Dec 10, 2024 • 16min
Craig Pollack on Low Income Housing Tax Credits
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.A Health Podyssey is taking a holiday break. We will return to regular production on January 14, 2025.Until that time, enjoy a special series we created on our other podcast, Health Affairs This Week. In this special series, Rob Lott gets an update on health policy briefs surrounding the release of our theme issue on housing and health, which was released in February of this year.In this episode, Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Craig Pollack from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.Order the issue here.Subscribe to Health Affairs This Week.Related Links:Using the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit to Fill the Rental Housing Gap (Health Affairs)
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Dec 4, 2024 • 44min
Research and Justice For All: Thread Unites Community & Combats Childhood Loneliness
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Guest: Sarah Hemminger, Co-Founder and CEO, ThreadRhea Boyd, MD, MPH, Pediatrician and Child and Public Health Advocate, interviews Sarah Hemminger of Thread about social isolation and wellbeing, particularly for young people. They discuss innovative ways to connect people and achieve transformational change. This season is sponsored by Deloitte.Learn more about Deloitte's work with Drivers of Health or the Deloitte Health Equity Institute.Related Links: Advancing health through alternative sites of care (Deloitte)Health Equity through Analytics: Social connectedness (Deloitte)Health Affairs Health Policy Brief: Social Isolation and HealthMeeting The Needs Of Socially Vulnerable Patients: Views Of ACO Leaders On Moving From Intent To Action (Health Affairs) Networks Of Support Help Patients Navigate Complex Systems (Health Affairs) The views and opinions expressed by podcast speakers and guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions of Deloitte or its personnel, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse any individuals or entities featured on the episodes.
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Dec 3, 2024 • 16min
Corianne Scally Gives an Overview on Housing and Health
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.A Health Podyssey is taking a holiday break. We will return to regular production on January 14, 2025.Until that time, enjoy a special series we created on our other podcast, Health Affairs This Week. In this special series, Rob Lott gets an update on health policy briefs surrounding the release of our theme issue on housing and health, which was released in February of this year.In this episode, Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews Corianne Scally from the Urban Institute. Order the issue here.Subscribe to Health Affairs This Week.Related Links:Housing and Health: An Overview of the Literature (Health Affairs)Housing and Health: The Role of Inclusionary Zoning (Health Affairs
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Nov 27, 2024 • 50min
Research and Justice For All: Fenway Health Advances LGBTQIA+ Health Efforts Through Workforce Education
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Guest: Alex Keuroghlian, Director, Division of Education and Trainings, The Fenway Institute, Fenway HealthRhea Boyd, MD, MPH, Pediatrician and Child and Public Health Advocate, interviews Alex Keuroghlian from Fenway Health about the role that identity plays in the health care workforce. They also discuss best practices for creating safe spaces of care for LGBTQIA+ populations and health policies critical to providing nondiscriminatory care.This season is sponsored by Deloitte.Learn more about Deloitte's work with Drivers of Health or the Deloitte Health Equity Institute.Related Links: Pride and equity (Deloitte)How employers can spark a movement to help us live longer and healthier lives (Deloitte) Health Equity through Analytics (HExA): Literacy and numeracy (Deloitte) Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care Among LGBT Adults, 2013-19 (Health Affairs)Sexual Orientation, High-Deductible Health Plans, And Financial Barriers To Care (Health Affairs)The views and opinions expressed by podcast speakers and guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions of Deloitte or its personnel, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse any individuals or entities featured on the episodes.
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Nov 26, 2024 • 22min
Richard Hughes IV on States' Response to Federal Vaccine Recommendations for Schools
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Richard Hughes IV of Epstein Becker Green and George Washington University about his recent paper that reviewed school-entry vaccine policies on a state level and observed how the responses to federal recommendations varied.Order the November 2024 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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Nov 20, 2024 • 45min
Research and Justice For All: Washington Housing Conservancy Shapes Health via Housing Reform
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Guest: Kimberly Driggins, Executive Director, Washington Housing ConservancyRhea Boyd, MD, MPH, Pediatrician and Child and Public Health Advocate, interviews Kimberly Driggins from the Washington Housing Conservancy about the connections between housing security, economic mobility, and health outcomes. They also explore what it will take to reinvent an equitable, anti-racist housing system. This season is sponsored by Deloitte.Learn more about Deloitte's work with Drivers of Health or the Deloitte Health Equity Institute.Related Links: Infrastructure law may smooth the road to health equity (Deloitte)Health Affairs theme issue: Housing & HealthNeighborhoods and Health: Interventions at the Neighborhood Level Could Help Advance Health Equity (Health Affairs)Primary Care–Based Housing Program Reduced Outpatient Visits; Patients Reported Mental And Physical Health Benefits (Health Affairs) Gentrification Yields Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Exposure To Contextual Determinants Of Health (Health Affairs) The views and opinions expressed by podcast speakers and guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions of Deloitte or its personnel, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse any individuals or entities featured on the episodes.
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Nov 19, 2024 • 24min
Jared Walker on Eliminating Your Medical Debt
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Jared Walker of Dollar For about his recent paper that explores the widely varying criteria amongst US nonprofit hospitals to determine who qualifies for free and discounted charity care.Order the November 2024 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.
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.

Nov 13, 2024 • 43min
Research and Justice For All: Dion's Chicago Dream Fights Food Insecurity One Meal At A Time
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.Guest: Dion Dawson, Chief Dreamer and CEO, Dion's Chicago DreamIn the first episode of the second season of Research and Justice For All, host Rhea Boyd, MD, MPH, Pediatrician and Child and Public Health Advocate, interviews Dion Dawson from Dion's Chicago Dream about innovative ways to address food insecurity. They also explore the nonprofit industrial complex and the systemic link between hunger and profit in the US.This season is sponsored by Deloitte.Learn more about Deloitte's work with Drivers of Health or the Deloitte Health Equity Institute.Related Links: Fresh food as medicine for the heartburn of high prices (Deloitte)Health Affairs theme issue: Food & HealthMeals On Wheels Clients: Measurable Differences In The Likelihood Of Aging In Place Or Being Hospitalized (Health Affairs) Race And Racial Perceptions Shape Burden Tolerance For Medicaid And The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Health Affairs) Measuring and Addressing Nutrition Security to Achieve Health and Health Equity (Health Affairs) The views and opinions expressed by podcast speakers and guests are solely their own and do not reflect the opinions of Deloitte or its personnel, nor does Deloitte advocate or endorse any individuals or entities featured on the episodes.
Subscribe to UnitedHealthcare's Community & State newsletter.
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