

A Health Podyssey
Health Affairs
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.
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.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 26, 2024 • 21min
Richard Hughes IV on States' Response to Federal Vaccine Recommendations for Schools
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.

Nov 20, 2024 • 45min
Research and Justice For All: Washington Housing Conservancy Shapes Health via Housing Reform
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.

Nov 19, 2024 • 23min
Jared Walker on Eliminating Your Medical Debt
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.

Nov 13, 2024 • 43min
Research and Justice For All: Dion's Chicago Dream Fights Food Insecurity One Meal At A Time
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.

Nov 12, 2024 • 37min
Leemore Dafny Joins Our 200th Episode
Welcome to the 200th episode of A Health Podyssey!For our 200th episode, Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil invites Leemore Dafny of the Harvard Business School back to the program to discuss vertical integration in the health care sector, observations on what impacts it may have on the future state of markets, and what the regulatory response has been so far.Dafny joined us for our 100th episode discussing her research published in Health Affairs that examined donations made by pharmaceutical manufacturers to patient assistance charities based on an analysis of drug spending among Medicare Advantage enrollees. Thank you for supporting and listening to A Health Podyssey.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.

Nov 5, 2024 • 27min
Janice Jhang on Policy & Market Forces Driving Biosimilar Adoption
Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Janice Jhang of Harvard University about her recent paper that explores how regulatory and market forces are driving adoption of biosimilars.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.

Oct 29, 2024 • 24min
Naomi Zewde on the Equity Impacts Of High-Deductible Plans and Health Savings Accounts
Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Naomi Zewde of the University of California, Los Angeles about her recent paper exploring how high-deductible health insurance plans may exacerbate racial and ethnic wealth disparities.Order the October 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.

Oct 22, 2024 • 25min
Avni Gupta on Medicare Advantage Supplemental Benefits Through an Equity Lens
Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Avni Gupta of the Commonwealth Fund about her recent paper that explores cost-associated unmet dental, vision, and hearing needs among low-income Medicare Advantage Beneficiaries.Order the October 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.

Oct 15, 2024 • 37min
Allison Hoffman on Simplifying Medicaid Long-Term Services & Supports
Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Allison Hoffman of University of Pennsylvania about her recent paper that explores opportunities to simplify Medicaid home and community-based services in the age of rebalancing.Order the October 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.

Oct 8, 2024 • 21min
Pragya Kakani on How Protected-Class Policy Impacts Medicare Drug Rebates
Health Affairs' Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil interviews Pragya Kakani of Cornell University about her recent paper exploring the association between Medicare Part D protected-class policy and lower drug rebates.Order the October 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.