Medicare Archives - Page 4 of 79

Digesting Trump’s Big Budget Law

Episode 405

July 10, 2025

President Donald Trump’s 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 KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Julie Appleby, who reported the latest KFF Health News’ “Bill of the Month” feature, about some very pricey childhood immunizations.

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An Arm and a Leg

The Prescription Drug Playbook, Part II

Season 13, Episode 10

July 9, 2025

In this second part of a two-part series on dealing with the high price of prescription drugs, experts share their insider tips.

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What the Health? From KFF Health News

Trump’s Bill Reaches the Finish Line

Episode 404

July 3, 2025

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’s 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 KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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What the Health? From KFF Health News

Live From Aspen — Governors and an HHS Secretary Sound Off

Episode 403

June 26, 2025

In this special episode taped before a live audience at Aspen Ideas: Health, three former governors — one of whom also served as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services — discuss how state and federal officials can work together to improve Americans’ 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 KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner.

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A senior man sits in a chair. A nurse stands beside him with her hand on his back, like good friends. They are both smiling in the direction of the camera.

Broken Rehab

Dual Threats From Trump and GOP Imperil Nursing Homes and Their Foreign-Born Workers

Understaffed nursing homes face a workforce crisis if President Donald Trump and Republicans further curtail immigration and cut Medicaid.

By Jordan Rau

June 26, 2025

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Supreme Court Upholds Bans on Gender-Affirming Care

Episode 402

June 20, 2025

The Supreme Court this week said Tennessee may continue to enforce its law banning most types of gender-affirming care for minors. The ruling is likely to greenlight similar laws in two dozen states. And the Senate is preparing to vote on a budget reconciliation bill that includes even deeper Medicaid cuts than the House version. Victoria Knight of Axios, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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A woman in a maroon longsleeve shirt and glasses, sits at a table with her hands folded. A portable oxygen machine is helping her breathe

With Property Seized and Federal Funding Uncertain, Montana Asbestos Clinic Fights for Its Life

The Center for Asbestos Related Disease in Libby, Montana, closed in May after a court judgment allowing BNSF Railway to seize its assets. Now, the clinic’s federal funding is in jeopardy, too.

By Aaron Bolton, MTPR

June 20, 2025

Have Job-Based Health Coverage at 65? You May Still Want To Sign Up for Medicare

Patient advocates say they frequently hear from people who thought they didn’t need to sign up for Medicare when they turned 65 because they had group health coverage. That delay sometimes forces people to cover medical expenses themselves.

By Michelle Andrews

June 18, 2025

What the Health? From KFF Health News

RFK Jr. Upends Vaccine Policy, After Promising He Wouldn’t

Episode 401

June 12, 2025

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week did something he had promised not to do: He fired every member of the scientific advisory committee that recommends which vaccines should be given to whom. And he replaced them, in some cases, with vaccine skeptics. Meanwhile, hundreds of employees of the National Institutes of Health sent an open letter to the agency’s director, accusing the Trump administration of policies that “undermine the NIH mission.” Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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Role Reversal: Millions of Kids Are Caregivers for Elders. Why Their Numbers Might Grow.

As state officials anticipate Medicaid funding cuts that could strip resources for those with disabilities and chronic health conditions, an army of unpaid caregivers waits in the wings: children. At least 5.4 million kids are estimated to be caring for family members at home, a number likely to rise if Medicaid cuts hit professional home-based services.

By Leah Fabel

June 2, 2025

The Week in Brief

Trump’s DOJ Accuses Medicare Advantage Insurers of Paying ‘Kickbacks’ to Brokers

Get our weekly newsletter, The Week in Brief, featuring a roundup of our original coverage, Fridays at 2 p.m. ET.

By Julie Appleby

May 23, 2025

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Bill With Billions in Health Program Cuts Passes House

Episode 398

May 23, 2025

The House narrowly passed a budget reconciliation bill, including billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy along with billions of dollars in cuts to health program spending. But the Senate is expected to make major changes to the measure before it can go to President Donald Trump for his signature. This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.

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A photo of an older man having his blood pressure checked by a doctor in an exam room.

Trump’s DOJ Accuses Medicare Advantage Insurers of Paying ‘Kickbacks’ for Primo Customers

The Department of Justice alleges that several major health insurers paid brokerages “hundreds of millions of dollars in kickbacks” to get agents to steer consumers into their Medicare Advantage plans, allegations the insurers strongly dispute.

By Julie Appleby

May 19, 2025

A photo looking up at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building at 26 Federal Plaza. It is a tall skyscraper in New York City.

Postcard From Manhattan

In Bustling NYC Federal Building, HHS Offices Are Eerily Quiet

Public health experts and advocates say that Health and Human Services regional offices, like the one in New York City, form the connective tissue between the federal government and locally based services.

By Michelle Andrews and Eliza Fawcett, Healthbeat

May 16, 2025

An Arm and a Leg

A Health Policy Veteran Puts 2025 in Perspective

Season 13, Episode 7

May 12, 2025

Two stories from Washington, D.C., give listeners a sense of what changes the Trump administration has been making to health policy, with KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner and Arthur Allen.

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A photo of a large, modern office building in Maryland. In front of it are the American flag, a flag with insignias for six military branches, and the National League of Families POW/MIA flag.

At Social Security, These Are the Days of the Living Dead

In recent weeks, Social Security has been plagued by problems related to technology, system errors, and even the marking of living people as dead.

By Darius Tahir

May 6, 2025

What the Health? From KFF Health News

100 Days of Health Policy Upheaval

Episode 395

May 1, 2025

Members of Congress are back in Washington, and Republicans are struggling to find ways to reduce Medicaid spending without cutting benefits. Meanwhile, confusion continues to reign at the Department of Health and Human Services. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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A photo of a clipboard resting horizontally on a table with a piece of paper that reads, "Medicare Advantage." In front of it are an open pill bottle spilled yellow capsules, a stethoscope, and a pen.

When Hospitals Ditch Medicare Advantage Plans, Thousands of Members Get To Leave, Too

Breakups between health providers and Advantage plans are increasingly common. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has allowed whole groups of patients to leave their plans.

By Susan Jaffe

April 28, 2025

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Can Congress Reconcile Trump’s Wishes With Medicaid’s Needs?

Episode 394

April 24, 2025

When Congress returns next week, it will be writing a budget reconciliation bill that’s expected to cut taxes but also make deep cuts to Medicaid. But at least some Republicans are concerned about cutting a program that aids so many of their constituents. Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss this story and more. Also, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Rae Ellen Bichell about her story on how care for transgender minors is changing in Colorado.

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What the Health? From KFF Health News

On Autism, It’s the Secretary’s Word vs. the CDC’s

Episode 393

April 17, 2025

Tensions between Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his employees at the Department of Health and Human Services are mounting, as he made a series of claims about autism this week — contradicting his agency’s findings. Plus, President Donald Trump unveiled an executive order to lower drug prices as his administration explores tariffs that could raise them. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News’ Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more. Plus, KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner interviews two University of California-San Francisco researchers about an upcoming Supreme Court case that could have major ramifications for preventive care.

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