2020: Mark and Margaret reflect on the Year COVID-19 Took Over the World

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter reflect on 2020 at the end of a year like no other. When the COVID-19 pandemic began to take hold, they welcomed many of the world’s most renowned infectious disease, virology, and epidemiology experts. From Dr. Anthony Fauci to Dr. Ashish Jha, from New York Times writer and “Pandemic” docu-series producer Dr. Sheri Fink, to innovative scientists like Dr. Eric Topol, Dr. Zeke Emanuel, Dr. Michael Osterholm to US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, we learned about this emerging pathogen from some of the most gifted people in health care.

What a Year! A Look Back At COVID’s Grip on 2021

This week, Mark and Margaret take a look back at COVID’s hold on 2021, the early promise of vaccines, the relentless march of mutations and the vicious rise of new variants leading to pandemic surges around the world. They revisit conversations with memorable guests from famed virologists and epidemiologists like Paul Offit and Michael Osterholm, to President Biden’s COVID team leaders Rochelle Walensky, Anthony Fauci and Rachel Levine. They revisited guests focused on other health news: Bill McKibben on climate change, and Planned Parenthood President Alexis McGill Johnson on the existential threat to women’s reproductive rights in the U.S. It was also a year to celebrate the dramatic discovery underway in the field of science, with Eric Topol, William Haseltine and NIH Director Francis Collins.

COVID’s 3rd Year: Experts Speak

We’re proud to have again served as a platform for trusted, informed experts during the third year of the pandemic.

This week “Conversations on Health Care” looks back on some of the most insightful comments from doctors and scientists who are on the frontlines of fighting COVID. In addition to NIH’s Dr. Anthony Fauci we had as our guests Dr. Peter Hotez from Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Zeke Emanuel at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Michael Osterholm from the University of Minnesota, Dr. Mary Bassett with the New York City Health Department and others.

Listen in as hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter capture their insights about these extraordinary medical challenges.

Health Policy Moves in ’22 Set the Stage for New Year

The health care public policy debates that swirled in 2022 will continue to make news in 2023. These issues ranged from the Dobbs abortion decision to the outcome of the midterm elections.

Many of the nation’s leading experts joined “Conversations on Health Care” during the past 12 months to share their perspectives.

Join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter as we look back at the year that was in health care policy.

Aaron Smith, co-founder and Executive Director of Young Invincibles

This week, Mark and Margaret speak with Aaron Smith, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Young Invincibles, a non-profit working to give young adults a voice in the political process. Mr. Smith discusses their impact on provisions in the Affordable Care Act affecting the "millennial" population and their national efforts to encourage young adults to participate in the Insurance Exchanges.

Adam Dole, Presidential Innovation Fellow

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Adam Dole, recent Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House and former entrepreneur-in-residence at the Mayo Clinic. Mr. Dole discusses the fertile intersection between public and private entities generating a robust culture in health care industry innovation.

Leading Neuroscientist Dr. Adam Gazzaley Talks Drug-Free Brain Health Treatments Using Virtual Reality and Video Games

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with renowned neuroscientist Dr. Adam Gazzaley, Director of the Neuroscience Imaging Center and Gazzaley Lab at UC San Francisco. Dr. Gazzaley discusses his closed loop system designed to improve brain function through personalized game design and feedback, which are already undergoing FDA clinical trials for therapeutic interventions for a number of brain disorders including ADHD, aging brain, PTSD and addiction.

Propelling Primary Care Towards Value-Based Care: Adam Boehler, Director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation at HHS on Their Bold Agenda

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Adam Boehler, Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services at HHS. They discuss ways the agency hopes to "blow up fee for service" and the efforts underway to propel the nation's primary care reimbursement structure towards shared risk and value-based care, rewarding clinicians for better outcomes.

Adriel Bettelheim, Managing Editor at CQ Roll Call

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Adriel Bettelheim, Managing Editor for Health at CQ Roll Call/Economist which boasts the largest press corps on Capitol Hill. Mr. Bettelheim discusses the legislative landscape impacting the Affordable Care Act as well as the emerging payment reforms aimed at reducing health care spending

Cleveland Clinic's Chief Experience Officer Dr. Adrienne Boissy on Embedding Empathy Into Health Care Training

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Adrienne Boissy, Chief Experience Officer at the Cleveland Clinic Health System who talks about the Patient Experience Summit, and the quest to improve patient outcomes and reduce clinician burnout by operationalizing empathy into health systems.

Mass Medical Society's Dr. Alain Chaoui on Joint Harvard Study on the Crisis of Physician Burnout

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Alain Chaoui, Past President of the Massachusetts Medical Society on their joint study, conducted with the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, on the 'national health crisis' of physician burnout in America.

Alan Weil, executive director of the National Academy for State Health Policy.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on developments in healthcare reform and innovation at the state level. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Alan Weil from the National Academy for State Health Policy, about the role states play implementing the new healthcare law, and the opportunity for every state to act as a laboratory for innovation.

Dr. Alan Fleischman, medical director of the March of Dimes Foundation.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on strategies to improve maternal-child health, reduce premature birth and eliminate disparities in birth outcomes. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Alan Fleischman, medical director of the March of Dimes Foundation, about current efforts at the national and local levels to achieve these goals.

Alan Weil, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Alan Weil, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs, the leading journal at the intersection of health, health care, and health policy. Mr. Weil discusses the vital role the publication must play as a non-partisan, peer-reviewed journal in the ongoing health care debate and how its presence is poised to expand in the new media marketplace.

Alan Weil, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Alan Weil, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs, the leading journal at the intersection of health, health care, and health policy. Mr. Weil discusses the vital role the publication must play as a non-partisan, peer-reviewed journal in the ongoing health care debate and how its presence is poised to expand in the new media marketplace.

WHO’s Vaccine Advisory Leader Discusses Global Readiness to Manage Pandemic: SAGE Chair Dr. Alejandro Cravioto

This week, Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Alejandro Cravioto, Chair of SAGE, the international panel of experts making COVID-19 vaccine recommendations to the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Cravioto talks about their global team of scientists and the rigorous guidelines governing the approval process for emergency authorization for the Pfizer vaccine – as well as all others in the queue. He also discusses the need to scale up production for global distribution, as well as the need to ensure that vaccines are distributed equitably throughout all countries in the world.

“Roe Hanging On By A Thread”: Planned Parenthood President Alexis McGill Johnson on Imminent Threat To Reproductive Rights

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Planned Parenthood Federation of America CEO Alexis McGill Johnson, on upcoming Supreme Court hearing on S.B.8., the Texas law banning abortion after 6 weeks. She discusses the record number of restrictive abortion laws across the country causing harm to patients and clinicians committed to providing family planning services, and the former administration’s Title X abortion ‘gag’ rule, which greatly hampered access to legally-guaranteed ‘right to choose’. She expects Roe-v-Wade will likely be permanently compromised with the current conservative configuration on the nation’s High Court.

Health News This Week: Omicron Makes Gains Around the World as U.S. Supreme Court Justices Hear Mississippi Abortion Case

ts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter examine the latest details about the omicron COVID variant, including the important role community health centers continue to play in the pandemic. In addition, we revisit their recent conversation with Planned Parenthood Federation of America President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson on the Supreme Court hearing on the Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks, posing the greatest threat to Roe v. Wade in half a century. She also talks about systematic efforts in many states limiting women's access to abortion, and examines the previous administration’s Title X abortion ‘gag’ rule, which seriously impeded access to reproductive health services, creating particular hardship for vulnerable women. She expects the conservative-leaning high court will ultimately rule to undermine Roe.

Sr. Director at Pew Charitable Trusts, Allan Coukell, Discusses Opportunities for FDA Reform

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Allan Coukell, Sr. Director for Health Programs at the Pew Charitable Trusts, where he oversees the FDA, drug and medical device safety and the opioid crisis. He discusses suggested changes to the FDA made by the Trump Administration, and how best to promote reforms at the US Food and Drug Administration to better respond to 21st century advances in research and discovery.

Dr. Amelia Haviland, Senior Statistician on Health Insurance for the RAND Corporation

This week, Mark and Margaret speak with Dr. Amelia Haviland, Senior Statistician on Health Insurance for the RAND Corporation, a non-profit organization committed to improving public policy through non-partisan research and analysis. Dr. Haviland discusses RAND's in-depth study of the rapid growth of consumer-directed, high-deductible insurance policies in the private insurance market. She also explores their potential to save tens of billions of dollars in health care costs annually, while cautioning that such plans could lead to diminished health outcomes for consumers of these plans.