Is Blockchain Poised to Disrupt Health Care? MintHealth's Founder Dr. Samir Damani Thinks So

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Samir Damani, cardiologist at Scripps Clinic and co-founder of MintHealth, a system using blockchain technology to create a portable, secure health record for patients to manage. Dr. Damani speaks of the game-changing potential for blockchain-enabled technology to let patients self-govern their personal health record, to address the current lack of interoperability in the health system, and to reward patients for behavior changes leading to better chronic care self-management through a token system.

Jim Daley, ICD10 Expert and Immediate Past President of WEDI

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Jim Daley, Immediate Past Chair of the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange or WEDI, a leading authority on the use of health IT to improve health care delivery and efficiency created by the Department of Health and Human Services. Mr. Daley discusses the industry challenges of switching to ICD 10 coding for health billing, and why the switch is so vital to improving outcomes.

Dr. Emmanuel d'Harcourt, Senior Health Director, International Rescue Committee

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Emmanuel d'Harcourt, Senior Health Director at the International Rescue Committee, an international aid organization dedicated to mitigating the plight of the world's 60 million refugees. Dr. d'Harcourt discusses the challenges of coordinating care among the world's NGOs and the World Health Organization and the need to build a more integrated aid infrastructure.

Dr. David Cutler, Professor of Applied Economics at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with noted Harvard Health Economist David Cutler, who has been studying the economics of health care reform for over 20 years. Professor Cutler was instrumental in crafting the health care reform legislation during the Clinton Administration and was Senior Health Advisor to President Obama’s campaign. He analyzes the recent Supreme Court hearings on the Affordable Care Act and explores the economic foundation for the health care reform legislation. Dr. Cutler offers a long view of the direction health care reform is headed in light of the current political and legal challenges to the Affordable Care Act.

Pandemic Takes 16 Trillion Out of Economy: Harvard Professor David Cutler Discusses His Research

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with renowned Harvard Economist David Cutler, whose recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Association projects the pandemic’s expected toll on the US Economy. Cutler warns that the dramatic death toll, more chronically ill Americans and a contracted economy will lead to a loss of 16 trillion dollars over the next ten years.

Somerville, Massachusetts Mayor Joseph Curtatone, the leadership behind “Shape Up Somerville.”

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on the “Shape Up Somerville” program. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Mayor Joseph Curtatone about how this innovative, local program has transformed the town of Somerville, Massachusetts into a healthy place to live, and how it’s now serving as a national model to fight childhood obesity on all fronts.

Guns are Killing American Children: University of Michigan Researcher Rebecca Cunningham is Seeking To Find Out Why

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Rebecca Cunningham, Director of the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center. Dr. Cunningham is leading a national team of scientists in ground-breaking collaborative research to examine the myriad causes of the gun violence epidemic in this country, now the leading cause of death for America’s teens, and second leading cause of death for American children overall. Congress has recently allocated money for gun violence research after a two-decade drought. Her team is examining social causes, policy requirements and prevention interventions to address the crisis.

What Does Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban Know About Fixing Health Care? Are There Lessons for All of Us?

Billionaire Mark Cuban never holds back his opinions on TV’s “Shark Tank” and now he’s trying to take a bite out of the health care sector — it might be his biggest challenge yet. Cuban understands he’s up against entrenched lobbyists and bureaucrats as he tries to reform how Americans purchase their pharmaceuticals.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter ask Cuban to explain his venture Cost Plus Drugs, its financial model and how some insurers are already joining in.

Mark Cuban: Drug Price Disrupter Explains How It Works

When we have a guest like “Shark Tank” star Mark Cuban, it can be hard to keep up with all his thoughts. He was a bundle of energy in November 2022 explaining his then-new venture trying to reform how Americans can purchase lower-priced drugs; he called it “dunking on the pharma industry.” Since our conversation, experts say Cuban has become a major disrupter in generic drug pricing. Cost Plus now offers 2,500 drugs and has signed up a large list of health systems.

Join us for this encore presentation as hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter ask Cuban to explain how his approach also includes introducing transparency to drug pricing.

Dr. Bill Crounse, Sr. Director of Worldwide Health for Microsoft

On this week’s Conversations on Health Care, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Bill Crounse, Sr. Director of Worldwide Health for Microsoft. Dr. Crounse is an expert on the intersection of health and information technology. He discusses ways new technological developments are helping to revolutionize the delivery of health care, both here at home and globally.

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.

Dr. Molly Coye, Chief Innovation Officer, UCLA Health System

This week, Mark and Margaret speak with Dr. Molly Coye, Chief Innovation Officer of the UCLA Health System. Dr. Coye discusses broad reaching transformations underway at UCLA Health that are utilizing innovative technology and team-based medicine to yield better health outcomes for their patient population, while reducing costs within the system.

Kevin Counihan, CEO of AccessHealthCT

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Kevin Counihan, Chief Executive Officer of AccessHealthCT, Connecticut's state-based insurance exchange created under the Affordable Care Act. Mr. Counihan addresses the reasons for the portal's success compared to the Federal Exchange, and how other states are planning to adopt the Connecticut model.

Kevin Counihan, Marketplace CEO of Healthcare.gov

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Kevin Counihan, Marketplace CEO of Healthcare.gov, the online Federal health insurance marketplace. Mr. Counihan discusses changes to the online portal aimed at making the shopping experience more user-friendly, additional consumer protections for those purchasing insurance online, as well as goals for helping more uninsured Americans to gain coverage.

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. Toby Cosgrove - President and CEO of Cleveland Clinic

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Toby Cosgrove, President and CEO of the Cleveland Clinic, one of the top ranked health institutions in the world. Dr. Cosgrove discusses Cleveland Clinic's model of patient centered care as well as its innovation hub, which provides a framework for bringing clinical inventions into the marketplace to transform health care.

Innovations Cleveland Clinic's Toby Cosgrove Brings to Trump's Healthcare Transition Team

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Toby Cosgrove, President and CEO of the Cleveland Clinic, one of the top ranked hospital systems in the world. Dr. Cosgrove discusses the Cleveland Clinic Model of Innovation, their approach to 21st century health care, and Cleveland Clinic's expansion around the globe.

Dr. Patrick Conway, Deputy Administrator for Innovation & Quality and Chief Medical Officer at CMS

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Patrick Conway, Deputy Administrator and Chief Medical Officer at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Dr. Conway is spearheading the agency's efforts to transform American health care from fee-for-service to value based care, and discusses the alternative care delivery and payment models aimed at achieving that goal.

From Hurricane Harvey to Health Reform, Mike Consedine, CEO of National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Talks Challenges and Opportunities

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Mike Consedine, CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners who regulate insurance matters in all fifty States. Mr. Consedine points to Hurricane Harvey as a solid reminder of the need for Congress to renew the National Flood Insurance Program, and talks about challenges Insurance Commissioners are facing in in light of uncertainty over health policy in Washington. He also addresses coming technology trends and cyber security threats to the industry.

Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health

This week, Mark and Margaret speak with Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health, about the broad scope of research underway at NIH, as well as his previous work leading the team that mapped the human genome, for which he won the Presidential Medal of Freedom.