Dr. Eric Topol, Director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with cardiologist, genomics and telemedicine expert Dr. Eric Topol, Director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute. They discuss his latest book, The Patient Will See You Now: The Future of Medicine Is In Your Hands, in which he predicts the "medicalization of the smart phone" is poised to truly democratize medicine by putting the power of diagnostics and monitoring in the patient's own hands.

Smart Phones, Genomics and AI: Dr. Eric Topol on Health Care's Next Frontier in Personalized Medicine

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Eric Topol, renowned cardiologist, geneticist, digital health advocate, and founder of the Scripps Translational Science Institute. They discuss his work developing technologies for the "All of Us" precision medicine campaign at NIH, and the efforts still needed to support true precision medicine initiatives in American health care.

Dr. Eric Topol: What Lies Between Now and COVID-19 Vaccine

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Eric Topol, Founder and Director of the Scripps Translational Institute, and author of “The Creative Destruction of Medicine”. Dr. Topol is a renowned cardiologist and health data champion, and shares a harsh assessment of federal handling of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the US. He’s heartened by the many collaborations yielding significant scientific discovery around rapid testing technology and vaccines. He’s concerned the anti-science movement will undermine deployment of an effective vaccination program, once one makes it to the public.

Dr. Eric Topol on Variants, Vaccines and AstraZeneca’s Data Reporting

This week Mark and Margaret speak with Dr. Eric Topol, Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute. Dr. Topol calls drug maker AstraZeneca’s recent controversial under-reporting of complete safety data to US regulators for its COVID-19 vaccine ‘disturbing’ and ‘unprecedented’ in his clinical trial career. He calls the rapid development of highly successful and effective COVID vaccines one of biomedicine’s greatest achievements and predicts the pandemic crisis will pave the way for more remarkable scientific breakthroughs, and a greater opportunity for the growth of personalized medicine via smartphones.

“Not the Doomsday Variant”: Dr. Eric Topol’s Concerns Around Omicron and America’s Low Fully Vaccinated Rate

This week hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter welcome Dr. Eric Topol, Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, for his perspective on the rapid spread of the Omicron variant. He says early data shows that it is highly transmissible, but apparently not more deadly. His greater concern is around the current Delta surge leading to more infections, low vaccination rates in developing countries leading to more variants, and the “abysmal” vaccination performance in the U.S. He says mRNA vaccines should be considered a 3-dose protocol, and that rapid testing and virus sequencing should be more broadly deployed to stop the spread of the virus.

Dr. Eric Topol: COVID BA.5 variant "worst we've seen"

Dr. Eric Topol, one of the most prominent and prolific COVID experts, provides his thoughts on the COVID BA.5 subvariant. He says, “it’s the worst variant… [because of] the immune escape…the ability to have growth, fitness and advantages that we haven’t seen before…the properties are getting worse…and lasting longer. The virus has not finished its evolutionary arc. There’s more to come, unfortunately.”

Conversations on Health Care hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter also talk to Dr. Topol about Dr. Anthony Fauci’s legacy, Paxlovid resistance and monkeypox.

340B & Pharmaceutical Profiteers: Connecticut Attorney General William Tong on Going After Illegal Price Gouging By Big Pharma

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who recently called out pharmaceutical giants for intimidating safety net providers and Community Health Centers offering low cost drugs to vulnerable patients protected through the 340B Pricing. Tong is also leading a team of Attorneys General from 51 states and territories in a huge Antitrust suit, alleging criminal price-fixing and price gouging among multiple pharmaceutical giants operating in collusion with each other to dramatically increase their profits on generic drugs.

Jennifer Tolbert, Director of State Health Reform, Kaiser Family Foundation

This week on Conversations on Health Care, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Jennifer Tolbert, Director of State Health Reform at the Kaiser Family Foundation. She breaks down the rollout of the Affordable Care Act and its potential impact on the uninsured population and how it may differ in states across the country.

Abortion Rights Leader Rejects Calls to “Ignore” Judge’s Ruling

A federal judge’s decision to revoke the FDA’s approval of the abortion pill mifepristone has led some politicians to ask the Biden Administration not to enforce the ruling. Yet NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju, who’s in close contact with the White House, tells “Conversations on Health Care” that’s not the right move. “I think calls for the FDA not to comply, while you know emotionally satisfying, are not actually helpful in a litigation strategy. And our goal is for the FDA and the DOJ to prevail in this case. The ruling…is riddled with serious disinformation.”

Timmaraju explains how the Supreme Court could hear the case by the end of this week and how this judge’s opinion could have an even bigger impact on the entire health care sector. Her interview with Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter is online now.

Mildred Thompson, deputy director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity, discusses childhood obesity and the campaign to fight it.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on the crucial topic of childhood obesity. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Mildred Thompson, deputy director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood Obesity, about fostering a healthy environment to reverse this trend and the challenges and goals that go with it.

Donna Thompson, chief executive officer of Access Community Health Network in Chicago.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on the unique role of community health centers in integrating clinical excellence with education, training, and research. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Donna Thompson, RN, CEO of Access Community Health Network in Chicago, the country’s largest health center and developer of the first NIH funded research center devoted exclusively to studying health disparities.

Lynne Thomas Gordon, CEO of AHIMA

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Lynne Thomas Gordon, CEO of the American Health Information Management Association which is the premier association of health information management professionals worldwide. AHIMA is actively engaged in assisting hospitals and medical practices to prepare for the transition to ICD 10 medical coding.

Dr. George Thibault, President of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation on the Future of Health Professional Education

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. George Thibault, President of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, the only foundation dedicated solely to the advancement of health professionals education. Dr. Thibault discusses their efforts to shift modern medical education towards a more team-based model of care and a more advanced role for nursing professionals in primary care.

Is the Air We Breathe Safe? Award-Winning Scientist Linsey Marr & Green Building Council’s Peter Templeton Share Their Insights

Did you catch environmental engineer Linsey Marr, Ph.D., on “60 Minutes” explaining how she was confident she knew COVID was an airborne virus (even when the World Health Organization was saying otherwise)? Learn more about her insights and latest observations as she joins “Conversations on Health Care” this week.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter also discuss air quality and energy efficiency with Peter Templeton, president and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council, who explains their LEED green building rating systems.

Biology's New Frontier: The Human Cell Atlas Seeks To Create "Google Maps" for All Cells in the Body

This week, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Aviv Regev of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and Dr. Sarah Teichmann of the Wellcome Sanger Institute at Cambridge, Co-Chairs of the Human Cell Atlas project which is seeking to create a "Google Maps" for the body's 37 trillion cells. It's a global collaboration of multiple scientific disciplines, tasked with creating a comprehensive and open-source cell map, to yield a deeper understanding of the foundational elements of human health and disease.

Tina Tchen, White House Director of the Council on Women and Girls and the Office of Public Engagement.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on health care for women and families. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Tina Tchen, executive director of the White House Council on Women and Girls and White House director of the Office of Public Engagement, about health reform and the broader issues of economic and social equality for women and girls.

Dr. Paul Tang, Chief Innovation and Technology Officer for the Palo Alto Medical Foundation.

Conversations on Health Care® focuses this week on steering the country into a new era of health information technology. Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Paul Tang, chief innovation and technology officer for the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, about how patients from kids to centenarians are going online to play a greater role in their health care.

Continued Quest for Equity in Health: Thoughts from Morehouse School of Medicine Founder and former HHS Secretary Dr. Louis Sullivan

This week on Conversations on Health Care, hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter speak with Dr. Louis Wade Sullivan, Founding Dean and President Emeritus of the Morehouse School of Medicine, and former HHS Secretary under the first Bush Administration. Dr. Sullivan discusses his efforts to build diversity in the health professions through his organization, the Sullivan Alliance, and his contributions to building equity in health systems around the country and the world.

Why Are Only 5% Of Doctors African American? Dr. Louis Sullivan Tells Us

Dr. Louis Sullivan’s leadership and advocacy for equity in the health professions have taken him from the classroom to the seats of power in Washington. He reflects on his own journey and the challenges that still exist in training people of color to become doctors and for other medical roles.

Dr. Sullivan believes, “It’s a combination of a lack of adequate preparation, lack of financial resources, and also a lack of role models.” He shares his inspiring story from the then-segregated South and the influences that helped him.

Dr. Sullivan served as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and is the co-author of the new book “We’ll Fight it Out Here: A History of the Ongoing Struggle for Health Equity.”

We’re honored to have him join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter to discuss these topics, the gaps COVID has exposed, and the current political battles over equity.

Former Republican HHS Secretary Offers Bipartisan Wisdom

Dr. Louis Sullivan walked the halls of Congress and testified before committees when he was secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. That experience, working in a bipartisan fashion in the President George H.W. Bush administration, is valuable now.

During Black History Month, we revisit our interview with Dr. Sullivan for lessons about leadership and the challenges that still exist in our healthcare system.

Dr. Sullivan advocates for more Blacks to train to become doctors and explains the challenges that remain for them joining the profession. Listen in as hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter ask him to share his insights.

Originally broadcast January, 2023.