Health Affairs This Week
by Health Affairs
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When a Hospital Chain Goes Nonprofit: Quorum's Conversion Explained | Stat News' Tara Bannow
Oct 16, 2026
14m 37s
Why Prior Authorization Still Frustrates Everyone: DrFirst's Colin Banas on What's Changing | SPONSORED
Oct 15, 2026
34m 35s
Tragedy of the Commons: Health Care's Coming Breaking Point
Oct 9, 2026
21m 54s
What's Next for Health Policy? Tim Jost and Katie Keith Look Ahead
Oct 8, 2026
25m 36s
ACA Marketplace Turbulence: Fraud, Brokers, and Coverage Loss
Oct 2, 2026
13m 26s
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16K to 196K🎙 ~2x weekly·281 episodes·Last published 4d ago - Monthly Reach
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32K to 392K🇺🇸100% - Active Followers
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/16/26 | When a Hospital Chain Goes Nonprofit: Quorum's Conversion Explained | Stat News' Tara Bannow | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.Health Affairs Publishing's Jeff Byers welcomes Tara Bannow of Stat News to the program to discuss Quorum Health’s proposed transition from a for-profit to nonprofit hospital system, including the operational, financial, and policy implications of the move.The discussion explores Quorum’s history of debt and restructuring, where CHS fits into the story, the financial advantages of nonprofit status, and whether similar transitions could become a pathway for struggling investor-owned health care organizations.Related Links:A private equity-owned hospital chain is becoming a nonprofit. Is it just a bailout for investors? (STAT)Will the Rural Health Transformation Fund Deliver? (Health Affairs This Week)Sign up for Health Affairs' free newsletter to catch up on our new articles, podcasts, and events. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 14m 37s | ||||||
| 10/15/26 |  Why Prior Authorization Still Frustrates Everyone: DrFirst's Colin Banas on What's Changing | SPONSORED | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.THIS SPONSORED PODCAST EPISODE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY DrFIRST.In this sponsored episode, Dr. Colin Banas, chief medical officer at DrFirst, joins Health Affairs Publishing's Rob Lott to discuss prior authorization, why the process continues to create delays and administrative burden, and the future of prior authorization in the health care ecosystem.Colin Banas joined DrFirst in 2019 after spending 17 years as CMIO at VCU Health System, where he also practiced as an internal medicine hospitalist. He has testified before the U.S. Senate on health IT and meaningful use and previously served as a health IT Fellow at the ONC. At DrFirst, Dr. Banas drives innovation in medication workflows, focusing on non-disruptive decision support that creates better experiences for providers and patients, including how AI can reduce clinical burnout and improve patient outcomes. This conversation explores the root causes of prior authorization challenges, from fragmented workflows and outdated technology to the competing incentives facing providers and payers. Dr. Banas and Lott also discuss how automation, interoperability, and artificial intelligence are beginning to reshape prior authorization and help organizations reduce friction while maintaining appropriate oversight of care. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 34m 35s | ||||||
| 10/9/26 | Tragedy of the Commons: Health Care's Coming Breaking Point | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.Health Affairs Publishing's Jeff Byers welcomes Trilliant Health’s Allison Oakes to discuss the findings of the organization’s 2026 Trends Shaping the Health Economy report and the pressures affecting the U.S. health care system. Together, they examine trends in affordability, insurance coverage, health care utilization, and payment policy that could shape the industry in the years ahead. Join Health Affairs Publishing on October 21 for an Insider exclusive event exploring risk adjustment, coding incentives, spending, and outcomes with Richard Kronick and Matthew Fiedler.Sign up for Health Affairs' free newsletter to catch up on our new articles, podcasts, and events. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 21m 54s | ||||||
| 10/8/26 | What's Next for Health Policy? Tim Jost and Katie Keith Look Ahead | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.As Health Affairs Forefront celebrates its 20th anniversary, two of the publication's most influential contributors join Editor Chris Fleming for a conversation about the future of health policy. Tim Jost and Katie Keith, whose rapid-response analyses have helped readers navigate some of the most consequential health policy developments of the last two decades, reflect on what lessons from the past may shape the next 20 years.The discussion explores the legacy of the Affordable Care Act, the policy lessons learned from reform and repeal efforts, and how recent legislative changes could reshape coverage and access in the years ahead. Jost and Keith also examine the challenges of controlling health care costs, the role of Congress in an increasingly polarized political environment, and the growing influence of courts and litigation on health policy outcomes. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 25m 36s | ||||||
| 10/2/26 | ACA Marketplace Turbulence: Fraud, Brokers, and Coverage Loss | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.Health Affairs Publishing's Jeff Byers welcomes Senior Editor Meg Winchester back to the pod to discuss the Trump administration's decision to terminate ACA marketplace coverage for more than 760,000 people as part of a broader effort to combat fraud, waste, and abuse. They examine how the disenrollments were carried out, the potential implications for consumers and insurers, and what the move could mean for the future stability of the ACA marketplaces.Join Health Affairs Publishing on October 21 for an Insider exclusive event exploring risk adjustment, coding incentives, spending, and outcomes with Richard Kronick and Matthew Fiedler.Related Links:Administration Cancels Coverage For More Than 760,000, Blocks New Agents And Brokers (Health Affairs Forefront)Withholding Medicaid Dollars Won’t Stop Fraud. It Will Hurt People (Health Affairs Forefront)The Troubling Termination Of 760,000 ACA Marketplace Members (Health Affairs Forefront)Semiannual Report to Congress (HHS)ACA Exchange Enrollment in 2026 (ASPE)Sign up for Health Affairs' free newsletter to catch up on our new articles, podcasts, and events. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 13m 26s | ||||||
| 9/25/26 | Prior Authorization's Next Era: CMS Reform, AI, and Faster Approvals | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.Health Affairs Publishing's Jeff Byers welcomes Senior Editor Kathleen Haddad back to the pod to discuss the evolving prior authorization landscape, including CMS efforts to streamline approvals, insurer responses, and emerging questions around AI-driven decision-making.A Health Affairs journal subscription directly connects you to the research shaping the future of health policy and health care. Until 10/14, purchase a two-year digital subscription to Health Affairs journal and receive a third year free with code ONEFREEYEAR.Sign up for Insider to get exclusive access to our trend report focusing on the current prior authorization landscape.Related Links:Medicare’s AI prior authorization pilot was rushed and full of problems, new documents reveal (Stat News)Prior authorization denials vary widely among insurers, first-of-its-kind data shows (Healthcare Dive)UnitedHealthcare cuts prior authorization from 1,700 codes (Healthcare Dive)TREND REPORT: The Current Prior Authorization Landscape (Health Affairs Insider)PR STUNT: UnitedHealth’s Big Prior Authorization Cut (Health Care Un-covered)Sign up for Health Affairs' free newsletter to catch up on our new articles, podcasts, and events. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 17m 45s | ||||||
| 9/18/26 | Is Medicare-Medicaid Integration Working? Depends On Who You Ask | This episode is brought to you by Semafor Healthcare.Delivered weekly from David Lim, Semafor Healthcare connects the dots between decisions in government, business, and technology to reveal how they impact the future of healthcare. Each edition will provide the analysis you need to understand and stay ahead of a rapidly changing landscape. Subscribe for free.Health Affairs Publishing's Jeff Byers welcomes Allison Rizer, chief growth and innovation officer at ATI Advisory, about her recent Forefront article. They discuss upcoming 2027 Medicare-Medicaid integration requirements, how to measure if integration is valuable, and why decades of policy experimentation have produced mixed evidence.Related Links:We’ve Spent Decades Testing Medicare-Medicaid Integration. Why Don’t We Know If It Works? (Health Affairs Forefront)Sign up for Health Affairs' free newsletter to catch up on our new articles, podcasts, and events. Subscribe to Semafor Healthcare for free. | 17m 58s | ||||||
| 9/4/26 | No Surprises Acthealth care affordability+3 | Jack Hoadley | Georgetown UniversityHealth Affairs Publishing | — | No Surprises Actindependent dispute resolution+3 | — | 15m 06s | ||
| 8/28/26 | autism treatmentMedicaid spending+5 | Dan Arnold | Brown UniversityHealth Affairs+1 | — | autismMedicaid+5 | — | 13m 08s | ||
| 8/21/26 | Medicare Advantagequality bonus program+5 | Erica Socker | Georgetown UniversityClover Health+3 | — | Medicare Advantagequality bonus program+6 | — | 18m 20s | ||
| 8/14/26 | AIpatient empowerment+3 | David Betts | Talk To Me GooseStoryFlight Labs+1 | — | AIpatient empowerment+3 | — | 20m 16s | ||
| 8/7/26 | academic researchattention economy+3 | Kent AndersonJoy Moore | Health Affairs PublishingThe Scholarly Kitchen+4 | — | academic researchattention economy+3 | — | 14m 06s | ||
| 7/29/26 | primary carehealth care outcomes+4 | Troyen A. Brennan | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public HealthCVS Health+2 | — | primary carehealth care+5 | — | 19m 57s | ||
| 7/23/26 | health research fundinghealth services research+3 | Dr. Aaron Carroll | AcademyHealthAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality+4 | — | health researchAHRQ funding+3 | — | 17m 58s | ||
| 7/22/26 | healthcare policyTrump administration+3 | Stacie Dusetzina | Vanderbilt University Medical CenterHealth Affairs+2 | — | healthcareTrump administration+5 | — | 20m 04s | ||
| 7/15/26 | value-based careprimary care+3 | Michael Gerber | CMSHealth Affairs+2 | — | CMSMaking Care Primary+3 | — | 14m 03s | ||
| 7/8/26 | value-based paymentmanaged care+3 | Andrew Ryan | Brown UniversityHealth Affairs+2 | — | value-based paymentmanaged care+3 | — | 19m 58s | ||
| 6/26/26 | healthcare costsnational health expenditures+3 | Michael Chernew | Harvard Medical SchoolCenters for Medicare and Medicaid Services+2 | — | healthcare costsnational health expenditures+3 | — | 20m 15s | ||
| 6/12/26 | Medicaid work requirementsimpact on beneficiaries+3 | Alison Barkoff | George Washington UniversityHealth Affairs+1 | — | Medicaidwork requirements+3 | — | 19m 52s | ||
| 6/5/26 | Rural HealthHealth Infrastructure+4 | Sarah Jane Tribble | KFF Health NewsHealth Affairs+1 | — | Rural Health Transformation Fundhospital closures+4 | — | 17m 16s | ||
| 6/3/26 | pharmacy benefit managersdrug costs+4 | James Margiotta | CVS CaremarkCVS Accountable Care+3 | — | CVS Caremarkpharmacy benefit managers+5 | CVS Health | 25m 21s | ||
| 5/29/26 | Medicaredigital health+3 | Andrew Rundle | Columbia University Mailman School of Public HealthHealth Affairs+2 | — | MedicareACCESS model+4 | — | 16m 21s | ||
| 5/27/26 | family caregivingpolicy changes+4 | Alison Barkoff | George Washington University | — | family caregivingMedicaid+4 | The John A. Hartford Foundation | 23m 03s | ||
| 5/22/26 | youth mental healthAI chatbots+4 | Caroline Figueroa | Stanford UniversityHealth Affairs+3 | — | AI for mental healthteen mental health+8 | — | 20m 53s | ||
| 5/20/26 | healthcare workforceaging policies+4 | Bianca Frogner | Center for Health Workforce StudiesUniversity of Washington | — | healthcare workforceaging policies+6 | The John A. Hartford Foundation | 30m 24s | ||
| 5/15/26 | abortion accesstelehealth+3 | Katie Keith | mifepristoneGeorgetown University+2 | — | abortionmifepristone+5 | — | 18m 38s | ||
| 5/13/26 | Medicaidolder adults+4 | Hemi Tewarson | National Academy for State Health Policy | — | Medicaidhealth policy+4 | The John A. Hartford Foundation | 34m 35s | ||
| 5/8/26 | cholesterol screeninghealthcare access+3 | Mike Pignone | Duke University School of MedicineHealth Affairs Publishing+5 | — | cholesterolscreening guidelines+5 | — | 21m 53s | ||
| 5/1/26 | healthcare price transparencydata usability+4 | Stacey Pogue | Georgetown UniversityHealth Affairs+2 | — | healthcareprice transparency+5 | — | 14m 55s | ||
| 4/24/26 | prior authorizationprescription drug access+4 | Michael Gerber | CMSBlue Cross Blue Shield+4 | — | prior authorizationCMS+5 | — | 12m 38s | ||
| 4/17/26 | HHS budgethealth policy+3 | Jessica Bylander | Health AffairsWhite House+3 | — | HHS budgethealth agencies+3 | — | 11m 36s | ||
| 4/10/26 | health policyAffordable Care Act+4 | Kathleen Haddad | Health Affairs PublishingMedPAC+5 | — | health policyAffordable Care Act+4 | — | 15m 17s | ||
| 4/8/26 | Medicare Advantagehealth policy+4 | David Meyers | Brown UniversityHealth Affairs | — | Medicare Advantagepayment rule+3 | — | 16m 50s | ||
| 4/3/26 | high-deductible health planshealth spending accounts+3 | Jeanne Lambrew | The Century FoundationHealth Affairs Publishing+1 | — | high-deductible health planshealth spending accounts+5 | — | 14m 48s | ||
| 3/27/26 | healthcare innovationconsumer power in healthcare+3 | Halle Tecco | Rock HealthColumbia Business School+2 | — | healthcareinnovation+5 | — | 20m 12s | ||
| 3/20/26 | Medicare Advantagehealth policy+4 | Ben Ippolito | American Enterprise InstituteHealth Affairs+3 | — | Medicare Advantagecoding intensity+4 | — | 14m 33s | ||
| 3/13/26 | FDArare disease drugs+4 | Leslie Erdelack | FDAHarvard Medical School+5 | — | FDArare disease+5 | — | 13m 36s | ||
| 3/6/26 | healthcare policyState of the Union+3 | Margaret Winchester | Health AffairsHarvard Medical School+2 | — | healthcareTrump+4 | — | 10m 17s | ||
Showing 38 of 281
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