Conversations on Health Care

Michael Cork, Ph.D., is considered one of America’s leading researchers of the health effects of the country’s growing hunger for huge data centers. His research estimated that just one data center in Virginia could result in as many as six additional premature deaths per year. He also projected it could lead to an…

We’re counting down to the midterm election results on Nov. 3 and Make America Healthy Again supporters are weighing their choices. The movement gained attention about two years ago for what advocates saw as a need for healthier food, a cleaner environment and a “safer” vaccine schedule. They believed Robert F…

We’re proud to serve as a forum for big health care policy discussions and the latest one may be the most heated ever. Our guests debate the pros and cons of Medicare for All, which would be a single-payer national health program that would fully cover medical care for all Americans (and make most private […] The post…

What’s worrying voters? Health costs are tied with gas prices for the most important affordability issue, according to a new KFF Health poll. The research found that voters trust Democrats over Republicans to deal with health care costs by a nearly two-to-one margin. This is the backdrop for our Reporters’ Roundtable…

The environment for the use of psychedelics in psychotherapy is moving quickly. In mid-September, the Food & Drug Administration held a hearing about potential future therapeutic use of psychedelics in supervised and supportive settings. Psychedelic psychotherapy combines mind-altering substances like psilocybin or…

This week is the 17th anniversary of our first “Conversations on Health Care” and our guests have been part of the community health center movement before we even started our interviews. They have the battle scars that prove they know how to fight and win on behalf of community health centers. Now, they’re rallying…

The common speculation has been that GLP-1s would ultimately save patients and the entire health care system millions of dollars by reducing waistlines and the associated costs with obesity. But research found that during the first year, patients accumulated about $6,500 in GLP-1 spending, while their other medical…

“I’m quite frankly, flabbergasted…” That’s the reaction of Dr. Reed Tuckson to the White House’s recent decision on childhood vaccines. An Executive Order has called for separating the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine into three different single-disease shots and giving all childhood immunizations at separate…

As we get ready to enjoy the Labor Day weekend, author Rowan Jacobsen is taking on dermatologists and the skin care industry. He explains that doctors have long told us to avoid sun exposure, in order to reduce rates of skin cancer. Yet the research indicates that moderate sun exposure leads to lower rates of many…

We’re about four months away from the beginning of the new federal Medicaid rules on Jan. 1 (although some states are allowed to implement them earlier). Earlier, we heard from an Administration leader on efforts to support states with getting the paperwork in order. Now, we have a guest providing a different…

Some people are turning to TikTok and Instagram before seeing or even going to health care providers. Who are these online influencers and who is looking at their content? Pew Research Center identified 6,828 individuals with at least 100,000 followers on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram that regularly post about health…

This past July was the warmest month on record across the contiguous United States. That’s giving Dr. Lisa Patel and her colleagues even more urgency in their climate change awareness work. Dr. Patel is the executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, which is focused on “mobilizing…