The Host
Julie Rovner
KFF Health News
@jrovner
@julierovner.bsky.social
Read Julie’s stories.
Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News’ weekly health policy news podcast, “What the Health?” A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book “Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z,” now in its third edition.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed by congressional Republicans in 2025, was supposed to backload cuts to health programs so they wouldn’t take effect until after the 2026 midterm elections. That’s not how things are working out, with numerous analyses showing insurance coverage is already starting to drop.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration claims that the coverage reductions prove its anti-fraud efforts are working. But those efforts are likely to affect far more people than just those who commit fraud against federal health programs.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Maya Goldman of Axios, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post.
Panelists
Maya Goldman
Axios
@mayagoldman_
@maya-goldman.bsky.social
Read Maya’s stories.
Shefali Luthra
The 19th
@shefali.bsky.social
Read Shefali’s stories.
Lauren Weber
The Washington Post
@LaurenWeberHP
@laurenweberhp.bsky.social
Read Lauren’s stories.
Among the takeaways from this week’s episode:
Amid a recent decline in the number of Americans with health insurance, one affected group in particular stands out: children. Many kids are falling off the Medicaid rolls, largely because of the chilling effects of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and broader confusion about eligibility requirements.
Meanwhile, the high cost of health insurance is pressing people to seek alternatives, many of which offer few or no protections against large medical bills. On the campaign trail, high-profile Democrats are sounding the alarm about a problematic health ecosystem, even framing issues such as reproductive health in terms of affordability.
The Trump administration is raising eyebrows with its response to the emerging Ebola crisis as it works to keep American citizens exposed to the disease out of the country entirely. Countering previous government approaches, which prioritized not only public safety but also offering the best care available to Americans, this approach also stands in stark contrast with President Donald Trump’s d