If there's one debate you can't avoid today it's what do about the US health insurance. While many countries around the world have some form of nationalized, government run healthcare most people in the US have their healthcare provided...

For better or worse, health insurance in the United States is largely furnished by employers. One of the worse aspects of employer funded health care is that people may be less likely to change jobs, or to start a business.

This month Aaron is talking to Dr. Tom McAllister, the Albert Eugene Sterne Professor and Chairman, Indiana University School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry. He specializes in studying brain injuries and chronic traumatic...

An overview of the failed bill, Trumpcare, also known as Ryancare or the American Health Care Act, AHCA. A teacherly explanation of how the AHCA would have changed Obamacare.

Many, many studies conclude that investing in public health is more effective than continually increasing spending on expensive treatments. So why doesn't the US spend more on public health?

There's a big study out from The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Systematic Review. Meta Analysis. Trial sequential analysis. This one’s got it all!

A surprising amount of spending on healthcare in America is wasteful - we’ve talked about that before. In today’s episode, we discuss different approaches to reducing that waste, and potential barriers standing in the way.

The Trump Administration's EPA has shown a propensity to ease regulations on polluting industries, in hopes of increasing economic output. Pollution has a lot of very well studied impacts on health, and those health problems can decrease...

The FDA's drug approval process is pretty good at determining which drugs are safe and effective. What the FDA doesn't look into is how similar drugs compare to one another. If there are three competing blood pressure drugs on the...

Title X is a federally funded Family Planning Program that has been around since 1970 as part of the Public Health Service Act. Following new restrictions on healthcare providers in clinics receiving Title X funding, Planned Parenthood...

Yesterday's election results have a lot of impact on health care in the United States. The new Democratic House of Representatives and the ACA, expansion of Medicaid in red states, and medical and recreational marijuana are all affected...

This is part 4 in our series on the opioid crisis, presented with support from the NIHCM Foundation. We've talked about the state of the opioid crisis, deaths of despair, and the disappointing evidence about marijuana as a treatment for...

One of the original justifications for Medicare is that older people have much higher health care needs and expenses. But there are a few common misunderstandings about health costs when people are older, including the idea that money...

Administration of medical care is a huge driver of costs in the United States' healthcare system. Running hospitals, generating bills, and collecting payment are just a few of the activities that take up health providers' time, and run...

Political talk is getting more and more serious around Medicare for All in the United States. The argument, as usual comes down to costs. One of the advantages that proponents always bring up are the very low administrative costs of...

For a lot of doctors and patients, the physician's traditional white coat is a big part of a doctor's identity, and contributes to their authority. Those white coats can also spread disease! It turns out, fabrics in doctors coats can be...

Each year, the Lown Institute gives out the Shkreli Awards, named for disgraced and imprisoned "Pharma Bro" Martin Shkreli. The awards go to the perpetrators of the most egregious examples of dysfunction and profiteering in healthcare....

Scientists have put the human gene MCPH1 (which plays a role in brain development) into monkey embryos through a virus that contained the gene. Sounds like a movie, right?

We’ve scoured the data for you when it comes to Vitamin D supplements, coming up empty-handed almost every time. We know it doesn’t help with a variety of conditions, including those related to the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal...

Study after study affirms that doctors treat their patients differently, depending on the patient's race. Minority patients get different diagnoses, different treatments, and are often subject to being stereotyped by their physicians.

Drinking during pregnancy is roundly frowned upon, for good reason. It's a huge risk factor for lots of post-natal problems. But prevention can be counter intuitive. Strong prohibitions and punitive measures for pregnant women who drink...

Pregnancy can be a scary time for many reasons, one of which is having so many things feel off-limits for the safety of the fetus. But what about vaccines? Especially the Covid-19 vaccine? To understand the answer to this question you...

Last year we did an episode on the third annual Shkreli Awards from the Lown Institute - ten examples of profiteering and dysfunction in healthcare. The ins and outs of the healthcare system are the bread and butter of this channel, so...

Medicare for All, which would extend health coverage to all Americans, has been a hot topic of debate in recent years. Researchers have looked into the many ways that a switch to Medicare for All might change our lives, and one of those...