The Cost Curve, Flu, and Other News
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan discuss the outlook for U.S. healthcare spending over the next five years, the state of seasonal and avian flu, and an expensive AI-based cardiac test. Show notes: Life expectancy and expenditures ACOs and cost savings World Prematurity Day AI concerns Bird flu Cardiology and AI Free speech and drug promotion Medicare premiums In the Yale School of Management’s , you’ll get a full MBA education in 22 months while applying new skills to your organization in real time. Yale's offers a rigorous public health education for working...
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Jerry Avorn: Countering the Drug Marketing Machine
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Harvard internist Jerry Avorn to discuss his research on the pharmaceutical industry and his work promoting evidence-based prescribing. Harlan highlights new results from the American Heart Association meeting, including a one-time CRISPR-based therapy for high cholesterol; Howie reports on an outbreak of infant botulism. Show notes: Research from the American Heart Association Meeting Jerry Avorn Infant Botulism In the Yale School of Management’s , you’ll get a full MBA education in 22 months while applying new skills to your...
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Ali Rahimi: A Cardiologist in Your Pocket
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by cardiologist Ali Rahimi, the founder of ALYKA Health, which uses a personalized mobile app to help patients manage their heart health between doctor's visits. Harlan discusses new developments in GLP-1 obesity drugs, including untested microdose treatments; Howie reviews a landmark study investigating whether broad prostate cancer screening saves lives. Show notes: GLP-1 Drugs Ali Rahimi New Evidence on Prostate Cancer Screening and Breast Cancer Treatment In the Yale School of Management’s , you’ll get a full MBA education in 22...
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Nate Wood: Cooking Lessons for Better Health
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Nate Wood, a Yale School of Medicine internist and trained chef, to discuss his work combining lifestyle guidance with hands-on training in making healthy, tasty food. Harlan shares new guidance on what counts as a healthy blood pressure; Howie provides an update on rising health insurance costs. Links: Blood Pressure Obesity Drugs Culinary Medicine Health Insurance Costs .
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Akiko Iwasaki: What Have We Learned About Long COVID?
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Yale School of Medicine immunologist Akiko Iwasaki, a leading authority on vaccines and long COVID. Harlan reflects on America’s crisis of trust in federal agencies; Howie provides some good news about bird flu. Links: Losing Trust Akiko Iwasaki Bird Flu .
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Rajlakshmi Krishnamurthy: Coordinated Care, Better Care
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Rajlakshmi Krishnamurthy, the Yale School of Medicine's associate dean for population health, to discuss her work building holistic systems for care at multiple institutions. Harlan discusses healthcare headlines including the launch of "TrumpRX"; Howie reports on a new study taking a novel approach to understanding the impact of the COVID-19 vaccine. Links: Healthcare Headlines Population Health The COVID-19 Vaccine .
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Crowded Emergency Rooms and Other News
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan discuss the roots of the crisis in emergency departments, the lack of oversight for hydration spas, new approaches in blood pressure treatment, an ingenious method to prevent malaria, and the CDC’s backward steps on vaccines. Links: Emergency Departments The Revolving Door Hydration Spas New Developments in Blood Pressure Treatment AI in Medicine: Doximity, OpenEvidence, and UpToDate Congenital syphilis MMR Vaccine Nobel Prizes and Science at Yale .
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Vanessa Cooper: The Science of Headaches
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Vanessa Cooper, a Yale School of Medicine neurologist, to discuss the causes of migraines and promising new treatments for the disorder. Harlan discusses his approach as a journal editor to the use of AI in academic writing; Howie reports on the premium tax credits for insurance purchased through Affordable Care Act exchanges that are at stake in the government shutdown. Links: The Government Shutdown Headaches ACA Tax Credits and the Government Shutdown .
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Kate Heilpern: Jumping into the Deep End
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Kate Heilpern, president of Yale New Haven Hospital, to discuss the innovation and adaption needed to lead NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital through the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and how Yale New Haven Health structures itself to provide quality care across five hospitals. Harlan reflects on the many biotech startups emerging from Yale; Howie responds to the Trump administration's assertion of a link between acetaminophen and autism. Links: Biotech at Yale and Beyond . Kate Heilpern Tylenol and Autism .
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Barry Wu: The Questions to Ask the Elderly
Health & Veritas
Howie and Harlan are joined by Yale School of Medicine geriatrician Barry Wu, who provides a framework for family caregivers and physicians to understand the needs of older adults. Harlan reports on Congress's shifting approach to funding research; Howie reflects on a survey showing that many college students believe that violence is an acceptable way to protest a campus speaker. Links: Congressional Directives on Funding Research Supporting Older Adults Violence and Speech ACA Subsidies .
info_outlineHowie and Harlan discuss the alarming healthcare cuts proposed in the budget bill currently moving through Congress, recent breakthroughs in HIV prevention and diabetes treatment, and the stark contrast between scientific progress and the deep structural flaws in the U.S. healthcare system.
Links:
The Budget Bill
H.R.1—119th Congress (2025-2026)
“A List of Nearly Everything in the Senate G.O.P. Bill, and How Much It Would Cost or Save”
“Senate passes Trump’s tax-cut bill that would slash Medicaid spending”
“5 ways Trump's tax bill will limit health care access”
“Murkowski Casts Decisive Vote for G.O.P. Policy Bill, Making an ‘Agonizing’ Choice”
“Mapping Hospital Employment By State”
“Health Care Just Became the U.S.'s Largest Employer”
The Budget Bill and Universities
Yale Office of the Provost: “Actions in anticipation of federal legislation”
“Yale pauses hiring, tightens budget in anticipation of endowment tax hike”
“Yale Is Rushing to Sell Billions in Private Equity Investments”
“Trump Has Targeted These Universities. Why?”
“Republican Plan to Tax Elite Colleges Could Hit in Unexpected Places”
“The NIH’s drastic cut to indirect cost rates is a critical threat to U.S. research infrastructure”
The 340B Drug Program
Congressional Research Service: Overview of the 340B Drug Discount Program
“J&J suffers a loss over 340B drug discount program”
“ Beyond the Sloganeering—A Data-Driven Analysis of Recent 340B Growth”
American Hospital Association: Fact Sheet: The 340B Drug Pricing Program
PhRMA: The 340B Hospital Markup Program
A Stem Cell Treatment for Diabetes
“Stem Cell-Derived Islet Therapies Shown to Reduce the Need for Injectable Insulin”
“Kennedy Says ‘Charlatans’ Are No Reason to Block Unproven Stem Cell Treatments”
Mayo Clinic: “Stem cells: What they are and what they do”
“Stem Cell–Derived, Fully Differentiated Islets for Type 1 Diabetes”
Medicare Advantage and the VA
“Insurers Collected Billions From Medicare for Veterans Who Cost Them Almost Nothing”
“Lawmakers Seek to Close VA Loophole That Funnels Billions to Private Medicare Insurers”
A New HIV Drug
HIV.gov: A Timeline of HIV and AIDS
“HIV protection with just two shots a year: FDA approves Gilead drug”
“Shuttering of USAID Will Lead to Millions of Deaths Around the World: Studies”
Kennedy v. Braidwood
Health & Veritas Episode 84: Abbe Gluck: The Legal Determinants of Health
“Supreme Court Upholds Preventive Services Requirement Under ACA”
The Big Picture for U.S. Healthcare
“The Perfect Storm has Hit U.S. Healthcare”
Exercise and Cancer
“Structured Exercise after Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Colon Cancer”
Learn more about the MBA for Executives program at Yale SOM.