the host
Julie Rovner KFF Health News Follow
Julie Rovner is a 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 acclaimed reference book, “Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z,” now in its third edition.
In a decision that will surely be remembered as a landmark one, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority this week overturned a 40-year-old precedent that required justices to defer to federal agency expertise in most cases. It’s unclear how the repeal of so-called “Chevron deference” will affect the day-to-day work of the federal government, but the decision is already sending shockwaves through the policymaking community. Administration experts say it will dramatically change the way key health agencies such as the FDA and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services do business.
The Supreme Court also decided this week not to rule on an Idaho case that asked whether a federal health law requiring hospitals to provide emergency care overrides the state’s near-total ban on abortion.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and Nursing and Politico Magazine, Victoria Knight of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.
Panelists
Here are some lessons learned from this week’s episode:
In 1984, the Supreme Court broadly ruled that courts should defer to federal agency decisions when ambiguous laws are challenged. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that courts, not federal agencies, should have the final say. The decision will make federal law even harder to enforce. It also draws attention to the fact that Congress, often overtly, leaves much of the work of turning written law into reality to federal agencies. This isn’t the only Supreme Court decision this week with significant health implications. On Thursday, the Supreme Court temporarily restored access to emergency abortions in Idaho. But like its decision on abortion pills, the decision was on a technicality, and similar cases, such as one challenging Texas’ abortion ban, are on the way. In another decision, the Supreme Court invalidated a major opioid settlement agreement, effectively allowing the federal government to petition social media companies to remove falsehoods. Additionally, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case about transgender medical care for minors next term. The first general election debate of the 2024 presidential election cycle has left abortion activists frustrated with supporters of both parties. Opponents were not pleased with former President Donald Trump’s strengthening of his position that abortion should be left to the states, and abortion rights advocates felt that President Joe Biden did not forcefully counter Trump’s outlandish lies about abortion, and that Biden himself did not take a strong enough stance on abortion rights.
Plus, for “extra credit,” panelists will suggest health policy articles they read this week that they think readers should read too.
Julie Rovner: The Washington Post’s “Mask-wearing goes from mandatory to criminal in some states,” by Fenit Nirapil.
Victoria Knight: The New York Times’ “The Opaque Industry that Secretly Inflates Prescription Drug Prices,” by Rebecca Robbins and Reed Abelson.
Joan Kennen: “Social Security Administration to eliminate outdated job used to deny disability benefits,” Washington Post, by Lisa Lane.
Alice Miranda Olstein: Politico’s “50 Percent Increase in Opioid Deaths During Pandemic; Deaths Fall in These Areas,” by Ruth Rieder.
Also mentioned in this week’s podcast:
“Inside the $100 Million Plan to Restore Abortion Rights in America,” Politico, by Alice Miranda Olstein; “Use of Oral Contraception and Emergency Contraception After the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs Decision,” JAMA Network Open, by Dima M. Cato, Rebecca Myerson, Andrew Shoushtari et al.; “Changes in Young Adult Permanent Contraception Procedures After Dobbs,” JAMA Health Forum, by Jacqueline E. Ellison, Brittany L. Brown Podgorski, and Jake R. Morgan; “Infant Deaths Following Texas’ 2021 First-Trimester Abortion Ban,” JAMA Pediatrics, by Allison Gemmill, Claire E. Margerison, Elizabeth A. Stewart et al.
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Frances Ng Audio Producer Emmalie Hüttemann Editor