Welcome to the first episode in a new, limited podcast series exploring major policy changes affecting older adults. The episode is part of our Age-Friendly Health series, which explores topics at the intersection of aging, health, health care, and health policy.

In our first episode, host Katherine Ornstein welcomes Hemi Tewarson of the National Academy for State Health Policy to discuss how The Big Beautiful Bill will impact Medicaid and state health policies affecting older adults. Their conversation explores work requirements, Medicaid financing changes, rural health investments, the sustainability of age‑friendly services, and more.

Support for the Age-Friendly Health series is provided by The John A. Hartford Foundation.

Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks with Cynthia Strathmann of SAJE about her recent paper that examines how climate impacts such as extreme heat affect low‑income renters and what policymakers can do to balance climate adaptation with housing stability.

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Health Affairs Publishing’s Rob Lott speaks with Maud Powell of Oregon State University about her recent paper examining stress and anxiety among farmers and ranchers and the interventions that may help address these challenges.

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In this episode of Behind the Pages, Health Affairs Publishing's Margaret Winchester interviews theme issue advisor Sacoby Wilson of The University of Maryland about key themes from the May Health Affairs issue on climate, health, and equity, with a focus on community‑led approaches, health system interventions, and scalable policy solutions to address climate‑related health risks.

Order the May 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Join Health Affairs Publishing on May 6th for a free virtual event discussing research, insights, data, and takeaways from the May 2026 theme issue on climate, health, and equity.

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Health Affairs Publishing's Rob Lott interviews Jason Buxbaum of Brown University about his recent paper that explores new research on administrative spending in U.S. health insurance and why it varies so widely across states and markets.

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Health Affairs Publishing's Rob Lott interviews Andrew Anderson of Johns Hopkins University about his recent paper that explores new research on the Medicare Advantage Star Ratings program and how effectively it has driven quality improvement over time.

Sign up for our free Health Affairs newsletters to stay up to date on health policy news and analysis.

Order the April 2026 issue of Health Affairs.

Health Affairs' Rob Lott interviews James Robinson of the University of California Berkeley about his recent paper exploring most favored nation drug pricing, weighing its feasibility, likely effects on drug launch prices, and implications for global pharmaceutical innovation and investment.

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On a special emergency pod episode of Health Affairs This Week coming to you on the A Health Podyssey feed, Health Affairs Publishing’s Jeff Byers welcomes Brown University's David Meyers to the pod to unpack the 2027 Medicare Advantage final payment rule, including the higher-than-anticipated rate increase, changes to risk adjustment models, what is V28, and the tradeoffs between market stability and long-term program sustainability.

To view an Insider Cheat Sheet on the MA rule, purchase Insider.

On April 20th, join us for our upcoming Insider exclusive event exploring the evolution of the Medicare Advantage market featuring Sachin Jain, David Meyers, and Grace Mackleby.

Related Links:

• Assessing Recent Regulatory Action On Medicare Advantage (Health Affairs Forefront)