@tradeoffs.org
Journalism that explores the complicated, costly, and often counterintuitive world of health care. New podcast episodes every Thursday, hosted by Dan Gorenstein. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter: tradeoffs.org/subscribe
We spoke with physician and writer @bobwachter.bsky.social about why he’s cautiously optimistic that artificial intelligence will usher in a ‘golden age’ of medicine — and the questions he still has about these powerful new tools.
tradeoffs.org/2026/03/05/w...
Immigration enforcement is posing twin threats to healthcare for immigrants.
Patients are afraid to show up to medical appointments. Plus, doctors, nurses, and home health aids are being detained, deported or losing their visa status.
Patients are afraid to show up to medical appointments, while workers are being detained, deported or losing their visa statuses.
What happens to people's health and to the health care system when immigrants become federal targets?
Today, join Tradeoffs Founder and Executive Editor Dan Gorenstein at "Cogent & Concise: Finding the Story in Your Study," part of the Medicaid Insights Colloquium series.
🗓️ Feb. 25, from 11 a.m. to noon PST
📍 Online, register via the link below:
medicaidinsightscolloquium.com
🎧Listen to LDI Fellow Maggie Lowenstein in this episode of the @tradeoffs.org podcast. ⬇️
On the latest @tradeoffs.org podcast, @jenkatesdc.bsky.social discusses states breaking from CDC vaccine guidance — and how this split could shape public health across the U.S.
Listen now: https://on.kff.org/4tSxenk
After decades of agreement on vaccine policy, states and the federal government have abruptly split.
We interviewed doctors, policymakers and researchers about how they’re adapting to this new, splintered landscape.
tradeoffs.org/2026/02/19/a...
Did you know Tradeoffs is on Apple News?
You can now get Tradeoffs episodes, articles and events delivered right to your Apple phone, iPad or computer.
Follow our channel now: https://apple.news/TqZbur7r0R_-pXSNuZo08ag
Half of states have rejected federal vaccine guidance on childhood vaccines after controversial changes by the CDC. Public health experts say the split is sowing confusion and increasing the risk of outbreaks.
Learn why in Tradeoffs' latest episode:
Getting older adults the help they need to recover from addiction is hard.
“You fall in between the cracks,” said Phyllis Lindsay, a peer specialist at REACH Health Services, a Baltimore methadone clinic that serves older adults grappling with addiction.
We're thrilled to share that fundraising and strategy expert Eleanor Kootsey has joined Tradeoffs as the organization’s first Managing Director of Partnerships and Growth.
Read more about the work she'll be leading at Tradeoffs:
One addiction clinic in Baltimore has found success combining addiction care with support for the many other health problems older Americans often face.
tradeoffs.org/2026/02/12/a...
America is aging and so is its opioid epidemic.
In todays new episode, we go inside one clinic catching some of those people falling through the cracks and explore what it would take to make care better for more Americans aging with addiction.
Listen:
Nationwide, people with serious mental illness are jailed 2 million times a year. California families hoped CARE Court could compel their loved ones into treatment instead of jail.
Now, many who initially cheered CARE Court have now become disillusioned.
How do you help someone who doesn’t want help?
June Dudas turned to California's CARE Court after 40 years of trying to help her schizophrenic cousin. Her hopes and heartbreaks are shared by many families who try to get treatment for their loved ones.
Last November, every state in the nation pitched the Trump administration for how to spend $50 billion to transform rural health care.
The ideas the White House liked best would get more money. It was a competition.
How did Maryland fare?
Listen: tradeoffs.org/2026/01/29/o...
In today's episode of Tradeoffs, hear how California's bold new program to help people with serious mental illness failed to meet expectations... and what it means for the families left searching for help.
Listen:
Elizabeth Kromm spent the end of last year locked in a $50 billion competition.
The prize: a windfall to make progress on longstanding barriers to health that lead rural Americans to live sicker and die younger than their metropolitan counterparts.
As part of the Medicaid Insights Colloquium, @dgorenstein.bsky.social will speak on how he helps researchers and experts distill complex concepts into clear, compelling narratives.
🗓️ Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026 11 a.m. to noon, PST
Register: www.medicaidinsightscolloquium.com
In part two of our look at a huge, one-time investment in rural health, we explored how a top health official in Maryland looked to make the most of it.
The White House asked states to compete for a rare pot of new money dedicated to transforming health care across rural America.
We got a look inside Maryland’s bid in a $50 billion competition for rural health funding.
tradeoffs.org/2026/01/29/i...
In this week's episode of Tradeoffs, Maryland learns how much it will get from a nationwide competition for federal rural health investment — and more hard choices arise.
Listen or read the transcript:
The federal government gave states 52 days to apply for new rural health funding.
“We can build on the work that we’ve already been doing to serve rural communities, and we don’t want to miss out on that," said Maryland health official Elizabeth Kromm.
This month marks the start of a nationwide experiment to give health care in rural America a $50 billion makeover.
Here’s what you need to know about the Rural Health Transformation Program:
For seven weeks late last year, Elizabeth Kromm had one job: figure out how to ask the White House for $1 billion for rural health care in Maryland.
"There’s a game to be played, and we have to figure out how to play it and then how to win it."
tradeoffs.org/2026/01/22/o...
The Trump administration announced how much money each state will receive under an ambitious 5-year initiative known as the Rural Health Transformation Program.
We broke down the key takeaways of the program and the first round of state awards.
tradeoffs.org/2026/01/22/w...
States will soon get their first payout from a new $50 billion fund that Congress created to bolster rural health care.
We followed Maryland's 52-day rush to convince the Trump administration to give the state new funding to transform rural health care.
tradeoffs.org/2026/01/22/o...
A 2024 Supreme Court decision gave cities the greenlight to forcibly remove people from the streets.
What are the health consequences of forcing people to leave their homes on the streets and how can cities minimize risks while still clearing encampments?
tradeoffs.org/2025/11/20/h...
Some of the most powerful new medicines pose a host of challenges for drug companies trying to copy and sell similar versions on the cheap.
Can those companies find a sustainable path forward, or will patients get left stuck paying exorbitant prices?
tradeoffs.org/2024/09/26/r...
2025 was a consequential year. Our Founder and Executive Editor @dgorenstein.bsky.social shared a message about why he's proud of the work Tradeoffs has done.
Read the letter from the editor:
tradeoffs.org/2026/01/15/l...