Raymond McBride, Author At Healthy News

Google flexes its health care AI muscle

Illustration of a robot arm lifting a medical cross

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

Google showed off an array of new artificial intelligence (AI)-driven health care tools on Tuesday, from a souped-up chatbot that can shed light on your medical symptoms to enhanced search features that tell you if a doctor takes Medicaid.

Why it matters: There’s an arms race among big tech companies to infuse their products with AI — but the results, particularly in health care, can have unwanted consequences or pitfalls, like racial bias, privacy concerns and ethical problems.

Driving the news: The “large language model” that Google has been building for the medical world — an AI chatbot called Med-PaLM 2 — now consistently passes medical exam questions with a score of 85{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f}, placing it at “expert” doctor level, the company said.

That’s an 18{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f} improvement from the system’s previous performance, per the company, and “far surpasses similar AI models.”
A rival generative AI tool, ChatGPT, also passed the medical exams — but just barely. (ChatGPT’s creator, OpenAI, just released a new, more powerful version of its underlying tech.)
Google’s system is being trained to “retrieve medical knowledge, accurately answer medical questions, and provide reasoning,” the company says.

Yes, but: Google acknowledges AI’s shortcomings in the medical realm.

“There’s still a lot of work to be done to make sure [Med-PaLM 2] can work in real-world settings,” reads a blog post from Yossi Matias, a Google vice president of engineering and research, and Greg Corrado, its head of health AI.
Google found “significant gaps” when the tool was “tested against 14 criteria — including scientific factuality, precision, medical consensus, reasoning, bias and harm,” per the post.
“We look forward to working with researchers and the global medical community to close these gaps and understand how this technology can help improve health delivery.”

Meanwhile: Google’s conversational AI technology Duplex has called hundreds of thousands of U.S. health care providers to see if they accept Medicaid. The results are being displayed in Google Search, ahead of a March 31 re-enrollment deadline.

Google Search results will also soon highlight “providers that identify as community health centers offering free or low-cost care,” the company said.
And an improved version of Fitbit’s health metrics dashboard will soon be available — in some cases without a subscription — to help people map changes and trends in their breathing rate, skin temperature and blood oxygen.

What they’re saying: “The future of health is consumer-driven,” Karen DeSalvo, Google’s chief health officer, told reporters.

“People will expect a mobile-first experience with more personalized insights, services and care.”

Zoom out: Google is also deploying AI tools to help offer high-quality, low-cost medical diagnostics globally.

Ultrasound devices with Google AI are being used to detect breast cancer in Taiwan and determine gestational age in expectant mothers in Kenya.
Another Google AI tool that checks chest X-rays for signs of tuberculosis is being rolled out in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A schematic image of an ultrasound of a pregnant uterus and a screen that shows gestational age. — Google’s AI-powered ultrasound system. Image: Courtesy of Google

Between the lines: The company is acutely aware of criticisms that “Dr. Google” can sometimes lead users to misleading or dangerous health guidance.

Another new YouTube feature helps people “find human answers” to their health questions, said Garth Graham, director and head of health care and public health at Google/YouTube.

Google also announced a partnership with ThroughLine, which connects users to free mental health crisis support in more than 100 countries.

“This will increase the number of crisis helplines that appear at the top of search results,” reads a blog post from DeSalvo. The feature is aimed at “searches related to suicide, domestic violence and other personal crisis topics.”

The big picture: Even as they take breathtaking strides toward improving health care with AI, tech companies and others have been stumbling with what they’ve unleashed.

Older people covered by Medicare Advantage are finding their benefits cut off by AI algorithms no matter how dire their medical needs, a Stat News investigation found.
Verily Life Sciences, a unit of Google parent company Alphabet that focuses on treatment personalization, started laying off staff in January, per the Wall Street Journal.

On the plus side, AI is starting to detect breast cancers that radiologists miss, as the New York Times reports.

The development is “one of the most tangible signs to date of how AI can improve public health,” per the Times — yet the technology produces too many false positives and still needs to “show it can produce accurate results on women of all ages, ethnicities and body types.”

The bottom line: Medicine will always need to rely on a healthy mix of technology and human know-how.

“AI on its own cannot solve all of health care’s problems,” Alan Karthikesalingam, the surgeon-scientist who leads Google Health’s machine learning research group, said Tuesday.
“Medicine, after all, is about caring for people.”

Fitness influencer Brittany Dawn accused of scamming clients vows to ‘fight back’

A Texas social media influencer accused of scamming clients who purchased her online fitness and nutrition program is now facing trial in Dallas, and she says she’s ready to “fight back.”

Brittany Dawn Davis, a fitness influencer and owner of Brittany Dawn Fitness LLC who has since adopted a more faith-based approach to her social media presence, is accused of misleading clients who signed up to receive her customized fitness and nutrition packages.

“[M]y time to fight back is here,” Davis, who now goes by Brittany Dawn Nelson on her social media pages, wrote in a Monday Instagram post. “…[J]ust over 4 years. [T]hat’s how long I’ve remained composed, silent, and have patiently waited on the Lord. 35,856 hours of my life that I have wept with reverence for Him as I kept hearing ‘do not speak up yet’ as I sat wayside while strangers on the internet slandered, harassed, defamed, stalked, and destroyed my reputation.”

Davis added that though she has “remained silent” while social media users “invent narratives” about her and “come after” her home, family, and life, “they have no idea who they’re messing with.”

Fitness influencer Brittany Dawn accused of scamming clients vows to ‘fight back’ — Texas social media influencer, Brittany Dawn Davis, who is accused of scamming clients through her online fitness and nutrition program is now facing trial in Dallas.

“[T]here is a fire building within my heart – like a lion roaring on the inside of me,” she wrote. “[I]f you think you’ll never be found behind an anonymous account and be held accountable for damages, threats, defamation, and slander… think again. Christians might be gentle, but we are not soft.”

The lawsuit filed against Davis and her fitness company alleges Davis did not deliver on the personalized fitness packages, coaching, and check-ins that she promised those who purchased one of her plans.

“Beginning in 2014, Defendants profited from the sale of online fitness packages to thousands of consumers with the promise of personalized nutritional guidance and individualized fitness coaching. Specifically, Defendants’ online fitness packages offered ‘macro’ nutritional assessments and, depending on the plan purchased, daily or weekly email training and one-on-one coaching. Defendants’ online nutrition and fitness packages ranged from $92.00 for one-time macro consultation to $300.00 for three months of personalized macros, training, and coaching,” the complaint against Davis states.

Brittany Dawn Davis. — The fitness influencer is accused of misleading clients who signed up to receive her customized fitness and nutrition packages.

Court filings in the case further state that "the vast majority" of more than $1.5 million deposits to Brittany Dawn Davis' PayPayl account. — The lawsuit alleges Davis did not deliver on the personalized fitness packages, coaching, and check-ins that she promised.

But the packages for clients “were not individualized,” plaintiffs allege, and Dawn “failed to provide the promised coaching and check-ins” to her clients.

“Defendants largely ignored consumer complaints or, if they did respond, offered only partial refunds. In 2019, consumers’ complaints on social media garnered media attention prompting Defendant Davis to make a video apology posted to YouTube. Defendants promptly took the website down,” the lawsuit says.

Her trial was scheduled to begin on March 6 but was postponed indefinitely.

Meanwhile, Davis has embarked on a new entrepreneurial journey as the founder of She Lives Freed – a team of 14 women who organize women’s faith retreats that cost $600 per person.

“She Lives Freed was founded by Brittany Dawn after the Lord radically changed her life in 2019, from darkness to light. Her mission is to share the gospel of Jesus, cultivate a community of sisters, and walk alongside women into freedom through the love of our Savior,” the She Lives Freed website states.

The first women’s retreat took place in Austin in January 2021. Since then, the organization has hosted five more retreats, with the next taking place in Oklahoma, according to the website.

Pediatric Medical Devices Global Market Report 2023:

Dublin, March 15, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The “Pediatric Medical Devices Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Cardiology Devices, In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) Devices, Diagnostic Imaging Devices), By End-user, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2023 – 2030” report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com’s offering.

The global pediatric medical devices market size is expected to reach USD 51.9 billion by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 7.8{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f} over the forecast period. The rising prevalence of chronic diseases among children such as asthma, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, epilepsy, and technological advancements in pediatric medical devices are the major growth-propelling factors for the market.

Pediatric medical devices diagnose or treat diseases from birth through adolescence. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act consist of pediatric patients aged 21 or younger at the time of the treatment. In the U.S., the commercialization and development of pediatric medical devices lag significantly behind the medical devices for adults. In the last few years, only 24{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f} of lifesaving medical devices have been approved by the FDA that can be used for childcare, and the majority of its users are 12 years and above.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put the medical device industry at the center with unparalleled demand for personal protective equipment, diagnostic tests, ventilators, and other critical medical supplies. However, the pediatric medical device industry is highly impacted by the substantial decrease in the number of surgeries, many of which are being canceled or postponed so that hospitals and clinics can focus their resources on treating COVID-19 patients. The reopening of manufacturing units and supply-chain is expected to grow the market of pediatric medical devices.

The development and design of pediatric medical devices continue to be an exciting field. There are only a few pediatric devices in the market which is forcing pediatric professionals to suggest alternative ways of treating children using devices mainly made for adults.

Pediatric medical devices cover a wide range of indications and risks associated with child care. It also helps to reduce disease burden and improve the quality of life for many children.

Various innovation competitions took place to support new and advanced pediatric medical devices. For instance, since 2013, the “Make Your Medical Device Pitch for Kids” international competition has focused on supporting and identifying innovations that will make a substantial improvement in pediatric care.

Pediatric Medical Devices Market Highlights

The anesthesia and respiratory care devices segment is expected to showcase the fastest CAGR over the forecast period as it is a commonly used product among children
In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) Devices segment held the largest share as of 2022 owing to the accurate and error-free diagnostic through the product
The pediatric clinics segment is expected to showcase lucrative CAGR over the forecast period as these clinics are especially focused on children’s care
The hospitals held the largest share as of 2022 owing to the high number of patient admission in the hospitals

Key Attributes:

Report Attribute	Details
No. of Pages	110
Forecast Period	2022 – 2030
Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2022	$28.4 Billion
Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2030	$51.9 Billion
Compound Annual Growth Rate	7.8{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f}
Regions Covered	Global

Key Topics Covered:

Chapter 1 Methodology and Scope

Chapter 2 Executive Summary

Chapter 3 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: Variables, Trends, & Scope

Chapter 4 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: Product Segment Analysis
4.1 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: Market Share Analysis, 2022 & 2030
4.1.1 Cardiology Devices
4.1.2 In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) Devices
4.1.3 Diagnostic Imaging Devices
4.1.4 Anesthesia And Respiratory Care Devices
4.1.5 Neonatal Icu Devices
4.1.6 Others

Chapter 5 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: End-User Segment Analysis
5.1 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: Market Share Analysis, 2022 & 2030
5.1.1 Hospitals
5.1.2 Pediatric Clinics
5.1.3 Ambulatory Surgical Centers
5.1.4 Others

Chapter 6 Pediatric Medical Devices Market: Regional Analysis

Chapter 7 Company Profiles

Companies Mentioned

TSE MEDICAL
Ningbo David Medical Device Co. Ltd
Hamilton Medical
GE Healthcare
Fritz Stephan GmbH
Phoenix Medical Systems Pvt Ltd
Novonate Inc.
Trimpeks
Atom Medical Corporation
Abbott
Medtronic PLC

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/jlcphr

About ResearchAndMarkets.com
ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world’s leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Global Pediatric Medical Devices Market

‘Eating disorders are not lifestyle choices’: Why many people share a complicated relationship with food

Kritika Ghai was first diagnosed with binge-eating disorder when she was merely 12 years. Since birth, she had an enlarged adenoid that blocked her nose pipe, making her gain weight. Her suffering was further exacerbated by her inability to perform any kind of exercise, owing to her irregular breathing patterns. As such, as a child, she was put on various extreme diets to manage her weight. This forced her to eat large amounts of food — rapidly and secretively. “Not knowing what I was going through, eating became a way to validate my emotions,” she said, adding that the pandemic-induced anxiety only led to her eating even more food during stressful and lonely times.

Finally, she consulted a nutritionist who helped her develop healthy eating patterns. Ghai was advised to not curb her cravings and eliminate the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ food in order to stop associating eating with guilt and shame. “I started seeing my body as a structure that supported me and this perspective enabled me to develop a healthy body image,” she said. Finally, after years of battling with this binge-eating disorder, she has developed a healthy relationship with food by eating regular meals, exercising and food-mapping, a technique which involves charting your daily meals in a journal to keep a track of what you’re eating.

Similarly, Pranshu Mishra developed binge-eating disorder due to polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), stress, and an excessive study load in eleventh grade. “You just don’t stop at one single serving; you just mindlessly eat even if you feel discomfort,” Mishra said, calling eating disorders “a tug of war between the stomach and brain”.

While eating her favourite food induced happy hormones in her body, she would feel immense guilt immediately after consumption, leading her to starve herself for hours before repeating the same cycle, she admitted.

Ann, on the other hand, developed bulimia — a serious eating disorder marked by bingeing, followed by methods to avoid weight gain — in 2007. “I have been a chubby kid all my life because of which I faced a lot of bullying. It reached a point where people made snide remarks like ‘do people in your house get to eat food or do you eat it all?’ or ‘go for a walk.’ This massively affected me, and I stopped eating in front of people,” she told indianexpress.com. Owing to her condition, she used to excessively work out which made her lose weight drastically. “I felt very weak and light-headed all the time,” she said.

To understand more about the mental and physical aspects of such eating disorders, we reached out to experts, who emphasised that these disorders are not lifestyle choices. Dr Aparna Ramakrishnan, Psychiatry Consultant, Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, Mumbai said, “Eating disorders are complex disorders associated with significant disturbances in an individual’s eating behaviours and related thoughts, emotions and attitudes which impair their physical, psychological health and psychosocial functioning. They can often be life-threatening.” She highlighted that the exact causation is elusive, but eating disorders are caused by a complex interaction of genetic, biological, behavioural, psychological and social factors.

Agreeing, Dr Meghana Pasi, Nutrition Consultant, MyThali Program, ArogyaWorld said, “Societal and peer pressure to achieve unrealistic body standards as well as people with low self-esteem and impulsive behaviour are at risk of developing eating disorders.” The expert said that nutritional counselling, psychotherapy and medications are some available treatment options.

Implementing these, Mishra sought nutritional advice from a dietitian who asked her to eat at regular intervals and practise mindful eating, a technique which makes you pay closer attention to your food and how it makes you feel, thereby helping you distinguish between physical and emotional hunger. Alongside, she also included physical activities such as swimming, yoga, and exercise in her routine which made her feel better about her body. “Earlier, people used to body shame me and call me different names, but after developing self-confidence, I am able to ignore their nasty remarks,” she said.

As for Ann, running was what changed her life for the better as it became a mechanism for her to lose weight in a healthy way, helping her achieve mental peace.

Does social media affect eating disorders?

‘Eating disorders are not lifestyle choices’: Why many people share a complicated relationship with food Social media plays a huge role in our relationship with food. (Source: Freepik)

Talking about the same, Dr Ramakrishnan said, “Exposure to media like fashion magazines, television and social media mediate thin-ideal internalisation and can be associated with the development of eating disorders. More time spent or frequent use of social media means more exposure to images, messages and peer interactions which can propagate body stereotypes.” She further explained that inaccurate visual media representation like the use of filters on photos and videos can raise the risk of eating disorders.

Moreover, after analysis of videos and chat groups across social media platforms, there is a worrying presence of ‘pro-ana’ and ‘pro-mia’ content which focus on anorexia and bulimia being lifestyle choices (that are to be respected) rather than being categorised as disorders, Dr Ramakrishnan said.

Agreeing, Dr Dinika Anand, Clinical Psychologist, BLK-Max Superspeciality Hospital said, “Social media plays a huge role in our relationship with food. On one end, social media projects the ideal body type and size, and on the other end, it glorifies and celebrates food through advertisements and food bloggers.”

The experts stressed that women are more likely to be affected by social pressure and unfavourable evaluations of their physical appearance. Moreover, gender stereotypes, especially the objectification and sexualisation of women, contribute to the emergence of eating disorders among them. Research published in The Journal of Treatment and Prevention in 2012 concurs with this claim as it showed that men are less likely to be diagnosed with an eating disorder even when they exhibit the same symptoms as women because eating disorders are considered generally ‘female’ disorders.

Here are some tips by experts that can help manage eating disorders:

*Keep meals on track
*Eat small portions of meals throughout the day
*Stop starving
*Do not restrict your urges
*Delete or limit the usage of food delivery applications
*Scroll through social media mindfully by engaging with body positivity and relatable content instead of unrealistic and curated feeds

📣 For more lifestyle news, follow us on Instagram | Twitter | Facebook and don’t miss out on the latest updates!

Include These Five Nutritious Dishes In Your Meals To Aid Weight Loss

Your diet does not necessarily need to undergo major changes, but you need to make a few healthy choices for food

A subtle tweak, like introducing a high-protein and fibre-rich diet and reducing the intake of carbohydrates, can help in losing weight

A healthy diet and a few lifestyle changes could help you achieve your weight loss goal faster. To shed those extra kilos, you have to be mindful of your diet and physical exercise routine. It may sound challenging at first, but gradually, you will get used to it. Your diet does not necessarily need to undergo major changes, but you need to make a few healthy choices for food.

A subtle tweak, like introducing a high-protein and fibre-rich diet and reducing the intake of carbohydrates, can help with your weight loss journey.

Here are 5 nutritious meals that may aid in weight loss:

Veggies and Hummus sandwich

A veggie and hummus sandwich makes a great fibre-rich lunch. Hummus is a spread or a dip that is made from cooked and mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and salt. You can pair it with any kind of bread or use it in sandwiches. Take a few slices of multi-grain bread and spread the hummus on all the slices. Add the vegetables like bell pepper, cucumber, lettuce, onion, and tomato slices to make a delicious sandwich.

Oats Khichdi

We all know that oats are healthy and should be a part of our regular diet. You can either eat it as porridge or just make a khichdi out of it. You can add dal and vegetables to make it healthier. Just add chopped carrots, onions, cauliflower, tomatoes, french beans and a few chillies. For extra flavour you can add garlic as well.

Upma

Upma is a flavourful and healthy dish that you can cook in a jiffy. It is a perfect meal option made of lightly roasted semolina, green peas, carrot and onions and lightly tempered with mustard seeds and curry leaves. Green Peas are high in protein content and low in calories. It is loaded with vitamins K and C, manganese and fibre.

Oats dosa

Switch the rice ingredient with oats and you can cut down on your carbs intake. Unlike typical dosa, oats do not need to be soaked. You can add soaked urad dal in a small quantity with oats for binding. Make a batter blending the urad dal and oats together. Let it ferment for 10-12 hours. You can make oats dosas and pair it with sambar and coconut chutney.

Besan Chilla

Besan Chilla is made with gram flour (besan), onions, tomatoes, herbs and spices. You can add finely chopped or grated vegetables to increase the nutrition of the dish. Have it for your breakfast or lunch .

Read all the Latest Lifestyle News here

Why Medicare politics are heating up : Shots

Prescription drug coverage is just one part of Medicare, the federal government’s health insurance program for people age 65 and over.

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Prescription drug coverage is just one part of Medicare, the federal government’s health insurance program for people age 65 and over.

d3sign/Getty Images

The White House released President Biden’s $6.8 trillion proposed budget last week, listing his priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. Among other things, Biden singled out Medicare — the federal health insurance program for people aged 65 or older. Republican leaders insist they won’t be threatening cuts to Medicare in upcoming budget negotiations, but others in the party have floated the idea of making changes over time to the program — including benefit cuts they say will be necessary to keep Medicare solvent.

NPR’s Michel Martin, as co-host of All Things Considered, sat down this week with veteran health care journalist Julie Rovner, of Kaiser Health News, to get a better sense of where the debate is headed over how to fund Medicare, an expensive, but popular program. The following excerpt of their conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

MARTIN: So, what is the issue here?

ROVNER: Medicare’s trustees say that within six years, the trust fund is going to run out of reserves, and so it won’t be able to pay all of the current benefits. So basically, in order to bring down the cost, you have three options: You can make the people who are on the program pay more, you can make taxpayers who help support the program pay more, or you can pay health care providers — doctors and hospitals and all those folks — less.

Everybody considers any of those things, “cuts,” although paying providers less is usually only considered a cut to the providers. If the cuts get too big, and the health care providers say “We’ll walk away from the program,” that’s a problem too.

But Medicare is very popular, and I think in the State of the Union, when the president said he wasn’t going to do anything to Medicare, people sort of slapped back and said, “But Medicare is going to go broke if we don’t do anything.” So in the budget, Biden said, well, here are a couple of things that we could do, none of which affect how much beneficiaries pay.

Biden says his budget plan would extend Medicare to 2050 without adding to the deficit

How seniors could lose in the Medicare political wars

MARTIN: What are the top lines of what President Biden’s proposing, in regards to Medicare?

ROVNER: It’s actually fairly small. Last year, for the first time, Medicare was given legal permission to negotiate the price of drugs. There is a short list of drugs. This budget would make the list longer, and it would have those negotiations happen faster. It would also raise a tax on very high-income earners — those earning over $400,000. The Biden budget would raise that Medicare tax from 3.8{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f} to 5{bf0515afdcaddba073662ceb89fbb62b6b1bf123143c0e06b788e1946e8c353f} on those high earners.

MARTIN: Republicans have said that they can balance the budget over the next decade, but won’t touch Medicare. Is that a credible stance?

ROVNER: It is, but only if they go after Medicaid — the actually larger public health insurance program for people with low incomes — and the subsidies on the Affordable Care Act, which the president has now also said he won’t go after. It is possible to balance the budget without touching Medicare or Social Security or raising taxes, but you would have to cut so much from the rest of the budget. That’s why we haven’t seen a Republican plan yet. They’re still trying to figure it out.

MARTIN: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has already said publicly that Biden’s plan to increase the Medicare tax on high earners, “will not see the light of day.” So what are we likely to see next?

ROVNER: Well, at some point, you know, the two parties are going to have to come together before the Medicare trust fund runs out of money. This is not the first time we’ve been within this close period where the trust fund could run out of money. It’s happened several times in the past. Eventually, the parties do get together and figure out some way to shore it up. And I’m sure that will happen this time, too, but I suspect this year is going to be more of a fight leading up to the 2024 elections.

MARTIN: The talks over the debt ceiling are approaching. The leaders of both parties have said that Medicare is off the table. But is it conceivable that Medicare won’t be implicated at some point in these talks?

ROVNER: No. Of course Medicare is going to be implicated at some point in these talks. First of all, what Republican leaders say is not necessarily what all of the Republican rank and file will do. That’s true of the Democrats, too, so it’s hard to imagine that Medicare won’t be put on the table in some way, shape or form.

Republicans say they won't cut Social Security. So why does it keep coming up?

MARTIN: So, what will you be paying attention to as these discussions continue over the next couple of weeks and months?

ROVNER: Something needs to be done to Medicare, lest it run out of money. So I think that pretty much the entire federal panoply of health programs is going to be up for discussion — and that’s what I’ll be watching.

MARTIN: I’m just wondering, is this the kind of subject that the public really can focus on, can really get galvanized around?

ROVNER: It can and it can’t. The trick is how this gets negotiated and how it gets presented to the public as to whether it will actually affect their health care.

Julie Rovner is the Washington correspondent for KHN and host of “What The Health?” — KHN’s weekly health policy news podcast. After nearly eight years of hosting Weekend All Things Considered, Michel Martin is taking on a new hosting role on NPR’s Morning Edition.