Building Healthy Communities with Bechara Choucair

Health care is poised at a pivotal moment. The COVID-19 pandemic has turned so many of our previous assumptions and practices upside down. And it has revealed to us, with painful clarity, our shortcomings. But this time has also opened up a rare chance to recast the future. So as we emerge from the pandemic, we don’t have to go back to where we were. In fact, we shouldn’t. We have a chance now not just to tinker around the edges, to make small improvements, but to reimagine healthcare and redefine health itself.

In this final episode of season 2, Jodie Lesh breaks down our biggest opportunities and most urgent priorities with Kaiser Permanente’s Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer, Dr. Bechara Choucair. Dr. Choucair has pursued healthcare transformation at the smallest and largest scales, through his work as a family physician and, more recently, as President Biden’s national vaccine coordinator in the White House. He and Jodie explore what it would look like if our healthcare providers could address our complete scope of needs, including physical, mental and social health. And how we can go from caring for individuals to also elevating the well-being of entire communities and ultimately our country.