Public Health On Call
831 episodes - English - Latest episode: 18 days ago - ★★★★★ - 559 ratingsEvidence and experts to help you understand today’s public health news—and what it means for tomorrow.
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Episodes
653 - Back to School: How One K-8 School Is Getting Ready for the Fall
August 23, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 22 MBPrincipal Matt Hornbeck of Hampstead Hill Academy, an award-winning public K-8 school in Baltimore City, returns to the podcast to talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about gearing up for school. They discuss how students fared academically last year—and how the school is preparing to address chronic absenteeism and mental health challenges this fall.
652 - How to Extend Life Expectancy: Pay for Health, Not Just Health Care
August 21, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 22 MBAs life expectancy slips in the US, what can we do differently to improve overall well-being and health? For one thing: start paying for health care differently. Dr. Mai Pham, physician and president and CEO of the Institute for Exceptional Care, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about a new report from the National Academy of Medicine on the opportunity of innovation in payment: What if health insurance covered social needs? What if primary care clinicians were paid for extra time to help thos...
651 - The Indoor Air Quality Act: Mandating Clean Air in Public Spaces
August 18, 2023 13:22 - 12 minutes - 17.6 MBOutdoor air quality is a major concern but what about the safety of the air we breathe indoors in public spaces like schools and offices? Dr. Gigi Gronvall of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security returns to the podcast to talk with Stephanie Desmon about the threats of poor indoor air quality including spreading infectious diseases and particulate matter, and a new framework for states to consider how to mandate clean, filtered air in public spaces to keep people safe. Read more ab...
650 - How to Make Sure Food is Available in a Crisis
August 16, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 22 MBDuring the pandemic, it became clear that America’s vast and complex food system has weak spots and needs help from farm to table to be more resilient to shocks and stressors. Elsie Moore, a Johns Hopkins PhD candidate and researcher at the Center for a Livable Future talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about this “resiliency concept” and how some jurisdictions are thinking through their capacity to make sure food is available during emergencies from extreme weather and global unrest. Learn more ...
649 - Tradeoffs—988 Turns 1: Progress and Pain Points in National Crisis Line's First Year
August 14, 2023 10:00 - 26 minutes - 37.4 MBLast summer, Lifeline transitioned away from a 10-digit national suicide prevention number to the three-digit 988 line in hopes of making it easier for people experiencing a mental health crisis to call and text. One year after its launch, guest host Dan Gorenstein of the Tradeoffs podcast talks about the crisis line’s successes and where it's fallen short.
648 - Pandemic Learning Loss Will Take Years To Reverse
August 11, 2023 10:00 - 14 minutes - 20.8 MBMore than three years after COVID first shuttered schools, researchers are taking stock of how children are doing academically. Hopkins biostatistician Elizabeth Stuart speaks with Stephanie Desmon about their research about learning gaps and why it’s so important to invest in regaining lost ground while still letting kids be kids. She also explains how this data can help inform difficult policy decisions like school closures in the event of another public health emergency.
647 - The Zombie Episode: Pandemics in Science Fiction
August 09, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 25.4 MBWhat can we learn from depictions of pandemics in films and series like The Last of Us, I Am Legend, and Contagion? Dylan George, director of the new Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics at the CDC, recently participated in a panel at Awesome Con to discuss these and other depictions of dystopian realities in media. Dr. George talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about what these iconic pieces got right, where they took some creative liberties, and what they reveal about gaps in our own p...
645 - Taplines Podcast: Who Killed Four Loko?
August 07, 2023 21:21 - 50 minutes - 92.8 MBIf a product is available for sale, it’s probably safe. Right? Not so fast. Taplines podcast host Dave Infante talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about Four Loko, the popular caffeinated alcoholic drink from a decade ago, and his role as Deputy Commissioner of the FDA during the agency’s analysis of the safety of the beverage. This podcast was originally released by VinePair and the full video can be seen here: https://vinepair.com/taplines-podcast/four-loko/
646 - ChatGPT and Public Health
August 07, 2023 10:00 - 17 minutes - 24.6 MBChatGPT has lots of potential for use in public health, but how well does it actually perform? Public Health On Call intern Caroline Wang and Lindsay Smith Rogers discuss three potential uses—seeking personal medical advice, public health research for students, and as a practical resource for practitioners. They go over some specific prompts and analyze what the chatbot does well and where it’s limited. Caroline is a Masters of Health Science student at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of ...
EP 644 - From the Archives: What Do Diet Sodas Have to Do With Our Microbiome?
August 02, 2023 10:00 - 13 minutes - 18.7 MBEarlier this month, a WHO group declared that aspartame, a synthetic sweetener found in everything from breath mints to diet sodas, is a possible carcinogenic. While more data is needed to confirm the link, there is research showing that artificial sweeteners are not, as we thought, “metabolically inert” and do actually impact our gut health which can impact our overall health. In this episode from the archives, Hopkins microbiologist Dr. Jotham Suez talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the ...
643 - A Look Ahead at COVID, Flu, and RSV Vaccines for Fall with Dr. Andy Pekosz
July 31, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 21.2 MBVirologist Dr. Andy Pekosz returns to the podcast to talk with Stephanie Desmon about shots, shots, shots! Updated COVID vaccines, how the flu vaccine might perform this year, and a new RSV vaccine are all in the mix. They discuss when each of these vaccines may roll out and how there’s potential to head off another “tripledemic” winter.
642 - Last Year Was A Big Respiratory Viral Mess. Will We See The Same Again This Year?
July 28, 2023 10:00 - 13 minutes - 19 MBAfter last year’s “tripledemic” of flu, COVID, and RSV, we’re all wary of what this coming year might bring. Infectious disease epidemiologist Dr. David Dowdy returns to the podcast to talk with Lindsay Smith Rogers lessons learned, what can be expected as of right now, and potential impacts from new vaccines and treatments, like the game-changing antibody that protects kids from RSV, are entering the mix. Tl;dr: Get vaccinated for everything as soon as you’re able to and we might be in bett...
641 - What Can We Learn About Medicine from What Iconic Sci-Fi Movies Get Wrong?
July 26, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 25.1 MBThere’s a paradox in sci-fi movies: Even in the most futuristic, technologically advanced societies depicted in film, main characters often die because of a lack of basic medical care. Two movie fans, Johns Hopkins ICU physician Dr. Jack Iwashyna and his son, Sage, talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about some scenes in the Star Wars and Aliens franchises and how they can be used to appreciate the gaps that remain in health care today.
638 - This Ability Clinic's Dr. Stephanie Van on Disability Advocacy, Accessibility, and Appreciation
July 24, 2023 20:56 - 16 minutes - 22.4 MBFor Disability Pride Month, Dr. Stephanie Van, a Johns Hopkins rehabilitation physician and founder of YouTube’s @ThisAbilityClinic, talks with Lindsay Smith Rogers about her work as a pain management specialist and disability advocate. They discuss how she helps patients with newly acquired disabilities and what she’s learned about the disability community in the process, as well as what needs to change from the individuals to industries to make the world a little more inclusive. This epis...
640 - Inside the Humanitarian Response to the Destruction of Ukraine’s Kakhovka Dam
July 24, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 21.4 MBIn early June, a major Ukranian hydroelectric dam was destroyed. The situation is incredibly complex with widespread fallout and the potential for long-term public health risks. WHO incident manager Dr. Heather Papowitz talks with Stephanie Desmon about why the situation is so precarious, what the major concerns are, and how humanitarian efforts are coordinated and prioritized.
639 - Why Hearing Aids Could Help Slow Cognitive Decline in People at Risk of Dementia
July 21, 2023 10:00 - 17 minutes - 24.1 MBOver the last decade, research has established strong connections between hearing loss and cognitive decline in older people. Now, a new study presents compelling evidence that hearing aids could actually help slow that decline, especially for people at risk of dementia. Dr. Frank Lin, director of the Cochlear Center for Hearing & Public Health at Johns Hopkins, talks with Stephanie Desmon about the newest research and why the evidence bolsters the case for making sure older adults can (and ...
637 - Why Are So Many Pedestrians Getting Struck and Killed By Cars, and Why Aren’t We Doing More To Stop It?
July 17, 2023 10:00 - 12 minutes - 17.8 MBIn the last decade, a record number of pedestrians were killed by cars. The problem is complex and lacking a singular cause or solution. Jeff Michael, now a researcher at the Johns Hopkin Center for Injury Research and Policy, spent 30 years with the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminstration. He talks with Stephanie Desmon about the rise in pedestrian deaths and some of the possible causes, looking to Sweden as a model for rethinking our roads, and why despite hundreds of deaths a day, p...
636 - RAP Club: A Mental Health Program that Brings Coping Skills and Mindfulness to Schools
July 14, 2023 10:00 - 14 minutes - 20.3 MBMany lifetime mental health issues emerge during adolescence, but equipping youths with strategies and skills to work through trauma, anxiety, and depression can be key to preventing problems from snowballing. Johns Hopkins Center for Adolescent Health director Dr. Tamar Mendelson talks with Stephanie Desmon about working with Baltimore City schools to develop a successful program called RAP Club (Relax, Aware, Personal rating) to teach youths mindfulness and other strategies to combat the i...
635 - Dr. Meena Seshamani is on a Quest to Make Medicare Personal
July 13, 2023 13:04 - 19 minutes - 26.8 MBWith 64 million people enrolled, billions of dollars in payouts, and millions of clinicians and health systems in the mix, it’s hard to see how Medicare policies translate to the doctor’s office or the bedside. But Medicare director Dr. Meena Seshamani, an ear, nose, and throat surgeon and a health economist, is working to change that. Dr. Seshamani talked with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about improving Medicare on a large scale while making it more accessible and helping individual patients live b...
634 - Vital Talks: What if Public Health Fueled Social Reform Movements
July 10, 2023 10:00 - 55 minutes - 76.3 MBPublic health has a long history of activism in social movements and new overlaps took hold in the last few years with COVID-19 and social unrest. In Vital Talks, a podcast from Vital Strategies, Shelley Hearne returns to the podcast along with former Bloomberg School deans Al Sommer and Mike Klag and colleagues to consider the challenges of the current moment and talk about how the field of public health can work differently towards a healthier world. Learn more about Vital Strategies here:...
633 - The Far-Reaching Impacts of Drug Shortages Affecting Cancer Treatments
July 07, 2023 10:00 - 16 minutes - 22.4 MBShortages of lifesaving drugs—the result of failures at every step of complex supply chains—have far-reaching impacts on patients, providers, and the broader field of medicine. Hopkins oncologist Dr. Amanda Nickles Fader and policy researcher Dr. Mariana Socal talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the broader systems problem resulting in the shortages of a vast range of drugs and how it’s changing treatment protocols and the patient experience.
632 - Investigating the Why of Suicide: Maryland’s New Suicide Fatality Review Committee
July 05, 2023 10:00 - 13 minutes - 19.6 MBA new committee in Maryland is charged with a big undertaking: investigating deaths by suicide to help inform prevention efforts. Mental health expert and committee member Dr. Holly Wilcox talks with Stephanie Desmon about how they’ll gather data, which includes psychological autopsies, digital health care records, social service agency data and more, and gives some examples of how similar committees in other states have used data in innovative ways to inform interventions. Learn more: http...
631 - Vital Talks: How Donor Dynamics are Shaping Public Health
June 30, 2023 10:00 - 52 minutes - 72.9 MBPhilanthropy is a critical part of global public health but funding cycles, donor preferences, and other systems can fundamentally impact organizations and cause mission creep. Vital Talks, a podcast from Vital Strategies, digs into current funding trends and features conversations with leaders from the Lwala Community Alliance and the Center for Effective Philanthrophy about hopes for a better funding landscape and new financing models to ensure organizations can deliver on their missions. ...
630 - Why Are Some Humans’ Scents More Preferable to Mosquitoes?
June 28, 2023 10:00 - 19 minutes - 27.4 MBMosquitoes are excellent hunters. Anopheles gambiae—the mosquito in sub-Saharan Africa that spreads malaria—in particular loves to feast on humans and, it turns out, relies heavily on peoples’ scent to track them. Hopkins researcher Conor McMeniman talks with Stephanie Desmon about his team’s new study looking at the molecular components of human scent that are most attractive to mosquitoes, and how learning more about these alluring scent signatures could help in the fight against malaria.
629 - Alcohol Use as a Risk Factor for Gun Violence
June 26, 2023 10:00 - 16 minutes - 23.7 MBAlcohol plays an outsize role in gun deaths and a new study finds that alcohol misuse can be a better predictor of future violence than any other risk factors. Josh Horwitz and Silvia Villarreal of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions talk with Lindsay Smith Rogers about this connection and a set of new recommendations that include limiting access to guns for people with alcohol-related convictions and in places where alcohol is consumed. Read more about the report here: https...
628 - Scientists in Exile: When Researchers and Clinicians are Forced to Flee
June 23, 2023 10:00 - 17 minutes - 23.9 MBDr. Phyu Phyu Thin Zaw was a research scientist at Myanmar’s ministry of health before she emigrated to teach global health at Hong Kong University. After the military coup in 2021, she and many of her friends and colleagues felt unsafe returning to Myanmar and some even had their passports blacklisted. Thin Saw talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about her experience, what happens when doctors and researchers are forced to flee in conflict situations, and what the scientific community can do to ...
627 - Workplace Mental Health and Well-being
June 21, 2023 14:09 - 16 minutes - 22.5 MBWorkplace wellness goes beyond safe offices to consider how employees can live healthy and productive lives at home while being focused on work at work. Hopkins health and productivity management expert Ron Goetzel talks with Lindsay Smith Rogers about this unique aspect of public health where the business community and public health collaborate on the psychosocial, organizational, and environmental facets of health at work—and how ensuring that people get to live healthy and joyful lives ou...
EP 626 - Katelyn Jetelina, “Your Local Epidemiologist,” on The Benefits and Harms of Active Assailant Drills and the Widespread Impacts of Mass Shootings
June 16, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 21.8 MBActive shooter and lockdown drills are part of a broader spectrum of emergency preparedness but there are differing levels of effectiveness and risks. Katelyn Jetelina, aka “Your Local Epidemiologist,” talks with Stephanie Desmon about the benefits and real harms of these activities and why she does have hope that we will make progress with gun violence solutions, though at a “snail’s pace.” They also discuss the wide-ranging ripple effects of violence beyond the victims such as community-le...
625 - Tackling Housing Injustice—and Improving Childhood Asthma
June 14, 2023 10:00 - 13 minutes - 18.7 MBRedlining and other discriminatory practices represent structural racism in housing. Efforts to counter the legacy of this injustice include voucher programs that help people move out of areas of poverty into “opportunity neighborhoods.” Hopkins researcher Craig Pollack talks with Stephanie Desmon about evidence that these programs improve childhood asthma. They discuss opportunities to help people both through relocation and by improving conditions where they are. Read the study here:https:...
624 - The “Youngest Science:” Debates over Evidence During the Pandemic Within Medicine
June 12, 2023 10:00 - 20 minutes - 29.1 MBIn the frenzy of research for COVID-19 prevention and treatment, there were many disagreements about what really did—or didn’t—work. The nature of the debates reveals a broader problem in how data are interpreted in medicine. Dr. Arturo Casadevall and Dr. Josh Sharfstein discuss the nature of evidence and Dr. Casadevall’s new paper, Misinterpretation of Clinical Research Findings and COVID-19 Mortality. You can read the paper here: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/full/10.7326/M23-0737?af=R
623 - How to Talk About the Climate Crisis With Kids
June 09, 2023 11:48 - 14 minutes - 20.2 MBHaving honest conversations with kids about the climate crisis doesn’t have to be distressing. Climate scientist Heather Price talks with Stephanie Desmon about her work with www.talkclimate.org, an organization that collects age- and developmentally appropriate resources for talking about climate change with people of all ages, from birth to adult.
BONUS - Another Air Quality Emergency in the US—2020 Wildfire Episode Re-release
June 08, 2023 18:39 - 12 minutes - 23.1 MBWith huge parts of the eastern seaboard covered in a thick hazy smoke from Canadian wildfires, we’re re-releasing an episode from September 2020 with air pollution expert Dr. Kirsten Koehler. In this episode, Dr. Koehler and Dr. Josh Sharfstein discussed how the massive West Coast forest fires raging at the time were affecting people’s health. Their conversation about particulate matter and its impacts on respiratory health, and how to protect yourself, is just as relevant today in yet anot...
622 - The State of Emergency Preparedness in the US
June 07, 2023 10:00 - 13 minutes - 19.2 MBWith the expiration of the COVID-19 emergency, how prepared are states for another crisis? Dr. Nadine Gracia, president and CEO of Trust for America’s Health, returns to the podcast to discuss a 2023 report assessing states’ performance in key areas related to emergency preparedness—including infectious disease, natural and artificial disasters, and bioterrorism. You can find individual state reports at www.tfah.org.
621 - The Health Consequences of Displacing People Experiencing Homelessness
June 05, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 26.2 MBWhat happens when homeless encampments are swept away? Dr. Joshua Barocas, an infectious disease physician at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about a new study that simulates the true cost of “move along” orders and encampment “clean ups"—including infectious disease outbreaks, hospitalizations and deaths. They then discuss the short-term and long-term implications of these findings.
620 - How The Opioid Settlement Tracker Is Monitoring $50 Billion
June 02, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 25.1 MBWho is making decisions about how to spend more than $50 billion in proceeds from opioid-related litigation? Christine Minhee, lawyer and founder of opioidsettlementtracker.com, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about tracking the complex cashflow state by state, and her hopes that the website will challenge more jurisdictions to share just how they’re spending dollars intended for tackling the opioid epidemic. http://publichealth.jhu.edu/subscribe
619 - A Conversation with Barkha Dutt
May 30, 2023 20:37 - 24 minutes - 34.4 MBRenowned journalist Barkha Dutt, dubbed the “Indian Anderson Cooper,” has spent her career reporting from conflict zones about gender equity and violence against women. In the last few years, she expanded her beat and traveled around India during COVID talking with people about their pandemic experiences. Dhutt recently sat down in the studio with Lindsay Smith Rogers for an expansive conversation about her career and what’s next. You can watch the video of the conversation on YouTube.
618 - Two Newly-Minted Public Health Graduates Share Their Mental Health Research
May 26, 2023 10:00 - 20 minutes - 28.4 MBIn a special episode, two brand-new graduates of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about their dissertation research involving mental health. Jaimie Shaff, DrPH, talks about her work examining the mental health of people who are multiethnic and multiracial, and who are routinely left out of data sets or lumped in with “other.” Bianca Smith, PhD, discusses her research using geospatial analysis to examine the relationship between housing discrim...
617 - Convocation Speaker Dr. Raj Panjabi on Facing Public Health’s Unprecedented Challenges
May 24, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 26 MBDr. Raj Panjabi, one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2016, is a physician, professor, epidemiologist, entrepreneur, and public servant currently serving on the White House National Security Council. Dr. Panjabi speaks with Stephanie Desmon about growing up in Liberia and his experience working in West Africa during the first Ebola crisis, preparing for the next pandemic, and his advice for this next generation of public health graduates. Get even more public health news...
616 - Lessons from the COVID War: 9-11 Commission Leader Philip Zelikow on Another National Disaster
May 22, 2023 10:00 - 26 minutes - 36.9 MBFrom origin to Warp Speed, COVID-19 proved to be a national disaster the likes of which hadn’t been seen since 9-11. Lead writer of “Lessons from the COVID War” and former 9-11 Commission leader Philip Zelikow talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about why COVID was a much more complicated issue, competing explanations of what went wrong, where innovation and success actually occurred, and what needs to be done to prevent another disaster like this from happening again. Get even more public health...
615 - How a Unique Mental Health Model Developed After 9/11 is Helping Ukrainians Find Some Peace of Mind
May 19, 2023 10:00 - 18 minutes - 25.3 MBAfter 9/11, mental health workers in New York City found themselves overwhelmed with requests to provide treatment to kids and their families. In response, clinical psychologist Laura Murray and her colleagues developed the Common Elements Treatment Approach, or CETA, which helps providers address multiple problems and symptoms using a customized plan of evidence-based therapies. Dr. Murray talks with Stephanie Desmon about the program’s applications in conflict zones like Ukraine, and its p...
614 - The Clinical Research Into Psilocybin as a Tool for Mental Health Treatment
May 17, 2023 11:19 - 18 minutes - 25.4 MBPsychedelic drugs like psilocybin, or magic mushrooms, have been used throughout human history. But it’s only in the last few decades that researchers have been examining them as a potential tool for treating an array of mental health issues. Albert Garcia-Romeu, a Johns Hopkins behavioral pharmacology researcher, talks with Stephanie Desmon about his research with psilocybin, the promising outcomes, and how approval and proper regulation could lead to a whole class of psychedelic drugs used...
613 - COVID Update: Variants, Vaccines, and No More “Boosters”
May 15, 2023 10:00 - 14 minutes - 19.9 MBThe pandemic phase of COVID-19 is officially over, but there’s still work to be done. Virologist and podcast regular Dr. Andy Pekosz talks with Stephanie Desmon about transitioning to annual COVID vaccines (no longer referred to as boosters!); “Arcturus,” or variant XBB.1.16; and the importance of investing in the development of antivirals and other treatments.
612 - The Xylazine Crisis
May 12, 2023 10:01 - 23 minutes - 32.7 MBXylazine is an animal tranquilizer that is showing up in illicit opioid supplies. In addition to contributing to the risk of overdose, xylazine causes horrific, necrotizing wounds when injected, smoked, or snorted. Lindsay Smith Rogers talks to two clinicians on the front lines of the overdose epidemic about their experiences with xylazine and their views on what this latest development means for the future: Rachel McFadden, a Bloomberg Fellow at the School of Public Health and a wound care ...
611 - Public Health in the Field: The Grassroots Revolution in Maternal Health
May 12, 2023 10:00 - 29 minutes - 40.7 MBConcluding our 3-part series dedicated to addressing the Black maternal health crisis in the United States, co-hosts Dr. Rachel Bervell and Annalies Winny will explore the revolution in maternal health that’s happening outside the policy space – but that also informs it. They’ll investigate how Black moms, community advocates, and a new generation of medical trainees are taking this issue into their own hands—and how everyone can contribute to solutions. Access the resources and organizati...
610 - Public Health in the Field: How Policy Can Help Solve the Black Maternal Health Crisis
May 08, 2023 10:00 - 24 minutes - 33.5 MBContinuing our 3-part series dedicated to addressing the Black maternal health crisis in the United States, co-hosts Dr. Rachel Bervell and Annalies Winny explore how government policy can help shape the solutions, from closing the “Medicaid gap” to passing the most ambitious federal effort yet on this issue: the Momnibus. Access the resources and organizations mentioned in this series, including suggested reading: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2023/solving-the-black-maternal-health-crisis
609 - The Surge in Anti-Trans Bills and Attacks on LGBTQ+ Health
May 05, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 21.4 MBIn the last year, more anti-trans legislation has been passed in the U.S. than at any other time in history. Dr. Helene Hedian, director of clinical education at the Johns Hopkins Center for Transgender and Gender Expansive Health, talks with Stephanie Desmon about the dehumanizing aspects of these bills and how much they can impact her patients’ daily lives and overall health. They also discuss what’s going right, and how advocacy is helping to bring better and more protective health care c...
608 - What May Happen When the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Ends on May 11
May 03, 2023 10:00 - 17 minutes - 24.8 MBJennifer Kates, senior vice president and director of global health and HIV policy at KFF, returns to the podcast to talk with Lindsay Smith Rogers about the looming expiration of the COVID-19 public health emergency and what that means for things like access to tests, treatments, vaccines, and eligibility for Medicaid. They also discuss the differences between this and the national health emergency that Biden ended in April, and why both are significant symbolic gestures at a time when a ne...
607: How The FDA Can Help More People Stop Smoking
May 01, 2023 10:00 - 15 minutes - 21.6 MBIn a recent commentary in the New England Journal of Medicine, Johns Hopkins tobacco policy expert Joanna Cohen and colleagues call for the FDA to take steps to bring more smoking cessation therapies to the market. Cohen, director of the Institute for Global Tobacco Control, talks with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about why new therapies are needed and where to find evidence to support their use. Read the full commentary here: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2301700. If you or someone you...
606 - What Happens Next with Mifepristone?
April 28, 2023 10:00 - 23 minutes - 32.8 MBTo understand what happens now that SCOTUS has stayed Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling on mifepristone, we first have to understand how the case got to the highest court in the land in the first place. Public health lawyer Joanne Rosen returns to the podcast to talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about the unprecedented series of filings and rulings around mifepristone from Amarillo, Texas to Washington D.C., and what could happen next as litigation continues to play out.
605 - World Immunization Week: The Big Catch-Up and Preventing a Large-scale Global Outbreak of Measles
April 26, 2023 12:58 - 15 minutes - 21.6 MBWorld Immunization Week is the last week in April and this year’s theme is The Big Catch Up. Vaccine expert Dr. Bill Moss returns to the podcast to talk with Dr. Josh Sharfstein about how major setbacks in global vaccine coverage over the past few years are seeding the deadly threat of a measles resurgence. They discuss contributing factors and what needs to be done to get out in front of one of the world’s most infectious viruses.