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KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: All I Want for Christmas Is a COVID Relief Bill


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Congress appears to be inching ever closer to agreement on a long-delayed COVID-19 relief bill, which would extend unemployment insurance and other emergency programs set to expire in the next several days. That bill, however, apparently will not include the top-priority items for both political parties: business liability protections supported by Republicans and aid to states and localities sought by Democrats.

The bill is likely to be part of a giant spending bill to keep the federal government funded for the rest of the fiscal year. And it might include a last-minute surprise: legislation to put an end to “surprise” medical bills sent to patients who inadvertently obtain care outside their insurance network.

This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Mary Agnes Carey of KHN.

Among the takeaways from this week’s podcast:

Also this week, Rovner interviews Elizabeth Mitchell, president and CEO of the Pacific Business Group on Health, about the future of employer-provided health insurance.

Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read too:

Julie Rovner: The Texas Monthly’s “Texas Wedding Photographers Have Seen Some $#!+,” by Emily McCullar

Alice Miranda Ollstein: The New York Times’ “‘Like a Hand Grasping’: Trump Appointees Describe the Crushing of the C.D.C.,” by Noah Weiland

Mary Agnes Carey: NPR’s “How Do We Grieve 300,000 Lives Lost?” by Will Stone

Rebecca Adams: Bloomberg News’ “White House Official Recovers From Severe Covid-19, Friend Says,” by Jennifer Jacobs


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This story was produced by KHN (Kaiser Health News), a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues. Together with Policy Analysis and Polling, KHN is one of the three major operating programs at KFF (Kaiser Family Foundation). KFF is an endowed nonprofit organization providing information on health issues to the nation.

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