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DC EKG

DC EKG

By: Evergreen Podcasts | Big Whig Media
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 Join former White House policy expert Joe Grogan as he cuts through the complexities of healthcare legislation and its real-world implications. Each episode of DC EKG aims to demystify the policies shaping our healthcare system, uncovering how these changes impact patients, providers, and payers across the country. New episodes drop every Monday.All Rights Reserved 2023 Hygiene & Healthy Living Political Science Politics & Government
Episodes
  • James Gelfand on Ending Hospital Rip-Offs, Cutting Costs, and the Future of Employer-Sponsored Healthcare

    James Gelfand on Ending Hospital Rip-Offs, Cutting Costs, and the Future of Employer-Sponsored Healthcare
    Oct 6 2025
    Joe Grogan sits down with James Gelfand, president and CEO of The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC), to break down the future of employer-sponsored insurance and the challenges shaping healthcare policy. They discuss how rising healthcare costs affect both employers and employees, the evolution of health savings accounts, and why direct primary care and telehealth represent major shifts in employer benefits. The conversation highlights the growing crisis in mental health, the impact of hospital consolidation on costs and quality, and the political battles over healthcare reform. Gelfand explains why employer-sponsored insurance remains a critical safety net and what changes are needed to bring more transparency, value, and balance to the healthcare system.
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    59 mins
  • Ryan Long on The Hidden Costs of 340B and ACA Subsidies—and Why Reform Matters

    Ryan Long on The Hidden Costs of 340B and ACA Subsidies—and Why Reform Matters
    Sep 24 2025
    In this episode of DC EKG, host Joe Grogan is joined by Ryan Long, Capitol Hill veteran and senior research fellow at the Paragon Institute, to unpack two big health policy debates: the 340B drug discount program and the enhanced ACA premium tax credits. Ryan explains how 340B drives higher drug spending, hospital consolidation, and rising premiums, while often benefiting wealthier hospitals over safety-net providers. He also breaks down why the temporary ACA subsidies are set to expire in 2025, the fraud and enrollment issues they’ve created, and what both parties are gearing up for as the fight continues.
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    52 mins
  • Dutch Rojas on Physician-Owned Hospitals, Transparency, and Ending Healthcare Monopolies

    Dutch Rojas on Physician-Owned Hospitals, Transparency, and Ending Healthcare Monopolies
    Sep 15 2025
    In this episode of DC EKG, Joe Grogan sits down with healthcare entrepreneur and advocate Dutch Rojas to unpack some of the most pressing and misunderstood issues in American healthcare. From his unconventional path from accounting into healthcare to his outspoken advocacy for physician-owned hospitals, Rojas brings a fresh, unapologetic perspective to how we can break through the gridlock of consolidation and outdated policy. Rojas makes the case for why charity care is often used as a business strategy rather than genuine community support, and explains how site-neutral payments could dramatically lower costs for patients and employers alike. He also outlines how innovations like a healthcare commodities exchange could finally deliver the price transparency Americans deserve, and the competition the system desperately needs.
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    54 mins
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