As we mark Hispanic Heritage Month, we hear from Dr. Elena Rios, President and CEO of the National Hispanic Medical Association, which represents the interests of the nation’s 50,000 Latino physicians. This is an encore presentation from 2021 yet many of the issues we discussed then are still relevant, including Latino vaccine hesitancy and the pandemic’s mental health toll. Join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter for their conversation about how to address health inequities affecting the Hispanic community.

In addition, author Charles Barber sits down with Mark Masselli to discuss the publication of “Paz y Salud,” the translation of his book about Community Health Center, “Peace & Health,” into Spanish.

The post Ideas for Improving Hispanic Health With Dr. Elena Rios, President & CEO, National Hispanic Medical Association; Charles Barber on “Paz Y Salud” Publication first appeared on Federal News Network.

Researchers just announced they have found clear differences in the blood of Long COVID patients—this is the scientific proof that some in the health care sector want to see. Right before this news broke, we asked Dr. Lisa Sanders, the director of the new Yale New Haven Long COVID Multidisciplinary Care Center, about the lack of a Long COVID blood test.

She pushed back on skeptics because she has seen clinical evidence of the condition. Now, it appears Dr. Sanders and her colleagues will indeed be able to confirm Long COVID is a biological illness.

Dr. Sanders, who also writes The New York Times Diagnosis column, explained her patients are getting better through a variety of approaches and she’s hopeful the caseload will continue to decrease.

Join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter for this important conversation that’s part of our continuing coverage of Long COVID.

The post NYT’s Diagnosis Columnist Dr. Lisa Sanders’ Views on Long COVID Affirmed by New Research first appeared on Federal News Network.

Lola Adedokun is executive director of the Aspen Global Innovators Group, which advances a portfolio of programs focused on health and prosperity in the U.S. and around the world. This work includes a focus on what she calls powerful women who are redesigning health systems to better meet the needs of families. Join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter as Adedokun explains how local leaders are at the forefront of designing solutions that work for local populations.

The post New Ways to Solve Big Health Problems: Lola Adedokun, Aspen Global Innovators Group first appeared on Federal News Network.

Two of the leading and most influential experts in LGBTQ+ health issues join “Conversations on Health Care” to discuss what the Human Rights Campaign calls its community’s “state of emergency.”

Dr. Marwan Haddad is the immediate past chair of the HIV Medicine Association and the medical director at the Center for Key Populations at Community Health Center, Inc.

Dr. Carl Streed is the president-elect of the US Professional Association for Transgender Health and the research lead for the GenderCare Center at Boston Medical Center.

They go into detail with hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter about the existing research and approach to evidence-based gender-affirming care for youth, which is supported by the American Medical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics.

The post Effects of Trans Bans on LGBTQ+ Health Care: “State of Emergency” first appeared on Federal News Network.

Dr. Ashish Jha, the former White House COVID Coordinator, says he expects vaccines updated for this fall will provide a “great deal of protection” but he acknowledges there are questions about whether a young person should get the booster.

“My best read of the literature is that, yes, they should [get the COVID booster shot]. A reasonable person could read the literature and say, ‘I don’t know if that’s true and let’s have that debate.’” Dr. Jha says, unfortunately, that discussion is clouded by what he calls “nonsense and bad information” that causes confusion and ends up harming people. The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected to soon approve the new shots.

Dr. Jha, making his fifth appearance on the syndicated interview program “Conversations on Health Care,” also addressed the lingering mystery about COVID’s origins. “Anyone who tells you for sure they know exactly how it started probably is trying to sell you something. Early in 2020 my view was that it was more likely than not a natural origin [as opposed to a lab leak]. I still believe, and maybe I’m one the few people out there who does, that we can get to the bottom of this but we need a lot more transparency from China.”

Dr. Jha has returned to his role as dean at Brown University School of Public Health. He spoke to hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter as “Conversations on Health Care,” a production of Moses/Weitzman Health System, Inc., marked its 14th season.

The post Former White House COVID Coordinator Dr. Jha: Debate About Boosters for Young People Is OK first appeared on Federal News Network.

The director of Mayo Clinic’s COVID Activity Rehabilitation Program says they’re seeing a decrease in Long COVID cases, likely due to variant changes and the effectiveness of vaccines. Dr. Greg Vanichkachorn describes Long COVID as a group of symptoms that linger longer than the normal COVID recovery period. He says fatigue and physical complaints decrease but patients have lingering cognitive effects like brain fog.

Unfortunately, Dr. Vanichkachorn says patients can still face stigma for the condition and he says some clinicians also do when they deliver such a diagnosis. In order to reach everyone, clinicians are increasing efforts to inform diverse populations, including hourly workers and farmers who may be coping in silence.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter also learn how olfactory retraining and cognitive behavioral therapy are encouraged for Long COVID patients.

The post Mayo Clinic Long COVID Expert Dr. Greg Vanichkachorn: Cases Down as Stigma Continues first appeared on Federal News Network.

Federal provisional data shows more people died from suicide in the United States last year than any other year on record. American Psychiatric Association President Dr. Petros Levounis is at the center of efforts to prevent suicides, with substance use addictions a key part of his focus. He and the 38,000 APA members have launched a campaign called “Confronting Addiction: From Prevention to Recovery.”

Dr. Levounis discusses vaping, opioids, alcohol and the rapidly growing addiction to tech.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter also ask him about the need to hold health plans accountable to the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.

The post U.S. Suicide Rates at All-Time High: American Psychiatric Association President Responds first appeared on Federal News Network.

Our hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter have worked closely with Dr. Lecce through the years and their reflections give us all insights into the challenges and opportunities for making health care a right and “not a privilege.”

The post Community Health Legend Dr. Carl Lecce: Lessons Learned first appeared on Federal News Network.

She has tough words in her interview with hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter, including criticism of the Texas governor for nullifying local ordinances that had provided workers protection from devastating, triple-digit temperatures.

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The post Have a Way to Beat an Illness? These Federal Experts Need to Hear From You first appeared on Federal News Network.

One of the nation’s top experts on Long COVID explains that it’s still a mystery why virus symptoms remain months and sometimes years after an infection. Dr. Leora Horwitz helps lead the National Institute of Health’s study of Long COVID. She’s the director of the Center for Healthcare Innovation and Delivery Science at NYU Langone Health, where they’re integrating the research activities of almost 200 clinical sites.

She says they have found evidence of the virus persisting as well as inflammation or irritation in the bodies of some patients, which may be contributing to the condition.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter also ask Dr. Horwitz to explain the new working definition of Long COVID, which is helping the medical community move beyond any one individual symptom to describe it.

The post Latest on Long COVID: NIH Study Leader Leora Horwitz, MD first appeared on Federal News Network.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter ask him to weigh in on all these issues in this week’s edition.

The post HHS Sec. Becerra’s Exclusive Interview With “Conversations on Health Care” first appeared on Federal News Network.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter talked with Dr. Davis on location at Aspen Ideas: Health, a premier gathering of health care leaders and influencers.

The post Tough, Feisty, Visionary: Mount Sinai’s CEO On Location at Aspen Ideas: Health first appeared on Federal News Network.

Dr. Anthony Fauci shared a sobering message with “Conversations on Health Care”: In the past year about 20% of Americans have received the COVID booster vaccine; “that’s not good if you really want to get a degree of immunity that you can lift up,” he says. Fauci explains that getting to 50% should be the goal.

“What we’re hoping is that people who come in with the uptake of a flu vaccine would also come in…at the same time, the same day…[get the] COVID [one]. The new vaccine is not going to be a bivalent, it’s going to be a monovalent Omicron derivative.” The fall 2023 COVID vaccine is currently awaiting FDA approval.

Fauci also reflected on the tense relationship between China and the United States. “The more we make accusations and the more we push against them, the more they pull back and in order to be able to have the kind of broad, global surveillance, global cooperation, global collaboration, you’ve got to have a relationship the way we had before COVID.” He also acknowledged that the Chinese have been very obtuse and secretive.

Fauci, speaking at Aspen Ideas: Health, harkened back to the bipartisan creation two decades ago of the President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which is credited with saving 25 million lives in under-resourced countries.

Fauci also shared that he’s making progress on his memoir, with a manuscript due by the end of the year and an expected publish date by the first half of 2024.

He was interviewed by “Conversations on Health Care” hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter; they’re grateful to Aspen Ideas: Health leaders for inviting the program to hold one-on-one interviews during the gathering.

The post Dr. Fauci Tells “Conversations on Health Care” On Location at Aspen Ideas: We Need More COVID Booster Shots first appeared on Federal News Network.

Law professor and public policy advocate Christina S. Ho’s new book, “Normalizing an American Right to Health,” boldly makes the legal case for health as a right that should already exist in the United States. She explains why and unpacks how reinsurance and a Health Impact Assessment fit into her analysis.

Join hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter as she wonders why we can provide government subsidies for things like fracking, which has negative health effects, but avoid doing more to guarantee health for all. In addition, Ho answers critics who say access to care can’t be universal.

The post A Right to Health? The U.S. Legal Case for Making it Happen first appeared on Federal News Network.