Healthcare is Hard: A Podcast for Insiders
Episodes
A Giant Leap for Healthcare: Dr. Bob Wachter on AI, Clinical Workflows and the Patient-Doctor Relationship
16 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Bob Wachter describes his career as the result of “what happens when a political science major becomes an academic physician.” Rather than foc...
From Pilots to Production: Boston Children’s John Brownstein on the Next Phase of AI in Healthcare
19 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. John Brownstein has been on the leading edge of digital health since medical school, where he was drawn to epidemiology because of the opportunity...
DC’s Ambitious Plans for Modernizing Health Tech: U.S. DOGE Service Administrator & CMS Strategic Advisor, Amy Gleason
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The daughter of a hospital administrator, Amy Gleason never considered a career in the public sector – she went straight into healthcare. As an emer...
Glimmers of Nonpartisan Progress: Decoding ACCESS, TEMPO and the Latest Government Healthcare Initiatives
15 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
After three decades working to deliver easy, fast and cost-effective patient experiences through technology, Ryan Howells is more optimistic about the...
340B Unpacked for the Holidays: Policy, Controversy, and Impact
18 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sitting at the intersection of healthcare policy, hospital finance, and patient access, the 340B drug discount program is a hot button issues in the p...
The Big Beautiful Maze of Health Policy and Innovation
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
From being at the center of some of the most significant shifts in U.S. healthcare policy over the past two decades, Liz Fowler can offer valuable per...
Lessons from Public Sector Leadership: Former CMS Administrator and FDA Commissioner, Dr. Mark McClellan
16 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Mark McClellan has served as a Member of the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ...
Emerging Technologies (Part 3): Microsoft’s Chief Architect for Health on the Saga of Interoperability and AI
18 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Josh Mandel says his first love was software. But on a whim, while studying computer science and software engineering at MIT, he took a course tha...
Emerging Technologies (Part 2): Past, Present & Future of Healthcare Interoperability with HTD Health's Brendan Keeler
21 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brendan Keeler’s path into healthcare interoperability has been anything but straightforward. After early stints implementing Epic in the U.S. and E...
Emerging Technologies (Part 1): Inside Perspectives from Epic’s Seth Hain
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Seth Hain has spent two decades at Epic, watching the electronic health record evolve from digital filing cabinet to care-delivery platform. Now he th...
How a Tech-Minded CEO Sees the Future: CareFirst’s Brian D. Pieninck on Medicare, Medicaid & the AI-Driven Inflection Point in Healthcare
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brian D. Pieninck didn’t take a conventional path to healthcare leadership. He started his career as an 18-year-old IT contractor and spent two deca...
Medicaid Uncovered: Decoding the System
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kody Kinsley has been called many things—operator, innovator, Medicaid “nerd”—but above all, he’s a fierce advocate for the health and well-...
Where Medicare Stands—And Where It’s Headed with Aetna’s Dr. Ali Khan
29 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Ali Khan has spent his career at the intersection of medicine, public policy, and value-based care. He’s also been at the forefront of some of t...
Opportunities in Oncology (Part 3): Getting Deep Into Patient Care with Mass General Brigham’s Head of Radiation Oncology
20 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The first two episodes in this Healthcare is Hard podcast series on “Opportunities in Oncology” explored the relationship between academic medical...
Opportunities in Oncology (Part 2): Balancing Cutting-Edge Research and Community Care
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Harlan Levine began his career practicing internal medicine but soon moved into business leadership roles at national healthcare organizations to ...
Opportunities in Oncology (Part 1): The Intersection of Clinical Care, Business and Policy
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There’s been a massive gap in oncology where people who have been responsible for a dramatic increase in the standard of care have lacked a solid un...
Election Implications (Part 4): Forecasting For Healthcare As The Second Trump Administration Takes Shape
12 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Elements of the new Trump administration are coming into focus as announcements of key healthcare appointments and nominations provide indications for...
Election Implications (Part 3): JP Morgan’s Read on Trump 2.0 and What’s Next for Healthcare
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Healthcare was not a major focus during the 2024 election where other key issues drove most of the discussion. This left a vacuum around specific heal...
Election Implications (Part 2): This Wall Street Analyst Agrees, “Healthcare is Hard”
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With the White House and Congress up for grabs this election, anticipation in the healthcare industry is high. Shifts in healthcare policy will influe...
Election Implications (Part 1): Angst, Uncertainty and an Urge for Calm from Maverick Health Policy’s Julie Barnes
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Julie Barnes has made a career helping health plans, tech vendors, investors and others in the healthcare space decipher health policy. She’s a form...
What’s the Difference Between Innovation and Performance Improvement?
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
OSF HealthCare stands as a model health system for those who want to do innovation right. One of the defining characteristics of the Peoria, Illinois-...
Help or Harm? How CHAI is Mitigating the Risk of AI in Healthcare
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With great power comes great responsibility and in healthcare, those words may have never held more meaning than they do with the advent of artificial...
Live from DHIS East: Mass General Brigham CIO, Christopher Coburn
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Coburn has been driving health system innovation for decades. He is currently chief innovation officer at Mass General Brigham (MGB), the nation...
Reinventing Pharmacy (Part 3): Optum Rx CEO, Dr. Patrick Conway, Brings the PBM, Provider and Payer POV
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Optum Rx serves more than 62 million people, processes 1.6 billion prescriptions and generates more than $110 billion of revenue annually. Dr. Patrick...
Reinventing Pharmacy (Part 2): Dr. Troyen Brennan Disputes the False Narrative of Good vs. Bad Actors
18 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the first of a series of episodes exploring opportunities for innovation in the pharmacy space, Mark Cuban offered perspective from an outsider int...
Reinventing Pharmacy: Mark Cuban Says Trust Is Missing Across Healthcare. Here’s What He’s Doing About It
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Cuban built a career disrupting industries and creating new ones. Now, his sights are set on healthcare. There’s no secret ingredient to Mark’...
Is Innovation Stuck in Healthcare? Two Brothers Get to The Bottom of It
15 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In most industries, innovation leads to an improved product or service while ultimately helping to lower cost. Healthcare is the exception. Despite a ...
Putting Trust at the Center of Healthcare Transformation: Press Ganey CEO, Pat Ryan
18 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Through its work with more than 41,000 healthcare facilities and the industry’s largest database of patient feedback, Press Ganey gives organization...
Deciphering the New Normal (Part 4): Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts’ Chief Strategy Officer, Sukanya Soderland
15 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is the final episode in a four part series with heads of strategy at providers and payers from across the healthcare ecosystem to explore “the ...
Deciphering the New Normal (Part 3): Humana’s Chief Strategy & Corporate Development Officer, Dr. Vishal Agrawal
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The previous two episodes of Healthcare is Hard explored the “new normal” from the provider perspective with heads of strategy at an innovative re...
Deciphering the New Normal (Part 2): CommonSpirit’s Chief Strategy Officer, Sheri Shapiro
26 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
CommonSpirit Health is one of the nation’s largest integrated health systems comprising 142 hospitals and 2,200 care sites across 24 states. Three y...
Deciphering The New Normal With OhioHealth’s Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer, Michael Krouse
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There are many reasons why central Ohio is a fertile ground for innovation and why the areas surrounding Columbus are ideal for testing new approaches...
Not Just a Side Gig: Government Contracting Takes Commitment, Says Booz Allen Hamilton COO, Kristine Martin Anderson
17 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Before taking responsibility for operational performance of Booz Allen Hamilton – the $9+ billion technology and consulting leader with 32,000+ empl...
Is AI Policy a Bigger Undertaking Than Meaningful Use? Kristen McGovern Thinks So
20 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Earning a Presidential Management Fellowship after law school gave Kristen McGovern firsthand experience working inside many of the agencies and offic...
AI Hype vs. Reality: A Conversation With Nuance (Microsoft) CSO, Peter Durlach
22 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Peter Durlach grew up around computers and was exposed to innovative technology at an early age by his father, who helped run a lab in the electronics...
Scaling Up (Part 2). How Dr. Rasu Shrestha is Steering AI & Innovation After the Megamerger that Created Advocate Health
11 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Many physicians today choose to pivot their careers and apply their clinical knowledge to the innovation and digital transformation side of healthcare...
Follow the Money: Harvard Professor & MedPAC Chair, Michael Chernew, Illuminates the Causes & Consequences of Healthcare Spending
20 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Understanding healthcare spending growth in America is a critical component of any initiative attempting to improve care quality and affordability. Th...
The Healthcare Data Goldrush (Part 2): Chief Information & Digital Officer at Hartford Healthcare, Joel Vengco
16 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When Joel Vengco started his thesis during the third year of a MD-PhD program, it was the beginning of the end of his time in medical school. It chang...
Scaling up. Scott Powder Talks About the Merger of Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Health to Build One of the Nation’s Largest Health Systems
16 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Advocate Health is the nation’s fifth largest nonprofit health system, operating 67 hospitals and more than 1,000 sites of care to generate revenues...
The Healthcare Data Goldrush: Leavitt Partners’ Ryan Howells & IMO’s Dale Sanders Lay Out A Guide for Prospectors
19 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The digital transformation of healthcare has been a long and winding road, but one that is starting to open new possibilities in every aspect of busin...
Why Health Systems with Data-Driven Strategies will be the Ones to Survive Turbulent Times: A Conversation with Vizient’s John Becker
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As the world emerges from the pandemic and U.S. health systems navigate a unique set of challenges they’ve never faced before, they’re fighting a ...
Providence’s Sara Vaezy Tells the Tale of Two Health Systems: Fixing Fundamentals While Focusing on Innovation
17 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s a difficult time for health systems who are struggling with financial pressures brought on by rising costs, patient volumes that continue to re...
Former Department of Defense Leader Interprets the Real Cyber Risks in Healthcare
20 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Tim Kosiba was first exposed to the healthcare industry while working at the FBI in the 1990s as part of its Computer Analysis Response Team (CART). F...
Amazon, One Medical and the Acquisitions Moving Healthcare: Walmart’s Former SVP of Health, Marcus Osborne, Weighs In
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Marcus Osborne started his professional life as a White House intern and never intended to pursue a career in healthcare. In fact, he says he has a ph...
Peering Inside Home Health and VBC with Clinician, Investor, Operator and Public Servant, Dr. Julian Harris
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Julian Harris developed a personal passion for home health and shifting care towards value watching his father and his grandfather serve as caregi...
Mayo’s John Halamka on AI, ML and the Government’s Role in Digital Health’s Future
14 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As a self-described latchkey kid growing up in Los Angeles, Dr. John Halamka says riding his bike to Raytheon, Hughes Aircraft and Aerojet – and pul...
You Can’t Improve If You Don’t Measure: IHI CEO Dr. Kedar Mate Talks Care Quality
16 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
At the beginning of the pandemic when nursing homes were a hotbed for COVID-19 infections and many untimely deaths, the Institute for Healthcare Impro...
The Surgeon & Economics PhD Leading Medicare: Dr. Meena Seshamani
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Meena Seshamani is responsible for the health care coverage of more than 63 million Americans and nearly one in every five healthcare dollars spen...
Google Cloud’s Aashima Gupta on Big Tech’s Platform Play in Healthcare
21 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Aashima Gupta was a rising star in the financial technology world at organizations including Fidelity Investments and JPMorgan Chase, but after her fa...
Mona Siddiqui on Humana’s Evolution to a Healthcare Company
17 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Mona Siddiqui says she loves solving problems at the intersection of health policy, strategy, data and operations. After earning a medical degree ...
Amazon Web Services’ Phoebe Yang on Bringing Digital Transformation to Health System Boards
17 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Phoebe Yang holds one of the most instrumental roles at the intersection of tech and healthcare. As general manager for healthcare at Amazon Web Servi...
The Biggest Surprise at JPM 2022 Is What Wasn’t Being Discussed: COVID
27 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Dan Michelson has held at least three to five zoom calls per day with hospital CFOs across the country. As the in...
Size Doesn’t Matter: Innovation Happens Everywhere, Says Anthem’s Bryony Winn
16 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Bryony Winn is a Zimbabwe native and Rhodes Scholar who says her background growing up in the developing world contributed to her innate desire to pur...
The Retailers are Coming (Part 3): Walmart’s Chief Medical Officer
18 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Walmart is the world’s largest retailer with revenues surpassing $120 billion and more than 10,000 locations across the globe. With nearly 5,000 loc...
The Retailers are Coming (Part 2): CVS Health’s Chief Strategy & Business Development Officer
21 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the United States, 85% of the population resides within 10 miles of a CVS Pharmacy. Through continued growth and expansion since its founding as a ...
The Retailers are Coming: Walgreens CMO On the Future of Community Care
23 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Since its first store opened in 1901, Walgreens has been embracing innovation in the retail pharmacy space, fueling its expansion to become a neighbor...
Digital Health Hype Vs. Reality: How KLAS Cuts Through With the Voice of the Customer
19 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Investments in digital health hit an all-time high in 2020, only to surpass the new record within the first six month of 2021. Needless to say, there’...
A Market-Driven or Policy-Driven Approach to Health IT Innovation? ONC’s Deputy National Coordinator on the Path Forward
15 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The accelerated pace of innovation in digital health, record-breaking investments in the sector and even some of the technology developed to navigate ...
When Consolidation Isn’t About Pricing Leverage: How Ballad Health Merged Two Systems to Reduce Costs and Reinvent Rural Healthcare
17 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the United States, more than 90% of the landmass is rural. And in rural communities from coast to coast, the challenges in delivering healthcare ca...
Aledade Founder & CEO Farzad Mostashari: Preserving the Autonomy of Independent Practices to Drive Real Value in Healthcare
13 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Farzad Mostashari’s extensive resume doesn’t fully convey the true value he brings to reimagining healthcare. He’s the former National Coord...
Health Care vs. Sick Care: SCAN Health CEO Dr. Sachin Jain on Fixing the System
15 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Sachin Jain says he got a silent education about healthcare and medicine around the dinner table from his father, an anesthesiologist and pioneer ...
Care @Home: A Fast Start to a Long Journey, According to Texas Health’s Chief Experience Officer, Winjie Miao
18 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Improving patient experience has been a driving focus for Winjie Miao during her twenty year career at Texas Health Resources, where she’s now senio...
JPM Recap: The Healthcare Industry’s Annual Checkup with Strata CEO, Dan Michelson
11 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Last year tested nearly every aspect of the healthcare system, making the 2021 J.P. Morgan Health Care Conference like none other in its 39-year histo...
The Payer Perspective on COVID, Value Based Care and More with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts’ Chief Commercial Officer, Patrick Gilligan
14 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Before the term Value Based Care existed, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) unveiled one of the nation’s first risk-based payment mod...
Elections Have Consequences: Harvard’s John McDonough Reflects on ‘Decision 2020’ and the Implications to US Healthcare
03 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As someone who has been in the middle of healthcare policy and reform in the U.S. for decades, John McDonough has a unique perspective on how the rapi...
OptumInsight CEO Robert Musslewhite’s Journey from Building a High-Growth Startup to Acquiring Them
12 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Robert Musslewhite has viewed healthcare innovation and the lifecycle of a healthcare services company from nearly every angle over the past two decad...
CommonSpirit’s Lloyd Dean and Rich Roth on Solving Inequities through Innovation
08 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
CommonSpirit Health created one of the largest health systems in the nation by merging Dignity Health and Catholic Health Initiatives in early 2019. I...
The Culture Of Risk at UPMC: President of UPMC Enterprises, Tal Heppenstall, Explains
10 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Tal Heppenstall has a dual role at UPMC. He’s been treasurer of the $21 billion dollar health care provider and insurer since 2003, where he’s res...
Agile Operations: COVID-19 Forces a New Reality for Healthcare Finance, According to Michael Allen, CFO at OSF Healthcare
13 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Allen has unique expertise in healthcare finance. He’s been chief financial officer at four different health systems and is national chairma...
Exploring the Technical Impacts of COVID-19 with Cedars-Sinai CIO, Darren Dworkin
16 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Cedars-Sinai is a nonprofit academic healthcare organization that serves the diverse Los Angeles community through more than 40 locations, 4,500 physi...
Navigating a Post-Covid Path to the New Normal with Gist Healthcare CEO, Chas Roades
11 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Over the course of nearly 20 years as Chief Research Officer at The Advisory Board Company, Chas Roades became a trusted advisor for CEOs, leadership ...
Beating Covid with the GPO Network Effect: Vizient CEO Byron Jobe Talks Data, Supply Chain Demands and Lasting Changes to the Health System
15 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As the healthcare industry’s largest group purchasing organization (GPO), Vizient manages more than $100 billion in spend for more than half of the ...
Covid-19, Regulatory Changes and Election Implications: An Inside Look with Premier’s SVP of Public Affairs
30 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
This special episode of Healthcare is Hard: A Podcast for Insiders puts listeners “in the room” for LRVHealth’s annual planning meeting where th...
The Critical Role of Safety Net Health Systems with Boston Medical Center CEO, Kate Walsh
20 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
There’s one major difference between Boston Medical Center (BMC) and the other outstanding health systems in Boston. While being a major part of a c...
JP Morgan Healthcare Recap: Live with Dan Michelson, CEO at Strata Decision Technology
14 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Dan Michelson’s recap of the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in Becker’s Hospital Review has become a must-read over the past few years – whethe...
How Does Providence Lead Healthcare Innovation After 161 Years? Hear From CEO Dr. Rod Hochman and Chief Digital Officer Aaron Martin
10 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 1856, the Sisters of Providence began establishing hospitals, schools and orphanages across the Northwest, and that humble beginning planted the se...
Focusing On Unified Care at Beth Israel Lahey Health
12 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Kevin Tabb fell into medicine through his training as a medic in the Israel Defense Forces, and after medical school and a five year residency, he...
Healthcare is Hard: A Year of Learning From Industry Leaders
21 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Healthcare is Hard podcast exists for a single purpose – to help listeners get inside the minds of people who understand the complexities of the...
Leading the Shift Towards Value-Based Care with Atrius Health CEO Dr. Steve Strongwater
10 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Atrius Health is way ahead of the curve when it comes to risk-based reimbursement models. With 715 doctors providing care to approximately 745,000 pat...
Designing Care Around the Consumer: A Personal Journey for AdventHealth CEO, Terry Shaw
12 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When Terry Shaw’s wife was the victim of a car accident in 2016, it completely changed his outlook on care delivery. Even as president and CEO of Ad...
Innovation Institute CEO Joe Randolph Shares How to Build a Sustainable Model for Creating New Ideas
19 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Keith Figlioli of LRV Health sits down with Joe Randolph, president and CEO of the Innovation Institute, a highly successful joint ef...
Responding to Hurricane Katrina Showed Karen DeSalvo the Role Social Determinants Play in Healthcare
13 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Hurricane Katrina was an extremely destructive and deadly storm that shut down communities along the Gulf Coast for months and even years. While the s...
Tapping Into The Collective Knowledge of Leading Health Systems with HMA’s Gary Bisbee
10 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Twenty years ago, no one really understood how to run an integrated health system. That’s because no executives at the time grew up in, or were trai...
Hear How Allina Insiders Penny Wheeler, MD, and Ric Magnuson Prioritize “Whole Person Care”
12 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Prioritizing “Whole Person Care,” putting human relationships first and considering all dimensions of a person’s health is part of the fabric at...
Creating Disciplined Innovation In Healthcare with Baystate Health CEO Mark Keroack
15 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Keroack, MD, MPH, has been in and around the healthcare industry for most of his life – long before he became President and CEO of Baystate Hea...
What Is IHI’s “Triple Aim?” Founders Don Berwick, Maureen Bisognano Lay Out Campaign for Change
14 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Don Berwick and Maureen Bisognano lived and breathed different sides of the healthcare industry before starting the Institute for Healthcare Improveme...
Insider Susan DeVore on Reducing Waste and the Path to Alternative Payments in Healthcare
18 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Susan DeVore has been in and around the healthcare industry for most of her life – long before she became president and CEO of Premier Inc., a compa...
Insider Glenn Steele’s Take on Redefining Value, Aligning Providers and Payers, and Driving Innovation
13 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Changing our complex healthcare system from within is a difficult proposition, but one that Glenn Steele, MD, has embraced in multiple capacities over...
Insider Bert Zimmerli Shares Intermountain’s Innovation Imperative with the Healthcare is Hard Podcast
09 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
There’s only one health system in the country that has an “Aa1” rating from Moody’s Investors Service – it’s Intermountain Healthcare. Hea...