Podnosis

Payers and providers felt the upheaval and instability on the Affordable Care Act exchanges in the first quarter of this year. Marketplace plans saw significant enrollment declines alongside tier shifts, while providers felt the impact in both volumes and payer mix. Fierce Healthcare's Dave Muoio and Paige Minemyer sit down this week on “Podnosis” to break down those trends and other first-quarter throughlines, including the effect of winter storms on provider finances and signs of a rebound in Medicare Advantage. To learn more about the topics in this episode:  The ACA exchanges dominated Q1 earnings calls. Here's what payer, health system execs had to say Tenet Healthcare met Q1's volume curveballs with 'old-fashioned discipline' Cigna to exit ACA market, pursue strategic alternatives for eviCore unit Universal Health Services' Q1 2026 earnings growth dampened by volume hits Centene swings to $1.5B profit as Medicaid business improves even as ACA membership falls by 2 million HCA Healthcare executives shrug off Q1 volumes disruptions, reaffirm FY2026 guidance See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fertility services—and conversations about them—are expanding across the U.S. But the sector remains underregulated, expensive and, in some cases, outdated. These factors are reshaping how Americans seek care, sometimes in ways that may put quality and safety at risk. Where are the biggest gaps? And what would make the system safer? Senior Writer Anastassia Gliadkovskaya breaks it down with Brian Levine, M.D., founding partner and practice director of CCRM Fertility of New York and founder of Nodal, a platform connecting surrogates and intended parents. To learn more about the topics in this episode:  Trump admin takes aim at the cost of IVF with new coverage guidance Women's health sector could grow to $600B industry by 2030: PwC report Emotional support crucial in addition to financial support for fertility journey, Maven finds See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this sponsored episode of Podnosis, experts examine how molecular residual disease testing is transforming how clinicians assess recurrence risk in triple-negative breast cancer. Drawing on new data from the NSABP B-59 substudy presented at SABCS and AACR, the discussion highlights how circulating tumor DNA is providing earlier and more precise insight into patient outcomes.Dr. Priya Rastogi, chief medical officer of the NSABP Foundation, explains how MRD testing can detect residual disease that standard tools may miss, often months or years before clinical recurrence. The conversation explores key findings, including the strong correlation between post-surgical ctDNA positivity and recurrence risk, as well as the prognostic value of ctDNA status earlier in the treatment pathway.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Condoms can be purchased almost anywhere, from big retailers to small convenience stores. The same can’t be said for female birth control. One company is trying to change that. Cadence OTC sells the morning-after pill, a cheaper alternative to Plan B. Recognizing that many communities in the U.S. are pharmacy deserts, the company is pursuing atypical distribution channels such as convenience stores and gas stations to get emergency contraceptives into the hands of more Americans. Cadence is also advocating for a daily birth control pill to be made available over the counter. Senior Writer Anastassia Gliadkovskaya sits down with Cadence OTC co-founder and CEO Samantha Miller to discuss how this approach could reshape reproductive healthcare and what policy and awareness challenges remain. To learn more about the topics in this episode:  Insurers not covering 12-month contraception supply as required: study The quiet collapse of America's reproductive health safety net Perrigo's over-the-counter birth control launch takes flight in the US Amid Trump victory, women's health providers see flood of orders for contraception, abortion pills See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.