Support the fact-based journalism you rely on with a donation to Marketplace today. Give Now!

Weekly Wrap: Is it a health care bill or a redistribution of wealth?

Jun 23, 2017
Rachel Abrams from The New York Times and Sheelah Kolhatkar from The New Yorker join us to discuss the week’s business and economic news. Now that Senate Republicans have unveiled their health care plan, a bill drafted in secret, we look at the potential impact it will have on low-income earners and how it could redistribute wealth to […]
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

What it's like running a state health care exchange right now

Jun 22, 2017
'There's a huge amount of froth and churn that we're trying to navigate,' says Covered California's executive director.
“All health coverage is not created equal," says Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee. "A key question we all need to look at is: Are we going back to the days of skimpy benefits?”
Max Whittaker/Getty Images

Republican Arkansas looks to cut its once-expanded Medicaid rolls

Jun 22, 2017
With the future of the Affordable Care Act uncertain, some states anticipate greater reductions by Congress.
Eddie Pannell is the retiring executive director at Harmony Health Clinic. He thinks many patients who left the free clinic after the passage of the Affordable Care Act will return if Congress cuts Medicaid.
Sarah Whites-Koditschek /Marketplace

As big insurers flee Obamacare exchanges, others are jumping in

Jun 21, 2017
Today is the deadline for health insurance companies to decide if they’re going to be in or out of the health care exchanges in 2018. Several of the big insurers, like Anthem and Humana, are bailing on the exchanges in many markets, limiting or eliminating options for patients using Obamacare. But while some companies are […]

When it's literally too hot to fly

Jun 21, 2017
Searing temperatures can melt productivity and profits for airlines.
SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

Will health insurers pull out of Obamacare exchanges in 2018? The deadline looms.

Jun 21, 2017
Today  is the deadline for insurers to submit plans for selling policies on the Obamacare exchanges in 2018. The political climate has destabilized the market for many insurers, and 44 counties have already decided to pull out entirely, leaving thousands potentially without coverage. Click the audio player above to hear the full story.

Why Americans should be taking more vacations

Jun 20, 2017
'There's a lot of work to be done' in office culture to make it OK to take time off, the Travel and Leisure editor tells us.
“The No. 1 reason actually why people don't take vacation days is that they're worried about the mountain of work that they're going to come back to,” says Nathan Lump, Travel and Leisure's editor-in-chief.
Sean Gallup/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

On health care, consumer groups have no seat at the table

Jun 19, 2017
The Senate is working to get its own version of the American Health Care Act ready before it goes on recess July 3. Only a small group of senators is working on it, without the input of many other people. This has been frustrating for some consumer groups, who say they’ve been locked out. So many […]

Is competition the solution to high drug prices?

Jun 14, 2017
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling supports a new class of generic drugs.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Can a brain 'zapping' device improve San Francisco Giants' performance?

Jun 13, 2017
Some players were able to shave a fraction of a second off running times. But one scientist says the technology is inconsistent.
Tyler Beede, one of the Giant’s top minor league pitchers, wears headphones that deliver electricity to his brain during practice. The team is testing the technology to see if it improves athletic performance.
Photo courtesy of Halo Neuroscience