Milken Institute
Showing 571–585 of 1442 transcripts.
- 25 min
Wednesday Lunch feat. Bill Cassidy
Bill Cassidy, Esther Krofa, Dan Diamond
At the Milken Institute's Future of Health Summit, Senator Bill Cassidy and Faster Cures' Esther Krofa discussed strategies to balance drug affordability with the financial incentives required for medical innovation. Cassidy defended the pharmaceutical industry against claims of excessive profitability while advocating for subscription-based pricing models and rejecting direct government negotiation as a threat to high-risk research. The dialogue highlighted specific legislative successes in closing rebate loopholes and ending gag clauses, concluding with a realistic assessment that a comprehensive drug pricing bill has a 60% probability of enactment by year-end.
- 57 min
Sexual, Reproductive, and Maternal Health in America
Christy Turlington Burns, Dr. Michael Liu, Dr. Lena Nguyen, Representative Lauren Underwood
In a session featuring Dr. Michael Liu, Christy Turlington Burns, Dr. Lena Nguyen, and Rep. Lauren Underwood, experts addressed the 50% rise in U.S. maternal mortality and the threefold racial disparity that leaves over 700 women dead annually. The panel detailed recent legislative victories by the Black Maternal Health Caucus, including $50 million in funding and a push for 12-month postpartum Medicaid coverage, while emphasizing that half of these deaths are preventable through safety bundles and bias training. Despite concerns about technology exacerbating inequities, the speakers advocated for high-touch care models and systemic reforms targeting social determinants to secure bipartisan support for maternal survival.
- 58 min
Poised to Break the Bank: Paying for Chronic Disease
Allison, Anand, Tom, Nancy, Paul Davis, Eric, Michael Golinkoff, John Rother, Megan Golden, Jess Leifer, Stephanie Cousins
A multi-sector consensus addresses the $2.4 trillion annual burden of chronic U.S. diseases by implementing interventions like Geisinger's Food Pharmacy, which reduces healthcare costs by aligning patient acuity with intensive lifestyle support. While capitated payment models and digital innovations such as Omada Health improve scalability and outcomes, structural barriers including payer misalignment and low screening rates for prediabetes necessitate policy shifts toward sugar taxes and multi-payer funding. Concurrently, the medical landscape is pivoting from opioid reliance to holistic pain management and gene therapies, with academic institutions like Kaiser Permanente adapting curricula to prioritize prevention and address the mental health needs of 74% of employees.
- 58 min
Gun Violence as a Public Health Crisis
Ed, Dan Diamond, Dr. Megan Ranney, Dr. Babak Sarani, Lina Wen, Dr. Mallory Williams, Maya, Chris Corey, Kenyatta Hazelwood, Josh, Bob
A panel of medical professionals and public health experts advocates for a public health approach to gun violence, emphasizing that current political narratives often overlook evidence-based solutions like high-capacity magazine restrictions in favor of ineffective symbolic measures. The discussion highlights a severe research drought caused by federal inaction since 1996, while profiling successful local interventions such as Baltimore's Safe Streets program and urging the integration of trauma centers into long-term community conflict resolution. Despite broad optimism for shifting discourse, the panelists warn that sustained progress remains contingent on overcoming funding gaps and addressing the social determinants of health that disproportionately impact minority communities.
- 1h 16m
Reducing the Cost and Risk of Dementia
Nora Super, Michael Belleville, Jennie Chin Hansen, Kevin Crain, Jeff Huber, Shari Ling, Sarah Locke, Ian Cramer, Orion, Alan Stevens, Jill Lesser
The Milken Institute's new report on reducing dementia costs sparked a multi-sector dialogue involving CMS officials, patient advocates, and industry leaders to address critical gaps in workforce preparedness and community support. Key initiatives highlighted include CMS's expanded billing codes for cognitive screening, the rapid growth of accredited Geriatric Emergency Departments that reduce hospitalizations, and innovative financial strategies to protect caregivers from retirement disparities. Panelists emphasized that effective intervention requires moving beyond isolated medical treatment to holistic models that integrate home care, fraud detection, and policy changes aimed at improving long-term quality of life.
- 35 min
A Conversation with Chef José Andrés
World Central Kitchen, founded by José Andrés, deploys a decentralized network of over 44,000 volunteers to serve millions of meals globally by prioritizing immediate on-site adaptation over rigid bureaucratic planning. In crisis zones ranging from the Bahamas to Haiti, the organization utilizes local food systems and improvised logistics to deliver fresh nutrition while transitioning to economic recovery initiatives that support local micro-businesses. This model, funded primarily by small individual donations, explicitly challenges traditional aid structures by focusing on preventing health crises through nutrition rather than treating illness after the fact.
- 59 min
Age-Forward 2030: The Intersection of Housing and Health Care
Susan Donley, Gretchen Alkema, Bechara Choucair, Tama Duffy Day, Christopher Herbert, Susan Donnelly
Driven by the urgent reality that half of middle-income seniors cannot afford both housing and care, this event convenes policymakers, healthcare leaders, and urban planners to address the rising demographic of adults over 80 who face severe social isolation and financial insecurity. The discussion highlights successful cross-sector initiatives, such as California's "Master Plan for Aging" and intergenerational housing models, which integrate affordable housing with health services to reduce costly hospitalizations and extend life expectancy. Participants outline a 2030 vision requiring federal and local governments to dismantle policy silos, reform zoning laws, and invest $200 million or more to create stable, age-friendly communities that leverage older adults as active societal contributors.
- 58 min
Gut Feeling: Food, Microbiome, and Disease Prevention
Julie DiBiase, Robynne Chutkan, Rob Knight, David Perlmutter, Karen Sandell Sfanos, Robin Chutkan, Mark Hyman
Leading experts in functional medicine and microbiome research convened to establish that diet and environmental exposure fundamentally dictate human health by shaping the trillions of symbiotic microbes governing metabolism and immunity. Their discussions highlighted critical interventions, ranging from plant-rich dietary protocols that promote beneficial bacteria like *Akkermansia* to germ-free animal studies proving that specific microbial strains can transmit diseases such as cancer and autoimmune disorders. Ultimately, the panel advocates for a shift toward personalized medicine that utilizes longitudinal microbiome data and holistic lifestyle changes to prevent chronic illness rather than relying on transient pharmaceutical fixes.
- 23 min
Tuesday Lunch With Alex Azar, Secretary, US Department of Health and Human Services
Secretary Azar outlined a unified healthcare strategy centered on three core promises of affordability, choice, and quality, executing this vision through value-based payment models and targeted initiatives for high-impact areas like the opioid crisis and chronic kidney disease. Specific progress includes a 5% drop in overdose deaths and a shift to risk-sharing primary care models that empower providers to address social determinants of health, alongside efforts to expand home dialysis and stabilize ACA premiums through state reinsurance pools. The administration's "protect what works, fix what is broken" approach seeks to safeguard coverage for 331 million Americans while redesigning payment structures to prioritize preventive care and long-term fiscal sustainability.
- 1h 0m
The Business Case for Addressing Social Determinants of Health
Joanne Kenen, Georges Benjamin, Thomas Moriarty, Ashley Perry, Lauren Shweder Biel, Emily Yu, Joanne Cannon, Lauren Schwader-Beal, Katherine Connelly, Michael Golinkoff
Moderated by Joanne Cannon, a panel of public health leaders and corporate strategists redefined the conversation around Social Determinants of Health by prioritizing the business case for intervention over traditional philanthropy. Speakers detailed scalable models such as DC Greens' produce prescription program and CVS's integrated health hubs, which leverage data-driven insights to prove cost savings through medication compliance and reduced emergency room visits. The group concluded that sustainable growth depends on transitioning funding from grants to payer reimbursement within value-based care systems, leveraging political and corporate influence to address root causes like housing instability.
- 1h 1m
Opioid Addiction: A Crisis Fueled by Stigma
Robert Redfield, Sarah Carlin-Smith, Dr. Kelly Clark, Gary Mendel, Dr. Andrei Ostrovsky, Jerome Adams, Ronnie Solomon, Michael Golinkoff
A collaborative panel led by Surgeon General officials and researchers from Shatterproof and McKinsey identifies stigma as the primary barrier in the opioid crisis, highlighting how it drives public misunderstanding, provider bias, and critical gaps in Medicaid and federal funding. The group outlines a strategic shift toward humanizing recovery narratives, integrating addiction care into chronic disease management frameworks, and utilizing settlement funds for evidence-based programs to reduce overdose mortality by 50%. By advocating for the removal of restrictive privacy laws like 42 CFR Part 2 and the elimination of the X-waiver, the initiative seeks to dismantle systemic prejudices that currently prevent 60% of treatment facilities from offering FDA-approved medications.
- 1h 5m
The Future of Brain Health
Maxine Waters, Michael Clowden, Meg Terrell, Dr. Ruth Benka, Dr. Marie Bernard, Dr. Rod Hockman, Nora Super, Dr. Rudy Tanzi
Congresswoman Maxine Waters secured bipartisan backing from 130 legislators for a proposed $2.65 billion Alzheimer's research budget, aiming to meet the 2025 national goal of a cure while addressing the projected bankruptcy of the U.S. healthcare system. Parallel scientific advances, including Biogen's Aducanumab and new insights into viral links and sleep-based protein clearance, are being matched by systemic reforms to shift 50% of care to home settings and address the disproportionate burden on female caregivers. Despite these strides, experts emphasize that reducing reliance on acute hospitalization and mitigating risks through lifestyle interventions like blood pressure control and social engagement remain critical to curbing the disease's demographic and economic impact.
- 58 min
Reshaping Food Systems for Sustainability
Ryan Shadrick Wilson, Heston Blumenthal OBE, Timothy Childs, Matilda Ho, Simon Lowden
Leading executives from PepsiCo, Treasure8, and Bits and Bytes converge with chef Heston Blumenthal to address the triad of global food crises: undernutrition, diet-related diseases, and agricultural emissions. The dialogue outlines concrete sustainability strategies, including PepsiCo's packaging reductions, Treasure8's biochar-based circular economy, and cellular agriculture investments, while emphasizing the critical need to align profit motives with regenerative practices. Ultimately, the panel forecasts a market evolution where personalized nutrition, regulatory shifts on sugar, and behavioral storytelling replace restrictive sustainability narratives to secure food systems for a projected 9 billion population.
- 49 min
Dialogue with Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim
Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Dato' Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim, Haslinda Amin, Michael Milken, Curtis Chin, Anwar Ibrahim, Michael Swaito, Joe Brock
Anwar Ibrahim and Mahathir Mohamad lead a transition government in Malaysia that prioritizes dismantling race-based economic policies, combating systemic corruption, and replacing the New Economic Policy with a need-based framework. The administration plans to recover billions from the 1MDB scandal to fund education and social services while managing a predetermined handover of the premiership from Mohamad to Ibrahim in May 2020. This strategic governance aims to redefine the nation's "Asian Dream" by fostering multiracial democracy, addressing severe poverty statistics, and positioning Malaysia as a stable economic force amid regional geopolitical tensions.
- 54 min
MENA: Building the Next FinTech Hub
George Hay, Marcelo Giugale, Ben Lawsky, Khalid Saad, Richard Teng
Experts from the World Bank, US regulators, and the MENA region convened to define the structural prerequisites for establishing a regional fintech hub, emphasizing the critical roles of unified regulatory frameworks, legal certainty, and indigenous talent development. The panel contrasted the fragmented US sandbox environment with Singapore's integrated model while highlighting specific MENA strategies to bypass low financial inclusion rates through government-led digital payment initiatives. Key figures from Bahrain FinTech Bay and ADGM advocated for regional cooperation and high-standard asset regulations to foster institutional trust and transform the area into a sustainable global financial technology center.