Top 5 Podcast Episodes of 2025

This year's top 5 episodes of Managed Care Cast, the podcast of The American Journal of Managed Care^®, featured an array of experts highlighting policy, clinical, and coverage trends shaping patient access and care delivery, including updates to the annual wellness visit, incretin-based weight management therapies, managed care considerations in neurospine injuries, public health policy shifts, and emerging mental health treatments. Each episode dissects niche issues in various sectors of the health care industry and clinical practice to inform audiences and spread awareness on current and upcoming innovations in the field.

Here are your top 5 Managed Care Cast episodes, and click here to listen to more episodes from this year that cover an even wider variety of health policy, industry, and clinical trends.

5. The Evolving Annual Wellness Visit

On this episode of Managed Care Cast, The American Journal of Managed Care^® (AJMC^®) spoke with Christopher Wheelock, MD, a clinical transformation physician executive at Highmark Health, about various elements of the annual wellness visit. The conversation touched on aspects such as self-assessments, psychosocial issues, and screening for dementia and incontinence. Wheelock also discussed the intricacies of coding and billing for annual wellness visits, especially if they go beyond the scope of an average wellness visit.

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4. High Costs, Coverage Variability Limit Access to Incretin Mimetics for Weight Management

AJMC spoke with Jonathan Gabison, MD, an obesity medicine specialist and family physician, and Stephen Lott, PharmD, director of the postgraduate year one managed care residency program, both at the University of Michigan. On this episode, they discussed their qualitative study, which highlighted the high costs associated with incretin mimetics for weight management and the limited insurance coverage for these therapies. Health plan leaders point to the high price of these therapies and mixed perceptions of obesity as barriers, and many call for lower list prices and more standardized coverage policies to improve access and outcomes.

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3. Navigating Sport-Related Neurospine Injuries, Surgery, and Managed Care

On this episode, AJMC spoke with Arthur L. Jenkins III, MD, CEO of Jenkins NeuroSpine, a board-certified neurosurgeon and an expert in complex spinal neurosurgery, in which he discussed the intersection of advanced surgical care for sport-related neurospine injuries and managed care systems. The conversation also touched on common neurospine injuries in recreational sports and the latest innovations in surgical techniques, among other managed care policies in the treatment and rehabilitation of athletes.

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2. Politics vs Science: The Future of US Public Health

AJMC spoke with Perry N. Halkitis, MPH, Hunterdon professor of public health and health equity at the Rutgers School of Public Health, about the future implications of the US' withdrawal from the World Health Organization. Halkitis, an expert in infectious disease epidemiology, public health psychology, and health behavior, also discussed the importance of accurate public health information and the role of public health leaders advocating for science and health.

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1. Frameworks for Advancing Health Equity: Accessing Ketamine-Assisted Therapy

On this episode, AJMC spoke with Jessica Tracy, head of growth and partnerships at Enthea, who spoke at the Greater Philadelphia Business Coalition on Health Mental Health Summit. Her presentation, “Revolutionizing Mental Health With Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy,” covers how employers and unions support access to evidence-based ketamine-assisted therapy as a mental health resource. Tracy outlined how integrating ketamine treatment services into employee benefit plans may lower access barriers and expand the availability of innovative psychiatric care.

Listen to the full episode.