Emerging Trends from Politico’s Health Care Summit

The 2025 Politico Health Care Summit provided an excellent opportunity to hear vastly different perspectives about the future of U.S. health care – and  it was about as heated as you might expect, given the current climate.

The summit brought together leading experts, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to discuss pressing issues and emerging trends in health care. From the impact of legislative changes to the future of global health, here’s an overview of the main topics and key takeaways from the summit and what it means for health care organizations:

Make America Healthy Again (MAHA)

The MAHA agenda was a significant theme, with multiple speakers making points for or against the proposed “plan.” According to its supporters, the goals of MAHA are to eradicate chronic disease, reverse national health crises, and drive down health care costs. Most people can probably agree that emptying hospital beds and investing in therapeutics that focus on eradication – not just management – of disease is good. But the messengers of MAHA shined a spotlight on individual diet and behavior as the root causes of the nation’s declining health and well-being while sidestepping the role of vaccines. Former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the MAHA movement was an “anti-vax movement” at its core with the wrappings of a “healthy diet” campaign.

Pro-MAHA speakers, namely Calley Means, were critical of the pharmaceutical industry and health systems, implying more oversight and control might be coming —even when Politico moderators pointed out that the Trump administration has been calling for less government oversight. However, Means also argued that FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, Dr. Mehmet Oz and others want to engage with industry and that MAHA’s main goal is to deregulate FDA.

This means that the American Medical Association (AMA) has been singled out, insinuating that the organization’s “standard of care” has failed the American people. He blamed the media for spending more time covering diseases like measles while avoiding more mundane topics like chronic disease. Means also stated that MAHA will steer the National Institutes of Health (NIH) research to look at the underlying causes of chronic diseases despite large NIH funding cuts (which the audience emphatically pointed out).

FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Scott Gottlieb pointed to the new administration’s dismantling of flu vaccination (canceling the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meeting, taking down webpages on vaccines, and discontinuing campaigns encouraging vaccination during the worst flu epidemic in 10 years) as an example of his concerns about changes coming to the FDA and CDC.  

Gottlieb is looking to see how Makary responds to the pressure of Secretary Robert Kennedy’s agenda, noting whether upcoming Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) dates are met or not. While Gottlieb said he has faith in Makary, he is concerned that the MAHA agenda might be hard to avoid.

Medicaid

Guest speakers and moderators often pointed to the expiration of Obamacare (ACA) tax credits as an example of “we’ll see what happens next.” Republicans argue they’ll find efficiencies to cut Medicaid’s budget without impacting patient care. However, Democrats, like Congresswoman Diana DeGette, fear that such changes to Medicaid will be devastating to constituents around the country who will lose health care or see their health care costs rise tremendously. This, of course, would impact the most vulnerable populations, including children, the elderly, and those in recovery from substance use disorders. Senator Maggie Hassan expressed great concern for Americans losing health care coverage. She pointed to growing bipartisan fear – even if some on the right are cautious about speaking out on the issue. If healthy individuals leave the market, prices will rise, more people will get sick, and health care costs will increase.

Social Determinants of Health

In a breakout session, Dr. Ben Carson and Dr. Stanley Goldfarb dismissed research on social determinants of health, which are known to impact a person’s health outcomes, as a “peripheral issue.” Carson and Goldfarb instead argued that NIH should focus on more “critical research” while also insinuating that research institutions should do more with less funding – explaining that overhead costs are very high at most institutions.

Emphasis was placed on revamping Health Savings Accounts (HSA) to allow families to share their HSA funds for medical bills. Carson saw this as a tool for families to pull themselves out of medical debt and build generational wealth.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AMA President Bruce Scott and Representative Ami Bera argued for federal regulation of AI. Bera pointed to the lack of regulation around social media and how difficult it has been to rein in. Scott shared that physicians are excited about AI but insisted it is more about “augmentation” – emphasizing that AI will never replace the human touch necessary in health care. Leveraging AI, however, can support many administrative tasks, reducing the burden on physicians.

Global Health

The disruption of U.S. health systems and lack of participation in organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) will lead to destabilization of global health systems. Dr. Vanessa Kerry, WHO’s director-general, emphasized that diseases don’t know borders. The chances of another pandemic are high, so global surveillance is essential.

The U.S. has historically been a leader in global health funding, so vacating the space could lead other nations (i.e., China) to fill the void. Kerry worried about the Trump administration’s snubbing of WHO and giving up a soft power role as a leader of the global health agenda.

What It All Means for Health Care Organizations:

Health is a front-line measure of global and national security and improving health is also a business imperative to improving health: healthy employees = a better bottom line.

Wherever your organization falls in the health care space – from pharmaceutical company to provider – you may feel vulnerable right now. We’re counseling our clients to:

• Stay alert – things will change quickly. Think two steps ahead as best you can.
• Stay committed – remember your mission. Hold firm to your core values.
• Stay engaged – you have a voice. Policymakers are looking to outside organizations for allyship.

Our Health team will continue to monitor these evolving issues and policies to help organizations navigate a rocky landscape. If you'd like to learn more about how to leverage these trends and prepare to pivot, connect with us.