Summary: The U.S. — and global — covid-19 vaccine effort hit a bump this week with a pause in use of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine while experts study its relationship to a small number of serious blood clots. Meanwhile, Congress delayed a Medicare cut and started work on a budget that could lead to big increases in federal health programs, and the Biden administration moved to keep promises made during the campaign to abortion-rights backers. Tami Luhby of CNN, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
