The Doctor's Lounge

The Doctor's Lounge

Where scalpels meet systems — and physicians say what they really think. Co-hosted by Dutch Rojas & Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, with Anish Koka, MD, Dan Choi, MD, & Sanat Dixit, MD — candid talks on healthcare policy, reform, physician autonomy & patient care.

Episodes

December 13, 2025 65 mins

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Keywords

healthcare, MAID, patient autonomy, economic implications, GOP healthcare proposals, health savings accounts, dynamic pricing, Instacart, ethical dilemmas, healthcare systems


Summary

In this episode, the hosts discuss pressing issues in healthcare, focusing on the Canadian MAID program, the implications of patient autonomy, economic factors influencing healthcare decisions, and...

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Keywords

healthcare, primary care, ER, cost reduction, pharmacy reform, 340B program, healthcare access, bureaucratic reform


Summary

The conversation focuses on the need to shift healthcare from emergency rooms to primary care, emphasizing cost reduction and improved access through reforms in pharmacy practices and bureaucratic processes.


Takeaways

Shifting health...

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Keywords

healthcare, Medicaid fraud, DEI, vaccine safety, Eli Lilly, ACA, healthcare policy, trust in medicine, social determinants of health, healthcare reform


Summary

In this episode, the hosts discuss various pressing issues in healthcare, including Medicaid fraud, the impact of fraud on legitimate healthcare needs, and the ongoing debate about healthcare as a human right. They also ...

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Summary

Dr. Anahita Dua is a vascular surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital who joins Dutch Rojas, Anish Koka, and Anthony Digiorgio to discuss her views on women's health and cardiovascular disease, the need for a broader understanding of women's health issues beyond reproductive health, and the problems female physicians face in medicine. We discuss the challenges of research funding, the impo...

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Summary

In this episode of the Doctors' Lounge, the hosts discuss a range of topics centered around healthcare, including personal experiences with medical procedures, the importance of trust in healthcare providers, the economics of office-based surgeries, and the role of insurance companies in driving up costs. They reflect on the need for a more patient-centered approach to healthcare and express grat...

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 🎯 Why Listen:

Dive into a heated discussion on the future of healthcare, where leading physicians debate the merits of free market principles versus centralized healthcare planning. Discover why the current system may be failing and what can be done to steer it in a better direction.


👥 Co-Hosts:

Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health

Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; health policy researcher

Anish Kok...

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📌 Episode Overview:

In this episode, the co-hosts dive into the complexities of healthcare policy, discussing the impact of ACA subsidies, the role of insurance companies, and the potential for HSAs to empower patients. They explore the challenges of healthcare costs, the influence of government subsidies, and the need for a competitive marketplace.

👥 Co-Hosts:

  • Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; healt...
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Show Link: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/0003-4819-153-8-201010190-00274

Why Listen 👥

In this episode, the hosts delve into the complexities of the healthcare system, discussing the impact of large hospital systems as major employers, the broken window fallacy in healthcare, and the challenges of high premiums. They explore the historical context of certificate of need laws and site of service differentials, ...

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Why Listen 👥

In this episode, the hosts delve into the complexities of healthcare costs, the impact of policy decisions, and the role of market forces in shaping the healthcare landscape. They discuss the consolidation of healthcare providers, the influence of insurance companies, and the challenges faced by independent practices. The conversation also touches on the COVID-19 pandemic, the response of public health of...

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📌 Why Listen
Explore the complexities of the 340B program, its impact on healthcare systems, and the implications for both hospitals and independent clinicians. Understand the need for transparency and potential reforms to align the program with its original goals.


👥 Co-Hosts

  • Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; health policy researcher
  • Anish Koka, MD – Cardiologist, Philadelphia; healthcare po...
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🎯 Why Listen

When Senator Chuck Schumer joined Dr. Mike’s podcast to discuss “The Truth About the Government Shutdown,” the talk quickly became a lesson in political spin. In this episode, the co-hosts of The Rojas Report dissect Schumer’s claims, challenge Dr. Mike’s deference, and unpack the policy mechanics behind Medicaid, ACA subsidies, and America’s trillion-dollar healthcare debate. Expect blunt analysis, sharp...

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🎯 Why Listen

This episode is a no-holds-barred takedown of how hospitals manipulate billing codes, exploit DRG loopholes, and increase patient risk—all while squeezing out independent physicians. Whether you’re a patient, policymaker, or healthcare insider, you’ll walk away questioning everything you thought you knew about how hospitals operate behind the scenes.


👥 Co-Hosts

  • Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Healt...
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🎯 Why Listen

In this fiery and insightful episode, the doctors dissect the political and economic fault lines behind the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the looming government shutdown, and the multi-billion-dollar subsidies keeping America’s healthcare afloat. From insurance distortions and Medicaid loopholes to why the system rewards bureaucracy over care, this is an unfiltered conversation that finally makes sense of wh...

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🎯 Why Listen

This episode of The Doctor’s Lounge cuts straight into one of the most polarizing questions in U.S. healthcare: Did the Affordable Care Act (ACA) fix the system—or hand it to corporate interests? The doctors debate how government mandates, corporate lobbying, and political theater have created a bloated insurance economy that benefits everyone but patients and doctors.

👥 Co-Hosts

  • Dutch Rojas – Founder,...
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🎯 Why Listen

What happens when private equity buys hospitals? Do staffing cuts and profit motives compromise patient safety? This episode of The Doctor’s Lounge dives into the controversial world of private equity in healthcare, the role of RVUs and the RUC, and why physicians are losing control over their profession. Expect an unfiltered discussion on power, profit, and the future of independent practice.


👥 Co-H...

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🎯 Why Listen

Ever wonder who actually decides how much doctors earn for surgeries, visits, or procedures? This episode takes you inside the mysterious but powerful Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) — the body that determines physician payments for Medicare and beyond. If you care about fairness in healthcare, innovation, or why a complex surgery can pay the same as a routine one, this conversation is for you...

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🎯 Why Listen

Journalist Ben Ryan joins the panel to unpack what really happened during the 2022 monkeypox outbreak, how public health messaging shaped public perception, and why institutions like the CDC are facing a crisis of trust. With decades of experience covering HIV and infectious disease, Ryan shares his perspective on risk communication, stigma, and the politics that shaped pandemic response.

👥 Host

  • Anish ...
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🎯 Why Listen

A spicy, inside-baseball roundtable on why rural healthcare dollars keep missing physicians, how enterprise EHRs and retail chains distort priorities, and why media narratives around leaders’ health go off the rails. Practical, provocative, and very quotable.


👥 Co-Hosts

Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health

Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; health policy researcher

Anish Koka, MD – Cardio...

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🎯 Why Listen

Dive into one of the most consequential debates in medicine: how should the FDA balance speed, safety, and patient need in approving new drugs and gene therapies? Dr. Bob Goldberg, joins the Doctors Lounge to unpack regulatory science, RCTs, accelerated approvals, and the controversies around muscular dystrophy treatments.


👥 Co-Hosts

Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health

Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Ne...

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🎯 Why Listen

When an 88-year-old with dementia lands in the hospital, should we implant a device simply “because we can”? The panel examines futile care, ICU economics, malpractice fears, and the cultural bias to always “do something.” With special guest JP Kolcun, a seventh-year neurosurgery resident, they also debate whether physician-owned hospitals could restore dignity, efficiency, and leadership to American medi...

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