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
🎯 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...
🎯 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...
🎯 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 ...
🎯 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...
🎯 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...
🎯 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...
🎯 Why Listen
Organ donation is one of the most emotional and misunderstood processes in modern medicine. In this minisode, the hosts tackle the ethics, procedures, and misconceptions around declaring death and procuring organs. Whether you’re a healthcare professional, patient advocate, or simply someone who has “organ donor” on your driver’s license, this conversation offers rare clarity and compassion on a deep...
🎯 Why Listen
North Carolina approved a bill letting some international medical grads practice without U.S. residency. Smart fix for shortages—or a back door for cheaper labor that risks quality? We break down patient impact, wages, malpractice, and what it means for the profession. Plus: Vinay Prasad’s surprise return to the FDA, catastrophic insurance, and why prices stay opaque.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch Rojas –...
🎯 Why Listen
Is there really a physician shortage—or just bad incentives driving doctors out of practice? In this episode, the crew unpacks Representative Greg Murphy’s call for more foreign-trained doctors, the real barriers U.S. medical students face, the role of residency caps, gender dynamics in the physician workforce, and why private practice may hold the key to keeping doctors in medicine.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch R...
Original Substack Release: Aug 23, 2025
🎯 Why Listen
When hope collides with billion-dollar incentives, who protects patients? We unpack Vinay Prasad’s FDA resignation, Sarepta’s $3.2M Duchenne gene therapy, and how accelerated approvals can leave families without the long-term data they deserve.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health
- Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; health policy resea...
Original Substack Release Date: August 29, 2025
🎯 Why Listen
Heard “surprise billing” blamed on doctors? This episode shows how insurers shaped the narrative, how the No Surprises Act (NSA) was meant to protect patients, why weak enforcement broke it, and what Rep. Greg Murphy’s No Surprises Enforcement Act could fix.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health
- Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeo...
Original Substack Release Date: August 9, 2025
🎯 Why Listen
This episode pulls no punches on the future of physician independence. From the looming physician shortage to the retaliatory tactics of insurers, you’ll hear an unscripted conversation about the raw realities inside American healthcare—and the strategies physicians can use to fight back.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health
- Anthony DiGiorgi...
Original Substack Release Date: July 20,2025
🎯 Why Listen
Prior authorization is the bureaucratic chokehold strangling American healthcare. But this episode isn’t just venting — it’s a masterclass in how the system got built, why it persists, and where leverage actually lies. From AI-driven denials to Medicare’s looming funding cliff, we break down the forces shaping care today and what physicians and patients can...
Original Substack Release Date: Jun 18th, 2025
🎯 Why Listen
This week’s episode takes you inside the chaos rocking organized medicine: ACIP’s sudden purge, the AMA’s meltdown, and the war over who really speaks for America’s doctors. If you’ve ever wondered how medical “consensus” is manufactured—and who benefits—this is the episode to hear.
👥 Co-Hosts
- Dutch Rojas – Founder, Bliksem Health
- Anthony D...
Original Substack Release Date: June 14th, 2025
🎯 Why Listen
When the New England Journal of Medicine claims that direct primary care threatens the “common good,” four practicing physicians step into the ring. This episode isn’t just a rebuttal, it’s a full-throated defense of medical freedom, patient choice, and the future of primary care. If you want to understand how Medicaid has morphed from a safety net into a su...
Original Substack Release Date: June 7th, 2025
🎯 Why Listen:
“Shut up and enjoy your salary.”
—What passes for health policy debate in 2025.
Does the government actually listen to doctors anymore? Or do they just think we’re a nuisance — good for photo ops, useless in policymaking?
In this episode of The Doctor’s Lounge, Dutch and Anthony pull no punches on Medicare:
- Why Medicare is becoming more of a political weapon...
🎯 Why Listen:
A candid conversation on whether non-compete clauses in physician contracts harm doctors, patients, and the healthcare system — and what real reform might look like.
Co-Hosts:
- Dutch Rojas - Private Healthcare Advocate
- Anthony DiGiorgio, DO, MHA – Neurosurgeon, UCSF; health policy researcher.
- Anish Koka, MD – Private practice cardiologist, Philadelphia; healthcare policy commentator.
- Dan Choi, MD, FAAOS – ...
🎯 Why Listen:
If you’re a physician frustrated by the state of American healthcare, a policymaker curious about frontline realities, or simply a patient who wants to understand why the system feels broken, this candid conversation will give you both the diagnosis and potential remedies — from the people in the trenches.
Why Physicians Need a Voice in Healthcare Policy
👥 Hosted by: Dutch Rojas
Doctors:
•Anthony DiGio...
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