{"id":9124,"date":"2026-03-10T14:27:43","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T20:27:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/?p=9124"},"modified":"2026-03-12T08:54:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T14:54:47","slug":"pih-kathleen-sebelius","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/pih-kathleen-sebelius\/","title":{"rendered":"Podcast episode 45: Kathleen Sebelius"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Listen now<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Listen below or on any of your favorite podcast services. Like and subscribe to stay up-to-date with each new episode!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https:\/\/share.transistor.fm\/e\/85f183f7\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-grid wp-container-core-group-is-layout-9649a0d9 wp-block-group-is-layout-grid\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"block-2fff173e-3a4d-4dc6-b261-0abc5fcc2200\"><a href=\"https:\/\/feeds.transistor.fm\/pioneers-in-health\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-11.png\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is RSS-Feed.png\" class=\"wp-image-6580\" srcset=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-11.png 320w, https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-11-300x75.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"block-cc066fe7-7bae-4813-b4c5-2a537f6ba338\"><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/pioneers-in-health\/id1743590014\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-9.png\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Apple-Podcasts.png\" class=\"wp-image-6578\" srcset=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-9.png 320w, https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-9-300x75.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"block-d84c7149-75a6-4eb7-a2b9-8ecad6ba840f\"><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/3jka7vMKpBCEacwnrhdLgw\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-10.png\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Spotify.png\" class=\"wp-image-6579\" srcset=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-10.png 320w, https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-10-300x75.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\" id=\"block-62fca925-59ab-4ffa-ba8d-7087a7255ec5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/music.amazon.com\/podcasts\/7e986df9-578e-416a-b3bf-3c78473c70a8\/pioneers-in-health\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-8.png\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Amazon-Music.png\" class=\"wp-image-6577\" srcset=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-8.png 320w, https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/image-8-300x75.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"block-b1457c2f-42fe-42d3-b614-bdbca33fa59c\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Welcome to the <a href=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/pioneers-in-health\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"6150\">Pioneers in Health podcast<\/a>. In this podcast, we share inspiring stories of pioneering leaders from our nation and from your backyard who are working to improve health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\" style=\"grid-template-columns:auto 23%\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p>In episode 45, we interview former Secretary <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sebeliusresources.com\/welcome-1\/\">Kathleen Sebelius<\/a>. She served as the 21st\u00a0secretary of the U.S. Health and Human Services\u00a0from 2009-14. As HHS secretary, Sebelius was instrumental in overseeing the implementation of the\u00a0Affordable Care Act. Before becoming secretary, she served as the\u00a044th governor of Kansas\u00a0from 2003-09, the second woman to hold that office. She currently serves as CEO of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sebeliusresources.com\">Sebelius Resources<\/a>, LLC, as well as co-chair of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspeninstitute.org\/news\/aspen-health-strategy-group-rural-america\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Aspen Institute Health Strategy Group<\/a>, a nonpartisan group addressing critical U.S. health challenges.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/Kathleen-Sebelius-headshot.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9172 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/Kathleen-Sebelius-headshot.jpg 600w, https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/Kathleen-Sebelius-headshot-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In this episode, Secretary Sebelius discusses how she grew up around politics, with her dad first running for public office when she was just 5 years old. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;I didn&#8217;t know families went to football games and picnics. I thought they went door to door and put up yard signs,&#8221; she said. &#8220;So I kind of grew up in a political family and learned that that was a pretty exciting way to have some influence for the good on your community and on your country.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Her dad won office and became a city councilman, then a Congressman and then ultimately governor of Ohio. When Sebelius became governor of Kansas in 2003, she became the first daughter of a governor to become governor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, she didn&#8217;t initially set out to run for office herself. Though she worked on campaigns for others running for office, she never foresaw becoming a candidate herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, her neighbor \u2014 whose campaign Sebelius had worked on \u2014 approached her and said she wasn&#8217;t going to run for office again and encouraged her to run for the seat in the Kansas Legislature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the time, her husband was a busy trial attorney, and she served as the director of the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association. She was traveling a lot and working many hours, as was her husband. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Frankly, I ran for the Legislature not to achieve higher political offices, but to go home,&#8221; she said. &#8220;It was a part-time job.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, she went on to find a career in public service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;d say I backed in to a political career in some ways to really try to find a little balance between my family life and my professional life,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That decision to first run for office led to four terms in the Kansas Legislature, two terms as the Kansas insurance commissioner, and six years as Kansas governor before ultimately serving in President Barack Obama&#8217;s Cabinet as Secretary of Health and Human Services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>In this episode, she also discusses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Her experience as insurance commissioner<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Her time as governor working on health issues<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Affordable Care Act (ACA)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Medicaid expansion<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A recent report by the Aspen Institute Health Strategy Group that addresses rural health care<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The value of people within a community working together to improve health and how health is at the center of economic development<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The importance of modernizing infrastructure<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Rural Health Transformation Fund<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>ACA premium tax credits<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How community conversations can play a role in improving health care<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What gives her hope<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And much more! Listen now, and learn more about how Secretary Sebelius is an innovative leader in Kansas.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\" id=\"block-1b1c93a7-add0-4bfc-a94e-9cc5b459d210\"><strong>Please see the <a href=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/pioneers-in-health\/\"><em>Pioneers in Health<\/em> page<\/a> on our website for more information on our podcast series and links to other episodes. <\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-16018d1d wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-white-color has-text-color has-background has-link-color has-text-align-center wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/pioneers-in-health\/\" style=\"background-color:#1f2d4a\">View other episodes<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen now Listen below or on any of your favorite podcast services. Like and subscribe to stay up-to-date with each new episode! Welcome to the Pioneers in Health podcast. In this podcast, we share inspiring stories of pioneering leaders from our nation and from your backyard who are working to improve health. In episode 45, &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":6115,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9124","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9124"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9124\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9193,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9124\/revisions\/9193"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6115"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9124"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthfund.org\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}