Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Closing the Healthcare Affordability Gap From the Front Lines with Joseph Pollino, PA-C
Feb 12, 2026
Joseph Pollino, PA-C, a Northern Nevada primary care physician assistant and former coroner/EMT, spotlights frontline struggles with rising premiums and high deductibles. He recounts preventable harms from delayed care. He explains where affordability gaps form and urges policy, system, and clinic-level fixes to help patients access care.
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From Coroner To Primary Care
- Joseph Pollino recounts working as a deputy coroner, EMT-firefighter and ER tech before becoming a PA.
- He says those roles exposed him to many preventable premature deaths and drove him into primary care.
Primary Care Sees The Real Patient Story
- Pollino argues primary care clinicians are the system's frontline and see patients' real struggles daily.
- He says clinicians have a unique lens into both health and navigation barriers of the healthcare system.
Financial Barriers Rival Biology
- Pollino says clinicians are trained to see biological barriers but now financial barriers drive poor health.
- He highlights that affordability increasingly prevents patients from accessing care.