Our 2026 Award Winners delivered novel insights and high-impact work – identifying clinical concerns at some for-profit psychiatric hospitals, revealing regulatory oversight failures in the US organ transplantation system, and uncovering potential fraud in addiction treatment. They also explored hidden oncology drug costs, policy impacts on the physician labor market, and questionable practices at a fast-growing compounding pharmacy.
“Great journalism and policy research make health care better,” said Andrew Dreyfus, CEO and President of the NIHCM Foundation. “This group of journalists and researchers generated new insights on the nation’s health care system, helping us to understand how to both improve quality and promote affordability. I am thrilled to recognize the winners and their work that will continue to shape the narrative on health care costs, quality, access, and more.”
Andrew Dreyfus
President and CEO of NIHCM
2026 Investigative and General Reporting Award
Robert Langreth
Tanaz Meghjani
Caleb Melby
Anna Edney
John Tozzi
Rachael Dottle
Josyana Joshua
Henry Baker
Mathieu Benhamou
Brian M. Rosenthal
Mark Hansen
Jeremy White
Julie Tate
Danielle Ivory
Grace Ashford
Robert Gebeloff
2026 Local Media Award
2026 Television and Audio Journalism Award
2026 Trade Journalism Award
Shelby Livingston
NIHCM 2026 Trade Journalism Award Winner
Inside a compounding pharmacy giant that cut corners with drug quality as it pursued growth from popular GLP-1 medications
Shelby Livingston
2026 Policy Research Award
Joshua Gottlieb
Maria Polyakova
Kevin Rinz
Hugh Shiplett
Victoria Udalova
NIHCM 2026 Policy Research Award Winner
The Earnings and Labor Supply of U.S. Physicians
Joshua Gottlieb, Maria Polyakova, Kevin Rinz, Hugh Shiplett, and Victoria Udalova
Congratulate our winners and share their stories! #NIHCMAwards
The winning entries were selected from over 300 entries by our panels of independent judges. Learn more about the impressive work from our 42 finalists:
Outlets
our Judges
A special thank you to our judges listed below.
2026 Investigative and General Reporting Award
- Yoohyun Jung
- Clifton Leaf (recused)
- Michael Millenson
- Caitlin Owens
- Tony Leys
- William Wan
- Christopher Weaver
- Derek Willis
2026 Local Media Award
- Robin Erb
- Anastassia Gliadkovskaya
- Susan Livio
- Anna Wilde Mathews
- Mark Miller
- Fred Schulte
2026 Television and Audio Journalism Award
- Bertha Coombs
- Callie Crossley
- Susan Dentzer
- Dan Gorenstein
- A.J. Lagoe (recused)
- Priyanka Dayal McCluskey
- Stone Phillips
- Julie Rovner
2026 Trade Journalism Award
- Brad Fluegel
- Jayme Fraser
- Erika Fry
- Matthew Herper
- Robert Langreth
- Shelby Livingston (recused)
- Letitia Stein
2026 Policy Research Award
- Laurence Baker
- May Tsung-Mei Cheng
- Martin Gaynor
- Paul Ginsburg
- Joseph Newhouse
- Mark Pauly
- Kosali Simon
- Christopher Whaley (recused)