CBS launches Healthful with Norah O'Donnell podcast on women’s health

CBS is launching Healthful with Norah O'Donnell on July 22, a weekly podcast built around women’s health and the experts shaping it. New episodes will arrive every Wednesday, and CBS says the show will be available to watch on YouTube or listen to on podcast platforms.

The network is framing the series as a direct response to gaps in care and coverage that have long left women sorting through confusion, fear and half-truths. CBS says Healthful will feature doctors, scientists and innovators discussing reproductive health, menopause, cancer and other topics, with the goal of replacing miracle cures, vague advice and fear-mongering with usable information.

O'Donnell gives CBS a familiar face for the push. She is CBS News’ senior correspondent and a 60 Minutes contributing correspondent, and previously anchored the CBS Evening News for more than five years after co-hosting CBS This Morning and serving as chief White House correspondent. CBS says she has covered eight presidential elections, interviewed every living president of the United States and conducted a landmark 2024 interview with Pope Francis.

The podcast also fits a beat O'Donnell has already been working on across CBS platforms. CBS News recently aired her reporting and interviews on menopause hormone therapy warnings and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s decision to remove some black box labels from menopause and perimenopause treatments, including an exclusive conversation with FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary. That track record suggests the new series is less a detour than an expansion of reporting O'Donnell has already been doing in public view.

CBS is also tying Healthful to a broader podcast strategy that stretches beyond news briefs into personality-driven interviews and specialized reporting. By placing women’s health alongside that larger audio lineup, the network is betting that the audience for medically grounded, service-oriented coverage is large enough to support a brand built around it, not just a one-off series. O'Donnell is expected to bring her own perspective into the mix as well, including some of her wellness habits, from blueberries to Botox, while keeping the focus on experts and evidence.