Posts by Geri Katz
Midterms: Chicken Soup for the Electoral Soul
The 2022 midterm elections are MOSTLY in the books – thank again Georgia, for the endless run-offs that keep on giving, every two years it seems like. You’ve heard the national narrative: Democrats did surprisingly well, given how parties in power usually take big losses during the mid-terms, and particularly when Biden has such low…
Read MoreIn Sickness and in Health Insurance
Today we’re talking about the relationship between taking your vows and taking your medicine. In 2020, more than a quarter of folks who got married said they took the plunge because one of the partners involved needed health insurance, and it seems like some couples are staying together for the insurance as well. In this…
Read MoreHowdy Y’all, it’s the TEXAS EPISODE
Everything is bigger in Texas, including medical bills and the uninsured population. The Lone Star state has the second-largest population in the country, and is among the fastest-growing as well, but all those people are stuck with THE worst healthcare system and very poor health outcomes as well. The uninsured rate is more than twice…
Read MoreMore like Medicare Disadvantage, AMIRITE?
Today we’re tackling Medicare Advantage, which is the option Medicare enrollees have to use a private insurance company to administer their Medicare benefits instead of the traditional public Medicare program. Almost HALF of all Medicare beneficiaries are now enrolled in Advantage plans, which represents a historic level of privatization of the almost 60-year program. Just…
Read MorePolitical Malpractice & the Rise of Dr. Oz
Today we’re checking in on the ongoing Pennsylvania Senate race, where Medicare for All–along with crudites, poop tweets, hydroxychloroquine, and Turkish nationalism–has become a hot-button issue. This race is beyond interesting, shading into the bizarre! A lot is at stake, since control over the Senate is going to be hotly contested this midterm election, and…
Read MoreMy Big Fat American Healthcare System
Noted public health expert Lizzo teaches us that “thick thighs save lives,” but for many of us, being fat is killing us – and not for the reasons you might expect. Today we’re talking about our healthcare system’s impact on fat folks AND how misconceptions about fat folks impact our healthcare policy! Recent studies have…
Read MoreSiCKO: the 15 Year Reunion
In spring of 2007, Michael Moore released a blockbuster documentary showing the extraordinary damage the U.S. healthcare system inflicts upon ordinary Americans. Story by story, SiCKO pulled back the veil of how ordinary illness and injury, when paired with deadly healthcare profiteering, leads to suffering, financial ruin, and even death. 15 years later, together with…
Read MoreSeniors for Sale!
Show Notes Today we venture into the bizarro world of Medicare (the program serving those 65 and older as well as some people with disabilities) to explore the largest Medicare rate hike in history. Our guest Alex Lawson, the Executive Director of Social Security Works, will help explain what’s happening. Social Security Works is the…
Read MoreLivin’ On a Prayer: Health Care Sharing Ministries
Today we look at the somehow-legal world of healthcare sharing ministries, a form of health coverage where like-minded religious folks share health care costs. After a series of lawsuits and scandals, these companies are in the news again recently. We’ll look at what HCSMs are, how they have flourished as insurance costs rise, and the…
Read MoreKeep Your Hands Off Our Fucking Bodies: Why Reproductive Justice Must Be Part of Medicare for All
There’s some adult language in this episode, so might not be appropriate for our youngest M4A advocates. The recent leak of what is likely to be the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has us enraged about the future of abortion and healthcare in America. Spoiler: We aren’t loving the fact that five…
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