Podcast Episodes

26.5 million Americans are insured by UnitedHealth Group, making it the largest insurance company in the U.S. with a whopping 14.4% market share and $287 billion in revenue last year – that’s more than the total income of most countries in Europe! In this episode, we take on this insurance behemoth and how it has…

Today Ben interviews Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, physician, epidemiologist, professor, former executive director of the Detroit Health Department, and candidate for Governor of Michigan. Dr. El-Sayed is also the author of several books and publications, most recently Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide. Show Notes Dr. El-Sayed discusses how his desire to improve disparities in health…

Mailbag Episode! Spilling the Tea with Ben and Gillian This week Ben and Gillian take questions from YOU, our listeners, and Medicare for All activists around the country. We got some really great questions submitted over the past week, and some very saucy questions as well – well done listeners! Show Notes Question from Susan…

We’re witnessing the largest war in Europe since World War II, as Russia invades Ukraine. At the moment, U.S. troops are not directly involved in the conflict, but it has got us thinking about the healthcare that military personnel receive, particularly after they’re discharged and rejoin civilian life. There is no one better to talk…

Heads up, there’s a lot of swears in this one. Well-justified swears, we think, but if you have younger listeners nearby, you might want to put on your headphones. Just this past week, billionaire Mark Cuban launched a new healthcare service called – because he’s a megalomaniac –  the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company.…

“Direct contracting” is the latest in a long line of insidious tactics pushing Medicare towards privatization. Today we’re chatting with Dr. Claire Cohen, MD from Physicians for a National Health Program about direct contracting entities: what they are, how they threaten beneficiaries of traditional Medicare, and what is being done to stop them. Show Notes…

Today we’re celebrating a win! We’re talking to organizers and leaders at National Nurses United (NNU),who recently ran a very impactful campaign to get Representative John Garamendi from California to commit to being a co-sponsor for the Medicare for All bill in Congress. Representative Garamendi supported previous versions of Medicare for All legislation, but had…

This week, we’re teaming up with the Poverty Policy Podcast and the National Healthcare for the Homeless Council for a crossover episode! We discuss the Build Back Better bill and weigh its potential impact on individuals experiencing poverty and houselessness. Show Notes The National Health Care for the Homeless Council is a membership organization uniting…

This week we’re doing a “deep” dive into “deep canvassing,” a much-hyped, relatively new organizing tactic that focuses on engaging voters in empathetic conversations. Promising studies have shown that deep canvassing can be effective in reducing prejudice against marginalized groups and changing voter’s minds, even on hotly contested issues like immigration or transgender rights. But…

We answer your questions about why we don’t have Medicare for All yet, interfacing with groups fighting for incremental reforms like Medicaid expansion, and more. Show Notes Starting with an easy one, many people asked: Why don’t we have Medicare for All yet? A few reasons: first, our political system is very different from most…