This time on Code WACK!   This time, we're taking a closer look at the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program. In a nutshell, the program gives hospitals and clinics that serve low-income and other vulnerable patients deep discounts on prescription drugs. But who really benefits from these discounts? Patients? Or hospitals? Did the legislation really intend that patients be charged coinsurance based on the full price of drugs that their hospital bought for far less? Let's explore why consumer advocates say the program needs reform. Today's guests are from the National Consumers League, Sally Greenberg, CEO and Lisa Bercu, Senior Director of Health Policy. The NCL is one of the nation's oldest consumer and worker advocacy organizations. This is the second episode in a two-part series.  Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.  

This time on Code WACK! What is medical debt? Let's look at what it's not.  It's not excessive spending on a pricey vacation, or on designer clothing or expensive watches. Medical debt usually happens when an unexpected accident or illness lands you in the emergency room or the hospital. Focus on the word 'unexpected.' Then add the word 'expensive.' Today we're talking about the hidden costs of getting sick in America, the patients whose lives have been upended by medical debt, and why the system is failing the people it's supposed to serve.  Joining us is Sally Greenberg, CEO of the National Consumers League, the nation's oldest consumer advocacy organization, working with both consumers and workers since 1899. This is the first of two episodes with Sally Greenberg. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.  

This time on Code WACK!  Got health insurance, but still can't get the care you need? Ever spent hours on hold, battling claim denials, and jumping through hoops just to get the care you already paid for with your insurance premiums? What does it say about our healthcare system when getting treatment depends not just on your medical needs, but also on how much time, money, and energy you can dedicate to fighting for it?  In her new book, Coverage Denied: How Health Insurers Drive Inequality in the United States, Miranda Yaver points out that having insurance and actually being able to use it are often two very different things. This is the second of two episodes with Miranda Yaver. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.   

This time on Code WACK!  We're talking about one of the most frustrating experiences in American healthcare -  when your insurance company says 'no.' According to Miranda Yaver, an assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of Pittsburgh, insurance denials aren't rare. They're a routine part of navigating our healthcare system. In her new book, Coverage Denied: How Health Insurers Drive Inequality in the United States, Miranda Yaver explores what happens when patients undergoing treatment find themselves trapped between their doctors and their insurance companies. This is the first of two episodes with Miranda Yaver. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.  

This time on Code WACK! California has debated a single-payer healthcare system for decades, but a new UCLA report commissioned by the California Health and Human Services Agency under Senate Bill 770 could reshape the conversation. In this episode, Michael Lighty, president of Healthy California Now, explains how the report moves the debate from cost to equity.  This is the second of two episodes with Michael Lighty. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.   

This time on Code WACK! The upcoming governor's race could shape the future of health care for nearly 40 million Californians. With former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra facing Republican Steve Hilton, the election is raising critical questions about whether California will move closer to a single-payer healthcare system—or further away. Michael Lighty, president of Healthy California Now, joins us to break down what the primary results mean, where the candidates stand on healthcare reform, and what's at stake for the future of universal healthcare in California.  This is the first of two episodes with Michael Lighty. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.

This time on Code WACK! For many Americans getting the right medical care isn't just about what their doctors recommend, it's also about what their insurance company is willing to cover. So what happens when those two don't agree? And why can it be so difficult for patients to fight back? Attorney Lisa Kantor of Kantor & Kantor, LLP has spent more than two decades helping patients challenge health insurance denials. Her cases have ranged from eating disorders to life-threatening cancers, giving her a firsthand look at how insurers make coverage decisions and the consequences when they favor profits over patients. This is the second episode in a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.  

This time on Code WACK! In the United States, as many as 30 million people are affected by eating disorders, including many children and adolescents, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Eating disorders are serious mental health conditions that affect both mental and physical health.  How well does our corporate healthcare system respond to illnesses as complex as eating disorders? What happens when an insurance company decides treatment is costing too much, and pressures a patient to go home? Can your insurer really cut off coverage? And what if that decision turns out to be not just wrong, but catastrophic?  In "When Insurance Cuts Eating Disorder Care Too Soon," host Brenda Gazzar speaks with Lisa Kantor, Founding Partner of Kantor & Kantor, LLP, about what can happen when insurers end coverage before a patient is medically ready to leave treatment. This is part one of a two-part episode. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more!  And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.   

THIS TIME ON CODE WACK! Is it really normal that the health insurance we pay for often doesn't fully protect us? It may be 'normal' but is it right? Millions of Americans face soaring healthcare costs, coverage denials, medical debt, job lock, and even hospital closures. Have we simply come to accept these realities as part of life? Retired pediatrician and healthcare reform advocate Dr. Ana Malinow says they don't have to be. After three decades caring for immigrant, refugee, and underserved children, Dr. Malinow believes America is at a pivotal moment to rethink its healthcare system. As America marks 250 years of independence, she's helping lead a campaign calling for a "Declaration of Independence from the U.S. Medical-Industrial Complex" and a national single-payer healthcare system. Dr. Malinow is the former president of Physicians for a National Health Program and currently serves on the steering committee of National Single Payer. This is Part 2 of a two-part episode. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.   

This time on Code WACK! America's healthcare system doesn't only hurt us in big ways - like forcing us to choose between getting expensive medical treatments or living sick. Or having to choose the 'least worst,' but always very expensive health insurance policy. It also hurts us in small ways, forcing us to compromise to save a few bucks, to make a thousand little choices that can cost us our quality of life.  As we approach the 4th of July, we're talking with Dr. Ana Malinow, a retired pediatrician. She's helping lead a campaign for a new Declaration of Independence … from the 'US Medical-Industrial Complex.' Dr. Malinow spent three decades working as a pediatrician with immigrant refugees and underserved children. She's past president of Physicians for a National Health Program and is currently on the steering committee of National Single Payer. This is part one of a two-part episode. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.