Something's coming, something good.
Hey there— our next story is gonna take a little more time to cook, but it is going to be SO worth it.
It involves John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars — and yes, we've got an interview with him — and a global fight against multi-drug resistant tuberculosis.
... which turns out to be directly related to fights over the prices of drugs like insulin and humira in this country.
Meanwhile, let me recommend a story from ProPublica that's related to a story we did here a few months ago.
You might remember our recent episode about United HealthGroup, and how it's become a behemoth in recent years. That story started with a complaint from a doc in New York.
... who had a lot more tips than I could run down — or fit in one episode — and they weren't all just about United.
ProPublica's Cezary Podkul took the time to verify a big one: About zillions of dollars in fees that docs are paying — dollars that ultimately come out of our pockets — just to get paid.
Oh, and: If you aren't getting our First Aid Kit newsletter, this is a great time to sign up. We've started a series about how to fight with insurance that, unfortunately, a lot of us are gonna need at some point.
We'll be back in a few weeks, with John Green, TB, and the fight over drug prices.
Send your stories and questions. Or call 724 ARM-N-LEG.
And of course we’d love for you to support this show.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More episodes from An Arm and a Leg
John Green vs. Johnson & Johnson (part 2)
This is part two of our globe-spanning story about drugs, patents, and YouTube megastar John Green.
Quick recap: In our last episode, we learned how writer and YouTube star John Green …
John Green vs. Johnson & Johnson (part 1)
This episode is special. When we heard that widely-beloved writer John Green was rallying his online community around a fight over drug prices — and apparently making a difference — we …
How to Get a Surprise Bill on Your Way to the Hospital
For a year and a half now, the No Surprises Act has protected patients from some of the most outrageous out-of-network medical bills. But Congress left something pretty crucial out of the …
Wait, what’s a PBM (and how do they work)?
If you’ve been told your insurance won’t cover your meds — or that you’re gonna have to pay an arm and a leg for them — you’ve met a PBM: a pharmacy …
Credit Card, Please
A listener’s doctor wanted her credit card info up front — before her appointment. She wondered: Do I need to give it to them? We did too.
After all, who wants the risk of being overcharged …
A ‘payday loan’ from a health care behemoth
When a New York doctor tweeted recently about “payday loans” for doctors from a branch of UnitedHealth Group — which operates the giant insurance …
How you can listen to this podcast
You can listen to episodes right here on the website, or if you prefer, in a podcast app. Listening in an app makes it easier to keep track of what you’ve already heard, listen without using your data plan and many other conveniences.