Why rapid COVID tests are so freaking expensive
Who’s making a buck: rapid test edition. Rapid, at-home COVID tests are pretty much essential if you want to see friends and family this holiday season, and stay safe.
But they’re freaking expensive and can be hard to find. What the heck happened?
When ProPublica reporter Eric Umansky went looking for COVID tests recently, he came back empty handed. He and fellow reporter Lydia DePillis investigated, tracing the US’s rapid testing problem all the way back to the FDA and other government agencies.
Plus, Dr. Celine Gounder talks about why these tests are so important in the first place and how best to deploy them this holiday season — if you can find some.
Here’s a transcript of the episode.
Send your stories and questions: https://armandalegshow.com/contact/ or call 724 ARM-N-LEG
And of course we’d love for you to support this show.
UPDATE: We've pushed past the amount the NewsMatch campaign has funds to match(!)
... and we can keep going with your help. And earn a bonus.
If we raise $5,000 to match funds folks have already donated, the Knight Foundation will give us a $1,000 bonus.
Please help us now! Gotta get it done by Dec. 31. Here, go for it.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More episodes from An Arm and a Leg
A doctor’s love letter to ‘the People’s Hospital’
What if we had a decent, publicly-funded health system — available to everybody, with or without insurance? We’ve got one, says Dr. Ricardo Nuila. …
Lessons from “wrestling with a giant”
The ER visit was quick and uneventful. The bill was $1,300. Our listener decided to push back. He didn't win, but he learned a lot — and so did we.
…
The bill looked like BS. So she took it to small claims court.
“I sued a hospital in small claims court and lost — here’s what I learned.” That was the subject line for an email we got from listener Lauren Slemenda.
She wrote: “I feel like I won” — and …
Can They Freaking Do That?!? (2023 Edition)
We’re kicking off the year with a throwback. We revisit a 2019 episode that opened up new possibilities for fighting back against outrageous medical bills — a theme we’ll spend a lot more …
2022 in Review
The Arm and a Leg editorial team gathered to talk about the moments from 2022 that we’ll never forget — including when work collided with real life.
…
Like pulling teeth.
When a car hit Susan and knocked out a bunch of teeth, her health insurance was supposed to pay for her oral surgery, and she knew it. So why has she had to chase them for 18 months and …
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.