Code WACK! shines a light on our callous healthcare system and what we can do about it. It reveals the healthcare hassles that - far from being just annoying - threaten our peace of mind, our financial security and at times, our very lives. Join us each week as we chat about the challenges that patients and healthcare providers face, amplifying their voices and examining a range of possible solutions, including Medicare for All. Powered by HEAL California, a project of the California OneCare ...
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Rev. Dr. Jason Garwood, teaching pastor, reformer, and author of The Politics of Humanism, discusses humanism from a Christian perspective. He received his Bachelors of Science in Bible from Cairn University, earned his Master of Divinity from Missio Seminary, and received his Doctor of Theology from Hope Seminary. He has spent his career seeking to both understand and apply the Biblical worldview to every single area of life. His aim is to help pastors and churches be better equipped to eng ...
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Dr Elaina George is Board certified Otolaryngologist who started Peachtree ENT Center with a mission to practice state of the art medicine that is available to everyone. She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Biology. She received her Masters degree in Medical Microbiology at Long Island University, and received her medical degree from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. Dr George completed her residency at Manhattan, Eye Ear & Throat Hospital. Her training included ...
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This time on Code WACK! So you might have heard the term pharmacy benefit managers – or PBMs – in the news. But what are they? How did these middlemen get to be so powerful? How are they causing drug prices to skyrocket? And what’s the Federal Trade Commission doing about it? To find out, we recently interviewed Hannah Garden-Monheit, the FTC’s dir…
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Kathleen Nagy, The Sound Lady who specializes in Voice Energy Analysis and Acoustic Biofeedback describes how sound vibrations can empower people to be their own healer. Kathleen Nagy, known as The Sound Lady, offers a unique approach to holistic wellness through Sound Energy. With over 20 years of experience as a BioAcoustic Research Associate, sh…
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Kathleen Nagy, The Sound Lady who specializes in Voice Energy Analysis and Acoustic Biofeedback describes how sound vibrations can empower people to be their own healer. Kathleen Nagy, known as The Sound Lady, offers a unique approach to holistic wellness through Sound Energy. With over 20 years of experience as a BioAcoustic Research Associate, sh…
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This time on Code WACK! As the United States faces an election possibly unlike any other in our history, we wonder about the future of our healthcare system. What changes might we expect under President Trump, or President Harris? What would a new administration mean for single-payer efforts in states like California and Oregon? And what about Medi…
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Lynne Taylor, educational researcher and consultant, writer, and speaker known as The Common Core Diva discusses the creation of the youth mental health core and how that will affect society. The Colorado announcement: https://servecolorado.colorado.gov/ymhc The CDC study referred to in an education media article: https://www.k12dive.com/news/youth…
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Lynne Taylor, educational researcher and consultant, writer, and speaker known as The Common Core Diva discusses the creation of the youth mental health core and how that will affect society. The Colorado announcement: https://servecolorado.colorado.gov/ymhc The CDC study referred to in an education media article: https://www.k12dive.com/news/youth…
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This time on Code WACK! What’s been happening on the healthcare front since California Senate Bill 770, which paves the way for a single-payer healthcare system, was passed last year? What’s the process and the timeline? What are the necessary next steps to winning single payer in the Golden State and why is it so important to achieving healthcare …
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Kerry Lutz, the founder of The Financial Survival Network discusses inflation and strategies to navigate and thrive in challenging times. Kerry Lutz has been a student of Austrian Economics since 1977. While attending Pace University, he stumbled upon an extensive cache of Austrian Economic literature in a dark, musty, abandoned section of the scho…
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Kerry Lutz, the founder of The Financial Survival Network discusses inflation and strategies to navigate and thrive in challenging times. Kerry Lutz has been a student of Austrian Economics since 1977. While attending Pace University, he stumbled upon an extensive cache of Austrian Economic literature in a dark, musty, abandoned section of the scho…
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This time on Code WACK! How far did one man have to go to get the health insurance he needed to cover a specialized surgery in another state? Despite jumping through many hoops to even qualify to buy the coverage he needed, why did he still end up paying tens of thousands of dollars in out of pocket costs? How much would you be willing to pay for t…
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Marina Buksov, functional pharmacist and host of the Holistic Pharmacy Podcast, joins Dr. George to discuss the power of alternative and herbal medicine to expand less invasive treatment options for patients. Marina Buksov is also a Mental Fitness & Health Coach, Herbal Educator, and lifelong learner of the Healing Arts. She is the creator of Build…
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Marina Buksov, functional pharmacist and host of the Holistic Pharmacy Podcast, joins Dr. George to discuss the power of alternative and herbal medicine to expand less invasive treatment options for patients. Marina Buksov is also a Mental Fitness & Health Coach, Herbal Educator, and lifelong learner of the Healing Arts. She is the creator of Build…
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This time on Code WACK! Imagine having to fight with your HMO insurer about compensating your surgeon who doesn't belong to your provider network, but happens to be a specialist in a particular procedure that you want because it has fewer side effects. Could you afford to cough up a few thousand dollars to pay the surgeon while hassling with your H…
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Dr. Edward Kondrot homeopathic Ophthalmologist, author and the surgical director of sight.org joins Dr. George to discuss natural ways and treatment breakthroughs to maintain the health of your eyes. Dr. Kondrot, has been named President of the board of the Arizona Homeopathic & Integrative Medical Association (AHIMA), a 27-year-old state associati…
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Dr. Edward Kondrot homeopathic Ophthalmologist, author and the surgical director of sight.org joins Dr. George to discuss natural ways and treatment breakthroughs to maintain the health of your eyes. Dr. Kondrot, has been named President of the board of the Arizona Homeopathic & Integrative Medical Association (AHIMA), a 27-year-old state associati…
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This time on Code WACK! Why did California’s latest single payer bill fail and what can we do about it? How can the public learn the truth about how much they could save with unified financing when deep-pocketed corporations keep lobbying legislators against it? What will it take to make Medicare for All a reality once and for all? To find out, we …
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This time on Code WACK! Why is long term care, including in-home health care, in crisis? How are skyrocketing costs affecting patients? How come two-thirds of people in California who are getting in-home health care get it from family members who are often unpaid? Would universal long term care - or a single-payer system with unified financing - he…
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This time on Code WACK! How do insurance companies put up barriers to addiction treatments? How does this affect treatment programs and their clients? And how would it be if we had Medicare for All? To find out, we spoke to Arlene Stanich-Prince, executive director of Ohlhoff Recovery Programs in San Francisco, one of the longest standing treatment…
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This time on Code WACK! What are some of the most common misconceptions about people who are addicted to substances like opioids? What medicines are revolutionizing the way people are being treated today – and how accessible are they? To find out, we spoke to Arlene Stanich-Prince, executive director of Ohlhoff Recovery Programs in San Francisco, o…
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This time on Code WACK! What is the true cost of the American health insurance system? What toll is it taking on both patients and providers? And what do we need instead? To find out, we recently interviewed Dr. Linda Peeno, a physician, ethicist and health insurance industry whistleblower who testified before Congress and who has spent nearly four…
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This time on Code WACK! How did a single mom in Kentucky, in the 1970s, become a physician, then a health insurance medical reviewer and eventually a whistleblower? To find out, we recently interviewed Dr. Linda Peeno, a physician and ethicist who has spent nearly four decades working to protect patients from harm and death by corporate healthcare …
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This time on Code WACK! In honor of PRIDE Month, we’re revisiting a popular episode about the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s. What were the health policy failures that spurred so many Americans to militant activism? How did the LGBTQ+ community win the struggle to get government funding to address the deadly virus? Fortunately today, with a…
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This time on Code WACK! At least seven states are grappling with budget shortfalls in 2024. What goes on behind the scenes when a state needs to cut costs? Who stands to lose the most as programs are trimmed or eliminated? Today we're looking at California’s multi-billion dollar budget deficit – and what's being done to protect the state’s most vul…
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This time on Code WACK! How do Managed Care health insurance plans hurt patients? Why is it legal for commercial health insurers to use Denial-of-Care as a business model? And what is one organization doing to call attention to such issues? To find out, we spoke to Kimberly J. Soenen, founder of “SOME PEOPLE,” a Chicago-based not-for-profit organiz…
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This time on Code WACK! What’s the impact of commercial health insurance Denial-of-Care tactics? Who “wins” when new employees have to wait three months before their health insurance kicks in? What devastating physical, financial and emotional consequences did one young woman face after she was seriously injured during such a waiting period? To fin…
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This time on Code WACK! Why do lawmakers continue to ignore the toll our broken healthcare system takes on us? And what can we do, ourselves, to bring about change? What inspired single-payer advocate and mother Rebecca Wood to put much of her activism on hold to “sharpen her swords”? To find out, we interviewed Rebecca, a first-year law student an…
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This time on Code WACK! In honor of Mother's Day, we're talking about how our dysfunctional health insurance system affects moms. How far did one mother go to ensure that her daughter – born extremely premature – got the critical care she needed? How did our broken healthcare system push our guest, Rebecca Wood, to delay her own care for the sake o…
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This time on Code WACK! With all its apparent advantages, why hasn’t California passed single payer yet? Is organized labor fully in the Medicare-for-All game? Do managed care providers - like Kaiser Permanente - have outsized influence on healthcare reform in the state? To find out, we spoke to Peter Shapiro, a retired letter carrier and author of…
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This time on Code WACK! How is private equity affecting our healthcare system? What’s being done about it? How does our fragmented healthcare system affect patients, including people who have cancer? And what cues can healthcare reform activists take from California's immigrant community? To find out, we spoke to Peter Shapiro, a retired letter car…
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This time on Code WACK! How would single-payer, Medicare for All affect the experience of getting care? Would it make it easier to find and see a primary care doctor? And just as importantly, how much money could individuals and families save under a state or national single-payer system? To find out, we spoke to Dr. James G. Kahn, an expert in hea…
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