An Arm and a Leg is a podcast about why health care costs so freaking much and what we can (maybe) do about it. If you've ever been surprised by a medical bill, you're in good company. But as our team of seasoned journalists has learned from years of reporting - you're not always helpless. We don't have all the answers, but we'll offer you tools and big picture insights with plenty of humor and heart. An Arm and a Leg is co-produced with KFF Health News and distributed in partnership with KUOW .…
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We're bringing back a favorite episode from 2023 that raises a question as relevant as ever: 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. It's where he works. And it could be a model for the whole country. Yes, really. That's the pitch he made in his 2023 book, The People's Hospital: Hope and Peril…
Last May, just a few months into the second Trump Administration, changes to federal health programs were happening at a bewildering pace. We brought in KFF Heath News Chief Washington Correspondent Julie Rover to help give us - and you - a big picture look at what some changes would mean . A year-and-change later, we wanted to check back in. We talk about the "crumbling Jenga tower" of public…
After her husband L was hospitalized for a severe mental health crisis, Teressa barely had a moment to breathe before the health insurance denials started coming in, burying their family in medical debt. But Teressa's a fighter, and an organized one at that - ready to endure months of back and forth until she stumbled on a "secret door" to reversing her husband's insurance denials: the external…
While we're busy working on some big projects this summer, we're re-releasing some of our most ambitious and useful reporting to date. Last year, we set out on a mission: Collect all the best advice about what to do when your prescription drugs cost more than you can afford. Our listeners wrote to us about their experiences getting around this most demoralizing - and distinctly American - problem…
One place you might assume is safe from prying ears is your therapy session. But as more therapists struggle to negotiate with insurers, they're turning to tech middlemen like BetterHelp and Headway that promise to take care of the insurance admin and match them with patients. And these companies are sometimes recording and transcribing your sessions - and then turning around and sharing that data…
It's a case you've (probably) never heard of: This week, the Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments in Hikma v. Amarin - a legal battle that could impact how much you ultimately pay for prescription drugs. Here's why the case matters: As soon as a generic version of a brand-name drug comes to market, its price typically drops by half. Within 10 years, by more than 75%. Meaning: the sooner we have…
We're always asking: Why do drugs cost so freaking much? And it's a complicated question. There are a bunch of reasons - to be sure . But in our reporting over the years, like our stories on insulin and tuberculosis drugs , experts cited one big reason over and over again: The pharmaceutical industry wages sophisticated legal battles to keep monopoly control over their best selling, most lucrative…
This year, the price of health insurance increased dramatically for millions of people. Tens of millions. Obamacare subsidies shrunk, and premiums skyrocketed. People asked themselves: how on earth am I supposed to make this work? Two of those folks - attorney Nicole Wipp and skate-shop owner Noah Hulsman - tell the story of how they chose among lousy options. Nicole chose to dump health insurance…
Hey, first! We're looking for your help. Can you take a couple minutes and fill out our Audience Survey ? We're dying to know more about the community that's using this show - and about what's working for you and what you'd like to see. Let us know! Today we're switching it up. We're sharing an episode from the new podcast Drug Story . In each episode, science journalist and self-described "public…
Thirty-six hours before his wife was scheduled for a major surgery, New York Times personal finance columnist Ron Lieber got a letter in the mail that sent him reeling. Insurance was denying prior authorization for the surgery. The only way forward would be to appeal the decision. But it was Saturday night, and the surgery was Monday morning. There wouldn't be any time. Should they even go to the…
