Medicare For All Explained

This is episode 124, “Bad Healthcare News.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks describes how proposed Medicaid cuts in the misnamed Big Beautiful Bill will cause millions to lose health care.

This is episode 123, “Millions More Without Care.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains that the arguments over Medicaid cuts ignores people who are uninsured and underinsured.  

This is episode 122, "Bearing the Cost of Irresponsible Healthcare Decisions." Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains that Medicare for All would reduce bad healthcare decisions by ending the denial of care by health insurance companies.

This is episode 121, “Free Market Healthcare Doesn't Work.” In this episode, Ali Velshi, a capitalist, explains why a free market healthcare system will never work. Velshi is from Canada and was a journalist on CNBC and before moving to MSNBC.  Velshi's explanation is from “The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell.”  Do not miss this episode as Ali Velshi explains why free market healthcare won't work and why there is no country that has a free market healthcare system.  

This is episode 120, “Speaking to the Needs of the People.” In this episode, I play an excerpt from an interview with Blake Zeff. He helped in both of Barack Obama's presidential campaigns and is an expert in policy and strategic communications. In the interview, Zeff explains that issues of health care helped the Democrats win the 2020 election, and then the Democrats rarely talked about health care and did almost nothing to address the problems with our healthcare system once elected. Do not miss this episode as Blake Zeff discusses Democrats' failure to address health care.  

This is episode 119, “Ending Medical Debt.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why removing medical debt from credit reports is not an effective way to deal with medical debt and how we can end medical debt.  

This is episode 118, “The Murders not Being Discussed in the Health Care Debate.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why the 76,000 unnecessary deaths of our current healthcare system could be considered murders.  

This is episode 117, “Will Health Care Get Even Worse in the United States?” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why health care is likely to become more expensive under Donald Trump.

This is episode one-hundred-and-sixteen, “The Curse of Medical Debt.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why medical debt is much larger problem than most people think. Here is the report I referenced in this podcast: 100 Million People in America Are Saddled With Health Care Debt Here are links to episodes 8 and 9 that I referenced in this podcast:  The Economics of Health Care, Part 1: The Problem – Our Current Health Care System Is Unaffordable The Economics of Health Care, Part 2: The Solution – Medicare for All  

This is episode 115, "The Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Health Records." Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks discusses some of the advantages and disadvantages of electronic health records and why we often depend on faxes to transfer health data.  

This is episode 114, “Amazed by Free Health Care and Why We Need Medicare for All.” Olympian Ariana Ramsey decided to try out the free health care at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. She was “amazed” and said that “America needs to do better with their healthcare system.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains how the United States can do better with their healthcare system and how to make free health care normal so the amazement can end for everyone. Here is the link to Ariana Ramsey's TikTok video on being amazed by free health care:  https://www.tiktok.com/@ariana.ramsey/video/7399645817944001838

This is episode 113, “The Missing Criteria for Health Insurance Companies.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains that health  insurance companies are concerned with profits and are using AI to increase profits by denying care. Instead, insurance companies should be evaluated on how well they cover costs for treatment.  Here are the articles referenced in this podcast.  As UnitedHealth and Cigna are Sued for AI-Based Claims Denials, Documents Suggest Major AI Expansion Denied by AI: How Medicare Advantage plans use algorithms to cut off care for seniors in need Here is Wendell Potter's news site referenced in this podcast, HEALTH CARE un-covered. I highly recommend it. Please consider subscribing to this news site.   

This is episode 112, “The Harm Caused by Medicare Advantage.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks discusses a report by Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) that documents the harmful effects of Medicare Advantage. Here is a link to the report: Taking Advantage: How Corporate Health Insurers Harm America's Seniors.

This is episode 111, “We Don't Need Medicare Advantage.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why Medicare Advantage is not needed and is detrimental to Medicare.  Here is the MedPac report that I used as a source: Medicare Payment Policy. (See page XXV and pages 373-374.)  

This is episode 110, “We don't Need Health Insurance Companies.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks discusses why we don't need health insurance companies.  

This is episode 109, “Some Really Good Reasons Why We Need Medicare For All.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explicates some good reasons why we need Medicare for All and comments on some of the disinformation regarding Medicare for All. These following articles are referenced or used as sources in this podcast: 22 studies agree: ‘Medicare for All' saves moneyMedicare For All Would Improve Hospital Financing National Improved Medicare for All (NIMA): “But How Are You Going To Pay For It?” M4A Math Universal healthcare as pandemic preparedness: The lives and costs that could have been saved during the COVID-19 pandemic What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S.

This is episode 108, “A Prologue to the Future.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why the University of Delaware freezing hiring, pausing projects and curbing travel is a prologue to the future in the United States if we keep the current healthcare system. These are the two articles referenced in this podcast: Hiring frozen. Projects paused. Travel curbed. UD reacts to spiking state health care cost Why companies are leaving the cloud  

This is episode 107, “A Traditional Medicare Benefit.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why Medicare makes it easier to move to a different state.  

This is episode 106, “Medicare for All Audio Bullet Points.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks uses audio bullet points to explain why we need Medicare for All.

This is episode 105, “People's Action and Healthcare for All.” My guest Aija Nemer-Aanerud is the Healthcare for All Campaign Director at People's Action.  Do not miss this episode as Aija describes People's Action's goals, how Healthcare for All fits into their overall purpose, and also describes what People's Action is currently emphasizing in healthcare.  If you would like to learn more or volunteer for the Care Over Cost campaign here is the link: https://careovercost.org/. If you would like to learn more about People's Action, here is the link: https://peoplesaction.org/.  

This is episode 104, "The U.S. Has the Worst Healthcare System Among Wealthy Nations." Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks discusses some of the reports that show the U.S. has the worst healthcare system among wealthy nations.  

This is episode 103, “Why Medicare for All Is Better Than Direct Contracting.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why Medicare for All is better than direct contracting.

This is episode 102, “Why Medicare for All Will Provide More Freedom.”  Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why Medicare for All provides more freedom than private health insurance plans.  

This is episode 101, “Drowning, Guns, Healthcare and What People Say.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why the response to drownings, gun violence, and healthcare is to let people die and why we need to change that. Here is the article that I referenced from the New York Times: "Drowning Is No. 1 Killer of Young Children. U.S. Efforts to Fix It Are Lagging." Here are two other reference articles on drownings:  "Drowning Facts" "Drowning: The Fast and Silent Killer" Here is the study from the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions for my statistics on gun violence: "U.S. Gun Violence in 2021: An Accounting of a Public Health Crisis"

This is episode 100, “Bubble-Up Economics.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks expands the discussion beyond Medicare for All and discusses why we need to take a “bubble-up” approach to the economy. In this podcast, I quote CBS News. However, in the podcast I do not say explicitly that I am quoting CBS. Here is the quote, “If the minimum wage had risen along with workers' productivity since the 1970s, it would currently be set at nearly $23 an hour, according to the Center for Economic and Policy Research.”  

This is episode 99, “Clarifying a Few Points.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why the free-market will always result in a market failure for healthcare and why the free-market will never provide a viable solution for healthcare.   

This is episode 98, "The Reintroduction of Medicare for All Bills and Why We Need Medicare for All." Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks informs that the Medicare for All Act bills will be reintroduced in the House of Representatives and the Senate on May 17, 2023, and summarizes some of the reasons why we need Medicare for All.

This is episode 97, “Some Changes Needed in Our Current Healthcare System.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why certain companies should not be allowed to assist or advise the Centers for Medicaid and Medicaid Services, why we need to track denial of care by health insurance companies, why physicians deserve a rate increase from Medicare, and why health insurance companies don't.   

This is episode 96, “Why Does the Government Keep Letting Medicare Advantage Plan Companies Off the Hook.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks explains why, in his opinion, Medicare Advantage plan companies are like bank robbers that the government supports and what needs to be done to stop these bank robbers. Here is the article referenced in this episode: Medicare Delays a Full Crackdown on Private Health Plans.

This is episode 95, “Pharmacy Benefit Managers and Automatic Denials.”  My guest, Julie Baak, will discuss Pharmacy Benefit Managers or PBMs and automatic denials, and how PBMs and automatic denials harm patients.  Julie is the Practice Manager of the Arthritis Center in Bridgeton, Missouri and an expert in Rheumatology Practice Management.  She has testified to the Missouri Senate Insurance Committee on patient access to care. Julie has received a ‘Change Maker' award from the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), has served as the chair of the Payer Committee at the National Organization of Rheumatology Management (NORM) and currently serves on the Coalition State Rheumatology Organization (CSRO) Payer Response Team. Do not miss this episode as Julie Baak describes the harm to patients caused by pharmacy benefit managers and automatic denials.  

This is episode 94, “Why Doesn't the Government Provide the Same Help to People Who Are Denied Care?” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks asks why the government doesn't provide the same quick help to people who are denied care by health insurance companies as it did to the Silicon Valley Bank depositors. 

This is episode 93, “Fifty Years of Failure.” Do not miss this episode as host Joe Sparks discusses how the HMO Act of 1973 led to fifty years of failure and caused the U.S. to end up with the most expensive healthcare system in the world while having the worst overall health outcomes of wealthy nations.  

This is episode 92, “More on ACO REACH and Why We Need to End It.” My guest is Ed Weisbart, MD, and he explains some basics about ACO REACH, why we need to end it, how to end it, why it is a threat to seniors and Medicare, and why we should be optimistic about working to end REACH.   Dr. Weisbart is a retired family physician, the national board secretary of Physicians for a National Health Program, and president of Consumers Council of Missouri. He received his medical degree at the University of Illinois in Chicago in 1979, and completed his family medicine residency and a fellowship in family medicine education at Michigan State University in 1982. Do not miss this episode as Dr. Weisbart explains why ACO REACH is a threat to seniors and Medicare, and why we need to end REACH. For information on how to end ACO REACH and protect Medicare, here is the link for ProtectMedicare.net. 

This is episode 91, “End ACO REACH.” In this episode, I discuss why we need to end the Medicare ACO REACH program. ACO REACH or REACH is a program that transfers people from traditional Medicare to private health insurance.   ACO is an acronym for “Accountable Care Organization” and REACH is an acronym for “Realizing Equity, Access, and Community Health.” Do not miss this episode as I discuss why REACH is bad for individuals and the nation. 

This is episode 90, “The Free Market Cannot Solve Every Problem.” In this episode, I discuss why a free-market healthcare system will not solve the problems in U.S. health care.  I reference the following video in this episode: Single-Payer: The ONLY Fix to the For-Profit Private Insurance SCAM! There are three people in the above video. The main two are MSNBC hosts Ali Velshi and Lawerence O'Donnell. The third is Rep. Jim Jordan who is briefly seen and heard, and whose false statements are quickly refuted. Do not miss this episode as I discuss why the free market is a market failure in health care, and why the free market cannot fix health care in the U.S.

This is episode 89, “The Security Threat of Our Current Healthcare System.” We would demand action if a foreign adversary caused more than 76,000 deaths like the current U.S. healthcare system does. However, we continue to allow these deaths. We need to take action to end the carnage.  

This is episode 88, “Why We Need Single-Payer Medicare for All in the United States.” Do not miss this episode as I discuss some important reasons why we need Medicare for All.

This is episode 87, “The Illogic and Fraud of Medicare Advantage Plans.”  Do not miss this episode as I discuss Medicare Advantage fraud and why the reasons for starting Medicare Advantage made no sense. Here are links for the articles that I referenced in this podcast. ‘The Cash Monster Was Insatiable': How Insurers Exploited Medicare for Billions (October 8, 2022) Medicare Advantage Plans Often Deny Needed Care, Federal Report Finds (April 28, 2022) Here are the links for the podcast episodes that I referenced in this podcast: Link for all episodes: https://medicareforallexplained.org/episodes/ Episode 57: What You Need To Know About Medicare, Medigap, Medicare (Dis)Advantage, And How Medicare for All Benefits Seniors, Part 1 (June 1, 2021) Episode 58: What You Need To Know About Medicare, Medigap, Medicare (Dis)Advantage, and How Medicare for All Benefits Seniors, Part 2 (June 15, 2021) Episode 86: Medicare: A Complicated Mess (October 1, 20220)  

This is episode 86, “Medicare: A Complicated Mess.”  In this episode, I discuss why Medicare is a complicated mess, how to make it better, and why single-payer Medicare for All would be better for seniors and everyone else. Do not miss this episode as I discuss why Medicare is complicated and how to make it better. The Medicare handbook can be found here: “Medicare & You 2023.” Here are the links for problems with Medicare Advantage plans: As Seniors Get Sicker, They're More Likely To Drop Medicare Advantage Plans (July 5, 2017) Patients in poor health leave Medicare Advantage plans (July 11, 2017) Medicare Advantage Spends Less on Care, So Why Is It Costing So Much? (August 7, 2017) CMS is giving unfair competitive advantage to private Medicare Advantage plans (April 5, 2018) Medicare Advantage Plans Found to Improperly Deny Many Claims (Oct 13, 2018) Medicare Advantage plans profit by wholesale denial of legitimate claims (October 18, 2019) Even Researchers Don't Know Which Doctors Medicare Advantage Covers (July 8, 2019) Insurers Running Medicare Advantage Plans Overbill Taxpayers By Billions As Feds Struggle To Stop It (July 16, 2019) Medicare Advantage Enrollees Discover Dirty Little Secret (Dec 3, 2019) U.S. Watchdog Finds $6.7 Billion in Questionable Medicare Payments to Insurers (Dec 12, 2019) Fraud Is Rampant in Medicare Advantage (Mar 13, 2021) Medicare Advantage Plans Often Deny Needed Care, Federal Report Finds (April 28, 2022) Government Watchdogs Attack Medicare Advantage for Denying Care and Overcharging (June 29, 2022)  

This is episode 85, “The American Healthcare Mess.”  My guest, Gilbert Simon, MD, wrote “Ripped Off!: Overtested, Overtreated and Overcharged, the American Healthcare Mess.” In 1989, Dr. Simon founded the Sacramento Family Medical Clinics to care for people who had trouble affording and getting quality healthcare.  Before he founded his medical clinics, Dr. Simon was a pediatrician, and taught at Columbia University, University of California Davis School of Medicine, and California Northstate University School of Medicine.  Do not miss this episode as Dr. Simon discusses the waste, inefficiency and profiteering that currently exists in the American healthcare system. Correction: Dr. Simon said that we are “spending about 12 and a half dollars per capita” on health care. The correct figure is 12 and a half thousand dollars per capita.  

This is episode 84, "Puerto Rico's History of Single-Payer." My guest, Carlo Bosques, is a medical student in Puerto Rico.  He was born and raised in Puerto Rico and did his undergraduate degree at Johns Hopkins University, majoring in molecular and cellular biology. While at Johns Hopkins, he served as a volunteer at a clinic that served undocumented patients. That experience helped him to realize how inseparable health and policy were.  While pursuing his medical degree in Puerto Rico, Mr Bosques leads a group of medical students in Project Arbona (Proyecto Arbona), that supports establishing a universal healthcare system in Puerto Rico. Mr. Bosques describes how Puerto Rico did have a single-payer healthcare system, which is an often forgotten part of its history that is rarely mentioned in the United States. Do not miss this episode as Mr. Bosques discusses Puerto Rico's former universal healthcare system, and how it was more effective than Puerto Rico's current privatized healthcare system.

This is episode 83, “Why Medicare For All Is Cool!”  In this episode, I describe what makes single-payer Medicare for All cool. In brief, it is cool because people get the medical care and prescription drugs they need when they need it without having to worry about cost.  Do not miss this episode as I discuss all the reasons why Medicare for All is cool.  

This is episode 82, “Electronic Health Records and Interchangeable Data.” My guest, A Jay Holmgren, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at University of California San Francisco and the Center for Clinical Informatics and Improvement Research, and a Senior Advisor at the Stanford Clinical Excellence Research Center. He researches information technology and digital health, and uses quantitative social science to understand how information technology affects patients, providers, and health care organizations. Dr. Holmgren received a Masters degree in Health Informatics from the University of Michigan and a PhD in Health Policy from Harvard University. Do not miss this episode as Dr. Holmgren discusses how Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems that can exchange data will help patients.

This is episode 81, “Little Things That Can Make a Difference.” In this episode, I discuss two actions that can be taken that would make life easier and save time for most people. I discuss how interchangeable health data would save time when people change or go to a new doctor, and that the government could figure taxes for most people. Do not miss this episode as I discuss how interchangeable health data and the government figuring taxes would save time and money for most people.  

This is episode 80, “A Catastrophic Ruling: The Overturning of Guaranteed Abortion Access.” My guest, Diljeet Singh, MD, is board certified in OB/GYN and Gynecologic Oncology. She also has an MPH in Maternal and Child Health, and a Ph.D. in Health Services Research. Dr. Singh currently practices in the Washington D.C. metro area.  Do not miss this episode as Dr. Singh discusses how ending women's guaranteed right to abortions will seriously harm women's health. I am including a link to this New York Times article, "Deleting Your Period Tracker Won't Protect You," because some people may find it useful.

This is episode 79, "Gun Violence and Public Health in the U.S."  In this episode, I discuss gun violence and why gun violence is a serious public health threat in the United States.  Do not miss this episode as I discuss why gun violence is so rampant in the United States and what can and should be done about it.  Here are links to the video, article, and podcast episodes that I reference in this podcast: Damaged caused by high-velocity bullets. John McWhorter's New York Times newsletter (Paywalled): Gun Violence Is Like What Segregation Was. An Unaddressed Moral Stain. Episode 19: How Do We Meet the Needs of People Who Need Mental Health Services? Poorly! Episode 52: How We Can Meet the Mental Health Needs of Children and Adolescents   

This is episode 78, “Public Health, Single-Payer and the American Public Health Association.” My guest, Anthony Spadaro, MD, MPH, is a resident physician in Emergency Medicine in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. He graduated from a combined MD/MPH program from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He was one of the authors on a policy statement endorsing single-payer healthcare as the path to universal healthcare endorsed by the American Public Health Association. Do not miss this episode as Dr. Spadaro discusses what public health is and why the American Public Health Association endorsed single-payer health care. 

This is episode 77, “The Healthcare Skin-in-the-Game Myth.”  In this episode, I discuss why the assumption that people need to have skin in the game in healthcare is false and harmful to getting medical care.  Do not miss this episode as I discuss how requiring skin in the game for healthcare prevents people from getting the medical care they need. 

This is episode 76, “Achieving the Cancer Moonshot in 10 Years.” My guest, Diljeet Singh, MD, is board certified in OB/GYN and Gynecologic Oncology. She also has an MPH in Maternal & Child Health and a Ph.D. in Health Services Research. Dr. Singh currently practices in the Washington D.C. metro area.  In February of this year, Pres. Biden released his plan for a “Cancer Moonshot.” His goals are  to reduce the cancer death rate by 50 percent within 25 years and to “improve the experience of people and their families living with and surviving cancer— and, by doing this and more, end cancer as we know it today.” Dr. Singh explains how we could accomplish those goals within 10 years with what we know today. Do not miss this episode as Dr, Singh explains how current knowledge and Medicare for All would allow us to achieve the goals of the Cancer Moonshot within 10 years.

This is episode 75, “Jeffry Sachs Testimony from the House Oversight Committee Hearing on Medicare for All.”  The House Oversight and Reform Committee had a hearing on “Examining Pathways to Universal Health Coverage” on March 29, 2022, and Medicare for All was a large part of that discussion. In this episode, I play the testimony of Jeffrey Sachs, PhD. Dr. Sachs is an economics professor at Columbia University, and he makes important points about the U.S. healthcare system. The data shows that our results are worse than other nations and costs way more. We pay a high price for our poorly performing healthcare system.  Note that Dr. Sachs's testimony is even more powerful if you can see the graphs he displays during his testimony. Here is a link to his testimony on YouTube: Video Testimony of Jeffrey Sachs. Do not miss this episode as Dr. Sachs uses data to illustrate how bad the U.S. Healthcare system is compared to other wealthy nations. 

This is episode 74, "Highlights from the House Oversight Committee Hearing on Medicare for All." The House Oversight and Reform Committee had a hearing on “Examining Pathways to Universal Health Coverage,” and Medicare for All was a large part of that discussion. In this episode I highlight the testimony of a Representative and witnesses who explain why they support Medicare for All.  Do not miss this episode as a variety of people discuss our harmful healthcare system.  This episode is late because I was sick this past week. Hopefully, that won't happen again.