Nurse Talk

Undocumented workers in California contribute about $3.7 billion in state and local taxes each year. They hold one in 16 jobs in the state. What challenges do they face when it comes to getting access to quality health care? How is this impacting their health and our communities? To find out, we spoke to Luz Gallegos, executive director of TODEC Legal Center in Southern California’s Inland Empire. The nonprofit mobilizes immigrant communities to build political power and demand justice while advocating for their most critical needs – from improved schools and better jobs to expanding access to medical coverage and legal protections.

Since the free market has failed to rein in costs and achieve equity in health care, what’s next? Can we govern our seemingly ungovernable healthcare sector? Can we build legislative consensus around policies that protect all of us, equally? Join Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, a health consumer advocacy coalition, and host Brenda Gazzar for the lowdown on California legislation that will hold health plans accountable for quality, cost control and reducing disparities. Will the state's purchasing power be enough to move the needle on single payer?

Why is reforming our healthcare system necessary? Is there any point in trying to change it, given the power of health insurers and pharmaceutical companies? Find out from someone who’s spent decades fighting and winning battles for healthcare justice. Join Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, a health consumer advocacy coalition, and host Brenda Gazzar in this first of two podcasts. Learn why reform is absolutely imperative. Can legislators afford to sit back while healthcare inflation chokes our economy?

Why do some elderly patients on Medicare struggle to get the health care they need? What are some of the dangers of Medicare Advantage?Join Casey Hobbs, RN, director of nursing at a retirement community in Northern California and co-creator/co-host of the popular podcast NurseTalk, and host Brenda Gazzar, to learn exactly what expenses senior Americans are on the hook for. In this second podcast of two, Hobbs explains some important gaps in health insurance coverage and why she sometimes has to fight tooth and nail for her patients. Check out the Show Notes & Episode Transcript!

Is nursing a science or an art? Or is it the art of knowing when to open your mouth? Should "your money or your health" be America's healthcare slogan? Join Casey Hobbs, RN, director of nursing at a retirement community in Northern California and co-creator/co-host of the popular podcast NurseTalk, and host Brenda Gazzar, for a frequently irreverent roller coaster ride of an interview! In this first podcast of two, Hobbs calls for hospitals to get out of the business of making money off our health care and so much more!

Health care in America remains marked by disparities and spiraling costs twelve years after passage of the Affordable Care Act. Given the divisive political climate in Washington DC, states are struggling to work out their own solutions. Governor Gavin Newsom’s Healthy California for All Commission studied the problem for two years and released an eye-opening report detailing how single payer would save 40,000 lives and half a trillion dollars over the next decade while supporting equal access to care. But how would this plan affect businesses and employees?

To find out, join Ian Lewis, political & research director at the National Union of Healthcare Workers, and host Brenda Gazzar for this second of two podcasts on the challenges and benefits of transitioning to single payer.

With all the hand-wringing about the cost of single-payer, it’s time to ask if California can keep paying the price for the fragmented healthcare system we have today. Listen and check out the surprising answer in this first podcast of two featuring Ian Lewis, Political & Research Director at the National Union of Healthcare Workers and host Brenda Gazzar as they do the math on healthcare systems in the Golden State. Has our thinking on this been wrong all along?

Is California finally getting serious about fixing health care? On April 25, 2022, a major report was issued on California's fragmented and uber-expensive healthcare system. Who's behind the report? What were its conclusions and recommendations? And how much money can Californians actually save? Get these answers and more!

Join host Brenda Gazzar and guest Michael Lighty, president of Healthy California Now, to get the facts about Governor Gavin Newsom's Healthy California for All Commission and its new report on single-payer health care in the Golden State.

Why is employee health insurance a growing burden on American businesses? How are some large employers managing to cut out the health insurance middleman? Why didn’t the Affordable Care Act solve all these problems? Join host Brenda Gazzar and guest Wendell Potter, co-founder of Business Leaders for Healthcare Transformation, for these answers and more! Potter, former VP of corporate communications at CIGNA and insurance industry whistleblower, is a NY Times bestselling author. Tune in to this second of two podcasts on the ultimate price American business pays for their employees’ health care.

What’s the healthcare industry been up to since winning passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010? Are mergers, acquisitions and industry consolidation improving care for patients? Who are the Big Six healthcare corporations and how are they faring?

Join host Brenda Gazzar and guest Wendell Potter, co-founder of Business Leaders for Healthcare Transformation, for these answers and more! Potter, former VP of corporate communications at CIGNA and insurance industry whistleblower, is a NY Times bestselling author. Tune in to this first of two podcasts to get the facts about corporate healthcare’s latest business strategies and what they may mean for the rest of us.