This time on Code WACK! In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we’re rebroadcasting our Anthem Award–winning episode on one of the most overlooked civil rights battles in American history: the desegregation of hospitals. The episode features Dr. Barbara Berney, a distinguished public health scholar and the creator of the award-winning documentary Power to Heal: Medicare and the Civil Rights Revolution. Together, we explore how federal Medicare dollars were used as a powerful tool to force hospitals to integrate in the 1960s. We’re uplifting this groundbreaking story to educate a new generation about the critical role health care played in the civil rights movement - and to confront how racism still shapes access to care and health outcomes today. This is part one of a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.

This time on Code WACK! As healthcare costs skyrocket and Americans face new coverage threats, California advocates are pushing for something bigger than simple fixes around the edges. We’re joined by longtime healthcare organizer Michael Lighty, who breaks down the fight for single payer, what’s at stake in 2026, and why unity may be the key to winning guaranteed healthcare for all. Michael is the president of Healthy California Now and has organized, advocated and developed policy for single payer Medicare for All nationally and in California for more than 30 years. This is the second episode in a two-part series with Michael Lighty. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Today we’re talking about rising healthcare costs and the renewed momentum behind Medicare for All. Recent polling shows majority support for the idea-across Democrats, independents, and even a notable share of Republicans-even when voters are told it would replace most private insurance and require higher taxes. As premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs continue to climb, healthcare affordability is once again front and center in the political debate. To help us unpack what’s driving this support-and whether it represents a real political opportunity-we’re joined by longtime healthcare advocate and policy strategist Michael Lighty, president of Healthy California Now and former healthcare constituency director for the Bernie 2020 campaign. This is the first of two episodes with Michael Lighty. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! America is facing a looming crisis in caregiving with an aging population and scarce in-home care resources . Could neighborhood-based care networks offer answers? What becomes possible when they’re in place? To find out, we spoke with Dr. Mary-Elizabeth Harmon, a scientist-turned-storyteller, caregiver and founder of a business helping neighbors build caring communities and local economies through community villages. She spent more than two years caring for her father, who lived with dementia, and is currently the unreimbursed caregiver for her elderly mother in Virginia. This is the second episode in a two-part series featuring Dr. Harmon. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Suddenly, with little notice, you may find yourself having to step into a caregiving role for a friend or family member. Maybe you already have. It could be an aging parent, an ailing partner or an injured child. What does it really cost—emotionally, physically, and financially—to care for someone you love? To find out, we recently spoke with Mary-Elizabeth Harmon, a scientist turned storyteller and caregiver whose life changed in an instant. What she thought would be a brief visit to her father ultimately became a years’ long caregiving journey that nearly pushed her to the brink—and ultimately inspired her vision for “vertical villages,” where neighbors foster caring communities and economies to support one another through life’s toughest moments. As the founder of Village Company 360 and the caregiver of her mother in Virgina, Mary-Elizabeth reveals just how unprepared our systems are for the caregiving crisis—and why all of us need to pay attention. This is the first episode in a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Join us on a deep dive into the hidden forces behind soaring out-of-pocket costs, from rising medical costs to pandemic aftershocks and corporate profit pressures. Our guest, health insurance agent Sherry Davis Johnson, shares eye-opening stories from the front lines. We’ll also explore how the Affordable Care Act has saved lives, what protections still matter most, and what it really takes to navigate today’s healthcare maze. This is the second episode in a two part-series. Sherry Davis Johnson — a former nurse turned long–time insurance agent in Southern California — has seen our challenging healthcare system from every angle, as a nurse and home health provider, insurance agent and patient. Today, she’s here to help us make sense of it all. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! We’re digging into big questions: Are reduced health insurance subsidies leaving Americans with a bad case of sticker shock? If you’re shopping on the ACA marketplace, what should you watch out for before picking a plan? And what happens if you're pre-authorized for treatment in 2025, but can't afford to renew with the same plan in 2026? (It's not pretty). For these answers and more, we talked to Sherry Davis Johnson — a former nurse turned long–time insurance agent in Southern California. Sherry has seen our challenging healthcare system from every angle, as a nurse and home health provider, insurance agent and patient, having personally gone through five major surgeries in just two years. Today, she’s licensed in health, property, casualty, accident, and life insurance — and she’s here to help us make sense of it all.  Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Will Humana and UnitedHealth Group be found by the courts to have prematurely denied or cut off physician-ordered post-acute care for Medicare Advantage members using AI models with error rates as high as 90%? And could these same AI tools, which over 60% of doctors allege systematically deny patients necessary care, be used in Traditional Medicare as well? The answer is YES, depending on where you live. To learn more, we spoke with Jeremy White, author of InHumana: An American Healthcare Story, published recently by White Lines Press. Jeremy and his wife, Edie, founded the award-winning satirical publication Red Shtick Magazine and its online version, The Red Shtick. They live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This is the second episode of a two-part series with Jeremy about his new book. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Imagine watching your mom suffer a stroke and two seizures that left her unable to use her right side… and then having her Medicare Advantage health insurer deny coverage for the nursing home care she desperately needs. Now imagine learning that the decision to deny her coverage may have been based on artificial intelligence (AI) instead of clinical observation by a qualified medical professional! Here to share this shocking personal story is Jeremy White, author of InHumana: An American Healthcare Story, published by White Lines Press. Jeremy and his wife, Edie, founded the award-winning satirical publication Red Shtick Magazine — and its online version, The Red Shtick. They live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, near Jeremy’s mother. This is the first episode of a two-part series with Jeremy about his new book. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! How do health insurance hassles like denials and preauthorizations exacerbate inequities in our broken healthcare system? How do they rob physicians of precious time caring for patients and even jeopardize their practices? And why are some big insurance companies buying up physician practices? To find out, we recently spoke with Dr. Erica Rowe Urquhart, a private practice orthopedic surgeon in northern New Jersey. Harvard-trained in biomedical engineering with an MD and PhD from Johns Hopkins, Dr. Urquhart is the author of the forthcoming book The Invisible Hand Wielding the Scalpel: Paying the Price in America’s Fractured Healthcare System. This is the second episode of a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Why can working as a doctor in America feel like being on a battleground? What questionable tactics are insurance companies using? How are they affecting patients and physicians alike? And when coverage is denied, what can patients do? (See Helpful Links below for tips on appeals.) To find out, we recently spoke with Dr. Erica Rowe Urquhart, a private practice orthopedic surgeon in northern New Jersey. A Harvard-trained biomedical engineer with an MD and PhD from Johns Hopkins, Dr. Urquhart is the author of the forthcoming book The Invisible Hand Wielding the Scalpel: Paying the Price in America’s Fractured Healthcare System. This is the first episode of a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.

This time on Code WACK! Millions of Americans are expected to forgo buying health insurance starting in 2026 as the cost of their coverage soars. Others who currently qualify for Medicaid may find the rules have changed and they are no longer eligible. What can people do when they need care but can’t afford it? And why are young people especially at risk? To find out, we spoke with Rachel Madley, director of policy and advocacy at the Center for Health and Democracy. She previously served as health policy advisor to Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and worked in the Office of Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Having struggled personally with a chronic medical condition, Rachel shares her firsthand experience staying alive despite America's cruel healthcare system. This is the second episode of a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.

This time on Code WACK! With millions of Americans poised to lose their health coverage due to government cuts to Medicaid and other health programs, what can you do to protect your health and access to care? If you find yourself uninsured, are there ways to get free or low-cost prescription meds and health care? To find out, we spoke with Rachel Madley, director of policy and advocacy at the Center for Health and Democracy. She previously served as health policy advisor to Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and worked in the Office of Legislative Affairs at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Having struggled personally with a chronic medical condition, Rachel shares her firsthand experience staying alive despite America's cruel healthcare system. This is the first episode of a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation at heal-ca.org/donate.

This time on Code WACK! What will happen when Medicaid is slashed for millions of people as a result of Trump’s H.R. 1, the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill?” How will the largest rollback of the social safety net in over 50 years harm children, families, and rural communities – and what could it mean for states that recently expanded Medicaid, like North Carolina? To find out, we spoke to Jennifer Wells, director of Economic Justice at Community Change Action, where she leads the organization’s work to advance policies and practices that improve the material conditions of low-income communities. This is the second episode in a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

New from CodeWACK! Medicaid Saved My Mom’s Life – But Trump Could End It for Millions by Nurse Talk

This time on Code WACK! As a consequence of Trump's drastic cuts to Medicaid and other health programs, experts estimate that between nearly 8 million and 10 million more Americans will be uninsured by 2034. These include the most vulnerable among us, people who depend on Medicaid because they are poor, ill and/or live with disabilities. And here’s the kicker: experiencing disability isn’t as rare or improbable as we’d like to think. That's why this fight for health care is about all of us—our families, our neighbors, and our future. From hospital care to home-based services to keeping rural clinics alive, Medicaid is a pillar of our healthcare system—and when it’s weakened, entire communities feel the impact. So what happens when that pillar is damaged? We recently spoke to Andy Imparato, executive director of Disability Rights California, and policy analyst Sabrina Epstein. This is the second episode in a two-part series with Disability Rights California. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! What’s already changing for people with disabilities now that President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” has been signed into law? From pediatric clinics closing their doors to looming cuts in home and community-based services, the fallout is just beginning — and it’s hitting hard. Today we’re joined by two staff members of Disability Rights California, Executive Director Andy Imparato and Policy Analyst Sabrina Epstein, who have been working to track the bill’s impact and fight for the rights of those with disabilities across the state. This is the first episode in a two-part series with Disability Rights California. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! We talk a lot about how our healthcare system fails us when we get sick, but what about when regulators fail to PREVENT ILLNESS? Case in point: lead poisoning. It’s not just a danger from the past. Thousands of children are sickened from lead poisoning each year across the country. This week we’re looking at New York State which has older, poorly maintained housing stock in several areas, and where we’ve seen some of the highest incidences of lead poisoning in the country. So why hasn’t the state legislature passed the Lead Paint Right to Know Act, a bill that could help protect families from this entirely preventable harm? To learn more, we recently spoke with Shannon Burkett, a New York mother whose son Cooper was diagnosed with lead poisoning as an infant in 2008. Shannon is also the writer, producer, and editor of the podcast LEAD: How This Story Ends Is Up to Us. Both Shannon, a registered nurse, and Cooper, now 18, have been powerful voices in the fight to end lead poisoning. This is the second episode in a two-part series. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! Imagine discovering that your infant child—your nine-month-old baby—has lead poisoning – a toxin banned from paint and phased out of gasoline decades ago. So why do thousands of children each year have dangerously high levels of lead in their system? We spoke with New York mom, nurse, and advocate Shannon Burkett, whose son Cooper developed lead poisoning that stole his words, halted his development, and nearly cost him his life. Shannon is also the writer, producer, and editor of the podcast LEAD: How This Story Ends Is Up to Us, which had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival 2025, starring Merritt Wever and Cynthia Nixon. She’s a registered nurse, a mother of three, and a fierce voice in the fight to end lead poisoning. This is the first of a two-part series with Shannon Burkett. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.

This time on Code WACK! What happens when millions are stripped of Medicaid coverage? Who shoulders the costs when hospitals are forced to care for more uninsured patients? And how will unions and the workers they represent bear the brunt of skyrocketing premiums, job losses, and a growing healthcare crisis? Today we're joined by Cindy Young, a veteran labor negotiator and health policy advisor, and now vice president of the California Alliance for Retired Americans and of Healthy California Now. Cindy has spent decades fighting for healthcare justice and protecting workers' rights. She breaks down Trump's so-called One Big, Beautiful Bill, explains why unions are sounding the alarm and reveals what's really at stake for working families, seniors, and communities across America. This is the first episode in a two-part series in honor of Labor Day. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation.