Taking It to the Streets: National Rally Against Greed in Health Care
This week on CodeWACK! Single payer is back in the spotlight with Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Pramila Jayapal submitting new Medicare for All bills for 2025-26! How will the upcoming National Day of Action on May 31st keep the need for healthcare reform in the spotlight? And how do physicians feel about single payer today, 60 years after the American Medical Association’s infamous ‘stealth campaign’ against socialized medicine (featuring none other than Ronald Reagan)? To find out, we recently talked to Dr. Ana Malinow, who spent three decades working as a pediatrician with immigrant, refugee and underserved children before retiring as clinical professor of Pediatrics from UC San Francisco School of Medicine. The past president of Physicians for a National Health Program, she is on the steering committee of National Single Payer. She’s also a lead organizer for The Movement to End Privatization of Medicare. 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 at heal-ca.org/donate.
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11:31
National Day of Action: Single payer & the power of righteous fury
This week on CodeWACK! Why is National Single Payer organizing a National Day of Action on May 31 amid cuts and freezes to public health programs? How has an incremental approach to universal health care in America made comprehensive healthcare reform more difficult? To find out, we recently talked to Dr. Ana Malinow, who spent three decades working as a pediatrician with immigrant, refugee and underserved children before retiring as clinical professor of Pediatrics from UC San Francisco School of Medicine. The past president of Physicians for a National Health Program, she is on the steering committee of National Single Payer. She’s also a lead organizer for The Movement to End Privatization of Medicare. 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 at heal-ca.org/donate.
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How states 'trap' abortion clinics to shut them down
This week on CodeWACK! The Wyoming legislature effectively shut down the only surgical abortion clinic in the state. How did it use "TRAP" (Targeted Regulations Against Abortion Providers) as its legislative strategy? And how does this make getting an abortion even more challenging for residents in Wyoming and nearby states that have abortion bans? We recently spoke to Julie Burkhart, longtime reproductive rights advocate, founder and CEO of Trust Women Foundation, which works to expand access to abortion care in underserved communities. Julie is president of Wellspring Health Access, in Caspar, Wyoming and a protégé of Dr. George Tiller, who was murdered for providing abortion care in 2009. This is the second episode in a two-part series. We interviewed Julie just before the Wyoming legislature passed a bill that effectively shut down her women’s health clinic in Casper, Wyoming. Since this interview, the clinic has put a pause on performing abortions and is awaiting further guidance from a regulatory body. 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.
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17:31
Roe to Resistance: Keeping Abortion Legal in the Heartland
This time on CodeWACK!... What’s it like operating an abortion clinic in Wyoming, one of the most anti-abortion states in the nation? Meet Julie Burkhart — longtime reproductive rights advocate, founder and CEO of Trust Women Foundation, which works to expand access to abortion care in underserved communities, and protégé of Dr. George Tiller, who was murdered for providing abortion care. Hear how Dr. Tiller’s legacy lives on through her work. Why are patients traveling hundreds of miles for abortion care, post-Roe? What’s it been like to offer care in as state where arson, litigation, and political threats against reproductive care providers are part of daily life. 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.
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17:31
How to Fight RFK Jr.'s Ambiguous Vaccine Agenda: Insights from Dr. Abdul El-Sayed
This time on Code WACK! Can our local health departments counteract the mixed messages given by RFK, Jr. the secretary of Health and Human Services, about vaccine safety and efficacy? What about us? How can we combat disinformation and highlight the benefits of vaccinating our children and ourselves? To find out, we spoke with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed—physician, epidemiologist, author, and county health commissioner. He is formerly the health director for the city of Detroit. As the host of the award-winning America Dissected podcast, he breaks down the forces shaping public health for tens of thousands of listeners each week. This is the second of two episodes with Dr. El-Sayed. 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.
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 Education Fund, Code WACK! informs the vital discussion of healthcare reform.