Commonwealth Club

Steven Brill on 'America's Bitter Pill'
Journalist Steven Brill was the author of Time's March 4, 2013 special report "Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us," for which he won the 2014 National Magazine Award for Public Service. His new book is the fly-on-the-wall story of the fight to pass and implement the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. He goes in-depth to explore what he sees as the profiteering of the health care industry, America's largest industry -- larger than the entire economy of France. Brill also teaches journalism at Yale, where he founded the Yale Journalism Initiative to encourage and enable talented young people to become journalists.

Had he done a credible job here, he might have, at least, outlined the various Interests (and their nemeses) and spun a critique of BHO's compromises (and w.t.f. SIngle Player never could have come close.) He did all that. But much more, enhanced by his own experience in hospital/parsing bills, etc. Interviewed the *CIEIO of the biggest of the Mega-medico Corps. WIth ready data, he un-peels the 4-D? onion of interlaced, Powerful, vastly-overpaid beneficiaries of a Clusterfuck that will eat away $4T just this year, with comparisons to the civilized world's stats, enumerationg the stunning profit margins of the Corps who sell the equipment, showing how the most profitable of hospitals are the 'Non-profits'. Downhill from there.
* Said CIEIO could not explain the billing sheets he brought along. Really. Is that the definition of. "out of control"?

He speaks well, and his concise while detailed history is by far the best summary of the dimensions of the mess I've yet heard. Clearly, of all the excesses, hypocrisy and outright theft in the Kleptocracy: Medico exemplifies the worst (I can thus-far imagine) of our fully-institutionalized perpetual scams.

Looks like the only way to hear it, if missed on your NPR schedule: is by ponying up $10, such is the Commonweath Club's MO, Had I heard the first ten minutes, I'd have slipped a fin into the DVD slot for the rest. His syntax and pacing makes evident that he's spent much time learning how to present all the angles in a manner which doesn't drown in TMI, and you can draw your own hologram of the placement of factoids; this was apparent in his answers to audience Qs, as well.

Having heard it and pondered, while realizing the amount of more-of-the-same from a BHO-despising dysfunctional Congress (and everything-Else) ... I **figure that nothing short of an unprecedentedly-massive demonstration (as large as the sum of those which ended Vietnam) could possibly 'reform' our ugly Wealth-Care. Doing so must also reform much in the financial system. alter many laws, not just re malpractice but (Usury anyone?) , bargaining: as do sane countries (who pay not half what we pay BIg Pharma, etc.)
** as does he.tl;dr: We're fucked, and for quite longer than my expiration date.

Few citizens could diagram The System as it exists; even fewer could contrive effective remedies. I'd want Brill around: when enough mobs signal, It's Time Now.


Actually: taken all together, each facet, with its own protective secrecies: back-scratching and refined obfuscation of the ROI of all the vastly overpaid. makes it clear enough Why petitions, periodic 'write your Congresscritter' and other make-work suggestions are pointless. It's an authentic Gordian Knot and only a sword can un-do it. In just Econ simplicities, this tithe vis a vis Others.. is and shall continue to be an albatross. You couldn't address even the simplest, obvious and provable corruption, status quo, never mind the intricacies sub-rosa. (Mustn't allow the word hopeless to be murdered in its crib, as was incredible! but.. there you Are.)

Good to know. Leaves more time for several other windmills I can tilt-at, where at least the lance isn't made of rubber. We might.. save some wolves? no way 'we' can get an 'operation' in the dis-US at the "70-80% discount" prices of civilized (or even uncivilized not-US) countries.

Carrion.. it's what's in your replacement-hip (that's a whole story in itself. It'd be a Comedy, if fiction.)


:oTyp