“Refreshing”

November 26, 2019

What a refreshing look at health care in the USA! Instead of a politics focus, this show takes the listener on a journey with compelling stories from citizens who are dealing with our often-convoluted health care system on a daily basis. Dan Weissmann, the host, does a marvelous job of keeping this podcast about potentially terrifying and depressing topics upbeat, hopeful, and informative. Highly recommend!

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Latest Episodes

Keep listening for info on why health care costs so freaking much, and what we can (maybe) do about it.

September 18, 2025

Will we be able to afford insurance in 2026?

August 28, 2025

‘The Insurance Warrior’ battles a $61 billion company (from 2021)

A wild health insurance hustle

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Starter Packs

Our Starter Packs are full of useful information and actionable advice on all things healthcare.

How do I shop for health insurance?

Picking a health insurance plan can be overwhelming. Here’s our best advice.

Help! I’m stuck with a gigantic medical bill.

Don’t freak out. We’ve created a guide to help you manage.

The prescription drug playbook

The high cost of prescription meds in the US is a crisis: one in four adults say they’ve skipped taking a prescription in the past year because of cost.

Why are my meds so expensive?

Getting your meds shouldn’t feel like mission impossible. Here’s a hand-picked mix of our most practical tips, background stories, and real listener experiences—so you can save money, understand the system, and know you’re not alone.

Help! Insurance denied my claim.

Insurance denies lots of claims, and people give up. But the majority of people who appeal win. Here’s the best of what we’ve published so far to help you.

See All Our Starter Packs

If you don't know where to start or are just getting to know us, we recommend you start here.

First Aid Kit

A show about why health care costs so freaking much, and what we can (maybe) do about it.

September 19, 2025

2026 insurance nightmare update and tips

Hey there, Like we said last month, Obamacare will get a lot more expensive next year — and since then, we’ve learned that workers with employer insurance will get socked too. In this week’s new podcast episode, you’ll hear the Arm and a Leg team personally confront 2026 health insurance prices. We’re a case study. And we’re here to pass along what we’ve learned. Quick

September 11, 2025

Help! Do I have to pay for the hospital’s $47,000 mistake?

Hey there — I get a lot of questions from An Arm and a Leg listeners. Sometimes I write back with advice. So: Why not share? Welcome to an experiment: Our occasional advice column! Maybe let’s call it: Can they freaking DO that?!? Disclaimer: I don’t know everything, I’m not a lawyer, and I haven’t done new reporting for this. It’s the kind of

September 4, 2025

The “one-stop shop” resource list 2.0

Avid “First Aid Kit” readers might remember that in the spring, we wrote about a med student named Thomas who wanted a one-page resource guide — and we asked for your help in drafting one. You guys came through, and Thomas put your contributions to work. He’s got a new draft, and we’ve got a new opportunity for you to

August 28, 2025

Who you’re really fighting, when you fight insurance

Hey there – Over on the podcast, we’re bringing back a story from our archive that’s one of my all time favorites — and that drives home a lesson about how health insurance really works for most people. In 2021, we profiled someone who probably knows more than anybody about what it takes to fight insurance and win. Laurie Todd

August 21, 2025

Advanced tips for getting financial assistance for hospital bills

By far the most powerful piece of information Dan and our team at An Arm and a Leg have discovered in the past six years is that if you have a medical bill from a hospital, there’s a really good chance you can get it written off — either partially or entirely. That’s thanks to charity care — financial assistance that most hospitals are

See the Episode Archive

One of the most enraging, terrifying, depressing parts of American life made entertaining, empowering, and useful.