Richard D. Wolff

Dr. Rosenthal is now Editor-In-Chief of Kaiser Health News. She was a correspondent for the New York Times for 22 years. She wrote the series entitled "Paying Till It Hurts", a multi-part examination of our dysfunctional healthcare system published in the Times in 2013-14. “American Sickness” is a critical examination of the four pillars of the U.S. healthcare system, doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical and equipment manufacturers and insurance companies. As just one example of the many outrages described in her book, one stands out in my mind. Pharmaceutical companies have increased the price of their drugs so much that even people who actually have insurance coverage can’t afford the deductible. Apparently, it’s illegal for a doctor to waive the deductible for his patients. The industry has come up with a clever and cynical strategy to keep this growing fraction of their market. The drug makers have created non-profit, charitable programs to give financial aid to these people enabling them to pay their deductible. In turn, the patients can now put in a claim to their insurance companies. For a relatively small charitable donation, the drug makers are able to increase their sales.