Yesterday, the HEALTH CARE un-covered Newsletter arrived in my inbox, sporting the headline “Fifteen Years Ago Today I Became a Whistleblower”. It was from Wendell Potter who remains a hero to all of us in the US, whether you know it or not.
I was fortunate to first interview Wendell on Air America Radio in August of 2009, just two months after he testified before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, pulling back the curtain from around the industry for which he carried water and covered up unethical practices.
A few months later, he would testify before the House and became the most important voice for the masses, just as then president Obama was helping to push through the first health care industry reforms in decades.
Fifteen years ago. And though things are better for us mere mortals who will, at some point, need medical care, we’re still fighting nefarious forces in the health insurance and so-called health care industries as well as in government. And Wendell continues to fight for us.
Wendell Potter has been a frequent guest on this program since that first appearance 15 years ago and I’m proud to consider him a friend. I invited him back to today to talk about the problems we’re still faced with and to thank him, again, for standing up for us.
First, as promised, his senate testimony from 15 years ago yesterday is embedded in that post linked above. This is the Bill Moyers interview I saw. And this is the House testimony Wendell gave in September of 2009…
And finally, here’s the YouTube video from today’s show
