Code Wack - ‘Rationing by Inconvenience:’ How Insurers Keep Patients From Care by Progressive Voices Network published on 2026-08-19T13:26:46Z This time on Code WACK! Got health insurance, but still can’t get the care you need? This week, Brenda continues her conversation with Miranda Yaver, PhD, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management at the University of Pittsburgh and author of Coverage Denied: How Health Insurers Drive Inequality in the United States. Yaver calls the maze of denials, delays, paperwork, prior authorizations, and appeals “rationing by inconvenience.” She explains how those barriers can wear patients down, strain physicians and hospitals, and make access to care depend partly on how much time, money, and energy someone has to keep fighting. They also talk about insurers’ growing use of AI, why appealing a denial is often worth it, and why Yaver says a simpler single-payer system would be easier for patients and providers to navigate. This is the second of two episodes with Miranda Yaver. Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more! And please keep Code WACK! on the air with a tax-deductible donation: http://heal-ca.org/donate
