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Deadly Spin: An Insurance Company Insider Speaks Out on How Corporate PR Is Killing Health Care and Deceiving Americans Audiobook
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(4.03) - 388 listener ratings
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"My name is Wendell Potter, and for twenty years I worked as a senior executive at health insurance companies. I saw how they confuse their customers and dump the sick—all so they can satisfy their Wall Street investors." —Senate testimony, June 24, 2009
Wendell Potter is the insurance industry's worst nightmare.
In June 2009, Wendell Potter made national headlines with his scorching testimony before the Senate panel on health care reform. This former senior vice president of CIGNA explained how health insurers make promises they have no intention of keeping, how they flout regulations designed to protect consumers, and how they skew political debate with multibillion-dollar public relations campaigns designed to spread disinformation.
Potter had walked away from a six-figure salary and two decades as an insurance executive because he could no longer abide the routine practices of an industry where the needs of sick and suffering Americans take a backseat to the bottom line. The last straw: when he visited a rural health clinic and saw hundreds of people standing in line in the rain to receive treatment in stalls built for livestock.
In Deadly Spin, Potter takes listeners behind the scenes to show how a huge chunk of our absurd health care spending actually bankrolls a propaganda campaign and lobbying effort focused on protecting one thing: profits. Whatever the fate of the current health care legislation, it makes no attempt to change that fundamental problem. Potter shows how relentless PR assaults play an insidious role in our political process anywhere that corporate profits are at stake—from climate change to defense policy. Deadly Spin tells us why—and how—we must fight back.
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"I am working on health care reform and wanted to read this to see what an industry insider had to say about health insurance companies. While I can't say I was surprised at the tactics and behavior detailed in the book, it was helpful to refresh my cynicism by reading such concrete examples of their profit-driven ways. The sad part is knowing how terribly their policies have impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and how our newest excursion into health care reform will still be based on a platform that has profit as its bottom line. Wendell Potter writes well and clearly and I appreciate that he had the courage to turn his back on his companies and his former colleagues and tell the truth."
— Morgan (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“A gripping indictment.”
— Time -
“Damning revelations throughout [t]his book.”
— New York Times -
“Expose[s] the dark manipulations of fact that insurance firms use to preserve for-profit healthcare. Then he put it all on paper with a terrific book”
— The Nation -
“To get the country back on track, Potter exhorts consumers to adopt a healthy dose of skepticism toward corporate doublespeak. That’s a sound prescription, one which no American can afford not to have filled.”
— Boston Globe -
“Potter engagingly weaves together industry secrets with his own moral struggle and transformation into a whistleblower who tried to beat back the spin that nearly killed Obamacare.”
— Mother Jones magazine -
“Deadly Spin is a must-read for all who want to learn more about what [the health reform law] is and what it is not. It is a handbook for social change.”
— New York Journal of Books -
“Potter’s street cred and deep knowledge of the industry make his indictment unusually vivid and compelling.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“This whistle-blower perspective will heighten discussion and debate on the vital topic of health care in America.”
— Booklist -
“An illuminating, up-to-the-minute testimonial sure to garner widespread attention and controversy.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
The ideal whistleblower...his testimony [is] logical, specific, and convincing.
— Time
Deadly Spin Listener Reviews
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Holly Allen, 10/20/2022
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" I really liked this book and it makes you think. It does get repetitive and drag in some places, but overall it has a good message and does accomplish the task of making you want to rage against "corporate America" and their public manipulation. If you are a conservative you probably will not like this book, but I feel like the author tries to stay non bias. "
— Edwin, 2/19/2014 -
" Every citizen should read this and learn who really is in control of our country. "
— Ann, 2/15/2014 -
" All Americans concerned with healthcare and health insurance need to read this book. "
— Melissa, 2/6/2014 -
" This book could be fascinating ..... if you were American. For a non-American , you are left scratching or shaking your head; wondering why any developed country would think such a convoluted system is the proper way to provide medical care. His discussion of the effect of Michael Moore, free health care charity, and the profit motive are worth read but i began to lose interest when he started to explain the minutiae of legislation and corporate rules -- at that point I thanked Tommy Douglas for bringing medicare to Canada and closed the book "
— H, 2/3/2014 -
" Interesting book about the insurance industry from the PR standpoint. The insurance industry really does need an overhaul. Wendell Potter should be commended for coming forth with his story of working in the spin business for the insurance industry. "
— Laura, 1/20/2014 -
" Super depressing. "
— Danielle, 12/25/2013 -
" Quite an eye opener not only in terms of health insurance, but PR in general. "
— Gail, 11/27/2013 -
" Anyone who is concerned about healthcare in this country or who feels like either big business (insurance companies) or the government have too much control over who has access to care MUST read this book. The most important book I have read in quite some time. "
— James, 10/26/2013 -
" Wendell Potter is an ex-Cigna VP for communications who wrote this book after leaving the industry of his own free will after experiencing a moral awakening. Worth the read. "
— Dwight, 10/1/2013 -
" I believe that every American in this nation should have to read this book as a prerequisite to voting or talking about the Affordable Care Act. "
— Janie, 2/4/2013 -
" Well-written expose of how people are being deceived by corporate America, and that private health insurance has only one concern: profits. Profits at any cost, including lives and health care itself. "
— Comfychair, 8/17/2012 -
" This is really important to read. "If there is one message--and one that is actually true--it is this: Always look behind any public argument to see how your emotions are being manipulated. And count on it. They are." "
— John, 5/3/2012 -
" Gut wrenching look at the mumipulations of not only our health care industry, but also oil, all socially connected business (aren't they all) and most importantly the future of the "news" biz. "
— Ken, 6/17/2011 -
" Chilling. Parallels Wall Street, Retail and every other industry. Public Relations expose. The American public is eating it up. Much like our waistlines we are gluttonous and getting fatter on garbage. "
— Daniel, 5/25/2011 -
" A book everyone should read... it is an eye opener "
— Michael, 5/14/2011 -
" I've seen the author interviewed on several programs. His book is a very interesting read. "
— Jennifer, 5/7/2011 -
" I think every American should read this book, it not only shows how the Insurance industry rips us off while using smoke and mirrors, but the Public Relation groups of all major industries spin the American people dizzy so they don't know what and who is stealing from them. "
— Anthony, 4/8/2011 -
" In on sitting, I read a third of this gripping book. This is a MUST READ. "
— Kate, 3/26/2011 -
" A must read. Written by an insider in the health care industry, the book reveals how insurance companies influence debates over health care reform and continue to rake in massive profits. "
— Betty, 2/25/2011 -
" Do not read this if you already have high blood pressure. Simply and quickly lays out the PR evils of major industries, focusing on Health Insurance companies. You may know they are evil, but this shows you exactly how. Really really good read, highly recommended. "
— Oak, 2/25/2011 -
" Pretty much confirmed what I have long thought - as long as health insurance and health care provision are for profit enterprises there will be no reform in that area, nor fair, equitable or affordable access for all in this country. "
— Victoria, 2/4/2011
About Wendell Potter
Wendell Potter is a former vice president of corporate communications at CIGNA, one of the largest health insurance companies in the United States. In June 2009, he testified against the HMO industry in the US Senate as a whistle-blower. Now an active voice on health care reform and a fellow at the Center for Media and Democracy, he has appeared in high-profile interviews with Bill Moyers and various others.
About Patrick Lawlor
Jeff Cummings, as an audiobook narrator, has won both an Earphones Award and the prestigious Audie Award in 2015 for Best Narration in Science and Technology. He is also a twenty-year veteran of the stage, having worked at many regional theaters across the country, from A Contemporary Theatre in Seattle and the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta to the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City and the International Mystery Writers’ Festival in Owensboro, Kentucky. He also spent seven seasons with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.