# EP499: Self-insured Employers and Other Plan Sponsors Are Paying Millions for MSK (Musculoskeletal) Injuries That Would Have Healed Themselves, With Jay Kimmel, MD Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/relentless-health-value-872220/ep499-self-insured-employers-and-other-plan-sponsors-are-paying-millions-for-msk-musculoskeletal-injuries-that-would-have-healed-themselves-with-jay-kimmel-md Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/relentless-health-value-872220/ep499-self-insured-employers-and-other-plan-sponsors-are-paying-millions-for-msk-musculoskeletal-injuries-that-would-have-healed-themselves-with-jay-kimmel-md.md Podcast: [Relentless Health Value](https://stenobird.com/podcast/relentless-health-value-872220) Published: 2026-02-05T11:30:00+00:00 Episode link: https://cc-lnk.com/EP499 Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/healthvalue/RHV_EP499_Dr_Jay_Kimmel.mp3?dest-id=197686 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/relentless-health-value-872220/episodes/ep499-self-insured-employers-and-other-plan-sponsors-are-paying-millions-for-msk-musculoskeletal-injuries-that-would-have-healed-themselves-with-jay-kimmel-md Duration seconds: 1684 ## Resource In this episode of Relentless Health Value, host Stacey Richter talks with Dr. Jay Kimmel, an orthopedic surgeon and co-founder of Upswing Health, about the significant costs associated with musculoskeletal (MSK) injuries and conditions for self-insured employers and other plan sponsors. They explore how a large portion of MSK-related expenses are for low-acuity injuries that often heal on their own without the need for emergency room visits or unnecessary treatments. Dr. Kimmel discusses the importance of addressing the 'white space'β€”the critical initial moments when a patient decides whether or not to seek emergency care. He emphasizes the value of immediate access to knowledgeable professionals to help guide these decisions and prevent avoidable high-cost care. They also touch on historical practices where physicians would consult each other informally, suggesting that modern solutions like Upswing Health can replicate those beneficial spontaneous interactions to improve patient care and reduce costs. === LINKS === πŸ”— Show Notes with all mentioned links: https://cc-lnk.com/EP499 πŸ”— Visit Upswing Health: https://upswinghealth.com βœ‰οΈ Enjoy this podcast? Subscribe to the free weekly newsletter: https://relentlesshealthvalue.com/join-the-relentless-tribe πŸ«™ Support the podcast with a small donation to the Tip Jar: https://relentlesshealthvalue.com/join-the-relentless-tribe 🎀 Listen on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/feed/id892082003?ls=1 🎀 Listen on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/6UjgzI7bScDrWvZEk2f46b πŸ“Ί Subscribe to our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@RelentlessHealthValue === CONNECT WITH THE RHV TEAM === ✭ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/relentless-health-value/ ✭ Threads https://www.threads.net/@relentlesshealthvalue/ ✭ Bl… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/relentless-health-value-872220/episodes/ep499-self-insured-employers-and-other-plan-sponsors-are-paying-millions-for-msk-musculoskeletal-injuries-that-would-have-healed-themselves-with-jay-kimmel-md/transcription-requests` β€” Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/relentless-health-value-872220/ep499-self-insured-employers-and-other-plan-sponsors-are-paying-millions-for-msk-musculoskeletal-injuries-that-would-have-healed-themselves-with-jay-kimmel-md.md` β€” Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.