{"podcast":{"title":"Optimist Economy","slug":"optimist-economy-7257068","podcast_index_feed_id":7257068,"rss_url":"https://publicfeeds.net/f/14811/feed-rss.xml","website_url":"https://optimisteconomy.com/","image_url":"https://f.prxu.org/14811/images/160bea8c-1709-420c-9302-11462f46d1b6/20250316_120343_934a657c8303c901ea17b8b7452ae07d.png","author":"Kathryn Anne Edwards and Robin Rauzi","episode_count":62,"summary":"Optimist Economy is the anti-doomscroll economics podcast. Work rules, tax fairness, healthcare, housing costs, retirement security — the economic forces shaping American life have real problems. But also real solutions. Each week, economist Kathryn Anne Edwards and editor Robin Rauzi break down one problem and solution with data, history, humor, and a belief that tools to build a better economy exist. We just haven't tried them. New episodes on Tuesdays. ✨ Support the podcast at: optimisteconomy.com ✨ Ask questions or share your economic worries with us at: optimist.economy@gmail.com","last_synced_at":"2026-07-07T18:17:17.071935+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068"},"episode":{"title":"How Health Insurance Got Shackled to Jobs","slug":"how-health-insurance-got-shackled-to-jobs","published_at":"2025-10-14T10:10:08+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068/how-health-insurance-got-shackled-to-jobs","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068","url":"https://rss.com/podcasts/optimisteconomy/2269614","audio_url":"https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/tracking.swap.fm/track/sblTq32fyWAjsHzze2LG/dovetail.prxu.org/14811/ee3a9a82-0404-478d-8c0f-fbe9187ef444/e1fda2fb-174a-45df-954f-e5dcb96387c1.mp3","summary":"Why is anyone’s health insurance tied to their job? It's because of a superintendent in Dallas, World War II wage freezes, a 1953 tax code quirk, and decades of inertia. This accident of history costs America $384 billion a year in tax breaks to corporations for providing coverage. And what do we get for that? A system that locks people in jobs they'd otherwise leave, suppresses wages of those who look \"expensive to insure,\" and disadvantages small businesses that can't afford gold-level health plans. In a different historical timeline, President Harry S. Truman’s 1945 national health plan would've given us universal coverage, paid medical leave, and government-funded medical schools. But of course we’re not living in that timeline. Take Our Listener Survey! https://tinyurl.com/op-econ-survey","meta_description":"Why is anyone’s health insurance tied to their job? It's because of a superintendent in Dallas, World War II wage freezes, a 1953 tax code quirk, and deca…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3061,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/optimist-economy-7257068/episodes/how-health-insurance-got-shackled-to-jobs/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/optimist-economy-7257068/how-health-insurance-got-shackled-to-jobs.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}