If you’re an indie podcaster, you’ve probably wondered, “Can I actually make a living doing this?” In "Making Indie Podcasts that Pay," Danielle Bezalel shows you how to make the answer "yes!" Class is January 26 & 29th, 12-2:00 pm EST. Sign up here! radiobootcamp.org/classes/maki...

Get the scoop (or should I say shmear) here: www.westsiderag.com/2025/12/29/t...

It’s been a remarkable year for the @armandalegshow.bsky.social team, and my favorite 2025 project is also the one I’m most stoked for in 2026. It’s a collaboration with our readers and listeners. It will help a LOT of folks. And you can get involved. armandalegshow.com/first-aid-ki...

Signing up for Medicare means navigating a minefield of misleading ads, confusing deadlines, and an alphabet soup of parts and supplements. In our First Aid Kit newsletter, we get into those ABCs:

Incredible

“Trump posted an AI-generated video on the platform that touted purported “medbeds,” a non-existent healing technology that people falsely believe will miraculously cure all maladies… after it was taken down, his Truth Social followers… took the post as a sign that medbeds are about to be unveiled.”

This is the rhythm of life in Gaza City, writes Mohammed al-Sawwaf: displacement after displacement, death after death, with no time for mourning—only desperate attempts to save whoever is left.

“…the ADL said that internet users began to display it alongside ‘violent or racist rap songs’ in the 2000s and that, by 2015, it was firmly ‘associated with alt right language and imagery, including explicit white supremacist imagery.’” DHS has white nationalists running their social media.

“We have been left with no choice but to stop our activities as our clinics are encircled by Israeli forces. This is the last thing we wanted, as the needs in Gaza City are enormous,” says Jacob Granger, MSF Emergency Coordinator in Gaza. prezly.msf.org.uk/msf-forced-t...

It's not just government funding at stake in this showdown. It's also telehealth and hospital-at-home. If Congress can't cut some sort of deal over the next week, thousands of people with telehealth appoints on Oct. 1 or remote hospital services will be out of luck.

The president signed executive orders that would charge companies $100,000 a year to hire a worker on an H1-B visa and allow wealthy foreigners to get a visa for $1 million.

A listener named Thomas started building a “one-stop shop” of resources for fighting medical bills, with contributions from our readers. Now he’s turned it into a printable guide:

We’re extremely honored to have won an Online Journalism Award for Excellence in Audio Digital Storytelling. And for this note from the judges: “The energy was fantastic from beginning to end… hearing real people's stories made it resonate on a personal level.”

Super important issue of @jessicavalenti.bsky.social’s “Abortion Every Day” newsletter — about legislation in South Carolina that would impact not only access to abortion, but access to birth control. And it’s the blueprint for a national model: jessica.substack.com/p/south-caro...

“There needs to be justice,” Thameen Al-Kheetan, the spokesperson for the UN’s human rights office, told reporters on Tuesday in Geneva. Human rights office demands that Israeli investigation into ‘double tap’ attack that killed 20 people yields results. www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...

According to Reuters, a group of Democratic attorneys general have separately sued to block parts of the rule. That lawsuit is still pending. www.reuters.com/legal/govern...

SUPER-exciting news: @armandalegshow.bsky.social is a finalist — actually the *only* finalist so I think we're gonna win — for Excellence in Audio Digital Storytelling, Ongoing Series. Previous winners: @laist.com, @aljazeera.com, and @wsj.com!! Our tiny team punching WAY above our weight here!

Our website got a makeover, and we're so excited to share it! We've even added a new feature—Starter Packs. These are curated collections of our answers to some of your most-asked questions. Explore it all here: armandalegshow.com

The second episode in our series about managing high prescription drug costs is out! armandalegshow.com/episode/drug... Come for the expert advice, and stay till the end for the wonky song I made (with the help of a robot). You can check out the whole series here: armandalegshow.com/drugs/

And with @danweissmann.bsky.social as our incredible leader!

Coming up across the next few weeks: Three more First Aid Kit installments and another podcast episode to round out our Prescription Drug Playbook. You'll find An Arm and a Leg wherever you get podcasts, and you can sign up for First Aid Kit here. firstaidkit.substack.com

One in four Americans say they've skipped taking meds in the past 12 months because of cost. We'd like to put a dent in that. With help from listeners and experts, we've been putting together the best collection of hacks, patches and workarounds we can. Now we're sharing it. armandalegshow.com

New: A judge blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to crush Harvard’s ability to enroll foreign students hours after the university sued.

sure, new surgeon pick is a MAHA influencer............ but also? she cofounded a tech company with a freaking doge guy www.theverge.com/politics/663...

The World Central Kitchen has been forced to halt operations in Gaza—because Israel is refusing to let in food and fuel. Its trucks have been waiting at the border for 2+ months, loaded with supplies that could save lives.

Yep, you can negotiate with bill collectors! Check out the third installment in our newsletter series about your rights and options when dealing with debt collectors. firstaidkit.substack.com/p/yes-you-ca...

“A number of Republican legislators set to grill university presidents in a congressional hearing on antisemitism this week are associated with calls for Jews to convert to Christianity, have quoted Adolf Hitler, or have reportedly threatened to burn a synagogue to the ground.”

As rally attendees circled the sidewalk in front of StoryCorps’ office, they shook tambourines, beat drums and chanted, “What do we want? Reinstatement! When do we want it? Now!” current.org/2024/12/stor...

I so enjoyed reporting this story about Meagan and her more than two-year fight against a medical bill she didn't owe. I hope you give it a listen and maybe even find encouragement in her story that you can apply to your own health care battles: armandalegshow.com/episode/winn...

A recent "An Arm and a Leg" story on the shutdown of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and what it means for people with medical debt ran on "All Things Considered" this weekend. Link below. And shoutout to @danweissmann.bsky.social who reported this story! www.npr.org/2025/03/22/n...

My colleague @clairedavenport.bsky.social is helping her roommate push back against $14.5K in medical bills -- and sharing what she learns in our First Aid Kit newsletter. It's a saga. Chapter 1 came out today... firstaidkit.substack.com/p/how-my-roo...

Subscribe to "First Aid Kit" to read about how my roommate and I are fighting almost $14,500 in medical bills! firstaidkit.substack.com/p/how-my-roo...

Starting today, I'll be writing "First Aid Kit" for "An Arm and a Leg" -- a newsletter started by @danweissmann.bsky.social on how to survive the evolving health care landscape in America. We're going weekly, so now is the perfect time to subscribe! Check us out here: firstaidkit.substack.com

We're collecting stories for An Arm and a Leg about your bespoke strategies for getting the medicine you need in a society that makes it really hard. Gimme your worst here and check out Dan's post for a list of some tried and (often) true existing options: armandalegshow.com/drugs/

Do you want to complain about high drug costs?? Intrepid Health Care Reporter @danweissmann.bsky.social wants you to complain to him: armandalegshow.com/episode/tell...