Mostly Economics

In this episode, host Dean Baker speaks with CEPR co-director Eileen Appelbaum to unpack the dark world of private equity. They explore how PE firms use debt-heavy buyouts, exploit tax loopholes like carried interest, and profit from management fees while acquired companies bear the financial burden. The discussion covers PE’s impact on retirement, inadequate regulatory oversight, and growing ethical dilemmas as private equity increasingly targets healthcare.

Dean Baker breaks down Medicare Advantage with experts Emma Curchin and Brandon Novick. They expose the marketing tricks, bureaucratic roadblocks, and hidden costs that trap beneficiaries. Essential viewing for anyone navigating Medicare or advocating for healthcare reform.

Dean Baker sits down with renowned economist Richard Freeman to explore the multifaceted role of unions in securing not only higher wages and better working conditions.

In this conversation, Dean Baker and Nick Bloom discuss the evolution and current state of remote work, particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Dean Baker speaks with renowned economist Isabella Weber about her influential concept of “sellers’ inflation,” which examines how firms with market power drive price increases during supply bottlenecks.

In our latest episode, Dean Baker sits down with Nancy Altman, who has spent decades defending the critical Social Security program.

This episode explores the sub-minimum tipped wage system with economist Dr. Sylvia Allegretto, revealing how the outdated federal rate of $2.13 an hour shifts wage responsibility to customers, fosters wage theft, and harms millions of workers, while discussing urgent reforms.

Today’s episode exposes the waste and inequity in U.S. healthcare, arguing that a single-payer system like Medicare for All could cut costs, expand access, and improve outcomes through smarter spending and reform.

Dean Baker talks with healthcare journalist Jonathan Cohn about the historic assault on Medicaid at the heart of the 2025 budget bill.

The untold story behind efforts to make life-saving HIV/AIDS drugs accessible in Africa. Love recounts his pivotal role in breaking down patent barriers and negotiating steep price reductions.