They Did What?

Physicians no longer control many of the decisions that shape patient care—and that loss didn’t happen overnight. According to Dr. A, it took decades of fragmented choices, missed chances to act together, and quiet acceptance of outside control.In this episode of They Did What, Dr. A delivers a blunt reckoning with the medical profession itself. He traces how professional culture, competition, and failure to unify created openings for insurers, corporate owners, and legal frameworks to move into

Nearly 1 in 4 healthcare workers report being bullied by a supervising physician, according to a major 2019 review. And inside some large medical centers, that culture isn’t improving—it’s spreading. That is the minefield Dr. A walks us through today.In this episode, Dr. A breaks down how toxic hierarchies, unchecked “star performer” protection, and hostile peer dynamics create a workplace that can quietly harm both physicians and the patients who rely on them. From radiologists treated as

When one attorney can threaten a major transplant center with a multimillion-dollar payout, the whole system feels shaky. And when a federal jury convicts that attorney of attempted extortion, it exposes a pressure point most patients never see coming.In this episode, Dr. A walks listeners through a real 2024 federal case involving a plaintiff-side medical malpractice lawyer. An example of how rare but extreme misconduct can distort a system meant to protect patients. Dr. A also breaks down why

She couldn’t stand for more than a minute. At 18. Her doctor said surgery could fix it…her insurer said no.In this episode, Dr. A unpacks the case of a teenager whose early-onset spinal degeneration was treated like a middle-aged backache by a major insurer. Despite MRI proof, failed physical therapy, and years of documented pain, coverage was denied, until public outrage forced a reversal. This story isn’t an outlier; it’s a mirror. A system built to “maintain health” has turned into a numbers game

A surgeon saves your life by cutting out your inflamed gallbladder and gets paid less than the price of a MacBook. A heart transplant surgeon trains for 17 years, spends 10 hours in the OR, and takes home just $1,250, sometimes less than what’s paid to fix a spider vein. This is not rumor, it’s the official Medicare fee schedule.In this episode, Dr. A digs into the upside-down math of physician reimbursement. We walk through how lobbying tilts the playing field, why elective procedures outpay

A single complaint (true or not) can unravel a physician’s entire career. Once a state licensing board gets involved, the process can move like a runaway train: opaque, insulated, and nearly impossible to appeal. The boards were built to protect patients, but in practice they often operate more like monarchies than fair courts.In this episode, Dr. A takes us inside the hidden world of medical licensing boards. We look at how one board member was convicted of illegally distributing opioids while

When an algorithm can deny your care in seconds, who’s really making the call on your health?In this episode, Dr. A unpacks how a major insurer deployed an AI tool that automatically rejected claims without a physician review, despite laws requiring it. What looks like efficiency on paper could mean millions of patients face roadblocks to life-saving treatments.Dr. A breaks down why medicine’s complexity can’t be reduced to code, how profit-driven incentives shape these systems, and the long shadow

Did you ever get a medical bill or denial and think, ‘Who the hell approved this?’If you have, you’ve come to the right place.Welcome to They Did What? The podcast where we examine one real-life decision in medicine, insurance, or policy, explaining what happened and why it matters.Hosted by Dr. Anand Lalaji, better known as Dr. A, a physician and critic at The Radiology Group, we’ll talk about algorithms that reject care in seconds, prior authorizations that slow treatment, ‘networks’ with no