Short Synopsis
Insurance company insider Wendell Potter, a former senior vice president of CIGNA, speaks out on how corporate PR is killing health care and deceiving Americans.

Full Synopsis
"My name is Wendell Potter, and for twenty years I worked as a senior executive at health insurance companies. I saw how they confuse their customers and dump the sick—all so they can satisfy their Wall Street investors." —Senate testimony, June 24, 2009

Wendell Potter is the insurance industry's worst nightmare.

In June 2009, Wendell Potter made national headlines with his scorching testimony before the Senate panel on health care reform. This former senior vice president of CIGNA explained how health insurers make promises they have no intention of keeping, how they flout regulations designed to protect consumers, and how they skew political debate with multibillion-dollar public relations campaigns designed to spread disinformation.

Potter had walked away from a six-figure salary and two decades as an insurance executive because he could no longer abide the routine practices of an industry where the needs of sick and suffering Americans take a backseat to the bottom line. The last straw: when he visited a rural health clinic and saw hundreds of people standing in line in the rain to receive treatment in stalls built for livestock.

In Deadly Spin, Potter takes listeners behind the scenes to show how a huge chunk of our absurd health care spending actually bankrolls a propaganda campaign and lobbying effort focused on protecting one thing: profits. Whatever the fate of the current health care legislation, it makes no attempt to change that fundamental problem. Potter shows how relentless PR assaults play an insidious role in our political process anywhere that corporate profits are at stake—from climate change to defense policy. Deadly Spin tells us why—and how—we must fight back.

"An illuminating, up-to-the-minute testimonial sure to garner widespread attention and controversy." ---Kirkus

"The recently passed health care bill did many good things.... What the bill did not do is reform the healthcare system. Wendell Potter explains why not, and what went wrong." ---Howard Dean

"Wendell Potter is a straight shooter---and he hits the bulls-eye here with an exposé of corporate power that reveals why real health care reform didn't happen, can't happen, and won't happen until that power is contained." ---Bill Moyers

"The ideal whistleblower...his testimony [is] logical, specific, and convincing." ---Time

"This whistle-blower perspective will heighten discussion and debate on the vital topic of health care in America." ---Booklist

"Potter's street cred and deep knowledge of the industry make his indictment unusually vivid and compelling." ---Publishers Weekly