Optimist Economy

About 18% of U.S. GDP every year gets spent on health care. Half of that, 9%, is coming from the government, which is about the whole cost of  other countries’ public health programs. In other words, for what the U.S. spends on Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, VA benefits, and the tax write-off for employer-sponsored plans, we could have free basic health insurance for everyone. This is why the co-authors of the 2023 book “We’ve Got You Covered” describe the current health insurance system as a total tear-down. We could have universal insurance coverage for all with no tax hike if we started building from the ground up.

Chapters:
0:00 Announcements 
0:58 Retcon — Costco cashier's $33/hr job and career security
2:49 Terms & Conditions — Political economy, Cost Sharing, Gatekeeping
7:45 The Big Pilcrow: “Americare… Just Enough” 
8:08 Healthcare vs. health insurance — why this is really an insurance/payer fight
12:53 We have 5+ public health programs already
17:07 Health economist Amy Finkelstein's research: "It's a tear-down, not a fixer-upper"
19:55 The proposed system — universal basic coverage + letting “rich people rich" without letting them opt out
28:11What Americans would love or hate
40:44 This health world changed a lot since Obamacare
43:20 Executive Orders — Airport boarding pass warnings, living-roof bus stops
45:20 Spiritual Sponsors — Resurrection fern, Aunt Fern
46:42 Credits

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Just-in-time scheduling lets an algorithm decide when — and whether — millions of people work. Surveys find 40% of shift workers (mostly in retail and food service) don’t know their schedule a week in advance. They can also get sent home mid-shift or asked to be on call, unpaid. Studies show that more than 50% of hourly workers’ income swings up to 30% month-to-month, making it hard to budget for rent, qualify for benefits, or plan. A landmark study done at The Gap a decade ago proved stable schedules boost not only morale, but sales, so this isn't even bad for business. We already have fair workweek laws in many big cities, but this is a no-brainer for an update to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

Chapters:
1:01 Announcements — Review shoutouts, Benevity donor thanks.
2:15 Retcon — July 4th recap, AI job-loss predictions walked back.
7:29 Terms & Conditions — Just In Time scheduling and clopening.
10:21 The Big Pilcrow: Underwork — Why part-time and shift workers get scheduled unfairly.
13:50 How the BLS tracks part-time hours by industry.
17:05 Economic vs. non-economic part-time reasons.
25:05 The Gap Study — Predictive scheduling boosted sales 7%.
28:22 Consequences — Income volatility and benefits fraud traps.
32:06 Fair workweek law and bills
35:20 Labor market regulation as low-cost policy.
41:59 Executive Orders — Credit card charge names, smaller jar lids.
43:52 Spiritual Sponsors — WaPo editorial takedown, new yoga studio.
48:12 Credits

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Nobody has more riding on any changes to Social Security than people under 40. The trust fund is currently projected to run dry in the fourth quarter of 2032, but it could be sooner. Every election, starting in November, selects the lawmakers who will shape the program’s future. Neglecting to fix its finances will mean an automatic 22% cut to everyone's benefit. But for Millennials and Zoomers, what’s at stake isn't your elders’ monthly check — it’s the only life insurance, disability insurance, and old-age poverty insurance guaranteed to follow you through every job you'll ever have.

Chapters:
1:21 Announcements — Unbleeped feed, subscribe reminders.
2:23 Retcon — Seed OK savings accounts follow-up.
4:36 Terms & Conditions — Social insurance vs. private insurance.
8:42 Big Pilcrow — Under 40? Time to tune in to the Social Security debate.
11:51 Youth Skepticism — Why young people have always doubted Social Security, and how that's politically exploited.
16:56 OBBA Impact — How the One Big Beautiful Bill Act cut Social Security's revenue.
18:37 Immigration Trends — Deportations and lower immigration also hurt.
21:11 Elections Have Begun — Social Security as a live political battleground.
22:35 First Beneficiaries — What studies of early recipients tell us.
30:36 Otherwise Uninsurable Risks — Death, disability, savings, longevity, inflation.
33:17 Paid Family Leave — Could Social Security's model extend to paid leave?
34:21 Claim Ownership — Youth should own this program.
37:08 Cuts by Geography — Rural states will get hit hardest if cuts come.
38:27 Executive Orders — Casting ages, cosmetic disclosure.
40:22 Spiritual Sponsors — World Cup, Jeopardy! triumph.

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Got economic questions, concerns, or executive orders?  Send them to optimist.economy@gmail.com

(Originally aired 6/24/2025) One in five workers in the United States was born in another country. Without them, the country’s prime-age workforce would be shrinking, and thus so would our economy. So the calumny (Terms & Conditions) directed at immigrants is at odds with the basic fact that the U.S. needs them. What about depressing wages? Research finds such a mixed bag of results that the overall effect is about zero. Indeed, if the goal is to save “American jobs” or help American workers, there are a lot more effective ways to spend $185 billion than on a massive crackdown on immigration rules.

Chapters:
00:02:34  Announcements
00:05:55  Retcon
00:10:43  Terms & Conditions 
00:12:21  Big Pilcrow
00:43:07  Executive Orders
00:49:12  Spiritual Sponsors

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It’s the United States’ semiquincentennial … and one of us is not feeling it. The other is literally carrying a flag in her bag — and that’s just her road flag. Kathryn Anne Edwards makes her case for optimism right now: The U.S. is undergoing one of the most dramatic demographic and cultural shifts of any industrialized nation. Americans agree that Congress is broken. And the people's agenda on wages, childcare, money in politics, and Social Security polls above 80%. Maybe this isn’t a backslide. It's just what clearing the air looks like.

Chapters:
00:01:21 Announcements
00:04:10 Retcon: More on the national anthem
00:06:36 Terms & Conditions: Origin of "the melting pot"
00:08:01 Big Pilcrow: Make Robin Optimistic about America
00:48:17 Executive Orders: End gerrymandering; mandatory hearings on supermajority issues
00:50:03 Spiritual Sponsors: Knicks celebrations; bourbon in Louisville

Donate to Optimist Economy: https://optimisteconomy.com

Video-curious? Watch the Optimist Economy YouTube channel⁠⁠. We’re also on Facebook somewhere (search for it), on Instagram at ⁠⁠@optimist_economy or TikTok at ⁠⁠@optimist_economy. 

Chat with other Optimists on Substack.

Find utility with our merch: https://merch.ambientinks.com/collections/optimisteconomy

Got economic questions, concerns, or executive orders?  Send them to optimist.economy@gmail.com