Richard Helppie's Common Bridge
The problems we have in the country are solvable, but not solvable the way we’re approaching them today, because of partisan politics. Richard Helppie, a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist seeks to find a place in the middle where common sense discussions can bridge the current great divide.
Episodes
315 episodes
Episode 311- Can Hospitals Survive? Grumpy Old Men Take on Today's Healthcare System
Price caps make for great politics and terrible bedside reality when they ignore how hospitals actually survive. Nate Kaufman sits down with healthcare analyst and futurist Dr. Jeff Goldsmith for a blunt conversation about why “just cap hospita...
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Season 7
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Episode 311
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43:13
Episode 310- Making Education Work For the 21st Century. with Shaka Mitchell
Only 35% of kids testing on grade level is not a headline, it’s a flashing warning light. I sit down with education advocate and Substack writer Shaka Mitchell to ask the uncomfortable question behind the data: if students are just as capable a...
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Season 7
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Episode 310
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40:48
Episode 309- Betting On Yourself In Business. With Sam Caudle
Want a real blueprint for building a modern, lean business without drowning in overhead or paid leads? We’re joined by Florida realtor and creator Sam Caudle, who walks us through how a simple, service-first YouTube channel became a steady pipe...
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Season 7
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Episode 309
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20:05
Episode 308: From Law To Healthcare Media: Scott Becker On Building Becker’s And Fixing Care
What if the real reason care feels harder to get isn’t your insurance card or a shiny new policy, but a simple math problem: too many patients, not enough clinicians? We sit down with Scott Becker—attorney, entrepreneur, and founder of Becker’s...
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Season 7
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Episode 308
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44:35
Episode 307- From Corporate Comfort To Water-Wise Growth. With Kevin Green
Ready to trade permission for possibility? We sit down with Kevin Green, owner of Conserva Irrigation of Ann Arbor and co-founder of Luxhaven Lighting, to unpack how he left a comfortable corporate track and built a purpose-led service business...
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Season 7
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Episode 308
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23:51
Episode 306- Leaping From Data To Diamonds- with Blake Polizzi
What if courage came before confidence, not after? That theme powers a candid conversation with third‑generation jeweler Blake Polizzi of Susan Blake Jewelry, who stepped into leadership after her mother’s passing and turned a beloved family br...
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Season 7
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Episode 306
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18:33
Episode 305- Voices Beyond The Partisan Echo. With David Dennison
When outrage becomes the default setting, thinking gets outsourced to the loudest tribe. We invited Substack writer and teacher David Dennison to help map a way back to clear thought, using real-world examples to show how independent journalism...
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Season 7
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Episode 305
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32:14
Episode 304- From DC Spy Dreams To Substack: Amanda Claypool On Media, Money, And Meaning
What if the numbers that dominate headlines tell you less about the economy than the price of your groceries, your rent, and your ability to start a family? We sit with writer and analyst Amanda Claypool to unpack Main Street economics, A.I.’s ...
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Season 7
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Episode 304
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31:32
Episode 303- Mark Cuban On PBMs, Rebates, And Rewiring Healthcare Incentives
If you’ve ever wondered why your deductible feels like a brick wall while insurers tout “savings,” this conversation goes straight to the source. Nathan Kaufman sits down with Mark Cuban to pull apart how PBMs and insurers shape drug prices, hi...
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Season 7
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Episode 303
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1:11:53
Episode 302- Seeing Clearly: Journalism Without Gatekeepers. With Chris Bray
What if the cure for our political fatigue is as simple as slowing down and looking at the evidence? We kick off a new series spotlighting Substack writers with journalist and historian Chris Bray, whose work strips away spin by linking directl...
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Season 7
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Episode 302
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34:04
Episode 301- Venezuela: What the Law Says. With Anthony Colangelo
Power grabbed headlines, but the real story is law, limits, and what comes next. We sit down with Professor Anthony Colangelo of SMU to unpack the U.S. operation that seized Venezuela’s leader and to separate a clean legal argument from messy p...
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Season 7
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Episode 301
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27:19
Episode 300- Ten Resolutions For Health System Leaders
The status quo is expensive, exhausting, and unsustainable—so we set out a practical playbook to do better in 2026. Nathan Kaufman shares ten no‑nonsense resolutions for health system leaders who want measurable outcomes, stronger teams, and sm...
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Season 7
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Episode 300
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6:12
Episode 299- Inside The Fight To Fix Health Care Financing. With Nate Kaufman
The real fight in U.S. healthcare isn’t between doctors and patients—it’s against a financing maze that raises premiums, hides quality, and rewards middlemen. We pull back the curtain on why ACA plans look the same yet cost more, how public und...
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Season 7
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Episode 299
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16:59
Episode 298- Unfiltered Consciousness: Laughing Through Life’s Absurdities. With author Terence Duncan as well as Greg Jbara
Season Seven of The Common Bridge features host Richard Helppie in an episode that concludes with foaming mayonnaise dispensers in this lighter, story-driven talk with Tony Award–winning actor Gregory Jbara and longtime friend, designer-turned-...
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Season 7
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Episode 298
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37:30
Episode 297- How a System CEO Drives Access and Affordability with Optimism. With Jeff Flaks
Healthcare can feel stuck, but the ground is moving under our feet in the best possible way. We sit down with Hartford Healthcare’s CEO, Jeff Flaks, to unpack how a statewide system is using scale with purpose: pushing care into more convenient...
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Season 7
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Episode 297
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17:58
Episode 296- Inside Michigan Medicine: Access, AI, And A New Era Of Care. With Dr. David Miller, M.D.
What happens when a powerhouse research enterprise, a statewide health system, and a relentless push for access all meet at the same table? Our conversation with Dr. David Miller, CEO of Michigan Medicine, opens the door to a candid look at how...
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Season 7
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Episode 296
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48:59
Episode 295- GLP-1, Obesity, And The Cost Of Change. With Dr. David Harlan
What if blockbuster weight-loss drugs and a broken food system are two sides of the same story? We sit down with Dr. David Harlan—physician, researcher, and former NIH diabetes branch chief—to trace the unlikely path from the “incretin effect” ...
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Season 7
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Episode 295
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31:00
Episode 294- Inside America’s Access Crisis And Why Wait Times Keep Rising. With Rich Helppie.
Host Nate Kaufman brings Rich Helppie back for a discussion about healthcare access. A 30-day wait for a first oncology visit after hearing the word leukemia is not an edge case—it’s the new normal in a system where demand outpaces supply...
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Season 7
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Episode 294
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16:15
Episode 293- Subsidies, Shutdowns, And The Healthcare Squeeze. With Nate Kaufman
Politicians argue about subsidies while families face premiums that can top $26,900 and deductibles big enough to delay basic care. We step past the slogans to map how the ACA exchanges actually work today—standardized benefits that reduce real...
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Season 7
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Episode 293
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25:45
Episode 292- From Crisis To Reform: A Mother, A Judge, And A Broken System
One mother’s plea and a judge’s blueprint collide with a terrifying truth: the systems meant to protect people with serious mental illness—and the communities around them—often wait until harm is done. We bring Beverly Gille and Judge Milton L....
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Season 7
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Episode 292
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43:48
Episode 291- How A Neurosurgeon Heals Broken Spines With A Broken Health System. With Dr. Rod Oskouian
Spine surgery sits at the crossroads of need, nuance, and noise—and few people explain that terrain better than Dr. Rod Oskouian, a high-volume neurosurgeon who has led a complex spine program and also navigated care as a patient. Dr. Osk...
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Season 7
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Episode 291
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37:25
Episode 290- Season Seven, New Bridges. With Rich Helppie
Season seven opens with a clear promise: fewer teams, more truth. We look straight at the incentives that keep America mad—legacy media chasing rage clicks, politicians swapping positions to score points, and a culture that treats every topic l...
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Season 7
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Episode 289
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33:11
Episode 289- College Sports' Money Game. With Dr. Thomas Dieters
The money is already here—so why are the rules still stuck in limbo? We sit down with Tom Dieters to map how NIL evolved from booster-led collectives into university-controlled revenue sharing after House v. NCAA, and what that shift means for ...
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Season 6
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Episode 289
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28:51
Episode 288- Healthcare at a Tipping Point: Insider Perspectives from Dr. Leo Spector
What's the secret to maintaining physician independence when 70% of doctors now work for corporations or health systems? Dr. Leo Spector, CEO of OrthoCarolina and practicing spine surgeon, offers a masterclass in healthcare leadership and strat...
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Season 6
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Episode 288
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29:07
Episode 287- Michigan Gubernatorial Candidate Series- Jocelyn Benson
Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson brings her vision for Michigan's future to The Common Bridge, outlining why she's running for governor in 2026 and what she hopes to accomplish for the state's citizens.At the heart of Benson's...
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Season 6
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Episode 287
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45:26