Richard Helppie's Common Bridge

Scotland takes over Boston, travelers flood YouTube with “America is amazing,” and suddenly a question hits hard: if the country is truly collapsing, why do so many visitors leave impressed by the people, the space, and the everyday energy? We use that contrast to dig into one of the biggest forces shaping public life right now: the gap between lived experience and the media narrative. Our goal is...

The emergency department is where America’s healthcare system tells the truth. It’s the hospital’s front door, it can’t turn people away, and it absorbs every crack in primary care access, insurance coverage, and patient flow. I’m joined by Dr. Imamu “Mu” Tomlinson, CEO of Vituity, to talk about what actually works when the waiting room is full and the incentives are misaligned. We start with Mu’s...

The fastest way to lose faith in your country is to let a screen tell you who your neighbors are. We take that head-on, because the gap between media narratives and real life keeps growing, and it is warping how we talk about policy, elections, and each other. Rich Helppie shares what we are building in season seven of The Common Bridge, including the expanded set of “bridges” across healthcare, e...

Primary care is where healthcare either works or quietly breaks, and Dr. Harry Albers helps us say the uncomfortable parts out loud. We talk about the emotional reality of managing chronic disease without instant wins, and the operational reality that burns physicians down: EMR documentation, inbox overload, prior authorizations, and the steady creep of uncompensated work after hours. When you sta...

Hunger isn’t a distant problem, it’s often a quiet one. Host Rich Helppie sits down with Angela Moloney, President and CEO of Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeast Michigan, to unpack what food insecurity looks like today and why solving it takes more than good intentions. We connect the dots between nutrition and health care, learning and school performance, and the basic dignity of having en...

America doesn’t feel like it’s debating anymore. It feels like it’s detonating.  We sit down with Chip Webster, founder of Unity in Service Incorporated, to talk about what he saw after five long RV loops around the United States and why it convinced him the country isn’t just politically split, it’s socially disconnected. From conversations in RV parks to the simple heartbreak of seeing “No Litte...

The fastest way to lose a democracy isn’t one dramatic moment, it’s the slow drift from problem-solving into tribal power games. Rich Helppie sits down with writer and Substack creator Chris Armitage to ask why serious policy talk keeps getting drowned out by team identity, and what regular people can do when national politics feels locked in permanent conflict. We start with the local level, beca...

Healthcare keeps getting more expensive, less accessible, and harder to navigate, and the part that drives you crazy is that it also feels familiar. We sit down with Lou Shapiro, former CEO of Hospital for Special Surgery, to talk candidly about what changes and what never changes in the U.S. healthcare system after four decades inside hospitals, consulting, and executive leadership. If you’ve eve...

AI is pushing America into a new infrastructure era, and it’s bigger than potholes and bridges. When Professor Rick Geddes from Cornell joins us, we zoom out and connect the dots between infrastructure policy, infrastructure finance, and “infretech” the technology that makes civil and social infrastructure run smarter, safer, and more efficiently. Along the way, we clear up a confusion that trips...

Palm Beach County gets portrayed as sunshine and wealth, but that picture leaves out the families choosing between rent and groceries, seniors stretched by HOA hikes, and working parents who cannot keep up with prices. I sit down with Ruth Mageria, executive leader at Cros Ministries, to talk about the real mechanics of hunger and food insecurity and what it takes to keep neighbors fed with health...

Healthcare keeps getting labeled “more complex,” but that line can become a trap. When leaders accept it as truth, they stop simplifying, stop teaching, and stop making clear decisions. I sat down with Quint Studer to talk about what’s actually breaking healthcare operations and hospital finances right now and what we can do that’s practical, not performative. Quint connects the dots between Medic...

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 hospital prices” can sound like reform while quietly setting up the next access crisis, especially for safety net hospitals and rural communities with heavy Medica...

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 as ever, why are outcomes so uneven and, in some places, outright collapsing? We get specific about what the numbers mean for families, communities, and the...

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 pipeline for high-trust, high-intent buyers across Tampa’s three counties. Sam breaks down how he educates clients on real neighborhood trade-offs—proximity to...

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 Healthcare—to trace how a media brand grew from a legal practice, then dive into the uncomfortable truth shaping everything from ER wait times to specialty...

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 anchored in water conservation, rigorous systems, and team-first culture. Kevin shares how franchising provided proven processes and brand trust, why disci...

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 brand into a modern, data‑driven business. We trace the lineage from a 47th Street workshop and a pivotal Tiffany & Co. contract to a multistore operation...

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 can resist the dopamine rush of instant certainty and invite deeper inquiry instead. We start with the state of media: why partisanship sells, how predicta...

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 shock to white-collar work, and why trust in legacy media has frayed. Amanda’s path—from near-CIA ambitions and defense contracting in DC, to cross-country...

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, hide rebates, and use denials as financial float—while patients and providers pay the price. It’s a rare, unfiltered tour through the pharmacy supply chain, m...

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 directly to source documents, video and on-the-ground reporting. Together we map the contours of an epistemic crisis: the way one angle of footage becomes the enti...

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 policy ambitions. From irregular rendition to universal jurisdiction, we trace why courts can claim authority even after a cross‑border capture and how treat...

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 smarter payer strategies without falling for vendor hype or wishful thinking. We get specific about capital discipline and why “mission” can’t justify chronic...

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 underpayment pushes employer premiums up, and why political fixes often fail when crafted far from the bedside. With Nate Kaufman joining from the Healthcare B...

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-humorist Terence Duncan, celebrating Duncan’s new book, Unfiltered Consciousness. This special episode leans heavily into Greg and Terry’s reminisces about...