Podcasts · True Crime · Society & Culture

The Binge Cases: Doctor Billions

Sony Music Entertainment

196 episodes · in order · Explicit

After Derika Moses injured her back at work, she got her spine fused. But after surgery, her pain only got worse. She didn’t know why — until she got a letter in the mail telling her that some of the spinal hardware in her back might be counterfeit. Not sterile. Not FDA approved. Made in a machine shop in Temecula, California.

More about the show

Doctor Billions tells the story of the billion-dollar healthcare fraud that turned thousands of patients into unwitting cogs in a scheme involving dozens of doctors, lawyers and healthcare professionals across the country.

At the center of one of the nation's largest healthcare frauds was an elusive man named Michael Drobot. His ambition to turn a Long Beach hospital into a destination for back surgeons was at the expense of thousands of patients blind to what was happening behind the scenes.

One whistleblower told me: “I'm looking at the surgery board for tomorrow going, 'These people are f***ed.'”

Doctor Billions is hosted by Peabody Award-winning journalist Ben Adair for Sony Music Entertainment’s The Binge.

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Episodes release weekly on Thursdays.

To binge the series right now, hit ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com.

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Episodes page 1 of 4

  1. Introducing Smoke Screen: Fake Priest

    · 2:15 · Trailer · Explicit

    For 30 years, a man claimed to be a priest. He performed baptisms and took confession. Every time he ran into trouble, Father Ryan would move on to another small Midwestern town and start his scheme all over again.…

  2. Fake Priest | 1. An Unholy Priest

    · 36 min · S1 E1 · Explicit

    Investigative reporter Alex Schuman hears about a guy accused of swindling millions who has travelled the Midwest for decades pretending to be a priest. Alex starts his journey talking to two people who have long tried…

  3. Fake Priest | 2. Coming Home

    · 37 min · S1 E2 · Explicit

    Alex tracks down Father Ryan’s son, Jonathan Brady, and discovers Father Ryan was a scammer and manipulator long before he wore a priestly robe. Turns out he had plenty of practice committing fraud before he opened his…

  4. Fake Priest | 3. The Teacher

    · 36 min · S1 E3 · Explicit

    Even con artists need mentors. Meet the false prophet who teaches Father Ryan how to perfect his con. Father Ryan evades criminal charges again and Alex learns about an unspoken reason prosecutors could let many…

  5. Fake Priest | 4. Llama Drama

    · 37 min · S1 E4 · Explicit

    After Father Ryan steals a follower's money, her property and even her husband's ashes, she hires a lawyer. A legal battle ensues over unpaid loans and a herd of llamas that Father Ryan leaves high and dry. A Neon Hum…

  6. Fake Priest | 5. Meet The Browns

    · 37 min · S1 E5 · Explicit

    A sheriff deputy arrests Father Ryan for taking more than $70,000 from an elderly follower. It's looking like he might get 7 years in prison, but then he meets a father-daughter pair of private investigators who change…

  7. Fake Priest | 6. No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

    · 37 min · S1 E6 · Explicit

    The father-daughter investigator team discovers the cop who arrested Father Ryan may have an ulterior motive. They defend Father Ryan tooth and nail - until they get a troubling surprise of their own. A Neon Hum Media…

  8. Fake Priest | 7. Two Dead Priests

    · 31 min · S1 E7 · Explicit

    In his autobiography, Father Ryan connects himself to two priests who died suspiciously. One he accuses of molesting children. The other? He says he teamed up with to publicly shame pedophile priests. What's the truth?…

  9. Fake Priest | 8. Origin Story

    · 39 min · S1 E8 · Explicit

    Alex Schuman finally has his showdown with Father Ryan. But things don't go as planned because Father Ryan has something to confess about his past that sheds light on why he wanted to become a "priest" in the first…

  10. Fake Priest | 9. How To Get Away With Fraud

    · 40 min · S1 E9 · Explicit

    Until now, Father Ryan has mostly escaped punishment for stealing money from followers under false pretenses. What would it take for him to face a jury of his peers? A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment…

  11. Coming Soon: I Am Rama

    · 3:38 · Trailer · Explicit

    Rama was a spiritual teacher in the 80s and 90s who inspired many of his students while helming what many of his detractors would describe as a cult. He defied society’s archetypal vision of a New Age leader, eschewing…

  12. I Am Rama | 1. Golden Light

    · 38 min · S2 E1 · Explicit

    Rama was a man of many faces: teacher, tech entrepreneur, friend - and to some, a scam artist. This episode introduces Rama, examining the world from which he came, the way he shaped those who entered his orbit for…

  13. I Am Rama | 2. Becoming

    · 30 min · S2 E2 · Explicit

    This episode follows Frederick Lenz III from his early days and education through his introduction to spiritualism with his mentor, Sri Chinmoy, at the dawn of the New Age. Young Freddie becomes “Atmananda,” a…

  14. I Am Rama | 3. California Dreaming

    · 30 min · S2 E3 · Explicit

    Rama’s growth as a spiritual teacher in the mid-80s starts in California but takes him and his students all over the country. Rama defines his doctrine, turning his attention to the potential of the computer industry.…

  15. I Am Rama | 4. Spiritual Contract

    · 45 min · S2 E4 · Explicit

    Will Arntz is a man of many talents, from filmmaker to laser physicist. In this episode, Will relives the time he spent studying with Rama and how it changed his life. A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment…

  16. I Am Rama | 5. Brenda

    · 40 min · S2 E5 · Explicit

    A young woman follows Rama to New York, and mysteriously vanishes, leaving behind many to wonder what happened. In this episode, people who knew and loved Brenda Kerber piece her story back together. If you have any…

  17. I Am Rama | 6. Deprogramming

    · 43 min · S2 E6 · Explicit

    Rama finds himself in the crosshairs of the Cult Awareness Network, a group dedicated to extricating people from what they consider to be cults by “deprogramming” them. But Rama’s students tell a much different story.…

  18. I Am Rama | 7. Accused

    · 27 min · S2 E7 · Explicit

    Multiple women accuse Rama of sexual misconduct and emotional manipulation. Many of Rama’s students defend their teacher. A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment production. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts to binge…

  19. I Am Rama | 8. Public Opinion

    · 30 min · S2 E8 · Explicit

    As Rama’s image took a hit in the public sphere, his students circled the wagons around their teacher. In something of a last ditch effort to win over the media, Rama accepts an invitation to appear on Dateline. A…

  20. I Am Rama | 9. Conscience Bay

    · 30 min · S2 E9 · Explicit

    Power trips to paradise and never-before shared knowledge -- were these golden times, or Rama’s way of saying goodbye? This episode explores the final years leading of Rama's life. A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music…

  21. I Am Rama | 10. Legacy

    · 34 min · S2 E10 · Explicit

    In this episode, we explore all that Rama left behind: students, a charitable foundation, music, books, and a complicated legacy. A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment production. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts…

  22. Coming Soon: The Sellout

    · 3:10 · Trailer · Explicit

    Jose Huizar grew up in Boyle Heights – a working-class Latinx neighborhood in L.A. Eventually, he became their councilperson. And, for the most part, people trusted Huizar... until the day the FBI raided his home and…

  23. Introducing The Sellout and Smoke Screen Plus

    · 1:40 · Trailer · Explicit

    Jonathan Hirsch, Neon Hum CEO and host of I Am Rama, introduces this season of Smoke Screen (it's called The Sellout!) and our new paid subscription service, Smoke Screen Plus. If you buy a paid subscription on Apple…

  24. The Sellout | 1. The Gem of Boyle Heights

    · 37 min · S3 E1 · Explicit

    As a working-class Latinx neighborhood in Los Angeles faces gentrification, residents are ready to fight to defend their turf. Mariachis lead a rent strike and ask their councilman Jose Huizar for help. But what they…

  25. The Sellout | 2. Gentrification is Warfare

    · 28 min · S3 E2 · Explicit

    A militant organization called Defend Boyle Heights protests encroaching gentrification, by any means necessary. We dig into two origin stories: how Huizar emigrated at the age of 4 and ended up at Berkeley and…

  26. The Sellout | 3. Red Flags

    · 35 min · S3 E3 · Explicit

    Alvin Parra worked for Huizar when he first got elected. He saw early warning signs that Huizar wasn’t the man of the people he made himself out to be. Parra tried to warn people about what he saw behind closed doors,…

  27. The Sellout | 4. Progress Over People

    · 36 min · S3 E4 · Explicit

    When fancy new developments like The Gold Line expansion get proposed, residents of Boyle Heights wonder if it’s actually for them, or if these new new things are meant to attract future residents... a.k.a.…

  28. The Sellout | 5: How Downtown Was Won

    · 36 min · S3 E5 · Explicit

    No man is an island. Huizar couldn’t have pulled off the alleged corruption scheme without help. Host Mariah Castañeda tells the story of how Huizar allegedly built the criminal enterprise the FBI would eventually…

  29. The Sellout | 6: The Heyday

    · 35 min · S3 E6 · Explicit

    Gentrification comes in waves. Over years, a piece of downtown LA transformed from Skid Row, to a bastion for young artists, to a hipster neighborhood with some of the highest rents in the city. By 2018, Huizar was…

  30. The Sellout | 7: The Coverup

    · 30 min · S3 E7 · Explicit

    Huizar’s downfall started with a sexual harassment lawsuit. He didn’t have the hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle the suit on his own... so the Feds say he relied on a new friend. A developer who had plans to…

  31. The Sellout | 8: The Downfall

    · 36 min · S3 E8 · Explicit

    Huizar’s carelessness starts to catch up with him. After more than a dozen all-expenses paid trips to Vegas with plenty of perks, Huizar gets played by one of his own. A businessman turned FBI informant gives Huizar an…

  32. The Sellout | 9: There's A Fire

    · 36 min · S3 E9 · Explicit

    Mariah talks to the Boyle Heights residents who watched as FBI agents raided Huizar’s home and offices. Three months into the pandemic, he’s arrested and pleads not guilty. The residents of CD14 are left in limbo. We…

  33. Bonus episode: Where's my money?

    · 20 min · S3 E10 · Explicit

    Last year, as the final episodes of The Sellout aired, LA TACO got a tip from a listener: for years, Jose Huizar had been awarding flashy scholarships to college-bound students from Boyle Heights and East LA. But some…

  34. Coming Soon: Puppy Kingpin

    · 2:51 · Trailer

    Americans are used to being on the lookout for a scam, but authorities are warning of a new kind of fraud. Puppy Kingpin shines a spotlight on Jolyn Noethe, a secretive businesswoman from Iowa who is accused of…

  35. Puppy Kingpin | 1. Follow the Puppies

    · 50 min · S4 E1

    When Mindi Callison finds out a local pet shop might be selling puppies from a puppy mill, she takes action. Soon, she’s tracking dogs being transported from state to state and stumbles onto a company that hides the…

  36. Puppy Kingpin | 2. Inside a Puppy Mill

    · 48 min · S4 E2

    Alex sets out to learn more about Jolyn Noethe, but ends up getting an inside look at a puppy mill and how they operate legally. We’ll hear audio of the day authorities descended on the farm of Barbara Kavars, an Iowan…

  37. Puppy Kingpin | 3. Hobo K9

    · 39 min · S4 E3

    Authorities learn of unusual “rescue puppies” starting to turn up in Chicago and begin an investigation. Soon, they are on the trail of the secretive businesswoman responsible. A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music…

  38. Puppy Kingpin | 4. A Kind of Identity Theft

    · 36 min · S4 E4

    Multiple lawsuits now accuse Jolyn Noethe of creating rescues to sell commercially-bred puppies where they’ve been outlawed. Alex learns how the scheme reaches beyond the Midwest and meets Lizette Chanock. She claims…

  39. Puppy Kingpin | 5. Small Town Secrets

    · 33 min · S4 E5

    Alex heads to Britt, Iowa where Jolyn Noethe grew up and her for-profit enterprise, J.A.K.’s Puppies, is headquartered. He discovers that a family dispute is part of the reason she started her own brokering business.…

  40. Puppy Kingpin | 6. License to Sell

    · 36 min · S4 E6

    The Iowa AG’s lawsuit against Jolyn comes to a conclusion as she faces challenges from multiple sides. Alex looks more closely at the USDA as a growing number of breeders and animal rights activists think a USDA…

  41. Puppy Kingpin | 7. Consequences

    · 33 min · S4 E7

    Jolyn Noethe faces a class action lawsuit that accuses her of a federal crime and might cost her up to 5 million. The puppy pipeline isn’t going to change overnight, but Alex meets with a breeder who has nothing to…

  42. A Q&A with Smoke Screen host Alex Schuman

    · 17 min · S4 E8 · Bonus

    Spectacle: True Crime host, Mariah Smith, sits down with Alex Schuman to chat all things about the newest season of Smoke Screen, Puppy Kingpin. She puts host Alex Schuman in the hot seat and they dig into true crime –…

  43. A New Case: The Criminal Empire of Scam Calls

    · 16 min · Trailer

    Chameleon: Scam Likely host, Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, sits down with Alex Schuman to chat about the newest season of the blockbuster Chameleon franchise. The duo dig into another scam you should be wary of - telefraud.…

  44. GOING UNDERCOVER

    · 7:47 · S4 E7 · Bonus

    Alex Schuman, host of Puppy Kingpin, spoke to Deborah Howard, the president of CAPS, the Companion Animal Protection Society, and an undercover investigator who goes by the pseudonym Pete Paxton. In this bonus episode,…

  45. A New Investigation: The Last Days of the NXIVM Sex Cult

    · 6:27 · Trailer

    Behind every infamous news story is a journalist trying to hold power to account. Join reporters Vanessa Grigoriadis and Gabriel Sherman as they take an in-depth look at the most explosive scandals of this century.…

  46. Introducing: Deadly Cure

    · 3:23 · Trailer

    Smoke Screen: Deadly Cure is a podcast about a family on the fringe who convinced tens of thousands of people across the globe to buy a miracle liquid made of poison, the international conspiracy they ignited, and the…

  47. Deadly Cure | 1. Genesis

    · 36 min · S5 E1 · Explicit

    Meet Mark Grenon, Jim Humble, and the Genesis II church. Mark Grenon, a missionary in the Dominican Republic, contracts MRSA. He discovers the Miracle Mineral Solution, and claims that it has miraculously cured him of…

  48. Deadly Cure | 2. The Bleach Hunters

    · 35 min · S5 E2 · Explicit

    Fiona O'Leary is a fearless firebrand, and mother of four autistic children. She is also an online vigilante who will stop at nothing to take down proponents of MMS. She's part of a loosely affiliated group of keyboard…

  49. Deadly Cure | 3. The Martyr

    · 37 min · S5 E3 · Explicit

    What starts for Daniel Smith as an attempt to regain trust in medicine quickly becomes "Project Green Life" – a top distributor of MMS. Then, the feds catch wind of his operation, hoping to take him down. The Grenons…

  50. Deadly Cure | 4. The Limelight

    · 36 min · S5 E4 · Explicit

    Self-appointed archbishops Jim Humble and Mark Grenon begin hosting seminars around the world, and charging $450 per person to attend. But it wasn’t just locals expressing interest in the so-called cure: now, national…

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