Why does it take 4 months to get an 85-year-old grandmother on Medicaid when she has zero assets? In this episode of CommonX, Peter Justen, founder of Ameritrust Solutions, breaks down why government benefit systems are stuck in the past — and what his team is doing to fix it.

Peter shares how a personal experience with his mother's Medicaid application led him to build a platform that reduces a 209-question process down to about 20 questions and completes applications in 12 minutes. He explains how his company feeds better data into existing state systems without costly rip-and-replace upgrades, flags fraud before it enters the system, and helps rural hospitals recover billions in uncompensated care.

Topics covered: Medicaid application reform, government fraud detection, rural hospital funding, VA disability benefits, the uncompensated patient problem, ACA subsidy expiration, and why trust in institutions gets rebuilt one brick at a time.

Learn more: AmeritrustSolutions.com

Visit our site and X-Files Blog: https://www.commonxpodcast.com/thex-files

Watch the Video on our YouTube Channel (and subscribe)

Keywords: Medicaid reform, government automation, Ameritrust Solutions, Peter Justen, CommonX Podcast, government fraud, rural hospitals, healthcare technology, Medicaid application, government efficiency, VA disability benefits, uncompensated care, healthcare innovation, government benefits, public sector technology, application fatigue, Medicaid fraud, rural healthcare, government modernization, health and human services

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Traditional safes haven’t really evolved in decades — and Oscar Hedaya decided that was insane.

In Episode 74 of the CommonX Podcast, we sit down with Oscar Hedaya (founder of SpaceSafe) to talk about why physical security still feels stuck in the 90s, what it takes to build hardware + software the hard way, and why “visibility + accountability” is the real upgrade: tamper notifications, movement alerts, and a safer that can work connected or offline.

We also get into the realities of manufacturing (margins, development costs, PCB mistakes you only make once), what it would take to expand into bigger safe formats (yes… gun safe conversations), and Oscar’s long-term goal of selling the company and using his time to help other founders.

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 73, we’re joined by the crazy minds behind Geezer Magazine Laura LeBleu and Paul Von Zielbauer — a publication built by and for Gen X — and let’s just say… we’ve got thoughts.

The economy feels weird.

Politics feels weird.

Culture feels weird.

And apparently Gen X is now officially old enough to have a magazine.

So we ask the question:

Is everything falling apart…

Or are we just seasoned enough to see the cracks?

We talk about:

• Why institutions feel unstable

• The “middle child” generation perspective

• Scarcity mindset vs abundance thinking

• Whether Gen X is uniquely positioned to lead

• Why chaos might actually be transition

Plus — what happens when the generation raised on latchkeys, MTV, and “figure it out yourself” becomes the adults in the room.

No doom spirals. No yelling. Just perspective — with a little humor.

If you’ve ever thought, “Is it just me…?”

It’s not just you.

Check out Geezer Magazine - www.geezermagazine.com

Check out CommonX - www.commonxpodcast.com

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 72 of the Common-X Podcast, we sit down with Dame Claire Bertschinger — humanitarian nurse, global advocate, and a woman whose life has been defined by moral courage.

From war zones and famine crises to the failures of global systems, Claire shares what it means to witness suffering firsthand — and still choose compassion.

We explore:

• What real humanitarian work looks like behind the scenes
• Why bureaucracy often slows lifesaving action
• The emotional cost of caring
• Moral courage in a world increasingly driven by self-interest
• How ordinary people can still make extraordinary impact

This episode is not about politics.

It’s about humanity.

And the question:

Have we lost our sense of responsibility to each other?

🎧 Listen. Reflect. Share.

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 71 of the Common-X Podcast, Jared and Ian sit down with researcher Jenny Chan to explore the overlooked history of World War II in the Pacific.

We discuss:

• The incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans under Executive Order 9066

• The Supreme Court decision in Korematsu v. United States

• The biological warfare atrocities of Unit 731

• The Cold War immunity granted to figures like Shiro Ishii

• The Soviet Khabarovsk trials

• Why parts of WWII history are widely known — and others are barely discussed

This episode examines fear, civil liberties, wartime propaganda, and the difficult moral tradeoffs governments make during global conflict.

History is rarely simple. And sometimes what we don’t learn says as much as what we do.

🎧 Listen now.

🔥 Subscribe for more conversations that challenge the narrative.

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this powerful episode of the Common-X Podcast, we sit down with John Kammer of Guardian AIngels to talk about something deeper than technology — grief.

After losing three of his closest friends, including one to suicide and another in a tragic accident, John spiraled into years of substance-fueled avoidance. What followed was guilt, emotional shutdown, and a reckoning that forced him to confront who he had become.

This is a raw conversation about:

• Suicide and survivor’s guilt
• Addiction in high-functioning environments
• Losing your inner circle
• Fatherhood and responsibility
• Turning pain into purpose
• Why Guardian Angels AI was built

This episode isn’t about hype. It’s about what happens when life shatters you — and you decide to build something meaningful anyway.

If you’ve ever lost someone, numbed yourself to cope, or wondered how to rebuild after rock bottom… this one’s for you.

Our site: www.commonxpodcast.com

Guardian AIngels site: www.guardianaingels.ai

SEO:

guardian angels ai, suicide loss story, grief and addiction recovery, pain to purpose entrepreneur, founder story after tragedy, coping with guilt after death, high functioning addiction, fatherhood and grief, rebuilding after rock bottom, common x podcast episode 70

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 69 – The Constitution, Gun Rights & the Edge of Crisis

In the wake of a fatal shooting involving federal agents and a lawfully armed citizen, the national conversation moved fast. Accusations. Statements. Counterstatements.

But what does the law actually say?

In this episode of Common-X, we sit down with constitutional law professor Adam Winkler to separate political rhetoric from legal reality. As a leading expert on the history of gun rights and gun regulation in America, Winkler explains how the Second Amendment has always existed alongside firearm laws — and why that balance is foundational to the American system.

We discuss:

• What the Second Amendment truly protects
• How courts interpret gun rights
• The tension between individual liberty and public safety
• Whether America is facing a constitutional crisis
• What happens if executive power defies judicial authority

This conversation moves beyond headlines and into the structural foundations of American governance.

If you care about rights, regulation, and the future of constitutional order — this is one you don’t want to miss.

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Common-X, we sit down with comedian, writer, and cultural observer Victor Varnado for a wide-ranging conversation on comedy, algorithms, and why modern life feels increasingly absurd.

We dig into how comedy has shifted in the age of short clips and viral incentives, why context keeps collapsing in media and public discourse, and how algorithms reward reaction over understanding. Victor breaks down how comedians are forced to adapt—not just creatively, but structurally—when jokes are stripped of nuance and redistributed without intent.

The conversation also touches on creative tools, including Victor’s work with Magic Bookifier, and the broader question of whether technology is flattening human expression—or simply revealing the systems that already were.

This episode isn’t about cancel culture or tech panic.

It’s about incentives, attention, and why absurdity might be the most honest response left.

The CommonX Podcast features long-form conversations with musicians, cultural voices, veterans, entrepreneurs, and independent thinkers who bring lived experience to the table. Hosted by Jared Mayzak and Ian Primmer, CommonX explores music, culture, work, identity, resilience, and the systems that shape everyday life—without talking points or manufactured outrage.

From iconic artists and creative pioneers to everyday people with extraordinary stories, each episode prioritizes honesty, curiosity, and meaningful dialogue. This is a Gen-X–driven show for listeners who value depth over noise and conversation over clicks.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.