April Dembosky’s work this year demonstrates a range of reporting skills, from finding unique angles on otherwise predictable health policy stories, to developing original enterprise work that sheds light on systemic problems in health care, to breaking news about drug prices that has other media outlets jumping to follow up.
“Pharmaceutical Companies Hiked Price on Aid-in-Dying Drug” was one story that went absolutely viral in the days after Dembosky broke the story. After months of covering daily news on California’s long effort to legalize physician-assisted suicide in 2015, Dembosky was in a unique position to receive a tip from a source that drug companies had more than doubled the price of the drug commonly used in assisted suicide. Dembosky pursued the quick turnaround story with diligent reporting, checking databases and talking to experts, and bringing the story to life with real people directly affected by the drug hike.
“Sorry the Therapist Can’t See You Now” is the result of more than a year of reporting on failures in the mental health system. While balancing a work load of breaking news and features, Dembosky made a series of Public Records Act Requests and built trust with sources living with mental health conditions. She gradually uncovered the ways insurance companies sidestepped mental health laws, and regulators failed to hold them to account. She even conducted her own survey, calling 100 psychologists listed as available on the Blue Shield website, but finding only a quarter of them were actually taking new patients. Dembosky’s reporting came together this year in a five-part radio and print series, a half-hour radio documentary, and a TV feature.
“Farming Industry Balks at Obamacare Requirements” showcased Dembosky’s ability to find unique angles on health policy stories. In early 2016, the employer mandate of the Affordable Care Act took effect for companies with 50 to 99 employees. Dembosky dug several layers deep to find a story of how Obamacare was giving rise to immigration concerns in California’s farming industry. While some farmers looked for ways to avoid the cost of paying for health care, others wanted to avoid filing paperwork with the IRS that could bring attention to how many undocumented farm laborers were on their payrolls.
For “Can Ecstacy Help Relieve Social Anxiety Epidemic Among Autistic People,” Dembosky was the only reporter who was able to negotiate access to any of the autistic adults participating in this controversial MDMA study. Researchers, who are very protective of the participants, granted access after Dembosky demonstrated her journalistic skill and scientific understanding over the course of several conversations. Dembosky carefully prepared for the interview, researching communication styles of autistic individuals. The final radio story is a nuanced portrait of an individual grappling with her autistic identity and social anxiety, an accurate scientific portrayal of a drug treatment in the early stages of research, and an intriguing soundscape that demonstrates Dembosky’s mastery of the audio format.
In “From Maverick AIDS Activist to Porn Police?” Dembosky eschews the typical pro-con election story, instead winning a rare interview with Michael Weinstein, the controversial proponent behind the controversial Proposition 60. The story gave voters the information they needed to make an educated vote, as well as a nuanced history.