Talk! with Audrey

The Veterans Health Care system still has major problems. Wait-times are excessive at many facilities and poor performing employees are rarely held accountable. Too many veterans wait too long to receive the benefits that they earned. The scandals of the last couple of years have eroded the trust of many veterans and VA must continue to prove that it is up to the task of serving those who have nobly served their nation. Dale Barnett is National Commander of the 2.2 million member American Legion is a West Point graduate from Douglasville, Ga., is a retired Army officer and veteran of Desert Storm . . . he says, ‘Fix it, Don’t Nix it’

Memorial Day is an opportune time to shine a spotlight on our military heroes and the canine service members who are such an essential part of their teams. Today we talk about the impactful story of the human-animal bond between an active officer and his retired military working dog and the unique health care donation program that provides financial support to help provide veterinary care for retired military and police dogs. My guests are: U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Cory Christoffer, and Lady his heroic English Labrador Retriever and Dr. Michael McFarland, Group Director of Marketing, Companion Animals at Zoetis.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: According to ROBERT T. KIYOSAKI,best known as the author of the international best seller RICH DAD POOR DAD, “The world has changed and continues to change, yet many of our leaders continue to implement the same Industrial Age solutions to solve Information Age problems.” Robert Kiyosaki joins me to talk about his newest book, its called . . . SECOND CHANCE — FOR YOUR MONEY, YOUR LIFE and OUR WORLD.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: In her memoir, THE DANCE CARD: Looking for Love After Divorce, Ann Reichardt describes her quest to find love again after dealing with loss, sadness, anger, confusion, depression and disbelief —all the emotions she felt at the end of her marriage. When Ann finally felt the urge to date again she wondered, “Where does a fifty-plus-something woman with grown children who hasn’t dated in 30 years begin?”

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Each year, more than three million reports of child abuse are made in the United States, involving more than six million children. A report of child abuse is made every 10 seconds. Despite the fact that five children die every in the U.S. day from abuse and neglect, child abuse is still being swept under the rug. In fact, the U.S. has one of the worst records among industrialized nations – losing on average between four and seven children every day to child abuse and neglect. Sara O’Meara and Yvonne Fedderson, co-founders of Childhelp, the nation’s oldest and largest nonprofit advocating for abused and neglected children, join me to talk about their education programs and new PSA to help prevent child abuse.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Do you want to lose weight but can’t? Dr. Caroline Apovian, Director of the Nutrition and Weight Management Center at Boston Medical Center uses the science of intermittent fasting to help reignite metabolic fire, turn back the clock, and burn fat fast. She joins me to talk about her new book, THE AGE-DEFYING DIET: Outsmart Your Metabolism to Lose Weight Up to 20 Pounds in 21 Days And Turn Back the Clock.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: As a Christian editor by day, HEATHER KOPP helped well-known pastors and authors hone theology and polish salvation messages. By night, she drank herself to the point of passing out. Heather Kopp shares her journey of faith, addiction and recovery and reveals that faith and addiction are not mutually exclusive in her memoir Sober Mercies-How Love Caught Up With A Christian Drunk.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Are you gearing up for spring cleaning? Do you have too much stuff? In 1991, the average American bought 34 items of clothing and now we’re buying 64 items every year – that’s something new every five days or so! Trend forecaster, journalist and the author of STUFFOCATION . . .Why We’ve Had Enough of Stuff and Need Experience More Than Ever, James Wallman is my guest. He offers the “big think” approach to decluttering and inspires a new way of living: having less and living more and the potential to transform our lives.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Are you watching EMPIRE? Cookie recommended that her nemesis read THE 48 LAWS OF POWER, by Robert Greene . . . I realized that I have an interview that I did with Robert Greene in 2009 about the book he wrote with rapper and businessman, 50 CENT called THE 50TH LAW! It's all about strategy, power and seduction! This one is from my archives . . . enjoy!

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: BISHOP T.D. JAKES is one of the world's most widely recognized pastors and a New York Times bestselling author of over thirty books. Bishop Jakes is the founder and senior pastor of The Potter's House, which has a congregation of more than 30,000. Bishop T.D. Jakes joins me to talk about his latest book . . . INSTINCT: The Power to Unleash Your Inborn Drive.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: In this challenging job market, many people opt to transition from employee to entrepreneur. This is the choice my guest, WILBERT POWE made in 2013 when he resigned his position as a freight broker for a major transportation company that generated $275 million in 2013 with projections to earn $450 million in 2014. Powe's next move was business ownership. He founded AZ HOD FREIGHT BROKERAGE DIVISION in 2014 and he is a rising star in the world of freight brokering, a vital segment in the $400 Billion shipping industry. Find out what it takes to transition from employee to entrepreneur.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: My guest is OLYMPIAN, NOELLE PIKUS PACE and she shares her secret to juggling the Olympics and being a mom! While it’s no secret that being a mother provides enormous joy, parenting can be a challenge. Most of today’s mothers find themselves with not only the task of caring for children of all ages, but also trying to juggle and balance a career along with an endless list of family responsibilities. Noelle Pikus Pace is no exception . . . it's hard work!

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: REVEREND KERON SADLER, NAACP National Health Program Manager is my guest. February 7th is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Did you know that the African American community bears the largest burden of the HIV epidemic over any other racial or ethnic group in the United States? Reverend Sadler has information about the NAACP's partnership with Black Church's to provide training for faith leaders and a first-of-its-kind manual to offer a framework to integrate HIV education in churches and seminaries.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: JONATHAN BLUM, Principal Deputy Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is my guest. Medicare Open Enrollment is the time when people with Medicare are encouraged to review their current health and prescription drug coverage and changes in costs and benefits that will take effect for 2014. This year’s annual Medicare Open Enrollment period, which began on October 15, is ending on December 7 so there isn’t much time left. If you want to change your health and prescription drug coverage for next year, doing it during this period will ensure your new coverage can begin without interruption on January 1, 2014.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: DR. DEMETRIUS K. LOPES, Neurosurgeon and National Spokesperson, American Heart Association/American Stroke Association is my guest. One in six people worldwide will have a stroke in their lifetime. In the United States alone, someone has a stroke every 40 seconds.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: Thousands of service members have been returning from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom with injuries that have been called the "signature wounds" of Iraq and Afghanistan. CRAIG ROBERTS, Spokesperson for The AMERICAN LEGION joins me to talk about issues of importance to veterans and military families and what The American Legion can do to help.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: ALLEGIANT is the highly anticipated final book in VERONICA ROTH’s bestselling DIVERGENT trilogy. First published in May 2011, DIVERGENT was an instant best seller, immediately embraced by both teen readers and adults alike. The book series is poised to become a major pop culture phenomenon. VERONICA ROTH joins me on the show to talk about ALLEGIANT . . . Photo: Courtesy of Harper Collins. Subject to Copyright

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month – CHANDINI PORTTEUS, MPH, Chief Mission Officer, Susan G. Komen Foundation is my guest. This is an ideal time to discuss what we have learned from more than 30 years of research and what that means in terms of prevention, screening, and treatment of breast cancer today, as well as the challenges still faced in the mission to end breast cancer forever.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY:BERTRAM SCOTT, President & CEO, Affinity Health Plan, Bronx, NYC is my guest. On October 1, the New York State Health Plan Marketplace opened under the Affordable Care Act and with 16 health insurers to choose from, understanding the differences between plan options will be critical to New York families. We talk about what every you need to know about navigating the health insurance marketplace.

This week on TALK! with AUDREY: MARK VELLECA,Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is my guest. On October 1, 2013, as part of the new Affordable Care Act (ACA), health insurance exchanges opened for enrollment and millions of Americans who were previously uninsured now have the opportunity to purchase health insurance coverage effective in 2014. The new health care legislation poses some specific challenges for cancer patients, including those with a blood cancer.