200 Navy SEALs started Hell Week. 28 finished. Aaron Tucker was one of them.
Now he's COO of Parity Plus, and he's applying that same mindset to the most brutal number in your health plan: autism spectrum disorder claims.
1 in 31 American children is now diagnosed with ASD. In North Carolina alone, ABA therapy costs exploded from $270M in 2022 to $1.1B in 2025. A single child in inpatient care can run $200,000 to $240,000 per month and for a small employer, that one claim can drive 35% of their entire renewal.
Aaron breaks down exactly how this happened (private equity bought 2,000+ ABA centers worth $870M and is billing accordingly), what self-funded employers can legally do about it, and why mental health parity law is both the problem and the solution.
Plus: Aaron briefed Condoleezza Rice during active operations. He ran a 60-mile ultra. And he explains why "embrace the suck" is the best framework for fixing American healthcare.
This one goes deep. Clear your schedule.
🔗 Learn more about Parity Plus: https://parityplus.com
00:00 — Intro: Who is Aaron Tucker?
02:15 — From Navy SEAL to healthcare: the unlikely pivot
06:40 — BUD/S Hell Week: 200 started, 28 finished
11:20 — "Embrace the suck" and what it means for healthcare
16:05 — What is Parity Plus? The 12-week-old company solving a billion-dollar problem
22:30 — ASD and autism: why 1 in 31 kids changes everything for employers
28:15 — The $240K/month child: a real case study
33:50 — North Carolina ABA costs: $270M to $1.1B in three years
39:20 — Private equity's role: 2,000 ABA centers, $870M valuation
44:10 — Single case agreements (SCAs) explained
49:35 — Mental health parity law: how it protects (and fails) employers
55:00 — TPAs, BUCAs, and stop-loss: the full cast of villains
1:01:20 — The 1-3% driving 15%+ of your health plan costs
1:07:45 — "Don't pay us if we don't save you money"
1:13:10 — Medicaid waivers and why they matter
1:18:30 — AI claims analysis: how Parity Plus actually works
1:24:15 — Parity Plus in talks with the US government and Canadian provinces
1:29:40 — Aaron briefed Condoleezza Rice (yes, really)
1:35:20 — The Kandahar Giant: best moment of the episode
1:41:05 — 60-mile ultra, psilocybin, and Ray's 6-month sobriety reveal
1:47:30 — Advice for employers drowning in healthcare costs right now
1:53:50 — Where to find Aaron and Parity Plus
1:57:50 — Parityplus.com - final call to action
🎧 BROKEN HEALTHCARE PODCAST
Ray Kober exposes the systems, incentives, and bad actors driving American healthcare costs, and finds the people actually fixing it.
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