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3w ago

Oscar-Shortlisted 'Cashing Out' Reexamines AIDS-Era Viatical Settlements

The New Yorker’s documentary short uses first-hand accounts to weigh a once-derided practice against the realities of survival.

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Overview

  • The film is shortlisted for the 2026 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.
  • It is produced by The New Yorker, with executive producers Angeria Paris VanMicheals and Matt Bomer.
  • Interviews with Phil Nadel, Scott Page, Sean O. Strub, and DeeDee Chamblee present viatical settlements as both stigmatized and, for many, a crucial source of cash.
  • The story traces how protease inhibitors extended lives and left some investors facing prolonged costs and losses.
  • The short is free to stream on The New Yorker and Fandango at Home, with additional availability on YouTube and Prime Video, and its release is prompting renewed discussion of gaps in today’s healthcare safety net.