How GoFundMe became America’s backup plan
The Verge's Decoder podcast interviews GoFundMe CEO Tim Cadogan, who took the helm in March 2020 just as the coronavirus pandemic upended American life. The conversation explores how the platform has evolved into what host Nilay Patel calls a "load-bearing part of American culture," reflecting deep problems in the US social safety net, most notably a strained healthcare system, while also serving as a hub during periods of political unrest and global crises.
Cadogan reveals that medical expenses are GoFundMe's single most popular fundraising category, not only in the United States but across all 20 countries where it operates, suggesting healthcare funding gaps are a global rather than uniquely American issue. The interview examines the tension inherent in GoFundMe's position: it operates as a for-profit business, charging fees and tips and facing growth pressures, even as it plays an increasingly central role in helping people cover everything from medical bills to community needs and geopolitical crises.
- GoFundMe CEO Tim Cadogan discusses the platform's cultural and social role
- Medical expenses are GoFundMe's top fundraising category worldwide, not just in the US
- Interview explores tension between for-profit growth and social safety-net function
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GoFundMe is an online platform where people create fundraising pages and ask others to contribute money. It is run as a business, and its chief executive, Tim Cadogan, took over in March 2020, when the pandemic disrupted daily life in the United States.
People use the site for many purposes, including medical costs and community needs. Medical expenses are its most popular fundraising category in all 20 countries where it operates, pointing to gaps in how people pay for healthcare in different places.
The platform has also become a way to raise money during political unrest and international crises. Its growing role raises questions about how personal appeals fit alongside public services, and how a for-profit company balances its business aims with helping people in need.
Both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
GoFundMe provides rapid, accessible financial assistance that fills genuine gaps when people face unexpected crises, harnessing community solidarity and giving individuals agency without bureaucratic barriers. For many people, the platform delivers critical aid when government programmes would be too slow or exclude them through eligibility restrictions.
The case against
That a major global platform now serves as essential infrastructure for medical bills and basic needs represents systemic failure, not success. A for-profit business profiting from people's healthcare crises masks deeper policy problems rather than solving them, allowing governments to avoid necessary reforms to healthcare and social provision.