While we await the outcome of the vote in the Supreme Court deciding the fate of the Affordable Care Act (which dictates your healthcare options), the House of Representatives, (controlled by Republicans) approved a new budget repealing healthcare reform. In addition it would semi-privatize Medicare. While the vote was 228-191, it is unlikely to pass [...]
According to a recent article appearing in Medical Economics, more Americans are doing without their healthcare. See the following written by the Medical Economic staff: More Americans skipping healthcare due to costs An estimated nine million working-age adults—57 percent of people who had health insurance through a job that was lost—became uninsured in the last [...]
The most recent gimmick to medical cost reduction and giving the shaft to physicians is the latest development of the healthcare system- ACOs. ACOs are accountable care organizations which will determine how patients are treated. Instead of fee for service rendered by healthcare providers, these mammoth systems will pay physicians a predetermined set amount for [...]
The following article was written Oct.30,2010 by David Rosenberg Again, healthcare reform is scrutinized and the picture that emerges is not a pretty sight. Health Reform Riddled With Problems In “What health care reform can do for you” (Oct. 7), David Berger presents a socialist utopia in which all get health insurance (though not necessarily care) [...]
According to researchers at North Carolina State University, concern about privacy is what is really holding back EHR acceptance. Worry about making oneself vulnerable to identity theft is at the heart of this issue. David Baumer, head of N.C. State’s business management department and author of a new study, concurs and validates this concern. According [...]
According to Dr. Berwick who was recently given a recess appointment by President Obama to head CMS (centers for Medicare and Medicaid), a “pay-for-performance” program will decrease the cost of healthcare. This statement comes from someone who spent most of his career as an academician, not a practicing physician as his pediatric training would suggest. [...]
The AMA issued a new report regarding medical malpractice cases. The latest information reveals that 95 claims are filed for every 100 doctors- approximately 1 per doctor. Even though more than 66% of suits are dismissed, it is obvious that the cost to malpractice premiums will continue to escalate and these statistics encourage healthcare workers [...]
According to a new national Gallup survey of physicians, defensive medicine accounts for 26 percent of the nation’s healthcare costs–one in four dollars. Using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimate of our healthcare at $2.5 trillion, defensive medicine drains some $650 billion per year out of the healthcare system. Calculating 2 years at this [...]
Using the concepts that humor is the best form of medicine and a little humor makes the distasteful more palatable, an unusual bunch of protesters gathered in front of the Ritz Carlton, Washington D.C. Attired in evening gowns and suits, this group claimed to be part of “Billionaires for Wealth Care” and held up signs [...]
Bribes have often been used to modify behavior. Pavlov proved that with his scientific experiments. The question now is whether bribes will modify behavior toward maintaining or obtaining wellness and by eliminating bad habits. We will soon know the answer since the Senate has passed a provision in the new health bill called the Safeway [...]
