From the category archives:

Health Care Politics

Failure to Discuss Healthcare Reform

January 29, 2012

Medscape published several articles a a slide show and a video regarding healthcare reform and the State of the Union 2012. Or more accurately the lack of healthcare and the State of the Union.
President Obama’s 2012 State of the Union address included many important topics, but as far as physicians were concerned, he missed a [...]

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Putting Medical Records Into Patients’ Hands

January 19, 2012

Interesting article at Slashdot.
But what would happen if patients were encouraged not just to see their medical records but to take them home, study them and really own them?
via Putting Medical Records Into Patients’ Hands – Slashdot.
This relates to many of the articles I have written about EHR, data safety, and ownership. Strictly speaking this [...]

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1,200 Healthcare Waivers

January 13, 2012

Hmmm
Roughly 1,200 companies received waivers from part of the healthcare reform law, the Health and Human Services Department said Friday…Republicans say the need for waivers proves that the healthcare law is unworkable. HHS argues that the waivers show the law provides flexibility.
via HHS finalizes over 1,200 waivers under healthcare reform law – The Hill’s Healthwatch.
Unworkable [...]

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Docs No Fan of “Health Care Reform”

January 8, 2012

From the linked editorial:
…69 percent believe the profession will no longer be the choice for the “best and brightest” of America’s young people.
“Most physicians believe payment reforms…will reduce their incomes and increase their administrative costs for needed infrastructure and quality measurement,” the survey concluded. Paul Keckley, Ph.D, the executive director of the Deloitte Center for [...]

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Surge In U.S. Drug Shortages

January 7, 2012

Health Care: The number of prescription drug shortages shot up to a record 267 in 2011, nearly four times the level of just seven years ago, a new report says. It’s a shortage made in Washington.
The number of drug shortages rose by 56 in 2011 from 211 in 2010, according to a study by the [...]

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New fee coming for medical effectiveness research

December 30, 2011

 Another hidden provision of the new health care law as reported by AP.
Starting in 2012, the government will charge a new fee to your health insurance plan for research to find out which drugs, medical procedures, tests and treatments work best. But what will Americans do with the answers?
via New fee coming for medical effectiveness [...]

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Concern growing over deadlines for health- care exchanges

December 23, 2011

This Washington Post article is disturbing for many reasons.
With many states unwilling or unable to get insurance exchanges operational by the health-care law’s deadline of Jan. 1, 2014, pressure is growing on the federal government to do the job for them.
via Concern growing over deadlines for health- care exchanges – The Washington Post.
As was observed [...]

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Rasmussen Reports™ 55% Favor Repeal

December 18, 2011

Most voters still want to repeal the national health care law, even though they tend to believe the law won’t force them to change their own health insurance coverage.
via Health Care Law – Rasmussen Reports™.

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Exposing the Cost of Health Care

November 30, 2011

Can you imagine going down to the Chevy dealer and picking out a new car, selecting the color and all the options you wanted including the engine, transmission and fancy wheels and then when you ask the salesman how much he won’t tell you?
“We don’t know the fee.” He says, “We will just send you [...]

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Voters want court to kill Obama health care law

November 27, 2011

A new poll shows that most voters want the Supreme Court to overturn President Obama’s health care law, …. Overall, voters oppose the law by 48%-40%, according to the Quinnipiac University survey.

via Poll: Voters want court to kill Obama health care law.
It is this kind of thing that makes alternative treatment lcations like American World [...]

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Health Care Is Inexorably Changing

November 20, 2011

From the New York Times
From Colorado to Maryland, hospitals are scrambling to buy hospitals. Doctors are leaving small private practices. Large insurance companies are becoming more dominant as smaller ones disappear because they cannot stay competitive.
via Health Care Is Inexorably Changing, Despite Legal Uncertainty – NYTimes.com.
If you click to the full article you will see [...]

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The Covert Rationing Blog

November 13, 2011

An interesting resource on American Health Care and politics.
The Covert Rationing Blog.
Some examples:
Most of the important medical decisions which doctors make – the ones that cost the government the most money – will be forcibly centralized. That is, panels of experts will determine which services are to be delivered to which patients under which circumstances, [...]

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Fixing American Healthcare

November 11, 2011

What I am Reading Right Now

Insightful, easy to read. Two important ideas; The Grand Unification Theory of Healthcare and Covert Rationing.

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Kaiser Health Tracking Poll

November 6, 2011

Support for National Health Care falls to an all time low with only one in three in favor.
In October, about half (51%) say they have an unfavorable view of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), while 34 percent have a favorable view,
via Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — October 2011 – Kaiser Family Foundation.

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Confronting the Cost of Health Care

October 8, 2011

Very interesting article from the Atlantic.
One of the major factors contributing to the general feeling that people aren’t as well off as they used to be is that they are consuming more and more of their income as health benefits. Though there’s obviously controversy over how much of this represents real gains, there’s no question [...]

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A serious plan to replace Obamacare

October 2, 2011

It is not enough just to oppose the current national health care plan. There are serious issues with health care delivery and financing in the US. However, in my opinion most of these issues will be best addressed with bottom up consumer choice not top down control.
…change the government policies that insulate the health care [...]

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Health Care Flow Chart

September 18, 2011

Good to Know,

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Regulation of Apps?

September 17, 2011

Dr. Bicuspid reports om an FDA meeting to develop regulations for mobile medical / dental apps.
How should the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulate mobile medical apps?
How about…not at all.
via DrBicuspid Imaging.

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Feds plan new rules on patient health data

September 14, 2011

From my local paper. Interesting look at the advantages of EHR from a patient’s perspective.
The new regulations mean a doctor will be able to send prescriptions directly to a pharmacist instead of using a paper prescription. Specialists will be able to see which tests and prescriptions other doctors have ordered.
By the way…that bit about all [...]

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Regulation Causes Shortages of Cancer Drugs

August 14, 2011

The linked article from the Atlantic is brilliant and insightful. Of course I say that because I happen to agree with the major finding which is that top down central control of health care is likely to make things worse not better, for all the reasons discussed in the article.
For months, I’ve been [...]

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