Lucas Restrepo, MD

Lucas Restrepo is a neurologist.

December 20, 2010Dec 20, 2010

There is only one fundamental problem with American medicine: its progressive commercialization. Every other problem derives from it centrifugally. Medicine, wrote William Osler, is “a calling, not a business.” Patients are not clients, nor physicians businessmen. People do not spend…

There is only one fundamental problem with American medicine: its progressive commercialization.

Every other problem derives from it centrifugally. Medicine, wrote William Osler, is “a calling, not a business.” Patients are not clients, nor physicians businessmen. People do not spend over a decade studying medicine ―living years in poverty or overburdened with debt― merely hoping to get rich. While it is perfectly legitimate to expect …

Health Policy

Covering the uninsured and the costs to society

Lucas Restrepo, MD

November 2, 2010Nov 2, 2010

Recently, the fire department of a small town in Tennessee called South Fulton ignored the call of a man who needed help quelling a fire near his house. The firefighters declined lending a hand because the caller neglected to pay…

Recently, the fire department of a small town in Tennessee called South Fulton ignored the call of a man who needed help quelling a fire near his house.

The firefighters declined lending a hand because the caller neglected to pay a $75 bill, the prerequisite for deserving assistance. The caller tried to put down the fire with a garden hose, but after two …