Health policy and public health

4,357 articles · Since 2004

Articles, page 127

My hope for the upcoming generation of physicians

April 24, 2013Apr 24, 20137

My son has been accepted into medical school, we learned last week, and I must say I’m about as happy a mother and a physician as you could find anywhere. For everything that’s wrong with the American healthcare system today, medicine is a wonderful profession and it’s still the greatest honor in the world for a patient to have faith in your skills and care.

It will be interesting to see …

Health policy

Primary care has lost its self-esteem

Michael Chen, MD

April 23, 2013Apr 23, 20135

Several months ago, as I was in the last few months of my private practice, I watched the Joy Luck Club with my wife. I had seen the movie many times before, but somehow at that moment in time, when…

Several months ago, as I was in the last few months of my private practice, I watched the Joy Luck Club with my wife. I had seen the movie many times before, but somehow at that moment in time, when I was grieving for my practice and my profession, I began to have some startling clarity.

Specifically, I was particularly struck by this dialogue:

I tell you the story because I was raised

…

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Primary care has lost its self-esteem

Physician voices

I am called before the inquisition board: Welcome to modern medicine

David Gelber, MD

April 22, 2013Apr 22, 201333

Today I had the displeasure of sitting in judgment before a modern inquisition at one of the hospitals I attend. Although the grand inquisitor lacked the trappings of a monsignor or bishop, and without a physical executioner in the room, I was subjected to round after round of questions regarding my apparent disregard for system wide medical and post surgical protocols. Such protocols have been adopted by CMS (which oversees …

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Health policy

Are we ready to creatively destroy medicine?

David B. Nash, MD, MBA

April 21, 2013Apr 21, 20133

We recently marked the third anniversary of the passage of the Affordable Care Act by reflecting on the positive changes it has brought about and by mulling over the multifaceted challenges that stymie our efforts to build more accessibility, equity,…

Reining in healthcare costs, a central element in the reforms we seek, is inextricably linked to …

Health policy

A creative way to meet our health needs: Direct practices

Brad Wright, PhD

April 21, 2013Apr 21, 2013

I recently wrote about some of the unintended, but positive, consequences that could result from employers dropping employer-sponsored health insurance (ESI). Following that post, many weighed in about various other consequences of such behavior from employers and what that means for health care coverage for millions of families in the US. One issue in particular caught my attention; not only because of the touching stories associated with …

Health policy

Does our health system really need doctors?

Margalit Gur-Arie

April 20, 2013Apr 20, 201341

A dark wind is beginning to blow through the tortured landscape of health care in America. At the confluence of the corporate cold front with the warm front of technology innovation, a storm is brewing. A storm that may grow into gentle and much needed rain showers, or the grandest tornado ever experienced by mankind, and unlike the wondrous works of nature, the path taken here is completely within our …

Health policy

Our healthcare system is far more resilient than we think

Ashish Jha, MD, MPH

April 19, 2013Apr 19, 20135

In 2006, Governor Mitt Romney signed Chapter 58 of the Acts of 2006 entitled “An Act Providing Access to Affordable, Quality, Accountable Health Care.” It has been described by many names, including Massachusetts Healthcare Reform (MHR), Romneycare, or simply, as the template for the Affordable Care Act. The goal of the act was straightforward: to ensure near-universal access to health insurance for citizens of the Commonwealth of …

Physician voices

How do we know what a doctor is worth?

Dr. Eddie Chaloner

April 19, 2013Apr 19, 201326

I read the recent popular posts from Matthew Moeller (Dear lawmakers: this is what it’s like to be a doctor today) and Nick Rademacher (Lawmakers shouldn’t care about the personal hardships of doctors) with great interest. They reflect perspectives from two interesting turning points for most medical careers- medical student, and established attending physician. I’m a U.K.-based surgeon and though the healthcare systems in …

Read more…

How do we know what a doctor is worth?

Health policy

Health reformers should learn from doctor-owned hospitals

Kevin Pho, MD

April 18, 2013Apr 18, 201310

As part of the health reform movement, hospitals that meet various quality measures, like reduced readmission rates or improved patient satisfaction measures, get financially rewarded. Those that don’t will be penalized. How’s it going so far? Well, it appears that…

How’s it going so far?

Well, it appears that safety net hospitals that can least afford a financial hit are getting dinged, while doctor-owned hospitals are getting rewarded.

Oops.

According to Kaiser Health …

Physician voices

Who are the physicians that make the decision to deny care?

Wes Fisher, MD

April 17, 2013Apr 17, 201319

A phone conference had been arranged. They wanted to talk to me about a denial for payment on a portion of a patient's pre-authorized procedure after the fact. Its participants: the regional medical director of a large insurance company, his…

A phone conference had been arranged. They wanted to talk to me about a denial for payment on a portion of a patient’s pre-authorized procedure after the fact. Its participants: the regional medical director of a large insurance company, his female assistant administrator, and me.

He cordially introduced himself as a pediatrician by trade from a large well-known (and highly respected) academic institution with impeccable credentials responsible for our region of the United States. …

Health policy

Dear Congress: Listen to doctors on the front lines of medicine

Matthew Moeller, MD

April 17, 2013Apr 17, 201325

Dear lawmakers: This is what it’s like to be a doctor today. Thank you to everyone for the positive feedback. Over 60,000 Facebook “likes”, tweets, and newspaper requests was quite a surprise. I was especially moved by the multiple tweets…

A follow-up to Dear lawmakers: This is what it’s like to be a doctor today.

Thank you to everyone for the positive feedback. Over 60,000 Facebook “likes”, tweets, and newspaper requests was quite a surprise. I was especially moved by the multiple tweets from hospices, physician groups, and individuals recommending my article. This article really has hit a nerve and shed …

Health policy

America’s health system is dangerously out of balance

Brian Klepper, PhD

April 13, 2013Apr 13, 20133

For a large and growing number of us with meager or no coverage, health care is the ultimate “gotcha.” Events conspire, we receive care and then are on the hook for a car- or house-sized bill. There are few alternatives…

Steven Brill’s recent cover story clearly detailed the predatory health care pricing that has been ruinous for many rank-and-file Americans. In Brill’s report, a key mechanism, …

Health policy

Health reform faces tension with integrated health systems

Kevin Pho, MD

April 13, 2013Apr 13, 20134

Room for Debate blog. In the coming years, health care reform will drive consolidation in the industry. Reformers, including the president himself, point to integrated health systems like Kaiser Permanente as the future of health care delivery. While this movement…

The following column was published on March 26th, 2013 in the New York Times’ Room for Debate blog.

In the coming years, health care reform will drive consolidation in the industry. Reformers, including the president himself, point to integrated health systems like Kaiser Permanente as the future of health care delivery. While this movement may improve patient care, whether it will shield …

Health policy

The Physician Payment Sunshine Act is here: Are you ready?

American Medical Association & Jeremy Lazarus, MD

April 12, 2013Apr 12, 20132

A guest column by the American Medical Association, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Information is a source of learning. But unless it is organized, processed and available to the right people in a format for decision making, it is a burden, not…

A guest column by the American Medical Association, exclusive to KevinMD.com.

Information is a source of learning. But unless it is organized, processed and available to the right people in a format for decision making, it is a burden, not a benefit.

-Former ServiceMaster CEO C. William Pollard

The new Physician Payment Sunshine Act (Sunshine Act) was created by Congress to ensure transparency in physicians’ interactions with the pharmaceutical, biologic and medical device …

Physician voices

Increasing the role of nurse practitioners in the inpatient setting

Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD

April 12, 2013Apr 12, 201360

We are fortunate in our country to have the best medical technology in the world. Unfortunately, delivery of this technology, reflected in a worldwide healthcare ranking of 37th, is a disservice to the American people and must be rectified especially…

As provisions of the Affordable Care Act are put in place, a daunting factor is the shortage of doctors who will be needed to provide this …

Health policy

Health reform: China offers a cautionary tale

Leana Wen, MD

April 9, 2013Apr 9, 201335

Wang Li is a 48-year old farmer from Dalian, China. After a two-day trip to the major provincial hospital, he’s heading home to his village to die. Wang has lung cancer, and even with insurance, his surgery will cost him 20,000RMB—$3,000, which is twice his annual salary. The surgery would be curative, but it doesn’t matter. “I cannot burden my family,” he said.

I am a Chinese-born, American …

Health policy

Why physicians should sympathize with federal employees

Bob Doherty

April 5, 2013Apr 5, 20137

“Physicians care more about their pocketbooks than taking care of patients. They are self-interested and overpaid. They want to control everything. They don’t know what life is like in the real world of patients.” By now, I am sure that…

By now, I am sure that physician readers of this blog can feel their blood boiling, for good reason. Why would I, as the principal staff advocate for internal medicine physicians, put such pernicious, unfair, inaccurate quotes …

Health policy

Lawmakers shouldn’t care about the personal hardships of doctors

Anonymous

April 4, 2013Apr 4, 201347

With a family and financial background that eerily matches Dr. Moeller’s, please count me as one soon-to-be physician who does not share the notion that lawmakers should spend their time being overly concerned with the demands placed on physicians or…

A response to Dear lawmakers: This is what it’s like to be a doctor today.

Health policy

Doctors should stop being compared to the airline industry

Jordan Grumet, MD

April 3, 2013Apr 3, 201316

We have to stop comparing ourselves to the airline industry. Sitting on the lounge chair at the pool, I can't believe that just hours ago I was sludging the wintry streets of Chicago, rushing to the airport. The kids clucked…

We have to stop comparing ourselves to the airline industry.

Sitting on the lounge chair at the pool, I can’t believe that just hours ago I was sludging the wintry streets of Chicago, rushing to the airport. The kids clucked away happily in the back seat as the adults in front where more subdued. As grownups do, we kept running through our mental checklists even though the ship had already sailed, we …

Health policy

The movement for medical price transparency is happening

G. Keith Smith, MD

April 1, 2013Apr 1, 201315

Years ago, I hired a carpenter to build a deck in my backyard. He showed up with a pencil behind his ear, a spiral notebook, and a tape measure. I told him what I was looking for, and he made…

Years ago, I hired a carpenter to build a deck in my backyard. He showed up with a pencil behind his ear, a spiral notebook, and a tape measure. I told him what I was looking for, and he made a few suggestions. After 15 minutes of measuring and taking notes, he handed me a piece of paper with how much it …

Health policy and public health

Articles, page 127

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