Health policy and public health

4,357 articles · Since 2004

Articles, page 40

Medical debt is the enemy of everyone [PODCAST]

December 23, 2021Dec 23, 2021

"Medical debt is the mortal enemy of the patient, the physician, the hospital, the community, the state, and the nation. When we think of others’ debts, we tend to think such debts are their personal responsibility. If they’re unable to…

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“Medical debt is the mortal enemy of the patient, the physician, the hospital, the community, the state, and the nation. When we think of others’ debts, we tend to think such debts are their personal responsibility. If they’re unable to pay the debt, it’s their problem. (We make it a …

Health policy

The goal of health care is in peril

Vincent Roddy, MD

December 23, 2021Dec 23, 2021

Introduction and background As an emergency department medical director and physician, a busy emergency department can be a thing of beauty to me. We work hard to set up systems that will provide the care our patients need. Despite our…

Introduction and background

As an emergency department medical director and physician, a busy emergency department can be a thing of beauty to me. We work hard to set up systems that will provide the care our patients need. Despite our best efforts, almost daily, variables occur that throw the system into chaos and lead to inefficiency. The COVID-19 pandemic unveiled and exacerbated many challenges that affect our ability to provide the …

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The goal of health care is in peril

Physician voices

Life along the railway lines in Bangladesh during Bishwa Ijtema: a physician’s photojournal

Glenn Mark Losack, MD

December 23, 2021Dec 23, 2021

The Bishwa Ijtema meaning "global congregation" is an annual gathering of millions of Muslims in Tongi, by the banks of the Turag river, just north of Dhaka, in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is predominantly a Muslim nation. This yearly "BI" is one…

The Bishwa Ijtema meaning “global congregation” is an annual gathering of millions of Muslims in Tongi, by the banks of the Turag river, just north of Dhaka, in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is predominantly a Muslim nation. This yearly “BI” is one of the largest peaceful gatherings in the world. The Ijtema is a prayer meeting spread over three days, usually in January during which attending devotees perform daily prayers while listening …

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Health policy

Why health care delivery is an exceptionally different industry: health system infrastructure and health system operations and execution

Joe Mandato & Ryan Van Wert, MD

December 22, 2021Dec 22, 2021

Second in a series. Please read part 1. The business of health care delivery differs markedly from other consumer and service industries in many ways. First and foremost, the economics differ. Specifically, the payers of medical care are often different…

Second in a series. Please read part 1.

The business of health care delivery differs markedly from other consumer and service industries in many ways. First and foremost, the economics differ. Specifically, the payers of medical care are often different from the customers, the government and third-party insurers are the primary payers, demand is inelastic, quality metrics are typically unavailable, and the industry consists largely …

Conditions and diseases

Is life more than breathing and a heartbeat?

M. Bennet Broner, PhD

December 20, 2021Dec 20, 20213

A few months back, I read about a two-year-old child with a terminal cardiac condition who has spent her life in a hospital bed attached to multiple devices that maintained her survival. At the staff’s request, the institution’s ethics committee reviewed the child’s history and prognosis and decided that the equipment could be disconnected. Her mother repeatedly blocked this option, insisting that the child, although frequently sedated, had a “bubbly …

Health policy

Key change are needed to make the No Surprises Act work as Congress intended

Gerald E. Harmon, MD

December 19, 2021Dec 19, 2021

Physicians prioritize patient needs above all other considerations. To advance that mission, the AMA works tirelessly to improve access to quality, affordable health coverage for everyone, which includes protecting patients from the financial harm posed by unanticipated medical bills that…

That is why the AMA has joined the American Hospital Association in asking the courts to …

Health policy

Why health care delivery is an exceptionally different industry: board of directors and CEOs

Joe Mandato & Ryan Van Wert, MD

December 17, 2021Dec 17, 20212

First in a series. The business of health care delivery differs markedly from other consumer and service industries in many ways. First and foremost, the economics differ. Specifically, the payers of medical care are often different from the customers, the…

First in a series.

Physician voices

The Kyle Rittenhouse acquittal: a contrasting physician opinion

Anonymous

December 16, 2021Dec 16, 20215

Please also read the contrasting opinion article, "Doctoring during Kyle Rittenhouse's acquittal." The Kyle Rittenhouse acquittal. We need to know the truth: There has been much misinformation and some downright lies on social media and mainstream media regarding this. Some…

Please also read the contrasting opinion article, “Doctoring during Kyle Rittenhouse’s acquittal.”

The Kyle Rittenhouse acquittal. We need to know the truth: There has been much misinformation and some downright lies on social media and mainstream media regarding this. Some social media outlets have blocked any positive comments regarding Rittenhouse. A man who contributed $25 to a GoFundMe site to support Rittenhouse, (before the social media platform canceled …

Health policy

The bipartisan infrastructure deal is now law, but here’s what it forgets

Charles Sanky, MD, MPH

December 16, 2021Dec 16, 2021

In June 2021, the Biden administration announced bipartisan support for federal legislation to rebuild our nation's crumbling infrastructure. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act seeks to revive highway, transit, rail, and public work systems, as well as improve broadband internet…

In June 2021, the Biden administration announced bipartisan support for federal legislation to rebuild our nation’s crumbling infrastructure. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act seeks to revive highway, transit, rail, and public work systems, as well as improve broadband internet access, mitigate the supply chain crisis and combat climate change.

Like most Americans, I am grateful that we are …

The Podcast by KevinMD

Monica Gandhi, MD on why hospitalizations better measure COVID’s impact [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

December 13, 2021Dec 13, 2021

Welcome to an expedited episode of The Podcast by KevinMD. Monica Gandhi is an infectious disease physician and co-author of the New York Times opinion article, "Why Hospitalizations Are Now a Better Indicator of Covid’s Impact." Transcript Kevin Pho, MD:…

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Welcome to an expedited episode of The Podcast by KevinMD. Monica Gandhi is an infectious disease physician and co-author of the New York Times opinion article, “Why Hospitalizations Are Now a Better Indicator of Covid’s Impact.”

Transcript

Kevin Pho, MD: Hi, and welcome to the show where we share …

Health policy

We have an obligation to keep firearms out of the hands of children

Shayla A. Sullivant, MD

December 8, 2021Dec 8, 2021

We are saddened by another school shooting in America. Four lives were cut short, and one young man who was obviously crying out for help clearly did not get it. There are so many pieces to this puzzle to examine.…

We are saddened by another school shooting in America. Four lives were cut short, and one young man who was obviously crying out for help clearly did not get it.

There are so many pieces to this puzzle to examine. So many areas where we can improve. As a child psychiatrist, I am fully aware that our mental health system is broken. So many families seeking care run into barriers and …

The Podcast by KevinMD

To achieve health equity, culturally relevant care must be the standard of care [PODCAST]

The Podcast by KevinMD

December 6, 2021Dec 6, 2021

"Practicing culturally relevant care means we can account for the social determinants of health, barriers to access, and the emotional disconnect that results from the status quo, one-size-fits-all approach many patients have come to expect. It helps us reach into…

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“Practicing culturally relevant care means we can account for the social determinants of health, barriers to access, and the emotional disconnect that results from the status quo, one-size-fits-all approach many patients have come to expect. It helps us reach into underserved communities and lift them up, which is essential …

Health policy

Almost half of health care workers are not doctors and nurses. Health policies must address their burnout too.

Irving Gold

November 28, 2021Nov 28, 2021

Vaccination rates are climbing, and COVID-19 cases are decreasing. While this is surely a relief to most of us, many health care workers are bracing themselves for a significant post-pandemic fallout. Far from getting a much-needed reprieve from an emotionally and physically draining 20 months, these professionals will be forced to work under similar strain to deal with the backlog of procedures now being scheduled again.

There is abundant evidence of …

Health policy

Why the Build Back Better Act is an investment, not a cost

Shirin Shafazand, MD

November 28, 2021Nov 28, 2021

The original Build Back Better Act proposed various provisions to improve Americans' lives, including two years of free community college, child care assistance, and investments in clean energy. The steep price tag has led many to question whether or not…

The original Build Back Better Act proposed various provisions to improve Americans’ lives, including two years of free community college, child care assistance, and investments in clean energy. The steep price tag has led many to question whether or not we can afford to spend so much.

But as a pulmonary and critical care physician at a major metropolitan hospital, I have a different question: can we afford not to?

Every day in …

Physician voices

What medicine can learn from the antiwork movement

Brendan James Flanagan, MD

November 26, 2021Nov 26, 2021

A record number of Americans are choosing to quit their jobs. This phenomenon has been termed The Great Resignation by economists. The reasons for the Great Resignation are multifactorial and a subject of great debate, but some insight can be gleaned from the rise of a movement that has been called ‘antiwork’. This movement is probably best embodied by the immensely popular /antiwork Reddit forum, where aggrieved employees share stories …

Health policy

How advanced analytics can help social determinants of health

Mike Dulin, MD, PhD

November 25, 2021Nov 25, 2021

Health care costs in the U.S. have increased dramatically over the past five decades, from $74 billion in 1970 to $3.8 trillion in 2019. This trend has been fueled in large part by an increase in the number of people who struggle with chronic conditions such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and lung disease. Stanford University School of Medicine estimates that 50% of Americans suffer …

Physician voices

Health care has crossed into a realm of moral injury and systemic collapse

Anonymous

November 23, 2021Nov 23, 202112

Recently I have been more quiet than usual. Less writing. Less fire and brimstone. Quiet, at least for me. But anyone who is paying attention knows that when the most passionate and the most invested get quiet, something is truly amiss. Whether it be a looming threat or a very real and present crisis is unknown, but the fact remains that in that silence lives the very real possibility of …

Health policy

“Take it or leave it” is not negotiation but coercion

Paul Pender, MD

November 23, 2021Nov 23, 2021

“Take it or leave it” is not negotiation but coercion. Physicians have been subject to this tactic for much too long. As an ophthalmologist in clinical practice for nearly four decades, I experienced too often what a recent author on…

“Take it or leave it” is not negotiation but coercion.

Physicians have been subject to this tactic for much too long. As an ophthalmologist in clinical practice for nearly four decades, I experienced too often what a recent author on KevinMD described as a one-sided arrangement with a health insurance company. “Here is the fee schedule. Here is the document to sign.” End of story.

If you object to the terms of …

Health policy

How to address the mental health fallout of climate change

Rishab Chawla

November 22, 2021Nov 22, 2021

An existential crisis On August 9, the 2021 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report made public what many had feared. Global temperature warming to 1.5 C is all but inevitable by 2040 — even by the most…

An existential crisis

On August 9, the 2021 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report made public what many had feared. Global temperature warming to 1.5 C is all but inevitable by 2040 — even by the most optimistic scenarios — unless radically drastic steps are taken to end the use of fossil fuels.

Severe weather events such as California wildfires and Atlantic hurricanes of the past …

Health policy

Open enrollment: It’s time to leave your insurance plan behind

Andy Schoonover

November 20, 2021Nov 20, 2021

Research shows inadequate health insurance accounts for nearly 67 percent of all bankruptcies. This statistic is staggering, and illustrates a difficult reality for the many American families navigating today's insurance market. Not only can medical debt become a heavy burden…

Not only can medical debt become a heavy burden – it can impact every facet of an individual’s life; compromising financial stability and potentially even exacerbating underlying medical conditions, creating complications due to the stress it causes. …

Health policy and public health

Articles, page 40

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