What is collider bias?

A paper by Holmberg et al. (2022) in JAMA provides a number of examples of how collider bias can lead to problematic causal inference. The term collider bias is often invoked when using directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) to map the causal pathway. Collider bias occurs when you aim to measure the impact of A on…

Are high-deductible plans the best choice?

For many individuals with employer-provided health insurance, a recent paper by Liu and Sydnor (2022) find that this is indeed the case. The authors use data from the 2011-2016 Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) Employer Health Benefits Survey (EHBS). The authors examine the maximum out-of-pocket cost (including both premiums and maximum cost-sharing) as well as whether…

Cross-border medical care in Europe

In Europe, some patients are able to seek medical care in other countries. Reasons for doing so include shorter waiting times, access to treatment that is no obtainable in their home country’s public health care system, quality of care, and costs. Cross-border medical care affects many people: “20 to 24 million patients worldwide spending an…

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Alcohol deaths during COVID. Operation Warp Speed: “scaling not discovering”. Expedited drug approval programs around the world. Should medical errors lead to jail time? Travel nursing: a problem or solution?

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