Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
The Workers Comp Insider hosts this week’s edition of the Health Wonk Review. My favorite posts include: Skepticism on private health providers pledge to cut $2 trillion in costs: here, here and here. Wellcare is a publicly-help company whose revenues come from government contracts and who pumped $2.4-million into the Florida political system in the ’04…
Let us assume that our null hypothesis is that when someone is sick, it is not swine flu. A type I error is a false positive. That is, we claim that the person has the swine flu, when actually then do not. A type II error is a false negative. This means that the person…
Google now has a website in Beta called Knol. Knol basically has a bunch of user responses to ‘how-to’ questions. The winner of a Google contest for the best knol was how to “Talk to Your Doctor” by Dr. Jennifer Frank. The article gives a list of things to bring to a doctor’s visit, such…
Google has created easy to use charts on U.S. population and employment from public-use data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Instructions of how to use this data can be found here (video). Here are some examples I created: Unemployment in 3 Southern California Counties. Population Growth in 8 Midwestern…
Bond Markets seem to be concerned over the escalating level of U.S. Government debt. Yields rose during the latest $14 billion auction of U.S. 30-year Treasury Bonds. This graph shows an ominous budget deficit trend as well. There seems to be good reason for this. American’s stimulus plan and entitlement programs are putting an…
A recent study found that “Acupuncture is an effective treatment for chronic back pain. People receiving acupuncture are more likely to get better.” How does it work? The treatment’s placebo effect explains the study’s findings. Researchers found that acupuncture was effective whether or not the skin was punctured.
In a letter to President Obama today, AdvaMed, AHIP, AHA, AMA, Pharma, and SEIU all claimed that they would save the country $2 trillion. Saving, however, is a relative term. The goal is to reduce the rate health care expense growth by 1.5%. Thus, this is not a true savings in the typical sense of…
Brazil’s Bolsa Família program has been help up as one of the great social welfare programs. It has been a model for Mexico’s own Oportunidades social welfare program. The Wilson Quarterly reports that the 44 million poor Brazilians who participate in this program receive payments of up to $104 a month for sending their children to…
A humorous take the serious problem of job lock. HT: Carolyn’s Blog
The Washington Post recounts a cautionary tale concerning a hasty roll-out of the flu vaccine this fall. “As U.S. health officials consider rolling out a plan to inoculate the nation against swine flu in the next several months, they are haunted by the events that unfolded the last time the government stepped in to head…