Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
The Wall Street Journal (“Doctor Shortage…“) reports that the percentage of medical residents choosing to practice in the primary care arena is falling. This is likely due to the fact that specialists make significantly more money the primary care doctors. Arnold Kling of EconLog has an interesting point as primary care physicians shortages and primary…
This past weekend I watched Michael Moore’s new movie Sicko. The movie was fairly entertaining as it attempted to persuade the audience that universal health care is the way to go in the U.S. It was, however, a far from accurate portrayal of health care in the U.S., Cuba, France, the UK, and Canada. The…
According to a recent Christian Health Association poll, healthcare ranks at the top of most Americans’ priority lists. Excluding Iraq, 29% of individuals believed that “providing affordable health care” was the most important issue facing America. This was followed by “Ensuring homeland security” [22%]; “Reducing government spending and taxes” [19%], “Improving public education” [13%], and…
According to the Wall Street Journal (“Gates Grant Targets Health Gauges“), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has donated $105 million to the University of Washington to establish an institute to measure the impact of public-health programs. The new institute which will be created will focus on quantitative measures of health and will be headed…
The New York Times (“…the Money Value of a Personâs Life“) has a non-technical article describing how economists value a year of life. One standard methodology–the quality-adjusted life year (QALY) is discussed. “The idea of QALY is to put a value on treatments that may not save lives but improve them. For example, if a…
This Sunday’s New York Times’ Magazine has a bunch of interesting, non-technical articles about income inequality. Should we globalize labor too? “[Development Economist Lant Pritchett] likens the limits on labor mobility to ‘apartheid on a global scale.’” The Inequality Conundrum. Roger Lowestein discusses the age-old debate between equity and efficiency. Larry Summer’s Evolution. “The history…
According to a 2005 Health Affairs article by Himmelstein et al. (“Illness And Injury As Contributors To Bankruptcy“), about half of all individuals filing for personal bankruptcy cite medical expenses as one of the major causes. A lapse in insurance coverage contributed to many of these high medical expenses which lead to the bankruptcy.
What issues are facing primary care physicians in the near future? A nice article by Eugene Rich and Anna Maio discusses just this topic in their paper “Late to the Feast: Primary Care and US Health Policy.” Some issues discussed are: How FFS payment systems compare to prepaid-group practice with regards to the type of…
The Times of London reports (“…no surgery until you quit“) that smokers who needed surgery “…would not be added to waiting lists until they had given up smoking.” While there is vast medical evidence that shows the hazards of smoking as well as the fact that smoking reduces recovery time from surgery, should we really…
Today is Memorial Day. A day to remember all individuals around the world who gave their life during a time of war. I have never served in the military, so today I will defer to the Pen and Sworld blog written by retired U.S. Navy Commander Jeff Huber. In his post “My Memorial Day,” Mr.…