Does preventive care save money?

Aaron Carroll argues ‘no’ and–in most but not all cases–I agree with him.  Here is the evidence he cites: More health insurance does not reduce emergency department (ED) visits.  States that expanded Medicaid eligibility with ACA funding saw an increase in ED visits relative to non-expansion states.  In Oregon, individuals who won an eligibility ‘lottery’ to…

Sigmoidoscopy: The colonoscopy’s cheaper, equally effective predecessor

Physicians claims that colonoscopies are the gold standard of preventive medicine.  In 2008 the American Cancer Society deemed the colonoscopy as the preferred test and the health reform law (PPACA) will compel insurance companies to cover colonoscopies.  But does the sigmoidoscopy–the colonoscopy’s predecessor–offer less expensive, less invasive, equally effective preventive care? “[The sigmoidoscopy] looks at…