January 2010 - Health Beat - The Network of Care

The Unions Strike a Deal and The Truth About the Cadillac Tax

The Washington Post reports that union leaders are close to cutting a deal with Democrats on the so-called “Cadillac tax,” the 40% tax on expensive insurance plans that the Senate has proposed to help fund health care reform. According to... Read More...

Published Thu, Jan 14 2010 2:09 PM by Health Beat

Atul Gawande’s Manifesto: HealthCare Reform on the Ground-- Part 1

On the first page of his new book, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, Boston surgeon Atul Gawande tells the story of a man who arrives at an ER with a stab wound on Halloween night. The doctors... Read More...

Published Tue, Jan 12 2010 4:24 PM by Health Beat

How Insurers May Use “Wellness Programs” To Target Pre-Existing Conditions

Under reform, insurers will still do their best to shun the sick. Over at AlterNet, health care editor Adele Stan points to one way they may do it: by using “wellness programs” to penalize those who can’t meet health targets.... Read More...

Published Tue, Jan 12 2010 11:41 AM by Health Beat

Anecdotal Evidence Does Not Make Good Policy

Recently, a series of anecdotes appeared on the website People’s Pharmacy, posted by readers who suffer from depression. They detail how switching from name brand antidepressants to generics—or in some cases from one generic to another—caused a return...

Published Mon, Jan 11 2010 3:37 PM by Health Beat

Persuading Canadians to “Hustle Off to Buffalo”

If you drive from Buffalo, New York to Ontario, Canada, you’re likely to see this message on highway billboards: “Fast-track Your Medical Procedure Here.” The red arrow on the sign points Canadians to Buffalo’s Kaleida Health, a five-hospital health care...

Published Sun, Jan 10 2010 11:36 AM by Health Beat

Health Care in Norway- Part 2

The story of the “Norway Solution” to hospital infections reminded me of a letter that I received in the fall, written by Svein U. Toverud, a Norwegian who lived in the U.S. from 1969 to 2003. While he was in... Read More...

Published Wed, Jan 06 2010 2:18 PM by Health Beat

Health Care in Norway: Part 1

“Aker University Hospital is a dingy place to heal. The floors are streaked and scratched. A light layer of dust coats the blood pressure monitors. A faint stench of urine and bleach wafts from a pile of soiled bedsheets dropped... Read More...

Published Wed, Jan 06 2010 1:51 PM by Health Beat

January 2010 - Health Beat

Syndication

Recent Posts

Tags

Archives