Medicare Maneuvers, Part 1: The Problem
July 2, 2008
Payment cuts for doctors who treat Medicare patients - which have been looming for about a year - finally went into effect yesterday. The payment cuts of 10.6% will affect the 600,000 doctors who treat Medicare patients, and thus millions of elderly and disabled Medicare enrollees who rely on them.
Maybe if you’re under 65 and/or not relying on government health care benefits you think this isn’t your problem. You’re wrong.
A little history (based on the writings of Jonathan Cohn):
The DNA Dilemma: Desperate for a Diagnosis?
June 11, 2008
Yesterday, we posted on last month’s passage of the Federal Government’s Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.
We hope that the law will help protect Americans’ coverage and employment despite their genetic likelihood for disease. This should allow them to feel more comfortable with seeking information about their own DNA in order to better manage their health.
Prior to this legislation passing, however, patients were seeking more private ways of testing their DNA - primarily through take-home kits.
Diabetes: Drugs, Diet and Data
May 27, 2008
Picnic season is upon us – a time for cookouts and gatherings around the grill or at the park. This means burgers and hot dogs, potato salad and chips, ice cream and lemonade. This means we’ll be tempted to pack on pounds even as we’re trying to cram ourselves into shorts and bikinis.
For those Americans with diabetes, all the starch and sugar that come with summertime meals and outings are a serious hazard not just for their waistline but also for their health.
Thank You for Smoking
April 14, 2008
People have been smoking tobacco for over a thousand years. Even a generation ago smoking was considered the norm. Now we know of its link to a variety of cancers and diseases, and many laws have been introduced at all levels of government to try to protect nonsmokers and smokers alike. The numbers of U.S. smokers are declining, but cigarette smoking is the still the single most preventable cause of untimely death in this country – claiming 400,000 Americans each year – 1 in every 5 deaths. Treating cancer cost $219 billion in 2007.
Have a Heart
April 9, 2008
Have you heard the flak that began early this year over the now infamous ad for the cholesterol drug Lipitor? In the world of marketing nothing beats celebrity.
In the view of Pfizer, apparently, nothing beats a celebrity doctor to convince folks that the science behind a medicine is sound. Thus began the 2-year ad campaign in 2006 in which the famous inventor Dr. Robert Jarvik touts what became the world’s best selling medication, Lipitor, with billions in sales. Except that, even though Robert Jarvik got his M.D. and created the artificial heart, he is not licensed to practice medicine. (He tells his side of the story here.)
Dialysis Treatment – A Punch in the Kidneys
April 2, 2008
Here’s a fact that may surprise you: kidney failure is the one disease that you can get coverage for – from the Federal Government - no matter what.
For this reason, after 30 months of treatment by a private insurer, dialysis facilities bill Medicare regardless of whether the patient is over 65 or financially stable. For those with kidney failure (End Stage Renal Disease) due to diabetes or other causes, having a machine take over the complicated (and therefore expensive) task of cleaning their blood several times a week allows them to live.
Costs of Cancer Care?
March 31, 2008
Part of the heartache of cancer is that surviving it is ultimately a game of statistics. There are no assurances - except in the worst case scenarios where they are grim.
Even determining the best treatment is a matter of weighing likelihoods rather than having clear-cut solutions. On top of all that, patients must deal with the cost of various treatments.
Fortunately, cancer death rates have been falling in recent years - for several reasons:
- There is more and more information available on how to prevent cancer.
- Regular screening can catch the disease in early stages when it’s more treatable.
Health Care: The Joke Is On You
March 7, 2008
It seemed to be health care night over at Comedy Central’s nighttime “news” shows last night. First, John Stewart interviewed former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle about his new book Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis.
According to the Publishers Weekly summary of the book:
Beware Drug Reps Bearing Gifts
February 21, 2008
Only 1 in 3 medical schools have policies to prevent conflicts of interest between their academic departments and the drug or medical device companies that may fund individual researchers. Only 6 U.S. medical schools are completely free from the “influence” of pharmaceutical kickbacks. While universities as private institutions set their own rules on ethics and proprieties, government can regulate medical professionals and health care.
Now Minnesota is leading the way in banning drug company gifts to doctors. In 2005, a state official decided that current law allowed the state to forbid drug makers from giving doctors more than $50 worth of food or other gifts per year. Since then, this kind of direct-to-doctor marketing has decreased, with the number of visits from drug reps declining twice as fast as the rate nationwide.
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