April 5th, 2010 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Announcements, Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion
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President Obama likes to shake things up. He has named Dr. Donald Berwick to head the Medicare and Medicaid Agency known as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). This is a huge government agency with a budget of over $800 BILLION a year. That is more than most countries in the world have. Dr. Berwick would be a major force in implementing the new health laws and changing Medicare to be more efficient and cost effective.
The average person probably doesn’t know who Dr. Don Berwick is, but he is a big name in the healthcare industry. A pediatrician by training, he is the president of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and is a national leader on quality and patient safety. By telling stories that people can relate to, he is a transformational leader for reducing hospital errors and reducing variability in care. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
April 2nd, 2010 by DavidHarlow in Announcements, Better Health Network, Health Policy, Humor, Medblogger Shout Outs
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This week, healthcare reform looms large in the minds of medical blog carnival hosts. Evan Falchuk’s healthcare reform edition of Grand Rounds is up at his See First blog. Rch Elmore hosts the current Health Wonk Review at his Healthcare Technology News (check out the flying pigs photos and more; cf. the HealthBlawger’s “First Hundred Days” edition of Blawg Review for another reference to flying pigs).
The next edition of Health Wonk Review will be hosted right here on April 15th. The themes we will be exploring in that bi-weekly exegesis of health wonkery include the following:
- Metaphors
- Lying
- Song (esp. the blues)
- Art (esp. painting, drawing)
- Inventors and their contraptions
- Fast food
- Liberation
- Cosmetic surgery/medical spas
- Impressionist 19th century novels
- Immenseness
- Mortality
- Racial integration
And, of course…
Please submit your best examples of health wonkishness in these categories no later than 9 a.m. EDT Wednesday April 14th, thank you (extra points for early submissions), and come back on the 15th to learn more than you ever wanted to know about healthcare policy and to see the meaning of these categories revealed. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at HealthBlawg :: David Harlow's Health Care Law Blog*
April 2nd, 2010 by DrRob in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Humor, Opinion
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Name: “21” (% to be cut from Medicare)
Protagonist: Dr. Rob and a cast of thousands of physicians (Kiefer Sutherland wouldn’t work for such small payment.)
Villain: Evil SGR (Sustainable Growth Rate) conspiracy to cut Medicare by 21% across the board.
Victim: The elderly population depending on Medicare for payment of their medical care.
Plot: A follow-up to the popular drama “Lost” where members of congress were stranded in Washington D.C. with the task of reforming healthcare without any contact or communication from doctors and patients. This new drama “21″ tells the tragic tale of an industry under siege and a population facing possible disaster.
Already stretched to the limit by the paltry reimbursement from Medicare for primary care office visits, Dr. Rob and his band of physicians is hit by the evil conspiracy of SGR, a secret society whose goal is to harm the elderly people in the country by driving away all people willing to give them care. The congress, tired out from haggling over the healthcare reform bill, allows evil SGR to exert its power in the name of “fiscal responsibility.” Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Musings of a Distractible Mind*
March 31st, 2010 by Davis Liu, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion, Primary Care Wednesdays
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Is healthcare a right or a privilege? Depending on how you view this determines how you feel about the recent healthcare reform which was signed by President Obama. As a doctor, I firmly believe that having healthcare is a right.
As a nation, we agree that individuals should be accountable for their actions. People often argue that those who are reckless with their bodies by ingesting chemicals via cigarettes or drug use and who subsequently develop cancers shouldn’t be subsidized by others’ insurance premiums as the latter group works hard at staying healthy by exercising, maintaining a healthy weight, and eating generous portions of fruits and vegetables. Some how it isn’t fair. Unfortunately, life and good health aren’t quite that easy or predictable. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Saving Money and Surviving the Healthcare Crisis*
March 31st, 2010 by SteveSimmonsMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Opinion, Primary Care Wednesdays
1 Comment »
As the period of debate over the Healthcare Reform Bill ends with President Obama penning his signature, one moment from the “debate” at Blair House stands out in my mind. A Republican Congressman sitting behind a copy of the then-current reform bill –- a pile higher than 2,000 pages –- was mocked for using such a prop. It’s complicated to fix healthcare with the laconic response to his theatrics.
Things don’t appear to have grown any simpler as we settle in for a period of discovery to determine exactly what this new law spells out for us in terms of reform. There is no consensus on whether this law will help or hinder, and I’m worried.
I cannot read 2,600 pages written in legalese. I juggle my time now to keep up with the medical literature necessary to adequately do my job and I suspect other physicians struggle similarly. All doctors fight a daily battle with time, trying to care for each patient in the best way possible (this is why many of us walk so fast through hospitals and clinics.) I hope that healthcare reform doesn’t result in less time for direct patient care. Read more »
