Like other businesses, hospitals rely on promotions to generate customers. But when the customer is buying health care, an ill-advised promotion can do irreparable harm. Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy organization, has embarked on a campaign to stop 20 different 20 hospital systems from partnering with companies that offer low-cost screenings for heart disease and….
Continue ReadingArchives for July 2014
Why Medical Providers Ignore Disabled Patients
People with physical or mental disabilities have disadvantages the rest of us can only imagine, and when it comes to the delivery of health care, the insult is compounded. Disabled patients have a harder time than other people in finding a doctor, and when they do, they receive inferior health care, less information about prevention….
Continue ReadingPet Health Insurance Is Far Easier to Understand than Policies for People
A family rescued a dog from a local shelter, took him to the vet to treat a minor ear problem and learned a profound lesson: “It tells you everything you need to know about the U.S. health-care system that you can get more comprehensive coverage for a dog than you can for a human being.”….
Continue ReadingCan Doctors Avoid Conflicts of Interest?
As editor-in-chief of JAMA for 11 years, Dr. Catherine DeAngelis was known for her outspoken views about the deficiencies of U.S. health care and the drug industry. Her recent commentary, “Conflicts of Interest in Medical Practice and Their Costs to the Nation’s Health and Health Care System,” continues her campaign to expose what’s wrong with….
Continue ReadingYour Toothbrush — An Essential Health Tool, a Potential Threat
We all brush our teeth every day, sometimes several times. But most of us remain unaware that the humble toothbrush can carry a medical textbook’s worth of nasty bugs. A toothbrush can play host to Staphylococci (commonly from mucus membranes and skin), yeasts, intestinal bacteria and even fecal germs. But instead of tossing it into….
Continue ReadingRapist Who Got His Medical License Is Accused of Assaulting a Patient
Last year, Maryland lawmakers declined to pass a bill promoting background checks for health-care providers. Had they acted differently, maybe a man who had been convicted of rape wouldn’t have been granted his Maryland medical license. Maybe he wouldn’t be facing charges of assaulting a patient in April. As explained by the Baltimore Sun, the….
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