The second enrollment period for the federal and state insurance exchanges under Obamacare is well underway, and many people also renew or switch job-based insurance plans this time of year. But for a lot of people who must make important coverage decisions, many policy terms might as well be written in Swahili. The Kaiser Family….
Continue ReadingArchives for November 2014
Suggested Reading: How Counterfeit Surgical Screws Found Their Way to Market and Cost People Their Health
Over the summer, the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) broke the story of surgeons who used counterfeit screws and rods in spine surgery, causing crippling outcomes and mounting lawsuits. Now, the CIR has published the back story in a chilling tale of greed and regulatory sloth. Ortho Sol makes precision screws for spinal fusion surgery…..
Continue ReadingFDA Delays Regulation to Restore Legal Rights for Consumers Hurt by Generic Drugs
For several years, a legal battle has waged over whether generic drug manufacturers may change warning label information if the brand name drugs they replicate have not done so. So, to protect consumers from court rulings that left them vulnerable, the FDA proposed a regulation allowing generic drug makers to update their labels before receiving….
Continue ReadingHospitals Also Are Guilty of Overusing Antibiotics
Despite years of consciousness-raising about the overuse of antibiotics and the consequent difficulty of developing new, effective drugs to fight infection, hospitals continue to give too many patients too many kinds of antibiotics. A report recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) concluded that about half of all hospital patients receive….
Continue ReadingCalling Out the Corruption in Medical Care
When physicians air their grievances on the New York Times op-ed page about how health care in the U.S. is undermined by dark forces, even skeptics should pay attention. In a commentary last week called “How Medical Care Is Being Corrupted,” Drs. Pamela Hartzband and Jerome Groopman declared that “financial forces largely hidden from the….
Continue ReadingFDA Reminds Consumers that Nonprescription Drugs Can Impair Driving
Although many people believe that any medicine you can buy without a prescription can’t hurt you if you follow the directions, that’s not necessarily true – all drugs have potential side effects, and some over-the-counter (OTC) meds can impair your ability to think and react quickly enough to perform common functions as you normally would…..
Continue ReadingToo Few Women Are Screened for Cervical Cancer
Earlier this year, experts concluded that most women don’t need annual pelvic exams, but they also confirmed that regular Pap tests are still necessary to screen for cervical cancer. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, recently concluded that millions of women are not getting this test. According to the CDC, 8 million women….
Continue ReadingRobotic Technology Costs More and Has More Complications for Ovary and Cyst Removal
The use of robots in the surgical suite has a checkered history and a fat file of lawsuits by patients who suffered burns, bleeding and other serious harms. Another study has added to the record of woe: robot-assisted surgery to remove ovaries or ovarian cysts had more complications than more traditional and less invasive procedures,….
Continue ReadingHospital Settles with Ebola Victim’s Family
Last week Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital settled the malpractice claims brought by the family of Thomas Eric Duncan, the man who died of Ebola because of serial mistakes the Dallas facility made. Although the terms of the settlement weren’t disclosed, the family’s attorney, according to the Los Angeles Times, said it was comparable to what….
Continue ReadingJudge Smacks Down Nursing Home For Trying to Force Arbitration on Customers
A judge in Pennsylvania did the right thing last week in tossing out a mandatory arbitration clause in a lawsuit concerning neglect at a nursing home. Readers of this blog know that forcing people into arbitration when there’s a dispute that rightfully belongs in a court of law is never good for the aggrieved party…..
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