Robot Visits Patients When Doctor Can't

 

BALTIMORE -- Has it come to this? Robots standing in for doctors at the hospital patients' bedside?

Not exactly, but some doctors have found a way to use a videoconferencing robot to check on patients while they're miles from the hospital.

This photo taken in Dec. 2006 and released by the Sinai Hospital of Baltimore on Friday, July 13, 2007, shows Cindy Parslow RN, BSN, left, and Vera Taylor, RN, right, as they talk to Dr. Alex Gandsas, MD, on the screen, using a videoconferencing robot at the Sinai Hospital of Baltimore. Outfitted with cameras, a screen and microphone, the joystick-controlled robot is guided into the rooms of Dr. Gandsas' patients at Sinai Hospital, where he speaks to them as if he were right there. (AP Photo/Sinai Hospital of Baltimore) (AP)

Michael Chan, executive vice president with InTouch Technologies, said his company's device allows physicians to "be in more than one place at once."

Robot Visits Patients When Doctor Can't - washingtonpost.com

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Dr. Reddy responds to newspaper article about Prime Health Care

 Original article link posted a few days ago from the Los Angeles Times...BD

Executives at Prime Healthcare, Desert Valley Hospital’s parent company, sent a barrage of critical letters to the Los Angeles Times for its July 8 story about chairman Prem Reddy.
Accusing its author, Daniel Costello, of “entirely fabricating” quotes and taking others out of context, Dr. Reddy and several colleagues said the story, which took a critical look at Dr. Reddy and his company, “is factually inaccurate and erroneous.”
A condensed, Associated Press version of the story appeared on A1 of Monday’s Daily Press.
“As a practicing physician for over 30 years, I take serious offense to Costello’s gross assertion that I stated ‘that patients may simply deserve only the amount of care they can afford.’ ”

“When premiums were $100, insurance companies paid 85 percent. Now that premiums are $400 to $500, they’re still paying $85 to hospitals. The premiums have gone up, and they are pocketing all the money.”

Although Dr. Reddy was deeply offended by what he considers to be “a gross misstatement of the facts,” he said he would not take legal action because he considers it a waste of time.

Victorville Daily Press : Local News: Dr. Reddy responds to newspaper article | reddy, care, healthcare

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California Hospitals fighting financial ills - the haves and have nots...

 

A tiny Sonoma County hospital is losing $500,000 a month. A cash-strapped Tuolumne County hospital is shutting most operations next week. But Sacramento-based Sutter Health reports a 33 percent jump in earnings.

Increasingly, the financial state of California's hospitals can be summed up as a tale of the haves vs. the have-nots. As is often the case in such stories, researchers told state officials during a Capitol briefing Friday, the rich are getting richer and the poor, poorer.

More than a third of the state's 355 acute-care hospitals lost money in 2005, according to the study funded by the California HealthCare Foundation, an independent think tank in Oakland.

News - Hospitals fighting financial ills - sacbee.com

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Why Aren't Hospitals Cleaner? Not All Deadly Infections Come From Dirty Hands. Check The Lab Coats

 

Restaurants and cruise ships are inspected for cleanliness. Food processing plants are tested for bacterial content on cutting boards and equipment. But hospitals, even operating rooms, are exempt. The Joint Commission, which inspects and accredits U.S. hospitals, doesn't measure cleanliness. Neither do most state health departments, nor the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
No wonder hospitals are dirty. New data presented in April at the annual meeting of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America documented the lack of hygiene in hospitals and its relationship to deadly infections. Boston University researchers who examined 49 operating rooms found that more than half of the objects that should have been disinfected were overlooked. A study of patient rooms in 20 hospitals in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C., found that more than half the surfaces that should have been cleaned for new patients were left dirty.
Germ-coated. Sad to say, cleanliness is not a priority for hospital administrators or most medical professionals. A new University of Maryland study shows that 65 percent of physicians and other medical professionals admitted they hadn't washed their lab coat in at least a week, even though they knew it was dirty. Nearly 16 percent said they hadn't put on a clean lab coat in at least a month. Lab coats become covered in bacteria when doctors lean over the bedsides of patients who carry the organisms. Days later the bacteria are still alive, repeatedly contaminating doctors' hands and being carried to other patients

Why Aren't Hospitals Cleaner?, Commentary: Not All Deadly Infections Come From Dirty Hands. Check The Lab Coats - CBS News

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Doctors forge ahead - another California hospital in need of cash

 

Officials overseeing cash strapped Doctors Medical Center in San Pablo voted this week to move forward with a strategy to save the hospital even though it doesn't have the money.

Its plan requires $5 million in short-term funding by August -- and a total $20 million over the next 14 months -- but the hospital didn't know at a July 11 meeting if it will have the funds.

Doctors forges ahead - East Bay Business Times:

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Program keeps doctors' addictions secret

Drug tests for physicians? 

SACRAMENTO - A former trial lawyer and state senator, Joe Dunn battled the greedy and unscrupulous on behalf of the little guy.

Today, however, as executive vice president and CEO of the California Medical Association, Dunn finds himself leading an organization that's defending a secretive and controversial medical program that some say endangers patients.

Take Dr. Brian West, a plastic surgeon in Long Beach and Beverly Hills. West has been accused of horribly disfiguring several patients when he worked in Northern California a few years ago. He also twice was convicted of drunk driving.

The Medical Board of California has never been able to link West's substance abuse to the allegedly botched surgeries, but the graduate of UC Irvine's medical school was able to keep his alcoholism secret thanks to the board's Diversion Program.

"It's a huge problem. There's an error rate of 25 percent because they're not performing drug tests randomly," said Assemblyman Jose Solorio, a Santa Ana Democrat who chairs the Assembly Public Safety Committee and represents many of the same neighborhoods Dunn once did. "It's definitely a public safety issue."

Article - News - Program keeps doctors' addictions secret

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Medical Marijuana in California High School

Interesting video from this high school in San Diego.  All you need is a "pot card" and it seems you are set, even to lighting up in class if needed.  BD

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Ugly Health Care Waiting Times in Canada? Look at the U.S

Comparing US and Canadian wait times, the referral process here seems to be one of the largest contributors to wait times, even as identified by Aetna.  BD

What country endures such long waits for medical care that even one of its top insurers recently admitted that care is "not timely" and people "initially diagnosed with cancer are waiting over a month, which is intolerable?"

If you guessed Canada, guess again. The answer is the United States.

Scrambling for a response to the popular reaction to Michael Moore's SiCKO and a renewed groundswell for a publicly-financed, guaranteed health care, single-payer health care solution like HR 676, the big insurers and their defenders have pounced on Canada, pulling out all their old tales of people waiting years in soup kitchen-type lines for medical care.

But, here's the dirty little secret that they won't tell you. Waiting times in the U.S. are as bad as or worse than Canada. And, unlike the U.S., in Canada no one is denied needed medical care, referrals, or diagnostic tests due to cost, pre-existing conditions, or because it wasn't pre-approved.

U.S. waiting times are like the elephant in the room few of the critics care to address. Listen to what the chief medical officer of Aetna had to say in March.

Statistics Canada's latest figures show that median wait times for elective surgery in Canada is now three weeks -- that's less time than Aetna's chief medical officer says Americans typically wait after being diagnosed with cancer.

Canada also has no waits for emergency surgeries. It also doesn't have 44 million people who are uninsured because everyone has a national healthcare card guaranteeing health care from any doctor or hospital they choose. And it doesn't burden those with insurance with rising deductibles or co-pays.

Deborah Burger: Ugly Health Care Waiting Times? Look at the U.S - Politics on The Huffington Post

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Hospital and Insurance Company communication error?

Strange that the hospital accounting system didn't reconcile the insurance payment and left the man under the influence of the collection arm for over a year.  BD

FLINT - It's the kind of health care horror story that sounds perfect for Michael Moore's new movie, "Sicko."

In August 2005, doctors in Florida opened Flint therapist Clayton Redfield's chest after he'd suffered a series of strokes. They found a tumor blocking his aorta. But Redfield's insurance company, Aetna, wouldn't pay the nearly $66,000 surgery cost, a letter from his Florida hospital said.

"We pay all our bills, but there was no way we could write a check out of our checking account for $66,000," said Redfield, 60. "We worried we'd lose our house."

For a year, Redfield, director of clinical programs at New Paths community corrections program in Flint, seemed to be stuck with the bill - until six months ago when, frustrated, he created a Web page about the problems.

It caught the attention of Moore as he worked on promotion of his film. In June, within 48 hours of Moore linking Redfield's Web page and YouTube.com video to his Web site, www.michaelmoore.com, a letter from Aetna informed Redfield and his wife they owed only a $500 co-pay.

A compelling story - except that Aetna says it had long since paid Redfield's bill.

"It was a matter of miscommunication," said an Aetna spokeswoman. "We paid the claim a year ago. The hospital pursued (Redfield) for the claim amount, instead of the co-pay. To our knowledge, Moore had no involvement at all."

'Sicko'-worthy?- mlive.com

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Doctors pick Flagship EMR to manage online records -(Honolulu)

 

The Hawaii Independent Physicians Association, the largest independent physicians' group in the state, has selected Flagship Global Health to provide it with programs and software to manage electronic medical records for their patients.

The association includes about 760 Hawaii doctors who have more than 10,000 patients.

Donahue declined to say how much the system will cost.

Donahue said the system will first be offered to patients with chronic diseases, such as heart disease or diabetes, but will eventually offer it to all their patients. The system will allow doctors and patients access to their health records via a secure Web site.

Doctors pick Flagship to manage online records - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

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Henry Ford Hospital And Wayne State University School Of Medicine Partner On Use Of Portable Ultrasound devices

 

Using medical diagnostic technology developed by GE Healthcare and educational techniques developed by NASA and Henry Ford Hospital, Wayne State University School of Medicine and Henry Ford have partnered to train medical students on the use of portable ultrasound equipment.
GE Healthcare has provided 30 of the lightweight ultrasound devices - the size of a computer laptop - for students to learn how to diagnose a wide range of ailments and Henry Ford coordinates the training.
"We see this form of ultrasound as an important tool to help state-of-the-art medicine grow," said Robert Frank, M.D., executive vice dean of Wayne State's medical school. "It is an empowering technology that will provide care to underserved areas - urban and rural - by putting ultrasound in the hands of all physicians."

Henry Ford Hospital And Wayne State University School Of Medicine Partner On Use Of Innovative Medical Technology

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Walking With A Computer Chip In Your Body

Some entrants in the walking event in the Netherlands will swallow a chip to measure body responses, as last year 2 people died during the event.  Simple procedure for participants, swallow the chip and results will be monitored via a computer.  BD

During the pilot study, 60 participants of different ages will be followed. Per walking distance 20 participants have been asked and agreed to cooperate with the research team. All physiological data of the 60 volunteers will be followed meticulously and compared to the weather conditions as measured by weather expert Jules Geirnaerdt. "By measuring the body responses in combination with different weather types for several years, a database will be composed which will help us to make the right arrangements for all weather conditions in the future", says professor Hopman.
Swallowing a chip
The body temperature will be measured during the walking event by means of a chip inserted into a pill. The volunteers will be asked to swallow the chip that will eventually leave the body in a natural way. The chip will send the data to the main computer, which will gather the data of all volunteers. Every day after completing the walk, the dehydration status (dehydration versus water intoxication) of the body will be determined by analyzing a small sample of blood that will be taken each day.

Walking With A Computer Chip In Your Body

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GW Micro - PDA for the blind

 

The Voice Sense is the smallest, lightest and most fashionable PDA for the visually impaired with a Perkins style keyboard for inputting information and synthesized voice for outputting information.

It has multimedia functions: a Daisy talking book player, an MP3 player and voice recording capabilities. Wireless networking features (such as wireless LAN and Bluetooth) are also available, as are many other Braille note taker features.

GW Micro - Voice Sense

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Simple shot becomes a pain - Medicare

 

A few years ago, I was anemic when I finished radiation and chemotherapy, and the doctors told me I'd need a blood transfusion in the hospital and perhaps some vitamin B12 shots when I became an outpatient.
Because I was in a hospital, the expensive transfusion was paid for by Medicare Part A. But it was a good thing I didn't need the B12 shots. The law that was supposed to "modernize" Medicare turned what should have been the simple business of getting a vitamin shot as an outpatient into a complicated and expensive federal case.

The reason is the privatized for-profit Part D. Under traditional Medicare, most preventive shots, like those for flu and pneumonia, are administered in a physician's office, a pharmacy or a clinic, and are covered by Part B, which pays for the vaccine as well as its administration.
But under the new law, Part B no longer covers many other injectables unless the patient purchases them through a Part D plan or pays for them out of pocket, and then takes them to the doctor for administration.

But seeking to coordinate a trip to the doctor with the purchase of the B12 cannot always be easy for many patients. One solution for many people is to buy the injectable B12 in bulk from Canadian sources and keep it at home. The better solution would be to put the benefit back under Part B, where it belongs.

GRAY MATTERS: Simple shot becomes a pain - Newsday.com

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How Rich Are You, Family Practice MD?

 

So just how rich are you? Are you doctor or lawyer rich? Are you CEO rich? Or perhaps pro athlete rich? Or maybe you’re just a poor shlub like me just an average Joe with an average income. The average is $46,000 but that’s for all families, if you refine it even more to traditional family average is $57,000. But now if you’re a dink (dual income no kids) it rises to $66,000 per year. I guess being childless you can travel on the job more and need less time off

Maybe you’re a doctor in family practice averaging $137,000 your rich! But not really, your classmate from med school who became a surgeon he’s high stepping at $228,839 and you thought you were rich but he’s going to leave you in the dust. Why in family Practice you’ll top out at $159.000 no wonder he won’t return your calls. Why once he gets his practice established he could move towards $325,000 double your paltry income! You don’t even make 5 times the national average for single men and if you were to get married it could be down right embarrassing. You went to school for how long, to make 5 times the national average? Why if you were to get married it would be down to three!

Our country doctor would have to work 125 years to earn what Barry Bonds earns in 162 games and he thought he was rich. The surgeon with his $325,000 income is working for baseball minimum wage, a rookie salary. The surgeon can earn his pennies year after year unless he makes a mistake. Then he’s subject to be sued and pay higher insurance premiums for the length of his career while the baseball player who drops a fly ball in the 9th inning of the world series will get booed but he gets to keep the cash. Of course the surgeon could always lower himself to family practice but could he stand the loss in income?

How Rich Are You?

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Medicaid HMO hit with nearly $4M state fine - Atlanta

 

The state has slammed one of its new Medicaid managed care organizations with a $3.7 million fine for denying patients timely access to critical medical services.

The fine appears to have prompted a top-level shakeup at Peach State Health Plan, one of three managed care organizations brought in last year as part of a sweeping new HMO-like program for Medicaid designed to save Georgia nearly $80 million in health-care costs in fiscal 2007.

Medicaid HMO hit with nearly $4M state fine - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Rock Star, Politicians Fight Military Discharges as deemed pre-existing personality disorders from the US Army

Is the army using "pre-existing personality disorder" to deny claims and insurance coverage?  We hear about pre-existing from the insurance side of things, but has this extended itself to the military too when it comes to medical care after serving in the war?  I would think something like this would have been recognized before deployment to Iraq with all the training one goes through, and upon return, I would almost bet you can talk to anyone who served a tour of duty during war times, the war also creates disorders in just dealing with the life and death situations.  Sounds almost like another repeat of Viet Nam to a degree as these folks are the ones there for us and we should remember that.  BD

A Quick Way Out

It is known as a "Chapter 5-13" — "separation because of personality disorder." The Army defines it as a pre-existing "maladaptive pattern of behavior of long duration" that interferes with the soldier's ability to perform his duties.

In practical terms, this diagnosis means the personality disorder existed before military service, and therefore medical care and disability payments are not the military's responsibility. But some veterans and veterans' advocates have been vocal in their belief that personality disorder is being misdiagnosed in combat veterans.

Veterans' Perspective

Donald Louis Schmidt of Chillicothe, Ill., was being treated for posttraumatic stress disorder after his second combat tour in Iraq. His commanders at Fort Carson later decided he was no longer mentally fit and discharged him with personality disorder.

"They just slapped me with that label to get me out quicker," Schmidt said. He said superiors told him "'Everything will be great. Peachy keen.' Well, it's not."

The discharge left Schmidt ineligible for disability pay and benefits. He was also required to return more than $10,000 of his $15,000 reenlistment bonus, but he said no one explained that to him until it was too late.

A Whistle-Blower

On the day he was discharged in the fall, Town met with Jeff Peskoff, a civilian employee in the personnel office at Fort Carson in Colorado, and learned he owed the Army $3,000 to repay his enlistment bonus.

"At some points it looked like he wanted to cry and at some point he looked like he wanted to rip my head off," Peskoff said.

Peskoff, who served 10 years in the Army, including a tour of Iraq, recently quit his job in disgust and is now speaking publicly for the first time.

Some prominent people took notice of Town's case after he was profiled in a Nation article earlier this year. Musician Dave Matthews spoke about him at a concert this spring at Radio City Music Hall in New York.

ABC News: Rock Star, Politicians Fight Military Discharges

And then we have this story that emerged right about the same time...BD

Pentagon says more funds needed for mental health

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The military's mental health system fails to meet the needs of troops and is too short of funds and staff to help service members sent to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Pentagon said on Friday.

http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN1526304820070615?pageNumber=2

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Phone scam targets Medicare recipients - Pennsylvania

 

People who use Medicare are being targeted in a telephone scam that surfaced in Cumberland County today.

Callers, claiming to work for the government's health insurer for senior citizens, insist they must issue a second Medicare card. All that's needed, the caller insists, is a senior's bank account information.

"The scary part is, these people who prey on the elderly know exactly which buttons to push," said Robert Burns, director of Dauphin County Area Agency on Aging.

"A lot of older people are trusting. They grew up in a different world than we are in," Hocking said.
Medicare users who think they may have been contacted by a scam artist or who have other questions may call 1-800-Medicare (1-800-633-4227).

Phone scam targets Medicare recipients - Breaking News with The Patriot-News: PennLive.com

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Medical Group Seeks To Block Scheduled Medicare Physician Reimbursement Reduction

This year there's a lot more action going on a lot earlier than in prior years it appears.  BD

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons in recent weeks has met with lawmakers to lobby for legislation to address "what it calls a looming crisis in its professional ranks," The Hill reports.
The society hopes to lobby lawmakers to include a provision to block a scheduled 10% reduction in Medicare physician reimbursements next year in SCHIP reauthorization legislation that the House Ways and Means Committee plans to consider this month. However, Senate leaders have said that they oppose the inclusion of such a provision in SCHIP reauthorization legislation. In addition, the "biggest obstacle ... is finding ways to pay" for such a provision, as a freeze in Medicare physician reimbursements "at this year's level would cost $21.7 billion over the next five years," according to The Hill.
According to the society, such a provision would provide a "short-term solution," but a "more sustainable solution is to track the quality and cost of health care," The Hill reports.

Medical Group Seeks To Block Scheduled Medicare Physician Reimbursement Reduction

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Tablet PC Buzz - Review of the I440D from Tablet Kiosk

Great review on the new Sahara unit...if you are looking for a new top notch tablet, take a few minutes out to check out the review.  BD

In summary, the i440D is an excellent example of current slate design with power and features that definitely raise the bar. The prototype, seen in February, has matured into an attractive and capable product that cries out for Vista so that these attributes can be properly showcased. Even if TK elects to stand pat on this design, Fujitsu and Motion had better start watching their backs more carefully!

 
The i440D exhibits many strong points in its design:
o A clean and trim form factor, easy to carry and cradle for use;
o A bright, easy-to-use dual-mode screen;
o A fast and powerful CPU and system architecture;
o A “bloat-less” software load (so refreshing!);
o Easy accessibility for wireless, RAM and HD upgrades;
o At a very decent price, and…
o The stand!

Tablet PC Buzz.com - Forum

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Firm basing deductibles on Health tests sees costs fall

Well sure it is working as there is more monetary responsibility for the employee, a no brainer here.  Those who don't meet the standards can sign up for weight loss and other health management classes through United.  What if one has a condition that can't be improved?  How do we answer the call here?  It states that items like cancer are not considered but we all know as data mining continues, it will have some impact as the process grows.  That is how all business is done today, based on facts and statistics through data mining and the drill down of cost versus return on investment will eventually drill down to the last ultimate penny to be counted, or employee to be evaluated for their return on investment for their state of health, perhaps not the for real job one may do.  BD

In my own opinion, there is a lack of sincerity somewhere along the line here, we want you to be healthy, not because we really care about your well being - you just cost us money if you are not healthy, and the fine for not adhering to the rules we have put in place, you pay more, and the rules can change any time too!  BD

Would $2,000 a year be enough to entice workers to live a healthier lifestyle — and would efforts to get them to do so result in slower health insurance cost increases in future years?

Still, managers of the Swiss Village Retirement Community — one of the first employers to try such a program — say they think it's working.

Three years ago, the non-profit organization in Berne, Ind., switched its 120 health insurance eligible employees from a $500 annual deductible on their health insurance to $2,500.

To help offset the cost increase, workers were offered a supplemental policy that would grant them credits worth up to $2,000 if they kept their weight in check, didn't smoke and met specific standards for blood pressure and cholesterol.

"We always wondered if there isn't something we can do to get people to take their health care seriously," says Daryl Martin, executive director of the continuing care retirement community.

The cost of providing health care dropped from 11.5% of wages before the program to 9.1% in the first year and have fallen to 7.5% since, Martin says.

Because of that, the amount workers pay in premiums has not increased in three years, he says. Part of the drop came from switching to the high deductible, says Martin, who also credits better health among employees for the rest.

USATODAY.com

Related information:  Read about the tax advantages a company receives for the program, so again, is there a human outreach to get healthy, or just another way to save a buck.  Who runs companies like this, the payors?  BD

http://www.benicompselect.com/faq/tax_advantages.htm

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Brits Keep Fit To Look Good, Not Reduce Cancer Risk, UK

I knew it, looks are more important!  Seriously though, if reducing cancer risk at the same time is another benefit, then it is a win-win.  I can almost bet the same is true here in the US too.  BD

UK men and women say reducing their risk of cancer is last on a list of reasons to exercise, according to a national survey* by Cancer Research UK and Cannons.
After keeping fit, the main motivation for 16-24 year olds to exercise is to look good. 59 per cent of women said they wanted to lose weight. And only 39 per cent of people wanted to reduce their risk of cancer.
Surprisingly, 16 per cent of women were not motivated by either health or vanity, and worryingly admitted to not taking any exercise at all.
The good news is that some messages about the benefits of activity and maintaining a healthy heart are getting through to people. 59 per cent of people cited reducing their risk of heart disease as a reason for taking part in sport or exercising.

Brits Keep Fit To Look Good, Not Reduce Cancer Risk, UK

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Americans cheer SiCKO, but not all convinced

If you can't fit in some time to see the movie, talk to someone who has had an unfavorable experience and see what you might learn, or talk with small employers and listen to some of what they may have to say.  Unless you have been affected personally, its really an awareness that many may not have any knowledge of as they have not perhaps have not had a catastrophic incident or known anyone who has.    BD

"We are ready, but the politicians and the businessmen are not. The health-care industry certainly is going to oppose this for all they're worth," said Tom, a college professor.

Sue, a retired medical technician, said she'd seen hospital administrators fight to contain costs for needed care.

"Everything now is based on cost -- how much money they can save. And a lot of people that work in hospitals themselves can't afford the insurance that hospitals offer because their pay is so low," she said.

In New York City, 75-year-old Philip Peppis said he was ready to vote for change in November 2008.

"How did this country get so completely selfish?" he asked after leaving a "SiCKO" matinee. "It's really embarrassing, the way this country treats people."

Americans cheer SiCKO, but not all convinced | Health | Reuters

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD

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Cal. nonprofit hospitals take center stage as Brown vetoes sale of Anaheim Medical Center to Prime Healthcare Services

 

SACRAMENTO -- San Diego is fine but not Anaheim. That's the message California Attorney General Jerry Brown's office sent Wednesday to an expanding health-care chain.
The AG's office Wednesday gave the thumbs-down to the agreed sale of non-profit, 224-bed Anaheim Memorial Medical Center to for-profit Desert Valley-based Prime Healthcare Services. Prime had announced the $55 million purchase earlier this year.

One healthcare expert called the AG's decision to block the sale "extraordinary."

But five months ago Brown's office waved through Prime's equally controversial, $30 million purchase of 301-bed Paradise Valley Hospital near San Diego. Critics said a $40-million from hospital physicians should have been considered.
Opposition to Brown's decision there pushed a San Diego Democrat to introduce a bill giving the AG broader grounds to dismiss sales of non-profit hospitals to for-profit groups. Currently the AG can block sales only on fair-market-value grounds.

LegalNewsline | Cal. nonprofit hospitals take center stage as Brown vetoes sale

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Major E-Health Records Project Unravels Into Legal Battle

We may not see any action from Dossia in the near future if the items in this article hold true.  E-health records can be a good thing, but unfortunately privacy issues and organizations using the information for profitability, insurance qualification and claim processing is standing in the way and doesn't look to go away any time soon.  If the public could be assured that data mining for other purposes would not take place and privacy would be assured...well it could be a different story, not to mention the flurry of lawsuits that are emerging.  BD

Electronic health systems are supposed to help improve health care. But apparently, if you're involved with a big project to build an e-health records system, it can be harmful to your own health. Side effects may include headaches, lost sleep, and lawsuits.

Those are just some of problems being faced by those involved with the ambitious e-health record systems project launched in December by the Dossia Consortium, an employer coalition that includes Wal-Mart, Intel, Pitney Bowes, Applied Materials(AMAT), British Petroleum, and Cardinal Health.

Dossia's ambitious project to provide e-health records to more than 2.5 million employees, retirees, and dependents is unraveling, at least when it comes to the relationship it has with Omnimedix Institute, the nonprofit organization that Dossia hired to develop the system, which was to include a massive, federated data warehouse.

Despite the trouble between Dossia and Ominmedix, "Dossia is committed to providing lifelong health records to its employees," said the spokeswoman, who wears dual hats for Dossia and Intel.

Dossia "knew we'd need multiple vendors" said the spokeswoman, who admits that the coalition is "talking to other vendors" about providing technology and other services for the worker e-health record project. Dossia remains committed to offering e-health records to at least some employees by the "end of 2007," she said.

While the Dossia effort is ambitious in that it's the largest employer coalition currently attempting to provide workers with personal e-health records, Dossia isn't alone in the problems it's encountering in getting its e-health system moving along.

Exclusive: Major E-Health Records Project Unravels Into Legal Battle -- E-Health Records

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Single-payer care faces obstacles - Opinions

A short comparison between France and the US...and there's some real truth to the last line here....BD

What is the problem? HMO's/insurance companies act as middlemen. A third of the costs of providing health care in this country go into the insurance company bureaucracy, PR, stock options and profits. Those things have nothing to do with providing health care and create enormous inefficiencies.

What is the solution? In France (ranked first by WHO) the profit is removed from the system. The government acts as a "single payer" that subsidizes all the costs of health care. Because the middleman is removed, health care is much cheaper to provide, and although citizens may pay for the service in taxes, they are paying much less overall. Hospitals and practices remain privately owned and operated, so they can compete with each other and stay efficient and drive down costs (you can choose any doctor you'd like). Single-payer care also means poor citizens don't forego preventive care and pack the emergency rooms, further driving down the cost of health care.

Former British MP Tony Benn says it best in SiCKO in reference to war-torn Britain's decision to create the National Health Service in 1948: "If you can find money to kill people, you can find money to help people."

Single-payer care faces obstacles - Opinions

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California rates cardiac surgeons' performance

 

Starting today, Californians can learn by name which surgeons at which hospitals have significantly better or worse death rates for a common procedure: coronary bypass.

“This is the first time California has reported on surgical mortality results for individual surgeons,” said Dr. David Carlisle, director of the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, which compiled the statistics.

State rates cardiac surgeons' performance | The San Diego Union-Tribune

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Legislation Would Provide Tax Credits To Businesses That Offer Workers 'Wellness' Programs

Get ready to put those treadmills in place for a tax credit, and of course be sure to have a video running at the same time with all the education materials, which is not a bad idea as you can multifunction on a treadmill if needed.  BD 

Senate Appropriations Labor-Health-Education Subcommittee Chair Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, on Monday introduced legislation that would provide a tax credit to businesses that offer wellness programs for their employees, CQ Today reports (Teitelbaum, CQ Today, 7/9). The legislation would provide businesses a tax credit "worth 50% of the costs they incur per employee for wellness and preventive health care services," CongressDaily reports. Companies would receive a tax credit of up to $200 for the first 200 employees participating in a wellness program and up to $100 per employee thereafter (CongressDaily, 7/9).
To qualify for the program, businesses would have to provide programs that meet at least three of four criteria, including: events to raise awareness and screen for health risks; seminars to boost behavioral change; incentives for participants; and a committee to oversee the wellness program (Shellnutt, Bloomberg/Houston Chronicle, 7/9). Businesses that offer wellness programs would be eligible for the credit for up to 10 years under the legislation.

Legislation Would Provide Tax Credits To Businesses That Offer Workers 'Wellness' Programs

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Beta-Blockers Slow, Even Reverse Coronary Artery Disease, Cleveland Clinic Study Shows

A Cleveland Clinic study is reporting that beta-blockers, a class of drugs used to lower blood pressure and prevent symptoms in a variety of heart conditions, can slow progression and can even induce regression of coronary artery disease.
The study appears in the July 3, 2007, issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine and suggests that all patients with coronary disease can benefit from this class of agents.

Beta-Blockers Slow, Even Reverse Coronary Artery Disease, Cleveland Clinic Study Shows

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More Nursing School Applicants Denied Admission, Shortage Increasing, Study Finds

More folks applying for nursing careers, but now where do we find instructors?  BD 

Despite a growing shortage of nurses nationwide, the number of applicants denied admission to nursing schools has increased six fold since 2002 because of a lack of instructors, according to a report released Monday by PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Research Institute, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

More Nursing School Applicants Denied Admission, Shortage Increasing, Study Finds

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Opening door to imported drugs is not without risks

Even with safe trade partners, products can still have origins in other countries, so this would be a real nightmare to monitor.  BD

Allowing the importation of prescription drugs with the ostensible purpose of saving consumers a few bucks is a dangerous response to high drug prices. Congress has a responsibility to protect Americans from overseas threats, not expose them to those hazards.
Unfortunately, Congress seems not to have learned from America's recent ordeal with tainted toothpaste.

Several members of Congress have introduced legislation to allow the importation of pharmaceuticals from abroad, promising that imports will be closely scrutinized and only permitted from certain countries.
But the reality is not so simple.

First, obtaining drugs from nations like Britain and France offers little protection, because chemicals, pharmaceuticals and other consumer goods move freely among the 27 European Union member states through a system of "parallel trade." And because the EU does not require drug importers to record such product information as batch numbers, it's quite common for goods to travel outside official distribution channels. Therefore, drugs purchased from "safe" countries may well have originated in Latvia, Cyprus or elsewhere in the EU, where there are ample opportunities for counterfeit drugs to enter the legitimate supply chain.

Opening door to imported drugs is not without risks | Chicago Tribune

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VA to expand encryption to in-house removable storage

This is a great story, the VA is finally going to require encryption for portable storage devices,...what took so long, too many embarrassing stories?  Look for this to expand to a hospital near you.  If anyone on this blog has questions regarding encryption, please don't hesitate to contact us for additional information. All the items listed are portable storage devices that already require encryption so this one is a little confusing in nature.  BD

The Veterans Affairs Department will now require encryption for portable storage devices used internally effective in December because of a data breach at its medical center in Birmingham, Ala., earlier this year. VA already requires the use of encrypted flash drives, hard drives and other removable devices when employees have permission to take personally identifiable data off site.

Now the agency will coordinate with the Office of Management and Budget and the President’s Identity Theft Task Force to develop government wide criteria for determining under what conditions potential identity theft victims should be notified and offered free credit monitoring, said Robert Howard, VA’s chief information officer, in a letter to the agency’s Office of Inspector General in late June.

FCW.com News - VA to expand encryption to in-house removable storage

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South County Hospital billing information stolen, this time it was paper

 Why does this keep happening?  BD

SOUTH KINGSTOWN — Billing information for 79 individuals is missing after a briefcase belonging to an employee of the firm that handles South County Hospital’s accounts receivables was stolen late last month.

A customer service representative with Medical Bureau of Economics Inc., the Massachusetts company that handles some of the hospital’s billing and collections, picked up the documents from the billing office in Narragansett June 29, said Louis R. Giancola, hospital president.

South County Hospital billing information stolen | Rhode Island news | Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal

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Qliance Offers Low-Income Patients a Level of Doctor Access Once Reserved for CEOs and Other Big Spenders

 

A couple of years ago, Orange Cab driver Jagjit Singh, who lacked medical insurance, flew to his home country of India for a hernia operation, for which he paid $300 rather than the $16,000 he would have been charged in the U.S. Recently, Singh joined Qliance, a new boutique medical practice in downtown Seattle set to open on July 23. In fact, he says, so did roughly half of Orange Cab's drivers after hearing Qliance's pitch at the company's offices one day.

Singh is not your typical patient of a boutique medical practice; he earns about $50 or $60 a day—far less than the CEOs and other wealthy types who tend to pay the monthly, out-of-pocket fees that boutique (or concierge) practices charge for on-demand access to their doctors. That's because Qliance is not your typical boutique service. Indeed, it doesn't even like that term, which it says smacks of elitism.

Health: Qliance Offers Low-Income Patients a Level of Doctor Access Once Reserved for CEOs and Other Big Spenders (Seattle Weekly)

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Americans Are No Longer Free

One person's opinion of all the lost freedoms that are occurring in the US over the last century and the difference of how elected officials are viewed in the US and Europe.  Our elected officials do not seem to have the same fear of "not serving the public" as is the case in Europe, even when it comes to health care.  BD

Even though I am not a big Michael Moore fan, I am a believer in providing universal healthcare for all Americans. For that reason, I decided to see Michael Moore’s new movie “SiCKO” over last weekend. What surprised me after seeing the movie was not just the realization of the poor US healthcare coverage issues or how the drug and medical insurance companies are skewering the average American. Unfortunately, this reality is already being made public regularly in America on a day to day basis. What struck me even more than all of that was the stark realization of the major loss of freedoms that have slowly taken over the American middle and working classes in the past half century.

In Europe, the attitude of elected officials is also very different from those in America. The British and European government representatives tend to work more for the public, as they are continually in fear of being accused of not taking care of their citizens. In America, it is just the opposite. The citizens have instead learned to not trust their government politicians, much less expect them to provide support for the citizens. Today’s US citizen’s approval rating for the current US Executive is the lowest in US history. The only US citizen approval rating that is lower, is for that of the US Congress.

As wealthy, world-wide corporations continue to be allowed to acquire American companies and to ship their jobs overseas, the American middle class has become highly demoralized as it also continues to shrink. The financial divide between the upper and lower class in America continues to expand every year. And there doesn’t appear to be anything coming in the future that will change that situation.

American Chronicle: Americans Are No Longer Free

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Influx of Doctors Overwhelms Texas Board

Cost of malpractice insurance weighs heavily here..BD

The board received 4,000 applications for medical licenses in 2006, up from 2,992 the previous year. Spokeswoman Jill Wiggins said the board expects to approve 2,750 new licenses this year, 235 more than last year. There is a backlog of more than 2,398 applications.

Lawmakers approved $1.2 million to hire six more employees to process applications more quickly. The board has also hired temporary workers and is paying staffers overtime, but they still can't keep up, Wiggins said.

"The pipeline is just clogged," she said.

Influx of Doctors Overwhelms Texas Board - Forbes.com

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“Boutique” Medical Care, can “Boutique” Hospitals Be Far Behind? Ask Dr. Reddy from Prime Health Services in California.

 

Recently a “chain” of eight hospitals in California has been described as operating under a similar approach, involving the cancellation of insurance contracts and avoidance of serving Medicare or Medicaid patients, wherever possible.  The owner and operator is Prime Healthcare Services, owned by the family of Dr. Prem Reddy, described as one of the wealthiest physicians around, with two multi-million-dollar mansions and his own helicopter.

Rather than accept as little as 30% of charges from insurance payers, the hospitals do not contract with such payers, and collect about $10,000 per patient day at one of their facilities, desert Valley Hospital in Victorville.  The company’s total revenue, according to newspaper reports, is over $500 million a year, with profit at around 15% at several of its facilities, quoting Dr. Reddy.  The company has acquired seven hospitals since 2004, including four last year, with a total of 1256 beds overall, and has announced another “major acquisition” coming this year.

While specialty hospitals have avoided ERs in order to avoid having to accept all patients regardless of insurance, the Prime Health Services hospitals take advantage of their ERs as a major source of patients.  When patients are emergencies, they cannot be denied coverage by insurance, and since Prime does not contract with insurers, it can charge them their normal charges and expect to get paid.  I recall in my last job as Chief Marketing/Strategy Officer for a multi-hospital system in Denver, one insurer with whom we did not contract approached us with a request for discount prices when patients were admitted through our ERs, but offered nothing in return, so we kept charging and getting full-charge payment.

WorldHealthCareBlog.org » After “Boutique” Medical Care, can “Boutique” Hospitals Be Far Behind? : a hosted discussion on innovation in health care

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A report card for health care

Paying more money doesn't guarantee better health care according to this study from Pennsylvania.  BD

The conclusion: Paying more doesn't always yield better care.
That might surprise many Americans, who are conditioned to believe that a higher price usually signals better quality. In cars and diamonds that's often true. But not necessarily in medicine.

That might surprise many Americans, who are conditioned to believe that a higher price usually signals better quality. In cars and diamonds that's often true. But not necessarily in medicine.

The basic aim: To help people make smart, cost-conscious choices when it comes to medical care so that they're not spending money for nothing

A report card for health care | Chicago Tribune

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Complaints spark state hearing on Blue Cross in California

As an after effect of the accusations and investigation, doctors will be getting letters informing them of reduced compensation, meanwhile the patients will get another letter to announce the increase of premiums...BD

The 2004 deal was criticized at the time because it required an estimated $3.4 billion in debt and because it bestowed payouts to WellPoint executives in California of as much as $600 million.
The combination made the company one of the nation's largest and most profitable health insurers, with net income last year of $3.1 billion on $57 billion in revenue.

This summer, Blue Cross is imposing fee reductions on physicians at the same time it is sending letters to policyholders notifying them that their premiums are going up because of increasing medical expenses, said Karen Nikos, a spokeswoman for the California Medical Assn., the state's largest physician trade group.
"This is exactly what we said would happen," she said. "This is what happens when you only have a few insurance companies controlling all insurance. They do it because they can."
Regulators also are troubled by a $950-million payment Blue Cross made this spring to WellPoint. The department is investigating whether the payment violates the state's terms for the acquisition.

Other issues on the regulator's radar include Blue Cross' retroactive cancellation of sick patients.

Complaints spark state hearing on Blue Cross - Los Angeles Times

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Tenet, Aetna Sign Access-Coverage Deal

 

Hospital operator Tenet Healthcare Corp. said Wednesday it signed a national agreement with insurance provider Aetna Inc. to cover Tenet's facilities.

The agreement covers acute care hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, specialty hospitals, outpatient centers, and employed physician practices which adds nine hospitals to Aetna (nyse: AET - news - people )'s direct provider network. The coverage includes all of Aetna's insurance products.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Aetna members will have access to Tenet's 60 subsidiary-owned or operated hospitals in 12 states

Tenet, Aetna Sign Access-Coverage Deal - Forbes.com

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Miracle man walks again

Nice story about medical technology - man has not walked since 1995 and only has 1/2 of his body left...BD

He survived against all the odds; now Peng Shulin has astounded doctors by learning to walk again.

When his body was cut in two by a lorry in 1995, it was little short of a medical miracle that he lived.

Peng Shulin, wearing new trainers, works on learning to walk again

It took a team of more than 20 doctors to save his life.

Skin was grafted from his head to seal his torso – but the legless Mr Peng was left only 78cm (2ft 6in) tall.

Bedridden for years, doctors in China had little hope that he would ever be able to live anything like a normal life again.

Miracle man walks again | Metro.co.uk

Hat Tip:  Medgadget

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Strap-free heart rate monitor fits like a glove

 

The ultimate innovation: Pulse measurement without a chest belt! The ergonomic design of  the glove with fixed pulse watch is metrology of the future (Plethysmography): The sensor lights the finger artery and thus reflects the bloodstream. Especially well suited for running training, the glove is designed to fit like a second skin. The measurement data can be read off by virtue of the perfect viewing angle and the function keys can also be operated perfectly while running.

 

Source:  http://www.gizmag.com/go/7610/

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A Medicare Trojan horse

Medicare=Choice, just another aspiring private insurance product?  BD

It's called Medicare+Choice and it's an option that has been around for a few years. The best way to characterize it is to call it the Trojan horse of the Medicare program. The hype is that it will give seniors more choices and offer them more benefits, but the reality is that it will make their lives more complicated and possibly make their health care much more expensive.

Some insurance companies selling Medicare+Choice plans went belly up because too many of their new subscribers were too sick. Were they that clueless about their new risk of insuring people over 65, or were they hopeful they could deny enough needed care to balance the books?

It means that if you enroll in a Medicare+Choice plan with a company that has figured out how to cut its losses, you run the risk of rule changes, rate changes and unexpected bills as well as having life and death decisions made by managed-care bean counters.

Making matters even more complex, if someone already has a Medicare supplemental policy and they want to switch to Medicare+Choice, the Medicare+Choice policy may or may not provide overlapping coverage, meaning it may or may not be able to replace the supplemental policy.

Make no mistake about it, Medicare+Choice is not about improving health benefits for seniors, it is about moving Medicare away from being a government program and becoming just another private insurance product.

Brattleboro Reformer - A Medicare Trojan horse

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Workers left to foot the medical bills

Although many employers offer health insurance, some employees can't afford it, even with the contributions from the employer.  I spoke with a teller at a bank this week, same story, she would love to have insurance, but can't afford it.  BD

About 8.7 million of California's adult workers are not covered by an insurance plan sponsored by their employer, and 2.9 million of those have no health coverage at all, according to a report set to be released today by the Center on Policy Initiatives in San Diego.

Cook Cesar Ruiz and bartender Lindsey Newcomb worked at O'Brien's pub in Kearny Mesa. The two said they've never had health insurance in the service industry.

Authors of the study said the results demonstrate the troubling effect of rising health care costs that have prompted many businesses to drop employee insurance coverage or raise employee shares of health insurance premiums to unaffordable levels.

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Business -- Workers left to foot the medical bills

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Proceduralists...

Growing in popularity in many hospitals...BD 

Awaiting both kidney and liver transplants last year, Larry Pritchard suffered from fluid build-up so severe it sometimes leaked from the skin on his stomach. The condition required a procedure known as paracentesis to drain the fluid, but at the first hospital where he was treated, he says, emergency-room doctors didn't even know about the procedure and tried to seal the leaks with medical glue. After switching to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, he found something he hadn't heard of before: a dedicated Procedure Center, where doctors were expert at inserting a needle deep into the abdominal wall to drain fluid.

"The doctor knew exactly where to put that needle, and everyone at the procedure center was a pro at what they were doing," says the 62-year-old retired attorney. At Cedars-Sinai's center, experts performed the paracentesis procedure on Mr. Pritchard more than 60 times over six months, as frequently as three times a week, and inserted and removed dialyses catheters before his dual transplant last August. "They literally kept me alive," he says.

Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, affiliated with the Harvard Medical School, also uses a simulation center to train residents on mannequins.

Joseph Li, who runs a group of 24 hospitalists at Beth Israel Deaconess who staff a full-time procedure service, still shudders when he remembers how he was taught to remove fluid from the lungs. "I vividly remember thinking I've never done this, and it's almost like a dirty little secret that this patient doesn't know that," Dr. Li says. "We fumbled our way through it with no issues, but it just highlighted for me what an awful way it was to teach."

The Informed Patient - WSJ.com

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD

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Slippery Rock University intros RFID payment system for mobiles

University invests in inexpensive RFID technology...this is also good for hospitals to track equipment, supplies, etc. and pretty inexpensive for the return on investment.  BD

And you thought going away to college was the first step to freedom. Au contraire, students (and faculty, no less) entering Pennsylvania's Slippery Rock University will actually be faced with an RFID tag made for their handset, which will "allow them to pay for everything from laundry and copier services to movies and groceries in the surrounding town of Slippery Rock." The 13.56MHz tags were developed by Heartland Payment Systems and utilize NFC to make spending their parents' cash all the more simple. Of course, high rollers should be aware that their guardians can log in at any time and view their purchasing habits, so we'd be careful before pulling out the long face and car trouble story. The cards will reportedly cost around $1 apiece, but will be "available for free" to all of the SU students.

Slippery Rock University intros RFID payment system for mobiles - Engadget

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Carmona says Bush officials muzzled him while he served as the Surgeon General of the US

 

"Political interference with the work of the surgeon general appears to have reached a new level in this administration," said committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif.

Dr. Richard Carmona, the nation's 17th surgeon general, told lawmakers that all surgeons general have had to deal with politics but none more so than he.

Carmona testified Tuesday at a hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Also appearing were Drs. C. Everett Koop, who served as surgeon general from 1981-1889, and David Satcher, who served from 1998-2001.

Koop is probably the most recognized former surgeon general. He talked about AIDS as a public health issue rather than a moral issue, which won him many admirers and some critics. He said President Reagan was pressed to fire him every day, but Reagan would not interfere.

Carmona says Bush officials muzzled him - Yahoo! News

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Data on Americans mined for terror risk and other issues

Information released today about the government and data mining.  Searching for terrorists is a valid issue, but of the additional 5 mining data bases, 2 are health care related items.  If they are there to prevent fraud, that is one issue, but he comment from Congressman Leahy sums it up pretty well in the fact that the data bases are also ripe for abuse as both Congress and the American public have very little knowledge about these and other data mining programs being used by the government.  "The 38-page report was four months late in being sent to Congress for required oversight."  I don't quite understand whether it was the fact that the report was late or whether the failure to report the information was the oversight here, anyway a 38 page report has been issued.  BD

WASHINGTON - The FBI is gathering and sorting information about Americans to help search for potential terrorists, insurance cheats and crooked pharmacists, according to a government report obtained Tuesday.

The five other databases detailed in the report include:

_An identity theft intelligence program, used since 2003, to examine and analyze consumer complaints to identify major identity theft rings in a given geographic area.

_A health care fraud system that looks at billing records in government and private insurance claims databases to identify fraud or over-billing by health care providers. It also has been running since 2003.

_A database created in 2005 that looks at consumer complaints to the Food and Drug Administration to identify larger trends about fraud by Internet pharmacies.

_A housing fraud program that analyzes public data on real estate transactions to identify fraudulent housing purchases, including so-called property flipping. The database was built in 1999.

_A system that compares National Insurance Crime Bureau information against other data to crack down on fake car accident insurance claims and identify major offenders.

The 38-page report was four months late in being sent to Congress for required oversight. Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy said it "raises more questions than it answers."

"Unfortunately, the Congress and the American public know very little about these and other data mining programs, making them ripe for abuse," said Leahy, D-Vt.

Data on Americans mined for terror risk - Yahoo! News

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David Walker, Comptroller General of the US - coverage from 60 Minutes - HealthCare at the top of the list and warning all to "wake up"

This is a very good story on the state of affairs in the US.  He has numbers, facts and is working to share with all.  I often think that having someone who thinks in the terms of reality might best be suited to run the country, more so than what we have now. 

It is the overall understanding of how data works that controls the information systems of the world, and more importantly how data travels to create payable and receivable records we use to disperse and deposit money.  Information that spends and deposits money is where it is at today, along with those "in the know" on how to manage these items.  Politicians for the most part don't have one clue, and I would really like to know how many of our politicians can do more than just email on a computer these days! 

At least he is trying to make the overall effort here in giving us some of the facts we need and healthcare is at the top of the list.  He has given up completely on elected officials in his quest to education.  BD 

David Walker, comptroller general of the U.S., totaled up our government's income, liabilities and future obligations. He concluded the numbers don’t add up. Steve Kroft reports

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=2534935n

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Private Medicare Advantage Program Too Costly

Interesting information about regular Medicare and private Medicare programs...is regular Medicare having to somewhat carry the private plans?  BD

The lifeline for Medicare Advantage is the insurance lobby and the billions of dollars it has convinced Congress to pump into industry coffers at the expense of seniors. Insurers have threatened to cut their Medicare Advantage plans if Congress halts the flow of excess payments. However, if Medicare continues to fund large subsidies to private plans, the program will face even more pressure to cut benefits and increase out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries. Traditional Medicare will be eroded while private plans continue to collect billions in subsidies and beneficiaries pay more of the high costs of healthcare.

Private insurers offering Medicare Advantage plans will collect $75 billion this year alone and $1.31 trillion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. That's federal funding which could have gone to Medicare but is now going to the insurance industry instead. These private plans are paid $1,000 more a year for each beneficiary than the government pays for seniors enrolled in traditional Medicare. The independent Medicare Payment Advisory Commission estimates that every Medicare beneficiary is paying $24 more per year for their Part B premiums just to subsidize these private plans. So, even though 81 percent of Medicare's beneficiaries have chosen to remain in traditional Medicare, they are now paying extra premiums to cover the 19 percent who've chosen the private plans. These billions of dollars in overpayments have also cut two years from Medicare's solvency.

Advantage ... insurers.

Private Medicare Advantage Program Too Costly -- Courant.com

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Will It Blend? - iPhone

This is hilarious....I'll keep my Windows Mobile unit, thank you very much!  BD

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It's about time, say doctors in vanguard

One physician's solution to survival in today's health care, technology and a smaller and slimmer practice, with better patient care and results.  BD

It's called a micropractice.

Savard started her micropractice after reading an article by Gordon Moore, a doctor in Rochester, N.Y. Moore says micropractices give patients "unfettered access" to doctors at a time when some physicians have overloaded their practices with multiple employees and too many patients.

"You do have to understand the crazy system that's been set up for how insurance is billed," Moore said.
Savard has no nurse but shares a receptionist with several other solo practitioners and does her own paperwork. Mostly, she runs her office electronically — lowering her overhead because she has no salaries to pay.
She keeps patient files on her laptop and will soon be billing electronically too. She uses software to process insurance claims. Patients make their own appointments on the website, and she fits her schedule to meet their needs.

It's about time, say doctors in vanguard - Los Angeles Times

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Microsoft Malware Protection Center

 

Good resource page from Microsoft.  There are free products, trials and for sale items listed on the site.  Windows Defender is a free resource for the PC, while some of the other products concentrate on server applications.  There is also a link to the blog and some of the most recent detections listed in several areas.  Good page to book mark for reference.  BD 

http://www.microsoft.com/security/portal/default.aspx

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Contractors Back From Iraq Suffer Trauma From Battle

This article brings up many questions, contractors, private companies supporting the troops are left to fend for themselves upon their return home.  BD 

WASHINGTON, July 4 — Contractors who have worked in Iraq are returning home with the same kinds of combat-related mental health problems that afflict United States military personnel, according to contractors, industry officials and mental health experts.

But, they say, the private workers are largely left on their own to find care, and their problems often go ignored or are inadequately treated.

A vast second army, one of contractors — up to 126,000 Americans, Iraqis and other foreigners — is working for the United States government in Iraq. Many work side-by-side with soldiers and are exposed to the same dangers, but they mostly must fend for themselves in navigating the civilian health care system when they come back to the United States.

With no widespread screening, many workers are not identified as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or other problems, mental health experts and contractors say. And, they add, the quality of treatment for others can vary widely because of limited civilian expertise in combat-related disorders.

Contractors Back From Iraq Suffer Trauma From Battle - New York Times

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Waiting Times For Care? Try Looking At The U.S. - Nurses, Doctors Say It's Time To Debunk The Myths

Good article, we do have wait times here in the US with Aetna admitting the same as well to their stock holders.   Is this part of the reason that dividend returns are not higher by chance?  Anyway, good story on showing the similarities and differences between both systems overall.  We still have that pre-existing condition clause still haunting us here in the US.  BD

Waiting times in U.S. hospitals and clinics are becoming so lengthy that even one of the nation's biggest insurers, Aetna, has admitted to its investors that the U.S. healthcare system is "not timely" and patients diagnosed with cancer wait "over a month" for needed medical care, said two leading organizations of doctors and nurses recently.
Lost in the recent flurry of attacks on Canada and other nations with publicly funded healthcare systems, spurred by the popularity of Michael Moore's "SiCKO," is the reality of the huge hurdles faced by many American patients, said the Physicians for a National Health Program and the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.

"There are significant differences between the U.S. and Canada, too," said Burger. "In Canada, no one is denied care because of cost, because their treatment or test was not 'pre-approved' or because they have a pre-existing condition."

Waiting Times For Care? Try Looking At The U.S. - Nurses, Doctors Say It's Time To Debunk The Myths

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Part Nine: Are you still just using your cell phone for phone calls?

There are more devices on the way as well such as H-Pal for blood pressure.  Full information at the link below.  BD

 
FDA CLEARED – D-PAL is a revolutionary new way for people with diabetes to transfer their daily glucose readings, in near real-time, to a central server for storage and review by their healthcare provider(s). D-PAL currently combines with the Polymap Polytel® device that connects to the LifeScan® OneTouch® Ultra®, and sends the data via Bluetooth® (wireless) to the patient’s cell phone (acting as a “Hub”) and transmits the information to a central server. D-PAL is the first of a series of medical devices that integrates with the MedApps System and enables patients with chronic diseases to lead more active lifestyles.

 

MedApps Products and Services

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A Pill a Day Keeps the Vices Away

This could end up being a 2 for 1 deal with the ability to address 2 vices for the price of one.  BD

A single pill appears to hold promise in curbing the urges to both smoke and drink, according to researchers trying to help people overcome addiction by targeting a pleasure center in the brain.

The drug, called varenicline, already is sold to help smokers kick the habit. New but preliminary research suggests it could gain a second use in helping heavy drinkers quit, too.

"The biggest thrill is that this drug, which has already proved safe for people trying to stop smoking, is now a potential drug to fight alcohol dependence," said Selena Bartlett, a neuroscientist with the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco who led the study. Details appear this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Drugs/wireStory?id=3360168&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD

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Moore's Blitzer Krieg - sets the record straight with CNN news

John Mack has some very good coverage on the story and has video coverage from Mr. Moore on the blog.

SiCKO' Truth Squad Sets CNN Straight

Pharma Marketing Blog: Moore's Blitzer Krieg

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Late-breaking letters: Greed drives medical insurance industry

I talked today with a teller at a local branch of a nationwide bank and she expressed to me today that she sure wished she could afford health insurance.  As a teller at the bank she is offered insurance, but can't afford it.  She is a single mother raising a child and with her salary, can't afford the cost.  BD

The four scenarios in "Spending others vs. your own money" [The Orange Grove, July 9] are fallacious. Most people would prefer spending their own money; however, the medical/drug community makes that impossible for all but the extremely rich. Doctors, hospitals and drug companies offer huge discounts to insurance companies that are not available to the uninsured.

A good example is the senior drug bill. After getting big handouts for giving seniors discounts, the drug companies immediately raised their prices. Why? Because Medicare was prohibited from negotiating for lower prices and seniors were prohibited from getting foreign drugs. Those who can not afford high-priced medical insurance certainly cannot afford medical treatment in today's market. I know the excuses, but for the average person, medical care here is near the bottom of the industrial world. For major surgery, one can pay for a trip to India, have the surgery, take a vacation and still save significant amounts of money over lower U.S. care. There are very caring medical personnel in this country; however, greed has taken over the field.

Article - Opinion - Late-breaking letters: Greed drives medical insurance industry

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We spend far more, but our health care is falling behind Australia, Canada, Germany, Britain, New Zealand spend less, serve better

 

Filmmaker Michael Moore might be onto something in his new documentary, "Sicko." These days, fewer Americans are buying the claim that the United States has the best medical system in the world.

With polls showing that health care is Americans' top domestic concern, politicians are scrambling to propose reforms. Consumers are buying lower-cost online drugs from foreign sources, and some even become "medical tourists" to obtain affordable treatment in other countries.

We spend far more, but our health care is falling behind / Australia, Canada, Germany, Britain, New Zealand spend less, serve better

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Health becomes issue in trucking

 

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Truck drivers, the people who deliver our food, cars and clothing, have one of the most dangerous jobs in America, accounting for 15 percent of U.S. work-related deaths. That's only counting the accidents.
They also are more at risk than average Americans for a number of health problems. Obesity is rampant. Many don't bother to wear seatbelts because their stomachs get in the way; one in four has sleep apnea; half of them smoke.

Krueger said trucking companies need to do more to foster better health among employees, whether it's to reduce health care costs or hang on to employees in an industry where turnover is high and shortages growing.
An Associated Press spot check of companies revealed these initiatives:

• Celadon Group Inc. has stationed nurses at its main facility in Indianapolis and encourages its 3,200 drivers in the country and Canada to get blood pressure and cholesterol checks. The company says it has helped trim its $10 million annual health care bill.
• Melton Truck Lines Inc. replaced sodas in the Tulsa, Okla., headquarters vending machines with green tea, water and diet drinks. It also offers a weight-loss series.
• Con-way Freight of Ann Arbor, Mich., saw annual claims for Workers' Compensation plunge 80 percent and lost workdays drop 75 percent in Los Angeles after its trial of a wellness program.

Health becomes issue in trucking

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Doctor told patient she 'had to be exorcised'

A very strange treatment plan...BD

A FAMILY planning doctor prescribed an exorcism to a patient seeking contraceptive advice, a medical tribunal heard yesterday.

Dr Joyce Pratt, 44, is said to have told the woman she was possessed by an evil spirit and had "something moving inside her". 'Mrs K' mentioned during the appointment for a routine contraceptive injection that she was experiencing pain and bleeding, the General Medical Council heard.

Scotsman.com News - Health - Doctor told patient she 'had to be exorcised'

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Well Point Buys Medical Imaging Manager

Is this another data base for criteria selection for imaging?  Will this be the next data base frontier for MDs to check before sending a patient for imaging?  Right now with medication formularies needing to be checked, this appears to be another source that may need to be referenced to create a referral for a procedure for least cost routing, or at least with Well Point patients.  BD

Health insurer WellPoint Inc. said Monday it will pay $300 million to acquire American Imaging Management, a company that specializes in controlling medical imaging expenses.

Wellpoint said the purchase will help the company save money by reducing duplicative imaging procedures and cutting down on administrative expenses. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2007.

Deerfield, Illinois-based American Imaging Management makes software to help physicians choose the most cost-effective site to perform imaging tests on patients. The company currently manages benefits for about 20 million patients.

WellPoint said it hopes to expand American Imaging's technology to help control costs in other areas, including prescription drugs and heart care.

WellPoint Buys Medical Imaging Manager - Forbes.com

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California Hospital Loses Medical Malpractice Case

 

A man was awarded $150,000 for pain and suffering he incurred after having an emergency appendectomy at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He was sent home from his first surgery complaining of excessive pain. Testing on a return to the hospital showed that he had a small bowel obstruction that required more surgery. The medical malpractice case was heard by an appeals court last week.

California Hospital Loses Medical Malpractice Case - Tampa Bay Personal Injury Lawyer

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New market for HMO - add commercial health insurance

 

Abri Health Plan Inc., a West Allis-based health maintenance organization (HMO) that currently handles health insurance for Wisconsin Medicaid and Badger Care members, as well as federal Medicare patients, is making preparations now to offer commercial health insurance. 

On June 12, Abri’s board of directors named Tom Sobocinski as chairman of the board. Sobocinski, helped found and worked as executive vice president and chief marketing officer of CareNetwork Inc., which was acquired by Humana in the early 1990s, and brings extensive experience in the commercial health insurance to Abri.
Abri hopes to launch its new commercial product on Jan. 1, 2008, Sobocinski said. The company is now designing its plans and still needs approvals from the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI).

“We’ll be doing a lot of community involvement – we will do more door-to-door, more PR. It will be grassroots, based on the physician to patient relationship. That’s what this market is wanting,” Sobocinski said.

New market for HMO - Small Business Times

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Open Document Plug-in for MS Office Released by Sun

If you are a user of Microsoft Office, this will make the process simple to work with Open Office Documents in being able to open documents with Microsoft Office that were created by using the Sun Office system.  Most of my information is sent via other users of Microsoft Office users, however, there is that rare and occasional time when a document is not created in MS Office and this comes in handy.  I can keep using my MS Office Suite without having a need for additional software on my PC and it's business as usual.    BD 

The Sun ODF Plug-In for MS Office has now been officially released. It enables users of Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint to read and write documents in the ISO-standard Open Document Format (ODF). It works on Windows in Office 2000, XP and 2003 and is a completely free download.

http://www.sun.com/software/star/openoffice/index.xml

OpenDocument Plug-in for MS Office Released by Sun - O'Reilly Windows DevCenter Blog

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California Dental Care Program Returns Unspent Funds To Federal Government

Difficulty finding a dentist who will accept payment appears to be the issue.  BD

More than $130 million in funds for a dental program for low-income California residents was not spent over the past seven years by the state and half of those funds were returned to the federal government, the Sacramento Bee reports. The program, Dentin-Cal, is offered through Medi-Cal, California's Medicaid program. Dentist and health care advocates say "the unspent money ... is a result of the state erecting barriers that deter dentists from participating" in the program, according to the Bee.
Stan Rosenstein, director of Medi-Cal, said the refund to the federal government came after the state completed a prepaid contract with Delta Dental, a private health plan that administers Denti-Cal. Rosenstein said, "Over the course of a seven-year contract, (Delta Dental) has been paid $131 million more than their costs, so the state recovered the money." Rosenstein added the state "didn't lose" the Denti-Cal funds that were returned to the federal government, and the state will recapture the funds "when we spend money on other things" in Medi-Cal.
However, according to Liz Snow, chief strategist for the California Dental Association, the state's explanation for the unspent funds "is not consistent with what we're hearing" from dentists. Snow said the state is facing a shortage of dentists that will treat Denti-Cal beneficiaries because reimbursements for care are about one-third of payments for dental services from private insurers. As a result of the low reimbursement rates, the program's 6.5 million beneficiaries have had "an exceptionally difficult time" finding a dentist who will treat them, Snow said.

California Dental Care Program Returns Unspent Funds To Federal Government

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Former pharmacist sees future in liquor

 

Edward Skaff spent 44 years filling prescriptions.

Today, he'd rather sell booze.  Goodbye Pfizer. Hello Jack Daniels.

"It's a lot more enjoyable," the former pharmacist said. "The people come in, they're not sick, and they don't question the prices as much."

In August 2005, Skaff closed the last of three pharmacies he'd owned and operated for much of his life.

"Let's say you have a $100 prescription and they allow you to mark it up $5," said Skaff.

"It costs $7 to dispense it. So it didn't take too long to figure that out."

The Denver Post - Former pharmacist sees future in liquor

Hat Tip:  Kevin, MD

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A Readers response to Modern Healthcare article about protecting medical information

 

In response to Marvin Greenberg's comments in Andis Robeznieks' Patients wary of employer, plan-sponsored PHRs:

I say nonsense. If we as patients don't protect our medical information insurance companies, medical plans administrators and employers will use the information to rate us and charge a higher rate for our insurance, deny us jobs, cut benefits under our insurance plans and in general, prevent us from obtaining the medical care needed. This is tantamount to hiring the fox to guard the hen house. The fox has a vested interest in seeing that the door is not locked. Secure the information first, then make it available to the patient to provide or not provide to caregivers or payers.

Modern Healthcare Online

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AMA collecting complaints on insurer directories ...

 

Chicago -- Physicians can drop an insurance plan, move, retire, change practices or even die, and their information will remain the same in the insurer's directory, say doctors who are fed up with the inaccuracies in insurance plan physician directories.

At its Annual Meeting, The AMA House of Delegates approved a resolution calling for the Association to solicit and compile complaints by members regarding inaccuracies contained in health plan directories.

"We believe these inaccuracies are financially mandated by the insurers ... to show they have a larger spectrum of providers than they actually do," said Peter Kaufman, MD, a gastroenterologist from Bethesda, Md. He said the inaccuracies have caused gastroenterologists serious problems when patients seek out specialists, and the physician's specialty is not listed or is wrong.

Dr. Kaufman went on to say he has seen physicians listed in directories up to two years after they have died.

AMNews: July 16, 2007. AMA meeting: AMA collecting complaints on insurer directories ... American Medical News

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Too few in health care IT work force ...

Physicians - find yourself a good It consultant and hang on to them.  BD

As physicians further embrace technology, they encounter a practical problem -- how to make sure they have someone ready to solve the technical problems new technology brings.

Eventually, though, in both scenarios, a big question rears its ugly head: Who's going to take care of these beasts?

Health care organizations, including physician practices, are finding that nurturing a computer system can be a big job -- and one that requires not only time and effort but specific expertise as well.

The problem is, as more physicians move toward automation, it will become increasingly difficult to hire and retain the information technology talent -- whether full-time staff members, consultants or temporary workers -- required to manage computer systems, says Stanley Hochberg, MD, director of the graduate program in health informatics at Northeastern University, Boston

"We are at a phase now where we are seeing a significant increase in the implementation of electronic systems across all health care settings, including acute care organizations and outpatient practices," Dr. Hochberg says. "So, as more organizations are using electronic medical records, computerized physician ordering and e-prescribing systems, the need for information technology leaders and staff members is growing considerably -- and we are starting to see a shortage."

AMNews: July 16, 2007. Short on support: Too few in health care IT work force ... American Medical News

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