On May 6th I'm going to be a guest with Miriam Knight at 11:45 PDT (2:45 EDT) talking about the world of complementary and alternative medicine! Please join us at:
http://omtimes.com/iom/2015/04/breast-cancer-victor-unbreak-your-health-love-or-limitation/
Friday, May 1, 2015
Friday, April 17, 2015
Media Bias Against Dr. Oz
Why is it newsworthy that some doctors in this country are so controlled by Big Pharma that they're threatened by anything outside of their narrow field of vision? I'm talking about the doctors who submitted a letter to Columbia University asking that Dr. Oz, probably the best-known doctor in our country, be removed. I'm not surprised that they sent the letter. I'm pleased that Columbia basically ignored it.
What surprises me is the incredible amount of media coverage against a doctor trying to lead Americans to a healthier life. Apparently all of those drug commercials buy a little cooperation! It's sad to see but just part of life today, I suppose.
Hang in there, Dr. Oz. Lots of us enjoy your show and the wide variety of information you bring into our homes.
What surprises me is the incredible amount of media coverage against a doctor trying to lead Americans to a healthier life. Apparently all of those drug commercials buy a little cooperation! It's sad to see but just part of life today, I suppose.
Hang in there, Dr. Oz. Lots of us enjoy your show and the wide variety of information you bring into our homes.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Strange New Idea in Medicine: Customer Service
It's sad when an old concept like "customer service" is considered a hot, new idea in medicine. There's a great article in the New York Times that illustrates that it does have advantages.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/29/upshot/small-company-has-plan-to-provide-primary-care-for-the-masses.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=mini-moth®ion=top-stories-below&WT.nav=top-stories-below&_r=0&abt=0002&abg=1
This is one of the secrets of complementary and alternative medicine!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/29/upshot/small-company-has-plan-to-provide-primary-care-for-the-masses.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=mini-moth®ion=top-stories-below&WT.nav=top-stories-below&_r=0&abt=0002&abg=1
This is one of the secrets of complementary and alternative medicine!
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Living Well Talk Radio
On Monday, February 16th I'll be a guest on Living Well Talk Radio! If you'd like to tune in I'm scheduled to be on from 2:15 - 2:30 Central time. The entire show is about health so it should be fascinating, entertaining and educational.
Monday, October 6, 2014
Sunshine Act
Did you know that part of the Affordable Care Act (or Obamacare) is a provision called the Sunshine Act? This requires manufacturers of drugs and medical devices to disclose how much they're paying doctors and teaching hospitals every year.
During the last five months of 2013 payments to physicians and teaching hospitals was $3.5 Billion. Now how many people think those costs aren't being passed down to patients and raising the cost of health care?
Allan Coukell, director of the Pew Prescriptions Project, said recently that "The financial relationships between doctors and drug companies and medical-device companies are a source of conflicts of interest." Duh. What isn't surprising is how the lobbyists for those companies have managed to keep everything hidden from the public for so long thanks to their friends in government.
Finally we can look forward to exposing all of the games in medicine. And maybe even getting costs down to a reasonable level in the United States like the rest of the world.
During the last five months of 2013 payments to physicians and teaching hospitals was $3.5 Billion. Now how many people think those costs aren't being passed down to patients and raising the cost of health care?
Allan Coukell, director of the Pew Prescriptions Project, said recently that "The financial relationships between doctors and drug companies and medical-device companies are a source of conflicts of interest." Duh. What isn't surprising is how the lobbyists for those companies have managed to keep everything hidden from the public for so long thanks to their friends in government.
Finally we can look forward to exposing all of the games in medicine. And maybe even getting costs down to a reasonable level in the United States like the rest of the world.
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Got To Keep Trying
You know the Food & Drug Administration is really under the control of Big Pharma when it approves an addictive new drug against the advice of its own medical board. Last October when Zohydro was approved the response from public health advocates, police and politicians began loudly questioning the function of the FDA. Today a dozen groups have asked the Obama administration to replace FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, who has led the group since 2009.
What could be better for Big Pharma than a powerful, addictive new pain killer? Who cares if the FDA's own medical advisory panel recommended against it?
Unfortunately her job is probably secure. She's served longer than any other commissioner since the 1990's and is popular with the most important support groups: the pharmaceutical industry, medical groups and committee leaders on Capital Hill.
What could be better for Big Pharma than a powerful, addictive new pain killer? Who cares if the FDA's own medical advisory panel recommended against it?
Unfortunately her job is probably secure. She's served longer than any other commissioner since the 1990's and is popular with the most important support groups: the pharmaceutical industry, medical groups and committee leaders on Capital Hill.
Tuesday, September 16, 2014
Surprise, Surprise
Have you ever gone to a hospital or had a procedure done and when you get home and open the bills that you thought were all covered by your insurance ... only to get a big surprise? The term is "balance billing" and it's when folks outside of your insurance network are involved in your health care. Even though your hospital may be in-network, the doctors, labs and others may not be and you'll be billed at their normal rates.
I've experienced this problem myself when the anesthesiologist turned out not to be in my network, even though I'd called to check ahead of time for an elective procedure. Even my insurance company admitted there's no way to be sure even when you try to be careful.
At 23 Texas hospitals that contract with the state's three largest PPO plans there are NO emergency room doctors who are in those plans' networks. Talk about being at the mercy of the medical system!
Texas is one of the states trying to eliminate this Catch-22 of medical billing but the medical industry is fighting it as always. Doctors and others seem to feel they have a God-given right to earn more money every year regardless of the economy or what's going on with other industries. They think they really can walk on water.
The BIG question is how much medical spending is going to destroy the American economy? It's already nearly 18% of our GDP and many doctors expected health care to be nationalized when it reached 5% (which was a long, long time ago). What are we going to do and when?
I've experienced this problem myself when the anesthesiologist turned out not to be in my network, even though I'd called to check ahead of time for an elective procedure. Even my insurance company admitted there's no way to be sure even when you try to be careful.
At 23 Texas hospitals that contract with the state's three largest PPO plans there are NO emergency room doctors who are in those plans' networks. Talk about being at the mercy of the medical system!
Texas is one of the states trying to eliminate this Catch-22 of medical billing but the medical industry is fighting it as always. Doctors and others seem to feel they have a God-given right to earn more money every year regardless of the economy or what's going on with other industries. They think they really can walk on water.
The BIG question is how much medical spending is going to destroy the American economy? It's already nearly 18% of our GDP and many doctors expected health care to be nationalized when it reached 5% (which was a long, long time ago). What are we going to do and when?
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