I have read with interest several recent posts, at Kevin, MD, retired doc’s thoughts, Health Care Renewal and other docblogs, alluding to the pernicious influence of “suits” on American medicine. Being a card-carrying suit myself, I thought the following true story might illustrate why this much-despised breed exists:
I once worked for a well-run, not-for-profit hospital whose […]
In a column characterized by a fierce competition between sanctimony and sophistry, Bob Herbert inadvertently gives his readers a glimpse of the truth about SCHIP. He solemnly advises that President Bush’s opposition to that program’s expansion is driven by a “cruel” ideology …
… that views CHIP, correctly, as yet another important step on the road to universal health […]
Like a bunch of carnival barkers, the advocates of “single-payer” health care are loudly touting the Census Bureau’s latest claims about the uninsured. So, I guess it’s once again time to point out that this statistic has very little meaning in the larger context of health care reform.
First, it isn’t by any means clear that the […]
There has been a good deal of happy talk from the bird cage liners about Medicare’s new rule on medical errors. Unfortunately, the media (and even some health care bloggers who should know better) have it wrong.
Like most bureaucratic brainstorms, this latest CMS decree will almost certainly do more damage than good. Dr. RW has […]
It is common for advocates of government-run health care to quote WHO statistics in order to document the alleged inferiority of American health care. A perennial favorite purports to show that the U.S. barely edges out Cuba in some categories.
I have pointed out before that the WHO makes no attempt to verify the health care […]
Paul Krugman, perpetuating the myth that SCHIP is about “the children,” advises his long-suffering readers that expansion of that program is analogous to providing public education:
We offer free education because giving every child a fair chance is the American way. And we should guarantee health care to every child, for the same reason.
The first point […]
A couple of months ago, I linked to a post that featured some interesting physician comments regarding the culpability of personal injury lawyers in the increased use of C-sections. Many of the docs mentioned one such attorney by name:
Edwards specifically has made much of his fortune suing doctors for not performing C-sections, arguing that they help prevent […]
Like David Hogberg, I was amazed to read Jim Talent’s Orwellian characterization of Romneycare. If this is how Romney plans to put “conservative principles to work” as President, I’m voting for Hillary.
It turns out, however, that Talent’s article was just a preamble to yet another Romney flip-flop. Not satisfied with being on every side of […]
Nina Owcharenko has an excellent post at the Health Affairs blog, in which she points out one of the most egregious features of the proposed SCHIP legislation:
The bills would inevitably encourage those with private coverage to drop it in favor of SCHIP. Today, families at all income levels enjoy private coverage. The Congressional Budget Office […]
As I have pointed out before, the monolithic support of “progressives” for socialized medicine has less to do with its economic or medical viability than with their need to feel morally superior to the hoi polloi. However, as Megan McArdle points out, the morality of government-run health care is open to considerable question:
A gigantic single-payer […]
