In the Blogs

Gregg: Use Medicare Cuts To Plug Budget Gap

March 11, 2010-Health Affairs Blog

Democratic proposals to cut Medicare spending are good policy, said New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg, the senior Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, at a Health Affairs Media Breakfast this morning. The problem, according to Gregg, is that Democrats want to use the money saved to fund new benefits under health reform legislation, rather than [...]

In Massachusetts, the Pros and Cons of New Imaging Technology

March 11, 2010-Wall Street Journal Health Blog

Hospitals, clinics, insurers, equipment manufacturers and Congress -- not to mention patients and their doctors -- all have a part in the costs of imaging tests.

Nurse practitioners will not solve the primary care shortage

March 11, 2010-KevinMD.com

With health reform possibly passing within the next few months, attention now turns to the primary care doctor shortage. Regular readers of this blog know that there are not enough primary care doctors currently; it’s frightening to think what would happen if an additional 40+ million newly insured patients start looking for care. A recent piece from [...]

Patient safety not taught in medical school? Lucian Leape Institute releases Unmet Needs: Teaching Physicians to Provide Safe Patient Care

March 11, 2010-HealthBlawg

Ten years after the release of the IOM report To Err is Human, which documented the toll taken by medical errors in this country, the question remains: What can be done to reverse the trend of ever-increasing morbidity and mortality...

Innovation, Not Legislation: Venture Capital is the Path to Improving Patient Safety and Reducing Waste and Error in the U.S. Healthcare System

March 10, 2010-The Health Care Blog

By Lisa Suennen All eyes are on Toyota’s recall of 8.5 million vehicles due to faulty gas pedals and brakes. The recall has sparked congressional hearings, a probe by the U.S. Department of Transportation, possible criminal charges stemming from a...

Few drug studies meet comparative effectiveness definition

March 09, 2010-Boston Globe White Coat Notes Blog

Comparing the effectiveness of different medical treatments, including their safety and their cost, is a cornerstone of health policy espoused by the Obama administration and funded by $1.1 billion in last year's economic stimulus package. Two Cambridge Health Alliance doctors...

White House Health Care Summit: Watch it Live

March 09, 2010-HealthBlawg

Watch the White House Health Care Summit here (live beginning at 10:00 am EST today, or later), and check out the President's health reform proposal, too. (Video is archived on this site as well.) Update 3/2/10: Obama Letter to Congressional...

What Good are Health Insurers?

March 09, 2010-The Health Care Blog

By BILL KRAMER As the health reform effort moves into the final stages, everyone seems to be taking a whack at health insurers. Some of the insurers’ wounds are self-inflicted, such as WellPoint’s announcement of 39% premium increase for individual...

Why Rush Vendor Certification of EHR Technologies?

March 08, 2010-The Health Care Blog

By David C. Kibbe and Brian Klepper A surprise move by ONC/HHS indicates the wheels may be falling off health IT reform at about the same rate they've fallen off Democrats' broader health reforms. David Blumenthal and his staff have...

Waiting for Dr. Godot

March 06, 2010-The Health Care Blog

By MICHAEL TURPIN "If you think healthcare is expensive now, wait until it is for free.” – PJ O’Rourke On the eve of sweeping health reform legislation, it is hard not to notice the glowing skyline in Washington as policymakers...