Summer begins to wane, but not our Potpourris. Another one full of useful data, including health insurance costs for 2011, a new telehealth joint venture, use of kiosks in physician…
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Wireless or mobile communication technologies are enjoying a rapid spread in health care. Two of the primary federal agencies which might impact the development and spread of these technologies are…
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Every year Medicare puts out very lengthy and detailed proposed, and ultimately final, rules updating the reimbursement for all of the classes of providers--physicians, hospitals, etc. While reading these is…
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The New Yorker carries an exceptional article by Atul Gawande on end-of-life care, highlighting irrational reimbursement policies and the difficult decisions that both patients and providers must make.
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Although its reform effort appears to have gone amok, largely for cost reasons, the state of Massachusetts is producing a lot of useful data and research on medical service delivery,…
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A study of diagnostic practices for Medicare beneficiaries reveals geographic variations. These variations not only may suggest either under or overuse of diagnostic tests but they can bias other research…
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A lot of great items in this week's potpourri, covering the acquisition of HealthGrades, what encourages men to get screenings, potential cheating on pay-for-performance schemes, the problems of a multi-payer…
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There has been no more gnarly health care problem for Congress than how to deal with physician reimbursement. At some point, as a Health Affairs article points out, it will…
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Trashing insurance companies is popular and one of the most frequent complaints is about their premium increases and profits. A NEJM perspective uses misleading information to continue dumping on health…
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A study in JAMA suggests that process-of-care quality measures, which are frequently used for bonus or penalty reimbursement programs, may have little real relationship to ultimate health outcomes.
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