No Shows

"No Shows" are a thorn in our sides.

A recent article suggests taking the approach that the airlines take...to overbook.

Is the ideal of immediate access, no wait time, plenty of time with your physician, and quality care reasonable?

Save Up $225,000 by Age 65 to Cover Your Health Costs

A recent report by Fidelity Investments predicts that a 65-year-old couple retiring in 2008 will need $225,000 to cover medical costs in retirement.

What happens if I'm not retiring until 2020?

Start saving, suckers!

American Well: This is Cool Shit

Next phase of interacting with patients online.

Cap the Greedy Bastards, and Use the Money to Fund Mental Health Parity

Yeah. I'm for this bill.

1. Limiting the number of physician-owned specialty hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers will definitely reduce the number of unnecessary procedures being done in these places.
2. Mental health has been screwed over for way too long, and the lack of mental health resources ends up shifting costs to the medical side...health care costs go up without mental health treatment.

Even thought they're cheaper, I'm not convinced that they are safer or provide better service.

(FYI...the limits would protect my dumb-ass colleagues that continue to invest in these despite the fact that there's an oversupply in most markets.)

No Ads on Google Health? How Do They Make Money?

Here's how.

I Love to Menstruate, Don't You?

Check out Annuale, the new oral contraceptive that allows for once-a-year menstruation.

Homeopathy is a Fraud...Like Cures Like? WTF?!!

Homeopathy can't cure HIV.

It's a shame that insufficient access to legitimate care is leading people in Africa to seek care from homeopathy.

It's criminal, deceitful, and downright sinister.

(Homeopathy can't cure anything, by the way. It's all bullshit designed to milk money out of people when they are most desperate by relying on the placebo effect. Fuck them, and fuck everything they stand for, the unethical bastards).

Want to Combat Retail Clinics? Strike While the Iron's Hot!

The public is still testing the waters on retail clinics.

I can't blame them. "Rollback Prices" are great, but what about when they apply to your health?

In any case, this WSJ article reinforces the fact that the timing may be just perfect for physicians to reinforce their differentiation. (Beyond "we get more than 2 weeks of anatomy"!)

It's actually probably worth a small premium...creative scheduling in traditional primary care practices to offer extended hours, combined with clear & concise pricing brochures could be all it takes.

In any case, just remember that timing counts.

Consumerism Lower Health Care Costs? Right.

From Health Beat, regarding a study on whether consumerism can actually lower health care costs:

"...Research by the RAND Corporation’s health insurance experiment shows that when you shift costs to the consumer, patients forego both wasteful and effective care. And this is particularly true of the patients who cost us most in the long run—those suffering from chronic diseases..."

Of course, if you don't get the preventive care or chronic disease management you need, you'll cost the system a shit load more.

This is The End...for You, My Friend

Health Care Market Place: Carol.com

This "health care market place" portal kicks ass...very well done.

Transparency rules. Secrecy and information hoarding suck.