The current issue of Managed Care contains an interview with Dr. Barbara Starfield, director of the Johns Hopkins Primary Care Policy Center and firm believer in primary care. The interview highlights Dr. Starfield’s thoughts on the current state of primary care in the U.S., and she believes that the overuse and misuse of medical specialists is bad for the system, bad for the patient, and raises health care costs in the U.S. Some interesting points are made, and when asked what three things would turn the current state of the primary care around, Dr. Starfield responded with,

a published …read more

Kings County Hospital Center in Brooklyn, a hospital that’s Web page claims is “staunchly committed to patient-centered care”, left a woman who had collapsed on the floor unattended for over an hour. She died on the floor before anyone assisted her.
According to the video below, she had been waiting in the ER for over 24 hours before she collapsed. This is not the first time that this particular hospital has failed to properly treat its patients, and according to a number of sources, this incident is just one in a long line of sad cases that will become more …read more

Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone you could call to help walk you through your health care? Wouldn’t it be great if you had a go-to person to help you understand your bills and insurance, or to help you find a provider and get an appointment fairly quickly for you?
Well you can, but it’s going to cost you!
For right around $400/year at the lower end to $200/hour at the high end, you can have your own personal health care advocate. The Chicago Tribune reports that over 20 families on Forbes’ list of richest Americans have already purchased their own …read more