By Molly Line
Facing long waits and substandard care, a growing number of Canadians are willing to pay for health treatment, leading to a booming private business in Canada — a country often touted as a successful example of a universal health system.
via Canada Sees Boom in Private Health Care Business – Political News – FOXNews.com.
Philip Morris is here to help… | footnoted.org
June 30, 2009
Remember that famous phrase, “We’re from the government and we’re here to help”? Well, at a time when many governments are struggling to make ends meet Philip Morris (PM) says that they’re here to help.
FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right: George F. Will Admits Public Option Will Cut Costs
June 30, 2009
George Will’s latest:
The puzzle is: Why does the president, who says that were America “starting from scratch” he would favor a “single-payer” — government-run — system, insist that health care reform include a government insurance plan that competes with private insurers? [...]
via FiveThirtyEight: Politics Done Right: George F. Will Admits Public Option Will Cut Costs.
By Catherine Rampell
A recent New York Times/CBS News poll found that many Americans believe the country’s health care system is due for major changes. Sixty-one percent of respondents believe the rising cost of health care is a serious threat to the nation’s economy. Eighty-five percent say the country’s health system needs fundamental changes, or should be completely rebuilt. Seventy-three percent think the fact that many Americans do not have health insurance is a “very serious” problem.
via A Sea Change in Public Opinion on Health Care Reform? – Economix Blog – NYTimes.com.
Swine Flu Spread Mirrors Air Travel : NPR
June 30, 2009
By Richard Knox
NPR.org
The jet plane is the swine flu virus’s best friend. A Canadian team shows why in a graphic published online this week by the New England Journal of Medicine.
PREVENTIVE MEDICAL SERVICES DO NOT SAVE MONEY
June 30, 2009
Preventive medical care usually adds to overall health care costs, but this does not mean that it is bad. Diagnostic tests showing that no disease is present benefit patients by relieving anxiety and reassuring them of their health. Most of the time, preventive care is like a consumer good that creates benefits in return for a cost. It is not like an investment good that promises a positive economic rate of return, says John C. Goodman, President, CEO and the Kellye Wright Fellow of the National Center for Policy Analysis
JUDGING MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
June 30, 2009
There’s not much that’s encouraging about the U.S. medical malpractice system, says Richard A. Epstein, a professor of law at the University of Chicago, a senior fellow with the Hoover Institution, and a visiting professor at New York University Law School.
