Latest News Headlines
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Why hasn't EHR been adopted faster
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 - 10:20 PM - 1 month, 1 week ago - Newspaper & TV news - GLG News(sm): Healthcare The lack of a comprehensive EHR implementation suggests that we are failing at our goal of improving the healthcare system. While the article highlights many problems, very few solutions are offered to remedy this part of our healthcare crises. The key implications are: 1. The adoption rate of electronic health records in nonfederal U.S. hospitals is low 2. The percentage of these electronic record systems may be classified as "fully functional is low 3. The companies that can fill the enormous gaps in adoption have laid the foundation for future adoption. |
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It's always what's relative and seldom absolute
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 - 10:19 PM - 1 month, 1 week ago - Newspaper & TV news - GLG News(sm): Healthcare Satistics are usually used to reveal dramatic differences Patients often misinterpret relative differences for absolute ones patients are willing to do a lot more to get any benefit in cancer outcome |
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This isn’t funny but I laughed anyway
Tuesday, November 25, 2008 - 09:55 AM - 1 month, 1 week ago - Blog - Health Business Blog A Canadian relative of mine went to the hospital for “minor” surgery and ended up in the ICU on a ventilator with severe pneumonia. He was pretty agitated while intubated –not exactly uncommon, I know. A few days later when the tubes were out and he could speak, he said that when he saw so many doctors and American relatives around he was convinced he was in the US, running up a huge bill that he wouldn’t be able to pay. That’s what was agitating him more than anything else. Luckily for him he was actually in Canada. |
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Filler Warnings- Are They Necessary?
Monday, November 24, 2008 - 02:18 AM - 1 month, 1 week ago - Newspaper & TV news - GLG News(sm): Healthcare This article is important in that it discusses a rare but known side effect of filler injections- reactions to these agents. These reactions include allergies, infections, etc. The incidence is low- approximately 1000 cases out of 1.5 million injections. The majority of these reactions were not serious. The various fillers were not differentiated, but it is likely that the hyaluronic acid fillers like Restylane/Perlane/Juvaderm will have the lowest incidence as they are the closest to human hyaluronic acid that is present in the skin. This article and the FDA warning is unlikely to effect the use or sales of these fillers. |
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Podcast interview with David Hom, Chairman of the Center for Health Value Innovation
Friday, November 21, 2008 - 09:15 PM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Blog - Health Business Blog I first interviewed David Hom, board chairman of the Center for Health Value Innovation six months ago at Consumer Health World in Las Vegas. We spoke then about value based insurance design, health care consumerism, and the importance of adherence for chronically ill patients. A lot has happened in the intervening period –the end of the primary season, the general election, and the collapse of the financial markets– so it was good to catch up today to hear his perspective. David is still touting information-technology based solutions, and he’s also calling for a bailout of patients with chronic disease who are financially imperiled. |
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Market forces and reimbursement rates
Thursday, November 20, 2008 - 01:53 PM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Blog - Health Business Blog The Boston Globe’s Spotlight Team is accustomed to having an impact. In the case of the priest sex abuse scandal the impact was a shakeup in the Catholic Church and the resignation of the archbishop of Boston (not to mention a Pulitzer Prize). Now the team has turned its attention to health care, where the issues are just as important but good and evil are a great deal harder to separate. The Globe’s lead story on Sunday documented the premium reimbursement rates achieved by Partners Healthcare in particular and teaching hospital systems in general. Essentially, leading health plans in Massachusetts agree to pay these entities more than what they pay others. Now a Spotlight Follow-up article describes a movement to have the state government review reimbursement practices. Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. JudyAnn Bigby was asked about the role of the market in price setting: …Bigby… said… that unlike many other industries, market forces will not automatically drive down costs for healthcare. Asked whether she was concerned about the role of market power in driving payment disparities between hospitals, Bigby said, “I don’t have any basis to suggest that the reasons why you see the differences has to do with market power. . . . I think what it represents is people want to go to the Brigham, they want to go to Mass. General, they want to go to Children’s Hospital, they want to go to the BI.” There are market forces involved here, but the main troubles are that the end users (patients) are too removed from the suppliers and there is insufficient information in the market for patients to make good decisions. Private employers, who are the main purchasers of commercial health insurance, are too passive. What’s happened in the Boston area –as elsewhere– is that insurance companies respond to feedback from their employer customers indicating a preference for certain providers. In Boston, that means everyone wants to offer a plan that includes Massachusetts General Hospital and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. MGH and BWH are pretty savvy, so they got together in the mid-90s to create one entity: Partners Healthcare. The logic for the combination, and for the addition of other facilities and physician organizations to it, has always been more about reimbursement than about clinical integration. That’s not exactly a secret. And from Partners’ perspective, the entity has been an enlightened force. In fact, while primary care physicians in general have been suffering from underpayment, Partners has managed to boost primary care salaries to reasonable levels. Patients are pretty far removed from this equation. Sure, all else being equal they prefer going to Partners facilities and doctors, but they are almost completely disconnected from the price and quality tradeoffs. Health plans in Massachusetts are typically structured so that there is no difference in the patient’s out-of-pocket cost as long as they stay in-network –and Partners is always in network. Information on quality is hard to find and difficult to use. So naturally people gravitate to organizations with sterling credentials and excellent resources. Employer leadership is a missing and often overlooked element of the health insurance situation in Massachusetts. Where are the employer customers who are demanding insurance products that offer value as opposed to access? Except for the state’s Group Insurance Commission, I don’t see it. 1d68 |
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Cavalcade of Risk is up at Managed Care Matters
Thursday, November 20, 2008 - 06:36 AM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Blog - Health Business Blog Check out the latest Cavalcade of Risk at Managed Care Matters. |
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PwC survey finds the climate is right for reform
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 - 08:59 PM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Blog - Health Business Blog The odds that we’ll see major health care reform in 2009 seem to be increasing. PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions surveyed consumers and health care insiders to get their views on health care reform. Among the findings: 75 percent of consumers and 79 percent of insiders expect reform during Obama’s first term Half of consumers are worried they won’t be able to afford health insurance 75 percent of consumers think the proposals made during the Presidential campaign are insufficient to resolve the underlying problems in the system 59 percent of consumers said government would do as well or better than private insurers in managing and paying for health care There are some telling differences between the consumer and insider perspectives: Insiders are strongly in favor of coverage mandates, which after all increase the number of paying customers Consumers care more about cost control This survey represents a broader consensus than one typically sees for reform. Of course the devil is in the details, but I think something along the lines of Obama’s health plan is likely to be enacted. In an environment where one company (AIG) can suck down $150 billion from the government with little to show for it –and where fiscal stimulus is considered good– the high cost of the Obama plan may even be an asset. With Ted Kennedy leading the way and a crisis atmosphere, expect to see some movement when the new Congress convenes. The survey is to be formally released on November 20 at the National Press Club in a national town hall meeting, viewable here at 1 pm EST. |
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New Cervista(tm) HPV Clincial Trials Reoprt Success
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 - 03:42 PM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Newspaper & TV news - GLG News(sm): Healthcare Hologic's (NASDAQ: HOLX) recently reported successful Cervista(tm) high-risk, Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) clinical trial results at this week's Eurogin Conference on Cervical Cancer. This is evidence that more companies are poised to enter the $1 billion dollar market for HPV testing, joining Qiagen (NASDA: QGEN) the HPV testing market leader. HPV subtypes are recognized as the primary causal factor in cervical cancer. In addition to Hologic, several other companies are expected to enter this market in the near future. |
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The rash and EGFR response can be helpful
Tuesday, November 18, 2008 - 10:15 PM - 1 month, 2 weeks ago - Newspaper & TV news - GLG News(sm): Healthcare Many studies support EGFR response correlates with rash Many attempts to actually increase the incidence of rash Most patients will use the EGFR treatments despite the rash |
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