Health Care
Blog
Transparency as a Political Principle
In the Declaration of Independence, sandwiched between the bold announcement of regime-change and an affirmation of natural rights, Thomas Jefferson penned an often-overlooked phrase, “a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” To justify separation from England, ...
Commentary
Government is Fighting Covid-19 on Tape Delay
To great fanfare, the Biden administration just launched a website where Americans can request at-home COVID-19 tests, delivered by the U.S. Postal Service free of charge. It’s a sad commentary on the competence of the federal government that the successful launch of a website counts as a big win these ...
Blog
Mixed Messaging by Public Officials Cloud COVID Return to Normal
Mixed messaging by elected officials and government health experts have continued to cloud efforts to finally “turn the corner” on the COVID-19 pandemic. Until now, Californians were supposed to wear masks in their offices when around colleagues, in grocery stores and restaurants except when eating, and at theaters. Yet, tens ...
Commentary
At the ‘Pharmer’s’ Market, Patients Suffer While Middlemen Profit
Imagine a visit to the local farmer’s market. When you’re about to pay the farmer for some fruit, a man in a suit and sunglasses interrupts the exchange and offers to negotiate a discount with the farmer. Cool, right? Not so fast. The man in the suit didn’t tell you ...
Blog
No More Games – Return the Surplus to CA Taxpayers
Last year, I got a kick out of playing CalMatters’ Spend the Surplus Game. This year, not so much. CalMatters created a clever online game that lets you decide how California should spend its surplus. This year, it’s projected to be $45.7 billion. Of that amount however, I only get ...
Commentary
Will the independent medical practice become extinct in America?
Upon facing declining revenue prospects, physicians are shuttering their private, independent practices to partner up with larger hospitals that have near-monopolies on care in the regions they serve. This trend is depressing news for most Americans. Further concentration of market power in these health systems ultimately results in less personalized ...
Commentary
When Will COVID-19 Become ‘Endemic’?
With pandemic fatigue becoming ever more intense, there is increasing speculation about when the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, might become “endemic” – a time when outbreaks will be more modest and manageable and we can “coexist” with the virus. That juncture has been described as when the virus has become “annoying ...
Commentary
It’s time for hospitals to be transparent about their prices
More than a year after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services enacted a rule requiring hospitals to disclose prices for routine procedures, most still aren’t complying. That’s according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. As of last month, CMS had issued 335 warnings ...
Commentary
Don’t Fall for the ‘Certificate of Need’ Laws Con Game
Last week, the South Carolina state Senate voted overwhelmingly to end the state’s certificate of need program, which requires healthcare providers to seek government approval before building or expanding a hospital or purchasing pricey medical equipment. Such policies have long been justified as tools for avoiding duplicative or wasteful healthcare expenditures. Their only real ...
Blog
How Will Expanded COVID-19 Sick Leave Mandate Impact California Employers?
On Monday, the Assembly Budget Committee will consider a package of COVID-19-related budget legislation proposed by Gov. Newsom including a recently-announced deal between Newsom and the Legislature’s Democratic leaders “to ensure employees continue to have access to COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave through September 30, 2022.” The Senate is expected ...
Transparency as a Political Principle
In the Declaration of Independence, sandwiched between the bold announcement of regime-change and an affirmation of natural rights, Thomas Jefferson penned an often-overlooked phrase, “a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” To justify separation from England, ...
Government is Fighting Covid-19 on Tape Delay
To great fanfare, the Biden administration just launched a website where Americans can request at-home COVID-19 tests, delivered by the U.S. Postal Service free of charge. It’s a sad commentary on the competence of the federal government that the successful launch of a website counts as a big win these ...
Mixed Messaging by Public Officials Cloud COVID Return to Normal
Mixed messaging by elected officials and government health experts have continued to cloud efforts to finally “turn the corner” on the COVID-19 pandemic. Until now, Californians were supposed to wear masks in their offices when around colleagues, in grocery stores and restaurants except when eating, and at theaters. Yet, tens ...
At the ‘Pharmer’s’ Market, Patients Suffer While Middlemen Profit
Imagine a visit to the local farmer’s market. When you’re about to pay the farmer for some fruit, a man in a suit and sunglasses interrupts the exchange and offers to negotiate a discount with the farmer. Cool, right? Not so fast. The man in the suit didn’t tell you ...
No More Games – Return the Surplus to CA Taxpayers
Last year, I got a kick out of playing CalMatters’ Spend the Surplus Game. This year, not so much. CalMatters created a clever online game that lets you decide how California should spend its surplus. This year, it’s projected to be $45.7 billion. Of that amount however, I only get ...
Will the independent medical practice become extinct in America?
Upon facing declining revenue prospects, physicians are shuttering their private, independent practices to partner up with larger hospitals that have near-monopolies on care in the regions they serve. This trend is depressing news for most Americans. Further concentration of market power in these health systems ultimately results in less personalized ...
When Will COVID-19 Become ‘Endemic’?
With pandemic fatigue becoming ever more intense, there is increasing speculation about when the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, might become “endemic” – a time when outbreaks will be more modest and manageable and we can “coexist” with the virus. That juncture has been described as when the virus has become “annoying ...
It’s time for hospitals to be transparent about their prices
More than a year after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services enacted a rule requiring hospitals to disclose prices for routine procedures, most still aren’t complying. That’s according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. As of last month, CMS had issued 335 warnings ...
Don’t Fall for the ‘Certificate of Need’ Laws Con Game
Last week, the South Carolina state Senate voted overwhelmingly to end the state’s certificate of need program, which requires healthcare providers to seek government approval before building or expanding a hospital or purchasing pricey medical equipment. Such policies have long been justified as tools for avoiding duplicative or wasteful healthcare expenditures. Their only real ...
How Will Expanded COVID-19 Sick Leave Mandate Impact California Employers?
On Monday, the Assembly Budget Committee will consider a package of COVID-19-related budget legislation proposed by Gov. Newsom including a recently-announced deal between Newsom and the Legislature’s Democratic leaders “to ensure employees continue to have access to COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave through September 30, 2022.” The Senate is expected ...
