Comments on: More On Medicare Never Events

By: Clostridium difficile Not A Medical Error? « WhiteCoat Rants

Clostridium difficile Not A Medical Error? « WhiteCoat Rants — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:13:49 +0000

[...] Never events are all about the Benjamins. [...]

By: Medicare adopts “never event” policy

Medicare adopts “never event” policy — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:44:02 +0000

[...] in fact prevent all instances of patient falls, decubitus pressure ulcers (bedsores), hypoglycemia, deep vein thrombosis, delirium, suicide attempts, c. difficile infection, or iatrogenic pneumothorax. Nonetheless, [...]

By: CountyRat

CountyRat — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 19:59:49 +0000

Of course these rules are designed to reduce payments to providers. Any government run healthcare system (including, but not limited to Medicare) must, and always will have to ration care. However, it is politically risky for elected officials to admit this. Therefore, to cover their tracks, they ration care by restricting payment, knowing that without payment, the care cannot be provided (you can’t get something for nothing). Your observation that it will now be harder for the sickest patients (the ones who need the physician’s services the most) will receive less care is not a threat to the policy makers; it is confirmation that they are achieving their desired results.

When the government pays the bills, your body becomes a piece of state property, to be treated or abandoned as the state deems most efficient. Just look at Brittan, where earlier this year the government quietly promulgated a regulation that any deceased person’s organs can be used for transplantation, even if neither the person from whom those organs are being harvested, nor their family, have consented to this. It makes sense, really. After all, the National Health Service has provided the medical care that kept those organs alive from cradle to grave, so why shouldn’t the state have the authority to take possession of the bodies of its citizens when the state decides to.

By: The Beginning of the End is Upon Us « WhiteCoat Rants

The Beginning of the End is Upon Us « WhiteCoat Rants — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 11:02:19 +0000

[...] pay for proper care and staffing in the hospitals. Medicare just doesn’t want to pay period. As I mentioned in a previous post, the whole “never event” idea was part of the Deficit Reduction [...]

By: White Coat Rants on “never events”

White Coat Rants on “never events” — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:07:31 +0000

[...] should never clot, microorganisms should never happen, and one doc-blogger is on a tear (Aug. 14, more, Aug. 17) over the sometimes absurd hype being given to the concept: “Never events” are [...]

By: gmlevinmd123

gmlevinmd123 — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 17:59:37 +0000

Well by now we should all realize that medicare considers us to be ‘civil servants’ without all the benefits of the FEBHP, vacations, disabilty coverage, etc and a four day work week.

P.S. I have had great success posting comments of the WSJ Health blog…don’t know about their other sections. It also has an RSS feed.

Health Train Express http://www.healthtrain.blogspot.com

By: The Happy Hospitalist

The Happy Hospitalist — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 17:17:03 +0000

yes, yes, yes, yes, yes

By: Bianca Castafiore

Bianca Castafiore — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:19:56 +0000

What is the general feeling about “sentinel events”? Ar! My personal sentinel event went *unreported* by nursing staff and doctors (to their own administration). When I brought the great-sucking-sound-derived-from-my-life’s-quality-dancing-’round-the-flushing-toilet-bowl to the attention of the state, I began hearing these “event” terms being tossed about so blithely. Truly, a straightforward approach to errors, with apologies and clear explanations being offered immediately, would eliminate all sorts of crap — but the medical industry, the insurance industry, and the legal industry all would need to stop betting on the lowest common human denominators. This is what I think of while I don’t sleep at night. But when an “event”(and an event is not an error) is but a microbe taking its rightful advantage? Well, I wonder what these righteous folk shall be like when faced with a real problem. Ach. I’m tired.

By: hashmd

hashmd — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:35:59 +0000

Yes, the Marie Antoinette of bureaucrats has let loose the “Let them eat cake!” edict. Based on little or no research that any of these reduce morbidity or mortality or that they actually will reduce these events from occurring, they are now in place by edict alone. Not trialed in certain centers to see if their deaths were reduced, not studied elsewhere to see if they can be cost-effectively carried out.

They are just methods to not pay hospitals. Period. No appeals, no rebuttal to the charges.

More of the health insurance rules game where they can make up any rule they want when it fits their particular whim, especially if it gets them out of paying providers.

So, my patients, you will be protected so much and not held accountable for anything that might happen to you, even by act of nature, that soon there will be no hospital left and no providers left to care for you.

Then the government will force us providers to provide care even past the point of bankruptcy (like Chicago is trying to do).

Let the punishment continue until morale improves!!

By: Sapphire

Sapphire — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 19:34:07 +0000

Never events sound weird. It makes me glad I live in Canada and never have to contend with such nonsense. My view is shit happens. Not everything in life is preventable all the time if at all. If anybody suggested such a never event thing up in Canada the Canadian press would have hay day writing articles mocking the idea.