Comments on: Healthcare Update — 03-19-2012

By: MC

MC — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 10:47:11 +0000

The anti-smoking ads? I have already heard adolescents who think they are funny. There must be a better way than exploiting the misfortune of the cancer/COPD/trach people pictured.Remember Reefer Madness, Faces of Meth, the Disney Epcot fat child bully display? Does this stuff ever really help?

By: Matt

Matt — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:42:42 +0000

Good points all. The NY info confirms what is true of all professions. We are concentrated where the money to pay us is. That’s the overwhelming key to access. To any services really.

By: doc99

doc99 — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 13:58:53 +0000

I favor early apology and Bronx Judge McKeon’s Early Settlement solution – cases such as this should be settled expeditiously. Agree w SeaSpray.

By: doc99

doc99 — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 13:53:49 +0000

Inertia – NY Trains over 15% of the physicians in the country. Stats hide much as most docs are concentrated downstate – there are regions of NY state with acute shortages – seven counties without an OB. Shortages of Emergency Med specialists too – http://www.buffalonews.com/city/article312141.ece

NY stats are misleading in that once you have a license, even if you leave the state, you are listed as licensed. Stats are like bikinis – what they reveal is suggestive but what they conceal is vital.

By: SeaSpray

SeaSpray — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:35:04 +0000

How AWFUL the woman lost her hands and feet and also left with compromised vision in one eye!

All the money in the world isn’t worth that!

Why wouldn’t the EMS bring her back? Kidney stone pain is transport worthy if no other ride is available. ???

Didn’t know a stone could harbor infection.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 17:54:51 +0000

The CDC is a part of the department of Health and Human Services. The budget for the CDC is part of the HHS budget, ergo the HHS budget will always be bigger.

By: Beauzeaux

Beauzeaux — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 17:45:13 +0000

“And the government’s CDC web site says that the number one way to reduce C. difficile infections is to “Prescribe and use antibiotics carefully. ”

All my life (I’m creeping up on 70) I have avoided antibiotics unless absolutely necessary. I don’t use anti-bacterial soaps, cleaners, etc. And what do I get for my efforts? A chance to get c.difficile or some other super bug when/if I go to hospital. I’m beginning to understand that a “herd benefit” means nothing to individuals. They want what they want now and think MRSA is a fairy tale that will never affect them.

By: Matt

Matt — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 02:50:33 +0000

There are 15,000+ nursing homes in the country. You have three cases of them up there. One of them that has nothing to do with physician malpractice. The only message from that one is follow state law with regard to staffing guidelines.

There are over 4,000,000 babies born each year in this country. Pretty sure you can’t reach the broad conclusion from those few cases.

New York has one of the highest ratios of physicans per capita in the nation. Wonder why that is?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 01:16:15 +0000

Yep HHS gets 8x more funding than the CDC if you exclude Medicare and Medicaid from their budget.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 01:13:53 +0000

“So isn’t our government’s inane Hospital Compare site contributing to the uptick in Clostridium difficile infections that our same government wants us to eradicate?”

Yeah it’s simple: HHS is run by bureaucrats and the CDC is run by intelligent people. But because HHS gives better blowjobs to politicians I bet they get way more funding.