Category: Diabetes

Explain hemoglobin A1c in 2 minutes

It was a slow day in the emergency department. I was sitting across the bedside from my patient who came in for a left forearm infection checkup. She was a 73-year-old female with a history of diabetes. She was elegant and soft-spoken. Prior to examini…

As Billions In Tax Dollars Flow To Private Medicaid Plans, Who’s Minding The Store?

Insurance companies profit from government contracts but are subject to little oversight of how they spend the money or care for patients. The expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act has only exacerbated the problem.

Feds Settle Huge Whistleblower Suit Over Medicare Advantage Fraud

A DaVita subsidiary will pay $270 million over allegations that it cheated the federal government for years.

MKSAP: 25-year-old woman with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 25-year-old woman with type 1 diabetes mellitus is evaluated for recent-onset glycemic fluctuations without symptomatic hypoglycemia. She was diagnosed with diabetes 7 years ago. Her HbA1c levels since diagnosis have ranged from 6.4% to 7.3%, with the most recent value […]

Insulin’s High Cost Leads To Deadly Rationing

Alec Raeshawn Smith was 23 when diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, and 26 when he died. He couldn’t afford $1,300 per month for his insulin and other diabetes supplies. So he tried to stretch the doses.

Insulin’s High Cost Leads To Deadly Rationing

Alec Raeshawn Smith was 23 when diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, and 26 when he died. He couldn’t afford $1,300 per month for his insulin and other diabetes supplies. So he tried to stretch the doses.

MKSAP: 57-year-old man with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 57-year-old man with a 15-year history of type 2 diabetes mellitus is evaluated for bilateral burning sensation in his feet for the last 6 to 12 months. The sensation worsens at night. His HbA1c levels have remained less than 7.0% […]

MKSAP: 57-year-old man with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 57-year-old man with a 15-year history of type 2 diabetes mellitus is evaluated for bilateral burning sensation in his feet for the last 6 to 12 months. The sensation worsens at night. His HbA1c levels have remained less than 7.0% […]

Medicaid Expansion Making Diabetes Meds More Accessible To Poor, Study Shows

The number of diabetes drug prescriptions filled for low-income people enrolled in Medicaid rose sharply in states that expanded eligibility for the program under the Affordable Care Act, according to a new study.

A return to the problem-oriented SOAP note

CMS is changing note requirements, among other changes.  Bob Doherty has a wonderful summary: “Medicare’s historic proposal to change how it pays physicians.” As always, we really will have a difficult time sorting out the unintended consequences of these changes, but they certainly seem like a move in the proper direction.  To me the most […]