Category: Policy

Pay people for their kidneys? It’s time.

These are trying times for health care optimists. Despite all the hype surrounding breakthroughs in clinical practice and technology, American medicine is stuck in in neutral. Though the engine is revving loudly, little progress is being made. This unf…

Medicare for all will kill jobs. But it may be necessary.

As calls for radical health reform grow louder, many on the right, in the center and in the health care industry are arguing that proposals like “Medicare for all” would cause economic ruin, decimating a sector that represents nearly 20% of our economy…

Patient experience scores are being dragged down by process problems

Which statement fits your organization the best? Option A: Our organizational strategies, incentives, goals, and mantras are driven by patient experience. Option B: Our organizational strategies, incentives, goals, and mantras are driven by quality and…

Patient experience scores are being dragged down by process problems

Which statement fits your organization the best? Option A: Our organizational strategies, incentives, goals, and mantras are driven by patient experience. Option B: Our organizational strategies, incentives, goals, and mantras are driven by quality and…

It’s time for physicians to be less “productive”

Physician compensation in most employed positions is based on how much a physician “produces.” I work as a psychiatrist, and this amounts to how many patients you see per hour. The more patients you see, the more “productive” you are, the more money yo…

A physician suggests how to improve Medicare

This is a brief explanation of Medicare from a physician’s perspective, as well as my thoughts on how Congress could make adjustments that would bring us closer to universal care and provide the private market the freedom to improve health care o…

How PTSD is hurting nursing

Every time I hear that there is a nursing shortage in America, I feel myself cringe. There is not a shortage of nurses in America. There is a shortage of nurses who choose to work at the bedside. There is a reason, and it is called post-traumatic stres…

No politician has a realistic solution for health care

If you live or work in Washington DC, your number one health care question is how do I (or my meal ticket people) win the next election. If you live or work in Caruthersville MO, chances are that your most pressing health care question is how do I (or …

Private equity in gastroenterology: Is it the future?

An excerpt from Private Equity in Gastroenterology: Navigating the Next Wave. A long time ago, gastroenterologists ran solo or small group practices. Despite the myriad challenges of running a medical business, doctors enjoyed the independence that pri…

The problem with burning health insurance down

Let’s burn health insurance down. Greedy corporate bastards should burn. Big Pharma and big hospitals should probably burn too. You know who else is really, really, bad? Wall Street. Let’s burn the banks. And let’s burn Big Tech and the entire Silicon …