Category: Doctors

Years Ago, This Doctor Linked A Mysterious Lung Disease To Vaping

In an exclusive interview, a West Virginia physician says that back in 2015 he had a sense a patient’s illness “probably wasn’t the first case ever seen nor would it be the last.” Was it a sentinel event?

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: All About Medicare

Before “Medicare for All,” there was just Medicare, the federal program that provides insurance to 60 million Americans. This week, KHN’s Julie Rovner talks to Tricia Neuman of the Kaiser Family Foundation about how Medicare works and whom it serves. Then, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join Rovner to talk about some current Medicare issues being debated in Washington, D.C.

To Save Money, American Patients And Surgeons Meet In Cancun

The patient is from Mississippi. The surgeon is from Wisconsin. They meet in a Mexican resort for knee replacement surgery. Because the care costs so much less than in the U.S, the patient’s health plan pays her $5,000.

Doctors Argue Plans To Remedy Surprise Medical Bills Will ‘Shred’ The Safety Net

A case of questionable logic.

Doctors Argue Plans To Remedy Surprise Medical Bills Will ‘Shred’ The Safety Net

A case of questionable logic.

When A Doctor’s Screen Time Detracts From Face Time With Patients

Electronic health records can help reduce medical errors, but when not used well they can strain the doctor-patient relationship. Dr. Wei Wei Lee, an internist with the University of Chicago Medicine, has developed strategies to make sure tech is a tool, not a barrier.

‘An Arm And A Leg’: Real Lessons Doctors Can Learn From Fake Patients

Are physicians asking patients the right questions in order to provide good care? Laser-focused on biomedical symptoms, some doctors miss the psychosocial factors that can be a barrier to good health. In Episode 7 of the podcast, we hear about a creative study that uncovers how some medical errors happen.

Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes

Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.

American Medical Students Less Likely To Choose To Become Primary Care Doctors

Only 41.5% of internal medicine positions were filled by U.S.-trained fourth-year students getting traditional medical degrees, the lowest share on record. Similar trends were seen this year in family medicine and pediatrics.

Opioid Operators: How Surgeons Ply Patients With Painkillers

Even as awareness of the opioid crisis grew, prescribing habits of surgeons changed very little from 2011 to 2016, found a data analysis by Kaiser Health News and Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. Our team looked at surgeons whose Medicare patients filled a prescription for opioids within a week of having one of seven […]