Adapted from Rich & Dying: An Insider Calls Bullsh*t on America’s Healthcare Economy. I’ve stood in front of conferences before and made my case: our health care system is perfect. “A perfect system? Ours?” I’ll hear people in the audience mu…
Category: Public Health & Policy
Doctors: You can increase voting in the U.S.
A vital sign of U.S. democracy — voter participation — is very low, and health professionals providing holistic care can be part of the solution. Holistic care should be expanded to include civic health. U.S. voter participation ranks 28th among 35 nat…
COVID-19 proved that diverse voices make health care better
I’ve been reflecting on how the scientific world came together over the past 15-months to take on a viral pandemic. Despite unprecedented circumstances, the field achieved one of the most incredible feats of modern medicine, and for once, we achieved i…
How to combat racism in the American medical system
Last month marks one year since the killing of George Floyd, and over that often-tumultuous timespan of public outrage, nationwide street demonstrations, and protest, Americans have been forced to take a critical and introspective look at ourselves as …
The expanding role of specialists in value-based care
Value-based care has become a buzzword over the past decade with early experiments in Massachusetts, followed by creating Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs) as part of the Affordable Care Act. As commercial insurers jumped onto this bandwag…
Why it is essential to prioritize universal coverage
A patient of mine (who was also a friend) reached out recently to say the cost of one of his essential medications had increased to a $300 monthly out-of-pocket expense. As an independent musician, he did not get his health care through an employer. Th…
The white guys vs. the janitors: How racial microaggressions lead to poor care outcomes
Modern-day discrimination still has elements of slavery, segregation, and inaccurate assumptions about people of color. Just last month, a Texas high school principal sent a letter to parents explaining her dismay about a recent racist act where studen…
High COVID-19 vaccination rates do not equate to equity in communities of color
The 500,000 COVID-19 related deaths reflect our nation’s failure to reduce and prevent public health crises. As COVID-19 rampaged across the globe, several research teams raced to develop a vaccine, a technology that humanity has relied on for decades …
Addressing racial disparities in health begins upstream with racial equity in society
This month, the American Medical Association (AMA) officially released an ambitious three-year plan to dismantle structural racism within their organization by addressing past harms and examining institutional roles that uphold these structures. AMA la…
Bridging the political divide [PODCAST]
“Where do we go from here? Conventional wisdom suggests that we can only transform ourselves. This is why I propose that we attempt to recognize the Trump that lies within each of us and to heal him. We are plagued not just by the pandemic but by…
