Ed Howe is retired president of Aurora Health Care, which spans eastern third of Wisconsin and includes 13 hospitals, more than 650 physicians practicing at more than 100 clinics, 120 community pharmacies and 13 Aurora Quick Care sites. Aurora also is Wisconsin's largest home care provider through the Aurora Visiting Nurse Association, and a leading agent for social change through Aurora Family Service. Ed blogs regularly at ActionForBetterHealthcare.com.
Ed Howe
Medicaid, neither as it exists today nor how it changes under the Affordable Care Act can assure access for the poor. Additionally, costs will not be affordable.
Currently, independent physicians often choose high-cost, implantable medical devices for their patients. Hospitals, however, pay the bill, insulating physicians from the costs of their choices.
The number of new prescription drug shortages in 2011 shot up to 267 causing both concerns over patient care, and unwarranted cost increases.
The CMS/Premier healthcare alliance Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration (HQID) project served as a test-bed for various provisions in the healthcare reform law.
I am very impressed that the federal government is willing to experiment with a variety of types of bundled payment models to determine what will work best and what makes sense for different parts of the country.
Alexian Brothers Health System is a perfect example of a system that has focused on improving quality and has saved tremendous costs in the process.
This year I have blogged often about the need for pharmacy and medical device companies to stop using inappropriate financial deals to help market their products and as an avenue to build relationships with physicians.
Baptist Hospital East in Louisville, Ky., part of the Baptist Healthcare System, has announced it will open two new Baptist Express Care locations in Walmart stores this month.
We can compare the price of a new car or appliance but when it comes to certain medical devices, including implants, the costs are kept from patients, hospitals and even the government.
In Nevada, state officials are investigating whether payments to a group of cardiologists from a heart device company were legitimate consulting fees or an inducement to the doctors to use the company’s products.