tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post4828082013877802981..comments2023-08-21T02:57:37.362-05:00Comments on Dr. Wes: The Challenge of Health Care ReformDrWeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17438019699222125477noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-69839316886982633322009-09-21T20:26:49.171-05:002009-09-21T20:26:49.171-05:00Well said CAT
Its all how you want your rationing...Well said CAT<br /><br />Its all how you want your rationing that we are arguing about. Either you ration by making people at the lower margins go without basic and often very effective treatment, or you make more rational decisions by trimming out ineffective treatments with marginal efficacy. I would find it more humnane to go with the latter.<br /><br />Presently, we are moving toward higherKeithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-65893497538830902362009-09-21T18:17:30.027-05:002009-09-21T18:17:30.027-05:00Dr. Wes,
I agree that it would be nice to know ju...Dr. Wes,<br /><br />I agree that it would be nice to know just how much everything costs. Insurers, doctors, patients, hospitals... everyone could make better decisions (if they really wanted to). Markets do best when there aren't a lot of secret variables.<br /><br />I'll take a tale from my personal life to illustrate why patients are not very likely to care what anything costs. My Catnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-64594817911922177002009-09-21T15:24:17.330-05:002009-09-21T15:24:17.330-05:00Hi Dr. Wes - From a consumer's point of view -...Hi Dr. Wes - From a consumer's point of view - not only don't I know the cost - I rarely know the price of anything in advance. Since my husband and I have $10k deductibles - we always ask. But get answers like "somewhere between $200 and $1000" - or no answers at all. Moreover - we are in a PPO - and usually can't find out in advance what our PPO discount is with a Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-69458458562727403892009-09-21T13:20:20.663-05:002009-09-21T13:20:20.663-05:00Keith-
I would argue it is the job of the physicia...Keith-<br /><i>I would argue it is the job of the physician to prescribe treatment in a cost efficient manner for our patients.</i><br /><br />You and I agree that the whole crux of our health care crisis is <b><i>costs.</i></b> Why then, don't we know them, publish them, and make them transparent for all to see?<br /><br />If you or I do not know how much a therapy costs, how can we advise DrWeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17438019699222125477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-90270938485894207382009-09-21T12:35:58.857-05:002009-09-21T12:35:58.857-05:00Wes,
I await your full comments, but in the meant...Wes,<br /><br />I await your full comments, but in the meantime, I would argue it is the job of the physician to prescribe treatment in a cost efficient manner for our patients. It is a constant point of ethical struggle for me that we may spare no expense for our patient standing in front of us, but in so doing may add so much burden to the expense of others that they may longer be able to Keithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-32082781717319178692009-09-21T12:26:25.980-05:002009-09-21T12:26:25.980-05:00“President Obama’s speech last week really moved m...“President Obama’s speech last week really moved me. Despite what my colleagues think of me. If what he says is what will EXACTLY happen, how can I not hope and work towards that cause”? Mike Oliphant runs a small Utah health insurance website www.benefitsmanager.net/SelectHealth.html and www.dentalinsuranceutah.net whom deals with hundreds of people on a day to day struggle to be approved for Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-13636139075347611712009-09-21T10:46:13.078-05:002009-09-21T10:46:13.078-05:00Keith and Robyn-
I apologize for not having a lot...Keith and Robyn-<br /><br />I apologize for not having a lot of time right now to respond in full to your lengthy messages, but I would like to make one critical point. Until <i>full tranparency</i> of pricing is available from all parties in the health care debate, any attempt at "proving" comparative effectiveness is moot. How can we talk about "cost effectiveness" when weDrWeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17438019699222125477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-48646228563139360612009-09-21T10:06:27.961-05:002009-09-21T10:06:27.961-05:00Again, I think we are actually in agreement but th...Again, I think we are actually in agreement but the method of getting there is where we seem to diverge.<br /><br />It is indeed the ability of innovators to create new treatments, some that are marginally ineffective over the old treatments and some that actually are not proven effective at all at the time of there release that has increased the cost of healt care. Invent some medical gizmo thatKeithnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-75170206822100253112009-09-20T21:10:09.688-05:002009-09-20T21:10:09.688-05:00And now I will lob one back into your court. Stat...And now I will lob one back into your court. Statins for $30/year is peanuts. My only experience with your specialty was with my FIL - an 80+ year old widower who we moved to an excellent SNF near us after a stroke. He did ok with rehab after the stroke - but still had CHF - and 2 kinds of metastatic cancer (a common one - bladder cancer - and an exotic one - an angiosarcoma - great teaching Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18943510.post-45893060856219055092009-09-20T20:11:55.476-05:002009-09-20T20:11:55.476-05:00Hi Dr. Wes - I think the professor could have made...Hi Dr. Wes - I think the professor could have made a much better case. My husband and I both take statins - Simvastatin (generic Zocor). Works ok for us. Last RX at Costco was $9.43 for 100. Not likely to break the bank (for an individual or a society). There are drug prices people can get PO'd about - but statins aren't in that category (as long as you're not taking the "Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com