Princess Health and Canadian Ban on Private Health Insurance Struck Down. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Canadian Ban on Private Health Insurance Struck Down. Princessiccia

Canada health insurance

Gusty 12:09 Add Comment

The Globe and Mail reported that the Canadian Supreme Court has just struck down as unconstitutional a law in Quebec that makes private health care insurance illegal. Dr. Albert Schumacher, the President of the Canadian Medical Association, said, "this is indeed a historic ruling that could substantially change the very foundation of medicare as we know it."
The court found "in sum, the prohibition on obtaining private health insurance is not constitutional where the public system fails to deliver reasonable services."
Health Care Renewal has frequently discussed the excesses of the for-profit and private not-for-profit organizations that comprise a major chunk of the US health care system, so Canada's impending leap into a multi-centric health care system may not be an unalloyed success. However, throwing caution about commenting about another nation's politics aside, I can't help but think that putting a little more control of health care into the hands of individual Canadians may not be entirely a bad thing. Maybe some of our friends north of here will comment more knowledgeably.

Princess Health and Canadian Ban on Private Health Insurance Struck Down.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Canadian Ban on Private Health Insurance Struck Down.Princessiccia

Canada health insurance

Gusty 12:09 Add Comment

The Globe and Mail reported that the Canadian Supreme Court has just struck down as unconstitutional a law in Quebec that makes private health care insurance illegal. Dr. Albert Schumacher, the President of the Canadian Medical Association, said, "this is indeed a historic ruling that could substantially change the very foundation of medicare as we know it."
The court found "in sum, the prohibition on obtaining private health insurance is not constitutional where the public system fails to deliver reasonable services."
Health Care Renewal has frequently discussed the excesses of the for-profit and private not-for-profit organizations that comprise a major chunk of the US health care system, so Canada's impending leap into a multi-centric health care system may not be an unalloyed success. However, throwing caution about commenting about another nation's politics aside, I can't help but think that putting a little more control of health care into the hands of individual Canadians may not be entirely a bad thing. Maybe some of our friends north of here will comment more knowledgeably.

Princess Health and More Exaggerated Hospital List Prices. Princessiccia

Princess Health and More Exaggerated Hospital List Prices. Princessiccia

health care prices Weill Cornell Medical College

Gusty 11:46 Add Comment

The Opinion Journal (the on-line opinion site of the Wall Street Journal) has a long article about one family's experience in the UK and US health care systems. Of note, the author noted that the charges for 10 physical therapy sessions at Cornell University Hospital in New York City were $27,000. As the author said, "there is something seriously out of whack about 10 therapy sessions that cost more than month's worth of hospital bills in England."
These prices are comparable to the list prices that a Tenet hospital was charging for physical therapy in Florida, but are more than an order of magnitude (i.e., ten times) higher than prices quoted as reasonable by a leader of the American Physical Therapy Association (see previous post here).
So everybody still thinks the reason for rising US health care costs is a mystery?

Princess Health and More Exaggerated Hospital List Prices.Princessiccia

Princess Health and More Exaggerated Hospital List Prices.Princessiccia

health care prices Weill Cornell Medical College

Gusty 11:46 Add Comment

The Opinion Journal (the on-line opinion site of the Wall Street Journal) has a long article about one family's experience in the UK and US health care systems. Of note, the author noted that the charges for 10 physical therapy sessions at Cornell University Hospital in New York City were $27,000. As the author said, "there is something seriously out of whack about 10 therapy sessions that cost more than month's worth of hospital bills in England."
These prices are comparable to the list prices that a Tenet hospital was charging for physical therapy in Florida, but are more than an order of magnitude (i.e., ten times) higher than prices quoted as reasonable by a leader of the American Physical Therapy Association (see previous post here).
So everybody still thinks the reason for rising US health care costs is a mystery?

Princess Health and Local "Naturopathic Doctor" Shut Down. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Local "Naturopathic Doctor" Shut Down. Princessiccia

complementary/ alternative medicine

Gusty 13:17 Add Comment

Our own Providence Journal reported that the RI Health Department shut down the office of a "naturopathic doctor," John E. Curran, after federal agents raided two of his offices. Before reading the news article, it's instructive to look at Curran's web-site, which was still up, at least through today.
On it he:

• claims he can treat "catastrophic" or "unusual or rare" diseases;
• implies that his treatments are harmless, and, in comparison to standard medicine, "Treatments are more natural, gentler, and more easily accepted by our bodies;"
• implies he is a licensed ND, naturopathic doctor;
• claims that his version of naturopathy is "evidence-based;" and
• provides a testimonial of a patient who seems to say that Curran put his Stage 4 head and neck cancer into remission.

The Providence Journal reported that Curran is under federal investigation for wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering. The order to shut down his office came after a patient with liver disease was "sickened" by an alcohol based medicine that Curran prescribed. Undercover agents who visited Curran were subjected to a "live blood analysis," which Curran said revealed "parasites" in their blood, or malformed blood cells; and a "biomeridian stress assessment." The treatments Curran proposed for these problems would cost about $10,000.
Curran's practice is listed on a this web-site which has links to a variety of New England based "holistic" practitioners. Some make claims to treat real diseases that seem far from evidence based, for example:

• "The Way to Balance," whose practitioners claim they can treat arthritis, seizures, and asthma
• "The Circle of the Light Studio, " whose practitioners claim that therapeutic touch can treat asthma and cardiac problems, and relieve AIDS symptoms

And the claims found on the web-site for the Tai Sophia Institute, the organization that recently announced a formal collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, are only somewhat less sweeping (see our previous posts here and here.)
At a time when health care is derided for its rising costs, declining accessibility to patients, and stagnant quality, I wonder why do there is so little concern about the costs incurred by these so-called complementary and alternative medicine practitioners, and so little skepticism about the expansive claims they make about the tests and treatments they provide?

Princess Health and Local "Naturopathic Doctor" Shut Down.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Local "Naturopathic Doctor" Shut Down.Princessiccia

complementary/ alternative medicine

Gusty 13:17 Add Comment

Our own Providence Journal reported that the RI Health Department shut down the office of a "naturopathic doctor," John E. Curran, after federal agents raided two of his offices. Before reading the news article, it's instructive to look at Curran's web-site, which was still up, at least through today.
On it he:

• claims he can treat "catastrophic" or "unusual or rare" diseases;
• implies that his treatments are harmless, and, in comparison to standard medicine, "Treatments are more natural, gentler, and more easily accepted by our bodies;"
• implies he is a licensed ND, naturopathic doctor;
• claims that his version of naturopathy is "evidence-based;" and
• provides a testimonial of a patient who seems to say that Curran put his Stage 4 head and neck cancer into remission.

The Providence Journal reported that Curran is under federal investigation for wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering. The order to shut down his office came after a patient with liver disease was "sickened" by an alcohol based medicine that Curran prescribed. Undercover agents who visited Curran were subjected to a "live blood analysis," which Curran said revealed "parasites" in their blood, or malformed blood cells; and a "biomeridian stress assessment." The treatments Curran proposed for these problems would cost about $10,000.
Curran's practice is listed on a this web-site which has links to a variety of New England based "holistic" practitioners. Some make claims to treat real diseases that seem far from evidence based, for example:

• "The Way to Balance," whose practitioners claim they can treat arthritis, seizures, and asthma
• "The Circle of the Light Studio, " whose practitioners claim that therapeutic touch can treat asthma and cardiac problems, and relieve AIDS symptoms

And the claims found on the web-site for the Tai Sophia Institute, the organization that recently announced a formal collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, are only somewhat less sweeping (see our previous posts here and here.)
At a time when health care is derided for its rising costs, declining accessibility to patients, and stagnant quality, I wonder why do there is so little concern about the costs incurred by these so-called complementary and alternative medicine practitioners, and so little skepticism about the expansive claims they make about the tests and treatments they provide?

Princess Health and Allegations That Merck Threatened Researchers Who Expressed Doubts About Vioxx. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Allegations That Merck Threatened Researchers Who Expressed Doubts About Vioxx. Princessiccia

academic freedom free speech intimidation Merck Vioxx

Gusty 08:29 Add Comment

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported a series of allegations that a top Merck executive threatened and intimidated physicians who questioned the safety of its Cox-2 inhibitor drug Vioxx, now off the market.
Louis M. Sherwood, who retired as a Senior Vice President of Medical and Scientific Affairs for Merck, had been known as "the epitome of an upstanding guy, smart and well-respected." The Inquirer reported that "Sherwood earned accolades from both worlds [academia and industry]. At retirement in March 2002, he was given two lifetime achievement awards, one from industry physicians and one from medical-schol professors."
Nonetheless, evidence discovered in one of the cases against Merck revealed:

• Lee Simon, a former Harvard faculty member, after lecturing about the risks of Vioxx, said he was threatened by Sherwood: "he would hurt my career if I continued to lecture." Sherwood also charged that Simon was biased against Vioxx. However, the Inquirer reported that Simon's "boss at Harvard, Steven Weinberger, now a Vice-President at the American College of Physicians in Philadelphia, confirmed getting Sherwood's call but said it had 'nothing to do' with Simon's promotion." Weinberger stated, "Lou Sherwood was not at all threatening me." Yet, John Yates, Sherwood's successor at Merck, contacted Simon, and said, according to him, that Sherwood's behavior "would never happen again, that it was unnecessary, that it was not the behavior of Merck." [Note that Dr. Weinberger has appeared in Health Care Renewal posts in the past, here, here, and here, on the subject of declining interest in primary care, which he has suggested is due more to shortcomings in how medical schools promote the field to students and due to inadequate current "chronic care models" than to pressures faced by practicing physicians, including external threats to their core values.]
• M. Thomas Stillman, from the University of Minnesota Medical School, also questioned the safety of Vioxx. A Merck "sales executive" described him as a "vocal adversary of Merck and Vioxx" in an email. A memo documented that Sherwood had "complained to Stillman's boss." Yates also called Stillman to apologize.
• Gurkirpal Singh, from Stanford University, questioned whether data about Vioxx was being hidden. A memo by Sherwood described Singh as "perceived as an advocate for Searle," which was then the manufacturer of the competing drug, Celebrex. The Inquirer reported that Sherwood called Singh's supervisor, Professor James F. Fries, at home, labeled Singh "anti-Vioxx," suggested Singh would "flame out," and threatened Fries with "consequences for myself and for Stanford," according to Fries. Fries wrote Merck to complain, noting all the above cases and those of two other researchers. Fries then got a call from David Anstice, President of the Human Health-Americas division of Merck, saying that Sherwood's behavior was "not the norm," and promising to take action.

These are serious allegations, involving apparent efforts by a pharmaceutical company to stifle free speech and academic freedom to suppress unfavorable comments about the company's products. Such behaviors threaten core academic and scientific values. If physicians and researchers cannot openly discuss scientific findings, science will not advance. If they cannot openly discuss possible harms to patients, patients may be harmed.
Unfortunately, if these allegations are true, they will become just another entry in the sorry catalog of threats to free speech and academic freedom in medicine, (which may relate to the many threats to free speech and academic freedom in colleges and universities, such as those that have been documented by FIRE.)
Physicians and scientists must learn how to defend themselves against such threats, or science, and worse, patients will suffer.