The Arthritis Foundation

Member since '08

Joy125

status: Roxygirl, I can't leave a message for you cuz your settings are set to private, but if you do get a diagnosis for RA or arthritis, you could...

Speak Out for HEALTH CARE FOR ALL

A Leading RA MD Talks about Treating RA

Thursday, July 21, 2011

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I was diagnosed with RA over 30 years. Back then, finding information about RA, meds and joint surgery was difficult. I had to go to a hospital's medical library to look up info about knee replacements -- that was over 20 years ago.

Nowadays, there is so much information on the internet available at our fingertips. I often will do a search for rheumatoid arthritis looking for the latest news or interesting articles. I came across this discussion with a leading rheumatologist, Dr. Roy Fleischmann in which he talks about the latest RA treatments, the course of treatment he takes with newly diagnosed patients, and RA meds in development.

I hope you will find this discussion of interest and helpful.
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"Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis, a Clinical Context Report"

http://www.medpagetoday.com/clinical-context/RheumatoidArthritis/27322

If you care about arthritis research and prevention programs. . . .

Thursday, Febuary 17, 2011

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If you care about arthritis research and prevention programs contact your representatives in Congress today and urge them to oppose the cuts in funding to the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC). A vote in the House is scheduled for tonight or Friday.

NIH grants fund a range of programs and projects that research cures and treatments for a wide variety of chronic diseases like arthritis, heart disease and diabetes. Much of the biomedical research in the U.S. is largely funded by the NIH.

The authors of a study published Feb. 10 in the New England Journal of Medicine count 153 new drugs and vaccines from public sector research institutes over the past 40 years. They include Remicade (infliximab), considered a giant step forward in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory and autoimmune disorders, and Lyrica (pregabalin), used to treat pain neuropathy, fibromyalgia and pain from shingles.(1)

There are 100 types of arthritis, that affect millions of adults, and thousands of children. Cuts in research funding will limit our ability to discover better treatments and cures for arthritis – the number one cause of disability in the U.S -- eliminate jobs and jeopardize American innovation and competitiveness.

To find your elected representatives and contact info, see:

http://capwiz.com/arthritis/dbq/officials/

Or, call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 2224-3121 and ask to speak with the office of your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators.

It’s time for Congress to hear from all of us with arthritis and autoimmune disease to oppose cuts to the NIH and CDC. ACT NOW! Stand up for medical research -- an investment in health, is an investment in our nation's future.

(1) "Many Breakthrough Drugs Come From Publicly Funded Research: Study
U.S. tax dollars contributing to more major new meds than previously thought, researchers say." BloombergBusinessweek.com.

http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/649734.html

Pivotal Moments in American Health Care History

Sunday, March 21, 2010

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-- 1912: Former President Theodore Roosevelt campaigns on a platform calling for a single national health service.

-- 1932: The Committee on the Costs of Medical Care report is published and raises concerns about the costs of health care and the number of people lacking medical services.

-- 1935: The Social Security Act, providing pensions and other benefits to the elderly, is signed into law by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. National health insurance is left out of the final Social Security bill because of the opposition of organized medicine and its allies.

-- 1939: The Wagner National Health Act of 1939, FDR's second push for national health insurance, fails as Southern Democrats align with Republicans to oppose government expansion.

-- 1943: The National War Labor Board declares employer contributions for health insurance to be tax free, which encourages companies to offer health-insurance packages to attract workers.

-- 1945: President Harry Truman recommends a national health insurance program during a special address to Congress. The McCarran-Fergurson Act of 1945 exempts the insurance industry from federal antitrust legislation.

-- 1948: Truman's National Health Insurance Initiative fails after the American Medical Association criticizes it, and some Republicans compare it to communism.

-- 1965: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs into law the landmark federal health insurance programs known as Medicare and Medicaid.

-- 1971: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., offers his national health insurance plan. The "Health Security Act" calls for a universal single-player plan to be financed through payroll taxes.

-- 1974: President Richard Nixon proposes his Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan calling for universal coverage, voluntary employer participation and a separate program for the working poor and the unemployed, replacing Medicaid.

-- 1979: President Jimmy Carter proposes that businesses provide a minimum package of benefits, that public coverage for the poor and aged be expanded and that a new public corporation created to sell coverage to everyone else.

-- 1993: President Bill Clinton proposes the most ambitious reworking of the health care system since Medicare and Medicaid, aiming squarely for universal coverage. The proposals drew strong opposition from the health care industry and employers.

-- 2003: President George W. Bush signs a law adding prescription drugs to Medicare.

-- 2010: ????

For a more complete list see link below:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/03/21/a_historical_look_at_health_care_legislation/?page=1

Health Care Reform is a National Priority for People With Arthritis

Saturday, March 20, 2010

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In a news release issued today, Dr. John H. Klippel, President and CEO of the Arthritis Foundation said: "Today, after more than a year of discussion, debate and consideration, millions of people with arthritis are without insurance or underinsured and cannot afford to pay for medications that reduce their pain and prevent disability. They look to Congress and the administration to provide meaningful health reform that will improve their lives."

From AF's March 19, 2010 news release:

The Arthritis Foundation supports the efforts of Congress to enact meaningful health care reform to address the health care needs of the 46 million men, women and children with arthritis. After listening to thousands of people with arthritis, the Arthritis Foundation released a set of health care reform principles that have been delivered to Congress and the administration to consider during health care reform deliberations.

These principles support legislation that:

Prohibits discrimination based on health status
Eliminates lifetime caps on coverage and limits out-of-pocket expenses
Provides coverage of dependents up to 26 years of age
Establishes loan repayment for pediatric rheumatologists
Improves access to evidence-based programs

The Arthritis Foundation believes that legislative action is necessary to assure quality, affordable, essential health care for all Americans. For more information about the Arthritis Foundation's position on health care reform visit http://www.arthritis.org/health-care-reform.php.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/health-care-reform-is-a-national-priority-for-people-with-arthritis-88564077.html

The Impact of Health Care Legislation for People in Your Congressional District

Friday, March 19, 2010

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The House Committee on Energy and Commerce has prepared, for all 435 congressional districts, a district-level analysis of the impact of health care reform legislation. This analysis includes information on the impact of the legislation on families, small businesses, seniors in Medicare, health care providers, and the uninsured.

See the link below, to view how people in your congressional district will be affected by health care reform legislation.

http://energycommerce.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1924:benefits-of-health-care-reform-district-by-dis

A LOOK AT THE FINAL VERSION OF THE HEALTH CARE REFORM BILL

Thursday, March 18, 2010

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The final version of the health care reform bill has been released. Some of the main features of the legislation, are summarized in an Associated Press article that can be read at the link below. Below is an excerpt from the article that deals with insurance market reforms:

Starting this year, insurers would be forbidden from placing lifetime dollar limits on policies, from denying coverage to children because of pre-existing conditions, and from canceling policies because someone gets sick. Parents would be able to keep older kids on their coverage up to age 26. A new high-risk pool would offer coverage to uninsured people with medical problems until 2014, when the coverage expansion goes into high gear. Major consumer safeguards would also take effect in 2014. Insurers would be prohibited from denying coverage to people with medical problems or charging them more. Insurers could not charge women more.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/18/AR2010031803584.html

"Barely Hanging On: Middle Class and Uninsured"

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

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America's middle classworkers are among the hardest hit when it comes to rising health insurance costs. The nonpartisan Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's report, "Barely Hanging On: Middle Class and Uninsured" shows that the number of middle-income earners who obtained health insurance from their employers dropped by 3 million people from 2000 to 2008. Just 66% of people in families earning roughly $45,000 to $85,000 are now insured through their employer—a drop of seven percentage points from 2000 to 2008.

From the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's website:

"Employer-sponsored insurance (ESI) has long been the mainstay of health coverage for middle-class families, who typically do not qualify for government insurance programs. Among middle-income Americans, only about half of the decline in employer-sponsored coverage from 2000 to 2008 was offset by government insurance programs. For people who earned less money, declines in ESI were even steeper, but those numbers were mostly offset by increases in coverage through government insurance programs like Medicaid.

The result is that America's middle-class became uninsured at a pace faster than those with less or more income. In total, 13 million middle-income earners were uninsured in 2008—about 2 million more than in 2000.

“America’s uninsured crisis means that hard-working people with average incomes are being squeezed,” said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A., president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “The fallout from rising health insurance costs hits everyone. Employers must choose between either passing on costs to workers who cannot afford the increase and therefore drop coverage, or paying more for their employees’ coverage at the cost of creating and preserving jobs.”

The most recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau indicate that 46.3 million people are uninsured, but these figures were compiled before the downturn in the current economy. Experts assume millions more have become uninsured since the 2008 data, due to job loss and rising costs of health insurance since that time.

The report released today—Barely Hanging On: Middle-Class and Uninsured—chronicles state-by-state health coverage trends. In the first decade of this century, nearly every state has seen increased numbers of uninsured residents, greater costs for individual and family policies for health insurance and significant erosion in private coverage. . . . The report shows:

-- More middle-class Americans are uninsured.

-- The average employee’s costs for health insurance rose, while income fell.

-- Fewer people were offered, eligible for, or accepted insurance coverage through their jobs.

“The facts show that everyone is suffering right now, regardless of income,” said Lavizzo-Mourey. “For middle-class families, changes in the cost of insurance far outweigh changes in income. That means a bigger piece of the household budget must go to insurance, or families have to go without coverage, delay needed care and face bankruptcy if anyone in the family gets seriously ill. Business owners can’t afford to shoulder more of the burden of health care costs. And states can’t afford the influx of laid-off workers into public programs. It’s a crisis in need of solutions.”

http://www.rwjf.org/healthreform/product.jsp?id=58049

TOP TEN IMMEDIATE BENEFITS AMERICANS WILL RECEIVE WHEN HEALTHCARE REFORM PASSES

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

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The Democratic Caucus of the House listed the provisions of the health reform bill that will take effect “as soon as health care passes,”

The legislation would:

Prohibit pre-existing condition exclusions for children in all new plans;
Provide immediate access to insurance for uninsured Americans who are uninsured because of a pre-existing condition through a temporary high-risk pool;
Prohibit dropping people from coverage when they get sick in all individual plans;
Lower seniors prescription drug prices by beginning to close the donut hole;
Offer tax credits to small businesses to purchase coverage;
Eliminate lifetime limits and restrictive annual limits on benefits in all plans;
Require plans to cover an enrollee’s dependent children until age 26;
Require new plans to cover preventive services and immunizations without cost-sharing;
Ensure consumers have access to an effective internal and external appeals process to appeal new insurance plan decisions;
Require premium rebates to enrollees from insurers with high administrative expenditures and require public disclosure of the percent of premiums applied to overhead costs.

“By enacting these provisions right away, and others over time” the Caucus declares, “we will be able to lower costs for everyone and give all Americans and small businesses more control over their health care choices."

http://www.healthbeatblog.com/2010/03/the-top-ten-immediate-benefits-americans-will-receive-when-health-care-reform-passes.html#comments

IF NOT NOW, THEN WHEN?

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

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Opponents of health care reform say it is being 'rammed down our throats' ignoring that health care reform has been worked on in Congress all year, was discussed throughout the 2008 presidential campaign and that three presidents in the last 50 years have made serious efforts to enact reform but failed. This is not a new issue, and each time we fail, the cost of health care continues to rise and the number of uninsured Americans grows. If the health reform measures proposed by Presidents Nixon, Carter and Clinton had been enacted, we would have slowed the growth in health care spending and American families, businesses and government, would not be facing the economic burden of a growing health care crisis.

Over the last half-century, there have been several serious attempts to ensure health insurance coverage and control health care spending. President Nixon proposed a Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan in 1974, that included an employer mandate, a plan for low income families that would replace Medicaid, and a federal health insurance plan that would replace Medicare. Reform efforts died when Nixon resigned and the insurance industry pledged to control costs voluntarily. In 1979, President Carter introduced a national health plan and proposed hospital cost containment legislation that was defeated by the industry who mounted an alternative "Voluntary Effort" which contributed to the demise of Carter's national health plan. In 1993, President Clinton introduced health care reform with cost containment measures, but once again was met with major opposition from insurance and pharmaceutical companies, and legislation stalled in Congress.

The consequences of these failures to enact health reform has meant increased health care spending for American families, businesses and government. Other countries -- democratic, capitalist countries -- spend less than the US, cover all their citizens, and have comparable or better health outcomes. But for American middle class families and workers, insurance premiums have doubled in the last ten years, while incomes have stagnated. Rising health care costs and insurance premiums have resulted in an increasing number of Americans without insurance. Nearly 50 million Americans are expected to be uninsured in 2010 and the number of employers reducing or dropping coverage is expected to increase if nothing is done.

The proposed reforms of previous presidents included provisions to provide health insurance coverage for all. Each regulated the growth in insurance premiums or provider payment, or both. All had mechanisms to control costs, including increasing competition in the insurance market and controlling the growth in private insurance premiums. If the health reform proposals of Nixon, Carter or Clinton had been enacted, health spending by 2010 would have been reduced by billions of dollars if not more.

Inaction has it costs -- the longer we delay in passing health care reform, the more health spending will continue to rise and more drastic measures will be required. We can no longer afford to postpone health reform -- it is a matter of urgency, for our economy and the growing number of Americans without access to affordable health care -- for some Americans, it is a matter of life or death.

Contact your U.S. Senator and U.S. Representatives -- tell them to pass health care reform NOW.

"The Costs of Failure: Economic Consequences of Failure to Enact Nixon, Carter, and Clinton Health Reforms," THE COMMONWEALTH FUND, December 21, 2009

http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx

THE YOUNG, INVINCIBLES -- UNINSURED AMERICANS

Sunday, March 14, 2010

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Being told your labwork was positive for RA factor is a shock to hear -- especially if you are in your 20s and uninsured. That was me over 30 years ago. Luckily, I was able to get a job with health insurance, but for many working 20some year olds today, their jobs do not offer health benefits.

"Only about one-half of all young adults who are working are offered coverage through an employer . . ." said Sara Collins with the nonpartisan health care group, Commonwealth Fund. Young adults between the ages of 19 to 29, are the largest age group of uninsured people across the country: some 13 million Americans ages 19 to 29 — or 1 in 3 — lack coverage -- nearly one-third of the uninsured population and the fastest growing group of uninsured Americans.

Less likely to be offered employer health benefits, earning less money to buy insurance on their own, and generally healthier, most young adults spend little time worrying about getting sick. They are often referred to as the "young invincibles." Although young adults are, as a group, healthier than older Americans, they are far from immune to sickness or accidents. A report from the Commonwealth Fund stated that 15% of adults ages 18 to 29 suffer from arthritis, asthma, cancer, diabetes, heart disease or hypertension — and more than half are overweight. They also end up getting injured quite often — 24% of Americans ages 18 to 29 visited an emergency department in 2008.

How would health care reform address access to affordable health insurance for "young invincibles?" One provision in the Senate health care bill, would allow parents to continue dependent coverage of their adult children through age 25 or 26 on their health policies. About 25 percent of states have increased the age of dependency. "New Jersey extended the age of eligibility to age 30, most states are clustered around increasing that age to about 24 ... So this is a big help to young adults who had coverage under their parents health insurance plan and lose that coverage," Collins said.

The Senate bill also includes a provision for a low cost, catastrophic plan for young adults. The plans would be offered on new insurance exchanges that would be set up in 2014 for the uninsured and would be sold to people under 30. Some are critical of the high deductible plan, that would require at least $5,950 in out-of-pocket spending before most benefits kicked in. Without the low cost plan, however, some say, young adults might forgo coverage and instead pay a penalty for not buying insurance.

No one can predict when they might become sick or injured and would need medical care -- I was very healthy and certainly didn't expect to be diagnosed with RA in my 20s. The Senate health care bill would allow adult children to stay on their parent's insurance policies through 25 or 26 -- and provide affordable insurance options on the new insurance exchanges -- providing millions of young, uninsured Americans with the security of having access to health care when they are sick or injured.

For articles on this subject see:

"How Health Overhaul Could Affect 'Young Invincibles'", March 8, 2010

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124455844&ft=1&f=1003

"Young, Invincible -- and the Key to Health Reform", September 22, 2009

http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1925299,00.html#ixzz0iBu5uQ3x

"The Plight of Young, Uninsured Americans", March 7, 2009

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/07/young.uninsured/index.html

HEALTHCARE BILL WOULD REQUIRE MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO GET INSURANCE THROUGH EXCHANGES

Sunday, March 14, 2010

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Health care reform would establish "insurance exchanges" through which not only millions of uninsured Americans would get health insurance -- but also members of Congress and their staff.

Section 1312, section D, of the Senate health care reform bill, requires members of Congress and their staff to get insurance through the new insurance exchanges once they are up and running in 2014. (see bill text below). Currently, members of Congress choose insurance offered through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, that oversees health insurance plans available to all federal employees.

The new exchanges would allow members of Congress, their staff and the uninsured to compare and choose from several competing insurance companies offering different plans with varying benefit levels and premiums. Unlike the individual market, insurers wouldn't be allowed to discriminate based on preexisting conditions. Plans would be required to offer a minimum set of health care benefits. Low income uninsured would be eligible for subsidies, that would be based on a sliding scale.

The text of the Senate health care bill that would require members of Congress and their staff to get their health insurance through the new insurance exchange appears below:

(D) MEMBERS OF CONGRESS IN THE EXCHANGE—

(i) REQUIREMENT—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, after the effective date of this subtitle, the only health plans that the Federal Government may make available to Members of Congress and congressional staff with respect to their service as a Member of Congress or congressional staff shall be health plans that are—

(I) created under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act); or

II) offered through an Exchange established under this Act (or an amendment made by this Act).

(ii) DEFINITIONS—In this section:

(I) MEMBER OF CONGRESS—The term ‘‘Member of Congress’’ means any member of the House of Representatives or the Senate.

http://dpc.senate.gov/dpcdoc-sen_health_care_bill.cfm

http://www.tnr.com/blog/the-treatment/skin-the-game-congressional-style

PREEXISTING CONDITIONS AND HEALTH CARE REFORM

Saturday, March 13, 2010

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Health care and health care reform are complex issues for policy experts, let alone for all of us. Understanding health care reform has not been helped by the misinformation spread about reform legislation. But there is one issue, all of us here should understand, and that is the consequences of having one of the many forms of arthritis, or as insurance companies refer to them -- a preexisting condition.

Having a preexisting condition could prevent one from being sold an "individual" health insurance policy. A chronic condition, like most forms of arthritis, or simply a health problem that you received treatment for in the past, could be reason for a private insurance company to deny one coverage.

Some may say, well this doesn't affect me, I have "large group" insurance through my employer, and it doesn't discriminate against those with preexisting conditions, nor charge someone more because of their age or gender. But in the past year, as people have lost their jobs and their health benefits, more people have had to resort to the "individual" health insurance market. For those that have a preexisting condition, insurance premiums may be exorbitantly high or insurance companies could simply deny coverage because of health conditions or medical history.

One such person was Nikki White. Diagnosed with lupus, too sick to continue to work and denied private insurance because of her preexisting condition, Nikki White died at age 32. Her primary care physician, Amyln Crawford said, "Nikki didn't die from lupus. Nikki died secondary to the complications of a failing health care system."

Nikki White's death should be a rallying call for all of us -- especially those of us with chronic conditions like arthritis and autoimmune diseases like Nikki White's. If we do not stand together -- demand passage of health care reform -- that would ban insurers from denying coverage to those with preexisting conditions -- then who will?

For Nikki White's story see:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGpOTPESjSQ

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06339/743713-84.stm

HELP AND HOPE FOR HAITI

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

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Overwhelmed by the images of the suffering and destruction of Haiti's catastrophic earthquake, many are moved to help in some way. There are many nongovernmental organizations to donate to -- the Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Mercy Corps -- but one you may not know about is "Partners in Health" who has a long history of extraordinary service to the Haitian people and is already operating medical facilities there.

Partners in Health (PIH), is a nonprofit health care organization cofounded in 1987, by Dr. Paul Farmer, who has dedicated his life to treating some of the world's poorest populations. Farmer established Zanmi Lasante (Creole for Partners in Health) in Cange, Haiti, eventually building it from a two-room clinic to a health complex that includes a primary school, an infirmary, a surgery wing, a training program for health outreach workers, a 104-bed hospital, a women's clinic, and a pediatric care facility. The vast majority of PIH staff are Haitians.

The history of Partners In Health is told in Pulitzer Prizewinner Tracy Kidder’s bestselling book, Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World. Dr. Farmer also serves as the U.N.'s deputy special envoy to Haiti.

Staffed with more than 100 doctors and 500 nurses, PIH's hospitals, located miles from the quake's epicenter, escaped major damage. Working to set up emergency operations in Port-au-Prince, it has in the meantime established a triage center at its headquarters in Cange to deal with a stream of earthquake victims, working around the clock to provide medical care. To replace rapidly diminishing stores of medicines and supplies, PIH needs cash donations.

Charity Navigator, a website that evaluates charity organizations, gives Partners in Health four stars, its highest rating. 94.8% of monies PIH received went toward program activities and medicines; the remaining 5.2 % was spent on administration and development. Other nonprofits working in the field of health on average budget 80 % of their expenditures for program activities and 20 % for administration and fundraising.

If you are considering donating to help victims of the Haiti earthquake, any amount, no matter how large or small, will help deliver life saving health care. Make a difference in someone's life. Please consider donating to Partners in Health.

For more information about Partners in Health, see:

A 2008 "60 Minutes" interview of Dr. Paul Farmer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS05uKPAcjI&feature=related

Frequently asked questions about PIH:

http://pih.org/faq.html

HEALTH CARE REFORM: Wellness Provision in HC Bill Meets Protests

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

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In a January 10, 2010 article from ABC Health News, Emily Walker writes: "Incentives within the U.S. Senate health care bill designed to encourage healthy lifestyles unfairly target the poor, elderly, overweight and disabled, and could be exploited by insurance companies for financial gain, advocacy groups claim."
"Dozens of health, justice, and disability organizations have signed a letter urging senators to remove a provision in the health care reform bill that would allow insurers to provide reimbursements or incentives to workers who meet certain fitness goals laid out in workplace wellness programs.

In rewarding healthy people for making good choices, those who don't meet fitness goals would be unfairly penalized, the groups said.

"It's indistinguishable from medical underwriting," Sue Nelson, vice president for federal advocacy of the American Heart Association (AHA), told reporters during a Thursday call.

. . Under the existing Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, group health insurance plans can't discriminate based on an individual's health status by varying insurance premiums.

But the law does allow insurers to provide incentives tied to voluntary "wellness programs," . . . Those incentives can take the form of extra reimbursements . . . The Senate bill would raise that figure to 30 percent, so an individual who doesn't meet the wellness goals could hypothetically be paying up to $1,410 more in annual premiums than an employee who met wellness goals.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/HealthCare/advocacy-groups-protest-wellness-provision-senate-health-care/story?id=9516706&page=1

"Insurers can spot profits a mile away, and this is a loophole they will drive right through on day one," said Andrew Kurz, the former chief financial officer of Wisconsin Blue Cross-Blue Shield . . . "We got into this mess because insurers unfairly targeted sick people and charged higher premiums based on illness status. To now charge lower premiums based on wellness status can lead to the same result. Like the water glass, half full or half empty, it is still the same amount of water."

http://www.alternet.org/story/145038/10_pounds_overweight_got_high_cholesterol_it_could_cost_you_big_unless_the_dems_fix_the_health_care_bill/?page=1

HEALTH CARE REFORM: A conversation with Dr. Atul Gawande

Wednesday, January 06, 2010

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Health care reform is not just about health insurance for the uninsured, but also about reforms to control costs, improve efficiency and quality of care, and better outcomes for patients. Addressing these issues is Dr. Atul Gawande, one of the most influential health policy writers in the country. Dr. Gawande is an oncologist and practicing surgeon at the Brighman and Women's Hospital in Boston; an associate professor at Harvard School of Public Health; and a writer of several health care related articles and books.

In a thought-provoking, insightful conversation with Charlie Rose, he discusses health care reform and measures to improve medical outcomes and reduce costs. It can be viewed online at the link below -- once there, click on the window of Dr. Atul Gawande's interview from January 5, 2010. A transcript is also available that can be read online.

http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/10792

Articles written by Dr. Atul Gawande:

"Getting There From Here," THE NEW YORKER, January 26, 2009

(note: This is an interesting read about how the health care systems evolved in Britain, France and Switzerland.)

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/01/26/090126fa_fact_gawande

"The Cost Conundrum: What a Texas town can teach us about health care," THE NEW YORKER, June 1, 2009

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/06/01/090601fa_fact_gawande

"Testing, Testing: The health care bill has no master plan for curbing costs. Is that a bad thing?" THE NEW YORKER, December 14, 2009

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/12/14/091214fa_fact_gawande

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