Headlines I Wish I Hadn’t Seen
State exchanges have to be transparent; the federal exchanges can be concocted in secrecy.
More than 100 million people are receiving a means tested (welfare) benefit.
56 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are in need of surgery. I believe all those countries have national health insurance.
Certainly, the administration has known that if they had made these plans transparently, the public and legislative reaction would have been more severe more quickly.
Sounds like hospitals have been finding ways of getting around EMTALA.
Patient dumping alive and well in Denver.
I heard about this case; it’s given as an example of patient dumping and the fractured safety net. But something else struck me: why would a rational surgeon perform surgery on someone who was uninsured and would never pay them? I’m not trying to be unfeeling. Rather, I’m exploring the issues. The opportunity cost of the time needed to perform surgery; the risk of injury and malpractice liability; the stigma of asking a colleague (an anesthesiologist for example) to assist in an unpaid surgery would present barriers. Hospitals have to EMTALA to worry about. But what about individual physicians who do not benefit from tax exclusions and public subsidies for treating the indigent?
They may have national health insurance, but the infrastructure is terrible. The doctor shortages in Sub-Saharan Countries are outrageous.