I’m on an email group whose members are heavy into the money side of healthcare. They are fighting back against our exorbitantly expensive healthcare system. The members of this group know a lot about the macro-economics of healthcare—overall spend, spend by major categories, some cross-national comparisons—and the finance of healthcare—carve-outs, loss...
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I have criticized the AAFP many times in previous posts. As a member-driven organization, I guess I’ve essentially criticized U.S. family physicians in general, though I also think there is an inner circle in the AAFP ranks that have an inordinate influence on policies. From gatekeepers in the HMO era, to...
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A study was recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine about the cost-effectiveness of treating hypertension based on the most recent JNC 8 guidelines. This study particularly caught my eye, because previous cost-effectiveness analyses found that screening and treating for hypertension did not save money. The upfront costs of...
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In a You Docs column a few weeks ago, a reader asked, “… how high is too high for the top one (the blood pressure number)?”  You Docs response:  “What’s too high for the top number (systolic) is simple: Anything above 160 is an emergency – head for the ER immediately.”...
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