The Wall Street Journal ran an article on The Failed Promise of Online Mental-Health Treatment (gated on one device but I was able to read it for free on another). During the pandemic lockdown there were few options available for counseling at a time when many peoples’ mental health was taking a hit.
Author: Devon Herrick
Ask Your Doctor Four Questions to Avoid Unnecessary Care
I went to a urologist a couple years ago. He examined me and told me he was 85% sure what I had was not serious and would resolve on its own. However, if I wanted to be 100% sure, there was an in-office test ($450) and an MRI ($350) that he could order for me. I got the feeling he was probably really 95% sure I was fine. The urologist likely offered additional tests out of defensive medicine and the fact that some patients desire more care than others. I was cash pay so I opted out of it.
White Men are Abandoning the Labor Market. Is it Poor Health? Disability? Addiction? Laziness? Coasting on the Wife’s Income?
A former neighbor was a machinist. He worked for a variety of employers. At one company he made helicopter parts, while at another he made printing press rollers out of lightweight aluminum that were reinforced from the inside with fiberglass. His son was my friend and he worked in a ceramic tile factory, then for an industrial adhesives manufacturer. He later moved away and got a job in a factory that made cabinets. Both these working-class men made decent lower middle-class livings. Their respective careers were part of their identity. The son told me he always wanted to work in manufacturing.
Investigation: The Feds System To Ban Bad Actors from Medicare Does Not Work
There is considerable waste, fraud and abuse in federal and state health care programs. Part of the problem is the government relies on the Honor System when people are banned from Medicare and Medicaid. Those banned are expected to self-report their criminal histories or infractions when moving to a new company. According to a Kaiser Health News investigation: