A survey found that nearly 90% of doctors believe barriers erected by health insurance plans have negatively impacted patient care. The survey also found that doctors are so fed up that two-thirds would not recommend a career in medicine while nearly half (48%) are considering leaving medicine for another career. The survey was 600 physicians with practices in primary care.
Author: Devon Herrick
FTC to Fight Drug Rebates and Fees that Reduce Competition
On June 16, 2022 the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a policy statement on drug rebates and fees paid by drug makers. The rebates and fee are paid to Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) sometimes in return for excluding cheaper alternatives on a drug plan formulary. The way it works is a drug maker will jack up the price of a given drug (like insulin) but give a steep discount to the PBM in return for guarantees that the plan will not include generic versions that cost far lesson the formulary.
Public Health Experts: America has an Eating, Drinking and Lack of Exercise Problem
America has a collective drinking problem. And an eating problem. This is all made worse by Americans propensity to sit at home watching TV or playing video games. A recent study has found that deaths from alcoholic cirrhosis have more than tripled in 20 years. In 1999 alcoholic cirrhosis killed 6,007 Americans or about 3.3 per 100,000 adults. By 2019 the death rate had risen to 10.6 per 100,000. Keep in mind this is only for adults aged 25 to 85+
The Battle of Waterloo Created a Public Health Crisis: the Solution was Fertilizer
Last Saturday was the 207th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, fought on Sunday, June 18, 1815. It was the decisive battle that ended Napoleon Bonaparte’s imperial ambitions for good. The battle was the culmination of nearly 20 years of conflict in Europe. As you would imagine, it created a public health crisis. An estimated 50,000 casualties, dead, dying and wounded were left on the battlefield when it was over. Some diseases can be transmitted from the dead to the living. According to the World Health Organization:
- Tuberculosis can be acquired if the bacillus is aerosolized – residual air in lungs exhaled, fluid from lungs spurted up through the nose or mouth during handling of the corpse.
- Bloodborne viruses can be transmitted via direct contact of non-intact skin or mucous membrane from splashing of blood or body fluid or from injury from bone fragments and needles.
- Gastrointestinal (GI) infections can easily be transmitted from faeces leaked from dead bodies. Transmission occurs via the faecal–oral route through direct contact with the body, soiled clothes or contaminated vehicles or equipment. GI infections can also be spread as a result of contamination of the water supply with dead bodies.