- Mamdani’s New York: “residents of New York City already face a combined state, local, and federal top marginal income tax rate of 51.776 percent. New York has the highest per-pupil school spending in America, and the transit authority has the highest operating costs for buses and nearly the highest for subways in the country.”
- The number of veterans receiving a 100 percent disability rating has surged in recent years. (WaPo)
- Nordhaus: Global Warming is not going to be as bad as we thought.
- Incentives matter for the discovery of new drugs.
- How AI affects the discovery of new drugs.
- Why do so many Americans lack vision care insurance?
Category: Artificial Intelligence and Healthcare
Would You Discuss Your Health with an AI Chatbot?
From the Wall Street Journal, Daniel Akst wrote:
Once upon a time, my wife’s uncle, Jim, delivered babies, set broken bones, diagnosed diseases, and helped people reconcile themselves to mortality. That’s what family physicians did in those days.
Things are different now, and the doctor I most often consult is AI. I’d prefer to see Uncle Jim, but if physicians like him still exist somewhere, I doubt I could get an appointment. How I ended up resorting to artificial intelligence—despite excellent health insurance and proximity to great care—says a lot about the state of healthcare in this country.
Friday Links
- How tariffs affect small business.
- MedPAC estimated the federal government is paying 20% more ($84 billion) than if the same beneficiaries were in traditional Medicare.
- Healthcare Leadership Council: Don’t believe MedPac.
- Does lack of religious belief explain America’s falling birth rate?
- Trump pushing for digital heath reform. (I already use MyChart. It works like a charm.)
The Dark Side of Social Media Medicine
One thing I have never heard was a doctor advising viewers to take drugs willy-nilly without an underlying condition or an examination. There is more to the Internet than YouTube, however and social media has plenty of charlatans. Social media influencers on TikTok, Instagram and elsewhere, with no medical background, often encourage followers to take prescription drugs.