A yearlong investigation into medical device safety risks highlighted numerous medical devices either failed or harmed patients in some way. Most medical devices are not approved as drugs are. Rather, an application is made showing similarity to existing devices. If a device is a novel design a de novo request is made with the FDA.
Category: Health Economics & Costs
Friday Links
- Placebos seem to work even when patients know they are taking a placebo. HT: Tyler
- Sen. Blackburn tweets on the Goodman/Gossage WSJ editorial.
- Amy Finkelstein, et. al. find that Jeff Brenner’s “hot spots” experiment in Camden, New Jersey can’t be duplicated.
- House Republican health care legislation gets a few things right.
- AI discovers a new structural class of antibiotics. HT: Tyler
- An AI pendant worn around your neck grades you on your interactions with others and tells you how to improve.
Why People Have a Negative View of the Economy
- Real average hourly earnings are down 2.5 percent since Election Day 2020 and real median usual weekly earnings are down 3.2 percent. That latter compares with an 8.0 percent gain over the previous four years.
- Today it takes nearly 60 percent of a median family’s income to cover a mortgage on a median-priced home. The standard historically has been around 30 percent.
The Dark Side of Telemedicine
I love telemedicine. I have long been an advocate of being able to talk to your doctor on the phone when you have a health complaint. The alternative is often driving across town and waiting in a crowded waiting room with other sick people. I have long believed the natural progression of telemedicine would be (or at least should be) people buying Bluetooth devices that check vital signs and connect seamlessly to your doctor’s computer to make telemedicine even more robust. This would help your doctor know even more about your medical complaint than listening to you on a cellphone or seeing you through a grainy video feed.