- The U.S. military now estimates that the cartels directly control around 30-35% of Mexican territory. Over eighty politicians or candidates for political office were killed in Mexico during the country’s 2021 midterm elections. (HT: Tyler)
- Does living around people with a college degree lengthen your life expectancy? Apparently.
- Reasons to doubt the USDA report on the prevalence of food insecurity.
- Why the Biden/Harris claim that they have legalized marijuana is mostly false.
- What explains the slowdown in Medicare spending? A major reason is pharmaceuticals.
Category: Single-Payer/Medicare-for-All
Wednesday Links
- Cancer phobia: In 2017, 21.3 million American women had cancer screening tests even though they were outside the age ranges for recommended screening. 10.1 million men outside the recommended age ranges had a PSA test.
- People with Obamacare health insurance are being switched to other plans without their knowledge or consent by rogue agents.
- Why are expensive cancer treatments excluded from Medicare’s price negotiations?
- Henry Miller: “The vaccines saved 2.9 million lives, prevented 12.5 million hospitalizations, and saved $500 billion in hospitalization.”
Friday Links – 15 March 2024
- Updating the Hippocratic oath.
- Medicare Advantage plans get paid 6% more than traditional Medicare but they are 13% less costly.
- The main reason why traditional Medicare is so wasteful: 70% of enrollees have Medigap insurance, which means the cost of care to the patient is essentially zero.
- Government employees make 40% more than private sector workers. Plus, they have de facto tenure.
- Private health care is the new normal in Britain.
ERs are Still Overpriced Despite Fewer Surprise Bills
A few years back a Johns Hopkins University study on emergency room prices found they were outrageous. I mean, who knew that hospital emergency departments overcharge? The study looked at 12,000 billing records for emergency medicine doctors nationwide. Researchers found patients were charged 340 percent more, on average, than what Medicare pays for the same service. Charges ranged from 1 to nearly 13 times what Medicare’s fee schedule.