U.S. Patent protection for drugs lasts 20 years, although most pharmaceutical companies only get the medication to market after as much as half of that time has already elapsed. This exclusive period to sell the …
Continue readingCategory: Healthcare Policy
Medications Are a National Security Issue
Over the past several years, patients experienced medication shortages that included cancer drugs, antibiotics for sepsis, and, most recently, over-the-counter pediatric analgesics. Worried parents with children suffering from RSV or the flu are purchasing $4 …
Continue readingHealthcare’s Groundhog Day
We all know about Groundhog Day, February 2, when Punxsutawney Phil emerges from hibernation and predicts whether we will have six more weeks of winter. But there is a second Groundhog Day, which is January …
Continue readingRevolutionary Health IT
Revolutionary HIT requires a focus on three key areas: 1) processes and workflows, 2) information technology tools, and 3) healthcare provider tasks, duties and responsibilities.
Continue readingCrazy U.S. Healthcare: How Did We Get Here?
Currently, the U.S. spends about 18% of GDP or close to $4 trillion a year on healthcare. That is about $11,000 per person living in the U.S. Our neighbors to the north, Canada, spend about …
Continue readingMusings on Patient Safety, Processes, and HIT
Information technology systems are evolving. The goal is to use healthcare information technology to identify the best care processes and use the technology to ensure that these best processes are utilized worldwide.
Continue readingHow Tinkering with the ACA Puts Health IT Investments at Risk
On February 27, 2017, President Trump said, ”Nobody knew healthcare could be so complicated.” Well, Mr. President it is complicated and yes, we all knew.
Continue readingWhy Reform Legislation Won’t Solve Healthcare’s Ills
To best understand the failures of the bill, it is important to understand its shifting of incentives that were modified by ACA.
Continue readingIt’s Time to Stop and Refocus EHR Efforts
Healthcare’s uniqueness stems from its personal and emotional characteristics, and deep ties to our sense of humanity.
Continue readingRepeal and Replace: It’s Complicated
This past February, the President announced that the delivery of healthcare to America’s 300 million residents embraced more complexity than he previously realized. Only a few days before, at the annual HIMSS conference in Orlando, …
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