Healthcare Shopper News
For the informed consumer of health care
August 2008 Monthly Archive
Declining Mental Skills as Markers of Death in Old Age
My mother is 89 years old and suffers from advanced dementia so I'm perhaps more interested than most of you in new information about the aging brain. Having said that, I find fascinating the results of a recently published study published in the August 27, 2008, online issue of Neurology® - the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study documents 30 years of testing of people's mental skills from age 70 to death. The study involved 288... read more
Posted by Phil Daigle on August 29, 2008 12:02 PM
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The Uninsured Pay More and Get Less Medical Care than the Insured
Americans without health insurance for any part of 2008 will spend $30 billion of their own money for medical care. Many cannot pay their own expenses and they rack up another $56 billion in medical expenses. Most of that amount - $43 billion - is paid by various state and federal government programs: $18 billion by Medicare and Medicaid, $15 billion by state and local government indigent programs, and $10 billion by the Veterans Administration. The uninsured that pay out... read more
Posted by Phil Daigle on August 26, 2008 4:00 PM
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Prostate Screening No Longer Recommended for Men Over 75
For years, the medical community has assumed that the early detection of prostate cancer by PSA testing improved health outcomes of all men tested. Now, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends against routine cancer screening for men over 75. PSA tests do dectect the disease, but more harm than good can be done with treatment, starting with prostate biopsy and perhaps surgery and or radiation and chemotherapy. The recommendation is based on the fact that the average 75... read more
Posted by Phil Daigle on August 8, 2008 11:01 AM
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Your Prescription History May Keep You From Getting Health Insurance
Databases with the prescription drug histories of 200 million Americans are now being used by many health insurance companies to evaluate applications for individual health insurance. The data work like a credit report for health. The data originate with pharmacy benefit managers and contain details like the prescribing doctor, dates, drugs, dosages, etc.. The benefit companies then give their client insurance companies access for a fee. Insurance companies can better evaluate the expected risk for a particular applicant so this... read more
Posted by Phil Daigle on August 5, 2008 3:04 PM
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