Health Care Policy
March 17, 2013
The Forces of Darkness Are Still Strong: Fluoride
An Op-Ed Commentary in the Lincoln Journal on March 7 reminded me that the forces of darkness and ignorance are alive and strong even in our communities. The writer proposed to remove fluoridation from our water despite almost seven decades of clearly beneficial results. I had to respond.
April 23, 2011
The Disappearing Family Doctor
A front-page NY Times article about a Maryland doctor, "Family Physician Can't Give Away Solo Practice" on page 1 April 23, 2011, explores the decline of personalized solo practice and acknowledges that "a centuries-old intimacy between doctor and patient" is being lost. Dr. Kanner comments in letter to editor.
February 26, 2010
Health Care 3: The Terror of Being Uninsured
If you are uninsured and need serious medical care, your costs are almost unimaginably higher than you pay as an insured person. Some illustrations to underscore why we must change the insurance rules to get everyone into the system.
September 28, 2009
Health Care 2: Health Insurance Essentials
We need first to tackle the basic issues of health insurance. Preexisting conditions and other inequities. Do individuals get treated like groups? Are groups all treated the same? What is the range of insurance costs attributed to people of different ages? Ultimately, we must get everyone an affordable ticket to the health care arena. That's…
September 5, 2009
The Health Care Reform Conundrum – 1
Why our health care system is so wonderful and so dysfunctional is an immensely complex tale that is of immediate political importance to understand. Introduction to a planned series of reports.
April 27, 2009
NY Times: Severe Primary Care Physician Shortage
The New York Times lead story today was on the nationwide shortage of primary care physicians, which imperils the ability of the Obama administration to successfully implement health care reform.