How to Cut Health-Care Costs: Less Care, More Data (our haphazard health-care system)

Time ^ | 6/23/09 | Michael Grunwald

[Jean S]

Ezekiel Emanuel got a memorable introduction to our haphazard health-care system on his first visit to a cancer ward as a medical student. The white coats were ordering a transfusion for a teenage girl, and since shyness does not run in his family — brother Rahm is President Obama's famously foulmouthed chief of staff, brother Ari a similarly silence-deficient Hollywood agent — he interrupted to ask why. Because she had Hodgkin's disease and her platelets were below 20,000, the team explained. Emanuel still had questions: Was there evidence for that protocol? Don't some hospitals wait until 10,000? Why 20,000? Because that's what we do here, one doc replied.

[Jean S]

Absolutely disgusting. Obama said tonight that health care should be about "quality over quanity". Time must have read his mind, this was published yesterday.

[True Republican Patriot]

Anybody who tries to disagree with with OBOZO and his Thugs like the Emanuels will be denied all medical attention! This is beyond Disgusting! It’s Criminal Prosecution of the Masses! Keep these Murderers as far as they can be kept from the decisions between my Doctors and ME that are about my Life and My Loved Ones!Please read the entire terrifying article on these egomaniacs and control freaks!!!!!!!!!

[Wally_Kalbacken]

Can you imagine what a pain in the ass Ezekiel Emanuel must have been? It would make you want to quit medicine and become a stockbroker.

[Redbob]

Oh goodie! Rahm Emanuel has siblings...

I was hoping his gene pool was much shallower than that. With his personality, what are the odds he’d have descendants?

[MarMema]

The Dartmouth study has been in the news for a week pretty seriously.

I highly recommend the following reading for all who are interested in more on this topic.

[MarMema]

PS Evidence-based medicine is good for you, your health, and your pocketbook too.

[Bhoy]

How many tests, at what cost, are ordered to protect the medical provider from lawsuit?

[iowamark]

http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&products_id=283359-1
“”Ezekiel Emanuel talked about his book, Healthcare, Guaranteed: A Simple Secure Solution for America, published by PublicAffairs (May 26, 2008). In the book he presents his plan to re-imagine the nation’s health care system. According to Dr. Ezekiel, the United States spent 2.1 trillion dollars on health care in 2007 yet 47 million Americans were uninsured. His proposal includes eliminating employer-health care and creating a independent program that grades insurance companies and health care plans. Dr. Emanuel responded to questions from audience members following his remarks.””