Posted on 07/16/2008 9:38:28 AM PDT by InvisibleChurch
Californians can save more than $1 billion each year by eliminating unnecessary medical treatments, using less-expensive but equally effective drugs and reducing other kinds of waste from the health care system, said a report released yesterday by the California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG).
CALPIRG researchers found that $700 million could be saved if doctors and hospitals followed "best practice" standards recommended by leading medical organizations. Extending those standards to all patients in the state would greatly increase the savings, says the report.
Other major findings:
U.S. health spending on a per-capita basis topped $7,000 in 2006, nearly twice as much as in Canada, Australia, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Medical bills in California totaled $167 billion in 2004, the last year for which data were available. Hospitals in Sacramento, which was ranked No. 1 in terms of efficiency, spent an average of $26,000 on each Medicare patient during the final two years of life. San Diego's average was $30,200. Los Angeles ranked at the bottom of the list, with average spending of $43,500. Hospitals and doctors in San Diego and Sacramento are more efficient because they do a better job of limiting administrative overhead; avoiding unnecessary tests, surgeries and other treatments; and releasing patients from the hospital as soon as possible, say CALPIRG researchers.
The report also found that efforts to provide health insurance coverage to the state's 5.1 million uninsured people will be affordable only if they are coupled with strategies to eliminate needless spending.
Source: Keith Darcé, "Report: $1 billion Wasted in California," San Diego Union Tribune, July 10, 2008.
For text:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20080710-9999-1n10health.html
For more on Health Issues:
http://www.ncpa.org/sub/dpd/index.php?Article_Category=16
They could save even more by shutting down their state government.
You can bet that if socialized medicine is implemented by Obama, your doctor won’t be able to prescribe the meds best suited for you and your condition. He’ll have to prescribe whatever the government states is the standard for a certain ailment.
Ditto.
I read yesterday where the “master mind” of the Canadian socialist medical system says that it is failing and needs to allow for more “privatization”.
It’s amazing how many idiots want the government to mandate healthcare.
Oh please! I think they're being way too kind. I bet their government wastes more than that in SF alone.
Interesting, considering that in 2005, the latest year I can find a solid number for, California spent $1.5 billion on providing health care to illegal aliens.
Sounds like CalPurge
I wonder how much this CALPriG study cost the taxpayers of California.
I’m sure it will be sited in a year or so, the next time some socialist legislation is developed.
This bottom feeding nut-job isn’t even aware that hospitals cut their delivery of the most expensive drugs to the absolute minimum they can. They have to break even, and they only get so much money for each DRG.
You can’t deny people a better medication, just because it costs more. You have to provide the best medical care you can. If it’s warranted, the patient gets it.
It doesn’t matter if it’s your mother or mine.
Rationing.
Boy I can’t wait for nationalized healthcare. :D
Not a word about the costs of illegal alien healthcare in California. Do anything but address the real problem!
Well the employers that support these open border politicians, have no desire to see their illegal low wage labor tampered with.
Same old story.
It is simply untrue that all drugs are equal, or that a generic does the same as a brand name. Sometimes, yes. Sometimes no. There are allergy drugs that work, and knock-offs that don’t, for example. CALPIRG is flat wrong on this. Insurance companies, of course, would like you to think they are all interchangeable.
....for which the US received 4 times as much medical care as the hapless citizens of Rationed Medicineland.
Only one billion?
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