Health Care
MRSA infections worse than stats suggest
“A USA TODAY examination finds that MRSA infections, particularly outside of health care facilities, are much more common than government statistics suggest. They sicken hundreds of thousands of Americans each year in various ways, from minor skin boils to deadly pneumonia, claiming upward of 20,000 lives. The inability to detect or track cases is confounding…
Read MoreNursing home residents’ trust funds lack oversight
“Thousands of residents in U.S. nursing homes and other long-term care institutions have had their personal savings raided or mismanaged after relying on the facilities to safeguard the money in special trust fund accounts, a USA TODAY investigation shows. At least 10 of the thefts have exceeded $100,000 from a single nursing home account.”
Read MoreThe Soaring Cost of a Simple Breath
Asthma — the most common chronic disease that affects Americans of all ages, about 40 million people — can usually be well controlled with drugs, if one can afford them, the New York Times reports. But being able to afford prescription medications in the United States often requires top-notch insurance or plenty of disposable income,…
Read MoreA Federal Budget Crisis Months in the Planning
“The stand by conservatives that led to the current crisis was the outgrowth of a long-running effort, waged by a galaxy of well-funded groups, to undo President Obama’s health care law.”
Read MoreVA’s opiate overload feeds veterans’ addictions, overdose deaths
Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the agency charged with helping veterans recover from war instead masks their pain with potent drugs, feeding addictions and contributing to a fatal overdose rate among VA patients that is nearly double the national average.
Read MoreDeaths Linked to Cardiac Stents Rise as Overuse Seen
“When stents are used to restore blood flow in heart attack patients, few dispute they are beneficial. These and other acute cases account for about half of the 700,000 stent procedures in the U.S. annually. Among the other half — elective-surgery patients in stable condition — overuse, death, injury and fraud have accompanied the devices’…
Read MoreExtra Extra Monday: Overdoses, background checks, housing markets, midwifery and fraudulent accounting
Use only as directed | ProPublica and This American Life “About 150 Americans a year die by accidentally taking too much acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol. The toll does not have to be so high.” Read the stories from ProPublica. Company Behind Snowden Vetting Did Check on D.C. Shooter | Bloomberg “The U.S. government…
Read MoreUCI doctors downplayed risks of surgical robot
“Two top UC Irvine surgeons have spent a decade working with a California company to promote a $2 million surgical robot despite a lack of reliable scientific evidence showing that it is safe or gives patients better results.”
Read MoreAlternative vaccine schedules mean fewer students fully immunized
inewsource in San Diego today reports that “a trend toward giving children fewer shots at one time, combined with continued skepticism about vaccines’ safety, means more kindergarteners than ever in San Diego County were not fully immunized when they started school last year.” inewsource analyzed data from the California Department of Public Health and found…
Read MoreBoomers’ embrace of devices gives rise to new med-tech age
“Hundreds of thousands of Americans are receiving medical devices that were once considered nearly exclusive to the elderly. The shift is profoundly changing patient care and expanding the fortunes of the medical-technology industry while amplifying concerns over the safety and oversight of some products. Device companies are facing thousands of patient lawsuits challenging the safety…
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