Valleywide Legal Blog

Drug Costs Continue To Soar.

I have often written about the fact that drug prices in the United States are a disgrace.  See here and here.  We pay more for the same drugs than anyone else in the world.  A recent article in the New … Read More

Posted in drug companies, General Health, Health Care Costs, Health Insurers, Medical Costs, medical research, Medicare |

Never Underestimate The Corrosive Effect Of Money

When I look back on past blog posts, I am surprised at the number of times money is involved in whatever bad thing I am writing about.  Doctors, people to whom we entrust our lives and those of our family, … Read More

Posted in Defensive Medicine, Doctors, drug companies, Fee for Service, Fraud, Health Care Costs, Medical Costs, medical ethics, Medical Malpractice, Medicare, Secrecy, tort reform |

Generic Drug Price Fixing.

“Generic” is the name given to drugs that are not protected by patents.  Anyone can make a generic drug.  Because they are not protected by patents, it is anticipated that competition will drive down the prices of generic drugs to … Read More

Posted in drug companies, Fraud, Health Care Costs, Health Insurers, Lawsuits, Medical Costs, Medicare, Secrecy |

Hospital Consolidation Is Driving Up Health Care Costs.

Last week I wrote about hospitals not knowing exactly what their costs were for various procedures.  Without that information, they cannot make informed decisions about pricing.  Without informed decisions about pricing, there can be no price competition.  There also can … Read More

Posted in Doctors, Fee for Service, General Health, Health Care Costs, Health Insurers, Hospitals, Medical Costs, Medicare, Rationing |

The Hospital You Choose Makes a Difference.

Just a few days ago I wrote a post about hospital malpractice.  Today comes news of a viral outbreak at a New Jersey pediatric center that has already killed six children and sickened many more.  The facility is not a … Read More

Posted in Hospital Negligence, Hospitals, Infection, Medical Malpractice, medical mistakes, Medical Negligence, Medicare |

I’ll Take Lobbying for $2 Billion, Alex.

The answer is, “They spent $2.3 billion on lobbying over the last 20 years.”  If you answered, “What is the pharmaceutical lobby?,” you won.  Actually, you didn’t win.  You lost because all that drug money flowing into Washington did exactly … Read More

Posted in drug companies, General Health, Health Care Costs, Medical Costs, medical ethics, Medicare |

Finding the Right Hospital

Hospitals vary greatly in terms of the quality of their care.  In some hospitals infection rates are low and few patients need to be readmitted after discharge.  Exactly the opposite is true for some other hospitals.  You do not want … Read More

Posted in General Health, health, Hospitals, Medicare, Medication Errors, never events, Nurses, Secrecy |

Some Thoughts Before Surgery.

Surgery is scary.  Lots of things can go wrong.  No one can guarantee a good surgical outcome.  Even the best surgeon operating in the best hospital may end up with a bad outcome.  If your surgery is of the emergency … Read More

Posted in Arizona Medical Board, Doctors, Hospitals, Infection, medical errors, Medical Malpractice, medical mistakes, Medicare, Surgical Errors |

Insulin Makers Should Be Ashamed of Themselves

If you have been following our blog, you know that my 8 year old grandson is a Type 1 diabetic and has been for 5 years now.  Unlike Type 2 diabetes, no amount of weight loss or diet or lifestyle … Read More

Posted in drug companies, health, Health Care Costs, healthy living, Medical Costs, Medicare, Type 1 Diabetes |

Pay More, Get Less

The United States spends more per person on health care than any other developed country.  At the same time, our life expectancy is less than that in other developed countries.  What is going on? Let’s start with the cost of … Read More

Posted in drug companies, General Health, health, Health Care Costs, Health Insurers, healthy living, Hospitals, Medicare, Obesity, obesity epidemic |