Health Care Unions Find a Voice in the Pandemic
Faced with the urgent need to protect nurses and other frontline workers, labor organizations are pushing hospitals to do more. More
Blog
Addressing Consolidation in Health Care Markets
The Biden administration will have 2 distinct consolidation-oriented challenges: preventing new consolidation likely to have deleterious effects without stalling mergers and acquisitions that could be beneficial and heightening competition in markets that are already consolidated. More
VIDEO: The Promise of Hospital Cooperation
Is a competitive hospital system the best way to deliver the care we all need? On January 27, the Lown Institute brought together health policy experts to discuss how Covid-19 has changed the way hospitals work (or don't work) together. Watch the full recording of the event! More
How do you help the healers? The Emotional PPE Project covers what masks and face shields don’t
The Emotional PPE Project makes free therapy available to health care workers facing unrelenting stress. The cofounder understands firsthand the value of resilience. More
Federal officials misappropriated millions earmarked for biomedical research: Investigation
Using those funds for non-BARDA purposes was "so common, there was even a name for it within the agency: "Bank of BARDA," OSC said. More
Remdesivir, Given to Half of Hospitalized Covid Patients in U.S., Is Big Win for Gilead — Boosted by Taxpayers
With U.S. cases skyrocketing, demand for Gilead’s dark horse antiviral is only growing. Biden appointees propose potential legal tactics to tamp down the price for patients. More
We Already Paid for These Vaccines Once
So why do we talk about Pfizer or Moderna, when these should be the people’s vaccines? More
With All Eyes on Covid-19, Drug-Resistant Infections Crept In
The spread of other dangerous germs is surging — a result, in part, of the chaotic response to the pandemic. More
Opinion: Why I’m An Invisible Man In The Global Vaccine Campaign
Dr. Ifeanyi Nsofor of Nigeria writes: "I was elated when the first COVID-19 vaccine was shown to be effective. ... My joy was cut short when richer Western nations began buying up the vaccine doses." More
Hospital Revenue Under Maryland’s Total Cost of Care Model During the COVID-19 Pandemic, March-July 2020
This study compares revenue of Maryland hospitals in March-July 2020 vs historical trends and assesses whether rate increases for inpatient and outpatient services that were permitted to offset pandemic-related decines in revenues were associated with changes to state hospital revenue. More
Covid-19 Surge Leaves Doctors, Nurses Reeling From Burnout
The pandemic’s longest and most deadly surge has posed risks to quality of care and left medical professionals exhausted. More
Are We Screening Too Much for Skin Cancer? It’s Complicated.
A new paper calls for a halt to skin cancer screenings in the general population. Some physicians vehemently disagree. More
In Suffolk County, Black and Latino residents face stark disparities in vaccine access
A dearth of state-run vaccination sites in hard-hit places like Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, East Boston, and Chelsea means that Black and Latino residents likely have to travel farther than white residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a Globe analysis of US Census data. More
WHO platform for pharmaceutical firms unused since pandemic began
Covid-19 ‘pool’ to share information has received no contributions since May 2020 More
COVID-19 and the moral imagination
Through concerted efforts the knowledge and technologies to respond to COVID-19 are being amassed. Whether we are up to the challenge of avoiding the next global crisis is another question. More
Will COVID-19 Wring Low-Value Healthcare out of the System?
Many people avoided going to the hospital or doctor for nonemergency health issues because they didn’t think it was worth the risk of infection. “Although this likely prevented them from receiving tests and scans they didn’t need, on the flip side, many people likely suffered because they didn’t get necessary care,” says Vikas Saini, M.D., president of Lown Institute, a healthcare think tank in Brookline, Massachusetts, that focuses on low-value care. The pandemic, in Saini’s view, may also speed the move away from fee- for-service to value-based payment: “I foresee a greater openness and interest in capitated payment models in which providers are paid a flat fee per patient per month.” More
Are hospitals complying with the new price transparency rule?
Hospitals now have to disclose on their website the prices they negotiate with insurers. But many hospitals are lagging when it comes to revealing their "real" prices... More
Shkreli Awards: Profiteering and Dysfunction in US Healthcare
Last year we did an episode on the third annual Shkreli Awards from the Lown Institute – ten examples of profiteering and dysfunction in healthcare. The ins and outs of the healthcare system are the bread and butter of this channel, so we were more than happy to dedicate another episode to the fourth annual Shkreli Awards, and this year’s did not (or did?) disappoint. More
Video Teaser for Lown Presents: Hospital Cooperation
Watch and share this video sneak peek of what Shannon, Vikas, and our guests will be talking about at Lown Presents: The Promise of Hospital Cooperation on January 27th. More
Renewed Threat of Nuclear Holocaust Requires Physician Activism
The recent abrogation of critical treaties and the aggressive development of nuclear technologies have greatly diminished the security of the entire world, and once again the threat of nuclear holocaust looms. More