2020 Shkreli Awards
A top ten list of the worst examples of profiteering and dysfunction in health care, named for Martin Shkreli, the price-hiking "pharma bro" that everyone loves to hate. More
Fort Worth’s JPS hospital is no Mayo Clinic. It’s better, this national study finds
In a partnership with the Lown Institute, Washington Monthly created a ranking system that factored not only the clinical prestige of a hospital, but also its cost-effectiveness and service to the surrounding community. JPS was given high marks for caring for people living near the hospital, regardless of their ability to pay, and for taking on a leadership role in the community. More
VIDEO: An introduction to community benefits
What types of spending count as community benefits, and which types of hospitals spend the most? Shannon and Vikas tackle these questions and more on this week's Lown Hospitals Q&A. More
Can for-profit hospitals be anchor institutions?
How do nonprofit and for-profit hospitals differ when it comes to community engagement and community health investment? More
Drug companies’ payments and gifts affect physicians’ prescribing. It’s time to turn off the spigot
New research confirms what drug companies have long known: Industry cash and gifts influence how doctors prescribe drugs for their patients. More
How Pharma Money Colors Operation Warp Speed’s Quest to Defeat COVID
A Trump administration maneuver allows executives who are leading the federal effort to keep investments in drug companies that would benefit from the pandemic response. More
OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma admits role in opioid epidemic, pleads guilty to federal charges
Purdue Pharma, which invented OxyContin, agreed to pay fines of $8 billion, will be effectively dissolved and converted into a benefit company. More
Make list price the touchstone for drug pricing across the supply chain
In the world of prescription drugs, "price" is a murky term. Using the list price across the supply chain would simplify things. More
Covid Upends a Rural Hospital, Where Staff Know All the Patients
The Crow reservation in Montana has one of the nation’s worst recent outbreaks—one of many rural communities now being hit by the virus. The people helping combat the disease spend their days and nights trying to save their own family and friends. More
DOJ watchdog finds Louisiana inmates with coronavirus were not isolated for a week
In a report released Tuesday, the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General found that a Louisiana prison did not not isolate inmates infected with coronavirus for about one week. More
Federal authorities issue strong warning to pharma over speaker programs and kickbacks
A federal watchdog agency has issued an unusual warning to the drug industry to avoid using speaker programs to boost prescriptions. More
Hospital charges are out of control. Will transparency help?
A new report shows that the ratio of hospital charges compared to their costs has ballooned over the past decades. Why does it matter? More
VIDEO: Five things hospitals should continue after Covid-19
Covid-19 has revealed a lot of failures in the health care system. But some of the changes hospitals have had to make are worth keeping. In this week's Hospitals Q&A video, Shannon Brownlee and Vikas Saini discuss five things hospitals should keep doing after the pandemic. More
The cardiac implant you get may depend on the company paying your doctor
Does receiving money from medical device companies impact the devices doctors implant in patients? A recent study in JAMA suggests that it does. More
Nurses say hospitals aren’t prepared for COVID-19 surge during flu season
Nurses say hospitals aren't preparing for another surge in COVID-19 cases and still lack adequate personal protective equipment. More
Despite ACA Coverage Gains, Millions Still Suffer ‘Catastrophic’ Health Care Costs
The president-elect has vowed to strengthen the Affordable Care Act, which gave millions of Americans health insurance. But many insured people still struggle to pay for health care, research finds. More
Create a scorecard to help make safety-net providers accountable to patients and the public
State and national scorecards grade health care providers' work. No scorecard exists for safety-net providers caring for Medicaid patients. More
Mass. Plan Swaps Hospital Competition For Collaboration As COVID-19 Surges A Second Time
Hospitals, grouped into five areas, will meet at least weekly to share updates about their bed capacity, staffing levels, PPE and other supplies, and ability to accept transfer patients. More
Video: Measuring patient satisfaction in hospitals
How can we measure the ways in which hospital environments promote healing? And what do we find on the Lown Index when it comes to patient satisfaction? Shannon Brownlee and Dr. Vikas Saini tackle these questions and more in this week's video. More
Debunking popular Covid-19 myths
Misinformation about Covid-19 spreads as quickly as the virus, through social media and even from government officials. Let's examine some popular myths about Covid-19 and see if there is any truth to these claims. More