How retail pharmacy policies drive overprescribing
A recent New York Times investigation revealed that retail pharmacies are pressuring pharmacists to fill prescriptions at an unsafe pace, leading to overprescribing and medication errors. More
Patients Stuck With Bills After Insurers Don’t Pay As Promised
While doctors and hospitals chafe at the administrative burden, insurers contend the review is necessary to ferret out waste in a system whose costs are exploding and to ensure physicians are prescribing useful treatments. More
We need better regulation of stem cell therapies, especially rogue clinics
Rogue stem cell clinics continue to victimize hopeful patients seeking cures for cancer, Parkinson’s disease, autism, chronic pain, and more. More
Should hospitals be judged by their billing practices?
Affordability is one of the most important considerations for hospital patients. So why isn't billing taken into account in hospital evaluations? More
The true cost of “free” samples
Many physicians see drug samples as a benefit, because they can give pills to patients who may not be able to afford the medication otherwise. But are these "free" samples really free? More
Women Burned by Quick Fix for Heavy Periods
For many, 5-minute fix is anything but More
VIDEO – The Shkreli Awards: 10 Examples of Dysfunction in Healthcare
The Lown Institute recently announced its 3rd round of “Shkreli Awards”, a top ten list of the worst examples of dysfunction in healthcare. More
Epic’s call to block a proposed data rule is wrong for many reasons
Epic, the nation’s largest electronic health record (EHR) company and a major beneficiary of a $48 billion Obama-era federal program to promote the adoption of EHRs, has launched a full-scale effort to block the flow of data out of its software and into apps that benefit doctors and patients. That’s wrong for many reasons. More
Many patient groups have deep ties to pharma but fail to disclose backing
Amid ongoing debate over the role the pharmaceutical industry plays in shaping health policy, a new analysis finds that patient groups funded by drug makers generally support corporate interests, few groups have policies governing industry backing, and transparency is often lacking. More
Getting mental health care can be hard enough. Then comes paying for it.
Despite two recent federal laws meant to bring parity between mental and physical health-care coverage, gaping holes remain in how behavioral health costs are paid. More
As prescribing for ADHD stimulants rose, so did industry payments to doctors
At the same time that more doctors were prescribing stimulants, a new analysis finds that 1 in 18 U.S. physicians received some form of payment from drug companies that were marketing these medicines, notably ADHD pills often prescribed for children. And the researchers suggested the financial ties may have partly contributed to the rise in prescriptions. More
America’s Most Powerful Medical-Debt Collector
Treatment at a military hospital can leave you tens of thousands of dollars in debt—and hounded by the federal government. More
Bad publicity prompts US medical centers to take corrective action
FDA and NIH let clinical trial sponsors keep results secret and break the law
For 20 years, the U.S. government has urged companies, universities, and other institutions that conduct clinical trials to record their results in a federal database, so doctors and patients can see whether new treatments are safe and effective. Few trial sponsors have consistently done so, even after a 2007 law made posting mandatory for many trials registered in the database. More
Healthcare’s worst get called out in the Shkreli Awards
The Shkreli Awards shine a light on some of the bad behavior in the healthcare sphere during 2019. Hospitals earned four of the 10 awards from the Lown Institute. More
Patient Influencers Paid By Pharmaceutical Companies Should Be Required To Disclose Industry Ties
Pharmaceutical companies have long turned to physicians to deliver key marketing messages to their colleagues, patients, and the public. These companies are now investing in patients who have gained trust and stature within a patient community. These patients speak as everyday people with medical conditions, as relatable as a friend from high school. More
The risks of rushing to incorporate AI into health care
As AI becomes more popular in health care, clinicians and patients should take the opportunity to learn about how the potential risks of these products. More
The 10 Shkreli Award recipients that exemplified ‘profiteering and dysfunction’ in healthcare
2019 Shkreli Awards “Dishonorable Mentions”
These health care actors didn't win a Shkreli Award, but they deserve a "dishonorable mention" for their profiteering and unethical behavior. More
For “exceptional prowess at profiteering,” Methodist makes top 10 list of healthcare bad actors
Annual Shkreli Awards, named for infamous pharma bro, scolds several nonprofit hospitals for suing patients More