Comments on: US News and Pharmaceutical Industry Report

By: Adam Searing

Adam Searing — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 15:06:42 +0000

I think we need targeted tort reform because the current system is really lousy at compensating people who are actually injured and puts some categories of docs – like OBs and ER docs – too much at risk. No one who is serious about health policy though thinks such reform will save money and reduce people’s health premiums; but they will improve the quality of our health system and we ought to do them.

If you don’t trust multiple pundits, you can see for yourself – Texas, which passed the strictest tort reform laws in the nation ($250,000 caps) back in 2002, has average employer health premiums that are slightly higher than North Carolina’s. Employer health premiums can be found at http://www.statehealthfacts.org.

By: Michael Kirsch, M.D

Michael Kirsch, M.D — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 01:36:51 +0000

“CBO estimates are that tort reform would only save a vanishingly small percentage of our total health costs”

Are tens of billions of dollars on defensive medicine only pocket change? For some balance on tort reform, see http://www.MDWhistleblower.blogspot.com under Legal Quality category.

By: Adam Searing

Adam Searing — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:52:59 +0000

Yeah, Adam L is right. I thought the reporting in the magazine was quite good and, although I totally disagreed with Zuckerman’s editorial and bemoaned its misstating of the facts, I respect his right to take any position he wants.

I’d encourage you to pick up the magazine itself to see what I mean – it’s just amazing the drug company ad coverage and how it dominates the thing. And it isn’t exactly a secret that skyrocketing drug costs and overuse of drugs are a large contributor to our health care cost problem.

By: AdamL

AdamL — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:57:04 +0000

Quizzical — Adam doesn’t say that US News is pulling its punches. He is pointing out the irony of a magazine railing against the evils of spiraling health care costs while at the same time contributing to spiraling health care costs by printing numerous ads for high-priced drugs.

By: Quizzical

Quizzical — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:12:35 +0000

— At the same time we’ve got organizations with almost unlimited amounts of money trying to influence the health care debate and their markets in any way they possibly can, even if it means doing things like buying one-quarter of the pages in a national newsmagazine. —

I don’t see how product ads, per se, constitute “influencing the health care debate”? Can you point to something in the issue to support your contention that US News is pulling its punches due to how it gets its ad revenue?