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When the Radiologist Becomes the Expense

On March 25, 2026, at a Crain’s New York Business panel discussion of the city’s hospital sector, Mitchell H. Katz, MD, president and CEO of NYC Health + Hospitals, told the assembled executives what cost-cutting now sounds like in the largest public hospital system in the United States. “We could replace a great deal of radiologists with AI at this moment, if we are ready to do the regulatory challenge.” Sandra Scott, MD, who runs One Brooklyn Health, one of the city’s safety-net institutions operating on tight margins, replied that the move would be “a game-changer.” The exchange appeared in Crain’s coverage of the panel and was picked up by the radiology trade press within forty-eight hours.

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Preventative Medicine, or the Manufacture of Patients?

There is a sentence every American patient has heard at the dentist’s chair, the cardiologist’s office, the primary-care visit, and the pharmacy counter. It arrives in a tone of grave responsibility: We caught this early. What follows is a crown, an echocardiogram, a statin, a stress test, a referral, a follow-up appointment, and a copay. The word “preventative” has come to function as a moral shield around a billing code. To question whether the recommended intervention is necessary is treated as ingratitude toward a profession that, the implication goes, only wants to keep you alive.

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Toss Aways

There have always always been disposable people in a limited-use society, but it’s worse now. We, as a nation of lonesome people found alone in a decaying world, have become much more than merely disposable. We have become the toss aways. We have lost our value. We have forfeited the way forward. We find ourselves teetering on the precipice between the living, and the dismayed, and the balance of the affair solely belongs to us — the us of us.

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Socialized Medicine and the Broadway Softball League

We, The Americans, like to think we’re in this world together — United We Stand, Divided We Fall — but in reality, we know in our bones we are not equal.  We understand the separatist One Percenters own 99% of us, and we live only to mew when asked for a response from our monied overlords.

However, there was a time in the history of this nation, not too long ago — when the system could be exploited for the grander benefit of the few against the many — and that moment in time was the early 1980s.

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Our Sidewalk Sale Economy

As I am writing this article, news that the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act is ringing like freedom throughout the United States.  It is a great day to be an American, and an even greater day to be an American if you happen to fall ill.  “Obamacare” is now a law of the land milestone and is no longer a political insult.

Fresh from my Inbox:

The Affordable Care Act has already made a significant difference in the lives of millions of Americans, including those living with disabilities. Today’s ruling is an affirmation that all Americans, and especially those living with disabilities, should have access to the care that they need. This decision means that individuals cannot be discriminated against because of a pre-existing condition— and for the disability community, affirms the definition of equality as set forth in the Americans with Disabilities Act,” said Stephen Bennett, United Cerebral Palsy President & CEO. “Today’s decision is a clear victory for Americans living with disabilities. UCP strongly supports the Affordable Care Act and will keep working to ensure its implementation eliminates disparities and guarantees equality for all Americans.

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The Face of Medicare Fraud

I have heard over the last couple of years a number of ideas about why the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, affectionately known as Obamacare by its enemies (side note — if you hear someone refer to it as this, you can be assured that their arguments will be heavily one-sided and based more on talking points than reality) is a bad idea. Some of them include the notion that people will, out of greed, opt to pay a penalty for not having insurance and then get it when they absolutely need to do so based on knowing they will not be denied due to a pre-existing condition. Another is the argument that since Medicare is bloated and not functioning as is, introducing reform will do nothing to help it.

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Obama for the Public Good

I know three things about President Obama; he is a good man, he’s an honest man, and he is truly dedicated to “The Public Good.”  That said, he has a curious way to trying to provide for The Public Good by negotiating with liars, bending backward for his enemies, and trying allay the fears of those who have vested their public lives to thwarting him at every turn.  The man is surrounded, and instead of fighting, he is surrendering.

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Forget Insurance: Start a Healthcare Fund for Your Pet

One sad fact about adopting a pet is that you will likely outlive your beloved animal and that means you will have to pay for their healthcare in their dying days.  When our cat Jack died, 99% of the money we spent for his well-being was used over the last 90 days of his life in an attempt to battle his kidney disease and failing heart and to then provide him the kindest possible end.

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Midol Blister Packs Create PMS Rage!

Midol is a gift to modern man.  When a woman is in her premenstrual cycle, Midol is the miracle drug that could — and can — if it were only easier to administer.  We need Midol gummi bears.  We need Midol gum.  We need Midol Diet Pepsi!

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ObamaCare Has an Eye On You

Last night, the United States House of Representatives — led by the vibrant Nancy Pelosi — made history in passing the first comprehensive healthcare bill.  Republicans — who unanimously oppose universal healthcare — have mocked the program as “ObamaCare” yet history will prove “ObamaCare” will be the greatest legacy a President had gifted a nation since FDR and the New Deal in 1932. 

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