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The Path of Anathema: First, Always Do Harm!

First, we had Unethical American Dentistry, and now — perhaps thanks to Obamacare — we have certain American physicians who are playing loosely with the truth when it comes to telling patients if they are “in-network” with their insurance plan, and providing the right, covered, care for their patients. “First Do No Harm” is not an oath to these doctors, it’s a cue down the path of anathema!

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On Being Ill with Wellness: The New Uninsured Insured

There’s nothing quite like having great insurance only to find out your insurance coverage — for reasons still unknown — is no longer as great as it used to be a few years ago. Is that result the rubbing off of Obamacare on established health insurance plans that have now been debrided down to an even more lowest common denominator, or is something else stinking afoot?

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The Irrevocable Moral Abyss: Berkshire Hathaway and the Tastelessness of GEICO Sushi

Berkshire Hathaway is one of those massive corporate behemoths that weighs down chairs and breaks tables when it sits down to commune with others in a room.  On May 11, 2011 I wrote an article about Berskhire Hathaway losing its moral value:

Fuddy Duddyism only goes so far in the mainstream cult of personality, and Warren Buffet can no long demand that people just “trust him” on anything anymore because Sokol singlehandedly ruined that reputation and opportunity.  Buffet, now 80-years-old, is in a tough place of his own making because he made the worst sort of bet on David Sokol that is now paying him back in backlash and derision — and there is rightly no escape from that public punishment and social scorn.

Today, I’m sorry to report, Berkshire Hathaway’s GEICO Insurance company has taken a step too far into mainstream television tastelessness with a new commercial selling fear and loathing with a grim and cynical smile.

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The Manna of Life: Bone Marrow and Supermodels

When I taught Public Health at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, I remember one day when the school was having a “Bone Marrow Drive” to help an employee stricken with cancer.  You could sign up for a free bone marrow screening to see if you were a match and, if you were not, your bone marrow would be placed in a database for future reference.  Bone marrow transplants are expensive, and painful, for both donor and recipient, but in many ways, that marrow is the manna of life.

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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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Reveling in ADHD

We are fascinated by the ongoing rise of Fibromyalgia as the latest “must have” designer disease diagnosis so all those ghostly aches and pains and emotional ills and valleys can finally be validated by the medical community by writing a prescription; but the most disturbing trend is in the purposeful use of ADHD as a valid excuse for unrestricted bad behavior.

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Bankrupting Healthcare

We need a fair and sustainable national healthcare system in the United States.  People are suffering while insurance companies, hospitals, and other animated fat cats reap the benefits from the weak and infirm while the families of the sick line up for bankruptcy court.

Continue reading → Bankrupting Healthcare