Posts

Showing posts from July, 2009
Keeping it real: Health Care Reform As a physician who had significant administrative experiences in the past, I got to see the ins and outs of healthcare and its funding. Its a complex topic with many different players and many different agendas. Within a single office visit there are multiple different interests secretly battling it out for attention, and for money. This is why the discussions that many of the political pundits are having regarding healthcare reform are more political agendas than authentic concerns for the health and wellbeing of a nation. The system is complex and interdependent so that each intervention has reverberations throughout the system. For instance, if you continue to limit reimbursements to health facilities and providers, as has been the case for government supported plans such as medicare and medicaid, the unintended consequence is inaccessibility to care for those who are the most dependent on care (Many practices that are primarily medicaid

Supreme Court Thoughts

I believe that the current discussion regarding the Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is fascinating to watch and that the process itself has huge implication on how America see's itself and our openness to discuss race and race relations with a clear head. One of the statements made from Republican Senator O. Hatch, was that he was looking for Justices that are committed to enforce the law/constitution, not legislate it. He was reacting to her very public statements that most interpretations of constitutional law are in fact ways of legislating without the process. When we think about supreme court rulings (whether they be conservative or liberal leading), we must all understand that she speaks truth. Rowe vs Wade was not a "law" but an interpretation of the constitution that made abortion permissible. Placing the separation of all religious activity from public supported venues is also an interpretation of a constitution that originally was designed to deny a

Graceful Mourning

Graceful Mourning Today, there will be a huge memorial service for Michael Jackson, which will probably been one of the most highly viewed, Tivo"d, and taped events of all time. As I sit here, there is around the clock coverage of his life, his performances, and the speculation regarding the many legal and social problems that he experienced. At the same time, as I complete football junkie, the life and death of quarterback Steve Mcnair has saturated sports networks and sports media. Steve is regarded as one of the paragons of integrity and commitment as the quarterback of both the Tennesee Titans and later for the Baltimore Ravens. He was considered the consummate family man with a stable marriage and the father of four. He was shot to death, along with his apparent lover, last week. His wife, family and friends are devasted by the loss of a father, husband, and even more important, their trust. It is simply overwhelming to put yourself in their shoes. I have read nu