Commentary
Commentary
Unnecessary scrutiny of doctors hurts valuable research
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — John Roberts’ assertion that nurse practitioners play a “key role … throughout the health care system” is spot-on (“Physicians not the only avenue for primary care,” Aug. 26). Unfortunately, the bill he lauds – the Act to Promote Cost Containment, Transparency and Efficiency in the Delivery ...
Business & Economics
Order and the Court
NJ Business Matters, September 5, 2008 New Jersey’s tort system is increasingly hostile to business. The Pacific Research Institute ranked our tort climate 49th in the nation, Atlantic County was named a Judicial Hellhole, and companies have responded by increasing costs for consumer goods. Last year, CIANJ joined the New ...
Commentary
Medi-Cal’s Fee Cutbacks are the Symptom; Medi-Cal is the Disease
Last week, I wrote about the malformation of health care financing that allows a federal judge to roll back Medi-Cal (Medicaid) fee reductions, which the governor and legislature had agreed to in order to buy some breathing room while they negotiate a budget to cover California’s out-of-control deficit. I don’t ...
Business & Economics
Why Cracking Down on Oil Speculators Will Hurt Consumers
California drivers are relieved that oil prices have retreated from record highs in July but all Americans should be concerned that the government is still scrambling to “do something” about oil prices. Proposals to curb “excessive speculation” in commodity futures enjoy bipartisan support. Yet cracking down on oil speculators will ...
Agriculture
Why McCain needs to read Goldwater
Those who aspire to elected office, and all those who hold office, would do well to heed the advice of Barry Goldwater, former Arizona senator and presidential candidate. None would benefit more than presidential nominee John McCain, Goldwater’s Arizona successor in the U.S. Senate. Goldwater’s ideas, and the principles upon ...
Commentary
It’s a “Wrap”: Brokers Harm Consumer-Driven Health Care
For months now, I’ve heard stories about a technique that insurance brokers use to sell health insurance to small businesses, which want the lower premiums that come with a consumer-directed health plan, but are nervous about convincing their employees to face a deductible of at least $2,200 for a family ...
Commentary
California Tobacco Control Program Wants More Money
I have spent (undoubtedly too much) time today struggling with a new article from the tobacconistas at the University of California, San Francisco’s Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, a group of scholars funded by tobacco taxes, which publishes research calling for more…..(you guessed it)…..tobacco taxes. But not only ...
Business & Economics
The “Vanilla Gender Assumption” and Life in “A Postfeminist Western Democracy”
Susan Pinker is a psychologist who has taught at McGill University in Montreal. Her new book, The Sexual Paradox: Men, Women, and the Real Gender Gap, is about what women want, “and whether it makes sense to see males as the base model when we think about women and work.” ...
Commentary
Health IT Initiatives Less Likely To Be Hijacked, Officials Say
This is a cautionary tale. The morals of the story may not apply to health IT applications the same way they do to other parts of the information technology world, according to some industry experts. Others say they do, indirectly. Either way, the saga of how a network administrator held ...
Business & Economics
Labor Day: What Are We Celebrating?
On September 1st, Labor Day, cities across the country will hold barbecues, parades, and picnics. On this reprieve from our work routine, it’s worth reflecting on what we’re celebrating. It is also a good time to ponder some proposed labor-law changes that would affect all workers. Human labor, coupled with ...
Unnecessary scrutiny of doctors hurts valuable research
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — John Roberts’ assertion that nurse practitioners play a “key role … throughout the health care system” is spot-on (“Physicians not the only avenue for primary care,” Aug. 26). Unfortunately, the bill he lauds – the Act to Promote Cost Containment, Transparency and Efficiency in the Delivery ...
Order and the Court
NJ Business Matters, September 5, 2008 New Jersey’s tort system is increasingly hostile to business. The Pacific Research Institute ranked our tort climate 49th in the nation, Atlantic County was named a Judicial Hellhole, and companies have responded by increasing costs for consumer goods. Last year, CIANJ joined the New ...
Medi-Cal’s Fee Cutbacks are the Symptom; Medi-Cal is the Disease
Last week, I wrote about the malformation of health care financing that allows a federal judge to roll back Medi-Cal (Medicaid) fee reductions, which the governor and legislature had agreed to in order to buy some breathing room while they negotiate a budget to cover California’s out-of-control deficit. I don’t ...
Why Cracking Down on Oil Speculators Will Hurt Consumers
California drivers are relieved that oil prices have retreated from record highs in July but all Americans should be concerned that the government is still scrambling to “do something” about oil prices. Proposals to curb “excessive speculation” in commodity futures enjoy bipartisan support. Yet cracking down on oil speculators will ...
Why McCain needs to read Goldwater
Those who aspire to elected office, and all those who hold office, would do well to heed the advice of Barry Goldwater, former Arizona senator and presidential candidate. None would benefit more than presidential nominee John McCain, Goldwater’s Arizona successor in the U.S. Senate. Goldwater’s ideas, and the principles upon ...
It’s a “Wrap”: Brokers Harm Consumer-Driven Health Care
For months now, I’ve heard stories about a technique that insurance brokers use to sell health insurance to small businesses, which want the lower premiums that come with a consumer-directed health plan, but are nervous about convincing their employees to face a deductible of at least $2,200 for a family ...
California Tobacco Control Program Wants More Money
I have spent (undoubtedly too much) time today struggling with a new article from the tobacconistas at the University of California, San Francisco’s Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, a group of scholars funded by tobacco taxes, which publishes research calling for more…..(you guessed it)…..tobacco taxes. But not only ...
The “Vanilla Gender Assumption” and Life in “A Postfeminist Western Democracy”
Susan Pinker is a psychologist who has taught at McGill University in Montreal. Her new book, The Sexual Paradox: Men, Women, and the Real Gender Gap, is about what women want, “and whether it makes sense to see males as the base model when we think about women and work.” ...
Health IT Initiatives Less Likely To Be Hijacked, Officials Say
This is a cautionary tale. The morals of the story may not apply to health IT applications the same way they do to other parts of the information technology world, according to some industry experts. Others say they do, indirectly. Either way, the saga of how a network administrator held ...
Labor Day: What Are We Celebrating?
On September 1st, Labor Day, cities across the country will hold barbecues, parades, and picnics. On this reprieve from our work routine, it’s worth reflecting on what we’re celebrating. It is also a good time to ponder some proposed labor-law changes that would affect all workers. Human labor, coupled with ...
