A physician outlines the RAND Health Insurance Experiment and its conclusion that the deductible feature of consumer-directed health plans can reduce health care spending significantly.
Consumer-directed health plans will result in a more responsive and sustainable health care system in which patients will take more responsibility for management of their chronic conditions.
Physicians have a responsibility to practice palliative medicine so they can appropriately care for their dying patients and help them achieve their end-of-life goals.
The Patient Navigator Outreach and Chronic Disease Prevention Act of 2005 supports entities that provide counseling and health care coordination to low-income patients who suffer from cancer or other chronic diseases.
Physicians who encounter a patient who is suffering from depression may find it necessary to breach confidentiality and patient autonomy in order to act in the best interest of the patient.
As health care coverage decreases and costs increase, the stage is being set for health care reform that includes adoption of a single payer health care financing plan.