My wife penned the following letter to the editor and submitted it to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this past Saturday. I believe that you will find her presentation compelling.
Karen Wolk Feinstein, President and CEO of the Jewish Health Care Foundation, noted to a group of experts attending a day-long meeting at the foundation's training center on Thursday that "40 cents of every health care dollar spent is wasted on preventable complications, unnecessary treatment, errors and general inefficiencies". ("What's on the horizon in health care?" October 19) According to the Institute of Medicine the estimated total annual waste is $765 billion. The National Academy of Sciences breaks this down as follows: fraud and inadequate prevention, 17%; unnecessary treatment, 28%; unnecessary high prices, 14%; inefficiently delivered services due to lack of coordination among doctors, hospitals, and other providers, 14%; and, excess administrative costs as a result of too many private insurance companies and types of insurance, 25%. The elephant in the room that no one wants to mention is that last 25% of wasted money caused by our current health insurance system. That is $191 billion per year. Perhaps political contributions, charitable donations, and advertising revenue keep us from pointing to the elephant.
In contrast, Medicare, our national single payer system of publicly financed, privately delivered health care, has administrative overhead of less than 5%. Pennsylvania has its own single payer solution, the Family and Busniness Health Security Act, SB 400/ HB 2551. When we adopt this, presto, the elephant vanishes.
Tirzah Mason
Trafford, PA
HEALTHCARE 4 ALL PA-PUSH - Southwestern PA chapter of Healthcare 4 all PA
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Special Screening of Tony Buba Documentary on Braddock Hospital Closing
We Are Alive Trailer from Tony Buba on Vimeo.
On November 9 there will be a special screening of Tony Buba's new documentary "We are Alive! The Fight to Save Braddock Hospital" at the Regent Square Theater in Pittsburgh which should be part of the Three Rivers Film Festival or 3RFF.com. Showtime 7PM on a Friday. The film should include Mike Stout singing a tribute to the people of Braddock which can be seen at the link in related posts below. More information can be read at the link to the Post-Gazette below.
**Update**
Tickets are $10 with a six pack of $50 available in advance from showclix.com. Further 3 Rivers info can be read at:
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/movies/potential-oscar-contenders-among-3-rivers-film-fest-offerings-658190/#ixzz29lnkCtPj
**Related Posts**
New Mike Stout Video on Braddock's Need for a New Community Hospital
Unbelievable Promises Monopolized Care—UPMC
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Podcamp 7 Sessions are Being Announced
**Related Posts**
PodCamp 7 is Coming
New People Article on Vermont's Single Payer Plan and PodCamp Update
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
New People Article on Vermont's Single Payer Plan and PodCamp Update
This is the PUSH blog's 100th post. An article has been published on Vermont's Single Payer health care law passed last year in this month's issue of The Thomas Merton Center's newspaper, The New People. It was adapted from a post on the PUSH blog which you can read here. The New People article can be seen on page 3 in the viewer below at the bottom plus all of the other articles.
Also coming up On Oct. 27 & 28 will be PodCamp, a social media unconference at Point Park University. Last week, they had a round table discussion on social media and the news which can be seen below. Speakers at the PodCamp East in Wilmington, Del event included Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del) and Gov. Jack Markell.
**Related Posts**
PodCamp 7 is Coming
PodCamp Pittsburgh 6 Recap
Friday, October 5, 2012
Unionizing Efforts at UPMC
Dear Molly,
Everyone in Pittsburgh knows UPMC is rich, but until last week,
most didn’t know just how rich.
UPMC’s real estate portfolio got close examination in a series
of stories in the Post-Gazette that showed UPMC now owns an
estimated $2.5 billion in Allegheny County property. And because of
UPMC’s charitable, “not for profit” status, it avoids paying taxes
on 86% of this property taking $42 million in revenue away from our
schools, cities and the County.
It’s time we had a real discussion about making UPMC
live up to its non-profit, public charity status. Join
us in asking Allegheny County Council to hold a public
hearing.
The series also highlighted ways in which the health system is
completely unaccountable, using our healthcare dollars and tax
breaks to act like a for-profit corporation. Examples abound of
UPMC's willingness to pay just about any price for a desired piece
of land, to distort real estate markets, and to cloak its intentions
behind third party operators. One article even suggests that its new
hospital in Monroeville serves more as a “giant billboard” than a
real healthcare facility for members of the community.
At a time we’re taking teachers out of classrooms and
cutting transit service to the bone, can we really afford to
subsidize UPMC’s land buying binges?
UPMC’s questionable behavior isn’t just limited to its real
estate transactions. Despite making $351 million in operating
profits last year and holding $4 billion in reserves , many UPMC
employees live in poverty and earn less than a family-sustaining
wage.
It’s time for our largest landowner and “charity” to
start acting with OUR interests in mind. We need Allegheny
County Council to investigate UPMC’s actions. Sign
this petition calling for a public hearing.
With your help we can Make It Our UPMC.
Sincerely,
Rev. David Thornton
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
University of Pittsburgh's: Pittsburgh Hispanic Heritage Celebration 2012: A Focus on Healthcare
“Providing Health Care for an Invisible Community: Salud Para Niños Celebrating 10 Years of Service”
by Diego Chaves-Gnecco, MD, Assistant Professor University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Director and Founder Salud Para Niños, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
“De la Mano con la Salud”: A Network of Latino Men”
by Patricia Documet, MD, DrPH, Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health
Refreshments to follow. Free and open to the community.
Sponsors:
Office of Community Relations, University of Pittsburgh
Center for Latin American Studies, University of Pittsburgh
Mayor’s Office, City of Pittsburgh
**Related Posts**
Latino Rates in Pennsylvania's Uninsured
New Census Uninsured Data Out: White & Female Rates Getting Worse in PA
Racial and Gender Differences in Pennsylvania's Uninsured
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