Do Not Resuscitate (This System) #338 Mar 8 2024

The week's news about how we squander trillions on medical care to make intermediaries rich instead of ourselves healthier. Hihglights: the big cyberattack on UnitedHealth affecting 200 million users and why that's likely to be repeated elsewhere; the new CDC guidelines on Covid, a.k.a. "Relax and Sneeze!" [snark]; some Medicaid updates; is Medicare Advantage losing its lustre for investors?; and some environmental dangers that we ignore in favor of finding expensive pharmaceuticals treatments for the diseases they cause. 

The articles mentioned are the following: 

Rebecca Pifer, “Walgreens to close VillageMD clinics in Florida,” Healthcare Dive, Feb 22, 2024 https://bit.ly/3wDUagE and Emily Olsen, “Walgreens’ VillageMD to exit Illinois,” Healthcare Dive, Mar 1, 2024 https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/walgreens-villagemd-closes-illinois-clinics/709012/

Darius Tahir, “Hacking at UnitedHealth unit cripples a swatch of the U.S. health system: What to know,” KFF Health News/CBS News, Mar 1, 2024 https://bit.ly/4c3iFEb and James Rundle, Catherine Stupp & Kim S. Nash, “Medical providers fight to survive after Change Healthcare hack,” Wall Street Journal, Mar 1, 2024 https://on.wsj.com/3T7eZZp

Elise Takahama, “Why health care has become a top target for cybercriminals,” Seattle Times/Tribune News Service, Mar 1, 2024 https://bayareane.ws/3T1zOpn

Maureen Tkacik, “Zoomer hackers shut down the biggest extortion ring of all,” American Prospect, Mar 1, 2024 https://prospect.org/health/2024-03-01-zoomer-hackers-shut-down-unitedhealthcare/

Wendell Potter, “UnitedHealth Group: Vulnerable and ill-equipped to defend against modern threats like cyberattacks,” Healthcare Un-covered, Mar 5, 2024 https://wendellpotter.substack.com/p/unitedhealth-group-vulnerable-and

Susanna Vogel, “Kaiser lays off IT workers for a second time in 4 months,” Healthcare Dive, Mar 5, 2024 https://bit.ly/3uSwOng

The Lancet, [editorial] “What has the impact been of privatisation on the quality of care? Does competition work in this arena?” March 2024 https://bit.ly/49HlIjR

Nia Clark, “Some UnitedHealthcare members lose Mount Sinai coverage,” Spectrum/NY1, Mar 1, 2024 https://bit.ly/49ClgU4

Julie Appleby & Phil Galewitz, “America worries about health costs—and voters want to hear from Biden and Republicans,” KFF Health News/CBS News, Mar 4, 2024 https://bit.ly/3uPR9tn

Christopher T. Su & Scott D. Ramsey, “Medical debt—an iatrogenic epidemic with mortal consequences,” JAMA, Mar 4, 2024 https://bit.ly/4342ClG

Nada Hassanein, “States consider menthol cigarette bans as feds delay action,” Stateline, Feb 29, 2024 https://bit.ly/437OcAV

Brian Platt & Laura Dhillon Kane, “Trudeau introduces bill on national drug coverage program,” Bloomberg, Feb 29, 2024 https://bloom.bg/3IqWXwv

Maya Goldman, “Why Medicare is adding prior authorization requirements as others cut back,” Axios, Mar 1, 2024 https://bit.ly/49IYj1M

Anne Blythe, “Dentists lobby for higher Medicaid reimbursement rates,” North Carolina Health News, Feb 28, 2024 https://bit.ly/49Cyald

Wendell Potter & Philip Verhoef, “Medicare Advantage is bad for patients and bad for investors,” STAT, Feb 28, 2024 https://bit.ly/3v2EPG7

Tony Leys, “Without Medicare Part B’s shield, patient’s family owes $81,000 for a single air-ambulance flight,” KFF Health News/NPR, Feb 27, 2024 https://bit.ly/3SZAk73

Eric Topol, [Twitter thread], Mar 4, 2024 https://bit.ly/4c0Kj4R

Katherine J. Wu, “Why are we still flu-ifying COVID?” The Atlantic, Feb 28, 2024 https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2024/02/covid-anniversary-flu-isolation-cdc/677588/

Melody Schreiber, “Covid taught us a lot. The CDC now wants us to forget it,” New Republic, Feb 28, 2024 https://newrepublic.com/article/179304/covid-cdc-guidelines-isolation-symptoms

Keren Landman, “The CDC has finally loosened Covid isolation guidelines. Here’s why that’s a good thing,” Vox, Mar 1, 2024 https://bit.ly/3Tq9dDV

Keith Schneider, “New report sparks questions and controversy over possible causes for Iowa ‘cancer crisis,’” New Lede, Mar 4, 2024 https://bit.ly/4c31dQk

Saboto Caesar, “Global pesticide ban is only way to stop us from a health epidemic,” Newsweek, Feb 28, 2024 https://bit.ly/49E9acZ

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