Consumerist
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health insurance
Health Care Reform Bill Passes House - What's In It?
The House version of the health care reform bill passed the House on Saturday night. Now it needs to be merged with some sort fo Senate version of the bill and signed by the President to become law. So how does this reform bill actually affect consumers? More » -
pre-existing conditions
Skinny Toddlers Also Can't Get Insurance?
We guess we should have seen this one coming. After news broke of the uninsurable fat baby last week, MSNBC found a similar case on the other end of the spectrum. A Colorado family with a 22-pound two-year-old says that United HealthCare told them their daughter Aislin is too small to qualify for insurance under their guidelines. More » -
pre-existing conditions
Fat Little Babies Can't Get Insurance?
Up until yesterday, 4-month-old Alex Lange was considered uninsurable by Rocky Mountain Health Plans because he was above the 95th percentile for height and weight for his age—that gave him a pre-existing condition of obesity, and earned him a stamp of rejection. More » -
health care
The Best States For Health Care
A new report has been published that ranks the quality of health care for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It's not looking too swell for people who live in the South. More » -
choose your own adventure
How Would Health Care Reform Affect You?
Consumers Union has put together a breakdown of the health care bills in Congress to let you see how they would affect you, based on your age and what kind of insurance you currently have (if any). It's an interesting tool to see what the various proposed changes are. More » -
literal consumption
Is Cheap Food To Blame For Our Expensive Health Care?
Michael Pollan thinks so. He's got an op-ed in the NYT where he examines the relationship between or expensive health care and our cheap fast food. More » -
grocery stores
Whole Foods CEO Spurs Boycott With Health Care Views
Memo to Whole Foods CEO John Mackey: when much of your customer base consists of reusable-bag-using, wheatgrass-munching "progressive" types, it's probably not such a good idea to publish an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal criticizing current health care reform proposals. At least if you don't want said customers organizing boycotts of your stores. More » -
wasteful
Collection Agency Sends Four Letters To Collect A $.04 Debt
Pete received a bill in the mail that has him slightly offended and amused. A health care provider has sent his balance to collections after a payment arrived late a few years ago. They will clearly be hurting if he doesn't pay his overdue balance of ....four cents. More » -
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health
Free Health Care Receives Rock Star Reception In Los Angeles
The past few nights, thousands of people have lined up outside of the Forum in Los Angeles. a venue that usually hosts basketball games or big arena concerts. Who's in town to attract such a crowd? Metallica? Green Day? No, even better—doctors and dentists providing free care on a first-come, first-served basis. More » -
your health
What Does Health Care Reform Mean For You?
The debate over health care reform has devolved into scaremongering with death panels and rationed care. What's really going on, and what does it really mean for you and your family? Inside, the New York Times breaks down the competing bills... More » -
privacy
Silly Consumer, Did You Think Your Prescription Info Was Private?
The NYT has the story of a woman who, more than 10 years after she tried and failed to have a baby using in vitro procedures, is still getting marketing information for all sorts of products. First it was Pampers and baby formula — then, as the baby she did not have "grew up," so did the marketing offers. How did they get her information? They bought it. More » -
health care
Giving Birth And Covered By Health Insurance? $22,000, Please
The individual health insurance market can be a scary place for Americans who turn to it for health coverage. If they're accepted to a plan at all, patients often find that their coverage isn't quite what they were promised, and limits and restrictions lead to high medical bills for covered services that aren't really covered.
That's how Sarah Wildman ended up with a $22,000 bill from the hospital where her daughter was born, despite having what she thought was good health insurance with a maternity rider. More »
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stop scaring my grandma
Note To Seniors: Proposed Medicare Reform Does Not Include Plans To Kill You
Yesterday, Consumer Reports noted that an anti-health reform politician is trying to convince senior citizens that they'll be required to take lessons in euthanasia if any reform is passed. Regardless of what side you come down on with health care reform, this is flat out wrong. We care about this lie, which is still bouncing around the media, because it might interfere with the very real and useful tasks of setting up living wills and determining health care proxies—things that matter to both the elderly and the terminally ill. More » -
money-saving tips
Cut Down On Medical Costs With These Tips
One way to cut down on all your medical costs is to go exclusively to Dr. Mario, an impersonator of whom is pictured. More » -
If you're looking for a good read tonight, try curling up with a cup of herbal tea, some Nilla Wafers, and the PDF of the House Health Reform bill. (warning: opens extremely large PDF) If 1,018 pages is too much reading for tonight, you can look over this one-page PDF on the public insurance option included in the bill, or read first impressions from Consumers Union and the Washington Post's Ezra Klein. [Consumer Reports Health]
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propaganda
Banks Consider Running TV Spots Against Proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency
Remember Harry and Louise? I don't, but apparently they were a fictional couple in an early-90s TV commercial, produced by the insurance industry to help sway opinion against the Clinton health plan. Now banks and other financial companies may be pooling resources to create a new "Harry and Louise" style ad to convince Americans that Obama's proposed agency to monitor abusive financial practices will limit choice and ruin lives. More » -
fda
FDA May Take Vicodin And Percocet Off The Market
Bad news for Dr. Greg House and other, non-fictional chronic pain patients. The FDA advisory panel that met yesterday about the effects of excessive doses of acetaminophen made another recommendation to the FDA—to take popular painkillers Vicodin and Percocet (and their generic versions) off the market because of the effect both drugs can have on the liver when taken for extended periods. The FDA will most likely follow this recommendation. More »
health care
New York, 7:19 AM
Mon Nov 9
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