health
AP: 41 Million Americans Drink Water Contaminated With Antibiotics, Anti-Convulsants, Mood Stabilizers, And Sex Hormones
A soup of pharmaceutical waste spews from the faucets supplying drinking water to 41 million Americans, according to a disturbing study from the Associated Press. At least 24 major cities are affected, including New York, Washington, Boston Chicago, and Los Angeles.
Here are some of the key test results obtained by the AP:
"Expensive" Placebos Work Better Than "Cheap" Ones
A new study published in the American Medical Association has a new and astonishing demonstration of just how much your perception becomes your reality when it comes to prices. People in the study thought they were trying out a new kind of pain med. Instead, they got sugar pills. However, some were told their sugar pills cost $2.50, and the others were told the pills cost $0.10. People with the “pricey” sugar pill had their pain reduced much more than the “cheap” sugar pill. Does this mean that price alone pays for itself?
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A TSA screener contaminated a 14-year-old boy’s sterile backup feeding tube in the name of national security: “If I can’t open it, I can’t let you on the plane.” [WFTV via BoingBoing]
EECB Scores Direct Hit On United Health Care
Alexis, who had been fighting for 10.5 months to get United Health Care to pay for her checkup that should have been covered, finally found success after launching an EECB (executive email carpet bomb) with information that we provided her.
A Consumer Advocate named April from the Executive Office left me a message. She said my claim had been “reprocessed appropriately” and that a check was sent to my doctor’s office, OB-GYN Associates of Pittsburgh, yesterday with the remaining balance. She said that the doctor I saw was indeed a UHC contracted doctor (no kidding!), and that my only responsibility was the $10 co-pay that I paid at the time of the visit.
Tainted Heparin May Have Been The Work Of Counterfeiters
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said today drug counterfeiters may have added a foreign ingredient into Chinese shipments of Baxter’s blood-thinner heparin which has been linked to 19 deaths and 800 illnesses.
Patients Blind When Health Care Comparison Shopping
“The patient really has no way to act as an informed consumer,” Dr. Smith said. “You can’t call up a facility and say, ‘By the way, is my doctor any good?’ or, ‘Tell me who the best one is.’ “—A doctor responding to a study that found some doctors were 10 times better than other doctors at discovering precancerous lesions through colonoscopy. [NYT]
Plastic Surgery Company Sues Consumer Site For Negative Customer Reviews
Lifestyle Lift claims it’s a “minor one-hour procedure with major results,” but a lot of customers who have paid for the procedure have been left unhappy, and they’ve consequently posted reviews about it on a plastic surgery review blog called RealSelf. Lifestyle Lift has sued RealSelf, claiming trademark infringement, and now RealSelf has countersued, claiming Lifestyle Lift padded RealSelf’s site with shill reviews.
Lead Found In Dental Appliance
Finally! It’s been so long since we’ve posted about anything tainted with lead that we were starting to wonder if all the world’s trade problems had been resolved—but now comes a new study that found 210 parts per million (ppm) of lead in the porcelain veneer of a dental crown ordered from China. That’s a lot less than the CPSC’s current 600 ppm threshold, but a lot more than the international standard of only 90 ppm. The good news is it’s highly unlikely developing children will need a mouth full of crowns and bridges. The bad news is it’s yet another example of how hazardous material can slip undiscovered into the marketplace—and your mouth.
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Afraid of their insurance getting jacked up or of employer discrimation, people who think they might be genetically predisposed to certain diseases are testing themselves with home DNA kits, hiding the results from their doctors, and harboring a potentially deadly secret. [NYT]
The FDA Wants More Money
Unlike Nancy Nord (she’s the CPSC boss that tried to hint to Congress that her agency needed more funding through sly winks and interpretive dance numbers), the FDA chief is ignoring Bush’s “do not ask for more money” rule and demanding more funds.
Say Goodbye To Dr. Jarvik As He and His Stunt Double Row Into The Sunset
Weary of all the “fake rowing” controversy, Pfizer has canned Dr. Robert Jarvik (the inventor of the Jarvik artificial heart) as a spokesperson for their blockbuster cholesterol drug, Lipitor.
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A new meta-analysis showed that popular anemia drugs Aranesp and Procrit increase the risk of death in cancer patients by 10 percent, a statistically significant number. [NYT]
Is Your Vet Ripping You Off?
KNBC went undercover and found a bunch of vets are more sales people than pet doctors, using fear to sell more treatment than is necessary. They took pets with minor ailments, checked out by a vet, to several different vets. Instead of getting the minor fixes they should have been recommended, these vets advised expensive extra tests, procedures, and medicines geared more towards lining their pockets than healing the pets. One dog had an upset stomach but was recommended a $300 “eyelid scraping,” despite his eyes being perfect. When confronted, the vet said she had done nothing wrong, and “eyelid scraping is not done in the states, but she used to do it in Austria.” She also admitted there was nothing the matter with the dog’s eyes. The report says that if you get recommended an expensive procedure, get a second opinion.
American Airlines Disputes "Empty Oxygen Tank" Story
American Airlines is disputing reports that the oxygen tanks were empty and that the aircraft’s defibrillator did not work on a flight in which a 44-year-old Brooklyn woman died of complications from heart disease and diabetes.
Watch Out For Medicare Scams
The March issue of Kiplinger’s features an article that will help you spot a medicare health scam before you (or your family) get taken for a ride. Watch out for sneaky insurance agents who ask for personal information or say they are from medicare and can reduce your premium:
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Five days later, I have fully recovered from laser eye surgery and can see everything perfectly and without blurriness. There is still some mild dryness but that’s all. I rate this procedure a STRONG BUY. More details to come.
